The Bavarian Fire Drill

This is called a “Bavarian Fire Drill” and the trick to pulling it off is to have absolute confidence that it’s going to work. If you seem even the slightest bit nervous or hesitant, everyone will see right through it. Case in point: In 1906, a German con man named Wilhelm Voigt dressed up in a German Army captain’s uniform and entered the town of Köpenick claiming to be an “inspector” (inspector of what, he never specified). He managed to wrangle ten German soldiers and a sergeant into assisting him, ordered the local police to halt all telephone calls to Berlin for an hour, arrested the mayor and treasurer for nonexistent charges of crooked bookkeeping, and confiscated the town’s entire treasury complete with a receipt which he signed with his former jail director’s name. He only got caught (two weeks later) because his former cellmate blabbed, and was later pardoned by Kaiser Wilhelm II who found the whole thing hilarious.

This meme is a screenshot of a text post explaining the “Bavarian Fire Drill,” a scam that succeeds through absolute confidence. It gives the real example of Wilhelm Voigt, who impersonated a German Army captain, took control of Köpenick, arrested local officials, and confiscated the town treasury before being caught because a former cellmate talked. The joke is that such an absurdly bold fraud worked because nobody questioned someone who acted completely confident. It is shared as a reaction to audacious deception or confidently pretending to have authority. EN: This meme is a screenshot of a text post explaining the “Bavarian Fire Drill,” a scam that succeeds through absolute confidence. It gives the real example of Wilhelm Voigt, who impersonated a German Army captain, took control of Köpenick, arrested local officials, and confiscated the town treasury before being caught because a former cellmate talked. The joke is that such an absurdly bold fraud worked because nobody questioned someone who acted completely confident. It is shared as a reaction to audacious deception or confidently pretending to have authority.

• @rzeczyzabawne / 16391 2024-05-01