Too Low

We've all heard the phrase "Our prices are so low, we can't say them on the the radio". You may have wondered under what circumstance a price would be too low to advertise? To find the answer examine the following hypothetical sale.

Widget Crafters (conveniently located in the heart of the widget district) have decided to have a sale. Instead of their usual price of 5 widgets for a dollar they've decided to blow widgets out the door at the unheard of price 50 for a dollar. I know, that's a great price on widgets. The sale was initiated by a unique set of circumstances.

Bernie, the owner/operator of Widget Crafters, got drunk while ordering this months widget supply and accidentally added a zero where he shouldn't have. Now Bernie has so many widgets that the surplus is being stored in the half of his warehouse usually reserved for his real passion, a bi-weekly roller disco. With Roller Disco night only 3 days away the widgets have to go.

But there is a problem. The only way to enter Widget Crafters is to traverse a pit that lies immediately in front of the entrance. Unfortunately, Bernie has invested all of his profits into a broken glass, rusty nail and bear trap collection, leaving precious little money to construct a proper bridge. As a result the bridge is made from paper mache. And yes, Bernie stores his collection in the pit.

Problem: Bernie needs to sell the surplus widgets quickly but if too many people arrive at the same time the paper mache bridge might collapse.

Solution: Bernie decides to advertise his sale on the radio but chooses not to mention the dangerously low price, thus averting a potentially lethal widget stampede.

So the next time you hear a commercial where the announcer refuses to divulge the sale price, consider all the lives that may or may not have just been saved.