We all know its wrong… but how many of you still do it?
I got a really really good offer on something i really wanted but could never afford if i had to buy it… err… legally… so i went ahead with it… and it really isnt bothering all that much… i thought i would be feeling major guilt trips and shit… but nope… im just happy to have made a kickass deal…
yea… im a bad person… so what.
it’s not wrong if people believe you did it accidentally
ok, I’ll bite. Since when is right and wrong determined by 'but I really wanted this and couldn’t afford it" or “as long as people ** think ** you did it accidentally it’s ok”?
You bought stuff you KNEW was stolen, and don’t feel any guilt.
Well, don’t expect me to applaud you.
When my son was six, he had his wallet stolen. It was purple and had the Ninja Turtles on it, $20 of birthday money and photos of his kitties and a close friend who’d just died. But, I suppose the theif really wanted something that he couldn’t afford and no one knew he didn’t come by it accidentally, so it’s ok. :rolleyes:
ethically, it’s a tossup for some people. legally, if no one can prove you knew it was stolen, it’s not a crime. i don’t expect to be applauded, nor should anyone else who has bought stolen goods. but people are still going to do it
No kidding? Really? Wow, all these 20 + years working with ex offenders, and I never realized that people WOULD actually buy stolen merchandise!
Don’t be too quick about “if they can’t prove that you knew it was stolen…” I’ve known, professionally, of course, MANY MANY folks that the only thing that could be proven was that the merchandise WAS stolen. And they were prosecuted, found guilty and served time.
When a search is done and stolen merchandise is discovered, the results are:
A. the merchandise is ALWAYS confiscated. Always. Always. Always. The fact that you “paid” the theif will NOT let you keep stolen merchandise.
B. In Many cases (laws may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction) the person who HAD the stolen merchandise was also prosecuted. Your defense is going to be "but I didn't KNOW" and the prosecution's case is going to be "what else could you possibly have thought?".
“ethically it’s a tossup for some people” ? really ? As I read the OP, they said “I thought I would have a major guilt trip” which indicates to ME that the poster was aware of an ethical conflict (otherwise one wouldn’t expect to feel guilty). Since they DON’T feel the guilt doesn’t mean that it was an ethical toss up. just that they’ve justified the ethically questionable activity. People do this all the time, it’s called “rationalization”.
Do I know it’s done? Yes. Do I personally? No.
My close friends know its not legal… and theyre split in 2 really… half is shaking their head at me and the other half wish they had gotten the offer…
In Denmark its generally accepted tho… i mean hey if i didnt by it someone else would (i know its a shitty argument… but its true nevertheless) Most people dont have high enough moral standards to turn down great offers… some turn them down anyways but thats only coz they can afford it…
Im sorry about your son Wring… thats a damn shitty way of learning the hard realities of life… especially at such a young age 
I agree Skummet (my keyboard doesn’t have the "), it was shitty (what happened to my son).
I know it’s tough to take the high road when you know that your neighbor will then be enjoying that nifty thing.
For me personally, I see the damage to people that happens with crime. The criminal themselves, the victims, the families of all, society to prosecute etc. So, to be part of that equation, feels wrong to me.
Also, I personally LIKE my freedom, my ability to go to the bathroom without an audience, etc. I try really, really hard to NOT do anything that would put that in jeopardy.
Plus, I also figure, if I can’t afford the big price tag for the Legally purchased item, how in the world can I affored to loose the actual amount paid if the item is then confiscated?
But. I’m not here to judge you. I’ve just explained my rational for why I personally don’t.
Besides, if everyone was like me, I’d be out of a job. 
I’m sure i would be fined as hell if the police came across it and yes ofcourse it would get confiscated… and ofcourse i could never sell it and get some of my money back if i wanted to do that some day… well i could but i dont wanna take the risk…
The chance of getting caught and fined for it here is slim to none… so thats not really all that big of an issue… but i can see where youre comming from especially in your line of work…
aztec,
you posted ‘Ethically, it’s a tossup for some people. Legally, if no one can prove you knew it was stolen, it’s not a crime.’
Presumably it’s a tossup for people with no ethics. 
Let’s try your defence in court: ‘I bought this stuff at an incredibly cheap price. I got no receipt, no manual, no warranty. The guy who sold it didn’t offer any refunds (actually he didn’t give me his name) and insisted I paid cash. Of course I had NO IDEA it was stolen.’ :rolleyes:
Skümmet,
you posted ‘The chance of getting caught and fined for it here is slim to none’
So that’s all right then.
