Is it immoral to relieve drug dealers of their money?

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

This is a three part question with THREE related answers:

I saw a movie about a year ago about this Cowboy, driving his jeep through the desert, and he comes upon about six cars and pickup trucks grouped together, out in the middle of nowhere ... with bodies all around and in the vehicles. Apparently a drug deal had "gone bad", and the buyers and sellers had killed each other.. The pickup trucks are full of bales of drugs, and the cars are full of suitcases full of money. The Cowboy puts gasoline on the drugs, burning them up, and goes home with the money.

Did he STEAL the money ... and  does he have a moral responsibility to return it to the people who were going to buy the drugs?

Bear in mind, he has broken NO LAW ... and he is not legally REQUIRED to report the criminal activity ..... much like the Society's position that they will not turn JW child sex abusers over to the police unless legally REQUIRED to do so.

Using the principles long established by the WTB&TS .... I would be inclined to keep the money !

Of course I would check for hidden tracking transmitters in the suitcases ... and take other evasive precautions.

.Question 1.) Did the Cowboy STEAL the money ... ?

Question 2.) Does he have a moral responsibility to return it to the people who were going to buy the drugs ... ?

Question 3.) What would YOU do?

EXTRA CREDIT:  Was it immoral for the Cowboy to deliberately destroy the drug dealers' property?

[Shiwiii]

18 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

much like the Society's position that they will not turn JW child sex abusers over to the police unless legally REQUIRED to do so.

I don't think the two are even remotely related. One scenario has children abused and a crime against humanity, while the other is like you said.....no crime....well not one that anyone alive could be prosecuted with. 

 

18 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Question 1.) Did the Cowboy STEAL the money ... ?

Nope, found it. Now there IS a law about finding money and what to do about it that I can dig up if you'd like, but we all know that it is the fool who would actually follow that law. Some laws are only there to benefit the gov't/organization. 

 

18 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Question 2.) Does he have a moral responsibility to return it to the people who were going to buy the drugs ... ?

No way of knowing who those people are. 

18 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Question 3.) What would YOU do?

hmmmmmm, how much money are we talking? Let me think..............drug deals don't involve small amounts of cash, so I'd say it would be enough to raise ANY kind of red flag if you kept it for yourself. I think it would be fun to sit there, think about my mates and divide up the bounty by that number. Place each bounty in separate locations and far enough away from each other so no one would be seen by each other. Send a letter in my hand, and speak things in it that assured it was genuine telling them to go get it. If I ever saw them again, it would be a campfire story kind of tale, but you know how money changes things. What they chose to do with it, I'd be fine with......after all their my mates! The remaining, my portion, I'd try and continue my current lifestyle of being a member of normal society. 

18 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

EXTRA CREDIT:  Was it immoral for the Cowboy to deliberately destroy the drug dealers' property?

Dead folks do not own anything, it is up to the heirs to figure out what to do with the dead folks stuff. Then that also leaves us with the answer to Question #2. 

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Interesting .... I think drug dealing, because it enslaves people, is ALSO a crime against humanity.

I suppose it gets down to which ethicist you choose for guidance, and what their credibility is to BE a credible  ethicist .

Someone who uniformly and as a practice make bad moral judgements about one thing involving great deals of money, have no credibility about pontificating about OTHER things involving a great deal of money.

If I remember the movie correctly, the drug money in the suitcases was 11 million dollars (?).

I have decided that I WOULD take the dead drug dealers money, as found treasure ... much the same as if I had found a hoard of Nazi gold, ingots made from the teeth of concentration camp victims.

Any other opinions?

.

 

[Bible Speaks]

@James Thomas Rook Jr.

i think you'll get the point with this scripture?

19 “‘Into the streets they will throw their very silver, and an abhorrent thing their own gold will become. Neither their silver nor their goldwill be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah’s fury.+ Their souls they will not satisfy, and their intestines they will not fill, for it has become a stumbling block causing their error.+ 20 And the decoration of one’s ornament—one has set it as reason for pride; and their detestable images,+ their disgusting things,+ they have made with it.*That is why I will make it to them an abhorrent thing.+ 21 And I will give it into the hand of the strangers for plunder and to the wicked ones of the earth for spoil,+ and they will certainly profane it.

