Splitting Brownies
Fraser Nelson 12:55pm
We’re on the last couple of days for collecting entries for the Gordon Brown’s book of fibs, but we haven’t quite decided what to call his embellishments. Many of you say he lies, and we should call a lie by its name. But Brown normally operates by the misleading presentation of a real fact. Unemployment is at a 30-year low, for example, if you just look at claimant count and forget the 5m languishing on other benefits. (This is Brown’s “false proxy” technique, where he gives claimant count as a proxy for joblessness when this long ago ceased to be the case.) So are we talking about Fibs? Brownies? Porkies? Or, as one unkind soul suggested, McPorkies? Suggestions, please.
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Comments
Sniper
February 26th, 2008 1:34pmUtter Balls
Drew
February 26th, 2008 1:36pmTo capture the imprecision, consider the partial obscurity of unreliable electricity supplies - "Brown-outs". Layers of additional puns to be applied here, for those with time on their hands.
Patrick Reehal
February 26th, 2008 2:05pmBrown skid-marks.
Austin Barry
February 26th, 2008 2:11pmFacturds.
Anna
February 26th, 2008 2:22pmstrewth.......methinks you all need to get out more.
Thomas Widmann
February 26th, 2008 2:36pmTo me, Brown's methods are fundamentally the same as those of a magician/illusionist.
Therefore, it would make good sense to call them magic tricks, effects or illusions, or perhaps -- including his name -- Brown tricks or Brown illusions. Perhaps even brownillusions?
Cicero
February 26th, 2008 2:46pmDissemblance.
salieri
February 26th, 2008 2:54pmBrown cows
Trumpeter Lanfried
February 26th, 2008 2:59pmMacavity's Mendacities
Faceless Bureaucrat
February 26th, 2008 3:11pm'Big Gordy's Bumper Book of Lies, Damnned Lies and Bent Statistics'...
RW
February 26th, 2008 3:18pmMcWhoppers? McCorkers? McBallsups? McMyths?
Talia
February 26th, 2008 3:19pmLike the Tories’ list of McGimmicks last week (I’m thinking the Auschwitz trip non-funding) I don’t hold out much hope for this having much of an impact: people don’t seem to be able to grasp the difference between Brown’s claims and reality, unfortunately.
Tim
February 26th, 2008 3:59pmJaw Droppers
SJH
February 26th, 2008 4:02pmAn apt sub-title could be: "There is nothing that you could say to me now that I could ever believe."
Ian B
February 26th, 2008 4:05pmGordon's Guesstimates? Gordon's G(rossly) I(ncompetant) N(umeracy)?
dave, surrey
February 26th, 2008 4:44pmBrownian manipulation: noun, a random listing of numbers and statements in a gaseous (hot air) mixture, usually having the effect of obscuring any truth that might lie therein..
Anan
February 26th, 2008 6:11pmFife brownies.
occasional ranter
February 27th, 2008 3:19pmNutruth - the labour version of untruth.
occasional ranter
February 27th, 2008 3:30pmor maybe "Brown Noise": the sound which according to urban legend causes in the listener an irresistible urge to defecate....
Nicholas
February 28th, 2008 8:50amI like the idea of "Nutruth" from occasional ranter. You could also have "Labfact" or "Labstat" which also means "Lie As Brown Fact".