Homeless Man Returns Wallet With $900

[deadparrot]

SANTA ANA, Calif. - A homeless man searching through garbage bins for recyclable cans found a missing wallet and had it returned to its owner.

Kim Bogue, who works as a janitor in the city's government buildings, realized that her wallet was missing last week and doubted she'd ever get back the $900 and credit cards inside, she said.

"I prayed that night and asked God to help me," said Bogue, who was saving the money for a trip to her native Thailand.

Days later, a homeless man found the wallet wrapped in a plastic bag in a trash bin, where Bogue had accidentally thrown it away with her lunch. He gave it to Sherry Wesley, who works in a nearby building.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/homeless_man_wallet

[acmavm]

1. Now that's not only integrity, that's class. More class then rich guys

like Ken Lay would ever have in 100 lifetimes. A kind of class they would never even understand.

[Kber]

54. Wasn't Katherine Harris whining about spending her 10M inheritance

and comparing it to a widow's tithe, like she'd be homeless after the campaign.

Someone should send this article to her and try to explain the meaning of actually giving away more that you can afford.

But that would probably be wasted effort.

[BlackHeart]

2. Maybe she should thank the homeless guy

instead of God. Or maybe be pissed at God for making her worry about her wallet. That prankster.

[Zhade]

5. Indeed.

NT!

[rpannier]

12. I'm quite certain that

Satan threw her wallet in the dumpster to undermine her faith.
But he failed.

[salin]

13. she gave him $100 as thanks.

given that it reads that she worked as part of a janitorial staff, I would guess she isn't a high wage earner, and that the gift/thanks was substantial to her.

[Cobalt Violet]

40. And he split the reward with Wesley.

Very nice man.

[Terran1212]

3. Wonderful story.

[Zhade]

4. So the homeless guy gets a hundred bucks.

Seems to me the "Christian" thing to do would be to give him more than that and a thank-you.

I think Jesus purportedly said something about giving away your stuff to those in need, but hey, I guess a trip that maybe could be postponed a short time is more important.

[BlackHeart]

7. A hundred bucks is a very generous

finders fee. And if he has as much class as it appears he'll turn this reward down too.
BTW did you notice that the lady who lost her wallet is a janitor?

[DBoon]

10. A hundred is a lot to a janitor

that was a generous gesture.

[JI7]

41. why should he have to turn it down as proof he has class

he already showed it by returning the wallet with the money.

[readmoreoften]

74. He's homeless he doesn't have "class"

He has morals. Having "class" implies that you act in the gentile way that nobility acts, hence turning down an offer of charity. He's homeless to act "classy" is absurd. He's already acted with impeccable moral character and there's nothing better than that.

[Bridget Burke]

53. So send some money to the guy yourself!

Nobody is going to stop you.

Her "trip that could be postponed" was not a long weekend in the wine country. She is saving up for a trip to her home in Thailand--that's a big expense for a janitor.

[LanternWaste]

64. Oh man...

Oh man. That's gotta be about the most brainless thing I've heard this month.

'nuff said...

[superconnected]

6. Great story.

[apple_ridge]

8. Quite possibly the dumbest human being on earth!

[BlackHeart]

9. Oh please...

...whatever do you mean?

[MissB]

11. I guess, if you think morals = dumb.

[Lochloosa]

15. So. I'm assuming from your post that you would have kept the money and

tried to use the credit cards.

First person I have ever put on my ignore list. Amazing.

[pretzel4gore]

17. haha..i think (s)he was being a 'devil's advocate'

sometimes, it's fun to defy convention, espcially when it's just a discussion....don't be angry. after all, lost wallets are found all the time, and noone hears anything about it! So apple ridge was giving that aspect a voice (which i'm sure was just being provocative)....:shrug:

[alcibiades_mystery]

21. Devil's Advocate

Douchebag

Six of one, half a dozen of the other...

[Lochloosa]

26. That reply is not even worth discussing.

[dysfunctional press]

25. i would have kept the money- but not the cards.

using the cards would be illegal...keeping the cash would not.

i've lost cash in the past, and i've found cash.

and found money is just that- found money.

