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Morals on buying stolen goods

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Alkyy
Posts: 2839 - Karma: 149
So what do you guys think,  There is a kid on my floor who is a clepto and steals all the time.  He said that he could get me a nikon d80 and all i would have to pay him is $200.  So ethicly would you buy a stolen camera for that price?
Oct 9 2007 6:59PM
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TechnoPotamus
Posts: 11626 - Karma: 3,522
Here's how i look at it.  On one hand it's be sick to get a good camera at a cheap price.  On the other hand, whether it's true or not....karma does seem to exist.  And by supporting this kid's stealing habits, you're ultimately screwing somebody out there over because it's possible that their camera is going to get stolen.

...i wouldn't do it, i know i'd hate if somebody stole something of mine that i spent a lot of money on ya know?
Oct 9 2007 7:17PM
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crazyfuck
Posts: 5968 - Karma: -7
if you buy something you know was stolen, you're as big of a douche as the asshole who stole it.
Oct 9 2007 7:22PM
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Swan_Solo
Posts: 2374 - Karma: 14
people steal music all the time


so stealing's ok children!
Oct 9 2007 7:48PM
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vincepru
Posts: 5474 - Karma: 17
^exactly what he said.
Oct 9 2007 8:10PM
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doublexl
Posts: 8407 - Karma: 26
yup. its just a lame thing to do.
Oct 9 2007 8:21PM
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Alkyy
Posts: 2839 - Karma: 149
He always steals from big stores like wal mart and best buy so its not like its comming from a person.  I would never support stealing from a person because i know how shitty that is...i guess that logic really doesnt work at all.  And he is gunna steal the shit either way so i figure i can get a hell of a deal on a sick camera
Oct 9 2007 8:43PM
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word-sauce
Posts: 1151 - Karma: 11
stealings gay, i know a whole bunch of people who steal random cell phones and stuff and if ive ever did that id just feel like shit. i dunno about buying stolen stuff but stealings just not cool
Oct 9 2007 8:44PM
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Sean...M
Posts: 2450 - Karma: 14
if its from a store then i'd do it. but if it was from a person then dont.
Oct 9 2007 8:45PM
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ax_murderer
Posts: 3322 - Karma: 30
if it weren't for this new karma rating system, id say buy it
Oct 9 2007 8:51PM
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The_Oakley_Kid
Posts: 3128 - Karma: 179
hahahaha, I got a d80 for 150.  it was stolen.   and i can live with it cause i know it "fell off the best buy truck" haha
Oct 9 2007 8:52PM
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Lineskiah11
Posts: 2029 - Karma: 21
i dont think i would buy it. i mean its a sick deal and all but your encouraging this kid to be a douche bag and steal from kids who earned teh camera and whatever else he is stealing. dont be a dick and just wait until you can buy a nice used one or somthing...
Oct 9 2007 8:56PM
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J.D.
Posts: 21362 - Karma: 5,141
Depends who he stole it from, for me; if it's shoplifted from wal mart then who gives a shit.
Oct 9 2007 8:57PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Well, considering that Wal-Mart easily loses millions off of shoplifting (as do many retailers), there is a moral problem. Sure, Wal-Mart does suck and I hate them to death because they directly responsible for taking tax dollars out of my pocket, but that doesn't necessarily make stealing from them okay.
Oct 9 2007 9:02PM
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Tinga
Posts: 11349 - Karma: 2,333
well i love scamming stores like wal mart and econo foods. so if he got it from a huge store like walmart or target go for it but if he stole it from a person i wouldnt buy it or if he stole it from a small specialty store i wouldnt buy it either. its fricken hard to start a business and to have somethign like that stolen from your shop really sucks.
Oct 9 2007 9:03PM
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STREETS
Posts: 1443 - Karma: 15
You can still get charged, I forgot the name of the charge but if you know something is stolen and you still buy it you can get charged thats all i have to say.
Oct 9 2007 9:05PM
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twintipteles
Posts: 2954 - Karma: 13
Is there? It depends how strongly you disagree with Walmart. In some ways stealing from them is a form of nonviolent protest, in which case it could actually be seen as a highly moral decision.
Oct 9 2007 9:05PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Thats retarded logic.  If you don't like Wal-Mart, then don't go to Wal-Mart. Just give your money to a competitor. Rationalizing stealing from them is like rationalizing vandalism. You want to light the building on fire too?
Oct 9 2007 9:09PM
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charmander
Posts: 10636 - Karma: 372
yea, its not legit
o and im giving you my 2000th post your welcome very much
Oct 9 2007 9:11PM
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eheath
Posts: 61110 - Karma: 118,309
If you don't know its stolen its chill. But I paid some kids once for a video game he stole. But he already had it...
Oct 9 2007 9:13PM
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derbski
Posts: 3173 - Karma: 62
haha at first I thought you said steal children
Oct 9 2007 9:22PM
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invader7
Posts: 5756 - Karma: 49

