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

[Old Bookaroo]

No defense or source for the 99% figure. Noted.

"Are you saying you try to return everything back?"

No.

"Or do you pick and choose what to return?"

Yes.

"Where do you draw the line?" Where I would want to be treated. I don't expect anybody to hand me a lost quarter. I've had my wallet returned to me and I appreciated that very much. Just as I've found people so I could return their wallet or purse. I've been walking down the street and seen people drop currency. I've suggested to them that they pick it up. I've walked past an ATM and found a twenty dollar bill somebody dropped. I kept it. Walking the dogs a few years ago I found a phone a young lady had dropped by the curb. We called her and she came over and picked it up. She was most appreciative.

"Do you return your clad to the government, it is is theirs right?"

Nope. And nope.

"Just because we find something out of the blue that 'belonged' to someone, doesn't mean we should feel compelled to return it."

A classic "Straw Man" argument. Or, reductio ad absurdum.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

 

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[Loco-Digger]

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.

Some people rather be used and abused rather than be alone. Everyone get's one chance with me. Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

No defense or source for the 99% figure. Noted.

"Are you saying you try to return everything back?"

No.

"Or do you pick and choose what to return?"

Yes.

"Where do you draw the line?" Where I would want to be treated. I don't expect anybody to hand me a lost quarter. I've had my wallet returned to me and I appreciated that very much. Just as I've found people so I could return their wallet or purse. I've been walking down the street and seen people drop currency. I've suggested to them that they pick it up. I've walked past an ATM and found a twenty dollar bill somebody dropped. I kept it. Walking the dogs a few years ago I found a phone a young lady had dropped by the curb. We called her and she came over and picked it up. She was most appreciative.

"Do you return your clad to the government, it is is theirs right?"

Nope. And nope.

"Just because we find something out of the blue that 'belonged' to someone, doesn't mean we should feel compelled to return it."

A classic "Straw Man" argument. Or, reductio ad absurdum.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

Buddy your wayyyy off. This is a treasure forum. No one here is talking about seeing someone drop an item such as a $20 bill, or finding a wallet in a parking lot and not saying something to the person who dropped it. Don't twist it around to try and justify your comment. You answered the op by saying what we find METAL DETECTING should be returned because it belonged to someone. Im saying that comment was very vague and still is.
I metal detect to find gold rings at the beach THAT I KNOW PEOPLE HAVE LOST. So does everyone else that metal detects the beach. So I guess you can call me a pirate, or absurd, or ridiculous, whatever.

 

[Butter Hat]

Decades before I found TN or even thought about 'treasure hunting,' I found a gold ballpoint pen in a parking lot. It had a name on it. I traced the owner and handed it in. She snatched it from my hand without a thank-you.

I haven't found anything of value since I started hunting. I honestly don't know what I would do.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

Decades before I found TN or even thought about 'treasure hunting,' I found a gold ballpoint pen in a parking lot. It had a name on it. I traced the owner and handed it in. She snatched it from my hand without a thank-you.

I haven't found anything of value since I started hunting. I honestly don't know what I would do.

You do whatever you want to do. And not let anyone try to put you down for whatever decision you made. Keep it, return it, donate it, whatever. It's yours do so as you wish.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Skippy! Thank you - you got it. I appreciate the fact you read the entire post!

I just re-read every comment here. Some people say they would do one thing and some people say they would do something else.

Some offered an opinion on what others posted. Or tried to argue with someone else's point of view.

Why?

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo, CM

 

[MrMikeJackie]

The problem with a message of text that is a paragraph or two long, is that it NEVER conveys the whole story. It just can't. I strongly suspect Old Bookeroo's comments weren't that every item should be returned because they don't ever belong to you in the beginning, but rather, that every item that you can identify an owner for... SHOULD be returned. With which, I wholly agree. I wouldn't keep a ring that I found on the beach if someone came up and described it, or I found the owner on Craigslist... Bookeroo is right. If you know the owner is looking for it, it's still there's (even legally, under most cases). It's when you cannot reasonably find an owner that it comes down to 'how much effort are you willing to put in to FIND the owner.' That's gonna be different for EVERYONE.

The amount of effort to find the owner for a lost quarter is insane. The positive ID proof points would be almost impossible. So... we keep them. But the amount of effort to find someone who just recently left their ring on a table in a park, means that I might be able to simply walk around and ask, "do you know who was sitting there?" Or for the cell phone that I pulled out of the bark, "HEY! IS ANYONE MISSING A CELL PHONE?" And then when the girl walked over excited, I simply had her describe it. (it was definitely hers. she said, "It's a stupid Microsoft phone." Yep. That's the one!)

My point is this, MrMikeJackie, is that your argument is that it's situationally dependent. And I believe that's what Bookeroo was stating as well. You probably agree to some degree, and are apart on another, but I cannot reasonably conclude that a metal detectorist returns 100% of his finds, and I think that is an unfair assumption that it's what Bookeroo's post meant.

