指桑骂槐
Stratagems of Combining · 并战计Criticize one thing to send a message to another. Use indirect warning to discipline or control without direct confrontation.
A general wanted to discipline a disobedient officer without direct confrontation. He publicly punished a different subordinate for a minor infraction, making the intended target understand the message without the general having to address him directly.
GE's Jack Welch ranked employees and publicly fired the bottom 10%. The "mulberry" was the fired employees, but the "locust" was everyone else — the message was clear: perform or leave. Indirect discipline through visible consequence.
When regulators make a high-profile example of one company (the "mulberry"), the entire industry (the "locust") takes notice. The SEC's enforcement actions against one hedge fund often cause all funds to change behavior.