[vladog]

They always called us 'Troop' when I was in basic. I still call all of the military no matter what branch, troops. Its non-gender specific, (For all the pc'ers out there and it rolls off the tongue.)

[Wolfstar]

Having noted that a couple of FReepers said the term "troop" for an individual was used while they were in the military, perhaps I shouldn't be blaming the media for originating this usage, but borrowing it. Nevertheless, "troop" is the collective form and "trooper" is the singular form. On the other hand, the language is always evolving as some words fall out of usage, new ones are added, and new meanings are attached to existing words. Example: the original meaning of "gay" vs. how the word is used today.