I think it's awesome that you have found and returned items (I have too, love the feeling! and I'll do it again, I've no doubt)... but like you, most detectorists have a line. Bookeroo does too (I like how that Rhymed), but the earlier posts, mine included, suggested that some folks don't have ANY line, which Bookeroo was simply making a statement on (at least, that's how I took it!)

Cheers, man, and happy hunting. And may you find TWO $100K rings this year (because you KNOW those suckers are insured!)

Cheers!

Skippy

"Why return an item to the owner? Because it belongs to them"
His quote. I find it vague, ya know? And a little condescending.
Let's just say this, your metal detecting at the beach on a day full of people, thousands of people. You find two rings. A nice heavy gold high school ring with initials(prob worth $150 scrap) and a nice platinum 3 karat engagement ring. WooHoo!! Now what to do, the decision is sooooo tough. Have to look up the owner of the high school ring, make some phone calls, drive somewhere to meet them, soo much work(sarcasm here folks). Yet, the $100,000 engagement ring is locked up in the safe by now. Appt for tomorrow already set up to have it appraised. I mean shoot, there are no initials in it right? So that's makes it fair game now? Do I not turn it in to the beaches lost and found? Because it doesn't have initials?
That's what I was trying to say. Even if it doesn't have initials, it still belonged/belongs/whatever to someone. So for us to try and justify a return based solely on initials is kinda, well, sad.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

Let me start over as this is a sensitive subject for me.
My frustration is NOT with Old Bookaroo or his take on the matter. It's just that certain phrases pertaining to this subject irk me, and how some people(not OB) tend to ride on their high horses and slam certain people for desicions they make.
The way I see it is you can't do the right thing only when you pick and choose, and then slam others for how they picked and chose. Does that make sense? I've seen people get all high and mighty over returning a 60 year old high school ring to a granddaughter of the owner yet not blink an eye at the expensive ring they just found at the beach. They don't bother asking at the lost and found, Craig's list, nothing. Only because it doesn't have initials. What a farce.
I hope I'm explaining myself, sorry if I'm not.

 

[Peyton Manning]

after this thread I have discovered a couple people I wouldn't want as friends

and yes, I know you wouldn't want to be mine either

 

[Deft Tones]

How about private permissions?

I've seen some say that once a property owner wants all the finds they never go back and leave with attitude of 'screw that'!

That sounds like a greedy detectorist.

Seems the do-gooding has limits after all.

 

[relic nut]

How about private permissions?

I've seen some say that once a property owner wants all the finds they never go back and leave with attitude of 'screw that'!

That sounds like a greedy detectorist.

Seems the do-gooding has limits after all.

That's not the same thing. When you have an agreement with a landowner, then he changes the agreement after the fact, then he has broken the contract. If I found his wedding ring or something of sentimental value to the property, then it would be offered to him. If I were being greedy I would just hunt with out permission.

HH RN

 

[FreeBirdTim]

I guess my problem is that I have never lost anything of value in my life. Never lost a significant amount of money, never lost my wallet, never lost my driver's license, never lost my car keys, never lost jack squat in my life. Why? Because I've been dirt poor most of my life and I have always taken care of anything of value that belonged to me. It's called personal responsibility.

I don't metal detect to be someone's errand boy and return all the things they're too irresponsible to hang on to in the first place. Just the way I see it.

 

[KEYSHUNTER]

location,location .....wish returns in my area could be safer,but it is not..so i go about my day , a good day off

 

[Blak bart]

location,location .....wish returns in my area could be safer,but it is not..so i go about my day , a good day off

I here ya.

 

[treasuresalvor]

To each their own. If it's a local class ring or if I know someone lost a wedding ring or other item I'd make a reasonable effort to return it to them. After all, I have to continue to live with myself. In reality, this isn't my hobby, I'm actually attempting to make money at it and equipment, food, fuel, and lodging don't come cheap.

 

[Dave Rishar]

What kind of car?

I intentionally left it vague. For the purpose of the exercise, it's whatever you want it to be. For most, this would probably not be a pink Yaris.

I'm not driving around in a pink Yaris.

Nor am I. Not that there's anything wrong with that.



Okay, actually there kind of is something wrong with that.

 

[ARC]

I intentionally left it vague. For the purpose of the exercise, it's whatever you want it to be. For most, this would probably not be a pink Yaris.



Nor am I. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

View attachment 1406857

Okay, actually there kind of is something wrong with that.

That car looks like it needs those headlight eyelashes. heh

 

[Peyton Manning]

how did you get that pic of bigwavedave's car?

 

[Deft Tones]

That car looks like it needs those headlight eyelashes. heh

And a bra!

 

[Duckshot]

I hit a Yaris in the parking lot once. There was nobody around so I left a note.

It said "Next time buy American!"