Dumb and Paying For It

Business 2.0, which works in connection with CNN.com, recently released its list of last year's 101 Dumbest Moments in Business. They're all fairly amusing, but these stood out to me:

31. Next up: the caramel crown of thorns.
In March, Russell Stover unveils its new Easter candy: 6-inch chocolate crucifixes. The Roman Catholic diocese in Bridgeport, Conn., denounces the confection, saying that an edible version of the cross on which Jesus Christ died is not an appropriate Easter-basket mate for marshmallow chicks and chocolate bunnies.

33. It'll be even clearer when the accents are from Bangalore.
Several McDonald's outlets in the Pacific Northwest begin outsourcing drive-through functions to remote call centers staffed by 'professional order-takers' with 'very strong communication skills.' Says CEO Jim Skinner, 'If you're in L.A. and you hear a person with a North Dakota accent taking your order, you'll know what we're up to.'

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.

87. No interview, no cry.
On the heels of a popular documentary about the Queen rock anthem 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' BBC television decides its next subject will be the Bob Marley classic 'No Woman, No Cry.' An e-mail is duly dispatched to the Bob Marley Foundation, requesting an interview with the reggae star, since the documentary 'would only work with some participation from Bob Marley himself.' The e-mail also says producers would like for Marley to spend "one or two days with us" at his convenience: 'Our schedule is flexible.' Marley is less flexible. He died in 1981.

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.

Tee hee.