Shoplifting

Shoplifting

Shoplifting is seen almost as a "victimless crime;" the big retail stores are owned by multi-millionaires who don't need the money anyway, and in a way I guess that it's true. Yet, stealing from people homes isn't as acceptable as shoplifting despite it being pretty much the same thing. Maybe this is because the stores all seem to be faceless corporations, whereas people's property is theirs, it has more of a physical owner, the loss is more personal.

I think that people can have some sympathy for shoplifters, depending on the situation. The image of a person stealing bread for their hungry family is hard to condemn, as it is necessary for survival. Maybe stealing is okay is it's a life or death situation? I suppose it comes down to the moral development of an individual, a persons reactions to "The Heinz Dilemma" is evidence of the "doublethink" attitude people have to shoplifting. Psychologist Kohlberg used "The Heniz Dilemma" to measure children's moral development. The dilemma is basically questioning whether you would steal an expensive, life saving drug for a loved one if, despite your best efforts the druggist refused to sell it to you at a lower price. Many people would say that they would steal it, even though the act of stealing is illegal. If anything it shows that generally the majority of people think that the motive is more important than the action itself.

But when it comes down to people shoplifting unnecessary things or for profit, such as the man who was convicted of running a shoplifting gang and selling the goods on eBay, people have little tolerance. Is it okay to shoplift as long as you are not making any profit from it?

Philosopher Kant's "Categorical Imperatives" state that we should only do acts which can be universalised, which means that we should only do things which are acceptable for everyone else in the world to do. In relation to shoplifting if it was universalised it would be acceptable for everyone to steal, causing society to collapse.

Despite the consequences shoplifting could have if everyone decided to do it, it is still a "minor crime" of which humour can be derived. For example Bart in "The Simpson's" steals a video game which his parents won't buy him. Despite him not needing the video game to live I don't think that the majority of people would condemn his actions in any serious way. In the same episode Nelson and Jimbo are also shoplifting, portraying it as being a "normal" activity which children of a certain age do. Even though a lot of people wouldn't support shoplifting, they may illegally download music, how different is it really from going into a store a shoplifting the CD?

References

Kohlbergs "Heinz Dilemma" Wagner, K. (). Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development. Available: http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/kohlberg.htm. Last accessed 18 February 2009.

Man shoplifting for profit (2009). Shoplifters sentenced after eBay sales. Available: http://www.thisiscornwall.co.uk/homepagenews/Shoplifters-sentenced-eBay-sales/article-703712-detail/article.html/. Last accessed 18 February 2009.

Kant's Moral Philosophy . (2004/2008). Kant's Moral Philosophy. Available: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant-moral/. Last accessed 18 February 2009.