Shmata???

One comment on my politicians and corruption post asked what is a shmata salesman?

It is a clothing salesman; shmata is a yiddish word, literally meaning rag but often used to refer to clothing.

Shmata (SHMAH-tah): Literally meaning a rag or cloth, such as a kitchen towel. Often used derisively to refer to clothing: “Go out now? In this shmata?”

One of the trades open to Jews in the early 19th Century was ragpicker -- and Disraeli, in his early campaigns, was often followed by hecklers who would yell out "shmata" or "old rags". He took that as a mark of distinction -- canny politician he was -- and adopted the nickname of "old rags".