Organized People Reveal How Plans Backfired Spectacularly
[rebelmouse-image 18353453 is_animated_gif=Nothing in life will go as planned. It doesn't matter how organized or OCD you are, whether you're a civilian or a major world leader; the Universe is ready with every curveball you would never have believe existed. And most of the time our best laid plains go up in flames faster than a political career.
Redditor _acrowsmurder asked What plan backfired spectacularly? Ironically so many misfires can be learned from history. If only we were wise enough to not repeat it.
HISTORY IS BASED ON BACKFIRES!
The Shah of Khwarezmian killed diplomats from Genghis Khan as an attempt to intimidate him into staying away. This led to his massive empire being invaded and completely absorbed into the Mongol Empire over a period of two years.
NO COBRA KAI HERE!
[rebelmouse-image 18353454 is_animated_gif=When the British government wanted to get rid of the cobras in India, and they started paying a bounty for every dead cobra, which caused people to begin to breed cobras in order to kill them and get the money.
OH HENRY!
[rebelmouse-image 18353455 is_animated_gif=While Henry VIII was having his "Great Matter" and trying to divorce his first wife, the position of Bishop of Canterbury became open. At the time Rome was extremely concerned about what Henry was going to do and about how angry he had become. As a last ditch effort to appease Henry, the Pope appointed Thomas Cranmer, a rumored Protestant, to the position.
Thomas Cranmer immediately defied the Pope, divorced Henry from his first wife, and acknowledged his marriage to Anne Boleyn. When the Pope was angered by these actions and tried to retaliate, Cranmer responded by separating England from the Papacy and creating the Church of England.
NEVER BET WITH MOTHER NATURE...
[rebelmouse-image 18353456 is_animated_gif=Walkers crisps in the UK (similar to Lays) ran a promotion where for every packet of crisps you buy, you can go on a website and predict where it will rain in the UK at a given time. They split the UK into 21,000 individual squares and you just had to pick one and if 1mm of rain fell there in 3 hours you'd win £10. You can guess what happened next
NEVER PLAY WITH SWEDEN!!
[rebelmouse-image 18353458 is_animated_gif=Denmark declaring war on Sweden in the 1650s.
Basically, the Swedish king Charles X was tied up fighting in Poland and was looking for any excuse to get out without looking like he was retreating or giving up, when Denmark (who at the time still held Scania) declared war.
Instead of returning home to Sweden, Charles X had his army of 6000 do a forced march from Poland to Jutland (the Danish mainland). They sieged the fortress of Fredriksodde for two months before storming it, and then seized all their army supplies to restock.
By the time Jutland was under control, winter had come, freezing the sea around Denmark and southern Sweden. Thus, at January 30th, Charles X marched his army of 9000 cavalry and 3000 infantry across the ice to Funen island:
The ice warped under the weight of the soldiers; on occasions water reached up to the men's knees. Close to the shore of Funen a skirmish broke out with about 3,000 Danish defenders, but these were brushed aside quickly and the army was safe on Funen.
Three more crossings took them to Zealand via Langeland and Lolland, and by February 15th, the Swedish army reached Copenhagen from the west, forcing a surrender and the Treaty of Roskilde, in which Denmark lost a third of their territory to Sweden, along with other concessions.
BARBRA CAN YOU HEAR ME?!!
[rebelmouse-image 18978804 is_animated_gif=When Barbra Streisand wanted to suppress photos of her Malibu mansion but instead drew so much attention for the 50 million lawsuit against the photographer (who was documenting coastline erosion in California) that the photo was downloaded over 400,000 times compared to the 6 times it was downloaded before the lawsuit. Spectacular failure!
ADOLF IS DISASTER... LESSON LEARNED...
