The New York Times covers a particularly noxious example of a monstrous hybrid: for-profit probation.

FORBES: Private Probation as a Monstrous Hybrid

Even the use of ammonium hydroxide can be a double-edged sword, since ammonia is perceived to be a noxious substance (although BPI effectively explains the benefits of the process on its website).

FORBES: E. coli Outbreak Underscores U.S. Food Safety Leadership

And yet, although tumbling house prices and a sharp credit contraction could indeed pull the economy into a noxious downward spiral, the evidence of such an economic disaster is, as yet, slim.

ECONOMIST: America's economy