Fireman...or...Firefighter

Are you a fireman or a firefighter? Since its conception the fire service has changed from a completely male dominated vocation to a gender diverse group. Since that time we have all been walking around on egg shells worried about what to call our fellow workers. I say cut the crap. Society in general has developed into a more diverse workforce. Women are no longer like June Clever living at home, and that's a wonderful thing. Now let's get down to whether we are firemen or firefighters. Let's break down each word and look at its meaning. Fireman is not a male gender specific term. There certainly aren't any firewomen. That word does not exist in the dictionary. Does that mean the dictionary is sexist? No, of course it doesn’t because the word fireman is not sexist either. The root form of the word man in the word fireman does not refer to the male gender.  It refers to all of mankind. Mankind is composed of men and women, or women and men.  Pick your favorite version.  It doesn't matter.  Firefighter broken down means we are fighters of fire.  We battle the big red beast.  We all do that, both men and women.  We are all part of mankind, both men and women. So let's cut the crap and stop worrying about what we are called, or what we call each other. We are all in this together, risking our lives to save strangers.  We all have each other’s back so stop walking on egg shells and just be firemen, or firefighters.  Pick your favorite term but don't have any hang-ups either way.  It all means the same thing. We are a special breed of mankind and we should stick together no matter what.  Stop the madness...