Plural gender neutral greeting after "Dear"

Yes, just for future reference: Sending mods (and other members) sexually suggestive (and/or blatant) messages directly after a ban is lifted is contraindicated.

 

I feel like I missed out on something by sleeping in this morning...

 

Or rather, Mesdames ("my ladies"), abbreviation Mmes.

In correspondence, if I need to be formal and don't know the gender of the recipients, I go with Dear Sirs and Mesdames. Or Dear Mesdames and Messieurs.
In a less formal context, where I'm from Hey, Guys! is totally gender-neutral.

 

I'm not from the South, but I rather like "y'all" as a gender neutral term.

 

Welcome and thanks for coming fellow muchkins.

Y'all is def. winning.

 

I do use y'all and all y'all (which is very different than y'all as I'm sure all y'all are aware).

But a good gender neutral I've found in a California is dude.

Although we tend to use it in a frustrated, angry, chiding, aggressive, or excited tone. It's not often used casually—the main populace usually use it jokingly or else at the peak of high emotions of one kind or another.

Also, inanimate objects are also dude, as are animals and people and random forces of nature.

For instance "Dude, seriously?" cane be use for:

1. Stubbing my little toe on the corner of the coffee table,

2. A reckless driver cuts through two lanes of traffic without a signal to get off an exit 600ft prior to said exit and almost causes a serious collision with multiple driver,

3. The wind just blew up my skirt in public and refuses to settle down,

4. My best friend just bought me an all expanse paid trip to Puerto Rico,

and so on〜

 

Esteemed Dudes,

The United States Department of Justice for the District of Puerto Rico formally requests from the Republic of Colombia the extradition of Colombian citizen Fulano De Tal* for reasons stipulated in indictment # 13.....
​

That would be fun.


* (Fulano de Tal is the Spanish version of Joe Schmoe)

 

Thank you for the laugh!
(Not a Spanish speaker but we have some similar issues in Portuguese as well.)

I was taught, in school,

Dear Sir or Madam,
​

Does this work in the context, and can it replace the "estimados"? (I think it can, in formal Portuguese, that's why I'm asking.)

 

Needs more “most excellent”.

 

That should do it.

 

Hahahaha

 

You'll recognize it from the allusion made in Miéville's The City and the City.

The Jane Doe that is found at the beginning of the story is referred to as Fulana Detail. Just one of those little easter eggs that makes Miéville such a delight.