[rebelmouse-image 18977526 is_animated_gif=The Reichswehr trying to spy on the German Workers' Party, which the state saw as an extremist danger they wanted to keep an eye on, undermine, and preferably eliminate. They assigned the task to a 30-year old WWI veteran, Adolf Hitler, who was actually ordered to join the party by his commanding officer. Well, the party took a liking to young Adolf, and vice versa, and the rest is history. Oops.
HAPPY EASTER!!
[rebelmouse-image 18978805 is_animated_gif=The time Napoleon was defeated by rabbits.
After the Treaties of Tilsit Napoleon decided to celebrate with a rabbit hunt - somewhere between a few hundred to a few thousand rabbits were collected for the hunt.
Upon release the rabbits didn't run off and instead went straight for Napoleon and his party - they swarmed Napoleon forcing him to retreat to his carriage. But it didn't end there.
According to historian David Chandler, "with a finer understanding of Napoleonic strategy than most of his generals, the rabbit horde divided into two wings and poured around the flanks of the party and headed for the imperial coach."
BEWARE THE IDES....
[rebelmouse-image 18978806 is_animated_gif=The Assassination of Julius Caesar.
While the Senate and other powerful men that backed the Senate at the time wanted to do in Caesar after he thoroughly crushed the Senatorial backed alliance during the Civil War that followed the end of the First Triumvirate they made a rather large blunder.
You see, Caesar was actually an incredible statesman. His public work projects and careful management of the treasury as well as his plan to reduce income equality in Rome (he mass exported the poor and destitute by offering them farms all throughout the empire meanwhile allowing foreigners with important skills to move to Rome with full citizenship. This gave the poor citizens of Rome a rather large income and increase in quality of life meanwhile spreading more true Romans throughout the empire) won him the support of most of the Roman citizenry. The senate didn't like him pretty much because he attempted to usurp power. Something that many people will remember is Caesar declaring himself dictator for life, or rather getting the senate to do so; this wasn't just a power play; Caesar needed more time to finish preparations for his last hurrah, the conquest of Parthia. The Senate was so worried about him leaving, succeeding, and returning as literally the greatest Roman to ever exist (which would mean it would be impossible to unseat him) they set into motion their conspiracy with very little forethought of the consequences and really with very little thought in general. You see the Senate only killed Caesar. They did nothing to his supporters. They had no end-game. And of course Caesar's most loyal supporters supported him posthumously which lead to the true beginning of the Roman Imperium and the end of the Republic as we know it. And of course with a dynasty of Caesar's descendants: The Julio-Claudian Dynasty would be firmly seated in place after yet another round of civil wars with young Octavian (now known as Augustus Caesar) as the eventual victor. This, of course, degraded the power of the senate further.
Oops.
LEAP FROG CAN BE DIFFICULT!
[rebelmouse-image 18978807 is_animated_gif=One of the initiatives of the Chinese 'Great Leap Forward' in the 1960s was to kill all sparrows in order to keep them from eating crops, thereby theoretically increasing food production. What the Chinese failed to consider was that the sparrows had previously kept the insect population in check, which when left with no primary predators, promptly ruined or consumed all or most of the crops, leading to a massive famine. The Great Leap Forward is full of other blunders like this, such as forcing most of the population to construct primitive iron forges in their backyards that had a tendency to explode.
HANDS OFF THE ART!
[rebelmouse-image 18978808 is_animated_gif=This one time when I was a kid I was wresting with my little brother and accidentally used him to make a hole in the wall about 2 feet in diameter and we tried to cover it up with duct tape, then a framed picture of two puppies and a note saying "Please don't take this painting down. We like it here." right above it with an arrow pointing down at it
It worked for about two or three months until my grandma decided she wanted to put a different picture up or something like that.
DAMN YOU RUSSIA!
[rebelmouse-image 18978809 is_animated_gif=The Gallipoli Campaign. The goal was to open the Bosphorus Straits for the allies so they could supply Russia and maybe knock the Ottomans out of the war, and get Greece to join on the central powers' allies side. End result: 302.000 out of 489.000 allied dead casualties and Winston Churchill leaving politics (not definitively, of course)
ALWAYS A BACKUP!
