"Governor" Palin? How about "Mayor"?

Do you think that if a governor chooses to end his or her term early, they should still have the privilege of being addressed as "Governor" such-and-such?

I realize that the tradition, generally speaking, is to retain the highest title one has held in government. Or at least to be referred to as "former (office title)" blah blah. In the case of the President (both current and former), there is even a special song that can only be played in certain contexts.

But if an officeholder elects to cut their term short, voluntarily, with no mitigating medical issues, for example, should they retain their former title? I'm not talking about a person who finishes a term (think Gerald Ford); nor am I thinking about a person who has become unable to serve for one reason or another.  Some offices are often left voluntarily and with honor, such as life-term judgeships.

For instance, in World of Warcraft, doing certain cool things earns you different titles like Battlemaster or Light of Dawn. Players can choose which title to display, or they can display no title at all.  Nice to have that flexibility.

Are ex-officeholders able to cycle through their titles like WoW characters? "No, Tom, tonight you may refer to me as Battlemaster Palin."  Or, "No, Megyn, I prefer to be called Twilight Vanquisher Palin."

I propose that if you ever run into Sarah Palin, you should use HER alternate title: Mayor.

I can hear it now...

"Mayor Palin! Mayor Palin! Can you tell us how you've managed to learn so little about American history during your PAC-funded bus tours, in spite of being at the historical locations themselves, having plenty of time to explore and learn, and of course having access to all the best tour guides and support?"

[And yet when she appears on a remote interview, she's almost always in front of some huge lake with lots of pine trees and snow in the background - hate to break it to ya, Mayor, but that's not what Chicago looks like]

Of course, this would be a breach of etiquette, and you probably wouldn't get invited back to any press conferences.  Nonetheless, allow me to draw a more precise comparison.  A friend of mine refers to his stepfather as "Dad" and his biological father as "the guy who ran out on my mom when I was 9 to live with some underwear model in Reno."

Perhaps referring to Sarah Palin as Mayor would emphasize the fact that we won't let it be forgotten that she abandoned an office of trust in order to shill for Rupert Murdoch, sell books, and take pointless "vacations" at the expense of her PAC.

Perhaps.