[Auntie Bush]

36. Yes, found money is found money...but this wasn't found money.

It was in a wallet with a name ... so if you kept it it would be stealing! If you found money lying on the street or gutter etc. that would be found money. In this case it wasn't. So you get a free "Go To Jail" card.

[dysfunctional press]

45. he found it in a garbage bin- so yes, it was found money...

if i had been in his shoes(or even mine for that matter) i would have taken out the cash and left the wallet and cards in the garbage bin. using a found credit card is fraud with a paper and often photographic trail- using found money isn't.

[Bridget Burke]

56. Perhaps he didn't want to be a thief

"Found money" is a wad of bills in an unmarked paper bag.

I worked as a waitress in my youth & found 2 wallets with large amounts of money. I turned them in as is.

[dysfunctional press]

69. finding and keeping something that's been disdcarded in a dumpster-

does not make one a thief.

and technically, a wad of bills in an unmarked bag is supposed to be turned into the authorities just as much as a wallet with a name on it- so SHAME on you, too- for thinking that it would be "found money"- if you want to be a moral person in your own opinion, that is.

[theHandpuppet]

59. Nice.

Nice to know that for some a conscience is simply a matter of convenience -- or legality.

[dysfunctional press]

68. to me, the key words are "garbage bin"

if i found a wallet laying on the sidewalk or street, etc.- i'd return it as is. finding it while dumpster diving(which i'm not above) is a different matter entirely- on the street, i'd consider it lost- in a dumpster, i'd consider it "discarded".

[Solon]

79. Nobody in their right mind would throw away intact credit...

cards, nor an intact Driver's License either, using common sense like that, the RIGHT thing to do would be to return it intact. Not to mention that Dumpster diving does NOT involve getting wallets out of the trash for cash, obviously the wallet was MISTAKENLY thrown in the trash, somehow. She was a janitor, so it is certainly possible that it fell out of her pocket and into the trash, in that case it isn't discarded by her, but lost. Anyone who takes advantage of that is a thief, plain and simple.

Dumpster diving, to me, is a noble activity, working as a trashman a few times, and having friends who cleaned offices and stuff, we had access to all sorts of stuff, electronics, computers, etc. That is not stealing, because its obvious that that stuff was TRASH to someone, but a fixable CD player is treasure to me.

[dysfunctional press]

93. technically- ANY found money should be turned over to authorities...

whether in a wallet or not- to not do so then makes the offender just as much a "thief" by your logic.

not mine.

[Solon]

103. Your only using half of it...

If you would pay attention, anything with your IDENTITY attached to it SHOULD be turned into the authorities, because they can establish that it rightfully belongs to you. However, cash is a different story, no authority on the planet is going to run a fingerprint check on a damned 20 dollar bill just to see if you own it, wouldn't be conclusive anyways. Plus, those serial numbers on them only show which Reserve Bank the note came from, and possibly the local bank, if directly shipped(possible, not likely). That's how they can catch people that make ransom demands, etc. by flagging the numbers on the bill. But other than that, finder's keepers, because its not going to be left in an evidence room locker either.

[dysfunctional press]

105. any found money should be turned in- identity or not

that's what opie did on the andy griffith show- just because there's no identity attached doesn't mean that it's not a possible life-or-death situation for the rightful owner, does it?
so- if you found $900 in a plain brown paper bag, with no identity- would you keep it, or turn it in to the police?

[theHandpuppet]

102. Riiiiiiiiight....

Sure, folks throw away wallets full of cash and credit cards every day. :eyes:

[dysfunctional press]

106. not too many that i know of.

like i've said- i've found money, i've lost money...and ANYTHING i might come across in a dumpster is fair game, as far as i'm concerned.
you live your life your way, and i'll live mine in my way...:hi:

[alcibiades_mystery]

20. New DU Feature: Autobiography!

:eyes:

[Zynx]

72. Oh that's a good one. Kudos.

;-)

[TheWatcher]

46. If you are referring to yourself

Then you are almost on the mark. You are second only to Bush in this respect.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

52. please explain n/t

[DaDeacon]

66. Integrity is not what you do when people are looking...

it's what you do when they aren't!

