Brickbats

Brickbat: Not Feeling the Love Here

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(Pixelrobot / Dreamstime.com)

Brittney Strupe got engaged over Valentine's Day weekend, and her fiancé bought roses for the occasion, more that $300 worth. Rather than toss them all away, Strupe decided to show a little love for others. She, her sister, and her daughter went to a Coshocton County, Ohio, Walmart and left them on vehicles. Customers and store management didn't didn't know what to make of this, so they called the cops. In turn, the sheriff's office posted a warning on Facebook about people leaving flowers on windshields, calling it a "human trafficking related technique" though adding "it is unclear at this time if this incident is related to such type of crime." Strupe saw the post and contacted the sheriff's office to explain what happened.

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Charles Oliver is a contributing editor at Reason.

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  1. Adans smith

    Sometimes a rose is just a rose.

    1. Mother's Lament

      If they were red roses they could be MAGA terrorism.
      We should ask the comment section’s professional dogwhistle expert, Tony, for his take.

      1. What about red roses as a symbol of socialism?

        1. It doesn’t work.

          Socialists only take, never give.

          Oh, and there’re no roses under socialism – people eat them because there’s no food either.

          1. The Encogitationer

            Actually, rose hips are good sources of Vitamin C and rose petals can scent bath water. She should have kept them to use and sell in “interesting times” instead of disrespecting private property rights. Then she and her kin would’ve been better off.

  2. Cal Cetín

    1) Leave roses on windshields
    2) ???
    3) Slave-trafficking
    4) Profit

    1. R Mac

      You can try to play dumb but nobody’s buying in

  3. Jerryskids

    And when he went around to open the passenger door, there was a hook hanging from the handle!

    1. Cal Cetín

      Please, who opens doors for ladies anymore?

      1. Inigo Montoya

        Umm, I do.

        1. Mother's Lament

          That’s sexist and ablist and probably at least a dozen other isms, you monster.

      2. Longtobefree

        Those of us who are still able to recognise a lady.

        1. cgr2727

          How on earth are we supposed to recognize a lady anymore? Isn’t that a microaggression in itself? Do dapper gentlemen open the door for Bruce Jenner when he wears his dress and high heels?

          1. Chumby

            If Caitlyn is the adam’s apple of your eye, sure.

            1. Ben of Houston

              Kaitlyn. There is no excuse for breaking the naming scheme in that family.

  4. speedylee

    This is what a low trust society looks like.

    1. CLM1227

      No kidding.

    2. Chumby

      They should all have a Coke and strive to be less white.

    3. mad.casual

      Who needs trust? I own bitcoins.

    4. The Encogitationer

      If they’re giving out roses on private propery without permission of the private property owners, course antennae should go up. Whatsamatta U?

      All who speak of “low-trust/high-trust” societies should first speak of low- and high-trustworthiness.

  5. Deputy Johnson also agreed that the community should keep up the good deeds. But he added that it is very important for everyone to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings. He advises people to follow their guts and to not hesitate to call law enforcement about something suspicious.

    I guess it’s true what they say. No good deed ever goes untased.

    1. Earth Skeptic

      BE AFRAID!!!

      1. MatthewSlyfield

        Just don’t be flammable.

  6. Will Nonya

    First mistake, doing something for the community. It was an unapproved interaction so clearly the enemy of public good.

    Second mistake, contacting the cops to inform them that it was your human trafficking effort they were concerned about. She’s lucky she didn’t. End up in a cell.

    Also, how exactly does this human trafficking technique work? Shouldn’t it include some sort of contact or traceability element? Seems like in this place they could have been giving away free puppies and ice cream and ended up spending the night in jail.

    1. Free sammiches for the homeless? Clearly a sex trafficking technique and we need to send in the SWAT team.

  7. Rich

    If you think free flowers are nefarious, what do you think about free vaccines?

  8. Chumby

    Guess the locals don’t see the world through rose colored glasses.

  9. Don't look at me!

    Flower Power!

  10. Wearenotperfect

    “Strupe saw the post and contacted the sheriff’s office to explain what happened”

    And that was your first mistake!

  11. “I have never seen this before, therefore it must be a human trafficking technique.”

    This can be applied to:
    The discovery of two green M&Ms fused together
    Homeless guy trying to wash your windshield
    Helping an old lady across the street
    Running out of coconut donuts at Dunkin’s
    Moms letting their fourteen year old daughters walk two blocks home from school

  12. mad.casual

    “it is unclear at this time if this incident is related to such type of crime.”

    I wasn’t aware that Robby was writing police procedure manuals now.

  13. The Encogitationer

    Giving out roses may not be a sign of human trafficking, but doing it on store property without consent of the owners/ managers is definitely violating private property rights, just as are all the jerks who panhandle, pass out religious or pro-union literature, or who even have the gall to leafleteer for other stores.

    #LibertariansWhoActuallyUnderstandPrivatePropertyRights

  14. m4019597

    24 comments, no spam. Someone heard my prayers.

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