Are You A Pirate Or A Foolish Nice Guy ? Informal Poll

[A2coins]

Quit trying to grab my Booty!!!! If there is a name or way to return it I would I know that many diamonds are marked or Insured and can be identified no two are the same and say the person who lost it reported it stolen and believes it was and not lost and here you come most places who will buy it require ID now you are in possession of stolen property selling stolen ect ect ect just a thought!!!@!@! That would seem to only apply to more expensive diamond rings. Yes I do it cause I love it the If I find gold and silver great if not ok to I have gone for many hunts with just clad and junk and I'm just as pumped the next time in anticipation. To each his own I have posted on class ring its been over a year I guess I have to find that super expensive ring first!!!!!! All the rings Ive found have no names or indentafying marks. Do on to others!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

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[Dave Rishar]

If you wake up one morning and find a nice car in your driveway, unlocked and with the keys in it, what do you do? Do you try to find the owner? Do you call the police? Do you call a tow truck? Do you start driving it around? Do you sell it?

Why did you do that?

Don't answer here. It's merely a mental exercise. Your answer to yourself - and how you justify that answer, if necessary - are the important things, but they're only important to you. I know how I would deal with this situation, and that's important to me.

 

[RustyGold]

I was detecting the frisbee park and several frisbee players asked me if I could locate the metal pipe that holds the course flag up. Over the last few months the grass had grown over it so they were unable to find it. I said sure and found it in about 30 seconds.
A big round of thank you and hand shakes followed and I felt pretty good about helping out.
I guess since it was a lost item that I couldn't keep and They couldn't take, it had no pirate connotations
but made me feel like a nice guy and was the best thing I found that day.

 

[sprailroad]

Read your post, and could have moved on but returned because I wanted to reply. I as many others have detected for many years, not because of money to be made from people, but for the love of the hobby, the anticipation of "Today may be the day of finding something good", and the thrill of when it happens. I could never ask for or expect a reward, that's not what this is about for me. If asked to help find something that was/is important to them, I take it as a challenge to see just how good or lucky I really am. Remember, it's a hobby, not a vocation. No, I am not a public servant, idiot or fool, neither are they, I'm just a guy who enjoys detecting for the sake of it, and would not have it any other way. When people have approached me while I'm detecting, only because they are curious, I will remove the phones, turn off the machine, and answer any and all questions, good public relations, we have enough problems with government restrictions, and people who view us as human back-hoes doing damange or trying to steal something. There was a metal detecting show sometime back, that was all about what they could find, how fast they could find it, and how much they could sell it for, Bad show, made us all look like a bunch of greedy fools to the public, I'm glad it is no longer on. This is not meant to be an insult, but you just seem like an angry guy, . Why do many of us keep detecting for so many years? I think it was best said from a quote by "Andy Sabisch" in his Quattro/Safari handbook, quote being, "The most valuable thing I have ever found while treasure hunting is piece-of-mind" Some how I do not think you are there yet.

 

[ARC]

How about a return where a person says " I threw that away on purpose... I hated that guy... why would you ever think I would want that back? "

:/

 

[ARC]

One time... years ago ... With a buddy and his son in a large field when I came across a fanny pack...
Inside was a wallet with over 800 in cash... all his ID and SS ... debit etc etc... bunch of medication and other odds...
After awhile I noticed a guy off in the distance walking back and forth...
I told his son to run over to him and ask him what he is looking for.., thinking this might be the guy.
The son said "why"...
I said... "because if it were yours you would want it back right".
He says... "yeah but you can keep it"...
I say " nah... think of how much that guy may be in trouble because of losing something like this... besides he may give a finders fee"
Off he goes...
the guy comes over and says his name... it was him... I hand over the pack... he says a simple thanks and walks away.

His son says... "he did not even give you anything"
I say "he did not have to... but I got satisfaction that I did the right thing".

I could see in his sons face he thought about it...

AND... I got the satisfaction knowing I taught someone with an impressionable mind the right thing to do.

Think about what a biaatch it is to replace all that crap... on top of losing perhaps all his money to even do so.
I pictured that was his rent money.

I have to add..
I also thought the guy was a pill dealer... heh

 

[Blak bart]

Im a piate born and bred. That being said I have returned a few things here and there. I dont make a huge effort of it. I have found a few things for people on the beach and it was appreciated. I dont spend a large amount of time looking but ill give it a shot. I will also return the next day and search much harder if the object is valuable and then I will keep it all for myself like any self respecting pirate would. Someone lost a gold bracelet on the beach yesterday and I searched without success. I will search each time im in that location and it will be mine if I find it. I will not leave it at the front desk of the hotel to be returned to someone who is now gone from there vacation. Aaargh !! Matey the booty be mine.

