The Energon Pub

News Credits: 1 · by **Brakethrough** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:16 am

I've moved to a different town now, but over the last several years I've been some kind of advice guy in the toy aisles at the Toys R Us. I've given advice on what figures are really cool, or appropriate for certain skill levels more times than I can count on my hands.

One time, and I believe this was my shining moment, would have been when a parent was looking between Cybertron Override and Crosswise. I wanted that Crosswise, but as the man and his son were deciding, I pointed out that Override had some flimsiness and was "spring loaded" into an awkward transformation. They thanked me, kid loved his toy ("black cars are AWESOME, dad!") and I picked up something else that day. Never saw another Crosswise again, but the next week they announced the Smokescreen repaint anyway.

by **Saya** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:20 am

lvkangaroo wrote:
Saya wrote:
Autobot032 wrote:It was in my cart! Not on the shelf! I was heading to the register right after the water! If the kid had asked me, like what happened in Wal-Mart, I'd have been more than happy to give it to the kid for purchase. This little brat just ganked it from my cart and ran like wildfire because he knew I'd try and stop him.

Here's a question, what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart? You'd be pissed. How would that person react if you pulled stuff out of their cart?

When it finally happens to you, I hope you hold yourself to that same "high regard" (and I do mean that in the most sarcastic way possible) that you have for other collectors. Perhaps you should look in the mirror and see what kind of person *YOU* are.

An oblivious one, because you seem to miss the key points involved.

Or

An ignorant one, because you did see the facts and chose to see otherwise.

Either way, you have no place to be telling me what I did was wrong in how I handled it. And for your information, I wasn't expecting a pat on the back either. They wanted some memories recalled and posted, so I did. You get what you ask for, I gave it.

You can't handle that fact, apparently.

Now, go sit in the corner somewhere and sulk, hate me if you must, I don't care. Just don't talk down to me like you're someone better, because you're not. Far from it, in fact.

He's a kid. Kids do stuff like that. You can't hold them to the same standards as adults. The father wasn't exactly sporting, but he still had a point. As I said in my previous post, Transformers are for kids, and as such, if there's a kid hanging around wanting to buy the same Transformer as you, it's my opinion that you bloody well let them have it! It really doesn't reflect well on you if you don't, regardless of the circumstances.

Speaking of which, you asked "what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart?" I can answer that quite simply. If someone pulled stuff out of my cart, yeah, I'd be pissed. However, buying children's toys is completely different to normal shopping, and as such, if a kid pulled a Transformer out of my cart I would ruffle their hair, call them a little ruffian and let them have it.

This is because Transformers are for kids.

Funny, I see ages 5+ on the box of my transformer, which, I'm thinking I'm the +. I don't see "for kids only" So I'd say it's for anyone ages five and up. It's not right to take things from other people's carts, so why reward a kid for bad behavior?

Toys are for children. You're fighting an uphill battle if you're honestly trying to argue otherwise.

News Credits: 4 · by **GrimSqueaker** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:33 am

Bonger wrote:And honestly, its because of attitudes like that towards kids misbehaving, that most kids these days are massivaely misbehaved, and are mostly just growing up to be trash like their parents.

What are u basing that on? Personal opinion (note, u have said that u hate kids numerous times) or fact?

by **Enigma_Dragons** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:36 am

Saya wrote:
lvkangaroo wrote:
Saya wrote:
Autobot032 wrote:It was in my cart! Not on the shelf! I was heading to the register right after the water! If the kid had asked me, like what happened in Wal-Mart, I'd have been more than happy to give it to the kid for purchase. This little brat just ganked it from my cart and ran like wildfire because he knew I'd try and stop him.

Here's a question, what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart? You'd be pissed. How would that person react if you pulled stuff out of their cart?

When it finally happens to you, I hope you hold yourself to that same "high regard" (and I do mean that in the most sarcastic way possible) that you have for other collectors. Perhaps you should look in the mirror and see what kind of person *YOU* are.

An oblivious one, because you seem to miss the key points involved.

Or

An ignorant one, because you did see the facts and chose to see otherwise.

Either way, you have no place to be telling me what I did was wrong in how I handled it. And for your information, I wasn't expecting a pat on the back either. They wanted some memories recalled and posted, so I did. You get what you ask for, I gave it.

You can't handle that fact, apparently.

