Illustration by Matt Collins

Q: My sister gets an employee discount at the electronics store where she works, and occasionally she lets me use it. The markdown is only 10 percent, so the store still makes a profit. It's better than no sale, right?

A: Right! Some stores cap the number of purchases that can be made using an employee discount in order to avoid abuses. I don't think this sort of intrafamilial advantage-taking is fraud. —Anita L. Allen, professor of law and philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania Law School

Wrong! The discount isn't meant for you, and it is fraudulent and dishonest to take it. You don't have the right to decide how much profit a store should make on its goods. —Jack Marshall That's for the store to decide, not your sister. Have her ask first. If they tell her no, you'll be out a few bucks. —Rushworth M. Kidder, founder of the Institute for Global Ethics