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Author Topic:   Why Do People Steal?
Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 1 of 270 (448457)
01-13-2008 4:55 PM


I work in a large grocery store and am constantly amazed at how many people steal from us. Thieves transcend ethnic, age, and socioeconomic bounds, but I would say that the vast majority of them are poor.
Whats wrong with these people? Even if they believe that Robin Hood would do the same thing to corporate behemoths, they need to realize that some of us depend on our livelihood from these giant Corporations, and that they are essentially stealing from us.
Note: I am assuming for the sake of this topic that any of us at EvC could be secret shoplifters...so speak out as if you were one. Tell me what got inside your head that said that it was ok to steal?
**********
Add By Edit:
The store I work at loses $300.00 a day, and we estimate that its probably a core group of 30 people or so that steal most of it. I can't wait until they get caught!
Edited by Phat, : added features

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 17 of 270 (448580)
01-14-2008 2:40 AM
Reply to: Message 11 by Omnivorous
01-13-2008 7:30 PM


Stealing is just not fair!
Nator writes:
The shoplifters' behavior is no different, in my mind, that the behavior of WalMart executives towards their employees.
I agree, Nator. Greed is the downfall of America. I have empathy for a truly poor Mom or Dad who has to steal a bit of food such as a sandwich, although I don't knowing let them do it. What irritates me is the Meth tweaker who is unemployed, hooked, and could care one whit about my job security as long as they can pilfer $30.00 to get high another day.
Mind you, I have been a gambling addict and know how helpless an addict is, but in my worst days, I never thought of stealing!!
Ringo writes:
Does the "we" that does the estimating do their share of stealing too?
God I hope not, Ringo. I have no idea what my Managers do, but if they too steal, God help this country!
Nemesis writes:
They aren't stealing from you for political reasons, Phat. They are stealing from you so they can have something for nothing, like all thieves.
I think that many thieves feel that they are justified in stealing from a large store that in their opinion charges too much. What they fail to realize is that prices will only continue to go up because of their selfish actions.
nwr writes:
I think the more interesting question is "why do people not steal?"
I was always taught that it was wrong. My parents never stole, and they were my primary early role models.
{They gambled, however! )
Jon writes:
How much do you folks charge for a gallon of milk? Loaf of bread? Can of soup?
Milk: $2.80. Bread? 89cents on up... Soup? $88 cents on up. But see above. The more greedy people are, the more stores will charge. If they simply lowered their prices, they would be like the evil Wal-Mart....where the executives make a fortune and the peon workers make $7.00 an hour and never will make much more. (WalMart is good for the American Consumer yet bad for the American worker who wants to get ahead in life.)

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 20 of 270 (448619)
01-14-2008 11:33 AM
Reply to: Message 19 by ThreeDogs
01-14-2008 9:41 AM


Hitting the nail on the head
ThreeDogs writes:
...the sensation of taking something surreptitiously is so adrenaline.
I couldn't have said it better myself!
I suppose, however, that we could then blame all of our addictions and predispositions on adrenaline or some similar hormone.

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 Message 19 by ThreeDogs, posted 01-14-2008 9:41 AM ThreeDogs has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 30 of 270 (641280)
11-18-2011 11:25 AM
Reply to: Message 28 by Omnivorous
01-15-2008 7:34 PM


Symptoms of societal disfunction
nator writes:
We all deeply resented these people. We worked really hard and here come these people taking advantage of our kindness and trust and bending us over and screwing us. It made us look at all of our customers more suspiciously, and I really hated that.
We too resent them. Most of us live paycheck to paycheck and, since we work, we don't get welfare benefits. Not only do these people get welfare, they steal on top of it so they can dare try and have a lifestyle like ours except that they never earned it!
I think that's what irks me the most. Rich people have everything, and these people are savvy enough to get theirs in life and outmaneuvering those of us trying to make it the honest way.
Although to be honest...if i was denied the privileges I have now, I too would find a way to get mine. Thus, human nature is universal.

