To steal or not to steal

This is a very interesting subject. It would be very hard to say whether or not I would steal in order to save someone's life, and I am not sure that anyone would ever realy know until they were put into that situation. It would be nice if there would be a reduced punishment for situations like this, however there is a large potential that this would be abused. It would definitely be a hard decision to make.

I think that he definitely did it for a good reason; to save someone's life. But he will have to suffer the consequences because our law and society sees it as theft. If there was anyway to help it I would send her to the ER or something in the sort. I mean in my personal view, I wouldn't know how to react at first, but call 9-1-1. Or else borrow money, or the last option, steal. I totally see why he did it, so he should be punished, but not as harsh.

It seems that in situations such as this, one option is more morally right than another. Although stealing seems wrong, it would be worse to not partake in something that seems wrong to prevent the loss of a life. Stealing is often out of selfish reasons, but not in cases such as this.

I tend to agree more with following the law; because it is against the law then the individual should be punished. In this case the stealing would cure the man's wife but, in my eyes, he should not follow through with it. There is a reason the government made rules about stealing and the punishment should be enforced.

This would be a very difficult situation and it is tough to claim whether it was acceptable or not unless we were put in a similar position. Though stealing may be an initial response if money was not present, I think there are other options to solving this problem. For example, approaching close relatives for assistance would be my first response. We must not fall into a mental set, thinking stealing is the only option available. I understand the emotions he must have felt and the desire for the drug, but stealing could even worsen the situation if he were to get caught.

I think there is a difficult line to draw. On one hand the man was desperate to get the medicine, but on the other hand what he did is against the law. There are other options that the man could have explored such as asking the doctor for alternative options or suggestions. If the government lessened the punishment or excused people in similar situations, it would only send the message that it would be permissible for people to steal under life-and-death situations. I believe that we can definitely feel sympathy for the people in these situations, but that does not mean that they should get the right to break the law.

Just as the previous comments indicate, this is a very hard subject to indicate what is right and what is wrong. But perhaps there IS no right or wrong, because from any perspective, it can be PROVEN as right and/or wrong. These type of situations actually remind me of watching and reading stories of Robin Hood. A hero and a thief all in one for stealing from the rich, and giving to the poor. Although only a story, I am sure Robin Hood had to go through the same thought processes as the man who stole the drugs. He did his deed for all the right reasons, but it was still a bad thing to do. I don't think that we will ever come to a compromising verdict in situations such as these.