Let's Hope He's Better at Economics

"My advice to you is to button down the hatches," the state's chief economist Bill Gillespie said. [William C. Gillespie, SC's Chief Economist in Friday's P & C--Pared Budget Spreads Pain]

Button-ing down the hatches instead of batten-ing them down probably won't be effective against the next hurricane. Or against the next economic crisis either.

According to Answers.com, "This term originated in the navy, where it signified preparing for a storm by fastening down canvas over doorways and hatches (openings) with strips of wood called battens."