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Finding things.

Nihilego

[color=#95b4d4]ユービーゼロイチ パラサイト[/color]
  • 8,875
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    13
    Years
    Suppose you found something of decent value. It could be an item worth a considerable amount of money, or it could just be a lot of money as it is. Consider, in different scenarios (you know / don't know whose it might be, you need / don't need it, etc.), if it would ever be ok for you to keep what you find rather than returning it. What would you do? Are you doing the right thing? Is it important to do the right thing, even if it's at your own expense? Discuss.
     
    I've kept a few things that I found. The way I work it is, if it's not in a place where I can turn it in somewhere (like on the street, nowhere I can put it that the person would know to go back to) or it's not something that can be identified like money, then I'll keep it. Money is a good example, cash in particular; there's no way I'm going to be able to find the owner of it, and no way the owner is going to think "let me check the lost and found for my 50 bucks". I know I never have when I lost money. If it's something identifiable and in somewhere with a lost and found though, I'll return it.

    I like returning things because more than once I've left something important behind and it made its way to the lost and found in the building I left it in.
     
    I would always attempt to return the item if I'm able to... but if I find a dollar on the street and have absolutely no idea who it belongs to, there's not really much I can do but keep it though. lol
     
    I'd attempt to return it if it was in a place where I could easily find the owner or a lost and found. If it was something really valuable and there wasn't any such way to track down the owner, I'd turn it into the police if a station/officer was nearby. As far as I'm concerned, if it's $50 or less, and just lying there (i.e., not in a wallet, purse, envelope, etc.) I'd probably keep it under the assumption that it would be hard for the person to claim it even if I did turn it in.

    Lost and found guy to person who lost money: "Well, how do I know this was YOUR $20?"
     
    I only keep things when I'm sure I can't find the owner of that object. If the object falls in front of me though, I make an effort to at least return the object. And yeah, I guess if I kept somebody else's money the guilt would haunt me for years lol.
     
    I would keep the item/money regardless. Only because the last time my family did return something (was my dad, but the person who lost the wallet with money in turned out to be a real douche) just said thanks and slammed the door. So even if I find money of any value, I'm keeping it.
     
    Yeahhh I'm with the above person here. Maybe I take a really harsh approach on life, but the way I see it, if someone loses something which belonged to them then it's up for the taking from anyone, no matter how valuable. It's probably not very morally good of me to do that, but meh. Dog-eat-dog world I guess. Especially if it's something I need, like money or whatever, rather than something which I can't really use for anything.

    Tbh I'd even go so far as to say that if I knew whose it was in the first place, I'd consider keeping it. I'm probably so awful, but I don't honestly get why people always have an issue with this kinda stuff. I mean, if someone else lost it, isn't it anyone's to gain? Idk.
     
    One time while on vacation I found a bag in our rental car. Obviously left by the previous renters. Inside was that special Pikachu Game Boy Color and a bunch of Game Boy games including Super Mario Bros. Deluxe which I really wanted. This was like... 11 years ago?

    I didn't keep it. I'd have been so upset if that were mine and I left it behind by mistake and then someone kept it. So, when we turned the car in at the end of the trip I asked them to contact whoever rented it before us and send it back. I doubt the dealership actually did, but it makes me feel better XD

    With that said, if there's no way of tracking down the original owner. I'm keeping it.
     
    If it's money, I don't bother returning it. Same reason as LeSabre.

    As for items, if the item has the owners name on it I'll return it. If it doesn't, well depends. If it's something I need/want/like I'll keep it for my use. Back before I moved, if it was something I didn't need/want/like then I'd sell it at the pawn shop. I don't live close to a pawnshop now, so if it's something I don't need/want/like then I either leave it where I found it or take it if I think I can sell/trade it to a friend.

    Edit - I remember back in elementary school. I found $5 and had 3 diffrient people come to me about it. I ended up ripping the bill into 3 pieces and gave them all a piece.
     
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    Yeahhh I'm with the above person here. Maybe I take a really harsh approach on life, but the way I see it, if someone loses something which belonged to them then it's up for the taking from anyone, no matter how valuable. It's probably not very morally good of me to do that, but meh. Dog-eat-dog world I guess. Especially if it's something I need, like money or whatever, rather than something which I can't really use for anything.

