The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 14 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Cialdini: Tailored Free Gifts Boosted Fast-Food Purchases by 24%
“Researchers did a study. People came in, and one-third of them just went to the to the counter and ordered their food. Another third of them came in and were given a very attractive key ring with a beautiful medallion on it by the management. Oh, thank you for…”
Cialdini: McDonald's Families Bought 25% More Food When Given Balloons First
“The other half, each kid got the balloon as they entered. Those families bought 25% more food because they had been given something first.”
Kroc's original McDonald's deal took 1.9% royalty, paying brothers 0.5%
“Kroc would take 1.9% of gross sales from franchisees. He proposed two percent, but the brothers talked him down. Tell a franchisee two percent, they said, and he'll block. Say one and nine 10th, and it sounds like less. Out of that 1.9%, the brothers would rec…”
Ray Kroc built a competing store to bankrupt the original founders
“In fact, Ray would go on to open a McDonald's across the street from them and run them out of business.”
Parrish: Early McDonald's stores technically violated the McDonald brothers' contract
“They refused to send registered letters authorizing changes, which meant Technically, every store he built was in violation of their original contract. Their attorney could shut them down at any moment.”
Kroc's McDonald's contract required registered mail approval for specification changes
“He could not deviate from their specifications unless changes were approved in writing, signed by both brothers, and sent by registered mail.”
McDonald's repaid its 30-year buyout debt 19 years early in 1972
“They projected it would take until 1991, 30 years. They paid it off in 1972. The lenders made about twelve million.”
McDonald's buyout was financed by 12 institutions including Princeton and Ford Foundation
“He finally found a group of 12 institutions, including Princeton, Howard University, Carnegie Tech, the Ford Foundation, willing to lend the money in exchange for a Half a percent of gross sales.”
Harry Sonneborn turned $1,000 into $170 million in McDonald's real estate
“They started Franchise Realty Corporation with a thousand dollars in capital, and Harry would eventually turn it into over a hundred and seventy million dollars worth of real estate.”
Parrish: Kroc banned payphones and vending machines from McDonald's locations
“He refused to put any pay telephones, jukeboxes, or vending machines of any kind in any McDonald's. Many operators were tempted by this side income, but Ray stood firm.”
Parrish: 80% of Original McDonald's Sales Came From Hamburgers Alone
“First, the teenage crowd was driving away families, and second, despite a menu of 25 items, 80% of sales came from one thing, the hamburger.”
Ray Kroc inspected competitors' trash at 2 AM to estimate sales
“More than once, at two in the morning, Ray Kroc sorted through a competitor's trash to count out how many boxes of meat they'd used the day before.”