Israeli Honesty Shines in Social Experiment with a Blind Man

A man pretending to be blind stood in a crowded, bustling street, visibly in need of help—but many Israelis could not remain indifferent.

They stopped by and asked if he needed assistance, and the young man told them he needed change for a 20-shekel bill.

He then asked if they could exchange it for two tens, while pulling out two bills from his coat pocket—a 20 and...a 100 shekel bill.

The passersby did not suspect it was just a social experiment. Remarkably, everyone who offered help or to whom the "blind" man turned was honest and straightforward.

"You've got a 100 and you have a 20 here," the first woman pointed out to him.

"You're holding a 100 shekels, not a 20," the second remarked.

"I can't break it to tens. You have a 100-shekel bill here," the third person said.

"That's a 100 you're holding; put them in your pocket. Here's the 20 shekels if that's what you need for the ride," offered the fourth kind-hearted person, handing him the 20 shekel bill.

"How much do you need? 10? You've got a hundred, man," said the fifth young man who paused his phone call to help, after being asked to make change.

When the sixth lady approached him to ask if he needed help, the "blind" man handed her a 200-shekel bill and requested two tens.

"This is a 200-shekel bill," she promptly identified. "Do you need two coins of 10?" she asked before taking out change from her own purse, advising him to tuck the 200 shekels away.

"You gave me 200 here," noted the seventh honest person. "Give me the 20 and I'll make change for you."

"You have a 200 here, not a 20. One is 200 and one is 20, just be careful you don't get mixed up," pointed out the eighth honest individual, going above and beyond.

And so it went on.

The experiment continued, and it was heartening to see that none of the Israelis asked to help deceived the "blind" man or pocketed the money.