I don't have this man's integrity, I would have taken the money and mailed back the wallet but I will not call him dumb for being a better man than me. If J-lo offered me one night with her I would cheat on my wife but my best friend ( who is single ) would not. It's funny you have to wonder how a man with that much integrity deals with people walking over him and acting like he's not there, him.

[devilgrrl]

81. I'd hate to find out what you think the smartest humans are?

What a disgusting thing to say you unprincipled SAP. :puke:

[WhiteTara]

86. wow. just wow

aren't you a swell human?

[girl gone mad]

89. okay everyone...

while I can't speak personally for apple_ridge, I believe she was talking about the lady who threw her wallet in the trash, not the man who returned it.

At least that is what I assume. Why do so many people assume the worst?

[President Kerry]

100. that's no better..

A really indefensible comment. When you have a chance to commend a homeless person for his integrity, or the person who lost the wallet for her generosity, this is what apple_ridge comes up with. That's ultimate cynisism.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

95. Quite possibly the smartest...

His treasure is human decency. It can never be stolen, only misplaced.

[LisaM]

14. Nicer than the person who found my wallet and charged gas

three times in ten minutes (what, did he just hand the card to his friends?)

$100 is a lot to a janitor, and a good reward. She wanted the wallet found because she obviously needed the money. She may want to look into a bank account, though!

I accidentally threw away some change with a to-go meal once, but was able to retrieve it myself from the trash. It was a little embarrassing (it was at my apartment) but I was in college and needed the $18.

[Jazz2006]

16. Great story. Thanks. n/t

[Solon]

18. This reminds me of a story...

OK, I was working a clearance tent for Wal-Mart in the front lot of the store. Hot, muggy, about the size and shape of a fireworks tent, and in the summer heat, ugh I hated that. Anyways, one day a customer came up to me and told me he found a wallet on the ground, so he gave it to me, all I did was flip it open to look at the license, so if the person who lost it showed up, I would be able to identify him. I did NOT want to hold onto the wallet, I followed procedure, I told a co-worker to hold the fort and then went inside the store and handed off the wallet to the Cash Office, they are closed off from the rest of the store, and was also secure. As soon as I re-enter the tent, the guy in the picture from the driver's license storms into the tent and is in a near panic, I approach him, and told him I found the wallet, he then informs me that it had 500 dollars in cash in it. I wasn't aware of it, I never opened it up completely, ignorance is the best policy. So I escorted him to the Cash office, with the Driver's license, it was easy to identify him, and so he got it back, with not a dime nor credit card missing.

So, he follows me back out to the clearance tent, insisting that he give me some money to, 50 bucks, for keeping the wallet safe. I refused, at first, but I will say he was insistant, bear in mind that my acceptance of ANY gratuity from a customer is an instant termination offense. So, seeing that he wouldn't feel right not giving me anything, I even told him about the customer who actually found the wallet, but that guy was long gone. So, seeing that the outside camera was on me, I escorted him to just outside its sight and accepted the money, I honestly didn't really care, even though, for a Wal-Mart associate, 50 bucks is a LOT of money. I didn't get in trouble for it, and what Wal-Mart doesn't know won't hurt them. To be honest, I never knew till he told me, how much money was in it, and it wouldn't have really made a difference, he was glad I was honest, but really, I just did what I thought anyone else would have done. Plus, I can't take all the credit, the customer who found the wallet was just as honest, and also did what he thought was best, that's the best anyone can do.

Not to mention I'm honest to a fault, its actually embarrasing, OK, another story, and this one stupid, one time I stopped at the gas station to grab some cigs and some bubble gum. I went to the aisle with the bubble gum in it, grabbed the 25 cent pack, the really small one, and stuck it in my pocket without thinking, I then paid for the cigs at the counter. When I went out to the car and fished for my keys, I felt the package, and went back into the store and paid the damned quarter. I was distracted that day, and wasn't really paying attention to what I was doing, to be honest, I don't know what was more stupid, the fact that I stuck the gum in my pocket without thinking, or the fact that I actually went in and owned up to that fact and paid for it.