 

[Calabash Digger]

Dont even really know how to respond to original posters post except wow! Ive been thru alot in my life from my mothers and uncles suicide to addiction problems myself.( celebrating 8 yrs in feb) so for me I try not to be to petty about (things) because I have lost (things ) that are really important . I look at the attitude of some people today and its MINE MINE and I think about how I use to be so self inverted and all about me. We returned a class ring to a woman a month ago the lady graduated in 69 and she told me she cried when she lost and was so grateful to recieve it back, There is no way a couple stinking 100 dollar bills could compare to that. Thats assuming the person has any empathy for other human beings which is being lost in our high tech society where people interact with one another thur text etc and not in person. I am a person of faith and whether the people reading this are not has no effect on these two principles do unto others as you would have them do unto to you and love thy neighbor as yourself .. I know most know where that comes from and whether you believe that or not its still good principles and if we ALL would practice it the world would be a better place. I not going on about the finds different circumstances would warrant different actions and some may require none except to put it in your case. Its the attitude of people and how hard hearted and calloused or society has become toward one another and how we could care less about others. All of us are going to become elderly if we live that long and you who have that attitude now better hope the rest dont take that attitude because whos gonna take and have empathy for you then? People have different beliefs about things the original poster has his and he feels strongly about you have to be the judge for yourself what the better way is ,its a personal choice. I will say this as a person who spent a large part of my life as a (mine) person , I have to work hard to be a giving person but ive found a freedom in looking as others more important than myself. For the ones who have something smart to say about what I said I DONT care! have a happy hunting day

 

[G.I.B.]

If you wake up one morning and find a nice car in your driveway, unlocked and with the keys in it, what do you do? Do you try to find the owner? Do you start driving it around?

What kind of car?

I'm not driving around in a pink Yaris.

Gunmetal Grey AUDI...

Personal pride kinda thing.

 

[Deft Tones]

I found a sapphire and diamond platinum pendant so I kept it. That was good karma - for me!

I seem to find gold jewelry frequently because I target it. Other peoples bad karma creates my good karma.

So keep it up losers!

Perspective.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

I tried to help a guy find his girlfriend's engagement ring last year. It was 30 degrees out and a foot of snow on the ground. They swore it was lost in the parking lot of a local bar. I searched for an hour, but found nothing. He offered to pay me when we searched for it again in a few weeks, after the snow had melted. I said sure, good idea. Two days later, he calls me to tell me that his girlfriend found the ring under her bed. Thanks for the help and hung up.

I remember this incident every time I find something decent. What I remember most is the feeling that I was used by this person and I don't like that feeling at all. Just my take on the do-gooder mentality here.

 

[Calabash Digger]

People who have different perspectives are losers,do-gooders etc. Im a firm believer in karma but I call it by another name reaping and sowing . Heres a lesson in karma 8 yrs ago we were broke and I was a self centered person always seeking my on benefit. I had a change in my life ,a spiritual change that is. I started governing my life by a different set of principles and started caring about others and not just myself. Im not gonna preach here not the place for that but I will give you the results of that change. Setting here today we own part of a thriving business (hospitality business) that does 1.6 million dollars a year and YES thats a direct result of the do gooder mentality and LOSER mentatility as some call it. Like I said some call it karma others call it reaping and sowing. I will say this im blessed, karma ed up what ever you want to call it but it all ties back to changing my mind about myself and others.Do I ever get used ABSOLUTELY but it doesnt matter because the benefits out weigh the negatives. If yhall want to call it do-gooder mentality or a loser mentality ill take it any day of the week over that self centered mentality of the world today. You can keep your trinkets of gold ive got bigger fish to fry, signing off the guy with the do gooder and loser mentality.

 

[sprailroad]

A comment on my own previous post , I meant everything I posted, but I've read all the post here, and a couple of SkippySH13's had some good points, Earl&patricia as well, & dsdigger, and G.I.B. and FreeBirdTim, point is, Everything has it's own set of circumstances, and bottom line is you need to judge each one on it's own. If in any way Rustynailsandscrew felt insulted by my first post, then right here & now I apologize, was never my intent, nor would or should it ever be to anyone on this forum, and no I'm not really a hugs and kisses kind of guy either. In the furture, I'll try to stick with brief comments which MAY be of help etc., but leave any of my "OP Ed's" out. Best explained by an old farmer (Name Unknown) and his 27 Rules. Rule # 26, "If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around".

