Crime: Why does anyone even bother?

[onthespot]

The thing is... most often, before the person comes to the point of stealing in order to eat, or "baby needs new shoes" or what have you, a LOT of poor decisions were made that led up to that "emergency situation" (otherwise known as the cumulative result of many poor decisions.

 

[darkmatter]

Crime: Why does anyone even bother?

You should ask my broker, lawyer, and that used car salesman I dealt with last week. And I do believe the Politicians think they have a license to steal. I don't even want to talk about the Oil companies.

 

[arabianequine]

Quote:
Awwww hang em....taxpapers don't want to pay for their punishment if caught. Seriously so what is equivalent punishment for this? Stealing to feed yourself etc.?

 

[gritsar]

I've made the tough choices before. I grew up dirt poor, the youngest of six kids. For an extended period of time my family lived in an area of Miami known as Overtown - about 15 blocks from where "Simms" lived. Simms killed a man for talking smack to his sister! How did his poverty have anything to do with that??? He made a stupid choice, pure and simple.

Not one of us six kids turned to crime to eat or have anything that wasn't rightfully ours. You make choices and if you make the wrong ones, you have to face the consequences.

Sorry, using the excuse of a lousy childhood or being hungry or poor doesn't cut it in my book.

 

[thebirdguy]

Quote:
OOOOOOOOOOOO I KNOW I KNOW!!!!!
The chicken crossed the road to demonstrate proficiency standard 3.1 of the Barnyard Poultry Standards of Competence which requires all mobile egg laying fowl to achieve mastery of independent locomotion and orienteering in unfamiliar surroundings.

that's the best answer I have ever heard as to why!!

 

[noodleroo]

One of the interesting phrases that I hear from incarcerated individuals, especially those that are on probation and did something to cause their probation officer to file a motion to revoke their probation is: "I just needed...." To most of them, 'need' is an entitlement and 'just' means 'not that much' or 'not that bad.'

Those three words say infinate volumes: 'I just needed to use a little so I won't detox so hard.' 'I just needed $20 so I could buy my baby some Pampers.' 'I just needed a propeller for my boat so I could go make some money'. And on and on... There is no end to this kind of thinking in our society, so lock up your stuff, make eye contact so you don't look like a victim and be smart. There are people who 'just need' everywhere.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:

 

[elizabethbinary]

Quote:
Sorry this is the one I meant to reply to.

I disagree, and i resent the broad term of anyone who has had to make the tough choice between eating and not, a scum bag. There is a difference between dealing drugs, and stealing a sandwich, prostitution for designer bags, and a young girl getting caught up in prostitution when she's been on the streets for thee weeks.
You can not make sweeping generalizations on a complex issue involving crime and poverty.

So you can, but I can't?

Just because I have sympathy for a different side of the coin does not make my opinion less valid. I will continue to hold my values just as you will hold to yours.

 

[elizabethbinary]

Quote:
I disagree. You can tell a lot about the human condition by the way they treat their lowest common denominator. It's why I got into prison health - the 'comforts of home' is a laughable comment. Prison isn't terribly challenging (and prisoners say this, just keep your nose clean) but it isn't particularly home-like either. A lot of the things that get taken away from prisons (like television) actually CAUSE more crime because the criminals become bored and destructive, like children. The reason I took a particulart interest in prison diets is because I found they were feeding prisoners things that were proven to cause an increase in crime rate.

All these things people want to take away from criminals (some who have done MINOR crimes) are the things that give them a higher chance of reformation. Unless we want to shut them away for every day and pay 200k a year in taxes each, we're going to have to work on reformation. Created bored obese criminals and putting them in a room to learn off each other for five years and then sending them into the world where nobody will give the a job because of their record... will only cause more crime. We can agree on that much, I'm sure.

