4 ms·

At the end of the day I wasn't even thanked. Sounds like the librarian is yet another person trying to cover his own ass. Instead of showing gratitude, he prob

At the end of the day I wasn't even thanked. Sounds like the librarian is yet another person trying to cover his own ass. Instead of showing gratitude, he probably wants to pretend the whole incident never happened.

tptacek 8y ago
How much gratitude do you generally expect for simple, ethical actions that take almost no effort on your part?
- yeahwhatever10 8y ago
  Generally you would expect a simple amount of gratitude that takes almost no effort on their part. Like "Thank You".
  - nitrogen 8y ago
    It seems the amount of gratitude should also be proportional (albeit with a small coefficient) to the loss that was prevented.
    - nitrogen 8y ago
      It's interesting that the voting on this comment has fluctuated up and down. If anyone happens across this old thread and would like to provide a counterargument, I'd be interested in reading it.
      - nitrogen 8y ago
        Interesting that this was also downvoted, as well as other very reasonable comments in the thread. Some very odd patterns. My original comment went up to 3 and down to 0, second is at 0, and some other comments are gray enough to be somewhere between -2 and 0. Let's see if the experiment continues.
- anon1m0us 8y ago
  You reject the amount of effort it takes to walk away from $8,000 -- perhaps a semester of tuition for a college student?
  - tptacek 8y ago
    Yes, I reject the amount of effort that takes, just like I neglect the amount of effort it takes not to pocket the money you find in a wallet on the ground.
    - anon1m0us 8y ago
      False analogy.
      - skinnymuch 8y ago
        I believe it’s a false analogy too. But why exactly is it false? Is it because taking money from a wallet is obviously immoral and you’re robbing an individual?
        sombremesa 8y ago
        If I go to sell an item on eBay (or a pawn shop) and accidentally enter $8 in the price rather than $800, I doubt there is any recourse for me on legal or moral grounds when that item gets bought. Caveat venditor. Dropping a wallet on the ground is a completely different story where neither party is taking part in a bona fide transaction.
        skinnymuch 7y ago
        It would be silly to still send an eBay item to the buyer if you accidentally put down $8 instead of $800 as a seller. Or to buy an item if you accidentally put down $800 instead of $8. In both cases I don’t see how you shouldn’t not take part in the transaction. In the same way people will sell photos of an item for $80 while the product is normally $800. People will think they found an amazing deal but really just be out $80. You could say that was greed talking. It seems more like a scam to me.

tptacek 8y ago

How much gratitude do you generally expect for simple, ethical actions that take almost no effort on your part?

yeahwhatever10 8y ago
Generally you would expect a simple amount of gratitude that takes almost no effort on their part. Like "Thank You".
- nitrogen 8y ago
  It seems the amount of gratitude should also be proportional (albeit with a small coefficient) to the loss that was prevented.
  - nitrogen 8y ago
    It's interesting that the voting on this comment has fluctuated up and down. If anyone happens across this old thread and would like to provide a counterargument, I'd be interested in reading it.
    - nitrogen 8y ago
      Interesting that this was also downvoted, as well as other very reasonable comments in the thread. Some very odd patterns. My original comment went up to 3 and down to 0, second is at 0, and some other comments are gray enough to be somewhere between -2 and 0. Let's see if the experiment continues.
anon1m0us 8y ago
You reject the amount of effort it takes to walk away from $8,000 -- perhaps a semester of tuition for a college student?
- tptacek 8y ago
  Yes, I reject the amount of effort that takes, just like I neglect the amount of effort it takes not to pocket the money you find in a wallet on the ground.
  - anon1m0us 8y ago
    False analogy.
    - skinnymuch 8y ago
      I believe it’s a false analogy too. But why exactly is it false? Is it because taking money from a wallet is obviously immoral and you’re robbing an individual?
      - sombremesa 8y ago
        If I go to sell an item on eBay (or a pawn shop) and accidentally enter $8 in the price rather than $800, I doubt there is any recourse for me on legal or moral grounds when that item gets bought. Caveat venditor. Dropping a wallet on the ground is a completely different story where neither party is taking part in a bona fide transaction.
        skinnymuch 7y ago
        It would be silly to still send an eBay item to the buyer if you accidentally put down $8 instead of $800 as a seller. Or to buy an item if you accidentally put down $800 instead of $8. In both cases I don’t see how you shouldn’t not take part in the transaction. In the same way people will sell photos of an item for $80 while the product is normally $800. People will think they found an amazing deal but really just be out $80. You could say that was greed talking. It seems more like a scam to me.