I want to know your ethical level?

[kdiddy]

Ok here's the deally, I ordered a Athlon XP 1600 from this company online via credit card...well about an hour later, I found a better deal that included some other needed items along with the CPU...so I called the first company back, asked them if it was too late to cancel, they say its fine, and cancel the order....

Well here it is 2 days later, and guess what arrives at my door, you guessed, an Athlon XP 1600...funny thing is, the receipt in the box even states "Customer Canceled Order" all charges, shipping, tax, anything money related all has 0.00 dollars next to it.

So let me see those scruples, do I

A) Call the company, inform them of what happened, and send it back??

B) Wait till next credit card bill comes, hope that Santa brought me an early gift & that I was not charged for it, and if I was not charged, do I still keep it or send it back??

[Corrado]

Those are the opportunity to show wether you just talk about honesty or you live it. :) I would go for option A

Corrado

[DSPguru]

A

[UHT]

it really has to be A, if you are the kind of person who would just keep it then you probably wouldnt want to admit it on here anyhow...

[DigDub]

Depends on which company.

If its from a big company like HP, Dell, Gateway, etc, I'll just keep the PC because it aint gonna hurt them much.

If its a small company, I think you better return it because one PC might mean a lot to them.

My 2 cents' worth.

[Corrado]

Originally posted by DigDub
Depends on which company.

If its from a big company like HP, Dell, Gateway, etc, I'll just keep the PC because it aint gonna hurt them much.
The new Robin Hood...:)

C'mon, you ain't gonna get rich with that money, so why doing something that you'll not be proud of?

I'd go for option A with a slight change: since the company has already paid shipping fees, and should also pay the return ones, they would prefer that you keep it. Call them and propose to keep the CPU for the same (lower) price that you found on the second site. Otherwise return it at their cost.

Option B has no sense (why waiting?) unless you've already decided to keep it (for the higher price, or for free, depending on what you do when you receive your credit card bill...).

Cor

[kdiddy]

Well if I get charged for it, then yes the processor is going back. Its funny though, it all depends on who/where you ask...I posed this question in another forum..and everyone there said option B...LOL

"Call them and propose to keep the CPU for the same (lower) price that you found on the second site. Otherwise return it at their cost. "

Well the problem here is that my other stuff will be tommorrow, so not only do I not need 2 processors nor have another board for one, then Im sure not going to pay for extra processor to just sit around.
The idea behind keeping it is to sell it to my neighbor for 1/2 price. :D

"one PC might mean a lot to them."

Its not a whole PC, just the CPU.

[zeppage2]

It is not so much what I would do, as what I think you will do.

I think you will keep it, selling it to your neighbor at half-price.

But be warned, the company has records of shipping it to you, the shipper has a record of you receiving it; so later, when they come a-calling to retrieve their product/demand payment, then what?

This is not so clean and easy as you pretend.

Moreover, your post is a veiled effort to receive 'permission' from the low-brow masses to do what you clearly know is wrong.

Return it today!

[kdiddy]

"Moreover, your post is a veiled effort to receive 'permission' from the low-brow masses to do what you clearly know is wrong."

Thanks for your attempt at pathethic psychiatry, I decided 2 secs after I got it that I was gonna sit on it, to see if I was get charge for it, if I do, then it goes back, if I dont, it stays...I ONLY, read this again, I ONLY posted to see what other scoundrels there were out there.

[qthesnake]

listen:

i don't see you post as a "permission" asking from us... if you went and posted this thread, then you do feel bad about it... now tell me, is this really whats going to help you out? i mean: i know is sounds funny, but if it was 1,000,000 US$ in cash, i'd say keep it! but for this kind of money... how much was it? enough for you to be feeling bad about it? it should take more then this to make it worth the bad feelings... i bet if you wanted you could buy 10 CPUs with money you earned.. then why go though the feeling you are stealing, for just 1?

just forget the idea, have them take it back, open a corona, and feel better about your self!

hope you choose right! Q.

P.S. : let us know what you did!

[wmansir]

What's with all this talk about 'feeling bad' for taking it? If your the kind of person who feels bad about taking advantage of someone elses mistake you wouldn't keep it. If you are the type of person who would keep it your main thought would be 'I hope they don't catch their mistake'.

I would probably take a wait and see attitude(sp) because 1. I'm lazy and 2. I'd want to see if they catch the mistake. And if I ended up keeping it I wouldn't feel bad anyway, because I would probably give it to a friend/relative if the company never contacted me.

For those people who say it's not worth it (your not gonna get rich, it's not a million dollars, ect.) I'm reminded of a story whose origin I can't remember:

A man asks a lady, "Would you sleep with me for one million dollars?"

"Of course!" the lady replies.

"Ok, how about for $10?", the man asks.

Outraged the lady yells, "I'm not a whore! What kind of a lady do you think I am?"

"We already know what kind of a lady you are," says the man " now we are just negotiating a price."

[ScooterMyth]

@wmansir:

The story is true. It's John Paul Getty, Sr and I believe (not entirely sure) the opera diva Maria Callas.

