Linux conquered, Tuttle man takes on London

The much-admired Tuttle, Oklahoma can-do spirit has survived this week's thrashing at the hands of Linux fanboys everywhere. In a gesture proving Tuttle's resiliency, city namesake and US ambassador to the UK Robert Tuttle has struck out against London's "congestion charge" and earned himself the designation of "chiseling little crook."

The twists and turns of this story aren't for the faint of heart.

For the last few days, The Register has documented the the travails of Tuttle city manager Jerry Taylor. This chap found himself in a web server war of grand proportions and threatened to call the FBI if Linux maker CentOS did not help him configure one of the city's web servers. The alarming, fierce tone of Taylor's support requests turned him into a symbol of users gone wrong in the Linux community. In fact, the Linux zealots have now proposed that an unreasonable support request be called a "Tuttle."

Across the pond, another Tuttleite - Ambassador Tuttle - has captured the scorn of London mayor Ken Livingstone.

Ambassador Tuttle has been fighting with London officials for months over the city's congestion charge. London currently taxes cars that enter the city center in a bid to reduce traffic or at least make a profit from it. Tuttle believes that diplomats should be exempt from this charge, placing the US embassy at odds with city rules.

"It would actually be quite nice if the American ambassador in Britain could pay the charge like everybody else and not skive out of it like some chiseling little crook," said mayor Livingstone, according to media reports.

An embassy spokesman has denied that Tuttle had anything to do with the decision, saying it was made well before the ambassador took office last July.

Fighting a traffic tax, however, wouldn't be out of order for Ambassador Tuttle.

The California native is a wealthy car dealer and close friend of power-hungry US President George W. Bush.

Coming full circle, Tuttle is the grandson of James Harley Tuttle - the namesake of Tuttle, Oklahoma.

Ambassador Tuttle's father Holmes Tuttle moved from Tuttle to California where he set up a Ford dealership and befriended former president Ronald Reagan. Holmes Tuttle, in fact, is credited with convincing Reagan to run for the California governor post.

Ambassador Tuttle then went to work for Reagan, achieving the post of chief of personnel.

You can see a picture of W. holding a Tuttle boy here and photos of the Ambassador's grand coronation here. And for some great Jerry Taylor art head to Fark country.

As they say, you can take the man out of Tuttle, but you can't take the Tuttle out of the man, especially if he's named Tuttle. ®