"I didn’t say it was your fault—I said I was going to blame you” is a jocular saying that has been printed on many gift items, such as posters and T-shirts. The saying is what a boss might say to a low-level employee when a scapegoat is needed.
“I didn’t say it was your fault i said i was going to blame you” was cited on LiveJournal in February 2004. In March 2004, this saying was included in a list of “Things you’d like to say at work but can’t.”
LiveJournal
sourbutsweet wrote,
2004-02-09 17:47:00
I didn’t say it was your fault i said i was going to blame you
well thats my darling brother’s outlook on life
Google Groups: rec.crafts.beads
The OT: Things you’d like to say at work but can’t
DreamBeadr
3/6/04
(...)
39. I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you.
LiveJournal
Meagan (meggyb87) wrote,
2004-08-06 10:28:00
I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I was going to blame you 
So yes!
Google Books
Oxymorons and Other Contradictions
By Wrong Way
Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse
2005
Pg. 21:
I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you.
Twitter
Debbie Lynn Butler
@DebbieLynnAVA
RT @waynemansfield: Laugh a Day: I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you. see more of life at http://is.gd/hexi
4:57 AM - 18 Mar 09
Twitter
Traffic Machine
@TraffMach
I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you. http://bit.ly/uXKh8
5:16 AM - 23 Apr 09
The Telegraph (UK)
Seattle: A guide to the West Coast US city
Seattle has nurtured Starbucks and Microsoft – and a fiercely independent attitude, says Mark Jones.
By Mark Jones
11:24AM GMT 08 Nov 2010
(...)
Talking of inexplicable tourist pursuits, I found I developed a thing for Seattle T-shirt shops. You wouldn’t normally go to such places for an instant guide to the genius of a place apart, but Seattle T-shirts are cutting little essays in attitude: “I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you”, said one slogan.
Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.
Recent entries:
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“You can’t leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution” (6/1)
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“You simply cannot leave those who created the problem in chare of the solution!” (6/1)
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“Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it. It flies with the last breath of each soldier…” (6/1)
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“You can’t just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution” (6/1)
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Entry in progress—BP (6/1)
More new entries...
Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps.
Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.
Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.
Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.
This site is edited by Barry Popik.