Would you take money from someone if you know you would not be caught?

@mssnow (9484)
United States
June 13, 2011 1:23pm CST
Here is the scenerio. You are struggling to make ends meet. The bills re piling high. There is a guy who is a friend of your friend. Your friends name is Tony. The other guy who is extremely rich is named Jim. Jim is very mean to you and always has been. He is rich because his daddy gives him all the money he wants. The guy is spoiled rotten and rich. You on the other hand have a wife and a baby and cant afford to do much of anything. The baby needs formula and diapers and the wife needs new glasses. Tony invites you to a party. Your wife can go but she decides to stay home so you go. You walk in and of course Jim is there and is so drunk he can hardly walk. He stumbles and tries to give Tony a wad of cash he has in his pocket. Tony tells him to put his money away and go sleep it off in the spare bedroom. Jim goes to lie down and Tony greets you and tells you to put your coat in the spare bedroom. Of course Jim is in there. You walk in and Jim is snoring away. You put your coat down in a chair and as you turn around, Jim moves and the wad of money falls out of his pocket. 3 hundred dollar bills fall separate from the others. What do you do? Take the money and run? Take the 3 hundred dollars and leave the rest. Leave the money and hopefully no one else will take it and accuse you. Grab it and give it to Tony? What would you do and why?
5 people like this
25 responses
• United States
13 Jun 11
Most likely, I wouldn't take the money & run. However, what I would usually do would depend on the circumstances, such as what he's wearing, & if I know him well enough to know pretty much how he does things. It also depends on what is around. I would gather up all the money, & then try to put it in the last place on him that he probably would not think of looking for it. If he has a cell phone in a case clipped to his belt, I would put the cell phone into the pocket (hopefully, it's small enough.) into the pocket where his money fell out, & then put the money into his cell phone case. I'm sure other ideas of what can be done will come to mind.
1 person likes this
• United States
13 Jun 11
Tell him the truth - that it fell out of his pocket & I was just trying to put it back. Quite often, if the guy was mean to someone, & people knew that someone well, they would quite often believe that the meanie was just at it again.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
I dont know i think i might be too scared to do that. I would probably just leave it and go tell Tony. Let him take care of it
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Haha My favorite Klingon!! That does sound like a good idea. but what if he woke up and accuse you of stealing his money? Then what?
@iklananda (1202)
13 Jun 11
I perhaps going to take 400 and then left the other behind. What do you think about it ?
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Well we all have our reasons for taking things.
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
I doubt the owner would even miss it
@iklananda (1202)
13 Jun 11
400 is good enough not too much and the owner perhaps going to laugh hard. Or perhaps just take 200 probably it good amount wkwkwkwkw
1 person likes this
@MsTickle (25180)
• Australia
21 Jun 11
I'd leave things as they are and leave the room. I'd go get Tony and show him the guy and his money and leave it up to Tony to do the right thing. I don't understand why people stay friends with others who are nasty, hurtful and despicable.
1 person likes this
@MsTickle (25180)
• Australia
22 Dec 11
Wow - thanks for BR.
1 person likes this
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
16 Jun 11
As much as the money would come in handy for my family at this point in time, I wouldn't be able to take it because my conscious would not allow me to do that. I know that stealing is wrong and that is the reason that I wouldn't do that. Instead, I would work harder or figure out some other legal ways of getting the money that I needed to take care of my family. I could never steal something from another person because it is not the moral or the right thing to do.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
16 Jun 11
That is so true, honesty is the best policy :)
• Portugal
14 Jun 11
i would just put it in jim's pocket. i couldnt leave the money on the floor or someone could catch it. i would just do the right thing. i couldnt just take his money even if i was in a big big trouble. i know he is a mean person but should i also act bad to him? maybe you wont believe me but i saw someone letting 5 euros fall in the floor and he didnt notice. i catched it and called the guy and gave it to him^^ im way too honest to just steal from even a bad person^^
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
Oh I believe you, I am the same way. If a cashier gives me more change than what Im supposed to have I ALWAYS return it.
@polaris77 (2039)
• Bacau, Romania
14 Jun 11
Normally I wouldn't think of taking money I don't deserve,I would probably feel remorse and couldn't enjoy it,but in the case of an individual like Jim which is filthy rich just because of his parents and hasn't done anything to earn that amount of money,I guess I wouldn't feel any remorse,but I would be wise and I would also try not to be too greedy,so I would only take the three hundred dollars,and Jim being so rich wouldn't notice the absence of so little money for him when he wakes up .I guess it would all depend on the instinct of the moment.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
He most likely wouldnt care about the 3 hundred dollars anyways
@secretbear (19448)
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
Take the money and return to to Jim's pocket. Whatever's not ours is not for us to take without permission of the owner. I don't think it's also right to take something being handed by a very drunk person. I used to ask for money from my older cousin who would gladly give us any small amount when he's drunk. But not that big of a money and it was like a game to us when we were little. I think no matter how financially challenged a person or a family is, they should earn money thru the right way. And if you are being a good friend, you would not commit a crime in the name of your needy friend because that will not only be on you, it will also be your friend's guilt.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
Honesty is the best policy
@lynnemg (4529)
• United States
13 Jun 11
As tempted as I would probably be to take the money and run, I know that my conscience would not allow me to do it. Instead, I would pick up the money and try to tuck it into the guys' pocket so it would be more secure and no one else would be able to take advantage of the sleeping, drunken man. I believe that regardless of a person's financial or other situation, the best policy is to always hold on to your integrity and live an honest life. If I need something that badly, I would rather ask someone for help rather than take things that do not belong to me. I can sleep better at night when I know that I have not wronged others.
