Wow! I am just stunned at the perverse conclusion drawn here. It seems now that we get to be the judge of another’s values? Who are we to judge that the dollar is worth less than the purse with 3 quarters in it? What if that dollar was lunch money for a low-income student and without it he would go hungry? What if the purse belongs to a rich kid who won’t even miss it? Does – and should – that make any difference in whether to turn the property in to lost and found? We cannot possibly know how much a person values lost property – even by applying the Golden Rule. For instance, if I am a millionaire and couldn't care less about losing $10, should I then take no issue with pocketing a found $10 bill? What about $100 or $1000? Our values are not necessarily those of others, and to hold otherwise would be a show of poor character, ethics and morals! It seems the child in this story learned a much better lesson than both her mother and Michael. Shame on you, Michael, for spewing such unprincipled and corrupt ideas!

I too was surprised by Michael's conclusion. But I am glad to see he has a practical side to him. I don't think it is practical to return a dollar bill. Would the person who lost the dollar really go to lost and found to inquire if it was turned in? Mr. T - where do you draw the line? Is it at a dollar, or is it a quarter?

I agree with Mr T. I think the conclusion is wrong and probably confusing to the little girl who I think may find it difficult to make such a complex assessment of value. I do however agree with some of the statements made about caring for others, but I think in this case the simple rule is to return the lost item. In both cases, the lesson is to care, not to care only if you think it is worth it. Perhaps the more difficult thing is actually HOW to return the item when you do not know who it belongs to. So I would suggest a good idea would be to take it to put it in her charity box so it can go toward caring for others. With money, it is very difficult to know how to draw the line. When is an amount of money worth a lot or a little? It depends on who lost it. A lesson for a little girl should be to do the right thing and think about others, not to keep it for herself . When you are older, there tends to be more issues such as "Why waste time returning $1?" But I think the lesson for the little girl is the key here, not time availability. And I think that - young or old - money found could be put in the charity box.

I understand your point, but I do not agree with it. I think it is always worthy of trying to find the owner of anything you find.

However, I temper that with where you can go to find the owner will make a big difference. If there is no reasonable way in which you can try to find the owner, then I believe it is okay to keep the money. For instance, you find a penny, nickel, dime or quarter or even a handful of change on the street or the floor in a large mall. How do you find the owner? Yes, at the mall you could go to the Lost and Found. In your example of the dollar bill on the table, I would suggest going to the Lost and Found would be the correct thing to do again, but also leave your name in case it is not claimed and then donate it to your favorite charity once it is not claimed.

I have to agree with Mr T; Mr. Josephson, you dropped the ball on this commentary.

Mr T, you voiced perfectly my immediate and strong reaction to
the 'reasoning' applied in the story and by Michael. I echo,
shame on you Michael!

This made no sense to me, but for a completely different reason from what Mr T outlined. When something is in the Lost and Found and someone goes to claim it, they are asked to describe the item to be sure it is given to the correct person. How would someone be able to identify the dollar as the one they lost? Unless you mark your money in some way, there would not be any way to prove the dollar belonged to one person versus another as I doubt that there is a fingerprint expert at the Lost and Found. That is why people return or turn in purses, wallets, etc. while they generally do not turn in found money unless it is in a bank bag or some other type of carrier.

The difference is that a dollar has no obvious way of identifying the owner. True, the dollar could have great value to its owner, but how is the owner to identify which dollar is his? A child's purse has many unique identifying features. We teach our students to turn money into the office and if no one claims a loss, then the finder gets to keep it. However, we don't announce "Who lost a dollar?" but rather, wait for the sad child to declare "I can't eat today because I lost my dollar."

It seems the principal to this story is possibly being lost in the concept of doing what is right. Maybe the fact that the story is so short precludes additional options. I agree with Michael's conclusion generally but would add that asking around for anyone nearby who might have lost the dollar; possibly even going to the lost & found (if it is nearby - there is a cost/benefit equation to be applied - spending 30 minutes to try and find the person seems to me over the top) to see if anyone reported a lost dollar would be in order.

But the biggest distinction for me between the purse/quarters and the dollar bill is that someone CAN ID the purse, whereas ANYONE can claim the dollar - and most likely the person who ends up with it from a lost & found will NOT be the one who lost it.

I think you have missed the boat on this one. To say it was more important for Molly to turn in the child's purse than the dollar bill, based on the purse's inherent emotional value, justifies a form of behavior that encourages people to act dishonestly in many other situations in their lives. What if that dollar bill had been someone's lunch money? Or if it was a much-needed dollar for a larger purchase? I believe it is far better to teach a child that he or she should always behave in an honest manner (including turning in money to a lost and found) when something doesn't belong to them rather than rationalizing their behavior based on perceived value. At least this way, if a lost and found policy so dictates, they may collect the item after a reasonable amount of time has gone by for the owner to claim it. Just because a dollar is an almost forgettable amount of money in our culture doesn't mean there isn't an ethical principle involved in the idea that one should always strive to behave in an honest and responsible manner. Otherwise, we'll have a hard time, when they find a $50 dollar bill on the ground, telling them they shouldn't keep it. Or in a grocery store, we'll have a hard time explaining why they shouldn't try the grapes to make sure they're good. After all, the store can afford it and it's only a few cents worth. This sort of behavior grows from the idea that we can change our ethics based on our judgment of the importance of the item.