[rebelmouse-image 18978810 is_animated_gif=When London taxi drivers went on strike to protest Uber and Uber ride requests went up 800%.
NEVER TRUST THE EYES!!
[rebelmouse-image 18978811 is_animated_gif=For all those HAARP conspiracists and those who think we fly in storms and make them worse: I give you Project Stormfury.
The government tried to seed hurricanes to make the eye spread out (weakening the winds around it due to angular momentum conservation) and eventually collapse the eye wall (where the strongest winds are). Then the eyewall reformed and contracted back. They found out hurricanes "replace" the eyewall structure on their own, and usually if they have time over water, one replacement weakens the storm temporarily and can later become even stronger!
AMERICAN HISTORY AS WE KNOW IT...
[rebelmouse-image 18978812 is_animated_gif="Custer's last stand."
The defeat of Colonel George A. Custer and his cavalry detachment by a large force of Native Americans at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876.
Five of the 7th Cavalry's 12 companies were annihilated and Custer was killed, as were two of his brothers, a nephew and a brother-in-law, among others.
GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!!!
[rebelmouse-image 18978814 is_animated_gif=Theresa May snap election.
"PEARL HARBOR"
[rebelmouse-image 18978815 is_animated_gif=The Japanese wanted to make sure the American Navy would not be able to challenge them in the Pacific when they inevitably got involved in WWII, but they failed to damage the American carriers, damaged but didn't destroy most of the battleships in port, and left the dry docks intact so that the damaged ships could be repaired in Hawaii instead of being towed back to the mainland. So not only was the US able to fight in the Pacific, they were able to do it very soon after Pearl Harbor.
DON'T PLAY A PLAYER...
[rebelmouse-image 18978817 is_animated_gif=Microsoft had plans to make the Xbox One be online at all times and could not play used games.
PlayStation mocked this at e3 and Microsoft reverted the changes ASAP.
GIVE ME MY TIME BACK!!
[rebelmouse-image 18978818 is_animated_gif=Where I live we have never done daylight savings (Caribbean). The President at the time thought it'd be a bright idea to implement this all of a sudden to copy the USA. For a whole week the country was havoc. People got late to work some even arrived hours later with the excuse that they thought it was x time. Businesses had a lot of employees missing, traffic was a nightmare because every single person was out to go to work, school or college.
Was also a mess to re-adjust sleeping schedule & just as a whole reschedule your itinerary to adapt that new time. Needless to say, it only lasted a week until it was reverted back.
The nose is constantly being attacked by odors of the world.
Going through one day without having to hold my breath during a certain point, is a miracle.
Of course, I'm a New Yorker, so I maybe exaggerating for people in the countryside.
What's funnier is odors that are pleasant, that shouldn't be.
Have you ever looked and something and thought... "yuck."
But then you smelled it and it was like... "oh lovely,"
Redditor HappQueue wanted to know what aromas are arousing to the senses that may come as a surprise to many. They asked:
"What smells good but shouldn't?"
For some odd reason I love the things burning. Anything, food, pots, pans. You name it. Weird.
Blow
"Matches/candles on a birthday cake. I remember lighting matches as a kid purely to blow them out and inhale that sweet match-y smell."
semispooked
"guilty good"
"I work at a Chemical plant. We make a highly acidic product that is dark blue, viscus, highly corrosive, and smells exactly like Fruit Loops. It is incredibly disturbing."
Turin082
"Organic chemistry has many 'guilty good' smells. Thiophosgene (sulfur derivative of a chemical weapon used extensively in WW1) apparently smells like meat. Phosgene is used to make polycarbonate, thiophosgene is used to make some sulfur-containing molecules which eventually end up in therapeutic drugs."
HammerTh_1701
I can't huff it...
