Its not really so easy to peg the blame solely on the existence criminals. For one thing what makes a person a criminal changes over time as we redefine what is

Its not really so easy to peg the blame solely on the existence criminals. For one thing what makes a person a criminal changes over time as we redefine what is illegal and what technically illegal acts are given priority enough to enforce. More importantly though, generations past also often lived in smaller communities then we have today. When your world is smaller and you are only a degree or two of separation away from everyone, people often feel more bound to a certain standard of behavior. Stealing a bike in NYC today is one thing, stealing a bike in a town where you probably know whose bike it is and someone will recognize it if you ever actually ride it is very different. The larger we grow societal centers and the more we expand the boundaries of our own world, the more we break societal bonds and need laws to enforce rules that are more easily broken when your victim is just another random person living there.