I was just grocery shopping and mysteriously had an extra 90$ on my foodcard. So I exclaimed to the cashier, “wow i love surprise extra money”. The person in line behind me said, “i wish i got surprise money”. So I took 5$ and tossed it in her bag, she said “No Wait Dont!” but I had already spun around and was on my way out of the store.

So what was that? Good or bad?

A good deed because it was kindness and generousity? Did her stating she didnt want it make it immoral and thus i should have stayed so she could give it back? Did it all happen as it was supposed to so that she would display herself as nonneedy, I could do the kindness, and, by leaving before anything could change, the state of reality was frozen as is for us beings within?

Please tell me whether I’m good or evil; thank you! :)

  • Zier@fedia.io
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    13 hours ago

    It was a nice thing to give a random stranger something they could actually use. If she felt she did not actually need that, she can easily give $5 to another stranger. Since none of us on the internet were actually there, we really can’t judge since we didn’t see your or her expression, or tone of voice. Being nice is not a bad thing. You were genuinely nice with no agenda or malice, that’s the line between good/bad.

  • roofuskit@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    If that person really didn’t need it’s, up to them to pass it on to someone who does. What you did was an act of kindness.

  • poweruser@lemmy.sdf.org
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    16 hours ago

    I agree with the consensus that this was a good thing to do.

    It was perfect to leave before the shopper could reject it because it allows her to save face. Either she did need it but was too proud to admit it, or she actually didn’t need it and can just pay it forward.

    Since you left quickly it made it clear there was no expectation that she should pay it back to you specifically, which could have had unsavory implications

  • over_clox@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    Good thing for sure!

    If it were me and the lady behind me turned it down like that, I’d probably just say something like…

    “Well I was blessed today, so I figured I’d pass a bit along. If you’re sure you don’t need it yourself, then perhaps go buy a meal for a homeless person or buy a kid a toy for Christmas. Pass it forward.”

    No evil here, you did a good thing 👍

  • √𝛂𝛋𝛆@piefed.world
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    17 hours ago

    Your username is pUrE EviL. But giving away money is nice. What was it before, Allo IIRC?

    Careful doing that with mystery money. If it was a banking error, you may end up on the hook for paying it back and they won’t accept that you spent it. Just be aware this is a thing.

  • JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social
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    14 hours ago

    So I took 5$ and tossed it in her bag…

    I kinda wish you’d take another $5 and toss it in to finding a better user name.

  • bluGill@fedia.io
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    13 hours ago

    There are plenty of poor people who could use help and instead you gave it to another middle class person who like all of us finds thingsia little short - but realistically has enough.

    it wasn’t evil - but it wasn’t a good deed. There are better ways to give away money.

    • dragon-donkey3374@sh.itjust.works
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      12 hours ago

      Great idea! Next time my friend shouts me lunch I’ll refuse because I’m another middle class pleb and he should feed a homeless person instead.

  • Zwuzelmaus@feddit.org
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    16 hours ago

    You were bragging.

    Imagine if you find 90 million instead. You would become thoroughly unbearable.

    • weird thats one i hadnt considered so either i disagree or am not sure i understand. it happened really fast, was an unusual interaction with a questionable moral aspect, so I thought about it in the car, and then brought it up here cuz not sure what my own conclusion is. i like being kind, but i’m also highly against doing things to others against what they want for themselves. For me it was definitely questionable.

      Maybe I don’t understand you?

      Having a foodcard means i’m poor btw, not rich, which I openly egolessly say. i guess just your comment is weird to me and im having a hard time connecting it to anything and not seeing where it’s applicable while all the other comments generally make sense and answer it was a morally good thing to do independent of the questionable part.

      😶‍🌫️

      • Zwuzelmaus@feddit.org
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        15 hours ago

        not sure i understand.

        I mean you were looking down on her.

        i’m poor btw, not rich

        But what did you imagine about her wealth? Or her neediness?

        Let’s turn it around: I am the one with the money now. What if I would offer you in public: I will give you another $90 if I can insult you afterwards, and then you agreed just because you needed the money so badly?

        Maybe your next grocery shopping would be secured, but you would be humiliated, even before I started insulting you.

        Back to your story: That’s why she tried to refuse the 5$. But then you forced it on her.

        • HikingVet@lemmy.ca
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          6 hours ago

          Wow, you need to look inward. You’ve either been hurt or you dislike people trying to be decent.

        • oh interesting thank you for explaining. i do understand! that is sort of what i was thinking as far as wondering if i had done an actual good deed or if it could cause an overall net negative like that. You see the net negative possibility of how it turned out that also caught my attention i think.

          unrelated because my behavior wasnt based on it, but in answer to your question she seemed middleclass and not poor nor a scrounger; probably wealthier than me (my behavior was a combination of ‘sharing bounty that just befell me, doing good deed, plus she had just wished it’. It was a rare opportunity to instantly fulfill someone’s wish. Didn’t think of class stuff at all in the moment, but also i rarely do as a person)

          thank you for the explanation! I appreciate the perspective!