 If this is how we understand treating others merely as means, then doing so does not always amount to acting wrongly, it  appears.[10]  Suppose that a gangster considers a barista a mere tool to get coffee and that he would treat her in whichever way would best serve his interests. In buying coffee from her, the gangster treats her merely as a means on this account, but does not, it seems, act wrongly (Parfit 2011: 216).