Discussion Groups / English Usage / September 2010

The full article: http://Now.to/6f2k

QUESTION 1:

"Experimental economists have found that people
will sacrifice their own resources to punish cheaters
and free riders, and will do this even to anonymous
strangers that they will never again interact with –
a behavior dubbed “altruistic punishment.” There is
a pleasure to this as well. Just as giving to someone
in need elicits a positive neural response, so does
taking from someone who deserves it."

I'm confused by "so does taking from someone who
deserves it." I think we would feel a sense of pleasure
to take something from one who DOESN'T deserve it.

QUESTION 2:

"The problem that arises is that our gut moral feelings
are poorly attuned to consequences. The patterns of
charitable donation to foreign countries often have more
to do with the salience of news reports than to actual
considerations about where the money is most needed.
And laboratory findings show that people will continue
to punish even if they are well aware that doing so is
actually making things worse. It is not difficult to see
the consequences of this in the real world."

I don't know why "people will continue to punish even
if they are well aware that doing so is actually making
things worse." To gain sailent attention from the media?
Or they just don't know how to regulate that impulse?

Thanks for answering my queries.