Winner's dollar-toss reveals true nature of some people

We'll leave it up to the sociologists and psychologists to explain why some people would jump into a river, while others would risk bodily harm just for a couple of dollars. But we will comment on the adults who think nothing about putting children in harm's way: They need to have their heads examined.
Downtown Sharon was no place for children Saturday morning when businessman James E. Winner Jr. threw 500 $2 bills and 2,000 "Sharon Fun Bucks" coupons off the top of the Winner Department store, but there they were, caught in the stampede. A young boy was knocked into a tree by the swarming crowd, while a grandmother who was there with her granddaughter suffered a black eye.
And then there was this disturbing take on the pushing and shoving from a 12-year-old Sharon girl: "You've got to take the consequences."
But what do children know about consequences? Since when is a money giveaway an event for kids?
Businessman Winner was well-intentioned when he talked about doing something to spur business in downtown Sharon, but his dollar-toss idea was a dud.
Black eye
Said the grandmother who suffered a black eye, "I didn't think it would be this bad." Mob mentality knows no limits, which is why words like "pandemonium," "melee" and "stampede" are being used to describe what took place in Sharon. Trees and flowers downtown were damaged and a car parked in front of the Winner store was dented by people standing on it trying to catch money.
But the television pictures of people jumping into the Shenango River and others climbing the walls of a diner to get to the $2 bills on the diner's roof revealed the true nature of these individuals. Perhaps it was greed, or desperation or simply the idea of getting something for nothing, but this region did not present its best image to the world.
Winner is still committed to giving away 500 $2 bills and coupons every Saturday this month, but he won't be tossing them from the roof of his department store. That's good to hear. He seems to have realized that having teenagers body check each other and even adults for the money defeated the whole purpose of attracting shoppers to downtown Sharon.
For this coming Saturday, Winner has decided on a patriotic theme for the dollar giveaway. Any adult wearing red, white and blue or carrying a flag can go up to a table in front of the store and receive a $2 bill and four coupons.
Now that's the way to attract the serious shoppers to the central business district.