Today, Captain William D. Swenson was awarded the Medal of Honor. In describing Will's heroic actions under fire, President Obama used the word "meters" several times, with *no conversions* to any units of distance outside the SI.
Of course, as we all know, US military personnel already speak "meters" with fluency. Fortunately, President Obama displayed a willingness to accept the meter as the preferred unit of distance. Unfortunately, many commentators in the news media are not so inclined to speak the word meter. They remain misguided by the Associated Press Style Guide, studiously avoiding the word meter. Watch and listen to the Aware Ceremony, in meters, when it is rebroadcast. Eugene Mechtly
