I see you aren't looking for a job as a margin clerk anytime soon. Every hear of a halt, overnight risk, takeover risk? Unlimited in this context refers to losses beyond the capital in the account.
precision in the use of language is obviously not your forte. using your definition the same could be said of the long side.
Sounds like you have to trade on the long side, or inverse ETFs, or move your account. Sogotrade does ok for getting shorts and has lower minimums than IB but their availability and fills aren't anywhere near as good as IB though. I suggest to check the minimum with ThinkorSwim.
Why are you so concerned with short selling right now? Holding a stock short on a 3k account in this rising market doesnt seem like a good idea to me. If you were daytrading it would be one thing, but you are asking to get run over trying to swing on the short side in a bull market.