One last story, and then I'm done, I was working my normal department, Lawn and Garden, at my store, and one day, going down the aisles, I found a 20 dollar bill just laying in the middle of an aisle. Instead of doing what a NORMAL person would do, I stuck the thing at the bottom of the cash drawer in the cash register in the department. Since it had no name attached, I could, rightfully, claim it as my own, I couldn't really hand it to the cash office, nor just stick it in the cash register as an extra 20 dollars, we get reprimanded if the drawer balance is off by more than 5 dollars, either when short or over. So I stuck it underneath the bill and change holder, where the cheques and big bills go, the bill was safe enough there. My dept. manager basically said, wait till the end of your shift, see if anyone comes around and asks for a missing 20 dollar bill, if they do, give it to them. Well, by the end of my shift, about 7 hours later, no one came to claim it, so I pocketed it, finder's keepers. Don't know if its moral, but the best under the circumstances I believe.

[pretzel4gore]

23. i think it's a 'know thyself' thing

if a person's honest, (s)he knows it, and a person cannot hide their self image-it affects everything, including mental health. unfortunately, many people, as children, do not know that while they can get away with all sorts of things, the fact is they know who they are, and being dishonest automatically cost them their self respect! an 80 year old man who murdered people can anguish over stealing a chocolate bar as a 5 year old child, because it was then that he became a murderer....

[jbnow]

49. My son found a $20 bill once

and I kept it. Well I spent it.

I was in college and my son was 3 years old. An expected check had not come and I had no money at all to buy Christmas presents for him. I had some change so we were in a store and I was hoping to find something delightful for less then $1.00.

My son said he saw a dollar and climbed under a display counter. The bill was dusty with some dangling cobwebs so it had been there a while. I did hesitate as he handed it to me. Should I turn it in? I was essentially honest and over the years did raise my kids to be. But that day I took the money, dusted it off and went Christmas shopping.
I was so thankful and I still am at the memory though it was many years ago. I wouldn't have robbed to get him presents but it was breaking my heart that he would have none. Maybe the cobwebs assuaged my guilt but it felt like a gift from the gods.

[robbob]

62. Good for you!

Nice to know there are honest people in this world. I can't count the number of times I've handed over a ten dollar bill to a clerk and received change for a twenty. It's reward enough seeing the gratitude on their face when I hand the extra ten back and tell them they made a mistake. I figure that lost money would probably end up coming out of their pocket, and anyone working the counter at a 7/11 probably can't afford to lose ten bucks on a shift.

[Chemical Bill]

19. This proves that God is a homeless guy.

She prayed to God, and a homeless man answered. That settles it in my book. ;)

Bill

[Mind_your_head]

I like that.....

...and much agree! :hi:

[OldLeftieLawyer]

31. You have to watch

"Dogma."

God has a thing for skeeball.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

22. Once when I was waiting for a bus in downtown Portland at night

in front of a bank with an outdoor ATM, I saw a yuppie type use the ATM and walk away. Suddenly a homeless man came running after him and said, "Mister, you forgot your card!"

The yuppie simply reached out his hand and took the card without even looking at the homeless man and walked away.

I couldn't believe the ingratitude, because I had had my pocket picked some months before, and the thief had used my ATM debit card to buy a computer. (Fortunately, after a lot of fuss, the bank replaced the money.) The homeless man could have had a great time with that card but had chosen to be honest.

I felt really bad about it and checked my purse to find only five or six dollars. I gave it to the homeless man and told him to buy himself something to eat.

[Zhade]

44. Good on you, Lydia.

That was very caring. :)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

76. How did the thief guess the PIN? -nt

[Lydia Leftcoast]

77. She processed it as a credit card transaction

The cops suspected that the thief had a friend at the store (a huge Office Depot), because normal procedure was to ask for two forms of I.D. with a sale of that size.

[HannibalBarca]

24. A janitor with $900 in her wallet? Hmm

[benddem]

28. To walk around with that

much cash on your person is incredibly stupid. She's lucky. Someone else could have found it or it could have ended up buried in a trash heap somewhere.

[high density]

29. No kidding!

Janitor or not that's a lot of cash to be walking around with. I wonder if she's ever heard of a bank account?!

[JI7]

39. people who don't have much money often don't have bank accounts

since they live paycheck to paycheck.

