GOVERNMENT: "HILLARY" VERY UNPOPULAR NAME FOR NEWBORNS

Today I received an interesting email that pointed out the popularity, or lack thereof, of baby names. Of course, the email was focused on the name "Hillary" and its ranking over the past 15 years--'92-'06. Rankings are on a scale from 1-1000. If a particular name falls outside the range, it gets no listing. (Sorry, Kitty)

A couple names that are almost never given to babies anymore: Ebenezer and Adolph. I don't think an explanation is needed.

Now, back to the name Hillary. With the presidential process beginning to boil, I think her name's ranking over the last 15 years is significant, especially since she carries such high negatives. You might not think so, however, at the very least, it's interesting.

Starting in '92, her name was very popular at 131. After that, it went in the toilet. In fact, for two years it was outside the range of 1000. The last year of stats--'06--has it on the ledge at 982. The stats, btw, are gathered by the Social Security Administration. The stats graphed below are from another source but the rankings are similar and go back to '60. The graph is easier to look at too.

You'll have to decided for yourselves whether "Hillary", the person, is the reason parents are avoiding the name.

After reading all about Her Royal Pantsuit's name, I thought it would be fun to check out the names of a few folks in my tiny world. Ok, here we go:

1. Kitty--again, sorry. I love the name, parents don't.

2. Pamela and Douglas--Average and above average in rankings. Solid.

3. Stew--Sorry. Get together with Kitty. "Stewart" ranks with Hillary, though.

4. Gayle--Ouch. See #3. Mary Ann, join Gayle for drinks.

5. Charles--Yikes. Very popular.

6. Aaron and Andrea--Scary popular.

7. John--Wow.

My first and middle name: William David-- My apologies to #1 thru #6. According to these stats, I'm only able to hang out with #7. See ya!

Have fun checking it yourself. Social Security Administration website. Scroll a tiny bit and you'll find the stat checker on the right.