Sticky fingers: Guilty as sin?

Are yours sticky?   (Photo by Pereru)

Although nothing in this world of illusory possessions is truly ours, there are some things that the law allows us to come by

honestly.

Then there are those things that “stick” to our fingers, even though they legally belong to someone else.  Is that stealing?  Depends upon how ethically picky you wish to get…

Take pens, for instance (which many people do).  If a pen is not literally chained to a desk, does this mean that it is up for grabs?  How about sugar packets at a restaurant?  Does

buying a cup of coffee entitle you to free sugar for the rest of the week?

People are also prone to stealing other people’s time.  Joining a “15 items or under” line at the supermarket with a full cart means that you are holding up the rest of the line.  Another common tactic entails rushing to an adjoining cashier the moment he or she opens, which can preempt those who were waiting longer than you.

Let's not even begin to count that which hotel guests consider theirs for the taking.  Erika Rawes of Life Cheat Sheet explains that “more than one-third (35 percent) of hotel guests admit to stealing hotel amenities

like towels and linens.”  The United States was “pretty low on the honesty list” in this regard, “ranking in at No. 23 out of 29 countries.”

As for “borrowing” without returning, how many have done this at one time or another?  Guilty as sin?  It’s never too late to return that Tupperware container.

Resources

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/life/7-little-things-that-almost-everyone-steals.html/?utm_source=outbrain&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=feed_desktop&ref=OB

Copyright August 20, 2014 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved