It Was the Dumbest of Times
January 25, 2006 7:09 PM Subscribe
Business 2.0's 101 Dumbest Moments in Business for 2005
Remember this gem? "Women should be all dressed in white, like all other domestic appliances." Personal favorites are #36 and #40 but there's plenty more to enjoy. And the smartest company of 2005.
An update from long ago.
Remember this gem? "Women should be all dressed in white, like all other domestic appliances." Personal favorites are #36 and #40 but there's plenty more to enjoy. And the smartest company of 2005.
An update from long ago.
73. Oxymoron alert: Erotic City/Boise.
The proprietors of the Erotic City strip club in Boise, Idaho, attempt to circumvent a local law banning nudity except for performances of "serious artistic merit" by distributing sketch pads and pencils to customers for twice-weekly G-string-free "art" nights. Local police raid the club, issuing misdemeanor citations.
posted by hopeless romantique at 7:59 PM on January 25, 2006
The proprietors of the Erotic City strip club in Boise, Idaho, attempt to circumvent a local law banning nudity except for performances of "serious artistic merit" by distributing sketch pads and pencils to customers for twice-weekly G-string-free "art" nights. Local police raid the club, issuing misdemeanor citations.
posted by hopeless romantique at 7:59 PM on January 25, 2006
A fun read, thanks for posting.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 8:12 PM on January 25, 2006 [1 favorite]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 8:12 PM on January 25, 2006 [1 favorite]
In no particular order, since #50 is about as bad as it gets.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 8:46 PM on January 25, 2006
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 8:46 PM on January 25, 2006
Bernie Ecclstone is a creep.
Always has been, always will be.
posted by Relay at 9:25 PM on January 25, 2006
Always has been, always will be.
posted by Relay at 9:25 PM on January 25, 2006
Number 14 has me confused:
"What do I have to do to get Audioslave on WKSS this week?!!? Whatever you can dream up, I can make it happen." -- E-mail from an employee of Sony BMG's Epic label to a Hartford, Conn., radio station. In July the company pays a $10 million fine as part of a settlement in which it agrees to stop indirectly paying radio stations to play songs by its artists.
Why exactly does this warrant a fine? I understand about the airwaves being public and all, but the stations themselves are private entities, no? So why can't they accept compensation for playing a certain labels artists?
And why is it a radio station is getting fined $10 million for "indirectly paying radio stations to play songs by its artists" when lobbyists can indirectly pay congressmen to pass laws in favor of their clients?
posted by Jawn at 12:01 AM on January 26, 2006
"What do I have to do to get Audioslave on WKSS this week?!!? Whatever you can dream up, I can make it happen." -- E-mail from an employee of Sony BMG's Epic label to a Hartford, Conn., radio station. In July the company pays a $10 million fine as part of a settlement in which it agrees to stop indirectly paying radio stations to play songs by its artists.
Why exactly does this warrant a fine? I understand about the airwaves being public and all, but the stations themselves are private entities, no? So why can't they accept compensation for playing a certain labels artists?
And why is it a radio station is getting fined $10 million for "indirectly paying radio stations to play songs by its artists" when lobbyists can indirectly pay congressmen to pass laws in favor of their clients?
posted by Jawn at 12:01 AM on January 26, 2006
Good to see that at least one of the urban legends about bad translation is true.
93. No joke here. Just suffice it to say that the literal translation of the Spanish word cajeta is "little box."
With the help of Latin pop sensation Thalia Sodi, Hershey introduces Cajeta Elegancita, a new candy bar for the Hispanic market. Though the wrapper features a picture of Sodi, apparently she neglects to fill her Yanqui partners in on a subtlety of Spanish: In Mexico, "cajeta" can be used to mean "nougat." Elsewhere in the Spanish-speaking world, however, it's slang for female anatomy.
posted by dangerousdan at 12:03 AM on January 26, 2006
For no good reason, this one cracked me up:
A Qantas Airways baggage handler is suspended after he's caught opening a passenger's luggage, discovering a camel costume, donning the head, and driving around the tarmac on a baggage cart at Sydney Airport. The incident is reported by the costume's owner, who spies the culprit through the window of the terminal.
