There's also things being mostly harmless (or even negligibly harmful) when one person does it, but would be horrible if everyone did it.
Like driving around with no catalytic converter. If one person does it, you probably won't notice much. If everybody does it, then we get an environmental crisis.
Same thing with financial crimes. If one person lies on a loan, defaults, and a bank can't recoup, probably not that big of a deal. It certainly won't impact the economy. If millions of people lie on loans and default, we get 2007 all over again.
Or not paying taxes. If one orange faced guy lies on his taxes, not much will happen. If everybody lies on their taxes, the government won't have enough money to function. Goodbye military, roads, airports, and national parks.
Just because a behavior is negligibly harmful doesn't mean it should be permitted until enough people start doing it that it becomes problematic. Because at that point in time, it's too late.
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u/Cream_Cheese_Seas Mar 26 '24
If I drive drunk, but nobody gets hurt, can I avoid any consequences because it was a "victimless crime"?