05 January 2018

Deserving

Since people are confused by the moral position that evil done with something stolen from me is not my responsibility...

If someone steals from you and does something good with what was stolen, do you deserve praise?

A reward?

If you don't think you deserve a reward, why would you think you deserve to be punished?

I know it's a difficult moral philosophy to wrap your head around.

We're so accustomed to the reality that leaving a $100 bill on the table unattended while you go to take a leak means that bill will be gone when you get back we tend to forget that the thief is still the sole responsible agent in the stealing.

Being a sane and adjusted to the real world we live in means that if want to keep that $100 we don't leave it there unattended.

The victim is a participant in the victim selection process.  But it doesn't make them a participant in the crime.

Crime doesn't start with opportunity.  Opportunity is discovered after other decisions are made by the criminal.

Stealing a gun from an unlocked car is an example.  How did the thief know the car was unlocked?  They'd decided to steal before they checked the handle.  Taking solace in their decision to only steal from unlocked cars rather than breaking windows is weak sauce.  So is taking pride in taking the small precaution in locking your door and avoiding that thief.

Thinking, "I am checking to see if that car is unlocked, if it is I am checking to see if there's anything worth stealing and if there is, I am stealing it," is a criminal act in its own right.  Leaving the door unlocked with something valuable inside is not a criminal act.

Morally, blaming the victim when their property is, forcibly, outside their control is wrong.  Malum in se.

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