Umbrella-Sharing Is Probably Not a Viable Business 

An umbrella-sharing startup in China has lost the vast majority of their fleet in very short order, which sounds like exactly what would happen to an umbrella-sharing startup. The story itself is amusing, but it also reminds me of one of my very favorite jokes from Seinfeld:

George: Who buys an umbrella anyway? You get ’em for free in the coffee shop, in the metal cans.

Jerry: (as if speaking to a moron) Those belong to people.

The idea of a life lived believing that the umbrella stands in public places are free for the taking always cracks me up. As if it’s equivalent to the take-a-penny/leave-a-penny tray by a cash register!