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["Lynda" <lurine AT com-pair.net>]

O.K., I have one for ya, James.  If you agreed to sell someone a gun and 
then found out they were suicidal, would you still sell them the gun?

In another e-mail, I answered yes to the question, that there are times and 
circumstances when it is o.k.

I've done it twice in my life.  The other time would have been about like 
giving a gun to someone who was suicidal.  Had a '69 Firebird with rack and 
pinion steering that someone had added a power stearing unit to.  You could 
steer it with your pinky.  You could over steer it by breathing hard on it. 
It also had a "hot" 400 in it.  One of the cars we raced at Sears Point. 
Absolutely DEADLY in the wrong hands.

We got tired of it and bought another toy to build up and a guy came to buy 
it.  Seemed a sensible sort.  Took it out for a test drive and seemed to 
understand the sensitivity of the steering and the potential squirrely 
behavior on the car's part.

Then we found out that he wanted the car for his son who was 17, who already 
had one drunk driving and who had already wrecked one car.  And that car 
could barely get out of its own way.  Plus, the kid was bragging about 
heading out Bennett Valley Road to race the car as soon as he got it.   And 
talking about road racing it from Santa Rosa, out to Bodega and back up 
River Road.

Ah, no!  Someone else could be responsible for giving him the gun.  Wasn't 
gonna be me!  Called up dad and gave him a white knuckle ride with me 
driving to show him exactly what the car could do.  Told him his son's 
plans.  Told him I wouldn't sell him the car for his kid.  He agreed.  We 
parted company amicably.

Lynda
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Clansgian AT wmconnect.com>
> Is it ever OK to steal from someone??
>
> Oh, one can come up with a scenario in order to remove absolutism from the
> topic.  Suppose you were with a family member and they became seriously
> injured and you needed to get them to medical treatment immediately, life 
> or
> death, and there was a car near by with the keys in it.  Are you justified 
> in
> "stealing" that car?   Yes, of course you are.
>
> But then again, if someone said, "If you steal that car, you will go to
> jail for two years for car theft,"  would you steal it anyway to save a 
> family
> member's life?  Yes, of course you would.
>
> So here's my answer to your question,  go back on your word when you are
> willing to suffer the consequences of doing so.  If the benefits of 
> reneging
> on your word outweigh the consequences of doing so, then that's when you 
> do
> it.
>
> There are times when you might have to steal something, there are times
> when you might have to kill someone.  Dire circumstances might force you 
> into
> all sorts of behavior in which you might otherwise not engage.  But those
> potential dire circumstances do not justify nor mitigate larceny and 
> murder.
> The same holds true for looking for circumstances when it is OK to go back 
> on
> your word.</HTML>
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