Just today, I was waiting in the queue for the bus when the secondary school girl (probably 14 years of age) who was behind me in the queue dropped a coin. I think it was a 20 cent (the currency is the Singapore Dollar) coin. And she didn’t pick it up. I’m pretty sure she’d noticed it, and it is easily within reach if she just bent down. She wasn’t carrying anything that would inconvenience her picking up the coin. She just stared at it for a moment and then promptly ignored it as she whipped out her Nokia 8310 handphone and started pressing the buttons.

I remember back when a 10 cent coin used to matter (10 cents could get you 3 sweets), not to mention a 20 cent coin. In fact I’d pick it up if I dropped it, now. Why not? Should anyone feel embarassed to pick up a 20 cent coin? No. Should a 20 cent coin have so little value that it isn’t worth the effort to pick it up when dropped? Not yet (at least until inflation gets real high). I realize I’m being critical of the young lady without giving her the benefit of the doubt, but I make no excuse for that.