What would you have done?

I just would have picked it up, which I assume you did. These days forcing a confrontation with anyone, local or not, is a bad idea whereever you are.

Chalk it up to ignorance , pick it up and continue on your way.

I would have said, you drooped something. If they looked at me crazy of said anything stupid, then I would turn on my angry rhetoric. I don't fear anyone with things like that. That, telling them you dropped something has worked n the past. One of the things I ask is 'who do you think will pick that up?' It's sickening. For this reason I refuse to do any roadside clean ups anymore as in a few days it looks just as bad,

I was driving my jeep out of the Kmart parking lot and saw a guy finished guzzling a beer, then throw the bottle to the ground.. I yelled "Pick that up!" and he yelled an expletive back at me, at which point my boss' Rottie (who rides around with me when I am doing errands for her) started barking her head off and he ran away. Unfortunately, he didn't pause to gather up his pieces of broken glass.

Why bother to pick it up? It will be there again tomorrow anyway.

I have, however, had friends who picked up trash when they saw such a thing. Of course they followed the person and left it on their doorstep. Not a smart thing to do probably, but some of my friends are a little to confrontational at times. Maybe that's whats needed.

My spouse walks the peninsula twice a week and picks up trash -- there's a never ending supply. 🙁

well i was driving home from work one day heading east and in front of me was a police woman (ex i think) anyway she threw first a can and then a bag of trash out of her car window. i could not believe my eyes. citizens arrest if we had it here.

the boardwalk incident i think i would have picked it up (wearing gloves of course) and said ahhhhhhh excuse me you dropped something.( then mumbled to myself you stupid idiot).

i had a homeless guy come up to me yest,. and the ATM machine at scotia and ask me for 2 dullas (the way he said it)
i said no way........well he got mad and followed me making noises. scared me.....hes the stinky one

I highly suggest you decide to value your life more than a piece of trash. Getting angry at someone is a good way to inherit a world of hurt (whether it be physical, financial/legal, or emotional.) It may feel good to be an activist about an important topic but keep in mind the people who love and depend on you who will be very sad at your funeral knowing you lost your life over a littering dispute.

I would have said, you drooped something. If they looked at me crazy of said anything stupid, then I would turn on my angry rhetoric. I don't fear anyone with things like that. ...

its really mixed on what we should do. i have seen locals (cruzans) do things and then think they did it just to see what i would do.

feel like something needs to be done but what is the safe course??? same thing about animals. do we approach abusers while doing the act or report and then its to late??????

I have approached kids down town trying to catch and have caught chickens. and actually made them drop them. i know its risky but the animal lover in me takes over....not my common sense.

dixiechick, next time he asks you for money just ignore him. i usually just ignore them and they leave me alone. kieth i always answer cause i like him. the crazy lady, she will follow you regardless.

i had a homeless guy come up to me yest,. and the ATM machine at scotia and ask me for 2 dullas (the way he said it)
i said no way........well he got mad and followed me making noises. scared me.....hes the stinky one

So you met 2 dollar man 🙂 He's even on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/search/?q=2+dollar+man&init=quick#/pages/2-Dollar-Man/51161543307?ref=search&sid=548750865.3820230301..1. (need to be logged in).

He's harmless but annoying.

I wouldn't pick a fight over litter, but I probably would say something if the guy was smaller than me.

Sean

."hes the stinky one"
Are you in STT, or does STX have a stinky too?

stx has a few stinky ones too

I saw a young girl walking in the Parking Lot of Plaza West with her mom and another woman. As i was pulling into a spot, the girl threw down a snickers wrapper. i felt so angry and definitely wanted to say something, but instead walked by her and picked it up - along with some other trash and threw it away. i hope they saw, probably not. I proceeded to shop and used my carry along reusable bags (which the cashier told me saved them SO much time and she was so happy when people used them and wished that everyone did) and felt good about doing my part to help out...even if it was just a little bit.

It wasn't worth getting into a fight with a mother over how she taught her child to respect (or in this case NOT respect) her environment. People think that just b/c you're in a cement parking lot it doesn't matter...they don't understand that it blows away onto the grass or into the ocean and that it not only makes our island look disgusting, but also can be a threat for animal life.

Nforbes, they know but jsut don't care. It's not only locals. I see tourists doing it all the time. I sure say something to them.

They know... people who litter do know better. They just don't care and aren't thinking and since litter laws remain unenforced... they keep on doing it. I think all you can do is set the example. I'm with Nikki... I pick it up and attempt to make it very obvious to anyone around that I am doing so. Sometimes I chup (suck my teeth)... just to get the point accross. LOL......

Teach the children. Wouldn't it be nice if we could have more commercials and advertisements that promoted keeping our island clean. Education, Education, Education. Lead by Example... its all we can do.

Wouldn't it be nice if this was something that was taught in the schools.

It IS taught in many schools. Its called Character Education. Some of the Character Traits that are taught include:
Respect for oneself, for others and for our environment, Responsibility, Accountability, Compassion, Sportsmanship, Humility, Gratitude, Courtesy, Kindness, Empathy, Iniatitive, Diligence, Tolerance, Forgiveness, Integrity, Honesty, Dependability, Courage, Patience, and the list goes on.

Most of us learn these characteristics from our parents, family and community. These traits define the kind of person we will grow up to be. In the past there was no need to teach them explicitly in schools we just all knew them and valued them. However, in the last 20 years schools have noticed a lack of these traits in our children, and have started having to create curriculum to teach them. Character Education is part of the curriculum of many schools now and is taught by teachers in many different disciplines... in Literature through reading and discusssion, in Science class through studies and reports, in math classes through statistics and word problems... teachers all over the country are always trying to add character valuesteachings into their lessons.

Its sad here. The adults need lessons in character education. The kids would care if their parents did... but too many children are being raised in environments that do not value good character traits.... And I shouldn't say here... its not just here... its nation wide. Its part of the fall of America.

The only official teaching of these character traits that I am aware of on St. Croix is through the Animal Welfare Center's Humane Education program. For the last 6 years the program has focused its teaching on compassion and respect for all living things and our environment. Teaching responsibility and accountability, kindness and compassion. So... a little bit of the message is there and being delivered. SEA does some teaching as well. Betsy Campen did an Anti-Litter project a couple of years ago... and I'm sure there are many good teachers in our public schools who attempt to teach what they can about these types of character values... But... when children leave a classroom and go out into a community that doesn't value those values... its hard to make the lessons stick.

Google Character Education. Its fascinating.

I

Forest and trees, forest and trees...

Don't expect to see people caring about littering more until we figure out how to convince them not to put their kids and others in the back of their pickup trucks like cargo (worse really since cargo would be tied down for safety.)