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Pottery Barn RuleThe Pottery Barn rule refers to a "you break it, you own it" policy of a retail store that holds a customer responsible for damage done to displayed merchandise. The policy was erroneously attributed to Pottery Barn, a chain of home furnishing stores in the United States. It was widely quoted by news media in April 2004 after being prominently mentioned in the book Plan of Attack by Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward. According to Woodward, United States secretary of state Colin Powell cited this rule when warning President George W. Bush, in the summer of 2002, of the consequences of military action in Iraq. - " 'You are going to be the proud owner of 25 million people,' he told the president. 'You will own all their hopes, aspirations, and problems. You'll own it all.' Privately, Powell and Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage called this the Pottery Barn rule: You break it, you own it." (page 150)
The Pottery Barn chain denies it has such a policy — broken merchandise is written off as a loss, even if it is broken by a customer, according to Leigh Oshirak, public relations director for the company (St. Petersburg Times, April 20, 2004, Rule that isn't its rule upsets Pottery Barn, Helen Huntley. See also http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040420-104550-7657r.htm). The source of the term "Pottery Barn rule" is unknown, but it may not have originated with the reference in Woodward's book. In his column of February 12, 2003, New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman used the phrase "the pottery store rule" to make the point that invading Iraq carried the responsibility of rebuilding the nation. However, Friedman claims responsibility for the phrase; he is quoted as saying, "But in my speeches I referred to the Pottery Barn." (International Herald Tribune, October 18, 2004, You break it, you own it, you fix it language, William Safire). The term is now almost exclusively used to mean the expectation of full accountability for the consequences of a public official's decisions and particularly, in the case of President Bush, for the consequences of his decision to invade Iraq. On September 30, 2004, during the first debate for the 2004 Presidential election, Democratic candidate John Kerry misquoted the rule: - "Secretary of State Colin Powell told this president the Pottery Barn rule: If you break it, you fix it. Now, if you break it, you made a mistake. It's the wrong thing to do. But you own it."
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