any takers?

[James Harbeck]

Well, a dirk is a dagger, so I guess the idea is that he didn't show
some level of preparedness to fight (or even, perhaps, metaphorically
_use_ the dirk; "flash" is a little unclear in this context)...

Google tells me that this is not a current phrase; it appears to be
this writer's innovation. The writer, Michael Powell, shows other
evidence in the article of liking a bit of life in his metaphors: "He
flapped like a hawk on foreign politics and sang like a moderate bird
on domestic affairs." "He finished fifth and soon folded his tent."
"Mr. McCain had fallen into a political manhole the previous summer
and was still crawling out from single digits in the polls."
"Couldn't the red-meat stuff get a bit uncomfortable at Republican
rallies?"

James Harbeck.

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