first name basis--saddam

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I was just watching that house of commons and mr. blair kept referring to "saddam"...like..."saddam has to abide etc."...and I got to thinking. how come people make sure to use "mr. blair" or "president bush" or whatever yet they allow themselves to call president hussain "saddam?" it's not like tony sez "yeh, saddam better watch it cuz me an' george might just have to ride in there and kill him and stuff." hey? do 'evil' people not deserve respect or 'title' or surname-acknowledgement?

― RJG (RJG), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:15 (twenty-three years ago)

cos if he said Hussein ppl would think he was talking about the cricketer.

― MarkH (MarkH), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:17 (twenty-three years ago)

but he has a common surname (cf eg king hussein), so it might be confusing!!

i think the entire axis if evil shd change their name to dave gorman (individually or collectively)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:18 (twenty-three years ago)

oh you mean it's axis? I thought Blair & Bush were talking about axes.

― MarkH (MarkH), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:20 (twenty-three years ago)

Yet AGAIN ILE picks up on an issue AGES after the Metro letters page has done it to death. Answers there range from: to show lack of respect to an evil despot (as you suggest) to well, actually, his first name is in fact Hussein and his family name is Saddam so they are right (not convinced by this).

Get with the program, ILX.

― Emma, Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:20 (twenty-three years ago)

Surely this issue was first debated by the greatest idle minds of our generation in like, 1989 (or 10 BM)?

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:23 (twenty-three years ago)

BM = Before Metro, btw.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:24 (twenty-three years ago)

it makes it sound as if they like him.

even if they put a this-person-IS-bad inflection on it. they should call him president saddam, at least--he won that election quite well. and it'd sort of make him sound more cartoony.

people who cannot distinguish between kings and presidents and cricketers: C/D?

I don't read the metro and you don't make me want to.

― RJG (RJG), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:24 (twenty-three years ago)

I have no idea of what was going on in the world BM.

― Emma, Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:24 (twenty-three years ago)

yes, metro already been here, i wont go over old ground

i believe that for a long while (1960s-), the name hussein was not used in iraqi ruling circles, to disguise the fact that a large number of the ruling elite were related. this fizzled out after saddam got the iron grip and this wasnt necessary any more

(of course this is not the reason why the west calls him saddam, justt an aside)

― gareth (gareth), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:25 (twenty-three years ago)

his first name is SO NOT hussein, though!!

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:25 (twenty-three years ago)

The name "Saddam" has that Big-Evil-Wizard-Up-On-the-Hill kinda vibe to it, and it seems like We the People are getting played-on with fear, and "Saddam" is a name that, repeated often enough, strikes fear into people's hearts, much much moreso than "Mr. Hussein" would...thus, PM Blair and p-Resident Bush refer to him as "Saddam".

Plus, I have the feeling they're all actually good buddies. They're all 3 supposedly Freemasons.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:25 (twenty-three years ago)

Do you think we could not have an embargo on topics already discussed in Metro? Or perhaps we should go further and refuse to chat about anything discussed on the internet. It's in the public domain, if you haven't done your homework that's just tough.

― Mark C (Mark C), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:28 (twenty-three years ago)

It sounds like Sodom, which excites Christian extremists and Venom fans.

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:30 (twenty-three years ago)

That has always been my approach to ILx, Mark.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:31 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm just surprised that Bush isn't calling him Maddass.

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:34 (twenty-three years ago)

The New York Times calls him "Mr. Hussein," but everyone else in the world uses "Saddam." This has always bugged me, but then again I also hate it when people end Hitler's first name with a 'ph.'

― Justyn Dillingham (Justyn Dillingham), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:48 (twenty-three years ago)

Maybe they just end it with a 'phh' to indicate their disgust.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 15:55 (twenty-three years ago)

saddamn.

― RJG (RJG), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 16:25 (twenty-three years ago)

i think everyone should refer to him as General Kilbaba, like they did in the old videogame Desert Strike

― stevem (blueski), Wednesday, 8 January 2003 17:41 (twenty-three years ago)

eleven months pass...

hi I saw u in the papers and on the tv I like ur style and wondered what ur doing now and who ur influences r and what made u want to be on tv

big ups to ur family and i hope u get to be in tv more

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 22 December 2003 02:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Isn't he called "Saddam" even outside of the Western world?

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 22 December 2003 02:53 (twenty-two years ago)

I.e., "Saddam" is how he's properly addressed; it's not disrespectful.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 22 December 2003 02:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Given the connections between Saddam and members of the Bush Administration, they might very well be on a first-name basis.

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Monday, 22 December 2003 06:01 (twenty-two years ago)

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