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 45 of 270 (641336)
11-18-2011 4:43 PM
Reply to: Message 41 by Artemis Entreri
11-18-2011 3:39 PM


Re: fraud
Artemis is a prime example of some of the activity I encounter. At least he(you) are honest enough to tell us about it...I suspect that you are boasting. You feel better about life when you get a bargain that not everyone else gets.
Trouble is, you have set the terms for your bargain...which by the way is out and out fraud....and have informed us that you justify it in your own mind and in your own way. Fine...I appreciate your honesty and wont get mad at you personally for having the balls to discuss it with us. In a way, I understand the thrill that shoplifting often gives people. It is similar to my gambling addiction. I like the idea that I may be the unique one to win all of the money that a bunch of other suckers paid, but 95 times out of a hundred, I am just another sucker. We humans love feeling special, don't we? Heck, we can even justify our right to be exclusive.
The sad fact is, competition drives the market, and many are turning to dishonest means to get ahead in life. I hope that technology someday allows enough of a big brother presence so that everybody has to pay the same prices. I can't stand anyone getting better "deals" than I do.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 41 by Artemis Entreri, posted 11-18-2011 3:39 PM Artemis Entreri has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


(1)
Message 47 of 270 (641338)
11-18-2011 4:49 PM
Reply to: Message 46 by Omnivorous
11-18-2011 4:47 PM


Re: Symptoms of societal disfunction
Nahh..Im liberating them from their capitalist oppressors.
add by edit: Reasons?
1) They often take on a new life
2) Why have a database if old topics cant be resurrected?
3) I like that word--resurrection
4) Because it irritates Theodoric
Edited by Phat, : add

This message is a reply to:
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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 106 of 270 (641433)
11-19-2011 11:15 AM
Reply to: Message 105 by jar
11-19-2011 10:25 AM


Re: Make up your own definition.
jar writes:
It does not matter what you consider right or wrong, if it is illegal then it is a crime.
Smoking pot is illegal. Who is it a crime against?

This message is a reply to:
 Message 105 by jar, posted 11-19-2011 10:25 AM jar has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 113 of 270 (641496)
11-19-2011 6:23 PM
Reply to: Message 91 by Dr Adequate
11-18-2011 9:28 PM


Re: Who doesn't steal?
dogmafood writes:
How many readers would engage in a cash transaction in order to avoid paying the tax? I know I would and I consider myself to be scrupulously honest.
adequate writes:
I have declined to do so; I can't put my hand on my heart and say that I always would (I might behave differently if I was really strapped for cash).
If I could really trust that God would even everything out someday, I would never be tempted to take justice into my own hands. Wealthy folks get tax breaks and deplete MY pensions and MY investments to steal from us. When it becomes survival of the fittest...wait, thats probably what many safeway shoplifters use to reason with!

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 120 of 270 (641600)
11-20-2011 4:06 PM
Reply to: Message 119 by jar
11-20-2011 11:15 AM


Re: Make up your own definition.
Laws are made by popular consensus and can be amended by popular consensus, if situations warrant. I'll never let a trite legality stand in the way of common sense. If I run a red light on a deserted street corner at 3 am, I don't expect any cop to even bother pursuing me if they see, since they too have common sense.
Technically they could ticket me. That I will admit.

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 Message 119 by jar, posted 11-20-2011 11:15 AM jar has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 122 of 270 (641607)
11-20-2011 5:29 PM
Reply to: Message 121 by jar
11-20-2011 4:08 PM


Re: Make up your own definition.
jar writes:
If you run a red light on a deserted street corner at 3 am you are committing a crime.
If you were seen you should be ticketed.
This, from the man who tells us that its our duty to question God? I question humans, also. It would be my day in court.(FYI..consensus is that if the light stays red over a minute and no cars are in sight, treat it like a 4 way stop...around these parts.

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 124 of 270 (641611)
11-20-2011 5:45 PM
Reply to: Message 123 by jar
11-20-2011 5:38 PM


Why Do People Question Laws?
It is a crime, that much I'll agree with.
It is also a prime example of a law that should be challenged and amended.
(If in fact people were ticketed for running lights after waiting a reasonable amount of time and seeing no change)
Edited by Phat, : title

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 130 of 270 (641630)
11-20-2011 8:41 PM
Reply to: Message 129 by Dogmafood
11-20-2011 8:18 PM


A Crime Is A Crime Is A
If we were to determine that stealing a loaf of bread when motivated by hunger is in fact not a crime does this not impact the question of why people the steal?
I won't argue the fact that stealing is technically always a crime. Initially, what made me maddest at shoplifters is that these people were gaini9ng something that I could not have..(or would not have, due to personal morality) and I can't stand the idea of anyone profiting at my expense. What I mean is...our company would usually turn a blind eye to shoplifting, racking it up as a necessary expense of doing business...and would then go after labor as a bottom line expense! In other words, these people were indirectly affecting my job!
But thats another topic.

