Good Samaritan Turns In Lost Check - Complains When He Doesn't Get Reward

[matcom]

normally i would make a snide remark about people in Chicago here but since i'm a Bostonian, i'm way too polite to do that :D

j/k of course

:hide:

<snip>

Ed Krakowiak did a good deed last weekend. He found somebody's $1,000 paycheck in the parking lot of his local Dairy Queen in Downers Grove, tracked down the rightful owner and returned it to the guy's wife, who thanked him for his efforts.

Normally, that's where that story would end, but not this time.

This time, Krakowiak contacted me.

To complain.

About not getting a reward.

"Now I feel like an idiot," he said. "Too bad someone not so honest didn't find the check and forge his signature and cash it."

My first inclination was to give Krakowiak a brusque dust-off.

From where I sit, it's not really a good deed if you've got your hand out afterward looking for payback. While monetary rewards are nice, they should never be expected, and the fact one wasn't paid shouldn't be considered an invitation to publicly vilify the person you were theoretically trying to help.

But just as I've come to believe over the years that ethics are situational, I've also started to think they might be geographical, as well.

Lifelong Chicagoans, I've learned, have their own way of looking at these things, and I'm guessing many will be more offended the check owner didn't pay a reward than that the good deed-doer whined about not getting a little something for the effort.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/brown/cst-nws-brown11.html

[benburch]

1. Seems to me "Thank You" was enough.

Jeeze.

[BlueJazz]

2. I would have (at least) given the dude 50 bucks for his time and Gas.

[ET Awful]

3. So let's see . . . he whines about not being rewarded for doing the right

thing instead of committing a felony and fraudulently cashing the check himself?

All the original payee would have had to do is have his employer stop payment on the check, then reissue it . . . an inconvenience at worst.

What a prick. Personally, I probably would have just dropped the check in the mail to the guy with a quick note and forgotten about it. I don't expect rewards for doing little piddling shit like giving someone what is rightfully theirs to begin with.

[GOPisEvil]

4. I thought kindness was its own reward.

Guess not. :eyes:

[BlueJazz]

5. You and ET Awful are absolutely correct...having said that though..

..I do think it would have been nice for the Woman to give the guy a token sum although when I did, (just about the same thing ..once), I really didn't expect anything except a warm feeling...

[GOPisEvil]

7. Oh, I agree that it would have been nice to offer a reward.

However, to do the good deed in expectation of a reward is pretty lame.

[BlueJazz]

8. Quite True.. n/t

[Rabrrrrrr]

10. And if he had accepted a reward, he's nothing more than a useless fuckwad

who should be executed with the gum chewers.

What a fucknut.

I hate him.

[BlueJazz]

14. LOL!..Damn...You're "Hard Core" about this...

If someone found my check though, I would insist that they take a small sum for their Gas and time....but as I said before I wouldn't expect anything if I were the "Foundee"

"should be executed" lmao.. :)

[Mikimouse]

6. Good Samaritan, my ass!

Good works are supposed to be their own reward, and under ideal circumstances, they should also be anonymous, or so I have always been taught. Makes sense to me. On the other hand, my friend, you made this statement: "since i'm a Bostonian, i'm way too polite to do that". Having driven Rt.3 and the SE Distressway for 20 years, I don't think that polite is part of the culture in Boston (just having some fun with you, though you probably agree with me>)

:evilgrin:

[matcom]

11. oh, agree 100% just trying to keep the Boston vs Chicago lounge wars alive

:D

[Rabrrrrrr]

13. And there's no reason for a war - Seriously, Chicago is an utter shithole

and Boston is a great city.

it's like comparing a steaming pile of gorilla shit filled with maggots and undigested corn (Chocago) with a rose (Boston).

Any kind of war between the two cities is utterly ignorant.

[matcom]

16. .

[Rabrrrrrr]

19. I'm glad you like the comparison!

[Mikimouse]

15. No problem, I'll be happy to add my own thoughts on Chicago too!

[nini]

17. go ahead - we all know Los Angeles is better than both of those joints

:P

[Art_from_Ark]

9. Somehow, this reminds me of an old Japanese story-- "Everyone loses 2 ryo"

Once upon a time in old Edo (Tokyo), a man found a wallet in the street. Inside were three ryo, the equivalent of about $3000 today. There was no identification in the wallet, other than a Chinese character which suggested that the owner might be a carpenter. So the finder set about tracking down carpenters in Edo who might have lost the wallet.

After two months of searching, he finally found the owner, who was, indeed, a carpenter. He was about to hand over the wallet and money when the owner said "Take it, it's yours".

"No it's yours. I'm returning it," said the finder, as he turned to walk away.

"No, it's yours! I gave up my right to it when I lost it through my own negligence!" shouted the carpenter, as he threw the wallet at the finder.

After much heated discussion, the two finally agreed to take the matter to a local magistrate.

The judge heard the two men's arguments, then after much deliberation, made the following decision:

"I hereby declare that we will each receive one ryo. The finder will receive one ryo because he found it. The carpenter will receive one ryo because it was originally his money. And I will take one ryo as my fee. In this way, we will each lose two ryo."

"What???" shouted the incredulous carpenter and finder. "How does each of us lose two ryo?"

"Obviously, you, the carpenter, lose two ryo because you now have only one ryo when you originally had three. And you, the finder, lose two ryo because you could have kept all three for yourself, but end up getting only one. And, because neither of you would claim the money, I could have claimed all three ryo as my own, but instead I chose to share two ryo with you."

This decision pleased all sides, and they were all content to receive one ryo from the affair.

[Rabrrrrrr]

12. That makes me sick. In NYC, there were two times I returned wallets

(though once it was a purse) and refused to accept a reward or payment for it.

Once, I found one on a chair outside a cafe in Brooklyn - happened to be that the owner of said wallet was inside the cafe, and all was taken care of, and owner was most grateful to me. Even offered me a reward, but I refused.

Second time, a group of young women tourists, one woman left her purse on the subway. I snatched it up quickly before some loser fuck could get it. I hated to open it up, but I had to, to find some personal information to track the woman down, and found the hotel or some other number of who she was staying with in NYC. Gave her a call, she came to my office to retrieve it, and, again, I refused to take any reward.

In both cases, I said to the people, "Do the same to someone else - that's all the payment I need".

When I lived in Hawaii, I managed to return a cell phone that I found.

People who feel entitled to a reward should be executed.

[Shell Beau]

18. What a dip-shit! You don't deserve a reward for

doing the RIGHT thing! People do offer rewards as incentives, but I would probably refuse a reward for something like this if one was offered. You should do these things b/c they are the right thing to do, not to get something in return!