"Paint, specifically house paint. I love the smell. But anytime I hear that anyone is painting a room or their house, I volunteer. I just love sitting on the floor in a room that's been freshly painted, closing my eyes and just inhaling that slightly chemically, slightly creamy aroma."
Neowza
A Hint of French...
"A fish and chips shop burnt down as couple blocks from work a few years ago. The whole neighborhood smelled amazing for days. Just the slight hint of French fries. Nothing overpowering. It was so awesome. Until I found out someone was trapped in the fire and died."
stevey_frac
Drag
"Race fuel. Instantly puts me in a good mood as it reminds me of going to the drag races with my dad when I was young."
garfnodie
Fuel and matches get me too. And they sort of go together. Interesting.
Just like the Movie...
"The water from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Mmm, bromine."
Stalkerslovemy
"This is one of my favorite scents of all time, and Disney is very aware that people enjoy it. Evidently it’s a lot harder to recreate than just adding bromine to water."
cash4panties
"black widow".
"There's a chicken wing restaurant near my house that has a challenge sauce called "black widow." The owner claims it to be around 500,000 scovilles. A few years back some buddies and I decided to try them, the sauce was a dark molasses color and smelled almost like a BBQ sauce, no hint of the danger that lurked at all. We each grabbed one wing and it went terribly. I don't know how something so spicy could smell so innocent."
Final-Chapter
Endless Weekend
"Hotel/rented rooms whenever you go on vacation. There's this particular smell that just says 'you are on vacation,' especially on a beach/swimming trips/out-of-the-town vacays."
Yummy_Llama
"Bath and Body Works has a plug-in scent called Endless Weekend that replicates that scent (to my humble nose)."
Exxcentrica
"oh no..."
"Someone you are attracted to's body odors. Anyone else who is slightly unhygienic smells repulsive."
Mini_gunslinger
"I remember back in high school a girl leaned over, sniffed me, told me that I smelled really good, and asked me what cologne I was wearing. I asked if she was joking, and she's like, no, you smell really good. When I told her I had just gotten done with gym class, she gets a small 'oh no...' look on her face and turns away. I think we both had a revelation that day."
user deleted
That Smell
"The smell inflatable things give off. I have no idea how to describe it, but it’s… nostalgic? to me."
crestfxllen
I do love the smell of plastics and inflatables. Ahh....
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
At one point in time, we've misplaced things that we've considered priceless possessions.
It's hard to imagine how to go on without the lost object–whatever it may be–but over time, it becomes a distant memory and we move on.
That is until we magically find ourselves presented with this opportunity proposed by Redditor mikehotel288, who asked:
"You find yourself in a room with everything you’ve ever lost in your life. What do you look for first?"
There are necessities people cannot do without.
No More Dry Lips Ever Again
"Gonna be a lot of chapstick in that room."
– camefromxbox
There are things that bring us comfort and are irreplaceable.
Safety Blanket
"My baby blanket. It became tattered over the years—to the point where I couldn’t reasonably wash it anymore—so I had to throw it away a little while back."
"I have heavily regretted that decision. I was really attached to it (hence it being in tatters), but I really wish that I kept what was left of it instead of throwing it away. Just knowing that I’d still have it would be a huge comfort to me."
– Uearie
Sentimental Heirloom
"The pendant my dad had made for me with my grandmother’s engagement diamond. It was 2 carats. It disappeared from a Las Vegas hotel room 20 years ago. It was hidden deep in a suitcase where it would not have been easy to find. It was just GONE. Cops didn’t do anything. Didn’t even come to take my statement. Cleaning lady said she thought she saw an elderly man enter my room. The guy I was with was not sympathetic in the least. Entire situation was f**ked. I’m still so upset about it."
– MaritimeDisaster
Lone Shark
"My plastic shark toy I lost when I was 10. Ain't no f'king way it just VANISHED."
– Guilty_As_Charged__
Not everything lost is tangible.
Tick Tock
"The time I wasted."