Now, go sit in the corner somewhere and sulk, hate me if you must, I don't care. Just don't talk down to me like you're someone better, because you're not. Far from it, in fact.

He's a kid. Kids do stuff like that. You can't hold them to the same standards as adults. The father wasn't exactly sporting, but he still had a point. As I said in my previous post, Transformers are for kids, and as such, if there's a kid hanging around wanting to buy the same Transformer as you, it's my opinion that you bloody well let them have it! It really doesn't reflect well on you if you don't, regardless of the circumstances.

Speaking of which, you asked "what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart?" I can answer that quite simply. If someone pulled stuff out of my cart, yeah, I'd be pissed. However, buying children's toys is completely different to normal shopping, and as such, if a kid pulled a Transformer out of my cart I would ruffle their hair, call them a little ruffian and let them have it.

This is because Transformers are for kids.

Funny, I see ages 5+ on the box of my transformer, which, I'm thinking I'm the +. I don't see "for kids only" So I'd say it's for anyone ages five and up. It's not right to take things from other people's carts, so why reward a kid for bad behavior?

Toys are for children. You're fighting an uphill battle if you're honestly trying to argue otherwise.

That's the kind of thought that needs to go away along with only girls should play with dolls and boys play with trucks and such. 2007 and those kind of things are still going around. Toys are for those who will enjoy them.

by **Saya** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:38 am

lvkangaroo wrote:
Saya wrote:
lvkangaroo wrote:
Saya wrote:
Autobot032 wrote:It was in my cart! Not on the shelf! I was heading to the register right after the water! If the kid had asked me, like what happened in Wal-Mart, I'd have been more than happy to give it to the kid for purchase. This little brat just ganked it from my cart and ran like wildfire because he knew I'd try and stop him.

Here's a question, what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart? You'd be pissed. How would that person react if you pulled stuff out of their cart?

When it finally happens to you, I hope you hold yourself to that same "high regard" (and I do mean that in the most sarcastic way possible) that you have for other collectors. Perhaps you should look in the mirror and see what kind of person *YOU* are.

An oblivious one, because you seem to miss the key points involved.

Or

An ignorant one, because you did see the facts and chose to see otherwise.

Either way, you have no place to be telling me what I did was wrong in how I handled it. And for your information, I wasn't expecting a pat on the back either. They wanted some memories recalled and posted, so I did. You get what you ask for, I gave it.

You can't handle that fact, apparently.

Now, go sit in the corner somewhere and sulk, hate me if you must, I don't care. Just don't talk down to me like you're someone better, because you're not. Far from it, in fact.

He's a kid. Kids do stuff like that. You can't hold them to the same standards as adults. The father wasn't exactly sporting, but he still had a point. As I said in my previous post, Transformers are for kids, and as such, if there's a kid hanging around wanting to buy the same Transformer as you, it's my opinion that you bloody well let them have it! It really doesn't reflect well on you if you don't, regardless of the circumstances.

Speaking of which, you asked "what would you do if someone pulled stuff out of your cart?" I can answer that quite simply. If someone pulled stuff out of my cart, yeah, I'd be pissed. However, buying children's toys is completely different to normal shopping, and as such, if a kid pulled a Transformer out of my cart I would ruffle their hair, call them a little ruffian and let them have it.

This is because Transformers are for kids.

Funny, I see ages 5+ on the box of my transformer, which, I'm thinking I'm the +. I don't see "for kids only" So I'd say it's for anyone ages five and up. It's not right to take things from other people's carts, so why reward a kid for bad behavior?

Toys are for children. You're fighting an uphill battle if you're honestly trying to argue otherwise.

That's the kind of thought that needs to go away along with only girls should play with dolls and boys play with trucks and such. 2007 and those kind of things are still going around. Toys are for those who will enjoy them.

You've missed my point. Think about it for a little while.

by **Enigma_Dragons** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:58 am

well, turning a blind eye when a kid does something that isn't right doesn't help them either.

News Credits: 6 · by **sparty2304** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:57 am

Listen I am 26 almost 27 and I get more joy out of buying a transformer now then when I was 10. These things are not just for kids anymore...Hasbro is listening to us now too. What that kid did was wrong and his father was more wrong...sorry saya I think your wrong this time...that child did needs to learn that you cant just take things you want. I would not be like this father but I would hope that if my child did this the person would come to me and tell me.

