A term used by some liberal members of the Jewish communities to refer to ultra-traditional Jews. It refers to the distinctive headgear worn by the latter group.

(N.B.: I would not recommend that non-Jews try to use this term in reference to Jewish people. It's bad enough when fellow Jews come to blows - no need for non-Jews to risk accusations of anti-semitism.)

Term derived from old Western movies wherein the villain was usually protrayed as wearing a black hat, whereas the hero was usually wearing a white hat.

Not related to Red Hat.

black art = B = black hole

black hat

[common among security specialists] A cracker, someone bent on breaking into the system you are protecting. Oppose the less comon `white hat' for an ally or friendly security specialist; the term `gray hat' is in occasional use for people with cracker skills operating within the law, e.g. in doing security evaluations. All three terms derive from the dress code of formulaic Westerns, in which bad guys wore black hats and good guys white ones.

--The Jargon File version 4.3.1, ed. ESR, autonoded by rescdsk.

A black hat is also a nickname for a Jumpmaster in the U.S. Army. Monikered for their spiffy black head gear, these are the the guys who try to persuade you out of the perfectly operational plane for a static-line jump. They make Drill Sergeants appear friendly and personable.

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