Lexical Compendium

Wait... what is this? Sometimes I come across a word, phrase, idiom, quote, reference, bit of slang, person of interest, etc that either I don't know or I find amusing, interesting, etc. This is a collection of those items so that I can refer back to them in emails, texts, etc.

Recent Entries:

Tag Cloud eponymous grammar science technology television vocabulary ai acronym internet music comics software podcast slang games quote idiom entomology jargon computer-science netspeak space tipofmytongue politics movie history legal

"I know enough to turn you inside out, old gal, you sockdologizing old man-trap."

"I know enough to turn you inside out, old gal, you sockdologizing old man-trap" was delivered just before Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in 1865 in the play Our American Cousin. The audience’s laughter at the joke provided the cover John Wilkes Booth needed to fire his shot.

Sockdologizing is 19th-century slang for something decisive, final, or conclusive, often referring to a telling blow in an argument or a finishing move.

The humor in the line comes from its exaggerated insult, aimed at a male character but framed in absurdly feminizing terms, culminating in man-trap, a term for a woman who ensnares men. To a 19th-century audience, this mix of ridicule and bombast landed as a sharp comedic moment.

I came upon this line while watching Manhunt.


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References:

  1. IMDB: Manhunt
  2. The context behind the fatal punchline that obscured the Lincoln assassination - Washington Post Op-ed
  3. Definition: sockdologer

Tags: quote , history , television , politics

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86

I think that, to most people, to 86 someone means to eject them or refuse them service. I've heard this term and seen it employed many a time at dive bars.

According to Merriam-Webster and also the OED, it's original origins were likely from Cockney rhyming slang where 86 rhymes with nix.

In the early 20th century, the term was used by cafes and bars to denote when they were out of something and was part of a whole system of numeric codes.

In recent years, the slang "86" has taken on political overtones. During Donald Trump’s presidency, the phrase "86 45" emerged as a form of protest—most notably when Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer appeared on Meet the Press wearing a pin that read "8645." The slogan persisted into Joe Biden’s presidency with "86 46," and now, in 2025, it has resurfaced again as "86 47."

In May 2025, former FBI chief James Comey was questioned by the Secret Service after sharing an image on social media that showed seashells arranged to spell out "86 47." Comey later deleted the post after people, including President Trump himself, alleged that it was some sort of call for violence.


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References:

  1. Definition: eighty-six
  2. Wikipedia: 86 (term)
  3. The Guardian: Comey says ‘8647’ post that caused Trump firestorm was totally innocent
  4. NYT: Secret Service Is Asking Comey About a Photo of Seashells Spelling ‘86 47’
  5. Detroit Free Press: What is '8645'? Whitmer's pin an anti-Trump message using restaurant industry slang

Tags: slang , vocabulary , politics

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Christian Zionism

An ideology that, in a Christian context, supports the concepts of Zionism (Jewish people returning to the "Holy Land").

Joe Biden considers himself a Zionist.

Mike Huckabee (nominated in Nov 2024 as the US Ambassador to Israel by the forming Trump administration) considers himself to be an "unapologetic, unreformed Zionist."


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References:

  1. Wikipedia: Christian Zionism
  2. 'I am a Zionist': How Joe Biden's lifelong bond with Israel shapes war policy - A Reuters article from shortly after the start of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023.
  3. The Times of Israel: Biden stands by identification as a Zionist
  4. Aljazeera: Who is Mike Huckabee, the US evangelical, pro-settlement envoy to Israel?

Tags: religion , politics

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Findlandization

Findlandization is the process by which a country maintains its formal independence while being heavily influenced or constrained by the policies of a more powerful neighboring state, especially in its foreign policy.

The name comes from Finland's relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, where Finland avoided antagonizing the USSR to preserve its sovereignty.

The term is used pejoratively.

I first heard this term in an interview President Biden gave to MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell in which Biden recalled a conversation with Putin in which Putin was predicting the Findlandization of Europe.


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References:

  1. Definition: Finlandization
  2. Wikipedia: Finlandization
  3. The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, 16 Jan 2025 - Biden shares 'serious concern' for U.S. democracy in Oval Office interview with Lawrence O'Donnell

Tags: vocabulary , politics

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IEEPA

The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA, pronounced "eye-EE-puh") is a U.S. federal law enacted in 1977 that grants the President broad authority to regulate commerce and impose economic sanctions during a declared national emergency related to external threats.

IEEPA was signed into law by President Carter as a response to the Iran Hostage Crisis.

The act is frequently used to enforce sanctions against foreign governments, organizations, and individuals involved in terrorism, cyber threats, or other destabilizing activities.

In January 2025, President Trump used these powers to enact tariffs on Canada and Mexico using the external threat of illegal immigration and drug trade (specifically fentanyl).

Update: on 02 April 2025, President Trump declared another national emergency in order to use his IEEPA powers. This time the emergency was posed by the large and persistent trade deficit that is driven by the absence of reciprocity in our trade relationships and other harmful policies like currency manipulation and exorbitant value-added taxes (VAT) perpetuated by other countries. This emergency was used to implement broad and sweeping tariffs against most contries. (See White House "fact sheet")

Update: on 28 May 2025 judges ruled that Trump's usage of IEEPA exceeds what the Constitution permits. Obviously this will be appealed.

