🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Jun9.133241.12387@decuac.dec.com> avolio@dco.DEC.COM (Frederick M. Avolio) writes:
>FC == Foreign Consulate.
>
>Almost all diplomats, for example, stationed in NYC for the UN have FC plates.

Exploiting the stupidity of the NYPD again, huh?  If I'm not mistaken,
_those_ FC plates are issued by New York State, and aren't officially
recognized anywhere else.  I'm not a New Yorker, but the last time I
was near the UN, I saw a fair number of real diplomatic tags.

For decades now, diplomatic tags, issued by the US Department of State,
have had a distinctive design and begun with either D (diplomat) or
S (staff).  In the current naming scheme, this is followed by a two-letter
code indicating the country (FC is unique to the former Soviet Union)
followed by a three digit serial number.  Typically, the serial number is
unique (that is, you wouldn't see D XX 123 and S XX 123) but I'm not sure
if they still adhere to that.  Also, lower numbers tend to be issued to
higher-ranking officials, although that seems to be at the discretion of
the consulate.  The list of country codes is periodically published in
the Post, although some enterprising publishing company sells a handy
quick-ref pamphlet for about two bucks.

-dave

-- 
David Hsu    hsu@eng.umd.edu      "There you stand like a duck in a
U of Md Systems Research Ctr       thunderstorm again - aren't you ever
College Park, Md  20742-3311       going to understand?"
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