Yeah, folks seem to be on the right track with the interpretation here
The threats are impressive, in that they inspire enough fear to force the person being threatened into cooperation. But the "gorilla pounds his desk" and the "Torpedo in the vest' are showing the idea of the person inspiring this fear as being impressive in brute power, but not in finer thinking. They are impressive, and scary, but inspiring fear is not the same as inspiring loyalty and respect.
The gorilla is impressive in strength and ferocity, but beyond immediate orders in which disobedience is met with violence, one wouldn't want to take his words as any sort of wisdom. The torpedo in the vest is possibly a war general, impressive in destructive force, but nothing more than a tool for war. So he's 'remembering the exits in back of him' so when things go wrong he can get the hell out of Dodge.
Yeah, folks seem to be on the right track with the interpretation here
The threats are impressive, in that they inspire enough fear to force the person being threatened into cooperation. But the "gorilla pounds his desk" and the "Torpedo in the vest' are showing the idea of the person inspiring this fear as being impressive in brute power, but not in finer thinking. They are impressive, and scary, but inspiring fear is not the same as inspiring loyalty and respect.
The gorilla is impressive in strength and ferocity, but beyond immediate orders in which disobedience is met with violence, one wouldn't want to take his words as any sort of wisdom. The torpedo in the vest is possibly a war general, impressive in destructive force, but nothing more than a tool for war. So he's 'remembering the exits in back of him' so when things go wrong he can get the hell out of Dodge.