Stealing out of necessity, or stealing out of a mental condition? These are kind of like the two extremes. One end is where the person steals what they need which they are unable to pay for, while the other side is where someone steals even when they don't need what they are stealing, but rather, they simply need to steal! (Also, I know condone-able isn't a word; but meh.)
Alright, so you're wondering if it's better to steal because you have to or steal because you need to? While both instances end in the same result, very different forces drive them. However, a person can still feel the same about both cases of object liberation...sorry, I suck at picking sides. A person stealing out of necessity is doing what they have to do to survive. There's no other way around it, it's the only way they know. But, this doesn't mean they don't feel guilt at stealing. They may very well know that they're keeping someone else lower on the ladder by stealing, but know that if push came to shove, that other person might keep the thief in question down if given the chance. Now, a person driven to theft by compulsion is something else entirely. There is no rhyme or reason to the theft, the thievery simply must occur. The thief is not aware of any necessity to take, they simply do, and this can cause quite the psychological conundrum. In this case, I think the burden of guilt is greater. The compulsive thief can be wracked with guilt over how they simply take without need, impeding other peoples' success. Alright. I think that, with this short assessment, I can decide that a person with a compulsion to steal is more in the right than a person who has to steal. Cleptomaniacs win.
The person who steals from need is both right and wrong. Wrong for hurting others, but right to keep themselves and possibly their families alive. The kleptomaniac is neither right nor wrong. They simply do not have the brain function to be doing a moral wrong, any more than a cat shredding your couch does.
At first, I thought this thread was called "Which was more condom-able." Then when I read the first line, about with something about a mental condition, and I had a brain cramp imagining retards using condoms. More on topic, I don't see what the point of this thought experiment is...stealing is stealing.
We are having some problems with gypsies recently (for the uninformed: completely uneducated people living in enclaves; lot of them stealing, robbing, stabbing, otherwise wreaking havoc, and of course regularly playing the race card). Their main excuse is that they are stealing out of necessity. Of course they usually forget to mention the plenty of opportunities they could've taken. Or their unwillingness to make things right. Or the damage to families they rob. So no, fuck those who try to rationalize it with this excuse.
Regardless of motivation, both would be perfect specimens for the resocialisation and subsequent Military Duty. Saves you to the hassle of framing people.
You defined what both sides are, but I'm curious as to why you chose the side that you did based on those definitions. I'm only asking because I chose the opposite side. Unless you're stating that, psychologically, cleptos feel they can only survive by satiating their need to steal things? After all, what driving force is greater than the need to survive? I can tell you that if it ever came down to me or my family dying of starvation, I'm going steal your food for our survival. And I won't even feel guilty about it.
Because of the definitions I used, and how I interpreted my own words, I assumed the cleptos innocent of the decision to steal. In retrospect, this could be a massive error, but a compulsion is a compelling act. Plain and simple. And while not everyone feels guilty, I supposed that's a matter of personal taste. If I was forced to steal someone's food in order to survive, I would regret stealing mainly because I'm oddly compelled to get people to like me. I'm not using that as a level of judgement, and I'm certain you don't necessarily care. I'm a strange young man, by popular opinion.
My grandparent's generation had the need to steal in order to live. I say that because though they had plenty of chances, most of them chose not to. Several of my maternal grandmother's siblings died because she would not steal food - to this day she's unsure about her moral standing. My paternal grandfather, on the other hand, did not steal in order to keep the enemy's trust - he was a delivery boy for the Japanese, being able to speak Japanese, Chinese and English - though they certainly tempted him many times. His family didn't suffer quite as badly as my grandmothers, though, which to him is a blessing.
Our local mall had a problem with Gypsies, as they travelled through, they stole things. One lady got caught having taken a whole knife block (You know? THe wooden thing that holds knives?) and slipped it up her skirt when nobody was looking, and was walking around outside with it between her thighs. I don't know how they caught her. The estimated value of the knives was around $500. The company that owns the mall has since placed a rule barring gypsises from entering the mall.* *I don't know the wording, etc, but they've managed to do it semi-legally.