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Thursday, July 31, 2008

Criminal Sentence 67: How Much Is That Burger?

I was watching the ballgame yesterday and a burger ad came up. The printed price of the burger on the screen was .99c (as in less than 1 cent) but the voiceover said ninety-nine cents, which of course is the true price.
I see this mistake all the time. There are three ways to write prices less than 1 dollar:
25c = 25 cents
.25 = 25 cents
$0.25 = 25 cents.
.25c means a quarter of a cent.
So this price for a burger is a super bargain!
I wonder what would happen if I went into the burger joint and demanded the burger for .99c. I do wonder if there would be any legal argument for that price. I asked a lawyer friend of mine. I'll see what she says. Although I don't like burgers I could go to this national chain and ask just for kicks!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Bonnie, I love this post. Those are the kind of things I love to spot and argue with others about! BTW, I just found your blog via listening to the Grammar Girl podcast. I've heard her mention you a lot of times but it finally clicked that I should listen to her better (a struggle since I am so visual) and picked up on your blog address or rather did a search after listening this morning. This has inspired me to write a blog about how to listen better.