P.S. I will join the battle that toys are not made just for kids. Why do you think the Prime Voice Changer fits most adult heads?

by **Kohdok** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:59 am

Saya wrote:Another time, I was at K-Mart, trying to buy another Armada figure, and I had actually gotten the item, put it in my cart and went to another aisle. I noticed a kid following me, but I didn't pay much attention to it, I figured "kid being a kid" and thought nothing else of it.

So, I reach down on a rack below the cart to grab a case of water and I hear "WHAM!" and the cart rolls from me. The little punk grabbed the TF out of my cart and started running, and yelling "I got it! I got it!" to his dad, who said "Then get up here! Hurry! If you want it, we gotta cash out!"

I yelled "Oh no you don't oh hell no! I had that in my cart, heading to the cashier right after this! Your son grabbed it from my cart!" The dad said "Well too bad, you should've went to the register to pay for your stuff before this. Ain't our fault. Besides, you're too old for this kinda stuff."

I yelled "GET ME A MANAGER! NOW!" and the cashier did exactly that, along with stopping them from making the purchase. At first the manager said "Whichever one of you gets to the register first and pays for it, is the owner. Until then, it's anybody's game." I told her about how it was in my cart, and that a camera in the aisle caught it. She said it didn't matter, and I said "Oh yes it does. What if it was your purse in the cart and he grabbed it and ran? It's your's, so it's not right for him to take it. I have the cash, it was in my cart, he had no right to take it." Finally she agreed, and so did the cashier and the father put up a huge stink (and show right there in the store).

The manager said "I'll need to go pull up the security tape, or one of you can tell me the truth right now. Did you take this from his cart? Which is actually against store policy." The kid wouldn't answer, his dad did and lied for him.

The cashier said "Oh no, I heard you tell him he should've paid for it first."

The father said "You know what? F*ck this, and f*ck you. All of you. Give it to the asshole, son." the kid THREW it at me, I caught it and the dad said "I hope you're happy, you took joy away from my son. What goes around comes around." I told him he was raising a thief, and to get the hell out of there.

....oddly enough, the father was in the police blotter, one week later for receiving stolen goods, from his own brother. lol

People suck. Bad parents and managers, even more so.

I can't help but notice you not pointing any fingers at yourself there. The father wasn't exactly a saint in this, but damn. Seriously, you really did take joy away from his child. Way to be the bigger man.

Toys are meant for kids. We collect them for whatever reason, but in the end, it's all about the kids. The idea of an adult collector acting like that sickens me.

edit: just to clarify, I'm not sickened by you in general Autobot032, your first story suggests you're not a complete bastard, but regardless of the circumstances I feel you were wrong in what you did in the second.

I'm afraid I will have to disagree. Allowing a child to get away with swiping stuff from other people encourages a VERY bad habit, one that the father apparently already had judging from the last paragraph. I wouldn't mind taking away the joy from a child if that joy came from an asshole move like that, and if the father encouraged it, that's even worse. The child could have ASKED, in which case, judging from Saya's personality, he might have given it up to the kid,

Also, if Saya could clarify, he never says that what he took was the last copy of that transformer. Could you enlighten us, Saya? If it wasn't the last one, I have much more to say.

by **Spartanion** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:25 am

Saya wrote:
Bonger wrote:And honestly, its because of attitudes like that towards kids misbehaving, that most kids these days are massivaely misbehaved, and are mostly just growing up to be trash like their parents.

I agree with you on principle, but that doesn't mean you have to be a total hardass all the time. That just breeds malcontents like me.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, all the time? Autobot already gave a kid a TF in the past, so he isn't a "harda**" all the time.

When a kid misbehaves like that you should not reward them. What is in your cart belongs to YOU. Judging from the last part of Autobot's original post one could argue he did the kid a favor. He certainly isn't learning that taking things isn't right from his father so thats what incidents like this one will do. Otherwise, if autobot did not do anything, he's going to think you can just take stuff from carts, why not take something from a store?

by **Arcee's Man** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 10:14 am

I was never in that situation before. I go buy my transformers early in the morning when kids are still in school or not out of the house with there parents yet. But to be very honest, If i was looking for a figure all over the place and finally found it, There is no way im giving it up to some kid who will destroy it within 2 days.

by **Rijie** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:01 am

Yeah, I know that this is an unpopular opinion, but I would never give something up to a kid. Sorry, first come, first serve, and the earlier kids learn that, the better.

