Meet the man who ended 10-hour 'pay it forward' chain
He felt that the 'pay it forward' streak that was happening at a Starbucks in Florida was forcing people to be generous out of guilt rather than out of goodwill.
So he decided to put an end to it by simply not paying it forward.
Peter Schorsch, a 38-year-old blogger and political consultant, didn't end just any 'pay it forward' streak, either.
He ended a streak which had lasted over 10 hours.
The 'pay it forward' phenomenon at the Starbucks had seen 457 customers pay for the next customer's drink.
Schorsch would have been the 458th, until he politely said 'no' to the barista who asked him to continue the streak.
'I didn't want to be forced'
When ABC News asked him why he said no, Schorsch said he felt the phenomenon had ceased to be spontaneous because the barista was asking customers if they wanted to 'pay it forward'.
“I just don’t want to be forced into doing something,” he said.
“This is turning into something ridiculous and cheesy."
He denied that he was simply being the 'pay it forward' grinch and said that he gave the barista a US$100 (S$125) tip.
"Also, I got a $6 Venti Frappuccino. Someone might just get a $2 coffee," Schorsch said.
"This is unfair to that person who paid for me."
Source: ABC News