Is Littering a Sign of Serious Character Flaws?

The other day while I was out running errands, I saw something I've seen a hundred times before. A passenger in the car ahead of me threw a large plastic bottle out the window. I saw it hit the pavement and roll into the grass next to a sidewalk.

I reacted with anger and disgust, which dissipated after a while, because I didn’t know what to do about it. Maybe I should have found a place to park, walked back and picked it up. If that's the right thing to do, I guess I'm not there yet. I had places to go and things to do.

I try to accept the strange things that people do with empathy, tolerance and understanding. But I find it difficult to imagine the mindset of someone who would throw a cigarette butt onto the street or trash into a community area. To me it's a form of vandalism. When I see it happen, I ask myself this question:

"If he would do that, what else would he do?"

I think it's a fair question. I don't think I'm over-reacting. I've come to believe that the little things people do reveal a great deal about who they are and what they're capable of. Yes, littering itself is a minor infraction. But anyone who would throw trash into the street is likely to do other disrespectful, insensitive or inconsiderate things. Possibly even cruel things.

There have been times when I was shocked by something someone did, and then I thought: "I should have seen that coming." There were early warning signs. Instead, for some reason I ignored them. Was it because I try to be forgiving and tend to give people the benefit of the doubt? Or was I in denial--not wanting to think about some awful possibility?

Anyway, litterers give me the creeps.