Looting is looting
If you’re lucky, of course, your house is undestroyed and it happens to be well-stocked by canned goods and bottled water. But say it’s not. It’s not like the people of Concepcion can walk down to the ATM machine, withdraw some cash, take it the store, and then go buy food. Nor can you just say “well, they should have power back on in a few days, we’ll just eat on Thursday.”
And many residents in the most damaged areas have not only taken food from supermarkets, but also robbed banks, set fires and engaged in other forms of lawlessness.
I guess I’m sympathetic to not calling people who break into a closed grocery store to get food “looters.” But I’m willing to bet there’s at least some overlap between people trying to nab TVs and iPods along with some fruits and veggies. The point is that lawlessness spreads, and if people see others breaking into stores to grab snacks it’s probably only a matter of time before electronics shops get their windows smashed in as well.