i feel tha same

Oct 9 2007 9:25PM
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TerminatorX
Posts: 3087 - Karma: 169
only if its frrom walmart and if you really need a camera
Oct 9 2007 9:36PM
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drewishish
Posts: 3710 - Karma: 23
hmmm. well i would say its almost ok if its from a big ass company that wont be effected by it. deffenetly no for a small company. id say go for it.
Oct 9 2007 9:40PM
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DaLiNeRiDEr21
Posts: 3687 - Karma: 39

i would buy it

Oct 9 2007 9:50PM
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twintipteles
Posts: 2954 - Karma: 13
It's not retarded logic at all actually.
I'm sure you believe that there are acts of war that have been justified. If someone believes that walmart has a major enough negative effect on society, it's perfectly reasonable for them believe it moral to steal
from them.
I've lost this post three times because this rabbit my mom got keeps jumping on the keyboard, so I had alot more, but don't assume I'm an idiot and don't understand what I'm saying. Stealing can be a form of terrorism if you want to call it that, and the vast majority of those who undertake such actions do it for moral reasons.
Oct 9 2007 10:00PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Except that your argument is completely undermined because you don't understand the definition or morality.  The argument you're actually trying to make is that of moral skepticism which is a different concept.
Oct 9 2007 10:08PM
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twintipteles
Posts: 2954 - Karma: 13
American heritage:
mo·ral·i·ty       (mə-rāl'ĭ-tē, mô-)  Pronunciation Key 
BOF_HEADEOF_HEADBOF_SUBHEAD n.   pl. mo·ral·i·ties
EOF_SUBHEAD BOF_DEF
  1. The quality of being in accord with standards of right or good conduct.
  2. A system of ideas of right and wrong conduct: religious morality; Christian morality.
  3. Virtuous conduct.
Usually when I hear the word morality, I assume it refers to ones basic understanding of the idea of right and wrong.

Educate me.




Oct 9 2007 10:12PM
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beer.
Posts: 3096 - Karma: 44
no, its different.

I absolutely hate it when people vandalize places like wal-mart or mcdonalds.  the employees have to deal with it, not the execs who run these evil organizations.

stealing doesnt hurt anyone, as the cost of the goods you stole, along with all the other billions of dollars that gets lost due to shoplifting a year, is already accounted for, and the companies are still making lots of money/not paying their employees enough.  one could argue that these places would be able to pay their employees better if no one stole.  that might be true (but more than likely they would pay them the same, since its not like they arent making enough money right now and they still pay shitty) but its not likely that people will stop shoplifting any time soon.  the camera his friend stole is a drop in the bucket.

bottom line: shoplifting from big companies is good.  from small companies or individuals its one of the shittiest things you can do.
Oct 9 2007 10:18PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Oh please, you can't serious. That is far too simplistic. If you could give a satisfactory definition out of a dictionary, then there would be no need for scholars, philosophers, and politicians to take thousands of years to explore and discusses the definition.  Try Wikipedia or Google Scholar if you're gonna pull something out of the internet.
Oct 9 2007 10:19PM
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S-Titterington
Posts: 578 - Karma: 1,323
fuck man! dont buy stolen shit. its so not cool. even if it is from a big company name, they still gotta pay for it.. ive gotten a few real expensive things i really liked stolen, and boy, i want to fucing kill the person who did it to this day.
Oct 9 2007 10:21PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Tell that to an economist.
Oct 9 2007 10:21PM
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titsLOL
Posts: 7485 - Karma: 396
honestly I dont give a shit about people stealing from big department stores, they make plenty of money. But you will burn in hell if you ever buy something that someone else's personal property, that aint right.
Oct 9 2007 10:24PM
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Microcosm
Posts: 4765 - Karma: 153
well, if someone stole my camera I'd be sooo pissed you have no idea. but from wal mart, it's a tough one. at least it's not from a person who spent a ton on the camera. but, you are supporting his problem and who's to say he won't start, or doesn't already steal personal items? and what if he gets caught and they know he stole a camera. who did he sell it to? you, and he could very easily give you up.
Oct 9 2007 10:27PM
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quixotic
Posts: 6937 - Karma: 2,978

Heres how I look at buying stolen goods...

If it has been stolen from SOMEONE, then it's fucking lame.

If it has been stolen from a store, then it's fair game.

Oct 9 2007 10:27PM
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twintipteles
Posts: 2954 - Karma: 13

And saying that stealing is inherently immoral isn't overly simplistic? I must have over-estimated you quinny.

Further, dictionaries tend to reflect the opinions and conclusions generated by thousands of years of discussion by scholars, philosophers and politicians.

You usually seem like a really intelligent and rational guy who I frequently disagree with but at least understand and can learn from, but I haven't seen a single iota of real thought in this thread. I've explained why one could see stealing from walmart as moral, and your only response has been to dismiss it as immoral, and my arguments as overly simplistic.