[shanti]

47. or people with questionable credit

they often don't have checking accounts either.

[MountainLaurel]

82. She's a Thai immigrant

It's not unusual in many other cultures for people not to use banks. The concept of giving YOUR money to other people to hold on to just doesn't make sense, or the banks are often corrupt, or there have been bad experiences with bank shut-downs (e.g., the stock market).

[bluestateguy]

27. I would have kept the money

At least I would if I was homeless and penniless.

What does he have now? A few pats on the back, a feel-good moment and....

he's still homeless.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

34. I am SO glad you didn't find the purse I lost last year. I tipped the

guy a lot of bucks because of the personal stuff in the purse and not the money (not as much as the tip) were worth a fortune to me.

I am now going directly to the site to donate some money to the guy.

Question? Are you really a DUer? You sound more like a bush-bot. Steal from anyone if given the chance...

[Joe Chi Minh]

92. I remember reading a snippet in the paper about a homeless

man refusing a £50 bill proffered to him by Joan Baez. I think he said he'd just be happy to have her autograph. And I doubt very much that it was with any view to selling it. That is indeed the attitude of the Lord's anointed.

I also remember reading a hilarious anecdote about the great jockey of the twenties - the greatest in England of his era, anyway - Steve Donaghue. He was trotting on his horse to the start, when a pal of his called out to him that he hadn't been able to put his money (£50, a lot of money in those days) on the horse he'd asked him to, as the horse had been withdrawn.

"Well", he shouted, "put it on whatever you fancy!" Now, I know there are many different constructions likely to be put on that, including that it is a sin a against Prudence, but to me it is the most sublime example of Christ's teaching concerning worship of money and contempt for God, or worship of God and contempt for money.

Steve was also apparently very liberal with his money towards others, all his life, and died penniless; but for me, with that happy-go-lucky spirit, not even what he earned - which was evidently a fair amount - could prevent him from owning the whole world, the sun, the moon and the stars.

We have betting shops here, and I believe most of their habitues are people with a similar outlook on life; though in their conscious mind, they think they'd like to be rich. If they did, they would watch every penny, and save them up to make more. "Where your treasure is, there your heart is", were Jesus' own words, so quite how it is that many evangelicals equate a good income and resources with God's favor and a reward for their good living I really don't know.

One other example of the deep, innate spirituality of the "anawin", the "poor and powerless", such as Jesus' own Holy Family, I heard of from a big-time surveyor I was driving to an airport one day. He was in charge of the construction of a large sports and leisure centre in Dubai, Riyadh, somewhere like that, and when he and his people realized they were behind schedule, they decided to pay the workers to do overtime.

Unfortunately, after working a good bit of overtime for a week or two, the workmen disappeared. They discovered afterwards, that they used the extra money to a take a holiday. God's ways are not our ways.... the nature of which however, they were indeed privy to, without needing to read Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, like us - still less, being likely to let it all go in one ear and out of the other.

Incidentally, one of my favourite tracks of Joan Baez was a song in which she sang about a homeless man, with the most hauntingly pure and beautiful tones.

[shrike]

104. Hate to reveal my technical ignorance, but where is the site?

I'd love to donate some money to this guy, but didn't see anything in the story about a site.

[ecstatic]

42. he must be a homeless by choice/ non-alcholic/druggie

and /or mentally ill. I would have returned the money, but I don't know how I would have reacted as a homeless person.

[superconnected]

97. wow that's a good point.

I wouldn't keep the money either but I don't know how I'd act as a homeless person.

I hope I wouldn't keep the money, but I do not know.

except one thing - the credit cards. With the name on the money, I don't think most people could keep it even then. But who knows. Homelessness probabaly sometimes anyway, does lead to desperation and doing things people normally wouldn't.

[MelliMel]

48. $900 would not have resolved his homelessness

This is Cali. $900 doesn't save you from being permanently homeless. Maybe for a month, that's about it.

[Bridget Burke]

57. Oh, come on....

You aren't homeless & penniless now, but you would still keep the money.

[LanternWaste]

65. I think you forgot to add 'character'.

"What does he have now?"
I think you forgot to add 'character'.

