As Thanksgiving approaches — and while folks worry about Butterball’s turkey shortage — we took a look at large turkeys of a different kind. Allan Sloan, senior editor-at-large of Fortune Magazine, shares his pickings for the year’s worst deals and financial flops.

Sloan’s 2013 Turkey List

1. The company once called Texas Utilities, which leveraged a $48 billion buyout in 2007, but now hurtles toward bankruptcy.

2. The New York Times Company, whose purchase of The Boston Globe Sloan considers the worst newspaper acquisition in history.

3. JCPenney, which may or may not survive after its roller coaster of a year.

4. The government shutdown and HealthCare.gov, which, well, you know.