You pay with a ten, but get change for a twenty.

[mrmufin]

Here's the situation. You and your friend Roxy are both strapped for cash, but are having lunch together at the cafe. Three days ago she loaned you ten dollars, and she just asked if you were able to pay her back. Being pretty much broke, you told Roxy, "Sorry, babe. I'm still kinda tapped out."

The food and service are both very good at this cafe, as are the prices. The waitress brings you the check and it's for $8.87. You give the waitress your last ten dollar bill, but she brings you $11.13 in change. Are you going to point out the error to the waitress?

Regards,
mrmufin

[Illyricum]

Yes. I wouldn't be able to sleep that night if I didn't.

[ST88]

That's a tough one because it's a very specific situation. By pointing out the error, would you be letting down Roxy because this stroke of luck would have been able to pay her back? By keeping silent about it, would you be adding to the employment woes of this waitress at the end of the day because she had an unbalanced daily total?

I imagine that I would not have a problem keeping quiet and walking off with the extra ten (& giving it to Roxy).

But since I owe Roxy an extra ten, I would make a deal with her conscience. I would ask her what she would have me do. In this situation, I can weasel out of the dilemma by appealing to her to make the decision.

I thought about this some more and decided that the following scenario wouldn't work:
Since I paid for lunch, and the correct balance plus lunch equals the ten I owed to Roxy, I can consider her debt partially paid. In this scenario, I can point out the error to the waitress without having to worry about letting Roxy down.
-- Unfortunately, this doesn't work because I don't get to specify which of my ten dollars Roxy loaned to me, so it might very well have been those ten dollars I handed to the waitress. In this case, I should've asked Roxy beforehand if she was willing to use this lunch as a partial square for her debt, and it doesn't equal the right amount anyway.

By the way, in what cafe can you get a good lunch for two for less than $10?

[Corvus]

I have to agree with ST88. If I had $10 remaining, and Roxy refused to let lunch compensate her for the money she owed me, I would simply give her the $10, forgo lunch and have a large dinner instead.

If I absolutely must stick to the wording of the ethical dilemma, I would consult with Roxy on whether or not to give her the extra $10. My conscience would not be greatly distressed if she accepts.

[Xanadu Moo]

I've thought about this before, and when it happened to me about ten years ago at a Wendy's drive-thru, I stared at what was placed in my hand, and then I thought to myself, "Thanks, God." Maybe sometimes He tries to bless us and we too often refuse the gift. What's He supposed to do -- make it fall out of the sky? In theory, He may very well have duplicated the change and left the right amount in the cash register as well. Don't stare a possible miracle in the face.

Here's an interesting tale I came across recently:
"I was walking down the street and I found a wallet with a hundred dollars in it, and I was going to keep it rather than return it, but I thought: well, if I lost a hundred dollars, how would I feel? And I realized I would want to be taught a lesson."

[scorpia]

Pay it back. Even if I'm broke, I don't like the idea of taking something that isn't mine............

Well, from strangers, anyway.

Besides, the poor operator who probably made the mistake would have to face the ten dollar loss and a scolding from the supervisor when the draws get counted.

[mrmufin]

That's a tough one because it's a very specific situation. By pointing out the error, would you be letting down Roxy because this stroke of luck would have been able to pay her back?

This is one of my favorite ethical dilemmas to toss around in casual conversation. In its strictest terms, the dilemma boils down to, "Should the waitress pay my debt?" All the other factors --we're both strapped for cash, the lender is present at the time of the mistake, I'm paying for lunch-- are thrown in to convolute the fundamental dilemma. Those factors are just interference... because life has plenty of built-in interference.

By keeping silent about it, would you be adding to the employment woes of this waitress at the end of the day because she had an unbalanced daily total?

Unless the waitress has made comparable mistakes with multiple customers in a short period of time and/or the management already has a stiffy for her, I doubt she'd get fired. Hey, if they are going to ditch her over a one-time ten dollar error, they're probably not worth working for.

I imagine that I would not have a problem keeping quiet and walking off with the extra ten (& giving it to Roxy).

I've been in somewhat similar situations more than once. In actuality, I've played it both ways. Heck, I once gave a stripper a twenty and she brought me change for a fifty. I had two drinks and a lap dance before leaving the club with more money than I went in with! (I left my ethics back at the hotel that night.)

But since I owe Roxy an extra ten, I would make a deal with her conscience. I would ask her what she would have me do. In this situation, I can weasel out of the dilemma by appealing to her to make the decision.

Roxy wants her ten bucks, and at the end of the day she prolly doesn't care how you acquire the money as long as she gets back what she loaned you.

I thought about this some more and decided that the following scenario wouldn't work:
Since I paid for lunch, and the correct balance plus lunch equals the ten I owed to Roxy, I can consider her debt partially paid. In this scenario, I can point out the error to the waitress without having to worry about letting Roxy down.
-- Unfortunately, this doesn't work because I don't get to specify which of my ten dollars Roxy loaned to me, so it might very well have been those ten dollars I handed to the waitress. In this case, I should've asked Roxy beforehand if she was willing to use this lunch as a partial square for her debt, and it doesn't equal the right amount anyway.

What if Roxy didn't really eat much? Maybe you had the cheeseburger and she only had a coffee? It wouldn't really be fair to her in that case, now would it?

By the way, in what cafe can you get a good lunch for two for less than $10?

Hmmm... if I told you, they might just raise their prices.

Regards,
mrmufin

[mrmufin]

If I absolutely must stick to the wording of the ethical dilemma, I would consult with Roxy on whether or not to give her the extra $10. My conscience would not be greatly distressed if she accepts.

Just outta curiousity, is there a specific dollar amount at which your conscience might respond with distress? Or what if Roxy deferred the decision right back to you? You could ask the waitress for her opinion, too.

Regards,
mrmufin

[mrmufin]

Maybe sometimes He tries to bless us and we too often refuse the gift.

Or maybe sometimes the gods want to test our ethics to see if we're truly worthy of a front row seat in some posthumous nirvana...

What's He supposed to do -- make it fall out of the sky? In theory, He may very well have duplicated the change and left the right amount in the cash register as well. Don't stare a possible miracle in the face.

Any god worth worshipping should be able to make it fall out of the sky, dontcha think? If one or more gods can magically make a ten dollar bill happen into existence, I'd suspect making it fall from the sky shouldn't be much trickier, especially for a really powerful god.

Here's an interesting tale I came across recently:
"I was walking down the street and I found a wallet with a hundred dollars in it, and I was going to keep it rather than return it, but I thought: well, if I lost a hundred dollars, how would I feel? And I realized I would want to be taught a lesson."

Actually, having the wallet returned with the $100 in tact would do much more for me: it would help me maintain --and perhaps even strengthen-- my belief that the humans are a fundamentally kind and compassionate species. However, never seeing the wallet again would not necessarily demonstrate that people are creeps. If I never saw the wallet again, I have no idea what lesson I'm supposedly learning.

Regards,
mrmufin

[mrmufin]

Pay it back. Even if I'm broke, I don't like the idea of taking something that isn't mine............

Well, from strangers, anyway.

I agree. Well, in principle and most of the time, anyway.

Regards,
mrmufin