May, that makes sense to me. I always thought that name tags were not just a convenience for customers, but a power symbol. Knowing my name means you have power over me and can force me to engage in a situation on a personal level. A simple ma'am or 'you there' or 'hey' can't do that. It is especially apparent when it is one way, but even in situations when both parties wear name tags it increases the power difference. For instance in a retail situation, even when your store manager wears a name tag, when he calls you by name, even though you know he has no idea who you are, but is just reading your tag, there is something about that the reaffirms your position int he power structure. It does not work in the reverse, because he knows you know who he is.