Update: on 05 November 2025 the Supreme Court held a hearing on whether or not the Trump administration has the authority to impose tariffs under IEEPA. [1]


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References:

  1. WSJ: Supreme Court Appears Skeptical of Trump's Tariffs
  2. Letters from an American: May 28, 2025
  3. NYT: What Is the International Emergency Economic Powers Act?
  4. US Code: Title 50; Chapter 35 - WAR AND NATIONAL DEFENSE; INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONOMIC POWERS
  5. Wikipedia: International Emergency Economic Powers Act
  6. The American Presidency Project - Executive Order—Imposing Duties to Address the Situation at Our Southern Border
  7. Cafe: ‘No Reason for Disturbance’: The Birth of IEEPA and President Carter’s Asset Freeze on Iran
  8. White House: Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Declares National Emergency to Increase our Competitive Edge, Protect our Sovereignty, and Strengthen our National and Economic S

Tags: politics , economy , government , acronym

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Overton window

The Overton window is the range of topics that are considered acceptable or "mainstream" at a point in time. The term is used in political discourse and it implies that politicians can only advocate for policies within this window without risking their careers.

The window can shift: ideas that were once fringe (i.e. like women’s suffrage) can move into the window as social norms evolve. Conversely, ideas that were once mainstream can fall out of favor and become politically toxic.

The term is named after Joseph Overton, a vice president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy (1992-2003). To help with his fund-raising duties he designed a brochure describing what eventually became known as the Overton window. His view was that think tanks should be pushing policies that fall outside the window and help to shift the window.

When listening to policy wonks debate politics, this term seems to come up quite a bit.


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References:

  1. Wikipedia: Overton window
  2. Wikipedia: Joseph Overton
  3. Mackinac Center Blog: What is the Overton Window?
  4. Tweet: @elonmusk 20 Mar 2025 - That fresh breeze you feel is the wide open Overton Window

Tags: vocabulary , politics , podcast , eponymous

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Streisand Effect

The Streisand Effect is the phenomenon where the harder someone tries to suppress information, the more attention it ends up getting. The term originated in early internet culture after Barbra Streisand attempted to suppress photographs of her Malibu home in 2003 by suing a photographer. Before the lawsuit, the photo had been downloaded exactly six times. After the lawsuit became public? Over 400,000 views in a single month.4 What was meant to be hidden instead became famous.

In July 2025, The Epstein Files consumed much of the news cycle. Donald Trump and his administration had campaigned on the promise of releasing these files to the public. But Trump seemingly flip-flopped on the issue, instead urging his followers to simply "move on." The result: a rift in the MAGA world. Far-right activist Laura Loomer remarked, "The more Truth Social posts that are posted about this are going to create a Streisand effect."


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References:

  1. Definition: Streisand Effect
  2. Wikipedia: Streisand effect
  3. Politico: Playbook: Trump world searches for off-ramp on Epstein
  4. Techdirt: Turns Out Barbra Streisand Is Aware Of The Streisand Effect, But Seems Confused About It
  5. Independent: Fox & Friends does just what Trump wants – they pretend the Epstein fiasco doesn’t exist

Tags: slang , politics , eponymous , internet , netspeak

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The Hatch Act

The Hatch Act (1939) is a U.S. federal law[1] that restricts the political activities of government employees to ensure that federal programs are administered in a nonpartisan fashion.

It was named for Senator Carl Hatch of New Mexico who sponsored and introduced the bill.

In October 2025, The Hatch Act was in the news as the government shutdown continues and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem published a video to be shown in airports blaming Democrats[3].


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References:

  1. osc.gov: Hatch Act Overview
  2. Wikipedia: Hatch Act
  3. CNBC: Politics Kristi Noem’s shutdown airport video may violate Hatch Act, Sen. Cantwell warns
  4. Robert Reich: The Hatch Act? Wassat? Who cares?

Tags: legal , politics , eponymous

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agnotology

Somewhat recently my brother introduced me to this word. Agnotology is the study of how ignorance is deliberately produced, particularly through the publication of inaccurate or misleading information.

This is precisely the type of word I love learning about. As of October 2025, I’ve been thinking a lot about how social media, news journalism, and even scientific publishing shape what we know -- and what we don’t.

Agnotology was coined in 1992 by Iain Boal at the request of Robert Proctor. Proctor writes about this in the postscript of his Agnotology: A Missing Term to Describe the Cultural Production of Ignorance (and Its Study)[2]:

Some time into this project I learned that there already was a word that has been used to designate the study of ignorance, albeit with a quite different slant from how we shall be using the term. Apart from being obscure and somewhat inharmonious, agnoiology has often been taken to mean "the doctrine of things of which we are necessarily ignorant" in some profound metaphysical sense. My hope for devising a new term was to suggest the opposite, namely, the historicity and artifactuality of non-knowing and the non-known-and the potential fruitfulness of studying such things. In 1992, I posed this challenge to the linguist Iain Boal, and it was he who came up with the term agnotology, in the spring of that year.

