to stir the pot and make China feel that we are poking a stick in their eye

“We in no way want to stir the pot and make China feel that we are poking a stick in their eye,” Dana Perino, the White House press secretary, told reporters, adding, “We understand the Chinese have very strong feelings about this.”

白宫发言人佩瑞罗说：“我们不想再对中国人火上浇油。”

Re: Stir the pot

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Posted by Bob on January 02, 2001

In Reply to: Stir the pot posted by Patty on January 02, 2001

: What does the phrase "to stir the pot" generally mean? And does it mean to be in some way deliberately provocative or irritating? Thanks. - Patty

Deliberately provocative, yes, but not necessarily maliciously. Picture a pot of soup. A lot of ingredients have settled to the bottom, out of sight, until stirred. Metaphorically, a lot of issues/resentments/obligations can drop out of sight when nobody mentions them. One can "stir the pot" to bring issues to the surface, sometimes with malice, but sometimes merely to create awareness and effect change.

Re: to poke a stick in somebody's eye
To me, it means to hurt/criticize someone.

There is an expression that goes "Well, it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick." Perhaps it's a Southern expression. Anyway, it's used when something isn't great, but it isn't bad.