The spirit of giving
I’m a huge fan of the Buy Nothing Project, a movement that promotes the sharing and giving economy over one where people buy ever more shit.
The spirit of Buy Nothing is sharing with your neighbors. It’s wonderful.
But as it’s popularity in my area has grown, I’ve noticed that some folks have started using it as a way to just offload shit they’re too lazy to drive to a donation spot or throw away.
It’s nearly always people who sign up just to give away a bunch of stuff, but are otherwise never active in the group. They post things like…
- Priority to fastest pickup
- Must take all
- It’s on my porch. Come in the next 5 hours or I’m throwing it out.
This kind of behavior violates the spirit of the movement, and punishes people who work full time, can’t get there same day, or can’t watch Facebook all day long to respond immediately to posts.
The folks behind Buy Nothing strongly suggest “let it simmer.”
Wait 24 hours before picking a recipient, to ensure anyone who’s interested has a chance to see your post and participate.
And please don’t force people to take a dozen items if they only want one of them. Other folks may way the those things, and Buy Nothing isn’t a free trash removal service.