you guys give up sooo easily. let's analyze: a person who is blowing smoke is attempting to deceive. magicians often used smoke and mirrors to deceive. smoke is used to obfuscate in all kinds of situations.

"Will the enemy attack tonight?" "Nah, he's just blowing smoke."

4. In proverbial, figurative, or allusive uses: e. Denoting a clouding or obscuring medium or influence. spec. in Espionage, false information to distract opponents.
1565 Cooper Thesaurus s.v. Fuligo, To speake obscurely: to cast a darke smoke or miste before their eies. 1581 J. Bell Haddon's Answ. Osorius 273b, Why shamed he not to blind the eyes of the people with such smoakes? 1594 T. B. tr. De la Primaud. Fr. Acad. ii. 333 Their eies dimmed with some smoake of honours. 1603 J. Davies (Heref.) Microcosmos Wks. (Grosart) I. 78/1 The Eyes that+smoke of praise Doe dimme, are feeble-sighted. a1677 Barrow Serm. Wks. 1716 I. 167 Truth will not be discerned through the smoak of wrathful expressions. [1859 G. W. Matsell Vocabulum 82 Smoke, humbug; any thing said to conceal the true sentiment of the talker; to cover the intent.] 1864 Tennyson Aylmer's F. 672 Thro' the smoke, The blight of low desires. 1873 Farrar Silence & V. Ser. i. 22 Reading them+through the lurid smoke of sectarian hate. 1966 ‘A. Hall’ 9th Directive xxi. 200 ‘No go. I got myself cornered. One dead.’+ ‘Do you need any smoke out?’ 1977 ‘J. le Carré’ Honourable Schoolboy iv. 91 For smoke+Molly chose a dozen other R's.

f. Denoting fraudulent dealing in the fulfilment of bargains or promises; esp. to sell smoke (after L. fumum vendere), to act dishonestly, to swindle.
1589 Greene Menaphon Wks. (Grosart) VI. 106 You get but a handfull of smoake to the bargaine. 1599 Nashe Lenten Stuff Wks. (Grosart) V. 306 That for your selling smoake you may be courtiers. 1655 tr. Sorel's Com. Hist. Francion iv. 24, I abandoned their conversation, because I found they were but sellers of smoak. 1692 Washington tr. Milton's Def. People Pref., To relieve the necessities of Nature+by selling of Smoke, as thou dost.



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