Patrick Bennet 
Back in 2005 a fascinating social experiment was initiated by the movie director Wayne Powers. He had the idea to give a homeless person $100,000 and capture their every move afterwards in a documentary.
The name of the chosen homeless person was Ted Rodrigue. He was a “regular” homeless person living under a bridge in California. Ted’s day-to-day activities for survival included collecting cans and bottles that he used for recycling. On a good day he would collect enough cans estimated at $35. The money he earned Ted spent on food, cigarettes and beer.
One day Ted’s life changed when he discovered a dusty suitcase with stuffed $100,000 inside. There was a note with a message inside that read : “What would a homeless person do if he were given $100,000?”.
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Upon realizing that he was now a rich man, Ted immediately got accustomed to his new lifestyle. He rented a room in a motel and started socializing and drinking heavily in bars. Ted befriended a lady with suspicious intentions towards him and started buying her gifts and clothes.
After a little while he got a second girlfriend. He rented an apartment and started buying furniture. He was spending the money like there will be no tomorrow. Regarding this the creators of the film advised him to meet a financial planner. He agreed to the meeting, but as soon as he got there he stated that he doesn’t really care on saving the money and he just want to like by today.
After a couple of weeks he bought a $35,000 Dodge Ram to drive around in. His average weekly expenditure was estimated at $10,000 a week. Ted refused to listen to his sister’s advice and find a steady job. His sister suspected that by the end of the 5th moth he had no more than $5,000 in his account.
In conclusion, Ted had no concern about the future and lived only in the moment. He wasted the entire fortune in less than six months. Ted is currently living as a homeless person under the same bridge where he was found by the documentary producers.
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