Chunk
I will defer to your knowledge of your "traditions". I was, however, aware that navy flyers always did, in fact, call their short runways, a boat. I knew that even being a lowly "grunt". Fine traditions we all have.
I am also aware, that many of the brothers in "the hood", call their women and girlfriends a "Ho". All the rap music seems to have engrained that as a "tradition" also. I just do not accept that term either, as a proper term for a woman. Maybe it's just me? I am not about to even try to change the culture of navy flyers, and their jargon. Heck, I still have some of my own slang from my days in the USMC, that one who never served there would even have a clue as to what I was talking about. But, whenever I am with another ex-marine (or current jarhead, for that matter) and I use some of those terms, he would know exactly what I was talking about with some of those strange terms and words.
We all have our traditions and slang. I still can differentiate between what is slang, and the meaning of slang, from the kings English and purist dictionery definitions. I agree though, that we ALL have our own "language" in our inner circles.