‘The Rich Don’t Play by the Rules. So Why Should I?’
4/22/202635 min
When does shoplifting become an act of political protest? The Opinion culture editor Nadja Spiegelman is calling this microlooting, and it describes the phenomenon of people stealing small things from big corporations like Whole Foods. The New Yorker writer Jia Tolentino and the political commentator Hasan Piker join Spiegelman for a lively discussion on what’s behind this trend and where it might lead.
Thoughts? Email us at theopinions@nytimes.com.
This episode of “The Opinions” was produced by Vishakha Darbha. It was edited by Kaari Pitkin and Jasmine Romero. Mixing by Carole Sabouruad. Video editing by Steph Khoury. The postproduction manager is Mike Puretz. Original music by Pat McCusker, Isaac Jones and Carole Sabouraud. Fact-checking by Mary Marge Locker and Kate Sinclair. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta and Kristina Samulewski. The director of Opinion Video is Jonah M. Kessel. The deputy director of Opinion Shows is Alison Bruzek. The director of Opinion Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser.
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSpeaker 00:00
I gave my brother a New York Times subscription.
Jia Tolentino· Guest0:03
We exchange articles. And so having read the same article, we can discuss it.
Hasan Piker· Guest0:07
She sent me a year-long subscription so I have access to all the games.
Speaker 00:11
The New York Times contributes to our quality time together.
Jia Tolentino· Guest0:14
It enriches our relationship.
Speaker 00:16
It was such a, a cool and thoughtful gift. We're reading the same stuff. We're making the same food. We're on the same page.
Nadja Spiegelman· Host0:24
Learn more about giving a New York Times subscription as a gift at nytimes.com/gift. [upbeat music] This is The Opinions, a show that brings you a mix of voices from New York Times Opinion. You've heard the news. Here's what to make of it. [upbeat music] Hey, I'm Nadja Spiegelman, and I'm a culture editor for New York Times Opinion. I'm proposing a new term, micro-looting. What I started doing is I started going into the grocery store. I would pick up a thing that I wanted, and then I would go.
Speaker 01:01
You're paying for that, right?
Nadja Spiegelman· Host1:03
No, babe. Food is a human right. People are taking small things from big corporations, and they're feeling justified.
Speaker 01:11
Like, look, everyone's shoplifting from Whole Foods when you're shopping there.
Hasan Piker· Guest1:15
You're not gonna steal from a deli like that. But Whole Foods? Fuck Whole Foods. Fuck Bezos. Fuck Amazon. All that.
Jia Tolentino· Guest1:21
Like, we should be rioting, but we're tired, so I'm gonna take these bagels.
Nadja Spiegelman· Host1:25
But is it a slippery slope? And what's going on with our moral code?