The 'shopping cart theory' supposedly tests if you are a good person or not

Most of us have been in situations where we had to spend a couple of extra minutes to complete shopping at grocery stores because of scattered carts. This shopping cart dilemma has turned into something of a debate online, with many believing that the way people handle these carts reveals some core truths about their character. A post by a user named Blake Robbins (@blakeir) has now stirred up a debate as it describes a character-defining theory that determines if a person is good or not by their way of putting their shopping carts away.

This theory lays down the framework of how the whole concept works. It states, "The shopping cart is the ultimate litmus test for whether a person is capable of self-governing." The theory also mentions how it is right to return the shopping cart saying, "To return the shopping cart is an easy, convenient task and one which we all recognize as the correct, appropriate thing to do. To return the shopping cart is objectively right. There are no situations other than dire emergencies in which a person is not able to return their cart. Simultaneously, it is not illegal to abandon your shopping cart. Therefore the shopping cart presents itself as the apex example of whether a person will do what is right without being forced to do it."

The post says that not returning a shopping cart is "not illegal" and this is where the complexity lies. "Therefore, the shopping cart presents itself as the apex example of whether a person will do what is right without being forced to do it. No one will punish you...no one will fine you, or kill you... you gain nothing by returning the shopping cart. You must return the shopping cart out of the goodness of your own heart." The post goes on to jokingly call those who don't return carts "animals" and "savages" who can only be compelled to do what's right by force.

The post has received plenty of inquiries from other users and has sparked a debate on the morality of this concept. Many people have sided with the fact that it is right to return the trolley whereas, a section of users have simply ignored the theory and have stuck to their belief of not returning the shopping cart. 

Joining this online debate on shopping carts, a user (@Orctits) decided to post a picture of various shopping carts in a store and how people use them - each cart defining a certain personality. Here's the tweet:

The "shopping cart theory" has been around for a few years now and yet, there is no clear answer to whether returning the shopping cart to the store defines our character or not.