"The reason, as I now understand, is that you must not be on the record saying that somebody is
no good. You must be seen as a friend. After all, as Humphrey explained so cogently that morning,
it is necessary to get behind someone before you can stab them in the back.
The interesting thing about expressing support for Jameson is that it was indeed the right thing to do.
Jameson was good. He was extremely honest and efficient. And Sir Humphrey planned to say so. And this is why
Sir Humphrey's tactics were so confusing to me at first.
But I should have been patient. He spelled it out.
*Stage One: Express absolute support.
*Stage Two: List all his praiseworthy qualities, especially those that would make him unsuitable for the job.
*Stage Three: Continue to praise those qualities to the point where they become positive vices.
*Stage Four: Mention his bad points by defending and excusing them.
Stage Three is simply done, I learned that day, by oversimplification. You label someone. If for instance, someone is a good man
he can seriously be damaged by calling him 'Mr. Clean'. Strange, but true.