@kiddy:

A

[Baalthazaar]

In all seriousness, you should return the product. If you put yourself into the shoes of the other party then you wouldn't want the individual to profit from your mistake. Sure, you might rationalize it and say, 'well it was the company's fault,' but that still doesn't make your actions right. The company was kind enough to allow you to cancel your order - not all companies will let you do that, as I well know - and you offer them backhanded thanks by profitting from their mistake. This really is an evil deed, and you should not simply ignore it. I could start preaching about social contract theories here or talk about cognitive dissonance or the pre-conventional level of Kohlburg's Stage Theory........but just take me at my word - keeping that processor would be WRONG. So do the right thing and return it.

A

[tenebrenz]

A

no doubt

[kdiddy]

Again, I already told you what I am doing, so you can save all the holier-than-thou speeches. I just wanted people to simply answer the question, A or B. Not give me the who, what, where & why.

[Kedirekin]

Ah, no. You can't ask a question like that and not expect tons of rhetoric. That would be foolish, and getting upset with the people who spout that rhetoric is also foolish.

I find ethics a facinating thing to think about. If your family is starving, is it okay to steal a loaf of bread out of the bakers trash bin? (and I'm amazed that many people firmly believe that it *is* wrong).

How about stealing it off the shelf if you know it'll end up being thrown out at the end of the day?

You can take this all the way to holding the baker at gun point and forcing him to make you a loaf of bread. Almost everyone would be outraged to think this is ethically acceptable, but there really isn't any right or wrong - heck, he was going to spend the effort and use the materials to bake the loaf anyway, and he would have just thown it out - it's all just where we decide to draw the line.

As for keeping the PC or sending it back, it's up to you. It sounds like you're willing to accept the possible consequences, and it also sounds like you have no moral misgivings about how it impacts others.

For my own part, I'd return it because I know in the long run this kind of petty theft ends up increasing the cost of goods generally for all of us. You may think your saving $1,000 or so, but how much more are you spending for food and other goods because of your near-brethren who shop-lift or commit other acts of petty theft? Auto insurance is a perfect example of how people not caring about the big picture and suing for everything they can get has ended up costing us all. A few get lucky, and screw the rest of us.

[kdiddy]

Jeeezus H f*ckin christ people, it is NOT a whole PC, can you not follow a topic thread...it is a 120 buck processor, so again, if you chose to spout idiotic rhetoric, at least have the forethought to actually KNOW what it is you are speaking about.

[TactX]

@ kdiddy "the last outlaw" :)


I would go for ahmmmmmm.......



B



And now, go on and flame me, the Band Of The Hawk will save me !

[Kedirekin]

Boy, you are easily upset. I find that quite amusing under the circumstances. Why are you so defensive?

You've said 'processor' repeatedly, but 'not a whole PC'. I thought you meant CPU, as in the whole box, but not the monitor, mouse, keyboard, etc. This impression was strengthened when you said 'I found a better deal that included some other needed items along with the CPU'. Who would think you'd get extra stuff with a microprocessor, and never once did you say microprocessor. I think it is an easy and honest mistake to misunderstand what you were talking about. So please calm down - you're making me tense.

BTW: if it were $5, $10, or even $20, that would change the ethics for me. It may actually be a cost savings for the company to let you keep a $20 item rather than paying for shipping and the cost of restocking it. However, at $120, I'd still return it.

[DeathTheSheep]

C (none of the above):
-If bigwig company, check credit card statement for charges. If any, get mad at them for buggling the order.
-If small, OS embracing company, be the nicest, most honest guy you can and keep the--I MEAN-- "send it back."
-If just some other average online deallio: Flip a coin.
If heads, go with the first '-'
If tails, go with the second '-'.
If you loose the penny, it lands on its side, it spontaneously combusts, etc, call 911--I mean, the company and ask for a refund--I mean, tell them what happened (with slight embellishment), portraying you as a hero to the company.

That's what I'd do EXACTLY. RIGGGHT. :)

[zilog jones]

Why... did you just reply this thread!?
It's been a LONG time since an Athlon XP 1600 cost $120...

[arch_angel16]

*shrugs* just return it, get your refund, and complain that not only did they ship you a canceled order, they shipped incorrect parts. Then stop doing business with the shop, as it's obviously not staffed by intelligent individuals. Moral dilemma avoided. To be perfectly honest it's not a great idea to do business with incompetants.

[masken]

you've just fallen for a sales-trick. They will charge you with 99,9% certainity for this. And when the bill comes, it will be too late to return it.

Do you have any written proof that your order has been returned?

[m1ckran]

A

I think I would email the company (free action) telling them what they did and asking them to collect the unwanted stuff (free action) at their earliest convenience.

Conscience clear. :)

[dragongodz]

Why... did you just reply this thread!?
It's been a LONG time since an Athlon XP 1600 cost $120.
have to agree with zilog jones here. this thread was started in 2001 for frells sake. why are you posting what he should do now ?????

[m1ckran]

have to agree with zilog jones here. this thread was started in 2001 for frells sake. why are you posting what he should do now ?????

Good question...
Didn't notice that.

Well, I am a Registered Nutter... :o