Please answer this poll

[George]

A relative of mine found money today. I told him it was evil for him to steal money he found and he responded by saying that if he would've not taken it someone else would've taken it. I disagreed with him because if someone loses money the money is still his and he wouldn't want anyone to benefit from his loss.

[Confederate Kahanist]

I answered the last option because it is someone else's money.  Even though I don't have allot of money right now, I still wouldn't take it.

[ProudAndZionist]

I answered the last option because it is someone else's money.  Even though I don't have allot of money right now, I still wouldn't take it.

I did the same.

[syyuge]

I answered the last option because it is someone else's money.  Even though I don't have allot of money right now, I still wouldn't take it.

I did the same.

it is the only right thing.

[George]

I wouldn't waste my time and give it to the police. I'd just leave it there.

[syyuge]

Plundering and theft of the whole world is useless as Hashem will leave him.

[Chaim Ben Pesach]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

[judeanoncapta]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

Very true.

No one who loses cash in a public place expects that he will retreive it. Unless he has some sign of his ownership upon it like ID in a wallet or a tag of his business.

I dropped a shekel under a soda machine a few days ago. I have of course given up hope of ever retreiving it and therefore it belongs to the first person who finds it and takes possession of it.

[George]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

All people give up realistic hope of recovering money because of thieves. That doesn't give one the right to steal the money because it's still his and he wouldn't want someone to gain because he has lost money. I don't know how the Torah could be interpreted like that because this is stealing. And whats the limit here? What if you find $10,000? And what if a cashier gives you too much change? Should you steal it because the cashier made a mistake?

[✡ Hindu Zionist ॐ]

if it is thousands of dollars of money, then i would report it to police. If it is 100 or so, then i would keep it.

Also one has to be careful about the cctv cameras around, if you dont report..and the police get you on the camera.. It may cause problems.

[SW]

I also would keep it because I don't think the police could find the owner. If there were thousand dollar then I would report it to the police because someone really lost his money and he would be glad if someone would find it and give it to the police. I would be also glad if someone would find my money (may $5,000) and report it to the police. But $ 50 or less I would keep it.

Other thing with a wallet. I would search for a ID or driving license. I would not keep the money because I would know the owner of the money. If I would keep the money and the wallet then it would commit a theft. It's important to be a true person!

[Adrian Wainer]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

All people give up realistic hope of recovering money because of thieves. That doesn't give one the right to steal the money because it's still his and he wouldn't want someone to gain because he has lost money. I don't know how the Torah could be interpreted like that because this is stealing. And whats the limit here? What if you find $10,000? And what if a cashier gives you too much change? Should you steal it because the cashier made a mistake?

All people give up realistic hope of recovering money because of thieves.

If you make a statement, in which you use "all" and reference it to people's opinions and attitudes, it invariably is likely to be wrong. And your statement is no exception to this rule, very many people if say they have a twenty dollar bill in their pocket and lose it in the street and only realize they lost it a couple of days later, will reckon that either it got swept up with the thrash on the street by the street cleaners and ended up in the town dump or somebody saw it and picked it up and the person who lost it, would very possibly reckon that, hopefully if somebody finds the money, they will be a good person and they will deserve to find it and use the money for a good purpose.  

What if you find $10,000?

What if, you find $10,000 and you know it belongs to the Government Bank of the Third Reich and you are a Jew in the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II and you could use the money to buy food for starving people in the Ghetto and to buy rifles, do you hand over the money to the Nazis?

And what if a cashier gives you too much change?

If a cashier in a bank or a shop gives you too much change, you have to tell them if they give you one cent too much if the enterprise  acts in a fair manner, if the bank or shop has  knowingly robbed you before, I do not know about Jewish law on this point but in my view they should have been more careful counting out the change and hard luck to them, if they give too much change.

Best and Warm Regards
Adrian Wainer

[Dr. Yisrael]

I would take the money, I have better uses for it then it just waiting there, In the end somone is going to take that money, I do I know it isn't for drugs or stupid [censored] like that. If I take the money I know It will go back in the community via a healthy manour. But If it was a wallet I would stick around for a while and wait for somone, eventually I would take it too the police :-)

[Rubystars]

It depends on the amount of money. If it was a large sum then the police should know about it, but if it's just some money lying on the ground you might as well keep it.

[Patriot]

I answered to take the money to the police. Chaim has hit the nail on the head though.

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

[Ulli]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

I would do it this way too.

But if you return it, you have in some countries legal right to a few percent of the money. 

[muman613]

In general I usually always attempt to return lost items to the person who lost it. If I find a food item or change in the vending machine I will go around my office asking if anyone lost the item. If nobody claims the item I will keep it.

http://www.torah.org/learning/jewish-values/lostobjects12.html

Returning Lost Objects Part 1

In the past weeks we discussed the Mitzva (commandment) of “Do not stand over your brother’s blood.” This taught us that we can not stand idly by when someone else is enduring some sort of difficulty, rather we must do our utmost to help him. The Torah does not restrict its concern for our fellow man to his physical or financial well-being. It also obligates us to develop a sense of responsibility with regard to his property. One Mitzva relevant to this is that of HaShavas Aveida which is loosely translated as, “Returning lost objects.” It is a fairly common occurrence that we see various items lying on the ground or some other place in a fashion that strongly indicates that they have been mislaid by their owner. In the coming weeks we will discuss the numerous laws pertaining to this Mitzva.