Again, educate me.
Oct 9 2007 10:38PM
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Joan
Posts: 2944 - Karma: 1,305
i had a turkey sandwich for lunch and alex, i lost all the micky d monopoly pices, the giant gorrilla that mugged dillion for enjoy stole them, im sorry
Oct 9 2007 10:46PM
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beer.
Posts: 3096 - Karma: 44
you cant just take one sentence out of what I said.  did you read what I said as a whole?  because its pretty solid.  economists would agree with me.  whether its morally acceptable is up to you to decide.
Oct 9 2007 10:48PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
You still don't get it.  If something is considered immoral on the surface (which is what stealing is commonly accepted as by society, moreover it is illegal), but then you rationalize it to be moral...than your question really isn’t a question of morality at all.  It actually becomes a question of moral skepticism which by definition is the idea that there is no uniform set of morals in a society, rather a "moral" variance form person to person.  Just type "morality" into Wikipedia and read what it says, while it is albeit crude and approximate, it would be a good starting point for you to understand what morality actually is.  There is also a great deal of scholarly literature on the subject that would be worthwhile for you to investigate.
Oct 9 2007 10:50PM
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Quinny
Posts: 3477 - Karma: 163
Except I can because you don’t know how companies work.  That billions that retailers lose from shoplifting has a direct effect on company sales, which in turn effects earnings, which effects stock, which effects shareholders and the economy as a whole.  It takes away for economic stimulation.  Just because the results of stealing from a big company are not as material does not mean that it has no effect.
Oct 9 2007 10:55PM
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ax_murderer
Posts: 3322 - Karma: 30
dude you are rationalizing stealing from walmart on the basis that you dont like them. that doesnt fly.  That isn't a proper way to rationalize doing something.  What determines that they're bad?  You do.  I think your grandparents family coutnry store is bad, is it moral for me to shoplift?

Dictionaries tend to reflect the reasearch of Merriam and Webster not "thousands of years of discussion by scholars, philosophers and politicians". 

You cannot define morality in the simple way you did earlier which I cannot quite remember, there's alot more too it than that.

I'm not saying that I disagree with stealing from WalMart at all, it's just frustrating that you take on such a cocky demeanor and put down Quinny for actually thinking/discussing logically.


Oct 9 2007 10:55PM
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R-Bertsch
Posts: 4719 - Karma: 20
if its stolen from a store or corporation or somethign then hell yes i would fuck the man, but stolen from a person, no way
Oct 9 2007 10:57PM
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Alex_G
Posts: 11902 - Karma: 1,018
who knows, maybe he might steal something from you one day and go and sell it.
Oct 9 2007 11:08PM
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LS.
Posts: 1841 - Karma: 858
its an amazing deal.................
Oct 9 2007 11:37PM
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lalalalaura
Posts: 6753 - Karma: 68
Personally I don't see shoplifting as that big of a deal, but think about the fact that you're paying some random kid $200 to do something you don't want to do... That's a pretty wack price, seeing as it's not costing him anything, and he seems to not give a shit about it... It's more morally questionable to put your friend in danger of being arrested for $200, than it is to steal it yourself.

If he gets caught, that's your shit not just his.
And seriously, steal for survival, not for comfort. Speaking from experience.
Oct 9 2007 11:39PM
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freestyler540
Posts: 13046 - Karma: 18,292
stealing is gay man, it doesnt matter from who you steal it from. Paying the guy is not only illigal, it encourages him to steal some more. Image if it were you that got ripped off


Oct 9 2007 11:44PM
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BigJew
Posts: 6974 - Karma: 79
I wouldn't have a problem buying something that he's already stolen, but paying him to steal you something is a bit sketchy.
Oct 10 2007 12:04AM
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fresshhhh
Posts: 792 - Karma: 9
My car window got smashed, and someone stole my cd deck a few weeks ago,
I was having a party, someone went into my room, stole my iphone out of my desk.
Went to a party, my friend stole a 80 gig ipod,


I refuse to steal, but it's because i've gotten shit jacked and i know what it feels like.

But i do believe it cost's wal mart more to stop someone if they take under like 20$ or something, and i'm not making that up.

Stealing if it's your thing, i guess what ever, just be able to deal with it. It all depends on who , what, and why i guess.

Oct 10 2007 12:11AM
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beer.
Posts: 3096 - Karma: 44
what are you talking about man?  the description I gave of how companies work is 100 percent accurate.  they already take into account money lost from shoplifting, and still make huge profits.  stealing hurts these companies, yes that is certainly true.

but take this into consideration.  I worked at polo and reebok and both of those places did not allow us to confront, chase, or even report to security or police people who were shoplifting.  the companies decided it was more worth it to ignore shoplifters and be safe from potential lawsuits stemming from confrontations.  there were no security tags, or cameras.  my buddy who worked at brooks brothers said some big black guy would come in occasionally and grab an armful of sweaters and walk out.  no one was allowed to say anything.

also, I learned from training at polo that 60 percent of theft is done by employees.

so it looks like I might be more knowledgeable on this subject than you.  care to retract your statement?
Oct 10 2007 12:11AM
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TerminatorX
Posts: 3087 - Karma: 169
^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ax_murderer, those are two totally different situations. walmart is a huge corporation that has put thousands of locally owned business out of buisiness and they treat their employees like shit. That is a good reason to treat walmart like shit to me.

Shoplifting from a country store because you have a grudge will the owner is just a bad thing to do. you could put a country store out of business, but you cant put walmart out of business unless you live in south park,
Oct 10 2007 12:17AM
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