You do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. Not because someone is watching or another judges you. I still remember how proud my mother was of me when she came to pick up my brother and I after the Saturday matinee at the movies (back in the '40s). The usher told my mother that when I found a dime in the floor of the lobby, I had brought it to her and turned it in. A big decision for me? No, it wasn't mine. My parents were probably relieved to know I had been listening.

Michael--In the legal world, what you seem to have done here is described as "making a distinction that doesn't make a difference." What if it had been $10? $100? $1,000? The points made by others are valid re: identification and/or likelihood of someone coming to the lost and found to retrieve a dollar (perhaps, in addition to other reasons, because they don't believe it will be returned in this world that so often lacks character!), but most lost and found departments will put cash found in an envelope (usually marked with where the cash was found...so there IS a way to identify it...), and if not claimed within a few days/weeks, it will be returned to the person who found it. Now that would be a great lesson in integrity for a little girl! If claimed, then that's evidence it was of value to someone; and if not claimed and it is returned to Molly...well, Molly will remember forever that doing the right thing not only feels good, but sometimes has its own rewards. I think you owe your public a retraction/clarification on this one. Doug P.S. We don't even need to get into the old joke about the announcement on the PA system: "A large sum of cash has recently been found. Would the owner please form a double line at the Lost and Found window!"

This discussion is worthwhile and prompted examination of my own beliefs and actions and what might have been their foundations and development. I believe Michael might have hoped for such individual searching. I find the strong "I'm shocked" "if it's wrong IT'S WRONG" reactions off-putting and lacking any analysis. The more contextual explorations of the what and how one returns the item or amount and whether there is any reasonable likelihood of the item or amount being identified and returned to a rightful owner are much more appealing. In my own experience, Michael's example is spot on and my guess is that the discussion which ensued is exactly what he intended.

I agree with those of you who felt that an effort should have been made to return the money as well. I can't help wondering if this is some kind of experiment or test by Mr. Josephson to try and gauge the respondents' ethics. I first learned about the Character Counts program through the school district that I taught at. I remember part of a commentary written by Mr. Josephson that really stuck with me. It stated, and I'm paraphrasing here, something to the effect: "You either have ethics or you don't. It's not something that can be turned on and off." Returning the purse but keeping the money sounds like someone is trying to rationalize a reason to keep something that isn't theirs. There was an instance where I found a $20 dollar bill in the meat section at a local grocery store. Just as I was returning it to the manager of the meat dept. a frantic little old lady came rushing back and began looking through the display of meat. The manager asked if she needed help and she explained that her money must have fallen out of her hand. He asked her how much she had and she stated it was a $20 dollar bill. I knew in my heart returning it was the right thing to do, and I was rewarded by seeing it returned to that poor woman. I shutter to think of her being unable to buy food to eat if I had kept that money. She thanked me profusely and I told her I was glad I found it. As someone stated in their reply, that dollar could have very well been important to some child too if it was his or her lunch money. They may have returned to look for it. How sad it would be for them to find that someone had taken it before they got there. I suppose if one were justified to keep found dollars on tables, then a lot of waiters and waitresses would have a lot fewer tips.

Lots of good points raised... What if the loser of the dollar was a five-year-old who was rewarded for losing his first tooth? What's important to one is not necessarily so to another. The right thing to do is hand it in. Because anyone can claim it does not negate doing the right thing. The results of our actions should not be their dictator. Most probably anyone seeking the dollar in question would be the rightful owner assuming that it wasn't announced over a PA.

Wow, I just had an experience this morning and I had to write about it! I was jogging my usual route when I saw a quarter on the ground near a bus stop. I picked it up and asked if anyone had dropped some money. A young man holding some flowers said he hoped it was a quarter I found because he thought he had dropped one from his bus fare. When I said yes and handed it to him he hugged me and said he would not have been able to see his mother in the hospital if he hadn’t had that quarter. He had spent the rest of his money on the flowers and had exact fare left over. He offered me a flower in thanks, but I told him the only thanks I needed was for him to continue being such a fine young man and to start reading Character Counts! I’d like to think I would have done this anyway, but having read this commentary a few days ago, the situation was fresh in my mind. So the lesson I learned today was: A quarter is just a quarter, unless it’s everything!

Michael, while I disagree with you on your point of view on this, I also disagree with those who are so quick to speak shame upon you. You have chosen to stick your neck out on many timely topics and let us know your thoughts. Sometimes we agree and sometimes we disagree with you. You have placed yourself in a position much like a referee: when the whistle is blown, half the crowd thinks you were wrong no matter what you say. Thank you for your willingness, indeed courage, to speak your mind. I am an educator and I speak my mind on a number of things, and thankfully no one shames me when they think I am wrong. Friends of this commentary: Please allow Michael to speak his mind, disagree if you wish, point out your own view on the matter, and I trust Michael enough to listen to us, to digest what we offer, and if he feels it necessary to change his point of view, so be it. If not, I will respect his opinion to stand by his original thoughts. After all, Michael is not my moral conscience - God and His Word is my north star by which to set my compass. I enjoy Michael's perspectives and I respect them. I may not always agree, but my friends allow me to speak my mind without pronouncing shame on me when they think I am wrong. Thank you, Michael, for your courage to put your thoughts and heart out there for us every day!

Thank you, David. Great response.

While Michael does a great job on his commentaries, they are just that. Turning to God and His truth is always the best!