ScOPTLearning at Work week is an annual event in May. It aims to to put a spotlight on the importance and benefits of learning and development at work. This year it takes place from 15th-21st May and the theme is 'Curious & Creative'.
ScOPT are running a series of articles on the website to tie in with Learning at Work week, as well as highlighting appropriate resources each day.
This is a Facebook thread, an ethical discussion about beer which you might use to get students to identify particular ethical principles in a light-hearted way. It is posted by Moira Dunworth but the original source wishes to remain anonymous.
from Adam
Applied ethics question of the day: your roomates are away for a week. You drink some of their beer and replace it before they get back. Is this stealing or some other morally reprehensible act? My hunch is yes.
from Áine
If you replace it, I say it's all good. May also depend on how close you are with your roommate.
from Barry
Morally reprehensible? Probably not. I think it depends on the relationship you have to your roommates.
from Beth
Adam, does the situation change any if you tell the roommates that you (stole and) replaced their beer?
from Adam
Interesting question Beth, I'm not sure. My money says that it's wrong because you are making use of their property without their permission.
from Carlos
I wouldn't want to deprive anyone of beer. If you needed beer and I had beer, I would be absolutely fine with you taking and replacing my beer. Beer is meant to be drunk! And then replaced with more beer! Then, more drinking!
from Charlotte
Carlos' remark is why I think it depends on the relationship you have to your roommates. If you think of them as strangers, for all practical purposes (as you were a guest in a stranger's house), then yes, it's likely that you are doing something borderline creepy without their knowledge.
I'm still not sure that it counts as morally reprehensible, maybe just rude not to ask first.
from Dawood
Clearly it is fine. Especially since they would never know if you don't mention it.
from Dawn
If a beer is drunk in a kitchen, and it is replaced without its owner knowing, does it make a sound?
from Eddie
Depends on whether or not the roommates feel that one beer is equivalent in value to another. If they do, then drinking it and replacing it with equivalent beer sounds morally acceptable to me.
from Adam
I'm drunk off the beer right now so not in a good position to comment on the morality of taking the beer, more on that later.
from Adam
a few slurred remarks though - I agree it probably changes a bit depending on the relationship. Beyond that (and Charlotte’s observation that it's creepy if I'm a stranger) I'm not sure what to say.
Also Charlotte may be right that it's not an issue of morality but rather etiquette, though I've (and obviously I'm not alone) had trouble distinguishing the two. Against my earlier suggestion that the problem is use without consent: there is surely nothing wrong about me borrowing a ruler if it is left out in the open.
@Dawood You're holding fast to a particular family of theories here so let's get that out in the open. Put over simplistically, you're one of those who thinks that what you don't know can't harm you. For the record I'm opposed to that position, though I think it may be such a baseline issue that argumentation isn't much help.
@Eddie the beer that's replaced is identical in all features. Sure if they had some sentimental attachment to THAT individual can of beer problems might arise from that. For the sake of argument we are assuming they don't. It's 'Simpler Times' if that makes it more plausible.
from Dawood
Heh. I really don't in all things. In terms of petty consumables such as beer, yes. I was mostly that blunt and un-nuanced to provoke a response =)
from Adam
:-) So picking up on Beth's question earlier, a sub question is should i tell them or just replace it and not tell them. Which would cause less harm?
from Dawood
Tell them only if it won't be as cold as they left it, in my opinion. (cf. my theory of ethics of petty consumables from before)
from Adam
I'll be as cold, they don't come back for a week
It'll I mean, interesting slip.
