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Cary,
I believe that the phrase "tightening your belt" had more to do with keeping one's pants up than anything to do with kinky punishment. The kinds of involuntary weight reduction programs brought on by periodic financial panics and crises seem far removed from 401k wielding Americans, and it may have taken on other meanings through the generations; and I'll grant you that losing one's pants after losing one's shirt can be a prelude to many exciting alternatives, but there is a reason it's called a "Depression". I do suspect the phrase will be making a comeback, but then, I'm an optimist.
