Saddam

[Adam Stevens]

At 07:21 PM 9/21/99 -1000, you wrote:
>In that case, obviously, one couldn't support such a 'mistake.'
>
>I recall also during the war on Iraq's civilian population on Larry King
>Live once, the ambassador  ot the United Nations representing Iraq was
>taking phone calls from the US public and one caller kept on calling him
>by his first name.  The ambassador stopped him and insisted that he  first
>get clear that it was not proper to call an ambassador by his first name
>and that second it was even more proper to refer to him as Mr.
>Ambassador....Not that I'm that into  authority reinforcing
>appelations....but in that instance I was saying to myself...Right on Mr.
>Ambasssador, you tell him...
>

It reminds me of the way American southerners would only refer to
African-Americans by their first names' -- never as "Mr.," or "Mrs."  It's
deliberately condescending.