how rude is forgetting someone's name?

The other day, I attended a funeral with hundreds of people I used to know, some in passing, some in utter depth, most of whom I had pretty much forgotten about. The "out of sight, out of mind" rule means with it go a number of names, which, for the most part, bear no relevance in your life. However, once forgotten, they are hard to recap and forcing their recovery is a pure and desperate waste of time. Facebook helps, to some extent, but doesn't account for the millions of old people you have met through your extended family at one stage or another. So, the avoidance strategies commence...
1) say hi. This is a simple but effective avoidance of a name and focuses instead on the salute, a warmer and much more significant exchange.
2) If the person in question has a kid, whose name wasn't even in your list of name worries, refer to them as "little one" or if you plan on buttering the bearers up a bit, call them cuties, sweeties or anything else sickly sweet. Never ever reveal genders i.e How's your daughter doing? This can irrevocably work against you if, for some reason, it slipped your busy mind that perhaps, just perhaps, they have a son.
3) Bumping into someone on the street is easy peasy. You feign a hurried look and make a run for it or just keep looking at the pavement. Whatever the case, the person in question will assume you are stressed, active and someone to look up to in their own boring lives.