That circumspect laconic Bernie Madoff has mutated into a kvetcher. According to NEW YORK MAGAZINE, he sees himself as a "human pinata."
For those of you who didn't grow up in a Jewish neighborhood, "kvetcher" is a Yiddish term to denote someone who has turned complaining into great performance art. In his book "Born to Kvetch," Michael Wex describes the kvetcher in this way. An old man is riding on a train next to a younger man. Bit by bit the geezer becomes more dramatic in lamenting his thirst. Finally he gets to the point at which his seat mate can't take it. He leaves his seat, goes to the waterfountain on the train, and brings back a cup of water. The complainer gulps it down, then bitches at how thirsty he had been and how long he had to wait for the water.
Madoff is an official kvetcher. The guys in prison aren't going to go for that.
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