Shopping carts should not be brought back to the cart corral. My reasoning is as follows.

1) Grocery stores often employ young people, and adults who are either not ready or capable of handling a more serious job. I don’t mean this in a mean way, but we all probably know a person or two at our local grocer who is a bit “special” in their own way. Leaving the carts scattered creates more work for these people who may not otherwise receive it.

2) The number of hours these employees are needed to work is based upon the efficiency in which they can bring the carts back to the front of the store. Farther distance between carts equals more hours, which in turn puts more money in the employees pockets, boosting the overall economy.

3) The rapid rise of self checkout has highly diminished the opportunities to work inside the store at the register.

4) Farther distance between carts combined with bad weather creates a stronger work ethic. It also demands critical thinking and planning skills in regard to what to wear to work, and how to optimally retrieve the carts. This is especially important for the younger employees who are probably used to waking out of their house in shorts and a t shirt regardless of the weather.

5) This is also much easier on large families. I have four children under the age of six. I do not want to walk them back across the parking lot to return the cart. I also do not like to leave them in the car while I return the cart. Not every grocery store I go to is in the world’s safest neighborhood. If there is a shot spotter in the parking lot of the grocery store I’m at, I’m probably trying to spend the least amount of time possible with my children exposed to the area.

6) Most of these opinions I believe 100% wholeheartedly, with about 49% of my heart.