Interesting thread. I prefer not to buy those half dead plants you see in garden centres or big box stores. It's really shocking the way some places treat their stock. And sometimes you do have to admit defeat and just throw some plants away.
But having said that, I have on occasion rescued plants from other people's neglect. Cacti and succulents are probably the best success stories as they have the capacity to store water in their tissues for longer.
About 5 years ago I moved into a new office and found an Echinops behind a blind on a windowsill which had obviously been there for months. It was very shrivelled. I brought it home, repotted and carefully watered it.
A while later it produced this.