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
I feel the same way as you. my feelings of guilt would over ride any other tempations
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
what a dilemma. i've been in that situation before. I didn't touch the money. My conscience wouldn't let me. even in my side business, Rayhak Events Productions, I refuse to hold on to money. I let my business partner handle the money side. money corrupts you. the more exposed to it you are, the more it sinks its teeth in. it's good to have money that's in the bank and not readily available to you to control our base instinct to acquire.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
But it sure comes in handy to pay bills with lol
@joystick (1675)
13 Jun 11
No i would never take money off anyone, not even if a person offered it to me and they were not drunk.I can not see why people do steal off other people as they would not like it done to them.I would just leave it where it has fallen, also i would keep a watch on it to ensure that noone else stole it.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
It is good to know there are still so many honest people in the world :)
@debs90 (547)
• India
14 Jun 11
I will take that money and run. Then I will go to a legitimate money earning site invest that money and make profit from that money. I will double, triple, quadruple it. After that I will gift him a present worth that money and I will never tell him why I give him that gift...LOL
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
I love your thinking. Now why didn't I think of that?!
• United States
13 Jun 11
I would pick it up, stuff it all back in his wallet & not take any of it. Whether he has enough to spare is not the point. Taking something that doesn't belong to you, something that you did not work for & earn is the point here. Growing up we did not have a whole lot of money. I had a cousin whose family was rich. I got to watch them go on vacations every year, buy the best clothes for my cousin you name it. To make a long story short I was very jealous & tired of not having any money of our own so I started to secretly steal from the grocery store where I worked at the time. The more I took the less guilty I felt. Then one day I got caught. The cops were called. I was threatened by both my boss & the cops as well. Although thankfully no charges were made, nonetheless I was of course fired. I must have been 16 years old at the time. I was very embarrassed & more scared then I had ever been in my whole life. My Mom taught us never to take anything that didn't belong to us & when she found out what I did for the first time I started to feel ashamed. I swore right then & there I would never take anything that did not belong to me, that I did not work for & earn myself. I'm proud to say that I never stole anything ever again after that.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Yeah jealousy can be bad. I know i have a few friends who have life better than me and at times I wish I could have that but like you I would never take money that didn't belong to me. I would feel guilty and feel like I would be punished some way.
• United States
14 Jun 11
Well, if we're talking about a baby here, and survival, I don't think there's any question as to whether I would be tempted to steal. i would just be afraid to get caught. But if I know there's zero chance, and it's a question of survival, I kind of would. It wouldn't be right, but I'd be willing to live with the consequences of surviving. I don't like the idea of stealing, but, there's an exception for everything.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
Yeah am kinda like you. If it were my baby and they needed something to survive i would be more tempted
@gwapamei (15)
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
I'm pretty sure that I dont want to have anything to do with Jim's money. I kinda believe in karma and I would really hate it if a guy who I dislike would get the best of me. Getting Jim's money would make me stoop down to his level. Besides I'm pretty sure getting his cash would make a mess when he wakes up in the morning and blames 'me' and Tony for stealing the cash.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
14 Jun 11
I so hate bad karma. Thanks
@daeckardt (6237)
• United States
14 Jun 11
I think I would more than likely take the money and put it back on the bed or in his pocket. Although I might be tempted to take the 3 big bills, I would resist because it wouldn't be right to just steal the guy's money when he is asleep. I have had my wallet stolen as I slept before and it is no fun to wake up and find it missing. He might not realize that the money is gone, but that isn't the point. If the guy offered to give it to me, I might take it, but not without asking first. And since you said that Jim is always mean to you, chances are he wouldn't give it to you voluntarily anyway. So why tempt fate?
1 person likes this
@savypat (20216)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Time to involve Tony. When you take something that is not yours you will pay in ways you cannot guess. But involving Tony you have stayed honest and protected Jim at a time when he could not protect himself. Regardless of the type of person he is,you have done what you needed to do. Blessings
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Oh that is a good answer. Best thing to do is get Tony and let him deal with Jim.
@bingskee (5234)
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
no, i will never take the money. first, i do not want to be bothered by Mr. Conscience. second, that is taking advantage of another person's weakness. there might not be anyone watching and knowing, but there is One up there that knows.
1 person likes this
@moirai (2853)
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
No, I will not take money from someone even if I know I will not get caught. And even if, as in this case, the guy was very mean to me, and he is rich and all that while I am in need, I will not do it. I will not go down to the level of stealing. For the scenario, I would go find Tony right away and bring him to the room so that he can see for himself the money that fell, and I will let him take it if he will and return it to Jim presently or later.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
14 Jun 11
Despite how rotten the guy is, I can't take the money. Money is already trouble to begin with, stealing is worse. How is stealing going to solve my problems? It only adds more problems. Jim is already a rotten guy, if it was traced back to me then I'd probably be imprisoned. Besides most rich people are stingy, they know how much money they have all the time.
1 person likes this
• United States
13 Jun 11
I can see why a lot of people would take the money. People who see other people who are given everything in life often get jealous. They think something like "oh, he doesn't need it, he has lots, I'm just going to take it." Which is wrong. Even if the person is a complete jerk to you, you shouldn't steal from them. I don't come from a super well off family and sometimes it bothers me that friends or other people around me have been more lucky in the wealth department. People need to know that there is always a way to make end meet, it just isn't the way most people want to take. But if you love your family enough you will be able to deal with any crappy job to provide for them.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
13 Jun 11
Yes, I think you are right. I really don't see any rightness in taking from someone else No matter what the situation is. I think that the mean people will get some kind of karma back at them and if you take from them you will be giving your self some bad karma. Thank you for your answer.