22 “‘And I shall have to turn away my face from them,+ and they will actually profane my concealed place,* and into it* robbers will really come and profane it."

(Ezekiel 7:19-22).

Soon money will be worthless, so is the money worth your life? No, "worthless things" are of no value to Jehovah. I'd rather be poor and live forever with riches I'm given by my Creator. Life is more of value than any money that will soon be of no value. So if he owns everything and all money will be of no value we have your answer? My life is more important than money is it not? That's my answer. It's all yours. 

Reason: 

11 “You are worthy, Jehovah* our God, to receive the glory+ and the honor+ and the power,+because you created all things,+ and because of your will they came into existence and were created.” (Rev 4:11).

He owns everything Soon it will be of no value anyhow. Your choice! 

 

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Bible Speaks:

I carefully read the scriptures you posted, and I did get the point ... but ...  the scriptures AND the points HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE MORALITY ( or immorality ) ASPECTS OF WHAT IS BEING DISCUSSED.

Would you care to turn the automatic tape player OFF for a moment or two, and have an original thought?

..and more to the ...er... "point"  at least PRETEND to have some relevancy to the ideas being examined?

[Shiwiii]

14 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Interesting .... I think drug dealing, because it enslaves people, is ALSO a crime against humanity.

Why yes it is, but the major difference is that the crime of doing drugs is against yourself. Is there fallout that effects others? sure, but ultimately it is the user who is damaged and chose to do that to themselves. Children do not chose to be abused. 

14 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

I have decided that I WOULD take the dead drug dealers money, as found treasure ... much the same as if I had found a hoard of Nazi gold, ingots made from the teeth of concentration camp victims.

I would take it as well, but now that you throw in the teeth thing.......uuurrrrrr....uuuhhhh. 

[Bible Speaks]

@James Thomas Rook Jr.

Take the money and run ?? fast!

However, it's probably tied into the mafia somehow! Don't be in fear of anyone knocking on your door? ?

Of course not JW's! ?

Your Decision! To me I am happy and Jehovah provides me just what I need. I would not take the money. Perhaps a charity would be wiser to donate to? Hmmm....

Since I am BIBLE SPEAKS this is a quote:

THE BIBLE SAYS: “Do not wear yourself out to gain wealth.”—Proverbs 23:4.

According to the book The Narcissism Epidemic, people who pursue wealth are more apt to “suffer from poor mental health; they also report more physical health problems such as sore throats, backaches, and headaches and were more likely to drink too much alcohol and use illegal drugs. Striving for financial success, apparently, makes people miserable.”

THE BIBLE SAYS: “Let your way of life be free of the love of money, while you are content with the present things.”—Hebrews 13:5.

A person who is content is not immune to financial anxiety; however, he knows how to put his anxiety in perspective. For example, a content person will not overreact to financial loss. Rather, he will strive to have the attitude of the apostle Paul, who wrote: “I know how to be low on provisions and how to have an abundance. In everything and in all circumstances I have learned the secret of both how to be full and how to hunger, both how to have an abundance and how to do without.” —Philippians 4:12.

THE BIBLE SAYS: “The one trusting in his riches will fall.”—Proverbs 11:28.

 

???????

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Well ... I do not think anyone can legitimately accuse me of not having TRIED to make this a discussion ABOUT WHAT IS MORAL, AND WHAT IS NOT.

I give up....

 

[Shiwiii]

21 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Well ... I do not think anyone can legitimately accuse me of not having TRIED to make this a discussion ABOUT WHAT IS MORAL, AND WHAT IS NOT.

I give up....

 

So what is the moral of the story?  "Don't give up" LOL

 

I don't think that morality even comes into play in this scenario. The money belongs to dead people and dead people have no use for it.