FAO Quotables

"But being right, even morally right, isn't everything. It is also important to be competent, to be consistent, and to be knowledgeable. It's important for your soldiers and diplomats to speak the language of the people you want to influence. It's important to understand the ethnic and tribal divisions of the place you hope to assist."
-Anne Applebaum

Thursday, September 2, 2010

PGONism of the Week- BLUF

People love to BLUF in the Pentagon!  I can honestly say I never encountered this term until coming to work here in the PGON.  There is not a day (or two) that goes by that I don't see this term in a powerpoint brief or email...peoples be loving to get their BLUF on   let me reemphasize: people in the PGON love to use this term.


PGONism of the Week- BLUF

Of course this term means: Bottom Line Up Front.  It's most often used at the start of 124 slide powerpoints or circuitous homeresque emails.   And in this aspect, it is hugely valuable!  It allows the reader to assess the nature of the email or brief and then completely zone out of the brief or place the email in the appropriate .pst folder  frame their attention appropriately.


I only wish the users of the ubiquitous BLUF could be just a succinct in the rest of their writing.


The English major in me would like to add though that the general public knows "BLUF" by another name: The topic sentence.  A good topic sentence needs no acronym loudly belching its presence.


PGONism corollary:  When I first saw the term BLUF I immediately went to google to figure out what it meant and this website was the #1 result:


NSFW: http://www.bluf.com


No kidding, this is a website dedicated to Breeches and Leather Uniform Fanclub...yup, that kind of website.  So next time you use or see the word BLUF in a brief I want you to think about the "fraternal homosexual leather organization" and the smart-aleck LT that most likely (earned a fitrep bullet) coined the term BLUF.
FUUO's Pentagonisms:



1 comment:

  1. "The English major in me would like to add that though that the general public knows BLUF by another name: The topic sentence."

    The English major in you needs to read what you write a little closer. "That though that" C'mon!!!

    el Diablo

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