this post was submitted on 05 Sep 2023
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When they do not return the grocery cart to the cart corral.
I doubt you can judge someone as bad based off that
EDIT: I'm gonna go with better terms here: Not responsible enough and ignorant, I still don't believe someone can be considered bad as a person for this.
There are two main reasons you wouldn't return carts to a cart return location:
Fuck them people
My time is worth more than this
At the very least the person is inconsiderate, and worst a complete psychopath. Both are not great signs, and all the ones between are also not positive aspects.
You'd think something that small wouldn't be much of an indication on a person's overall nature, but it's nearly always the little things that add up to the whole thing.
Yes. How one thinks of/treats hired help is a big clue.
I understand where you are coming from, but most people who do this at times are more likely just ignorant than even "fuck them people". In-fact, the walmart near me has a guy waiting outside along with the security most of the time to collect carts once the store closes, so many people are like "he is going to collect all the leftover carts anyways".
Especially for those who have parked their cars a bit away, I really doubt such people are going to return all the way just to put a cart on the cart return location, rather than just putting the car on the side and just take off with their car.
To make things worse, there are staff on stores often these days that organize and collect leftover carts, so it's been a while since I have seen a good chunk of people return their carts to their return location, especially from parking lots, unless they are close to that return spot.
Most if not all big box stores have cart corrals out in their parking lots where you are meant to return the carts so that they can be collected more efficiently without having some employee run all over collecting carts. Andtheres the matter of run away carts especially if it's a windy day. Those carts can really get moving and cause some damage to cars parked out in the lot. No one is saying to take them back to the entrance of the store, simply to put them in the collection point so they don't wander.
I view not returning carts as inconsiderate or lazy, but most employees I've heard discuss this say they don't mind going out to get carts, because they get the chance to be out of the store for a while.
I stand corrected especially on one area, I just remembered that there are indeed cart corrals out there in the parking lots, unfortunately my walmart has like 1 on a huge parking lot which is really not enough, but it is true that most stores do have a lot of them, if they are nearby a car and that person still doesn't return the cart, then that's a problem.
Maybe that's why I see staff collecting carts, due to the lack of cart corrals, maybe stores that lack enough of them do this instead, but I am also debating within myself about the fact that there are tons of people that still do this mistake with enough cart corrals.
So I personally think the right conclusion would be, such people are not bad, but not responsible and are ignorant. When possible, returning would make life easier for staff that do collect carts too, they don't have to go all the way to collect all of them. And of course, avoiding the risks of the carts hitting other cars in-case of natural wind, great points that didn't come to my mind at first.
I think this one wouldn't go under bad though as I said, it has to be a lot more than not returning cart back to the car corrals to be a bad person....right??
Yeah, I can see it being an issue when there's a massive parking lot and no return locations. I'm sure some stores did the studies on how much time and workforce it saved to put those corrals out in the lot as most people are inclined to do a bit to help out others.
The newer built stores especially have no problem with this, but the older not so well planned ones are the ones with these issues.
OP doesn’t put his cart back! Shame!
Wow, arguing another perspective (with a valid arguement) made me a victim, RIP
It's actually a great indicator as to their view of the social contract and obligations to others.
There's two possible scenarios
Cart Narcs demonstrates that you can lol
I find the people who judge others based on cart return status are the real assholes.
Just put your cart back already.
I had this discussion on here a week or so ago. I guess I'm just lucky enough to live somewhere where the summers are mid 80s and the winters are high 50s. My three friends who got jobs at the local Target all said that the best part of their day was collecting carts.
They still collect carts if you put them where they’re supposed to be, it’s just a safer job, because they are where cars expect them to be instead of all over the parking lot fishing lone carts out of bushes and off medians
I do when I can! (although lately I have been doing a lot of grocery shopping online)
Yeah I mean, I have seen people do that countless times at the walmart near my house for example, I feel like that's just calling a very high portion of the population to be bad people unfairly.
Okay but....
There's really no reason not to unless you just give zero shits about the damage a loose cart can do.
That's exactly the kind of sign you want: it's a person who thinks "it won't affect me because I'm leaving, so it's not my problem."
Actually as I was explaining to another person, unfortunately, there is a reason.
I am living in Tampa, Florida, the nearby walmart to my house, has a huge parking lot, but a car corral near the entrance and ONE on a huge damn parking lot.
The thing is, while I am not against returning carts when possible in anyway, what can I do if I park my car all the way on the other side on the parking lot and not near the cart corrosal? And the reason I park there is because it's one of the few parking spots available in a busy day? I am sorry but in such cases, people will just leave the carts on the side and leave with their car.
Not to mention, the damn sun here, it gets absolutely hot here at times, even I don't see myself walking halfway to the other part of the parking lot just to leave a cart when I already walked all the way from the entrance carrying all of my groceries, I don't see myself returning in that case.
Again we need to think in practical real-life scenario, so not only should people start returning carts, stores that don't have enough cart returning points in parking lots especially, should increase them.
I am not saying I don't return carts because that actually doesn't apply to me, atleast lately, as I have been mainly ordering stuff online mostly.
