An-Ex Irishman's Diary -Thieves like us

Some random bloke took my suit jacket instead of his from a bar the other night. An understandable drunken mistake to make considering they were identical jackets sitting on the same stool. A not so understandable sober silence when it came to returning said jacket – both my Ipod and my phone number were in the breast pocket! Maybe he forgot to call.

Convenient. Like the guy that "forgets" to inform the cashier when he receives too much change, or when I "forget" to pay for my train fare because there's no inspector. Let's stretch it a bit. It reminds me of the politician that "forgets" certain dubious transactions, the white collar whizz-kid that forgets why he funnelled money from the accounts of corporate clients or the time-share salesman that "forgets" your face. If my random bloke's jacket was nicer would I have returned it to him? In a big city, where people are rude and blokes that wear nice suits tend to be wankers, what sort of rational incentive – in this instance – is there to return it?

Would returning an Ipod and a nice jacket to a wanker be more hassle than its worth? Who's gonnna know. Not returning it? Understandable, perhaps – in this instance. But whizz-kids, politicians, time share salesmen and fare evaders. Forget it.