The Torah commands us to strive to return the lost animal or object of another. “You shall not see the ox of your brother or his sheep or goat cast off. and hide yourself from them; you shall surely return them to your brother. ”

Philosophically this Mitzva is another prime example of how the Torah demands of us that we do not hide our eyes from the needs of our fellow man. A fundamental principle of Judaism is that we are obligated to adopt a pro-active attitude in all aspects of life. We must avoid the ‘ostrich syndrome’. What is the ‘ostrich syndrome’? An interesting aspect of this huge bird is its reaction to danger. When it sees a predator approaching the ostrich hides its head in the ground - this may be a kind of hiding technique but it symbolizes an attitude of avoiding difficult or uncomfortable situations.

This mode of behavior can be easily replicated by a human being. A good example of this is our attitude to lost objects. When a person is walking along on the way to his daily business he may notice an item that seems to be a lost object. It is very likely that his natural inclination is to figuratively ‘put his head in the ground’ and walk on, avoiding the difficulty of trying to return this object to its rightful owner. This attitude is alien to the outlook of the Torah. Rather we should overcome our natural desire for comfort and assume responsibility for our fellow’s needs. We will learn that there are many scenarios in which a person is not obligated to try to return the object but the main lesson to be learnt here is that we should not simply hide from assessing the situation and determining whether we must really return the object or not.

...

Returning Lost Objects
Part 12*

In the previous article we began to discuss how one go about announcing the loss of an item. We saw that the finder is required to put up signs in public places announcing the discovery of the item. What should one write on these signs?

The notice should specify the type of item found so as to attract the attention of the owner. However, its description should not be so detailed as to reveal the identifying features - in order to identify the item's true owner he must be able to give the simunim (identifying features). If those simunim are already revealed on the sign then anyone can claim ownership without identifying the unique simunim himself. For example, if one found a bag with a number of items in it, the sign should say that a bag was found and that it contained various items within it. However, the nature of these items should not be mentioned so that any claimant to the bag will have to specifically identify what items were in the bag.

The finder has the responsibility to be careful not to give the item to a deceitful person who is not the true owner. There are ways in which such a person may be able to discover the identifying features of the item and use that knowledge to convince the finder that he is the owner.

Accordingly, even if the claimant gives the correct simunim, if the finder suspects him of being dishonest then he must try to assess whether he is a trustworthy individual. For example, the finder should ask for a reliable reference who can attest to the claimant's honesty. Needless to say, a relative or friend of the claimant does not qualify as being a reliable reference. Only after the finder has ascertained the claimant's reliability can he return the item. If the finder cannot be certain of his reliability then he may not return it to the claimant unless he has totally irrefutable proof that the item is his.**

[Ulli]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

All people give up realistic hope of recovering money because of thieves. That doesn't give one the right to steal the money because it's still his and he wouldn't want someone to gain because he has lost money. I don't know how the Torah could be interpreted like that because this is stealing. And whats the limit here? What if you find $10,000? And what if a cashier gives you too much change? Should you steal it because the cashier made a mistake?

I think the ammount does not matter.

I would handle every ammount equally.

So what concerns the cashier or people I do business with I do it like this.

If the other person is a brother in faith (I mean here of my denomination) I always tell him, because I am recommended to love him unconditionally.

But if it is someone other it depends.

If he was honest to me I will tell him, but if he was not honest I will tell him probably not.

[Ben Yehuda]

You forgot the answer: It depends how much money we're talking about.

Just kidding.

[Lisa]

Also, how do you know the owner has given up realistic hope of finding the money?

[George]

Also, how do you know the owner has given up realistic hope of finding the money?

Exactly. I know someone who was counting $2,000 and left it on the floor to do something else. He then left and forgot to pick up the cash. One hour later he remembered and when he came the money was gone. He told the police and they said no one reported it. It was stolen.

[Americanhero1]

[MidwesternJew]

As a Former Deputy Sheriff and Military Police Officer here is what happens to the money. The money is sealed and placed in the evidence locker and it is placed on the inventory log. The amount of cash, serial numbers of the bills, and numerical value of each bill. This money sits in the locker for 30 days or 90 days depending on Policies. Police may place an ad in the local paper but most departments will not due to the massive so called claims of people saying this money is theirs. Waste of time and energy.

After no one clamis the money it is given to a number of charities or the general fund account.

[Dr. Yisrael]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

What if the wallet belonged to a muslim?

[Ulli]

If there is cash on the street, you are permitted under Torah Biblical law to take it as long as the owner is not around to claim it and you have no way of knowing who the owner is.

If the owner has lost the money and has given up all realistic hope of recovering it, you are permitted to keep it. Because the money no longer has an owner.

Of course, if you find a wallet with someone's name and address, you are required to return it to the original owner.

What if the wallet belonged to a muslim?

I would keep every cent in any case. I would be lucky.