2018 BIMBO OF THE YEAR
“Alien abduction doesn’t define me,” read headlines from Bettina Rodriguez Aguilera, Republican primary candidate for a Florida U.S. House of Representatives seat. “It has nothing to do with what I have done. It happened when I was 7 years old,” Rodriguez Aguilera said. (It certainly did define her in voters’ eyes--Rodriguez Aguilera lost the Republican Primary by a wide margin. The former City Council member claimed she was taken by extraterrestrials to a spaceship at age seven and has since been in touch with them telepathically. Rodriguez Aguilera said the aliens told her “God is a universal energy, not a person.” She emphasized that "the aliens also talked about Isis, an Egyptian goddess." In spite of her outlandish comments, a major newspaper endorsed her bid for Congress. In an attempt to justify the newspaper's decision, Miami Herald editorial page editor, Nancy Ancrum, defended Rodriguez Aguilera with a BIMBO comment of her own, “Here’s why we chose her: She’s not crazy.” Apparently, voters in Miami disagreed.)
Orlando Sentinel, “Florida candidate for Congress: Alien abduction doesn’t define me,” Aug. 24, 2018
(As seen in the September 2018 BIMBO Memo)
THE RUNNERS-UP
“I’m not that stupid,” said Charles, Prince of Wales. (The prince was speaking to BBC about his 70th birthday. During the interview, he explained that he plans to stop speaking out on issues when he becomes king. He may be smart enough to recognize that as king he must play by different rules, but you would have thought he was smart enough to get some media training and rehearse before a major interview. Not surprisingly, the quote made the headline of almost every British paper.)
Irish Examiner, “I’m not that stupid — Prince Charles won’t ‘meddle’ when he is king,” Nov. 8, 2018
(As seen in the December 2018 BIMBO Memo)
“Rodent complaints are not an accurate indicator of the rat population in an area,” said the Chicago Streets and Sanitation spokeswoman after the city was named the rat capital of America. (The study was conducted by apartment search service RentHop.com. Like so many examples, the rest of the quote was better. The spokeswoman highlighted that the complaints show that “Chicagoans care about the health and safety of their communities.” But there’s no denying that being the “rat capital” of America isn’t good, especially since the study went on to identify one cause as “an abundance of garbage.”)
USA Today, “Chicago beats out New York City, Boston and Washington, D.C., as America’s ‘rat capital,’” July 23, 2018
(As seen in the August 2018 BIMBO Memo)
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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