"Poor Lady" - Democratic Underground

progressoid

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Thu May-05-11 08:31 AM
Original message

"Poor Lady"

This one is slippery, so watch it closely.

A poor old lady, with little money and plenty of time, sat quietly one day trying to devise a plan for making a little change. She finally came up with a very clever idea. Taking an old necklace, which she knew was worth only $4, she went to a pawnshop and pawned it for $3. Then, on a street corner, she started a friendly acquaintance with a young man, finally persuading him to buy the pawnticket for only $2. Now, she had $5 altogether and thus had made $1 profit. The pawnbroker wasn’t out any money since he paid only $3 for a $4 item, and the young man paid only $2 to get the $4 necklace. Who lost?

– Raymond F. Lausmann, Fun With Figures, 1965

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dawg

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Thu May-05-11 08:34 AM
Response to Original message

1. I said a young man ....

ain't got nothing in the world these days!

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av8rdave

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Thu May-05-11 08:39 AM
Response to Original message

2. The young man needs some cash in addition to that ticket to get the necklace, doesn't he?

I've never worked with a pawnshop before, but it seems to me that the ticket he paid for only gives him the right to buy the necklace for $3. If that's correct, he gets to either pay a grand total of $5 for the $4 necklace, or enjoy a $2 piece of paper.

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progressoid

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Thu May-05-11 08:47 AM
Response to Reply #2

4. Sounds good to me.

I just ran across this. No answer was supplied.

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Richardo

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Thu May-05-11 08:40 AM
Response to Original message

3. Edit: I agree with av8rdave

Edited on Thu May-05-11 08:42 AM by Richardo

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CBGLuthier

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Thu May-05-11 10:46 AM
Response to Original message

5. yeah, the young man has a ticket

that will cost more than 3 dollars to redeem. He screwed himself.

This line

and the young man paid only $2 to get the $4 necklace.

is a lie.

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DU AdBot (1000+ posts)

Sun May 12th 2024, 06:36 AM
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