Junker Flunker

1. An old car that doesn't qualify for the $4,500 cash trade-in incentive from the government because it gets more than 15 mpg.
2. The sudden realization that your old beater vehicle is lost in the twilight zone between "generally worthless" and "totally worthless," forcing you to keep driving it for another year -- at least.
"I just looked up the mileage for my 1996 RAV4. The stupid Junker Flunker gets 16 mpg, which means I won't be getting any of that government cash after all. Drat!"
by Peter Kobs July 29, 2009
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Haiti Test

1. A major news event that reveals someone's true values and personality.

2. How people react to a massive disaster, such as the Haiti earthquake of January 2010 -- with compassion and care, or sarcasm and selfishness.

Following the Jan. 12 earthquake, most people expressed sorrow and an urge to help those in distress. However, some people resorted to "blaming the victim" or condemning "taxpayer-funded" relief efforts. Hidden hatred of minorities, poor people and "foreigners" is often at the root of such heartless statements following a major catastrophe.
Two famous men failed the Haiti Test this month: Pat Robertson said Haiti was being punished by God for "making a pact with the devil" in the late 1700s. Rush Limbaugh called Haiti relief efforts a political ploy by the Obama administration to "burnish his reputation" with the light-skinned and dark-skinned black community" in the U.S.
by Peter Kobs January 18, 2010
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Twitter Critter

1. A person who spends WAY too much time on Twitter, to the detriment of his or her job, family, friends and/or mental health.
2. A cell-phone Twitter texting maniac.
3. Someone who believes they are the center of the universe, despite abundant evidence to the contrary.
Tim has become a Twitter Critter. He can't keep anything private anymore. I wish he'd get a life!
by Peter Kobs August 05, 2009
mugGet the Twitter Crittermug.

Class Morphing

1. The downward transformation of one economic class into another.

2. The gradual descent from relative prosperity to grinding poverty, usually among formerly middle-class families.
The whole city of Detroit is class morphing into a ghetto.
by Peter Kobs February 06, 2009
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Paygo

1. Shorthand for "pay as you go." This zippy little term was used by President Obama in February 2010 to describe his new approach to federal spending and fiscal discipline.

2. The opposite of "buy now, pay later."

3. An idea whose time has not yet come, at least not on Capitol Hill.
"Let's invest $58 billion in a new Highway to Nowhere up there in Alaska. It'll stimulate the economy for sure!"

"No way, buddy. We're on the Paygo plan now."
by Peter Kobs February 14, 2010
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Hollow Market

1. A financial market so fragile that even strong companies are decimated by panic selling on Wall Street. 2. A market with almost no real buyers, only frantic sellers.
In this hollow market, even a safe company like Kraft Foods is tanking.
by Peter Kobs February 17, 2009
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Spillonomics

1. A scientific way to calculate the true costs of massive oil spills, such as the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

Spillonomics was conceived shortly after the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Sadly, it has become a major growth industry in the last 21 years.

Unlike other methods favored by the petroleum industry, Spillonomics takes into account both short-term clean-up costs AND long-term costs related to marine ecosystems, tourism, fishing, coastal employment, real estate values and water quality.

2. Dick Cheney's latest nightmare.
I'm majoring in Spillonomics. My uncle at Halliburton is livid. Serves him right!
by Peter Kobs June 01, 2010
mugGet the Spillonomicsmug.