– shinyfennec
It Holds Value
"My private key with 6 BTC in it."
– Significant_Mirror19
"I didn't lose one, but I'll check my room for yours just in case."
– Smodphan
Finding Purpose
"The reason I walked into the room."
– Lloyd_lyle
Lost Opportunity
"That one girl i spoke to on omegle lol"
– h-amishh
If only we get to reunite with those we've lost.
The Loved Family Member
"My grandpa."
– Splatty_boi_420
Grieving Parent
"My daughter. She’ll be in my brother’s arms. So I’ll find both things I care to look for."
– SeeTheFence
Missing Mom
"My mom. She died of cancer in 2017. She never got to meet my daughter. I miss the hell out of her and wish she was still part of my family’s life."
– X-Arkturis-X
The Animals That Come Into Our Lives
"My pets that have passed: especially my horse, Blue. It's been 4 years, but it feels like just yesterday."
– Baciandrio
While many of these scenarios are unlikely, the thread gave people an opportunity to reflect on the things that made a strong impression on their lives.
Sometimes, the memories of the things we've lost–whether they are random objects or sources of love–is all we have.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
What's worse than returning home from a night out or a workday and discovering your home was broken into? Being home when the break-in happens.
Home invasions are a common trope portrayed in horror films like The Strangers and Funny Games, and they're absolutely terrifying because they are based on real-life incidents.
Redditor silentagent47 asked strangers to consider this horrifying hypothetical.
"You have 5 minutes to prepare before a guy breaks into your house with the intention to kill you. You can not exit your house. What is your strategy to survive?"
The hunter becomes the hunted, inspired by TV and movies.
Duplicating A Scene
"There was an episode of Burn Notice where Michael puts aerosol cans in the microwave with kitchen utensils and hits popcorn button. I really want to know if this works or not."
– JohnSterlingSanchez
Epic Burglar Trap
"Speed-watch Home Alone."
– pluribusduim
It's about the choice of weapon.
Jump Scare
"I get the vacuum cleaner ready in a certain room, I turn it on as hes about to enter to create a distraction, then I jump out when he's inspecting the noise and bonk the f'ker on the head with the piece of 2 inch steel tube I keep as a weapon."
– BustedBastard
Beware of Dog
"Unleash the Hounds"
– myassonreddit
Make A Weapon
"Duct tape a bunch of knives to the end of one of those tall lamps to make a spear of blinding and then proceed to go sicko mode."
– DubTheeBustocles
Preparing For A Thwack
"Turn shower on, for some reason I have a shovel behind my wardrobe?? So grab that. Wait for him to check shower, whack with shovel. Boom."
– hypersp00p
It's Just A Game
"Corner camp with a shotgun."
– Arrow3619
A Warm Welcome
"Hairspray and a lighter to his face."
– WorkingClassSheep
The effectiveness of these tactics are questionable, but points for creativity are warranted.
Stand Still
"Put a lamp shade on my head and stand in the corner of the room."
– Cannabis_Sir
Make It Erotic
"I turn on all the lights, take off all my clothes, rub butter all over myself, and start a fake conversation on the phone. As soon as he breaks in I say into the phone: 'I’ve gotta go, my next appointment is finally here…”
– FrankieTheAlchemist
Forget The Stairs
"Go to the LIVING ROOM."
– on-oath-never-again
Removing The Element Of Fun
"Draw an X on my forehead and grab a beer."
– Candycoatedmuffin3
And that's why I would opt for living in a commune or apartment complex.
People who own houses are just asking for forced entry.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
Many relationships that have soured tend to lend themselves to infidelity.
Yet, people who have fallen out of love with their significant others make the conscious decision to stay in their respective relationships anyway.
Why is that?
Curious to hear from heartbreakers on the internet, Redditor Tsuibug asked:
"People who have cheated on their partners, why?"
For some, it was motivated out of retaliation.
