So im in a class called political radicalism at my school. its an amazing class but anways someone from ELF (earth liberation front) came in to talk to us. he talked about burning down mansions and doing things to cripple major corporations who pollute ridiculous amounts. (the eco-terrorists) anyways the more i think about it, the more i dont mind the idea of stealing from major corporations or stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. I think its unethical to a certain extent but if you are doing good through that is it justified? I look at rich people and dont see much past their greed. they are sitting around eating 500 dollar meals while people starve on the streets. i know some rich are good people and give a lot of money, but still, compared to how much money they have it is jack shit. the rich or i guess money as a whole is what is holding us back from accomplishing anything. i would never ever hurt a person, but i think stealing from places like wal mart or stealing from some rich guy and giving to needy people is actually not bad. im not sure, im torn over this. what do you guys think?
I don't hold anything against rich people. Why should I destroy their property just because they have money? I envy their wealth. But rather go out and destroy their things, I'll go out and earn it. And yes, it is wrong to steal from a large corporation (wal-mart) or a rich person/family.
i am not saying do it out of envy jealousy or greed. Also, i am not proposing destroying their property just because they have money. Things that i am talking about (i will use some of ELF's actions as an example) are things like destroying hum vs. Also i just dont find it bad to steal from Wal-mart if you were dying of hunger or you were giving food to hungry people. why is it wrong to steal from a company that totally disregaurds the will of small town people and their own workers. they build their super super markets with basically an entire city's worth of shops inside. they think they are bringing jobs to the city but in reality they are running existing stores with higher paying jobs and more benefits out of business. They also pay their workers next to nothing. This is true of Starbucks as well. i guess what i am wondering is if stealing and destroying property can be justified in a certain context....
The people who "looted" water in New Orleans were justified. But your example of stealing food to give to the poor can lead to a moral slippery slope. If stealing food to give to the poor is ethical, is stealing food to feed Robin Hood ethical, or should Robin keep his day job? If Robin Hood needs a delivery vehicle for the food, should he use (steal) the HumV or destroy it? Do poor folks owe Robin a "thank you"? Do not-rich/not-poor folks owe Robin anything for his civic service? Do they need to worry about the accounting on that debt or will Robin be responsible for that chore in addition to his other civic burdens? (BTW, I didn't know that the ELF stole food for the hungry. I've never heard of any of their food kitchens.) Proponents of Robin Hooding or monkey wrenching should be aware of the ethical minefield that they are entering and step carefully.
^this. And I have to add, with all the enviromental damage done, what would burning a mansion or trashing property to help any situation? And on top of that, those people have insurance policies that would get cashed out anyways. Also, if you steal from WalMart, you're only taking money out of employees' pockets. Hours get cut when profits go down. If you don't agree with the system, don't cash into it. Take your dollars elsewhere and make flyers or talk about a boycott.
Concerning private property, I would say that I a person only really "owns" the land they live on or posess if they actually contribute to that land and give back to it instead of just exploiting it. So yes, I think it is more than ethical to sabotage a corporation if it means a healthier landbase. As for stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, let's face it: Corporations have been stealing from us for years. I mean, the bailout? WTF? The only reason no one does anything about it is because the government enacted a bunch of laws that made it legal. But that does still not make their actions any more than theft. I think exploitation needs to be stopped. I think exploiters need to be stopped. And if the government's not going to do it than I think it needs to be us that does. I know a lot of people will think that's crazy, but if you ask me, we (the human race and the rest of the planet) are not in a position to bargain and dally around. If we are really serious about really creating a free and healthy earth, than we better get to the point because we're running out of time. By the way, here's an article on Enric Duran, the robin hood of the 21st century: http://anarchiststrategy.blogspot.com/2008/11/steal-from-unsteady-give-to-militant.html
Should you not blame the people who shop at Wal-Mart instead? It's not as if a Wal-Mart is built in a town, then everyone else closes up right away. If I had the choice of paying $20 for something at Wal-Mart, or buying it at a small locally owned store for $40, I'll save the $20. And the majority of people will. And if you chose the later, then I'm happy you have the extra money to spend. If small stores want to remain around, they have no choice but to lower prices. And I can't stand Wal-Mart. We have two in the city. But I don't hate them because they ran other stores out of town. I can't stand them because I don't see any real amazing sales there. I go to Zellers where I can save even more than at Wal-Mart. I live in a region that is known for growing fruits and vegetables. Were constantly told to buy local and go to the farmers market. I have no problems with that, however why would I spend $3 for a pound of tomatoes, when at a grocery store I can get them for under $1 a pound, but perhaps from California?
Interesting article, I note that the money ended up going to "various anti-capitalist projects". Steal from the rich; give to the PR campaign!!!
What the fuck... A class called Political Radicalism? In High School!? Or University? I am very curious to the nature of this sort of class... Anyways here is my two cents... Revolutions, historically speaking, follow an age old pattern. When the rich man is full, the poor man starves. When the poor man starves, the rich man dies. ... ... These times will soon be upon us again. May as well get mentally prepared in advance.
Excellent video from Submedia entitled "Why I love shoplifting from Big Corporations" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRv2Ymssrxo Definitly worth checking out!
