Letters to the Editor 08-24-2000
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- Honesty Isn't Sappy
Honesty Isn't Sappy
Editor, Times-Union:I enjoyed reading about the incident concerning Gary Gerard and his loss of $100, and how the kind act of a stranger turning in the money had reinforced Mr. Gerard's faith in "the compassion of humanity" - and Mr. Gerard goes on to say that he sounded a little "sappy" in expressing his faith. Now, tell me this: Why does Mr. Gerard think that he has to apologize by using the word "sappy" because he believes in being grateful to a person who has committed an act of good, old-fashioned honesty and decency? Is he afraid that his peers will judge him to be a "cornball sentimentalist" if he shows any sign of gratitude or appreciation toward the person who has paid him a great kindness? It seems as though today, in this hard, calloused, secular universe, there is too little gratitude or appreciation at work. In fact, in these times there are bitter, sarcastic cynics who actually spit on the idea of being honest and upright.
A few years ago I read in the paper about a man who found $125,000 and was honest enough to turn the money in to its rightful owner - so, what happened? For his kind, honorable effort, the man was "cussed out." Many considered him to be a "damn fool" for turning in so much money. Well, you may be certain that in the long run, the man who had committed an act of honesty was much better off than those who had cussed him out.
In other words, as the old adage goes: "Honesty is still the best policy," and I, for one, am also a true believer in the theory that if a person bestows an act of benevolence or unselfishness on someone else, he is always well rewarded in return. I ought to know.
I recall, that back in the '50's, I was crossing State Street in downtown Chicago and there was a sailor walking ahead of me who had pulled something from his hip pocket. Unbeknownst to him, his billfold also came out and landed in the street. Well, quickly I retrieved the billfold and tapped the sailor on the shoulder and handed the billfold to him. Quickly, the sailor snatched the billfold from my hand and hurried on without bothering to thank me for it; but still, at a later date I did receive a great big "thank you" for what I had done.
One day I was occupying a stall in the restroom of a Greyhound Bus terminal and I had deposited my billfold on top of the metal box that holds the roll of tissue. Well, I had left the stall without picking up my billfold and just as I was leaving the stall, some guy was entering and the minute he spotted my billfold, he opened the door and handed it out to me.
So, you see, no matter how "corny," "sappy" or "schmaltzy" some people consider an act of kindness and honesty toward his fellow man, it still pays to be honest, and there will come a day when you shall be well compensated for your honesty.
Don Kaiser
Warsaw
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- Honesty Isn't Sappy
Honesty Isn't Sappy
Editor, Times-Union:I enjoyed reading about the incident concerning Gary Gerard and his loss of $100, and how the kind act of a stranger turning in the money had reinforced Mr. Gerard's faith in "the compassion of humanity" - and Mr. Gerard goes on to say that he sounded a little "sappy" in expressing his faith. Now, tell me this: Why does Mr. Gerard think that he has to apologize by using the word "sappy" because he believes in being grateful to a person who has committed an act of good, old-fashioned honesty and decency? Is he afraid that his peers will judge him to be a "cornball sentimentalist" if he shows any sign of gratitude or appreciation toward the person who has paid him a great kindness? It seems as though today, in this hard, calloused, secular universe, there is too little gratitude or appreciation at work. In fact, in these times there are bitter, sarcastic cynics who actually spit on the idea of being honest and upright.
A few years ago I read in the paper about a man who found $125,000 and was honest enough to turn the money in to its rightful owner - so, what happened? For his kind, honorable effort, the man was "cussed out." Many considered him to be a "damn fool" for turning in so much money. Well, you may be certain that in the long run, the man who had committed an act of honesty was much better off than those who had cussed him out.
In other words, as the old adage goes: "Honesty is still the best policy," and I, for one, am also a true believer in the theory that if a person bestows an act of benevolence or unselfishness on someone else, he is always well rewarded in return. I ought to know.
I recall, that back in the '50's, I was crossing State Street in downtown Chicago and there was a sailor walking ahead of me who had pulled something from his hip pocket. Unbeknownst to him, his billfold also came out and landed in the street. Well, quickly I retrieved the billfold and tapped the sailor on the shoulder and handed the billfold to him. Quickly, the sailor snatched the billfold from my hand and hurried on without bothering to thank me for it; but still, at a later date I did receive a great big "thank you" for what I had done.
One day I was occupying a stall in the restroom of a Greyhound Bus terminal and I had deposited my billfold on top of the metal box that holds the roll of tissue. Well, I had left the stall without picking up my billfold and just as I was leaving the stall, some guy was entering and the minute he spotted my billfold, he opened the door and handed it out to me.
So, you see, no matter how "corny," "sappy" or "schmaltzy" some people consider an act of kindness and honesty toward his fellow man, it still pays to be honest, and there will come a day when you shall be well compensated for your honesty.
Don Kaiser
Warsaw
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