[Avodah] Ownership ?

[Zev Sero]

Rich, Joel wrote:
> Reuven lends shimon a glass vase and tells him he can keep it as long as 
> he wants and if by some chance he doesn't return it not to worry because 
> Reuven is mochel in advance for that possibility.  On his way home, 
> shimon stops at the light where levi, busy talking on his self phone, 
> knocks shimon over and the vase breaks. To whom, if anyone, does levi 
> pay the value of the vase, and why?

Um, this seems extremely simple.  Ask yourself another question, and it
will become blindingly obvious:  Suppose Shimon heads straight for the
market and sells the vase.  Is he a thief?  Of course he is.  Reuven
very clearly did *not* give up ownership of the vase.  He fully expects
that when Shimon no longer needs it, if it's still in usable condition,
it will be returned.  And if, one day, he suddenly finds himself in need
of it, he will have no hesitation in asking Shimon to return it.  So
there's no question that Levi owes the money to Reuven, not to Shimon.

-- 
Zev Sero                      The trouble with socialism is that you
zev at sero.name                 eventually run out of other people’s money
                                                     - Margaret Thatcher