Here’s another ethical issue and Jewish source response:

Case

Max bought a brand new BB gun.  He and “the folks” had gone through all the rules about what he could shoot at and what he could not.  He had agreed that living things were out of bounds. No birds. No squirrels. No snakes – unless someone was in danger.  That left almost nothing. He spent a week safely knocking cans off a wall. Now he was bored. He went into the garage and found a really old set of dishes.  No one even remembered where they came from. He set up the dishes and had lots of fun breaking the plates safely. Mom came out and yelled at him. She agreed that he was following all the rules but added a new one: “You can’t break useful things.”  He said, “That is ridiculous. I should be able to break anything no one in the family wants anymore.” Mom argued, “Somebody might want them someday.” Max said, “They are ours – we can do with them what we want.”

Answer

[a] In the Torah it says: “You may not cut down fruit trees when you lay siege to a city.” (Deut. 20:19-20)

[b] In the Talmud that becomes a law called Ba’al Tashchit: “It is forbidden to destroy vessels or garments, or tear down buildings or clog up wells, or waste food in a destructive manner.” (Kiddushin 32a)

[c] The Shulchan Arukh makes this even clearer.  It says, “You cannot waste anything which other people will find useful.” (Laws of Body and Soul, 14)

Joel Grishaver, “You Be the Judge”, pgs. 116-117

Used with permission from Joel Grishaver