Comments on: Ordinary decency

By: Earl

Earl — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 03:15:24 +0000

“The man returned the purse when he knew he wasn’t required to do so.” But, he WAS required to return the purse — in the only way that will make for a decent society. He had an INTERNAL standard that required him to do the morally correct thing, in order that he could look himself in the mirror the next morning.

Where the “requirement” is only an external one, society breaks down….it’s happening in our country, and we can thank those who wish to banish any vestige of religion, including anything that the great religious traditions teach, from our public life, including schools. What will it be like when the current public school cohorts make up a large part of society. I don’t think being old and useless will be much fun at that point.

God bless that good man in Sausalito – and I doubt he has (or had) any expectation of being rewarded for doing the right thing. For those of us with that code, doing the right thing is its own reward.

(That said, it would be VERY nice for the owners to send him something, and if they had ANY class at all, it would already be on its way. I’m not betting on them, AY?

By: jg

jg — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 00:13:17 +0000

The American newsstories about such honesty usually involve use of (traditional Judeo-Christian) morality in the statement of thank you. It’s our standard: Praise for the character of the finder and usually some reference to validating community beliefs. The act shows who we (still) are as Americans, we feel.
You will please note the lack of such references in the Ghannadian thank-you.

Not to be faulted, of course: They are Canadian.

Which leads one to wonder whether the family would have had a 2d chance at their riches were such TO HAVE BEEN LEFT on a TORONTO park bench?

By: Ymarsakar

Ymarsakar — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 20:22:35 +0000

This is a rich family. Why doesn’t the rich family do the decent thing and give the man a reward. 20% finder’s fee should be more than enough to satisfy the demands of honor and gratitude.

But I doubt Canada would understand something as antiquated as personal debts of honor. I’d be surprised if they ever thought about any kind of personal reward, when they weren’t required to do so. It just doesn’t seem that the Canadian system of welfare would produce that kind of individuality.

“You have to be a real man to return that bag,” Ali Ghannadian said. “Even the bag is expensive. We’re really, really thankful to that guy.”

Perhaps the man has a family to feed or maybe he just needs a vacation himself? How people show their thanks and their character, rests entirely upon their personal actions when they know that they are not required to do so.

The man required the purse when he knew he wasn’t required to do so. Will the Ghannadians reciprocate? If they do, then I’d be very surprised.