This month we’re keeping it short and sweet! Enjoy a bite-sized BIMBO Memo as we head into colder weather.
THE WINNING BIMBO
He “is not a violent person; he doesn’t walk around the streets of NJ looking like Hitler,” wrote Cynthia Hughes, the adoptive aunt of Timothy Hale-Cusanelli who was sentenced to four years in federal prison after storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The accused extremist didn’t do himself any favors testifying on his own behalf when he claimed that he didn’t know Congress met at the Capitol. “I know this sounds idiotic, but I’m from New Jersey,” he explained. Emphasizing the “idiot” part, he repeated, “I feel like an idiot, it sounds idiotic, and it is.” At least he is somewhat self-aware? Poor New Jersey.
NBC News, “Nazi sympathizer and Army reservist who stormed the Capitol sentenced to 4 years in Jan. 6 case,” Sept. 22, 2022
THE RUNNERS UP
“Giorgia Meloni Is Extreme, but She’s No Tyrant,” read the headline in a New York Times column reporting on Meloni’s decisive win for her Brothers of Italy party. The media continually reminds us that her party is descended from Mussolini’s apparatus. The writer, an Italian journalist, was trying to make the case that Meloni was not going to institute Fascist policies nor would she become an autocrat like Hungary’s Viktor Orban. The thoughtful and persuasive article is badly damaged by the headline.
The New York Times, “Giorgia Meloni is Extreme, but She’s No Tyrant,” Sept. 26, 2022
It is “definitely not a bluff,” said former Russian prime minister, now deputy chairman of the country’s security council, Dmitry Medvedev, emphasizing that Moscow had a right to defend itself with nuclear weapons. The threat was made as Russia claimed that occupied territories had voted overwhelmingly to ally with Russia, notwithstanding widely reported incidents of soldiers threatening voters with guns. We’re disposed to believe that this is a true statement not a BIMBO. We hope the Biden Administration also believes it and is planning accordingly.
The New York Times, “As Russians Flee, Some Find Draft Notices Waiting at the Border,” Sept. 27, 2022
“I am not an extremist,” has become the slogan for Republican congressional candidate Jen Kiggans. In response to ads from her Democratic challenger she said, “I try to go up there and be a mom, a Navy veteran and a normal person.” She continued, “I’ve been called a lot of things in my life but extremist, that’s a new one.” She apparently isn’t familiar with the famous comment from Sen. Barry Goldwater’s presidential campaign: “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice.” It contributed to Goldwater losing the election. Few people know the second half of the comment, “Moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue.” The word “extremist” was all people heard. Note that the denial also became the headline.
The Washington Post, “Ad attacks leave Kiggans trying to reclaim image: ‘I’m not an extremist,’” Sept. 11, 2022
“We are not going to look at individual names on the turnstiles,” wrote Jefferies Financial Group CEO Rich Handler and President Brian Friedman in a memo to employees telling them to come back. What about Covid? “As long as Covid continues to be manageable, we need everyone back in our offices on a consistent basis so we can truly maximize our fourth and final quarter and the future that is ahead.” Good try! Notice that the “internal” memo immediately leaked to Bloomberg. It would have been better if the CEO said, “We value individual privacy and we trust our team members to be on their honor.”
Bloomberg, “Jefferies Tells Staff to Come Back to Office on Consistent Basis,” Sept. 1, 2022
The BIMBO Memo is a reminder not to repeat and deny a negative word because of how the listener hears words. When you repeat and deny a negative word, the listener is likely to overlook the denial and hear the opposite of what the speaker is trying to say. It’s named for the young woman who was caught with a high profile, but alas married man. She held a press conference and announced, “I am not a BIMBO,” thus causing everyone to think she was.
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