posted by deadcowdan at 5:45 AM on January 26, 2006
A Qantas Airways baggage handler is suspended after he's caught opening a passenger's luggage, discovering a camel costume, donning the head, and driving around the tarmac on a baggage cart at Sydney Airport. The incident is reported by the costume's owner, who spies the culprit through the window of the terminal.
posted by deadcowdan at 5:45 AM on January 26, 2006
Great link, thanks. I love reading stuff like this.
posted by you just lost the game at 6:47 AM on January 26, 2006
posted by you just lost the game at 6:47 AM on January 26, 2006
So why can't they accept compensation for playing a certain labels artists?
They can, they just have to disclose it — which they didn't. The law is 47 U.S.C. § 317.
posted by smackfu at 7:29 AM on January 26, 2006
They can, they just have to disclose it — which they didn't. The law is 47 U.S.C. § 317.
posted by smackfu at 7:29 AM on January 26, 2006
It's nice to see that the joint I smoked on the way to work only dropped my functional IQ four points.
posted by Blubble at 8:12 AM on January 26, 2006
posted by Blubble at 8:12 AM on January 26, 2006
I like that they didn't pick a winner for the "Innovation" category:
Innovation is like a New Year's resolution: easy to talk about but hard to pull off. We define it as a product or business model that's truly new and genuinely successful. That's why last year was a letdown. Apple? Its growth had much to do with incremental tweaks to existing products. Ditto for Del.icio.us, Flickr, and MySpace, which are built around decade-old ideas about social networking. Let's hope for better pickings next year.
Totally agree.
posted by like_neon at 8:29 AM on January 26, 2006
Innovation is like a New Year's resolution: easy to talk about but hard to pull off. We define it as a product or business model that's truly new and genuinely successful. That's why last year was a letdown. Apple? Its growth had much to do with incremental tweaks to existing products. Ditto for Del.icio.us, Flickr, and MySpace, which are built around decade-old ideas about social networking. Let's hope for better pickings next year.
Totally agree.
posted by like_neon at 8:29 AM on January 26, 2006
Bernie Ecclestone is insane:
He told Autosport racing magazine in 2000 that women could not compete in Formula One, but if one did, “she would have to be a woman who was blowing away the boys. ... What I would really like to see happen is to find the right girl, perhaps a black girl with super looks, preferably Jewish or Muslim, who speaks Spanish.”
Sounds like a particularly bizarre personal ad.
posted by fochsenhirt at 8:44 AM on January 26, 2006
He told Autosport racing magazine in 2000 that women could not compete in Formula One, but if one did, “she would have to be a woman who was blowing away the boys. ... What I would really like to see happen is to find the right girl, perhaps a black girl with super looks, preferably Jewish or Muslim, who speaks Spanish.”
Sounds like a particularly bizarre personal ad.
posted by fochsenhirt at 8:44 AM on January 26, 2006
As a metaphor for the real estate bubble no.1's pretty frickin' lame. The market may be overheated but there's nothing outstandingly dumb about converting an interesting old building into apartments. In fact, I'd have thought it should be held up as an example of business doing something vaguely worthwhile - especially when you consider the alternative.
posted by rhymer at 9:08 AM on January 26, 2006
posted by rhymer at 9:08 AM on January 26, 2006
I love number 1, as we currently also live in a converted asylum in Devon, UK. Curiously, they're rather quiet about the development's past, although a little digging soon turns up some reasonably interesting information about its past.
posted by gene_machine at 9:28 AM on January 26, 2006
posted by gene_machine at 9:28 AM on January 26, 2006
Jawn writes "And why is it a radio station is getting fined $10 million for 'indirectly paying radio stations to play songs by its artists' when lobbyists can indirectly pay congressmen to pass laws in favor of their clients?"
There is more enforced integrity in radio than congress?
posted by Mitheral at 9:57 AM on January 26, 2006
There is more enforced integrity in radio than congress?
posted by Mitheral at 9:57 AM on January 26, 2006
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Nice to see that business hasn't changed since I ran screaming back to the public sector.
posted by QIbHom at 7:58 PM on January 25, 2006