Is It Morally Wrong To Buy Stolen Starbucks Free Drink Coupons On eBay?

Starbucks Gossip has an interesting moral quandary for you Consumerists:

Is it morally wrong to buy stolen “Free Drink” coupons on eBay in order to drink your Starbucks for pennies on the dollar?” Apparently, there’s a seedy underground of bulk Starbucks coupon dealers operating in the shadows of the coffee giant.

From Starbucks Gossip:

“For five or six years now I’ve been buying my drinks at Starbucks with free drink coupons. I buy them in bulk online at eBay. I have talked to the company officers about this, and they don’t seem to really care, so I feel like if they don’t care why should I? The coupons save me about half of my drink cost, unless I go nuts and get a vente or extra shots. Why do you think Starbucks don’t seem to care? I know that the people I buy them from are stealing them from the store and then selling them on eBay. I just got my 2008 supply of coupons at $2.47 per coupon.”

The tipster says that when he contacted Starbucks to ask if this was evil behavior on his part, they just thanked him for being a loyal Starbucks customer and sent a $20.00 gift certificate for his trouble.

Wouldn’t you be suspicious of a guy who’s always getting drinks with free-drink coupons? [Starbucks Gossip]
(Photo:Travelin’ Librarian)

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