It's not as if I would ever snatch a toy from a kid's hand, but if I already had it, and he throws some tantrum just because it is the last one(which has happened with me before), he won't get any sympathy from me. He could wail and hold his breath all he wants, it won't change my mind.

His parents can glare at me, and I'll just smile right back at them.

Now, if he approaches me nicely and asks politely, then I'll probably capitulate and hand it over.

Too many kids believe that the world revolves around them, and people don't do them any favors by giving in to their hissy fits.

Oh, poor kid...he has to wait a couple of weeks for a toy that he wants. I feel so bad that he is stuck with his $500 gaming system, $1000 in games, a PSP, a cellphone(which he has no business having in the first place), and all of his other toys that he destroyed and just threw in a box after playing with them for a day.

I know not all kids are like this, but the sad fact is, most are.

News Credits: 1 · by **Agent 007** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:09 am

if my kid did that i would ground him and make him give the tf back and say sorry. Honstly i cant beleive some people don't think takin it back waz a good idea. :-x

The kid should not have gotten away with it he needs 2 be punished other wise he may growup thinking that its ok 2 steal and start stealing thing like car and such.
But ye, from my own story i've given kids my tfs be4 and i ended up feelin rily good even though i leave with an empty cart. But u dont leave with an empty heart. How that sounded rily deep rite there kool, but ye one time i was looken for cybertron override and they had one left on the very top shelf. And as u know wallys costomer service sucks so i had 2 get it myself. Now im a short person puberty hazent fully sunkin yet so i hade a tough time getting down but after bout 5 mins of that i finallly got it down but when i turned there waz a sad little kid waiting there so i siged and gave it 2 him and said here, u deserve it and he said thanks. I was sad but the next day i found another one so its all good
Bond

by **Hotstuff Louie B** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 12:00 pm

I'm sorry but if this is a children's hobby why is there a collector's club? Why is there a convention for enthusiasts like ourselves? Its for those who are passionate about their hobby. If there was a little snot that took anything out of my cart I'd be upset as well. So instead of it being a transformer in your cart it was the last power tool that was on sale at your local store? Lets say an adult takes it from your cart...same principle!

I myself have helped out parents at TRU with Star Wars figures. I had only seen Boba Fett once and I gave him up to a kid who wanted it. If people are looking for it and are depressed that they can't find it I'll give it to them.

News Credits: 6 · by **City Commander** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 12:44 pm

My own personal gain comes before mere children

Seriously, if there's a tf I want, and I found it, it's going home with me.

News Credits: 11 · by **kirbenvost** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Well, depends on the situation for me. I am NOT going to oblige some little brat's tantrum, but if it's a nice little kid who looks like he's legitimately sad or got his heart set on that one, I'd probably give it to him.

That said, I don't actually see too many kids in the TF section at the times I go to the store, but if there was a kid looking around I'd probably back off and let him choose first, hoping he didn't pick the one I've got my eye on.

As for that toy-snatching incident, I disagree with Saya. Whether it's a kid's toy or not, he had no right to snatch it out of the cart. What if it had been a Christmas present for someone else, would you say the same thing? Regardless of what it is or who it's for, once it's in your cart, it's yours. The dad probably didn't know the kid snatched it in the beginning, but he acted terribly as a parent and obviously isn't raising that kid properly.

by **Kohdok** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 2:46 pm

kirbenvost wrote:The dad probably didn't know the kid snatched it in the beginning, but he acted terribly as a parent and obviously isn't raising that kid properly.

Yeah, that whole "My child is perfect" thing that causes so many frivolous lawsuits against schools and stuff. Parents often defend their child's bad decisions and accuse others of doing something wrong, as we sometimes do, ourselves.

I've seen parents capitulate to the whining of their children so fast it sickens me. If a kid whines "I want it" when concerning a toy, or something, I just say "Good for you" and leave it at that.

News Credits: 17 · by **JTKranix** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 3:16 pm

PorQPine wrote:Yeah, I know that this is an unpopular opinion, but I would never give something up to a kid. Sorry, first come, first serve, and the earlier kids learn that, the better.