 

[hvacker]

Karma (poetic justice) or people that need to think "Oh what a good boy am I" are easy to discredit because they might be mistakenly be thought of as a weak position where the pirate might seem the logical outcome of self interest. Jungle law would probably kick a$$ if left to survival. Survival= self interest where karma = survival of the sense of self.
But remember the story of the scorpion and the frog. It seems while the pirate is true to their nature (self interest, survival of self), so is the frog (trusting, survival of sense of self).
In case some don't know the parableI'll probably mess it up)
A scorpion was in danger of drowning in a flood when he came across a frog in a row boat. "Won't you please take me to safety across the river'?begged Scorpion. Frog said of course as was his nature. After crossing the river Scorpion stung Frog. "Why did you sting me after I saved you? asked Frog.
"Because it's my nature" replied Scorpion.

The parable goes something like that.

People have a base nature. When Pirate takes it too far our collective conscious (The cops) deal with it. That conscious comes from Frog.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Nothing wrong with being a do-gooder, but there's a fine line. I know a few do-gooders in this world and most are taken advantage of by their friends and family. They loan people money and never see a penny of it back. They loan out their car and it comes back with a dent and an empty gas tank. They loan tools and never see them again. They pay for dinner time and again, but the gesture is never reciprocated by their friends.

In this world , you have to know the difference between being a do-gooder and a sucker. Karma and reaping what you sow sounds noble, but being played for a sap time and again is not noble.

 

[Loco-Digger]

I believe it is how you were raised and what you have gone through in your life. I value the warm feeling inside when I return a valuable to the owner or simply do the right thing. I often do the hard right rather than the easy wrong. I rather experience that then have an item sit in my collection or scrapped for cash. "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Others Do Unto You" We all find happiness in our own way, I am not here to judge anyone, but to be loyal to my morals and values.

 

[ROBOTCOP13]

Karma

Woman reunited with lost wedding ring in Indialantic Beach

 

[T.C.]

I tried to help a guy find his girlfriend's engagement ring last year. It was 30 degrees out and a foot of snow on the ground. They swore it was lost in the parking lot of a local bar. I searched for an hour, but found nothing. He offered to pay me when we searched for it again in a few weeks, after the snow had melted. I said sure, good idea. Two days later, he calls me to tell me that his girlfriend found the ring under her bed. Thanks for the help and hung up.

I remember this incident every time I find something decent. What I remember most is the feeling that I was used by this person and I don't like that feeling at all. Just my take on the do-gooder mentality here.

Who was the better person of the two, Tim?? You were....that is your thank you!

 

[MrMikeJackie]

"In example, If you recover a gold or silver high school ring, why do some detectorist feel compelled to find the owner or if the owner is dead to give it back to their relatives ? 99% of the time you will not get a reward or even a thank you."

Where does that 99% figure come from?

I've returned lost items to people. In my experience most are very appreciative and a few aren't.

Why return an item to the owner? Because it belongs to them.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

With that logic why metal detect at all? I mean, everything we find belonged to someone at one point right? Are you saying you try to return everything back? Or do you pick and choose what to return? Where do you draw the line? Do you return your clad to the government, it is is theirs right? Do you return all your jewelry to the local police station and wait? Do you return all rings, earrings, watches, glasses, etc to the lost and found at the local beach?
Or is it only because there are initials in it that you feel compelled to return it? By buddy found a 38 gram 14kt naval academy ring. Went out of his way to return it to the owner, who happened to actually be part of a family my buddy knew of(small world). Turns out later on he is told the owner had originally been compensated through insurance for the ring, and now owns two of them.
Just because we find something out of the blue that "belonged" to someone, doesn't mean we should feel compelled to return it. I have in the past found and returned many items, only because the "owner" asked me to. Yes it felt great, even turned down rewards, however these were all instances where I was approached and asked to help find an item.
As far as everything else, finders keepers. You shouldn't have been wearing that $100,000 4K diamond platinum engagement ring to the beach to begin with.

 

[RGINN]

Pirate or foolish nice guy?....haha. The Colombians here call me 'El Pirata', but not for the reason you would think. I've returned some things to folks, like a lady's personal ID cause I could trace it pretty easy. I found a class ring once, but it was from the teens and no identifying marks. If I found a more modern one, yeah I would probably make an effort to trace down the original owner. Mainly because whatever I would get for selling it is not going to make me or break me. Most of the stuff I find there's no way to figure out who it belongs to, and I don't know if they would really want it back. I don't know about that 'karma' thing I hear about, but sometimes I think, if I lost my billfold, what would I want to happen? Maybe I would want to be taught a lesson.