A Harsh Lesson
"I was In the Army; I married a girl from my hometown. She kept cheating on me and accusing me of cheating, it must have gone on for 4 separate guys before I finally cheated on her."
"The reason I did it was I felt like a fool being faithful to someone who obviously didn’t care about how I felt."
"Even then when I did it; I had a stomach ache and did not feel any less of a fool in fact; I felt like a bigger one. I felt empty and hollow."
"It was when I was overseas in Korea attempting to fix things that she had a 'friend' over while we were face timing. Her replies were cold and unwelcoming even though we had agreed to work it out. She kept looking over the device and smuggly smiling at someone. I was done, over it. I didn’t speak to her again until the divorce hearing."
"A lesson well learned."
– ExistenialPanicAttac
The Three Positions
"I have been in all 3 positions."
"Been Cheated On."
"Been the Cheater."
"Been the Person Someone Cheated with."
"Almost all of them come down to insecurity, you get a sense of power, invincibility, ego boost in 2 of those 3 positions up above."
– DeadEyedAdmin
Power Play
"I've cheated because I was trying to get some of that power back. I was with someone who made me feel insecure and powerless, and someone else came along who made me feel good about myself for a little while."
– propagandavid
Mistakes made early in life can usually be more forgivable.
Young Love
"I held hands with another girl when I was in 5th grade. Very ashamed to admit that."
– JustJuiceJury
Chalking It Up To Immaturity
"I was young, immature, full of myself and lacked feelings."
–Successful_Present39
The "Player Phase"
"Same. In my early 20s, I was insecure, jealous, anger issues etc. A over all pos. I called it my 'player phase' but it was just toxic behavior. I grew up(thank god), met my gf and been together for 10 years, getting married next month. Never have and will never cheat on her. As corny as it sounds, she's my soul mate."
– skynetempire
The One Regret
"A lot of it had to do with age and immaturity I agree. If I could go back in time I wouldn’t have hurt as many girls as I did, that’s the one thing I regret. I am also dating and living with someone who I am going to marry one day. I just wish I didn’t hurt many others to get here."
– Successful_Present39
At least these Redditors are self-aware.
Not An Excuse
"Misery. Not an excuse, but it is the reason."
– CottaBird
Eventual Path To Happiness
"We hadn’t had sex in over a year. We had turned into just good friends who cared about each other but physical passion was gone. There was significant liquor involved when it happened. I feel bad about it and would take it back if I could but I can’t. I was honest about what happened and we broke up. We are still close friends and we still care about each other a lot. She has found someone else who is better suited for her than me and I’m very happy for her. In a way, it was the catalyst to us doing what needed to be done in the relationship (breaking up) to make us both happy."
– MrPrissypants13
When Compatibility Is An Issue
"Not sure if it's cheating or not but I tried to break up with my ex and she started crying and pleading with me to give it another chance which broke my heart and I reluctantly said okay. Tried again a couple weeks later because the relationship wasn't getting any better but same thing happened. She was a really nice girl and we got along well but our personalities were way too different and I wasnt willing to make her my life partner."
"I decided to go on a wilderness backpacking trip by myself to clear my head. At work I told a girl who I knew through mutual friends about it and she said she's never done a backpack trip and always wanted to, so I jokingly invited her and to my surprise she accepted and was super excited."
"During the trip we really got to know each other and I decided I would like to pursue a relationship with her. We slept in the same tent and drank whiskey under the stars but I didn't try to kiss or get sexual I'm any way because I was still technically in a relationship."
"Once we got home I broke up for good and 3yrs later we are engaged. Turns out me not trying to make any moves on her made her trust me more than any other guy and we are living a great life together!"
– byhi3
It's easy to forever peg someone as a cheater after one regrettable moment of weakness.
But based on some of the responses above, the reasons for cheating are much more complicated than you might think.
Still there are no good excuses for deceiving someone to whom you're presumably devoted.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.