I’m surprised no-one has suggested robbing banks as acceptable. After all, they won’t miss it, they’re insured and it’s not really their money anyway…
glee… damn you sure do a good job of reading inbetween the lines…
i dont see how this: “The chance of getting caught and fined for it here is slim to none”
has anything to do with what you said: “So that’s all right then.
I’m surprised no-one has suggested robbing banks as acceptable. After all, they won’t miss it, they’re insured and it’s not really their money anyway…”
I was simply replying to wring that well the chance of getting caught here isnt all that big. And no that doesnt make it anymore ok i know.
People who buy stolen property knowing what they are buying are participants in a crime and, in my book, scum without ethics with whom I would not want to associate.
It is ironic that the OP calls me paranoid because I am thinking of ways to secure my laptop.
It is because of scum like him who buy stolen laptops that they are stolen by the tens of thousands and I have to protect myself. You buy a stolen item and you are as much of a thief as the person who stole it.
In my house valuable items are secured so they cannot be taken. If a burglar chooses to destroy them instead (which would be pretty dumb as he gains nothing exceptgetting into more trouble if he is caught) I lose nothing since he would have taken it anyway, and I gain the knowledge that he is not selling the item to some scumbag who bus stolen property.
Skümmet’
you posted 'I don’t see how this: “The chance of getting caught and fined for it here is slim to none”
has anything to do with what you said: “So that’s all right then.
I’m surprised no-one has suggested robbing banks as acceptable. After all, they won’t miss it, they’re insured and it’s not really their money anyway…”.
Well, let’s look at another of your posts.
Skümmet:
‘…I mean hey if I didn’t buy it someone else would (I know it’s a shitty argument… but it’s true nevertheless) Most people don’t have high enough moral standards to turn down great offers… some turn them down anyway but that’s only coz they can afford it…’
My point is that what you’re doing is receiving stolen goods. It’s a crime (and you know it). Perhaps without greed like that, there would be less stealing (e.g. from Wring’s kid). It’s not much of a leap (and no different morally) to my example of bank robbery.
If ‘bank robbers’ didn’t do it, someone else would?!
Most ‘bank robbers’ don’t have high enough moral standards to turn down great offers (e.g. drive the getaway car for a cut).
I know I’m splatting you with a dramatic example, but I feel there’s a moral person inside you, and I hope my exaggerated example will bring them out.
Different people… different oppinions…
I guess i would feel a whole lot different if my house had been broken into… until then im just gonna remain “a skümbag who buys stolen property”
Then again i dont really think im scum of the earth and what not just because i bought something some dude stole… all in all im actually a pretty decent person… but oh well… to you im just a petty theif right?
I have certain suspicions about one of the stores in the mall near me. It has been ‘Going out of Business’ for approximately 4 years and sells suits for about 1/3 of the price I see in the normal mens wear stores. I have the feeling that a good many of these suits ‘fell off the back of a truck’ somewhere along the way.
Still bought a couple of suits there, though.
imho theres a huge difference morally between buying a stolen laptop and going into a bank and put a gun to ones head and demand the money… then again… maybe thats just me…
And well ofcourse i know its a crime and its wrong… belive me its not something im making a habbit out of… but i was in a situation where saying no would just be unbelivably stupid… now you can choose to belive that or not… but thats how it was. ofcourse that doesnt make it anymore right… but i dont regret doing it and yea… as long as im a poor schmuck like now… i would probably do it again.
Anywho… i merely posted this topic to see if there might be other “scumbags” out there who had bought stolen property before… i guess none of them (if there is any) is gonna come forward now tho… maybe it was a bad choice of subject from my part?
Maybe it was a poor decision on your part to knowingly engage in immoral and criminal activity, eh?
To answer the original question, no I do not purchase stolen goods. If I can’t get what I want by paying retail or purchasing it second hand, I do without.
“Maybe it was a poor decision on your part to knowingly engage in immoral and criminal activity, eh?”
would you let me blame it on being young, ignorant and naive?
glee,
are/were you on a debate team, if not you missed a possible calling. by the way, my “tossup” line meant that for those people who are in the middle (not dead for it or against it)are going to go either way, depending on the situation. i should have worded that better