The Backfire Awards

The Murphy

For everyday backfires.

Why the name

Murphy's law: anything that can go wrong will go wrong. Drop a piece of toast and it lands butter side down, making the biggest mess it can. The saying is usually traced to Edward A. Murphy Jr., an engineer on U.S. Air Force rocket-sled tests in 1949.

What it is

The Murphy goes to a small fix that made the thing worse. It happens at home, at work and online. The office rule that made meetings longer. The app setting that made the problem worse. The diet that made you hungrier. The Midgley is for backfires at world scale. The Murphy is for the ones you live with.

How it works

  1. Tell us yours with the Nominate button. Pick The Murphy. It takes a minute.
  2. We read every one.
  3. The best are featured in The Weekly Oops and on our social accounts, with your first name if you give one.

Keep it about the decision, not a person someone could identify. See the guidelines.

Share your Murphy