It's not as if I would ever snatch a toy from a kid's hand, but if I already had it, and he throws some tantrum just because it is the last one(which has happened with me before), he won't get any sympathy from me. He could wail and hold his breath all he wants, it won't change my mind.

His parents can glare at me, and I'll just smile right back at them.

Now, if he approaches me nicely and asks politely, then I'll probably capitulate and hand it over.

Too many kids believe that the world revolves around them, and people don't do them any favors by giving in to their hissy fits.

Oh, poor kid...he has to wait a couple of weeks for a toy that he wants. I feel so bad that he is stuck with his $500 gaming system, $1000 in games, a PSP, a cellphone(which he has no business having in the first place), and all of his other toys that he destroyed and just threw in a box after playing with them for a day.

I know not all kids are like this, but the sad fact is, most are.

QFT!

People are one of the main reasons I perfer to hunt after 10:00PM. I wish Target and Toys R Us were open 24 hours.

Speaking of people, they annoy me for the most part. I hate going to movie theatres because people talk instead of watching the movie. I hate going to stores because people will be walking down isles talking on their cell phones and stop in the middle of the isle with their shopping cart to the left of them and easily block 75% of the isle while some old lady is slowly making her way past them at .0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001 miles per hour.

I have never ran into the situtation of a kid looking at me with puppy dog eyes or someone asking me something. I put on my angry face as soon as I get out of the truck and people leave me alone for the most part.

News Credits: 38 · by **Sunstar** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 3:25 pm

I wouldn't give it up. If I traveled distance or found it locally and its the only one. Too bad. If I picked it up first, too bad. Move quicker next time.

"Oh it's for a child..." give me a break. I worked in retail for long enough to practically loathe how one is expected to melt for children.

I concure with Porqpine and JTKranix. and I'd QFT for them too if I wasn't feeling uber lazy.

Tantrums do not win me. Hissyfits do not win me. I do not listen to whiny children. I would not take a toy from a child if he/she got it first.

However, I am known to discuss the toys with parents if they are wondering about them.

News Credits: 2 · by **Philcom** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 3:49 pm

Saya wrote:
Autobot032 wrote:I sorta had the same thing happen.

I was at Wal-Mart and found Armada Megatron (it was the first time he was due out), and there was only one on the shelf.

Just as I reached for it (and I had a hand on one edge of it) this kid grabs the other end and looked up at me with the saddest puppy dog eyes and I just couldn't take it from him, I let go and said "Have fun little man, I think you'll like him."

He started heading for the corner as his mother was coming down the aisle, and she said "No. Your birthday was yesterday and you've gotten all of your presents, plus spent all your birthday money. NO!"

I looked away, because that's just awkward...and then she came over and said "I couldn't help but overhear how kind you were. I appreciate that. This one's your's, and I hope you enjoy it. Thanks."

Another time, I was at K-Mart, trying to buy another Armada figure, and I had actually gotten the item, put it in my cart and went to another aisle. I noticed a kid following me, but I didn't pay much attention to it, I figured "kid being a kid" and thought nothing else of it.

So, I reach down on a rack below the cart to grab a case of water and I hear "WHAM!" and the cart rolls from me. The little punk grabbed the TF out of my cart and started running, and yelling "I got it! I got it!" to his dad, who said "Then get up here! Hurry! If you want it, we gotta cash out!"

I yelled "Oh no you don't oh hell no! I had that in my cart, heading to the cashier right after this! Your son grabbed it from my cart!" The dad said "Well too bad, you should've went to the register to pay for your stuff before this. Ain't our fault. Besides, you're too old for this kinda stuff."

I yelled "GET ME A MANAGER! NOW!" and the cashier did exactly that, along with stopping them from making the purchase. At first the manager said "Whichever one of you gets to the register first and pays for it, is the owner. Until then, it's anybody's game." I told her about how it was in my cart, and that a camera in the aisle caught it. She said it didn't matter, and I said "Oh yes it does. What if it was your purse in the cart and he grabbed it and ran? It's your's, so it's not right for him to take it. I have the cash, it was in my cart, he had no right to take it." Finally she agreed, and so did the cashier and the father put up a huge stink (and show right there in the store).

The manager said "I'll need to go pull up the security tape, or one of you can tell me the truth right now. Did you take this from his cart? Which is actually against store policy." The kid wouldn't answer, his dad did and lied for him.

