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Opinion
Stephen L. Carter

Is Delivery Still OK? The Ethics of Shopping in a Pandemic

We have to make choices about what to take, leave and ask others to get for us.

What are the essentials?

What are the essentials?

Source: The Washington Post

When my local supermarket opened for business at 6 a.m. the other day, I had my plan of action in place. The instant the door was unlocked, I hurried to the pharmacy aisle, where I found, to my surprise and delight, three bottles of rubbing alcohol.

But now I faced a puzzle. Should I play homo economicus and buy them all? Should I follow the Lockean proviso and leave as much and as good in common for others? Torn by competing priorities, I bought two of the three bottles, leaving the third for the next customer. Did I do wrong? I’m not sure. Shopping is tricky these days.