One of my pet peeves is the habit of referring to Bush Senior as

[CoffeeAnnan]

Pappy, Barbara Bush as Babs,Rumsfeld as Rummy and so on.These terms humanize those we need to express our dislike and contempt for.I think we should cease this practice.

As I was writing, I realized this is exactly why I dislike Maureen Dowd and her strutting and preening on the Op-Ed pages of the NYT.She has reached a terminal stage in the fawning and cozying up to power with her prolific use of these affectatious nicknames.

[Obviousman]

1. umm, ive always seen them as put downs

You don't call someone you respect "rummy". To show respect, you would say sec. of defense

[CoffeeAnnan]

6. It would never occur to me call Adolf Hitler by any nickname.The

instant we give a person a nickname, we become complicit in his acts and, what is worse,acquiesce to them.At the same time, inadvertently, we demonize his opponent.You need not go far to look at this practice.Look at the way GW Bush uses nicknames for reporters that he favors.This is the way he disarms them and confers Preferred status on the favored few.

[Shadowen]

2. Well, let me ask you something...

Do you refer to Bush as Shrub, Dubya, Dumbya, Georgie-Boy, etc.?

Nicknames can humanize, and they can also degrade.

[Minstrel Boy]

3. It's not Pappy, it's Poppy. Which I think is highly appropriate,

given his complicity in narco-trafficking.

Otherwise, I agree. I would also add "Shrub" or "Dubya." They can keep their terms of endearment. Even if some are meant in gentle mockery, it's too gentle.

[booksenkatz]

4. It keeps me from calling them names that are too rude even for DU. nt

[benddem]

5. poppy is his nickname

he's had it since childhood

[CoffeeAnnan]

8. That is precisely why I don't want to call him Poppy.I don't know him,

I don't want to know him and want him to leave us alone.I will call him Mr.Bush.That way I can preserve the seriousness of the matters we discuss here at DU.I will leave the frivolous strutting to, who else, MoDo.More Dough?

[Menshevik]

7. I hate when they call him "41"

and when he wore that 41 cap and crackhead wore the 43 cap when they were out golfing

bleh

[blm]

9. Not pappy, it's Poppy. He was an architect of the international drug trade

and its manipulation for undermining targeted nations and other covert military actions.

"Poppy" was known to be his CIA nick. Embrace it for its nefarious meanings. Never tire of sharing his evil history with the rest of the world.

[TrustingDog]

10. it's 'Poppy' not Pappy, related to drug dealings.

[Javaman]

11. I usually refer to him as Daddio or daddio moron