Let me be frank-that sounds like a bunch of fertilizer. Their diet causes an increase in crime? No, the fact that they are narcissistic idiots is what causes them to commit crimes. I thought someone in an earlier post said they were committing crime in order to get something to eat???? Now they're committing crime BECAUSE they were GIVEN something to eat???? Interesting...
Prison isn't terribly challenging? That's too bad, they had an opportunity to be challenged by getting an education and availing themselves of the countless chances to go to college. Did they? No, they're lazy and would rather steal from someone that did just that.
Those of you that have sympathy for these jackwagons might have a TOTALLY different perspective on this whole thing had some convict who jumped bail did a drive by on your house because you loaned his girlfriend's husband money to get a divorce-happened to me and had he not been such a coward and run, he'd have gotten a big surprise from me and wouldn't be sitting in prison right now. I don't feel sorry for his worthless...self. He could have easily killed me or my husband.
There is a place in the dictionary where you can find sympathy, but I won't be real descriptive as to where it is...not appropriate for this site.
If you don't have a problem with criminals and you want them treated so beautifully by society, by all means, post your address on the internet welcoming them into your home-maybe it'll save one of us that DOES have a problem with them and no sympathy for them from being robbed, carjacked or worse.

I have welcomed ex-cons into my home. I have helped them reform. So if you want to say my compassion is all put up just for show, you can close that topic.

As for the rest of it - I said it before and I'll say it again. 1. I said increase in crime, not CAUSEof crime and 2. I specifically said, repeatedly, I was not discussing murderers at this time - but I greatly don't think you'd like my opinion on that either.

I like how you don't think I have problems with the law or crime. I do have problems with crime. I also got to actually know some criminals. Just so, for a moment, I can see it from THEIR side. I'm not even asking you to change your opinion! I'm asking you to stop for a moment and put yourself in their shoes for just a moment and think what it's like for A MOMENT to be them. To feel what they feel. If you understand the criminal, you can make efforts to stop the crime. Before it happens.

 

[KristyHall]

Quote:
Let me be frank-that sounds like a bunch of fertilizer. Their diet causes an increase in crime? No, the fact that they are narcissistic idiots is what causes them to commit crimes. I thought someone in an earlier post said they were committing crime in order to get something to eat???? Now they're committing crime BECAUSE they were GIVEN something to eat???? Interesting...
Prison isn't terribly challenging? That's too bad, they had an opportunity to be challenged by getting an education and availing themselves of the countless chances to go to college. Did they? No, they're lazy and would rather steal from someone that did just that.
Those of you that have sympathy for these jackwagons might have a TOTALLY different perspective on this whole thing had some convict who jumped bail did a drive by on your house because you loaned his girlfriend's husband money to get a divorce-happened to me and had he not been such a coward and run, he'd have gotten a big surprise from me and wouldn't be sitting in prison right now. I don't feel sorry for his worthless...self. He could have easily killed me or my husband.
There is a place in the dictionary where you can find sympathy, but I won't be real descriptive as to where it is...not appropriate for this site.
If you don't have a problem with criminals and you want them treated so beautifully by society, by all means, post your address on the internet welcoming them into your home-maybe it'll save one of us that DOES have a problem with them and no sympathy for them from being robbed, carjacked or worse.

I have welcomed ex-cons into my home. I have helped them reform. So if you want to say my compassion is all put up just for show, you can close that topic.

As for the rest of it - I said it before and I'll say it again. 1. I said increase in crime, not CAUSEof crime and 2. I specifically said, repeatedly, I was not discussing murderers at this time - but I greatly don't think you'd like my opinion on that either.

I like how you don't think I have problems with the law or crime. I do have problems with crime. I also got to actually know some criminals. Just so, for a moment, I can see it from THEIR side. I'm not even asking you to change your opinion! I'm asking you to stop for a moment and put yourself in their shoes for just a moment and think what it's like for A MOMENT to be them. To feel what they feel. If you understand the criminal, you can make efforts to stop the crime. Before it happens.

Well said. Until we make greater efforts to find what encourages crime, and make efforts to address these problems (poverty, poor education, social and ethnic issues) we will continue to have these problems.