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alt227 6 days ago

Sounds a bit like the guys that collect the sludge from the sewers in jewellery and gold smithing districts in cities, then pan it for gold. Its not going to make anyone rich, but theres enough gold dust in there to buy some food and shoes for somebody hungry enough to dive into a sewer and collect sludge!

mikepurvis 6 days ago | parent [-]

Supermarkets that make you put in a quarter to take a shopping cart are really just paying the homeless $0.25 each to return them from the parking lot.

technothrasher 6 days ago | parent | next [-]

It seems more like the customers are paying the homeless, and the supermarkets are just acting as brokers.

permo-w 6 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

it's the same for bottle deposits in parts of Europe. anything in a plastic bottle costs an extra ~10c which you can retrieve by depositing the empty in a machine at the supermarket

permo-w 6 days ago | parent | prev [-]

in the UK, trolley deposits are much more expensive, at £1. people are more likely to retrieve a £1 than a quarter, but the atomic payout is ~5x higher, so I wonder which scenario yields better pay for the homeless

mikepurvis 6 days ago | parent | next [-]

I mean ultimately the goal is to find a balance where carts won’t be everywhere and customers aren’t inconvenienced to the point of choosing a different store.

permo-w 6 days ago | parent [-]

I mean either way carts aren't gonna be everywhere, and I don't think pounds have ever been a problem for shoppers in the UK

6 days ago | parent | prev [-]
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