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The pictures of the pollution and mess the thieves leave behind is really heartbreaking. The article meanders around the point without getting to it. But our s

The pictures of the pollution and mess the thieves leave behind is really heartbreaking. The article meanders around the point without getting to it. But our society just really has no effective way stop nonviolent crime. The police have bigger problems. The train and shipping companies would rather just pay for the insurance. The only people who care are the insurance companies but they have no authority. If you ask the question - how much crime could the average person get away if they wanted to, the answer is a lot. In a way it's almost reassuring how little crime there is right now.

wincy 3y ago
Depends on where you live. In my city in the Midwest, some people tried to push three shopping carts of merchandise out of a TJ Maxx, drove into a cop car that was trying to stop them, then drove down the highway toward the police HQ (I’m guessing on accident), and as they tried to escape crashed into another car and flipped their vehicle. This feels like a lot for shoplifting. At the same time, as a law abiding citizen this coming down hard on crime sure makes my life easier. My TJ Maxx doesn’t have boards on the windows and they don’t have off duty cops posted at the door, unlike the Target I visited on my trip last year to the SF Bay Area. So the question is which society do we want to live in, or is there an optimal middle ground?
- bigstrat2003 3y ago
  Speaking for myself, I would rather have the scenario you live in and it isn't even close. I'm not without sympathy for people who are less fortunate in life, and I do think we should help them. But I'm not willing to tolerate crime as the cost of doing so.
cbsmith 3y ago
> The only people who care are the insurance companies but they have no authority. That's not strictly true. Usually there are terms attached to insurance agreements, and there's a lot of flexibility there in terms of discounts you can provide to insurees who employ useful mitigations.
snypher 3y ago
I mean where does all that Amazon junk go anyway? I think it just looks worse all in a pile like this.

wincy 3y ago

Depends on where you live. In my city in the Midwest, some people tried to push three shopping carts of merchandise out of a TJ Maxx, drove into a cop car that was trying to stop them, then drove down the highway toward the police HQ (I’m guessing on accident), and as they tried to escape crashed into another car and flipped their vehicle. This feels like a lot for shoplifting. At the same time, as a law abiding citizen this coming down hard on crime sure makes my life easier. My TJ Maxx doesn’t have boards on the windows and they don’t have off duty cops posted at the door, unlike the Target I visited on my trip last year to the SF Bay Area. So the question is which society do we want to live in, or is there an optimal middle ground?

bigstrat2003 3y ago
Speaking for myself, I would rather have the scenario you live in and it isn't even close. I'm not without sympathy for people who are less fortunate in life, and I do think we should help them. But I'm not willing to tolerate crime as the cost of doing so.

cbsmith 3y ago

> The only people who care are the insurance companies but they have no authority. That's not strictly true. Usually there are terms attached to insurance agreements, and there's a lot of flexibility there in terms of discounts you can provide to insurees who employ useful mitigations.

snypher 3y ago

I mean where does all that Amazon junk go anyway? I think it just looks worse all in a pile like this.