The cashier said "Oh no, I heard you tell him he should've paid for it first."

The father said "You know what? F*ck this, and f*ck you. All of you. Give it to the asshole, son." the kid THREW it at me, I caught it and the dad said "I hope you're happy, you took joy away from my son. What goes around comes around." I told him he was raising a thief, and to get the hell out of there.

....oddly enough, the father was in the police blotter, one week later for receiving stolen goods, from his own brother. lol

People suck. Bad parents and managers, even more so.

I can't help but notice you not pointing any fingers at yourself there. The father wasn't exactly a saint in this, but damn. Seriously, you really did take joy away from his child. Way to be the bigger man.

Toys are meant for kids. We collect them for whatever reason, but in the end, it's all about the kids. The idea of an adult collector acting like that sickens me.

edit: just to clarify, I'm not sickened by you in general Autobot032, your first story suggests you're not a complete bastard, but regardless of the circumstances I feel you were wrong in what you did in the second.

Noooo I think the moral of the story is not letting a kid get away with stealing things. It may have not been stealing in the strictest sence because it was not paid for but it's the principal of the thing. That dad is a horrible person for encouraging something like that. What if the kid had taking the toy from a cart from a mother buying the toy for her kids birthday gift? It looked like it would have made no different to the kid and his father. What is the kid had taken something like that from a more violent person?

Also from the previous story... had the kid or father asked the story may have been different.

I dunno if I grab a toy first a kid would pretty much have to ask me, I'm kinda dense.

by **Grendel** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 4:02 pm

never had the situation come up, but if it did happen, wether the kid got it or not would depend on wether he was annoying or not

by **Zombie Starscream** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:10 pm

Saya wrote:
Autobot032 wrote:I sorta had the same thing happen.

I was at Wal-Mart and found Armada Megatron (it was the first time he was due out), and there was only one on the shelf.

Just as I reached for it (and I had a hand on one edge of it) this kid grabs the other end and looked up at me with the saddest puppy dog eyes and I just couldn't take it from him, I let go and said "Have fun little man, I think you'll like him."

He started heading for the corner as his mother was coming down the aisle, and she said "No. Your birthday was yesterday and you've gotten all of your presents, plus spent all your birthday money. NO!"

I looked away, because that's just awkward...and then she came over and said "I couldn't help but overhear how kind you were. I appreciate that. This one's your's, and I hope you enjoy it. Thanks."

Another time, I was at K-Mart, trying to buy another Armada figure, and I had actually gotten the item, put it in my cart and went to another aisle. I noticed a kid following me, but I didn't pay much attention to it, I figured "kid being a kid" and thought nothing else of it.

So, I reach down on a rack below the cart to grab a case of water and I hear "WHAM!" and the cart rolls from me. The little punk grabbed the TF out of my cart and started running, and yelling "I got it! I got it!" to his dad, who said "Then get up here! Hurry! If you want it, we gotta cash out!"

I yelled "Oh no you don't oh hell no! I had that in my cart, heading to the cashier right after this! Your son grabbed it from my cart!" The dad said "Well too bad, you should've went to the register to pay for your stuff before this. Ain't our fault. Besides, you're too old for this kinda stuff."

I yelled "GET ME A MANAGER! NOW!" and the cashier did exactly that, along with stopping them from making the purchase. At first the manager said "Whichever one of you gets to the register first and pays for it, is the owner. Until then, it's anybody's game." I told her about how it was in my cart, and that a camera in the aisle caught it. She said it didn't matter, and I said "Oh yes it does. What if it was your purse in the cart and he grabbed it and ran? It's your's, so it's not right for him to take it. I have the cash, it was in my cart, he had no right to take it." Finally she agreed, and so did the cashier and the father put up a huge stink (and show right there in the store).

The manager said "I'll need to go pull up the security tape, or one of you can tell me the truth right now. Did you take this from his cart? Which is actually against store policy." The kid wouldn't answer, his dad did and lied for him.

The cashier said "Oh no, I heard you tell him he should've paid for it first."

The father said "You know what? F*ck this, and f*ck you. All of you. Give it to the asshole, son." the kid THREW it at me, I caught it and the dad said "I hope you're happy, you took joy away from my son. What goes around comes around." I told him he was raising a thief, and to get the hell out of there.

