I Don't Return My Cart To Feed A Family

[NSL]

To everyone that is a "good Samaritan" and returns their shopping carts and baskets at the grocer, or at whatever department store you choose to shop, congratulations. You're being nice. I, however, don't return my carts or baskets, and don't even put them in those little corrals they set up in the parking lot.

Why, you ask?

If everyone returned their carts to the designated areas, that job position would no longer exist, and someone would be out of a job. Don't believe me? Look around. At Wal-Mart, there are usually 3, maybe 4, people, working just to bring those carts inside. How about a store like Aldi, where you "rent" your cart for $.25, and are asked to return it to the little machine when you're done with it? No one is assigned to corral those carts, and bring them inside.

By having that job their, you ensure that someone has a job, and that they will have food in the fridge when they get home. These aren't 30-somethings or 20-somethings with Master's degrees doing this job. These are kids just starting college, just out of college, or maybe people with special needs, or handicaps. They need tedious jobs like this as a source of income, because they can't get hired, or aren't qualified, for other jobs.

Sure, most people think I'm an ass when they first hear my argument, but some tend to agree, and even change their views on such a menial topic...

 

[Dexter]

Doesn't someone still have to go and get the carts from the little corral thing and bring them back inside? I'm not seeing how leaving your cart sitting in your parking spot and blocking other cars from parking is feeding anyone's family. It's just inconsiderate, rude, and lazy. It takes like 30 seconds, tops, to put your cart where it belongs. I've never understood why that's so hard.

 

[NSL]

Doesn't someone still have to go and get the carts from the little corral thing and bring them back inside? I'm not seeing how leaving your cart sitting in your parking spot and blocking other cars from parking is feeding anyone's family. It's just inconsiderate, rude, and lazy. It takes like 30 seconds, tops, to put your cart where it belongs. I've never understood why that's so hard.

I never said it was hard, and I should've clarified that I don't leave it in the parking space. It's usually sitting on a curb or something.

As far as someone having to return them to the store from the corral, no. They don't. That's the point of the corral. They can sit there as long as they want, until someone grabs one to use. That's what they originally for, so that they wouldn't have to hire someone to go out and do it for them.

Inconsiderate is a bit harsh, but expected. So is rude, and lazy. For some people, sure it really is a matter of laziness. But, if you do it with a conscious effort, than it's for a different reason than being too lazy to bring it back inside.

 

[info62]

I get that you're saying that if everybody who went shopping returned their cart then some people would be out of a job. But if one person puts a cart away, then it makes somebody's work day slightly easier.

For example, you mentioned an employee having a disability. Well I'm sure it would be easier on this employee to get 20 carts instead of 50. I understand the idea that if this job was made TOO easy then it would no longer be a job position, but really, there's no way that everybody in the world is going to just start returning their carts. Deliberately leaving your cart in the parking lot will just make an employee's work harder (even though not by a lot).

If you notice that there are already 2-5 carts laying around the parking lot area then there really is no benefit to leaving yours there as well.

 

[Dexter]

I've just spent a lot of time working in the service of the public, and anything that makes someone's job needlessly more difficult is a pet peeve of mine.

Most of my experience comes from restaurants (I cook for a living) so, for example, when you're done with your meal, why not take the few extra seconds to stack up the dishes? Scrape all your leftovers into your to-go box and pile up the plates. It makes the bus boy's job MUCH easier and it's really not that hard. Granted, there's absolutely NO reason you have to do this, but it's just a nice thing to do that helps someone out and doesn't take that much effort on your part.

Same situation here with the shopping carts. You certainly don't HAVE to put your cart where it goes. You can just leave it in the middle of the road if you want. Why not take the extra few seconds and put it where it goes, though? It's not that difficult for you, and it saves the guy who collects them a little time and makes his job just a little easier. It's just good karma.

