An example of "wild knitting" in Germany this October
Now that’s a neologism: baghdadbobbian
In a post about Iran, blogger Russ Vaughn suggests that “laughably implausible denials by official sources” be characterized as baghdadbobbian, after Baghdad Bob—the nickname for Iraqi Information Minister Muhammed Saeed al-Sahaf. Vaughn also recounts the telling scene for Baghdad Bob, remembering the moment “when the general was on split screen TV touting the glorious victories of the Iraqi forces while the other side of the screen showed live footage of American tanks rolling through the streets of Ol’ Bob’s namesake city.” It’s the equivalent of telling your parents that no, of course you didn’t have a party, right before a drunk guy falls off the chandelier and into the middle of your conversation.
Other not-so-smooth talking: This week TIME’s Alex Altman explains a similar phenomenon, one especially loved by politicians: the non-denial denial. He defines the non-denial denial as “a way for the embattled to parry allegations while hedging against getting caught in a lie.” And the most recent example comes from presidential hopeful Herman Cain. After an Atlanta woman accused Cain of carrying on a 13-year affair with her, Cain’s lawyer issued this statement: “This appears to be an accusation of private, alleged consensual conduct between adults – a subject matter which is not a proper subject of inquiry by the media or the public.” Meanwhile, Cain said he’s now “reassessing” his bid, after this and weeks of sexual harassment allegations.