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 139 of 270 (642418)
11-28-2011 4:11 PM
Reply to: Message 136 by Artemis Entreri
11-28-2011 3:03 PM


Theft and Entitlement
AE writes:
Not a fan of capitalism?
I grew up privileged. My father came from a poor farm family, joined the navy and helped win World War II, then came home and went into business with my Uncle selling houses. They made a fair profit on each house, but only to raise families and pay the bills. Capitalism was all I ever knew, and I saw stories of how the US had it better than other countries, due, I figured, to the right God and the right intelligence. I never dreamed that capitalism had a seamier side until the past few years, and am now a fan of limited socialism.
As an American, I quite naturally felt that I had a birthright to prosperity, and the leveling of the global economy is testing my altruism, faith, and ideas of what I am and am not entitled to.
My friend, a staunch Milton Friedman Republican, tells me that I will have to compete and learn new skills in order to hold my own in the new order, and I sadly agree...though I fear that many of my countrymen will try and pick a fight...if only they figure out who it is they are fighting. Once they find out it is themselves, they will wish to high heaven for the good old days!
Perhaps my country stole a lot to get where it was...and now I see that the wealthier people wish to distance the rest of us and leave us competing with a rising hungry world.
Would I steal tea? No, I have no right to set my own prices.
I still believe in the idea of rules, even if they favor others than myself...though I should never have to be poor.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 136 by Artemis Entreri, posted 11-28-2011 3:03 PM Artemis Entreri has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 155 of 270 (642736)
12-01-2011 7:07 AM
Reply to: Message 143 by Artemis Entreri
11-29-2011 12:43 PM


Re: Theft and Entitlement
quote:
don't hate the player, hate the game.
And yes, I can identify with the poor people who steal from my store. They have nothing in life. To them, the store has more than enough...and in fact even figures shoplifting into its bottom line.
I would differentiate some poor mother on welfare who needs zinc ointment for her infant son and is flat broke until payday with some thug hustla who simply wants to boost (steal for a fence) several hundred dollars worth of product in order to put gasoline in his Mercedes, which he also bought with illegal drug money.
As far as the store being a fraudster itself, keep in mind that each level of individuals in the company have already figured their wages into the equation and no extra money is being made. The CEO takes their cut first, giving much of it to the stockholders and paying themselves an excessive(in my view) salary.
The middle managers have a bonus, which is gained through controlling store expenses...which includes labor, much to my disillusionment with free market capitalism.
Then we employees, belonging to a labor union, negotiated our wages with an uncaring corporation who would just as soon pay some noobs $8.00 an hour to do badly what we do well.
There is no fraud in capitalism. It is cut and dried. Everyone gets a cut. The customer is bending the rules if they make their own prices. Typical capitalist logic would say to shop elsewhere, and the main reason that I don't like shoplifters is because the corporation then takes the loss out of my hard earned labor wage and hours.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 143 by Artemis Entreri, posted 11-29-2011 12:43 PM Artemis Entreri has replied

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Phat
Member
Posts: 18248
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 165 of 270 (642778)
12-01-2011 2:29 PM
Reply to: Message 164 by Artemis Entreri
12-01-2011 2:07 PM


Re: Theft and Entitlement
Onifre writes:
It seems like you only accept shoplifting from someone from a lower class than you (mom on welfare) than from someone who you don't think should be in a higher class than you but is due to drug money... Why?
Because I've earned my position in life through hard work and a decent, honest family...and I can't respect or even stand someone who hustles their way to the top...be they lower or higher economic class initially. Granted the drug dealer metaphor was a bit cliche, but I've seen drug dealers(suspected) around our store and they and their damn "grips of cash" annoy me to no end. Mind you, I feel the same ire towards wealthy trustafarian children of the upper middle class. I say if I gotta play the game by the rules, everybodymust do likewise...or lock em up and/or shoot em!
frako writes:
a while back a family of gypsies tried to steal copper wire they forgot to check if it was still connected, so like in some cartoon the first grabs the wire and is getting electrocuted so then the second grabs him and also gets electrocuted 3 more follow before they call for help when i was reading the news article that had this story i was pissing my pants in laughter they all got treated for electrical burns and arrested for stealing.
I love it! Serves them right! I will say it again...I can't stand anyone cutting in line ahead of me who didnt earn their spot through hard work and honesty.
frako writes:
Their kids hardly go to school even mandatory primary school .....
Which is why they are all lowlife thieves. One could use drug money to fund an education, couldn't they?
ArtemisEntreri writes:
Life isToo $hort. You gotta get in where you fit in.
Even competition has to have some sort of rules. This whole idea of survival of the strongest and smartest in the absence of any ethical or moral standards is the reason why My Dad fought World War II and came home, working honestly and diligently to give his kids a chance at a better future...honestly!

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