Proctor, a Professor of the History of Science at Stanford, is best known for uncovering how the tobacco industry manipulated scientific research to keep the public ignorant of its harms [3] -- a quintessential example of manufactured doubt.

I suspect he intended agnotology to be applied to the scientific realm, but I think it works nicely when thinking about this topic generally. When the Trump administration repeatedly cites false data, that's an agnogenic practice -- the deliberate creation of ignorance.

Similarly alarming, credulously contrarian Bari Weiss (founder of "The Free Press") was recently named CBS News' new editor-in-chief [5], reporting directly to CEO David Ellison (Larry Ellison’s son). Larry, meanwhile, is part of the group overseeing U.S. operations of TikTok [6] -- a platform where an astonishing percentage of young people now get their news. [7] Add to that RFK Jr.'s steady promotion of half-baked "research" [8] to push his agenda, and it feels as though we’re barreling toward a Ray Bradbury–esque dystopia -- one where ignorance isn’t accidental, but curated. (And we didn't even touch the accelerating ease of deepfake generation. [1])

I think that agnotology dovetails with another Lexicon entry: Bespoke Reality. One concept explains how ignorance is manufactured, the other how it becomes personalized. Together they describe the feedback loop of our time -- ignorance produced at scale, then force-fed to everyone in their individual feed.


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References:

  1. Vox: OpenAI’s Sora 2 is an unholy abomination
  2. Agnotology: A Missing Term to Describe the Cultural Production of Ignorance (and Its Study)
  3. Tobacco Control: "Everyone knew but no one had proof": tobacco industry use of medical history expertise in US courts, 1990-2002
  4. Wikipedia: Agnotology
  5. Independent: John Oliver skewers Paramount for hiring ‘irresponsible’ Bari Weiss to run CBS News
  6. Reuters: Lachlan Murdoch, Michael Dell, Ellison involved in TikTok deal, Trump says
  7. Pew Research Center: TikTok users’ experiences with news on the platform
  8. Scientific American: RFK, Jr., Says Tylenol Use for Circumcision Causes Autism. Here’s Why That Claim Is Flawed

Tags: vocabulary , politics , jargon

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antitrust

The term antitrust originated in the United States during The Gilded Age of the late 19th century. During this time, trusts were established and dominated major industries. These trusts were arrangements in which stockholders of competing firms would transfer their shares to a common board of trustees to effectively merge them into one controlling entity. The trusts amassed immense power, leading to public outrage over monopolistic practices and economic inequality.

Sherman Antitrust Act[3] was passed in 1890 and was the first federal law to outlaw monopolistic behavior and "combinations in restraint of trade."

Enforcement began in earnest under Theodore Roosevelt, whose "trust-busting" campaigns[11] became a hallmark of early 20th-century progressivism. Later, the Clayton Act (1914)[6] and Federal Trade Commission Act (1914)[9] refined and strengthened the framework for regulating competition.

By the mid-20th century, antitrust had drifted from its populist roots toward an economic-efficiency doctrine shaped by the "Chicago School of thought."[12] Scholars like Robert Bork argued that the only legitimate concern of antitrust law was consumer welfare (i.e. whether prices went up).[13] This framework largely dominated enforcement through the Reagan era and beyond. (see related Lexicon entry: borked)

More recently, the pendulum has swung again. Lina Khan, chair of the FTC from 2021 through 2025, represents a new generation of antitrust thinking. Instead of the consumer-welfare standard, she has focused on structural power and long-term innovation. Her academic paper Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox[2] helped ignite this movement.

Only time will tell how the Trump administration will carry this torch. While rhetorically populist and occasionally combative toward Big Tech, the Trump administration has pursued a more uneven antitrust record -- sometimes emphasizing nationalistic or political motives rather than systemic reform (think: Paramount-Skydance).[7] This said, many of the cases that Khan's FTC put forth are still progressing. In April 2025 it was determined that Google was a monopoly.[4]

Updates:

  • In Nov 2025, Lina Khan joined Zohran Mamdani's transition team after he became mayor-elect of NYC [5]

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References:

  1. Definition: antitrust
  2. The Yale Law Journal: Amazon's Antitrust Paradox
  3. Wikipedia: Sherman Antitrust
  4. DOJ Office of Public Affairs: Department of Justice Prevails in Landmark Antitrust Case Against Google
  5. The Guardian: Yes, New York will soon be under new management. But Zohran Mamdani is just the start
  6. Wikipedia: Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914
  7. ProMarket: Weaponizing Antitrust and Regulation Will Hurt US Consumers
  8. YouTube: The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart - Lina Khan on Mamdani, Corporate Welfare & the FTC
  9. Wikipedia: Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914
  10. Letters from an American: Heather Cox Richardson talks with Lina Khan
  11. Britannica: The Square Deal of Theodore Roosevelt
  12. Antitrust Law Source: 1990s to the present: The Chicago School and antitrust enforcement
  13. Wikipedia: The Antitrust Paradox

Tags: legal , politics , finance

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