First off--OK to steal from big store is at best an implication, but more accurately a response to the inference that the store was a mom and pop shop and that makes not paying them much much worse.
Secondly--the nexus of this thread was to determine what the timetable should be for the charge to clear, not to justify to myself or others not paying.
Thirdly--It's not an argument of whether or not it's right to retain goods that were or weren't paid for, but how much intervening into the merchant's responsibilities I'm accountable for. When you say I should "pay up," the implication is that I'm not willing to, or looking for ways not to. That's misleading. More appropriate would be the demand that I pay up again, which I don't necessarily think I should. Now, if they called me and told me there was an issue and asked me to give them the number again, I would. I think I'd be justified in telling them to !@#$ off and figure it out, but I wouldn't. If they made steps to fix the problem, I'd help them along. I don't think it's my responsibility to initiate a solution to their problem I didn't create.
Lastly--turned 29 a couple weeks ago. I'm the youngest of my friends (29-32), all of whom say I shouldn't call.