Shoplifting from small 'Mom and Pop' stores harms them and I damn well would report it to the owner. Shoplifting from a large chain store bothers me not a whit.
But only if you can get away with it. I don't want Loblaws to be able to successfully "make an example" of someone, that would likely lead to a world where shoplifting is punished ruthlessly when the first court case sets precedent against the public.
It is tonight. A couple of years ago I met a tent encampment resident who got frostbite in his fingers and the first joints all fell off or were removed, the rest were black and looked like exploded sticks of dynamite.
That's whistleblowing, calling for the fire department, and reporting terrorism respectively. Not quite the same thing when the examples in the picture are people taking drastic measures to stay alive.
Sometimes an immediate relief from psychological suffering through the escapism of alcohol is no different than the immediate need for food. Sometimes the alternative is death
Luxury items that have no cheaper, reasonable alternative are where I draw the line. Alcohol to cope with the chronic pain and psychological suffering that homelessness brings is not really a luxury in my book
Sometimes luxuries are the best thing for the downtrodden to borrow because they can be bartered for money in the real world and sometimes having a little scratch in your pocket can make you feel human. My fiance and i pretty much survived on less than $6000 in total this year but having a little paper in my pocket makes me feel like a person. That being said the more expensive items a store carries the harder it is to borrow from them.
Not to mention that alcohol withdrawal can literally kill you. It is obviously better to get sober, but a heavy drinker going cold turkey without medical supervision can end up in the morgue.
I used to live in a tent and people were lovely. When I could afford permits for NPs, I'd have other camping friends. I'd also shoplift and felt bad for it, only making sure I took the cheapest food and supplies and only what I need. I wasn't a threat to anything, no one in that situation could even afford to be one.
Yeah, we've got people living in tents in the city park here, it's legal but I see how there's fear mongering and attempts to throw them away. When in fact those living in tents are likely too tired and scared themselves to do any harm