Occasionally, I have witnessed a Tempe police officer confronting a Dumpster diver collecting aluminum cans, which these days can fetch a nifty $1 a pound if you know where to take them to sell. How absurd that cops can — or would — intercede. That’s especially true these days when poverty is ever more rampant, when unemployment is obscene and when people need to be allowed to carry out what humans have been doing since the beginning of time – talking ownership of what the wasteful waste.So first off, IF Tempe police are harassing aluminum can collectors, they should stop it immediately – and let folks seek to make a living. Never mind they might get cut on a jar or whatever. I suspect they, like the rag-pickers who live off dumping grounds around the world, know the risks and adjust appropriately. Why should anyone be denied taking ownership of what others discard?
I penned a “Beyond Belief” blog for the East Valley Tribune on About these ads
1 comment
November 19, 2011 at 4:49 pm
Concerned Resident
How unbelievably naive and short sighted of you. The amount of time that it takes a person to make any kind of notable income from dumpster diving and collecting aluminum cans would far exceed and outweigh the amount of time that it would take them to obtain legitimate employment and simply work. When scavengers sift through trash in residential areas it has significantly detrimental effects on the aesthetic appeal of the area. I applaud any police officer who correctly does their part to stop this eye sore. The last thing our neighborhoods need in these economically troubling times is further drops in property value brought on by dumpster divers.