“4 by palms, 2 by ivy, 2 in bushes, 1 by (not in!) trash. 9 total.” This is a real hint provided by an anonymous Twitter user going by the moniker @hiddencash. Beginning in San Francisco, followed by trips to LA and San Diego, now heading back to San Francisco, this individual has Tweeted hints to where he has placed envelopes with cash.
In a short time he has amassed over 460,000 followers on Twitter and every clue that he leaves results in hundreds of people showing up to scour the area (just check out this picture, the result of a clue in Bakersfield).
So just to recap, someone is dropping clues and cash and hundreds of people are dropping whatever they’re in the middle of doing to search for the few dollars (usually around $100).
No one is getting rich off the deal but they’re willing to expend time and effort in pursuit of this hidden cash. There’s possibly a number of explanations but there is no rational reason, it’s not logical.
This is not a new phenomenon - by nurturing people's irrational desires people can be led in all types of illogical ways. In fact there's an example of this in this week's Torah Portion: After being saved from the torture of Egyptian slavery and being fed miraculous Mannah from heaven, the people complained - they wanted meat. It was an illogical complaint, it made no sense. However, they desired it and complained until they got what they wanted
What caused the people to complain? Their complaint was instigated by the "mixed multitude" - the strangers who joined the Jewish people when they left Egypt.
The takeaway? We can influence people around us in all types of ways - the important thing is to use our influence for adding in positive activity.
My suggestion? Instead of looking for #HiddenCash, look for #HiddenGood and influence those around you to transform the world by adding in goodness and kindness.