“If it flies, floats or fucks, it’s cheaper to rent it”
“If it flies, floats or fucks, rent it, don’t buy it," said the character Tommy Earl Bruner in Dan Jenkins' novel, Baja Oklahoma (1981). The saying means that owning an airplane or a…
BOAT (Break Out Another Thousand)
Owning a boat can be very expensive. The joke that "boat" is an acronym for "Blow/Break/Bring/Bust Out Another Thousand (dollars)" has been cited in print since at least 1995.…
Debtpocalypse (debt + apocalypse)
"Debtpocalypse” (debt + apocalypse) became a popular term in July 2011, as the federal government discussed raising the nation’s debt ceiling and debated cutting spending (to decrease the…
“Don’t tell my mother I’m a banker—she thinks I play piano in a whorehouse”
"Don't tell my mother I'm a banker -- she thinks I play piano in a bordello/brothel/cat house/whorehouse" is a joke about how little people think of bankers. The joke began…
“Don’t tell my mother I’m a politician—she thinks I play piano in a whorehouse”
"Don't tell my mother I'm a politician -- she thinks I play piano in a bordello/brothel/cat house/whorehouse" is a joke about how little people think of politicians. The joke…
Main Street Across America (Lincoln Highway)
The Lincoln Highway (dedicated in October 1913) was the first road across the United States. In 2009, a sign was placed in New York's Times Square to mark the beginning of the highway that…
“Picking up nickels in front of a steamroller”
"Picking up pennies/nickels/dimes/quarters in front of a bulldozer/steamroller" means steadily making investments for a small return, only to be eventually crushed (by a financial crash…
Dear Leader
North Korea's Kim Jong-il has been called "Dear Leader Comrade" (Chinaehanun Jidoja Tongji) since the end of the 1960s. The title of "Dear Leader" has also been applied --…
“Paper currencies don’t float, they just sink at different rates”
"Currencies do not float, they sink at different rates" is a line popularized by Clyde C. Harrison, a popular financial speaker. Harrison was referring to what is called paper currency or…
Royal Bull Shit (Royal Bank of Scotland or RBS nickname)
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was formed in 1727; its U.S. branch is the Citizens Financial Group (Citizens Bank). The obvious RBS nickname of "Royal B.S." (Royal Bull Shit) has been…
Fed (Federal Reserve)
"The Fed" stands for the Federal Reserve System. "Fed" has meant "federalist" since at least 1788; "fed" has meant "an official of the federal…
Crack Hill (Park Hill, Staten Island)
The Park Hill neighborhood of Staten Island was known for its crime in the 1980s and 1990s. The nickname "Crack Hill" has been cited in print since at least 1988. Park Hill has also been…
Killa Hill or Killer Hill (Park Hill, Staten Island)
The Park Hill neighborhood of Staten Island was known for its crime in the 1980s and 1990s. The nickname "Killa Hill" (or "Killah Hill" or "Killer Hill") has been…
Chancy Street (Chauncey Street, Brooklyn)
Chauncey Street, in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, is a high crime area. It was reported, in July 2011, that Chauncey Street is nicknamed "Chancy Street." Google…
Debtmageddon (debt + Armageddon)
"Debtmageddon" (debt + Armageddon) became a popular term in July 2011, as the federal government discussed raising the nation's debt ceiling and debated cutting spending (to decrease…
“Miracle on the Hudson” (US Airways Flight 1549)
US Airways Flight 1549 was scheduled to fly from New York's LaGuardia Airport to the Charlotte.Douglas International Airport on January 15, 2009. A flock of Canada Geese got caught in the…
“Manhattan on the Maas” (Rotterdam, the Netherlands)
Rotterdam, the second-largest city in the Netherland and the largest port in Europe, has been nicknamed "Manhattan on the Maas" or "Manhattan on the Meuse" (the Nieuwe Maas/New…
MoMath (Museum of Mathematics)
The Museum of Mathematics was announced in June 2011 for an opening in 2012 at 11 East 26th Street in Manhattan. The museum has been nicknamed "MoMath" by its founders, with a trademark…
“Terrorism is the poor man’s war” (“War is the rich man’s terrorism”)
The actor/writer Peter Ustinov (1921-2004) wrote in 2003, "Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich." The term "terrorism is the poor man's…
“Gas, Grass or Ass—Nobody rides for free”
"Gas, Grass or Ass -- Nobody Rides Free!" was a popular bumper sticker, cited in print since at least May 1978. The message means that, to pay for a ride, the driver will accept gas…