HP, I really like your intellectual rigor. You've identified the problem: we're trying to measure both monetary loss and pigheadedness. I think we can simplify this.Hercule Parrot wrote:We designate a unit of pig-headed, scorched-earth self-impoverishment called a "Crawford", each unit being approximately £75,000 / US$100,000 / C$120,000. We can then conveniently refer to the losses in this or that case as being 0.7 Crawfords, 1.6 Crawfords, a Double or Triple Crawford etc. But the specific term "Full Crawford" stands separately, meaning simply that the whole capital, whatever it was, is gone.
If we want to measure monetary loss, we could just use money. We have units of measure for that. We don't have a unit of measure for pigheadedness, which I think is what we're after. So I'll counter-propose:
1 crawford = the amount of pigheadedness necessary to lose all the value in your home
I like that this approach ties pigheadedness to the value of one's home, a reasonable estimate of wealth. Someone who loses a cheap bungalow is just as pig-headed as someone who loses a multi-million dollar estate. At the same time, a £500 fine for court shenanigans is more punitive to someone who can less afford it. And, the term Full Crawford* for losing your home completely still works.
As a practical matter, we need sub-units. I propose the millicrawford, which is the amount of pigheadedness necessary to lose 1/1000 of the value of your home. I chose milli- over centi- because it lets us measure small things like traffic fines, a common event in the FMOTL world. And, the more granular unit puts the scale of it all into perspective.
Say your home is worth £150,000. Have you ever lost £150 being pigheaded about something? I certainly have, and I suspect most people have. The household repair you tried to do yourself for cheap instead of calling a professional; the poker hand you overplayed when everyone at the table knew you were beat; the bum investment you wouldn't cut your losses on; the futile attempt to impress someone you had no chance to; etc. You felt bad about wasting that money when you came to your senses later. But it only cost you a millicrawford or two. Compare your losses to what Tom and Rekha pulled off. Yyyyyyyyeah.
* - (Capitalization note: crawford is lower-case, as with other units of measure named after people: newton, ohm, angstrom, smoot, etc. Full Crawford is still capitalized, because it's a proper noun-phrase, and because it just looks better that way, dag nab it.)