[superconnected]

98. And he gets to know he's better than people who would keep the money.

[lumpy]

30. Personal integrity is a wonderful thing.

Seems too many people in this country don't believe in it anymore.

[Jazz2006]

51. It is, indeed.

And, sadly, yes, your second sentence is also true.

[worldgonekrazy]

84. And no one can take it from you

Somebody probably took the guy's job and somebody probably took his home, but only he can give his integrity away.

[Zorra]

32. One thing we know for sure: He is definitely not a republican.

A republican would have kept the money, sold the driver's license and credit cards (yes, I know, the wallet too) and then gone home thinking about how lucky s/he was.

[tanyev]

55. Not luck. The Republican would have thanked God for

recognizing what a supremely worthy person he was and for giving him the opportunity to enrich himself.

[Zorra]

58. LOL. Yep, you're right....I stand corrected. Thanks. n/t

[MrPrax]

33. 'God' is a Honest Citizen

"I prayed that night and asked God to help me,"

So God's role in all this was to make sure that 'unnamed homeless guy' and Sherry Wesley didn't pocket the cash and credit cards they found?

God does work in mysterious ways; if not for God, how would AP ever have heard about this modern day parable of prayer over the Easter long weekend?

[tinfoilinfor2005]

35. Anyone interested in donating a few bucks for his kindness:

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/12354099/

[EFerrari]

73. I can't find contact info for the OC Homeless Coalition --

only an abandoned page at the Newport Beach city site.

So, I called Newport Beach and the OC Register, asked them if they have contact info.

NB will call back. The OC register was a machine. But, someone will call.

:)

[populistdriven]

85. I hope I see your followup post if you find it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[EFerrari]

87. I think the Orange County Register got the organization wrong

but am waiting to hear from them.

A police officer in Santa Ana was good enough to give me a list of orgs that he works with re homeless people and the Coalition isn't on it -- which is why I believe there might have been a mix up at that paper.

In any case, here's what he sent to me (Thank you, Officer B.):

Orange County Catholic Worker, email ([e-mail])
Contact person - Dwight & Leia Smith, ph 714-558-7478.

*Orange County Rescue Mission (www.rescuemission.org)
Contact person - Rev. Jim Palmer ph 714-247-3000

*Salvation Army, 818 E. Third St. Santa Ana, CA 92701
ph 714-542-9750

*Mental Health Association of Orange County (MHA engages in out reach efforts to the mentally ill/homeless population)
email ([e-mail])
Contact Jeff Thrash, ph 714-547-7559


Show them some love, DU. :hi:

[LisaL]

37. I would say to him-keep it, dude.

[jseankil]

60. Then why don't you give him $900 of your dollars, dude? /nm

nm

[Blue_Tires]

38. that's good karma

but unfortunately, our society has long punished honest people while rewarding cheats and criminals

[BreweryYardRat]

43. Good for him.

Even in his situation, it's only $900. I'm not always the most moral of people, but I'd return $900 without worrying about it.

[CheChe]

50. As a homeless person

he wouldn't have anything to spend the money on anyway, right? Probably would just get him into trouble. ;(
Money's not everything, and the down-and-out know it best.

[EFerrari]

70. Welcome to DU, CheChe

:hi:

[jseankil]

61. His Parents can be proud of him. Money doesn't buy class.

Homeless or not this guy has class that money can't buy and I bet he was raised to be an honest person.

[Gregorian]

63. That man deserves to be a national hero.

I would pay to erect a statue in his honor.

I am ashamed of my own greed. And this man is an example for all of us. He is what I could not be. And I have long known that homeless are those people who can not do what we in our modern society are doing.

Edit- Honesty and humility. The two things the majority of our politicians and citizens will never know.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

75. Screw the statue. Give him a room -- and a job.

That's what he deserves, and I hope he gets it.

[EFerrari]

91. Or, help these guys out. They're local to him and have had

their funding cut so often, there's no place left to stick a knife:

Orange County Catholic Worker, email ([e-mail])
Contact person - Dwight & Leia Smith, ph 714-558-7478.

