Skip to main content

Peter Kobs's definitions

Rand Paul

1. A conservative Republican with libertarian views, Rand Paul is running for the U.S. Senate in 2010 to replace outgoing KY Senator Jim Bunning. Rand is the son of Texas Congressman Ron Paul. According to Rand himself, he was NOT named after author Ayn Rand.

Paul helped found the Kentucky Taxpayers United, an anti-tax group, in 1994. He favors eliminating the Federal Reserve system, the U.S. Dept. of Education, the IRS, the federal income tax, the Fair Housing Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act and other government programs. Paul also opposes abortion under any circumstances, even in cases of rape and incest. He has publicly criticized the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Born in Pennsylvania, Rand Paul attended Baylor University in Waco, TX, and Duke University in NC. He works as an ophthalmologist in Bowling Green, KY.

2. A favorite candidate of the U.S. Tea Party movement, Paul won the Republican Senate nomination in May 2010, defeating KY Sec. of State Trey Grayson. He has been endorsed by Gun Owners of America, Steve Forbes, FreedomWorks and Sarah Palin, among others.

3. Rand Paul has made several explosive remarks on the campaign trail and in his writings. In late May 2010, he called President Obama "un-American" for criticizing BP regarding the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He has also explicitly criticized government laws banning discrimination, reversing himself partially when his spoken and written statements were broadcast nationally.
Rand Paul is the darling of the Tea Party movement and the bane of moderate Republicans.
by Peter Kobs May 21, 2010
mugGet the Rand Paul mug.

Neocapitalism

1. A new form of capitalism that emphasizes government intervention in the economy to rescue and restructure large companies that are deemed "too big to fail" because of the systemic risk they pose to the nation.

2. The opposite of Marxism, which anticipates the collapse of the entire capitalist system and the seizure of all "means of production" -- healthy companies included.

3. An economic system that prevents large, poorly managed companies from destroying the entire country.
Obama has been called a "socialist," but history will show he's really a clever student of "Neocapitalism."
by Peter Kobs May 25, 2009
mugGet the Neocapitalism mug.

Overton Window

1. A political theory invented by arch-conservative Joseph Overton, VP of the anti-tax Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, Michigan. (Overton died in 2003 when his ultra-light airplane crashed.)

2. The name of a poorly-written novel by right-wing talk show host Glen Beck. Published in early 2010, the book is a cautionary tale about leftist radicals taking over the government through incremental change.

In theory, the Overton Window represents the boundaries of "acceptable" public policy and discourse -- what a politician can support without seeming too "extreme." Opposing forces try to broaden this window (or shift it to one side) to make formerly "radical" ideas seem more "mainstream."

Overton's theory has a decidedly pro-business, anti-regulation slant. Something is either "more free" or "less free" in his view. He never mentions "more just" or "more fair" or "more practical." In fact, the entire theory tailor made for paranoid people and right-wing lunatics who think Obama is a totalitarian Marxist dictator bent on world domination.
The Overton Window is yet another idiotic theory masquerading as a "breakthrough" in political understanding. Its leading proponent is Glen Beck of Fox News...'nuf said.
by Peter Kobs July 20, 2010
mugGet the Overton Window mug.

Yoop Loop

1. A scenic route around Michigan's Upper Peninsula, which is also known as the "U.P." or "Yoop." Motorcyclists are especially fond of this semi-wilderness experience.

2. An alternative route from Wisconsin to lower Michigan. Instead of slogging through the heavy traffic of metro Chicago, adventurous drivers can take the "Yoop Loop" over the top of Lake Michigan and then across the Mackinac Bridge to lower Michigan. Longer, yes, but way more beautiful.

3. A generic term for any trip that takes the traveler through Michigan's Upper Peninsula en route to somewhere else -- one of the great undiscovered pleasures of the North Country.
"Don't drive through that traffic mess in Chicago. Let's take the Yoop Loop instead."

"What if our car breaks down and we're attacked by bears?"

"It's better than being attacked by gang bangers on the Dan Ryan Expressway!"
by Peter Kobs September 9, 2009
mugGet the Yoop Loop mug.

Praytheist

1. An avowed atheist who (secretly) turns to prayer during times of serious illness, extreme danger or personal crisis.

2. The theological equivalent of a strict vegetarian who will eat a steak sandwich (on the sly) when facing extreme hunger.

3. A way of "covering all your bases" during an emergency.
Becky says she doesn't believe in God, but she's really a Praytheist. After she was diagnosed with lymphoma, she started praying again in private.
by Peter Kobs January 20, 2010
mugGet the Praytheist mug.

Gellie

A perjorative term for "Evangelical" or someone who speaks with Evangelical fervor, especially a member of the Evangelical Christian right in the United States. This relatively new slang term is sometimes used by non-Evangelical Christians, as well as non-believers, to denote a shallow or knee-jerk kind of religious thinking that promotes an "us vs. them" worldwiew.

"Gellie" or "Gelly" is derived from the third syllable of EvanGELical. The word can have both playful and offensive connotations. It is related to the word "Fundie" for fundamentalist.
"That new mega-church in Colorado Springs is full of hand-waving gellies."
by Peter Kobs June 20, 2008
mugGet the Gellie mug.

Supreme Stupidity

1. An act of extreme stupidity by the U.S. Supreme Court.

2. An attempt to undermine democracy or destroy human rights through judicial fiat.

3. What happens when a bunch of clueless lawyers pretend to be God.

Notable examples include:

-- The recent (2010) decision to allow unlimited corporate and interest group contributions to U.S. political campaigns.

-- The Buck vs. Bell ruling that permitted forced sterilization of the mentall ill. Justice Holmes said at the time: “Three generations of imbeciles are enough.”

-- The Dred Scott case that invalidated restrictions on slavery, while mandating that all African-Americans be treated as "property" in the eyes of the law.

-- Plessy v. Ferguson, which formally legalized segregation, Jim Crow laws and minority disenfranchisement throughout the nation.
The highest court in the land committed another act of Supreme Stupidity in January 2010 when it opened the floodgates to unlimited corporate cash in the election process. Can you say "plutocracy?" Sure you can!
by Peter Kobs February 18, 2010
mugGet the Supreme Stupidity mug.

Share this definition

Sign in to vote

We'll email you a link to sign in instantly.

Or

Check your email

We sent a link to

Open your email