Rationalizing

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allco

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Notice that the poll, what do you do if/when... do you agree/disagree etc. post is common in the shooting the shit section.

Bumped into a person not long ago at a coffee shop. He buys stolen laptops and other merch for $20.00 from Crack Addicts, then sells it on Craigslist for whatever he can get.

When asked, "whoa, you have no problem with that?"

His response, "Hey, it's no different than what the pawnshops are doing, I just don't have an actual store"

Anything can be rationalized...

So, what do you think?
 


In other words, are you the kind of person where everything is black and white? Or are you a healthy shade of gray?

I'm the latter. I always thought I would have made a terrible judge but at fuckin fantastic lawyer.
 
I think most everything can be 'rationalized' because most things that are 'unethical' (the things that need rationalization) also happen to be the 'rational' way to do things. Hitting yourself in the foot with a hammer for example, is not unethical because it's not rational. There's no need for ethics or moral decisions.

So to put this in affiliate marketing terms:
If someone searches for 'rebate processing jobs online' or 'how can I make 500,000 from home', they're fucked. Regardless of any action you do, they're fucked.

Ethical Thought Process (#1): "I don't want to be a part of this"

Logical Thought Process (#2): If they're fucked regardless of my actions, this is not so much a choice of whether or not to fuck them. The choice is whether I want to make $30 from the inevitable or not."

Though I'll admit that sometimes I do get ethically conflicted in this job, I think it's difficult to argue that the concept of #2 is incorrect(this specific example may be fucky).
 
I's say, anything can be rationalized, but it doesn't make it right. The laptops may very well have already been stolen, but if no one bought them, there would be no demand and that would pretty much put an end to the thieving.

That being said, I've bought what I knew were stolen goods before. I bought a $400 Kodak slide projector with a nice lens from a pawn shop for $30. It was only after I bought it that I turned it over to see the name of a local college engraved in the bottom. It was such a fantastic deal though.

I bought a Sony Playstation and an EMU midi sound module off a couple shifty guys I knew. I never asked where they got them. They may not have been stolen.

I bought a Boss midi effects unit from a pawn shop knowing full well it came from the Tom Lee music store a couple blocks away. Got it for $100 when it retailed for more then $600. If I hadn't grabbed it one of my musician friends that regularly scour the pawn shops for vintage gear would have.

There, I rationalized all my purchases ;)
 
zimok said:
He's fueling the demand which in course is increasing the thefts. In the long run it probably doesn't matter though...
Click to expand...

well i'd assume theres enough buyers in the market to where a single individual doesnt make a difference
 
allco said:
Bumped into a person not long ago at a coffee shop. He buys stolen laptops and other merch for $20.00 from Crack Addicts, then sells it on Craigslist for whatever he can get.

So, what do you think?
Click to expand...

I don't like coffee shops because they're full of douchebags...but I do like coffee.
 
It sounds like the terms ethics and morality are being used synonymously.

I have ethics, but I am not a judge or advocate for a particular morality.

If idiots think a CD will make them rich if they just pay S+H, or that acai can replace a sensible diet and exercise, that is their fucking problem. Their ignorance and self-esteem/values are not my problem.

If people didn't want snake oil, there would be no snake oil salesmen.
 
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