Definition: When two powerful, shady figures possess equally damaging dirt on each other, creating a stalemate where neither can expose the other without self-immolation. Think billionaires with matching blackmail folders, ensuring public spats always end in abrupt, cowardly tweet deletions or sudden “friendship” photos.
This term captures the public’s exhausted shrug as elites play chicken with scandals everyone already knows. It’s why whistleblowers vanish, evidence “gets lost,” and justice feels like a soap opera rerun—predictable, infuriating, and rigged for the rich.
Example:
The rival tech CEOs publicly clashed for weeks, only to abruptly announce a joint venture after their lawyers confirmed mutual evidence of financial fraud.
Despite promising to expose corruption, the senator quietly dropped his investigation when his opponent hinted at possessing compromising offshore banking records.