Using the same engrossing anecdotal format that has proved so popular in Profiles in Audacity, Alan Axelrod now turns to the dark side of audacious decision-making: those choices that, in retrospect, were shockingly wrongheaded.
Although Axelrod investigates some dumb decisions by stupid people and some evil decisions by evil people, the overwhelming majority of these decisions were made by good, smart people whose poor judgment produced disastrous, often irreversible results.
The 35 compelling and often poignant stories, which range from ancient times to today, include: The Trojan Horse; the Childrenâs Crusade; the sailing of the Titanic, and the false belief that it just couldnât sink; Edward Bernaysâs 1929 campaign to recruit women smokers; Neville Chamberlainâs appeasement of the Nazis; Ken Layâs deception with Enron; and even the choice to create a âNew Cokeâ and fix what wasnât broke.
As with Profiles in Audacity, the deftly drawn vignettes will pique interest, satisfy curiosity, give pleasure, and present valuable lessons. And in addition to offering the same insightful analysis of the decision-making process, Folly also includes objective post-mortems that explain what went wrong and why. These are cautionary talesâalbeit with exquisite twists ranging from acerbic to horrific.