I'm on your side on the standards issue, because I believe it's beneficial to give a constructive outlet to passionate but sometimes hot-headed people who enliven FT.

However your characterization of admin controls as the main difference if off target. I was a de facto moderator on the Southwest forum for YEARS without a title or any admin controls. I didn't need them. Just like beaubo, I take pride in my ability to maintain a calm forum by gentle persuasion. The best Ambassadors would develop that skill over time. It's just my own opinion, but I believe that a sizeable percentage of Ambassadors (although not the hot-headed people I mentioned above) will eventually become moderators, in an entirely natural progression.

The ambassador's role is different from the moderator's more in degree than in kind. Attempting to maintain a wall of separation between the roles is therefore both a bad idea and doomed to fail.