 

[NSL]

While I understand everything you're saying, I just disagree. As far as the restaurant thing goes, I work in a hotel. It's all about customer service. I haven't had one guest in the 4+ years of working in this business attempt to make my job easier. I don't expect them to. They don't go on vacation to clean their own room, and no one goes to a restaurant because they want to help with dishes. In fact, when most people decide to go to a restaurant, they go for the simple fact that they don't have to cook, and don't have to do dishes.

As far as my shopping carts go, you're right. I don't have to bring it back, and I don't have to make anyone's job easier. With the money I spent at the store, they can pay to have someone in the parking lot all night running carts. It's not even a hard job any more. They have those electric cart pushers. they just walk with a remote, and occasionally pull a wayward cart out of a bush, or out of a parking space. If they don't want that job, they don't have to work it.

 

[info62]

The only reason why I brought up the "make somebody's job easier" is because the original post seemed to be based on the idea that this argument was regarding the employees who are desperate for a job / this job is their only source of income. Even the thread title is "to feed a family", which kind of implies that you were deliberately leaving your cart to help these people ensure their job. If this assumption is correct, that would make this argument about whether you should make somebody's work day harder to ensure their job or whether to ease their workday while putting their job at risk.

However if the argument is that "if the employee doesn't want to push my cart then they shouldn't have taken the job", then this discussion is basically "Should people be forced to do a good deed?" which, of course, is no.

No, you don't have to put your cart back. Yes it is their job to do it but it would still be a kind thing to return it anyway. If you don't want to bother returning your cart then you don't have to bother.

But I'm trying to say that if you decide to not return the cart, then it shouldn't be for the reason that you are trying to ensure somebody's job. It's illogical to think that there will be no other shoppers who will leave their carts in the parking lot.

 

[NSL]

However if the argument is that "if the employee doesn't want to push my cart then they shouldn't have taken the job", then this discussion is basically "Should people be forced to do a good deed?" which, of course, is no.

While you're right, for the most part, it's not the entire point I was making. While I think part of it is that you don't have to do a good deed, it all started because I felt that bringing my cart back myself kind of made me a dick, for taking that guy's job out of his hands.

This is a reach, but it can be applied to most jobs. Most gas stations no longer have full service pumps, and now the people that relied on that are jobless (or were, and have found new ones). If someone came to my job, and started checking themselves in with a computer, I'd be out of a job. If stores only used self checkout, the cashiers would be out of jobs. It's a lot of things all rolled into one.

 

[Dexter]

I think you're assuming there's a shortage of shitty minimum wage jobs. Trust me, there isn't. Just try to hire someone to be a dishwasher at your restaurant sometime and you'll see exactly what I'm talking about. I don't care how bad the economy supposedly is, there's always shitty minimum wage jobs out there if you don't consider yourself too good for them.

If you put your cart up and the guy at wal-mart who was doing that job gets fired, he's more than welcome to come wash my dishes. I'll pay him the same thing, and he won't have to go out in the freezing-ass snow to get your shopping cart.

 

[info62]

That's just it, jobs for the most part get lost thanks to advancement in technology, not because of people trying to help employees. I was at the mall the other day and helped an employee pick up some clothing that had fallen onto the ground, and he didn't seem very offended for me essentially doing his job.

I just don't think there will ever be enough people willing to return their carts that will end up causing that job position to become unneeded. It's probably one out of every 6 or so people that return their carts at most, which still leaves plenty of abandoned carts in the parking lot blocking cars. One person returning their cart won't end a job position. Some dude inventing a robot that will go collect all the carts, now that will end the job position.

 

[NSL]

That's just it, jobs for the most part get lost thanks to advancement in technology, not because of people trying to help employees. I was at the mall the other day and helped an employee pick up some clothing that had fallen onto the ground, and he didn't seem very offended for me essentially doing his job.

This is different. Helping an employee with something like that, is being nice. I'm sure his job wasn't to drop the items on the floor, so helping him pick them up is nice. Keeping with the shopping carts, if I see someone pushing a row of 20 carts, and one gets loose, I'd grab it and pass it to him. I wouldn't just let it roll away. Same thing anywhere else. Helping them out in a "time of need" is just being nice. It's not doing their job for them.

