[QUOTE=silverbk;60387]I guess someone here should correct the wikipedia article:)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_mariner[/QUOTE]
That’s just an page in Wikipedia…sure you can call me a banana if you want (and I am sure many here do 
The real license reals “Master of steam or motor (or sail) vessels of any gross tons upon oceans”. Nowhere on the license are the two words Master and Mariner used together. Nor are they found on an STCW certificate either.
If you go around calling yourself master mariner, it is only a fabrication to make oneself larger than you really are hence the pomposity reference. I have met such people and they drive me nuts (but so does everything else for that matter)