Peter Mackay wrote:
From: wikien-l-bounces@Wikipedia.org [mailto:wikien-l-bounces@Wikipedia.org] On Behalf Of Delirium
Peter Mackay wrote:
It's morally wrong in any sort of degree. Stealing a cent is the same
crime as stealing a million.
I would have to say there are precious few ethical systems that make that claim.
Most criminal codes will identify the crime of theft (or larceny) without discrimination as to amount: Theft is "...the dishonest appropriation of property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theft#Theft_in_English_law
To define theft as a concept doesn't require any statement as to the amount or value of the property stolen. Nevertheless, at least in the United States, most jurisdictions classify theft in different degrees of seriousness, generally tied to the dollar amount involved. The standard sentences that accompany these degrees of theft increase along with the minimum dollar amount, which is effectively an element of the crime.
--Michael Snow