    Tbh I'd even go so far as to say that if I knew whose it was in the first place, I'd consider keeping it. I'm probably so awful, but I don't honestly get why people always have an issue with this kinda stuff. I mean, if someone else lost it, isn't it anyone's to gain? Idk.
    Idk I sort of agree with you, but I always try to look at it from a different perspective which would be if I were the person to lose something which was valuable to me. In the first place I'd just be kicking myself of course because it would be my own fault for losing it, but if someone would return it to me or it would be brought to the police station and I could come to pick it up, I would honestly be so grateful and happy and appreciate it so much that the finder did that, which is why I always try to do that too. I mean if I find a 5 euro bill on the ground I'm keeping it (assuming I didn't see the person losing it or anything), but otherwise no.
     
    For money, I'm keeping it, unless I see the person drop it, and that's usually at vending machines when people forget their change. Otherwise, I keep it. I don't trust people all that well with money, but if I overhear someone saying that they lost money without me asking, then I'd totally give it to them.

    As for items... I wouldn't keep any items that are obviously of some considerable value. Actually, I wouldn't be comfortable at all with that. It's crossing the line for me. I'd probably get over it if I kept it though.
     
    If I find a random dollar and I didn't see someone drop it or no one's around that could have dropped it, then hey, it's mine. But if I find say, a sack FULL of money, it's going to the police. It could have been stolen. I wouldn't know. It's just the right thing, too. Don't know where it came from or where it was going.

    Items though...it's weird. If I found something like Triforce did, I know I'd be absolutely distraught to lose my bag with my games and such in it, and that being said, I'd take it to wherever I could so that it could hopefully be returned. I'd probably look for a name or something in the bag first though, cause like Triforce said, you don't know if they will actually return it. I guess the more expensive or personal (like a blanket or stuffed animal) it seems, the more likely I am to try to return it. But if it's something random, possibly junky, I would either keep it or leave it, depending on my interest. lol

    And of course, lost pets should always be returned home, unless it was a bad one. Though some pets don't have collars, so that makes it hard. If there's no collar, I probably wouldn't think anything of it, unless it was a nice breed of dog that you just know didn't come off the streets. Put up signs and stuff around the neighborhood and hey, if no one comes to claim it in a certain amount of time with correct proof, then I've got myself a new fuzzy friend!

    Basically I don't wanna keep anything I know someone would need or miss terribly. I wouldn't want to lose something and someone keep my items, but judging by some replies, I'm glad I'm extra cautious with my favorite stuff haha.
     
    I typically return them to a central location where the person who lost them could locate them, unless they are of negligible value, such as a cheap plastic toy or trinket, or any dollar amount $5 and under.

    I recall locating $30 on the floor of the middle school, I returned it promptly to the front desk, and it turned out it was some kid's money for some school project or something.
     
    And of course, lost pets should always be returned home, unless it was a bad one. Though some pets don't have collars, so that makes it hard. If there's no collar, I probably wouldn't think anything of it, unless it was a nice breed of dog that you just know didn't come off the streets. Put up signs and stuff around the neighborhood and hey, if no one comes to claim it in a certain amount of time with correct proof, then I've got myself a new fuzzy friend!

    I find it really interesting that you chose to include lost pets here!

    My cat once got out of our house. He's a well-groomed purebred Persian that's incredibly friendly and loves people. We were running around shaking bottles of treats (because he loves that sound and comes running), and knocked on our neighbor's door and asked if they had seen our cat. They said no. We shook the treats anyway and he came running out of their house. ~_~ My family hand-raised that cat from the second he was born, we would have been devastated if we hadn't managed to catch them in the act of trying to keep our cat.

    Yeahhh I'm with the above person here. Maybe I take a really harsh approach on life, but the way I see it, if someone loses something which belonged to them then it's up for the taking from anyone, no matter how valuable. It's probably not very morally good of me to do that, but meh. Dog-eat-dog world I guess. Especially if it's something I need, like money or whatever, rather than something which I can't really use for anything.

    Tbh I'd even go so far as to say that if I knew whose it was in the first place, I'd consider keeping it. I'm probably so awful, but I don't honestly get why people always have an issue with this kinda stuff. I mean, if someone else lost it, isn't it anyone's to gain? Idk.