*Orange County Rescue Mission (www.rescuemission.org)
Contact person - Rev. Jim Palmer ph 714-247-3000

*Salvation Army, 818 E. Third St. Santa Ana, CA 92701
ph 714-542-9750

*Mental Health Association of Orange County (MHA engages in out reach efforts to the mentally ill/homeless population)
email ([e-mail])
Contact Jeff Thrash, ph 714-547-7559

:)

[superconnected]

96. seriously, if you found a wallet with 900 dollars in it, credit cards

etc. you wouldn't give it back?

I couldn't sleep if I didn't. I bet most people actually would give it back - if it had an indication of who it belonged to inside it - ie Drivers License Etc.

I think you can tell someones character very clearly by how they deal with these kind of things.

[Gregorian]

101. Absolutely. I meant "greed", in general terms.

I've always felt that way. Homeless aren't causing global warming. We are. I know that's oversimplificaiton.

[Radioactive]

67. If God exists he should be kind to this man

[GoddessOfGuinness]

80. Maybe God IS this man...

The major theme of most religions is the importance of spiritual wealth over material wealth. He's wealthier than all of us with all our stuff.

Perhaps the lyrics of Ira Gershwin express it best (pardon the vernacular):

Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin'
And nuttin's plenty for me
I got no car, got no mule
I got no misery

De folks wid plenty o' plenty
Got a lock on de door
'Fraid somebody's a-goin' to rob 'em
While dey's out a-makin' more
What for?

I got no lock on de door
Dat's no way to be
Dey kin steal de rug from de floor
Dat's okeh wid me
'Cause de things dat I prize
Like de stars in de skies
All are free

Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin'
And nuttin's plenty for me
I got my gal, got my song
Got Hebben the whole day long
No use complaining
Got my gal, got my Lawd
Got my song

Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin'
And nuttin's plenty for me
I got the sun, got the moon
Got the deep blue sea

De folks wid plenty o' plenty
Got to pray all de day
Seems wid plenty you sure got to worry
How to keep the debbel away
Away

I ain't frettin 'bout hell
'Till de time arrive
Never worry long as I'm well
Never one to strive
To be good, to be bad
What the hell
I is glad I's alive

Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin'
And nuttin's plenty for me
I got my gal, got my song
Got Hebben the whole day long
No use complaining
Got my gal, got my Lawd
Got my song

[snacker]

71. That does not surprise...

my two daughters work with homeless children and both of them have commented about how generous,caring, and compassionate they are. They will always give any coins they have to homeless people on the streets or insist on putting money in the Ronald McDonald House collection box at McDonald's. When they have food drives at school, these are the children who always bring something. It never ceases to amaze me.

[Cocoa]

78. Ken Lay should be homeless

this homeless guy should have all of Lay's houses.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

83. Disagree. Housed, hosed and poor, yes. I don't mind spending

taxpayer dollars putting him up with 3 squares and a bed for 10-15 years.

[girl gone mad]

88. Once when I was bartending in a strip club,

one of the waitresses found a guy's wallet with over $9000 cash in it. This lady was a poor single mom raising two kids and trying to save up money for college. We got a hold of the man and he came back for his wallet. He checked to make sure every last dollar was still there, then proceeded to give the waitress a lousy $3 tip. This, after he had spent the night stuffing hundred dollar bills into the g-string of every dancer who so much as walked by.

Human nature, good or bad, just doesn't phase me any more.

[EFerrari]

90. I wish I could get there. Today I'm taking a daylong timeout

from dealing with people directly. Like a bad hair day, only it's a bad people day, and I'm avoiding humanity at large.

Too many FUs in too short a period of time and the Negativity Canopy descends.

I'm still at the "laugh because what else can ya do" stage.

[ckramer]

94. One of the reasons people become homeless is they haven't

thought about themselves too much. They are not selfish people to begin with.

It's a shame that home has become investors' speculation!

There should be a law prohibiting buying home for flipping purpose!

[BlueInPhilly]

99. But... but... they're all drug addicts!!!

Or at least, that's what the Republicans think of homeless people - they're homeless because they choose to be, and any $$$ given to them just go to drugs.

Personally, I am very touched by this story. I too would have returned the wallet, because I would want someone to do the same for me someday.