....oddly enough, the father was in the police blotter, one week later for receiving stolen goods, from his own brother. lol

People suck. Bad parents and managers, even more so.

I can't help but notice you not pointing any fingers at yourself there. The father wasn't exactly a saint in this, but damn. Seriously, you really did take joy away from his child. Way to be the bigger man.

Toys are meant for kids. We collect them for whatever reason, but in the end, it's all about the kids. The idea of an adult collector acting like that sickens me.

edit: just to clarify, I'm not sickened by you in general Autobot032, your first story suggests you're not a complete bastard, but regardless of the circumstances I feel you were wrong in what you did in the second.

Wow, if I had done that to some stranger when I was little, I surely would have been spanked either by my parents or that stranger.

In my opinion, toys are not strictly meant for children. There is no force of law, just cultural expectations. Toys are 'meant' for whomever it will most likely appeal to and apprechiate, and not neccesarily a particular age group. For example, an adult can buy those stackable plastic baby rings, but he most likely will not apprechiate it as much as a real baby would. But if he has severe enough mental retardation, he will enjoy it just as much as a child would.

What joy did he take away from the child? A child's "joy" is not paramount in importance, nor should it ever be. When it does, it leads to a child thinking the world revolves around him, and can lead to rude behaviors such as this. Does Autobot032 have less worth because he is not a child? A child's needs must overrule some things, but not his wants. The father was teaching his kid some very bad things, that just because he is a child the world should bow and cater to him, and anybody who does not is a "jerk." What would be criminal would be if the child was deprived of food and clothing, medical help and loving parents and a roof over his head. But not a toy. So respectfully I must disagree with you, as I feel that a toy is meant for whomever it will belong to and appreciate it, even if it is an adult.

by **nintendofreakgcn** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:46 pm

One time recently, I was looking for Bumblebees (as I do), and came across one Classics Bumblebee/Astrotrain 2-pack. At the same time in that aisle, a kid and his mother were looking through the Transformers range, deciding what to buy. I gave the mother some advice (told her what transformed and what didn't), and she wound up going with that very 2-pack I had been looking at (and, perhaps foolishly, left on the shelf). I let them have it, because there wasn't exactly a shortage of Bumblebee merchandise on the whole.

Interestingly, later that day I found that same 2-pack 30% off at another store, so maybe what goes around comes around... or maybe I just got lucky. Hey, either way, I'm not complaining.

As for the general situation, I like to think I'd let the kid have it if they were reasonably well-behaved.

Oh, and if my niece or nephew ever wanted one of my Transformers (with the exception of the absolute collector's stuff, like my Unleashed Bumblebee), I'd let them have it. Fortunately, that's not likely to be an issue. Their father's a Transformers collector, so they can just raid his collection!

by **Saya** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 10:05 pm

The father in that situation seemed to be implicit in the kid's shennanigans, and that's probably because he thought that his kid had more of a right to the toy than an adult collector. I tend to agree with him, even if the way he went about getting the toy for his kid was pretty underhanded. Maybe he is just a bad father, there's no way of knowing. It's a pretty big leap to assume that something like this will start the kid stealing. It's not even stealing really, because you haven't paid for it, therefore it's not yours.

The reason I'd have let the kid have it is my opinion that they're meant for kids first and foremost, and has nothing to do with letting them run wild and free. There are a whole host of things kids do that piss me off, this just isn't one of them.

As for the argument about toys being for children, there is absolutely no way it's not the case. Do bear in mind I say meant for and not only for. Think about it. They have to conform to safety laws that were written with children in mind. The commercials feature kids playing with their Transformers, having the time of their life, not some adult collector sitting there posing it, or just standing back and admiring it, letting out a contented sigh as it just sits on his shelf MISB! And of course, there's the inescapable fact that if kids stopped buying Transformers, Hasbro would stop making them.

But yes, there's nothing wrong with adults buying Transformers, just as long as you're not snatching it out of the hands of a 6 year old.

by **Night~GONE** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:44 pm

I have on solution to this you see a little kid in an isle dont go down it till he is gone. You see a little kid in check out look for them then if you see one go find another lane. I have never had this happen to me never plan to i just avoid youngsters they can be quite annoying. But i still think you all did nice things GOOD JOB.