    This reminded me of the one time I did take something I could have returned - a pair of gloves. It was last year when I didn't have any gloves, and I didn't have anything with a Notre Dame logo on it because those are expensive and I couldn't afford it. Sitting on the floor next to my chair in class was a pair of ND gloves. I decided to wait the entire hour-long class, and if no one came back to claim them I would take them. No one did, so I took them lol. I half-justified it with "99% of people at ND are rich and can buy a new pair of gloves with no problem but I can't", even though I could have left it and the person might have come back before someone else took them. I felt kinda bad but then not really cause I literally wore them every day for months so it's not like I didn't use them. XD
     
    Never. I lose so much and would like whoever finds it to return it to me which is why I'll always return whatever I find, if I can trace the owner.

    After reading the comments above, I think I do keep somethings, like $1 or little items. If it's something big I'm definitely returning it to the closest Lost and Found be it a school, hotel, police station, etc.
     
    Well, a perfect example is something that happened to me a few weeks ago. I forgot my wireless mouse in class and I ended up finding it. As I went to connect it to my computer, I realize it actually wasn't mine, it was just the exact model I had lost. I was a bit torn. I figured that my mouse was gone forever because I had asked around and nobody found it. I was directed to my teacher when I was looking for it because they had found the mouse that I managed to get ahold of, and everybody thought it was mine.

    Seeing as I don't think I could ever track down the original owner, and the fact that the mouse is worth a lot of money (gotta love overpriced Apple mice), I decided my best option was to keep it. It sucks for the mouse's original owner, but I have to look out for myself. I use that mouse very frequently and the way I see it, I've been given the option not to have to buy a new mouse. I'll take a $50 savings any time. I do feel bad for the original owner, but **** happens. I might have acted selfishly, but I don't regret my decision.



    Another thing that I think about that can relate to this topic is winning the lottery. That, in essence, is "finding" a whole ton of money. In that case, I would without a doubt be generous. I would share a large amount with my family and my close friends. If anyone needed any monetary support, I would hope that they come to me first. The lottery would give me more money than I would know what to do with. Of course, that's after going out and buying a few things I would absolutely love to own...
     
    Never. I lose so much and would like whoever finds it to return it to me which is why I'll always return whatever I find, if I can trace the owner.

    After reading the comments above, I think I do keep somethings, like $1 or little items. If it's something big I'm definitely returning it to the closest Lost and Found be it a school, hotel, police station, etc.

    If you lose something, do you go check with police stations along the route you took when you last remember having it to see if someone turned it in there? I know I've never done that and have never known anyone that has, which makes turning it into a police station kind of pointless.
     
    I find it really interesting that you chose to include lost pets here!

    My cat once got out of our house. He's a well-groomed purebred Persian that's incredibly friendly and loves people. We were running around shaking bottles of treats (because he loves that sound and comes running), and knocked on our neighbor's door and asked if they had seen our cat. They said no. We shook the treats anyway and he came running out of their house. ~_~ My family hand-raised that cat from the second he was born, we would have been devastated if we hadn't managed to catch them in the act of trying to keep our cat.

    Yeah, I've lost my fair few pets. I had two dogs that would run away quite often, and thank goodness they had collars and people would call and take care of them till we were able to go and get them back. I never had that luck with cats though, so we're on our fourth cat and we're very protective of him and we don't let him out of the house, haha. But yeah, I mentioned pets since when I saw "finding things" as the thread title, I thought of lost pets. They're not things, in fact maybe more important. Cause when they run away, it's like if your child or some family member decided to leave without a trace. And you'd definitely want your human family to come back, right? So of course you want fuzzy friends back. :( bcuz fuzy is coot
     
    I've never lost a pet before... I've had them die and get ran over. Never had one run away from home. Not counting when they go into heat.

    I've had a pet return though. Gave away my old dog, about a week later she is barking at the door. (We know that she came back because a friend of ours seen her running down the street near their house. The person we gave her to lived ~20 miles away)

    Anyway, my policy on other peoples animals coming on to my property is pretty simple. I'll contact you if it has a collar with a number on it, or i'll take care of it until it decides to leave or you find out that its staying at my place. But if it attacks one of my cats, or attempts to bite me, then it's going to get shot. I'm a terriable shot so it could be anything from instant death, to it always having a limp when it walks. (Either way, if it shows up again it will get shot again.) Might be mean, but I've almost lost two cats from them being attacked by lost/dropped off pets and I care more about my cats then I do about your dog/cat/whatever.
     


    If you lose something, do you go check with police stations along the route you took when you last remember having it to see if someone turned it in there? I know I've never done that and have never known anyone that has, which makes turning it into a police station kind of pointless.

    Obviously we've lived in different places. It's what I learned in London.
     
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