A few minutes ago, with the BCS title game between Florida and Ohio State less than an hour away, I ran out to the grocery store for bananas, coffee, and a few other things. A woman and a boy (probably her son) were ahead of me in line. I watched them empty their cart. There were two cardboard soft-drink containers on the bottom of the cart—the kind that contain about a dozen cans. The boy took one of them out and put it on the counter. The woman pulled the cart ahead before he could get the other one out. The clerk never saw it. It’s obvious that they intended to steal the soft drinks. What should I have done? I’m not a police officer. It’s not my job to enforce the law. Do I have a moral obligation to prevent theft? Things would be easier if the question were whether I should steal, for surely I shouldn’t. But in this case it’s about whether I should do something to prevent someone else from stealing. I won’t tell you what I did until I get some feedback about what I should have done.

Addendum: In addition to saying what I should have done, please say what I did, based on what you know about me through reading this blog.

Addendum 2: There have been many comments, so let me say what I did. Not only didn’t I inform the clerk; I ran interference for the woman. It was a Wal-Mart Market, after all!

Addendum 3: I was teasing about Wal-Mart. Progressives hate the place, so I thought I’d play along. As for what I did in the store, I did nothing. I’m not paid by Wal-Mart to keep other customers from stealing. I have no legal or moral obligation to prevent theft. I’m a deontological egoist, remember. I have no moral obligation to benefit anyone. My only obligation is to refrain from harming others.