I do also want to make it clear, I am in no way giving justifications for those who make these basic mistakes without a genuine reason, I don't ever see myself not returning a cart when there is indeed a fairly nearby cart corrosal, and unfortunately, there are people who won't return their cars even if they have a nearby car corral, and i'm not arguing for them!
Yeah... this sounds like someone who is making excuses for their bad behavior instead of owning their mistake and correcting it.
Yeah I already made myself clear, I don't even do groccery shoppings in-person anymore, but Im leaving this there now 🤷
I've crossed a parking lot and a street in the snow to return it before. If I pushed it there I'm getting it back. Simple as.
Do you think it's fair to think that just because you are able to, others can too? I've been living in Canada before moving to florida, opposite weather here, extremely hot, I try to stay cool as much as possible, it's good that you "crossed a parking lot at a street" (assuming that is long distance, don't extactly understand the meaning here), but I am not you man, different people, scenarios, circumstances.
I know people are going to downvote this for me lol, again I ain't justifying for those who actually don't return when there is actually a cart corral nearby, but I am not trying to justify my own actions or argue for those who make this mistake without a genuine reason wantedly, in-fact as I''ve mentioned in several other comments in this thread, I do online shopping mostly these days, so this does not even apply to me.
I am simply trying to discuss from another not so popular perspective here in this thread.
I am also wondering if people have different definitions of what "bad" could be, because to me, this is more about lack of responsibility and ignorance when you are able to return a cart, but you still don't. If I saw someone doing this without a genuine reason like I have stated before, I don't think that'd still make them a bad as a person, I'd consider them not so responsible and kindly ask them to return it.
If they're physically able to push the cart somewhere they should be able to return it. Bar some edge cases I don't see why someone wouldn't return the cart.
I think you have stricter definition of bad and a looser definition of acceptable reasons. For me "not responsible" is bad, like a minute amount but still in the bad zone, and tough weather and distance isn't enough of a reason to not return the cart.
The thing is, pushing the cart to take groceries to a car is a must for a person isn't it? The same can't be said for returning it, and while I respect a lot that you seem to have returned the cart every single time even if there is no nearby return spot, I don't see everyone being that way, especially when some stores barely have enough cart return spots on parking lots with PAID staff who are there to collect leftover carts.
If I am being honest, when I do physically grocery shop, in most cases since I mostly order online, when I really only have to, I do physical visit and I don't buy much, I just carry them with my hands to the car, I never had this issue lol.
I think a lot of people, me included, have been cart pushers or other similar minimum wage jobs so it's a bit emotionally charged. For me even if there are staff it's still not nice to pile work on them, you know? Like others in the thread said, I don't value my time more than theirs.
Just accept that this thing that you do is bad. Then be better.
Lost me here, nope, nooooope nope nope nope. The weather is the least justifiable excuse -- Someone has to walk all that way to return that cart in the hot sun if you don't. If anything, making someone else do it is worse because of that weather.
I also saw you throwing out "but they have employees who do that" in another part of the thread. You wouldn't throw trash on the ground instead of walking it to a can just because a place has a janitor, I'm sure. It's exactly the same logic, and the reason you wouldn't ruin a janitor's day is the same reason you shouldn't ruin a cart collector's day.
I get that your local shop sucks for only having one corral. I really, truly do. But you know what I do when my closest store has practices I can't deal with? I don't make someone else clean up after me, I take my money elsewhere.
Aldi has entered the chat.
I actually took the five minutes to look at all 10 Walmart stores in Tampa on Google Earth, and I can see more than one cart corral from space... How are you missing them in person?
Sigh, I live near Tampa, I don't live there, not in the main city/area (outer part near to Tampa for added context. I don't think Ill give my exact location here though.
Or maybe it's because I have a special needs child and I can't always leave them alone, even for a minute or two?
When you make snap judgments based on initial appearance, that's precisely the kind of error you can make.
What error, exactly? If someone makes a choice and doesn't take responsibility for that choice, there's no error in judgment calling that person irresponsible. Mitigating circumstances like a person's childcare situation are only mitigating circumstances because there was irresponsibility in the first place to mitigate. It's still irresponsibility. There was no error.
I rarely see that and I definitely judge people when I do see it. Maybe you just live somewhere where anti-social behaviour is normalised?
I'd say it's conditional. At a certain point, it's on the business themselves. For example, a giant parking lot with one or two cart returns only, in a front corner.
A massive sprawling Walmart parking lot with only one return, and I had to park really far away, and it's super busy and trying to get the cart to the return requires going through multiple rows? I'm a goodie two shoes who will clean up after others, and tries to improve places... but I've got limits with time, effort, and desire to deal with crowds of people in parking lots.
If they have good placement though, then yes, it's absolutely on the individual.
Unless you have a medical reason for not being able to walk to the front to return it, you're still an asshole if you don't.
This is such a strange phenomenon to me. In all the countries I've lived in, all but a few select stores have a dongle on each cart that takes a coin to unlock it from the chain of other carts. It's perhaps the cost of a back of toilet paper, but that seems to be sufficient for it to be exceedingly rare to see an abandoned cart. One can only imagine that any such carts are quick prey for enterprising teens looking for a quick boost to their candy fund.