Reminds me of this ancedote: http://www.ted.com/talks/mark_forsyth_what_s_a_snollygoster_...

When forming the US Government they had to name the new position. Some wanted it to be regal and powerful, others wanted to keep it humble so the leader wouldn't let the power get to his head. Originally the title President was the lowest and most humble title they could think of for the head of state in the new United States. You only presided over a meeting. Now due to it labeling the position of power the connotation has changed and everyone wants to be President.

Yup. I used to live in DC, where the public transit system insists on calling its riders "customers". We all found it stilted and patronizing.

Your attitude toward your users/customers/whatever matters. The word you call them, not so much.

The word "customer" already has negative connotations. For example, see Jay-Z's song, "You're Only a Customer," where the hook exclaims:

You're only a customer (uh)

Walkin' in the presence of hustlers

You spend money all night long

"All night long."

Thousands of people, referred to in documents as "customers", are alleged to be directly funding the suspicious private activities of a Jack Dorsey and his co-conspirators at a little-known pseudobank called Square.