 

[Razor]

I figure this is the same reason why we don't go out and take our trash directly to the landfills, take our recycling directly to the recycling center, or do every other menial chore that we simply don't want to do. Someone will come along in need of a job, and will certainly take some money to do it. Be it that high schooler who needs a little extra cash for weed, the immigrant who just wants to make a start in life, or that mentally ******ed person who needs a job to stay in his assisted living facility. They need a job, and there are certainly places to make a job for them.

While some may not understand, I get the underlying logic. As long as you're not being a douche about it, and putting the cart on the other side of the parking lot. There's a difference between leaving a cart by the curb and putting it 10 minutes and downhill from the door.

 

[Big J]

If everyone returned the carts to the corrals how is the homeless guy gonna get a new one if the cops take is old one away? If you make him go all the way up by the store he might get caught stealing the cart and that doean't help anyone.

I say leave the carts as far from the store as possible so that the homeless have easier access and can have a nice cart new cart once in awhile.

Either that or help them with whatever their problem is and get them off the street or make a video for them about what is eatible out of a dumpster and give it to them, it could have a part that shows which carts are the best.

 

[secret titan]

I say leave the carts as far from the store as possible so that the homeless have easier access and can have a nice cart new cart once in awhile.

Either that or help them with whatever their problem is and get them off the street or make a video for them about what is eatible out of a dumpster and give it to them, it could have a part that shows which carts are the best.

Only a couple things wrong with this...

First homeless shouldn't need to steal carts to lug around their belongings all day. If they are truely homeless, all they need are the clothes on their backs.


Second... and I'm really probably overthinking this... how the hell would a homeless person watch a video if you gave them one??


I really do understand where NSL is coming from, but I don't think the general "cart leavers" are thinking that when they leave their carts all over. For the most part many of them are very inconsiderate of other people that may need to use the spot they put the cart in. Whether or not it's to help the employee with job security; I do, and will continue to, see it as the person leaving the cart as being lazy.

 

[Big J]

Secret Titan, haven't you seen the homeless people pushing overloaded carts full of clothes and junk?

I don't know how a homeless person would watch a video, BUT that is what a homeless organization did (with taxpayer money) in the 1990's.

I try to put my carts back and don't leave themblocking the whole parking spot.

 

[X]

I don't return my cart either. I usually like to steal it and bring it home with me, using it as a vehicle down busy streets. It's quite enjoyable to crash into a car at thirty miles per hour down a hill inside of a shopping cart. Gets the blood pumping.

I steal carts to help feed families. The more I steal, the more they have to make, which means the more people have to work. I'm a good Samaritan.

 

[Spaceman Spif]

As far as someone having to return them to the store from the corral, no. They don't. That's the point of the corral. They can sit there as long as they want, until someone grabs one to use. That's what they originally for, so that they wouldn't have to hire someone to go out and do it for them.

No it's not the point of the corral. The corral is a place to put the carts in a gathered area, so they are not all over the lots, blocking spaces, or else coasting across the lot to smack into a car. Customer's are supposed to put their carts there, so they are contained. Then once the store is low on carts at the entrances, cart gatherers go out and bring them back to the store. So not putting you cart in a corral is not guareenteing someone their job, it is laziness, rude and inconsiderate. I know if say for instance a cart rolled into my car, dinged it up and I was able to by chance find out it was your cart that you did not properly put away, I would be sending you my bill.

Your arguement is shit and those that agree with it are lazy as well. It doesn't take long to make sure your cart is contained so that it opens up a spot that could be blocked or so that it won't roll into a car. Hell I'm a considerate enough guy if I see a cart not in a corral, while on my way to put my in one, I'll grab it too. I'll even politely point to the corral or politely let someone know there is a corral ten feet away if I see them going to just leave it by their car or push it ten feet in the other direction away from the corral just to leave it in the middle of a spot. Way to spark a discussion though.

But in the end, the justification and logic you have used in this arguement is flawed and only a cover up to sheer laziness not to walk the extra few feet to put your cart in the right spot.