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I used to work for GW and in one store and we had a memorable failed theft. We were doing our normal Saturday daycare, and one of the regular kids told us to keep an eye on one of the others. This other was watching a game, and also spending several hours slowly filling his bag with blisters. We intercepted him outside as he tried to leave and he instantly burst into tears. A couple of phone calls later the dad shows up, really embarrassed and apologetic. Then the mum shows up and goes completely psycho on the kid. We didn't call the police in the end, decided the reaction of the mum was enough for that kid.

Ironically, about 6 months later the manager was arrested, turned out he'd been taking loans from the cash register.

Ketara wrote:I mean, considering the kind of careers I know the regulars here have....let's see....soldiers, lawyers, businessmen, students, artists, etc, we don't seem to be comprised very highly of the 'criminal' element.

Students, lawyers and businessmen are often some of the biggest crooks and thieves around, but I agree with the general point you are trying to make

Oh, certainly. But how often do you see a businessman on 40K a year trying to steal a £6 blister?

I stole something two decades ago from a toy store in Belgium during a vacation: a small piece of plastic hay from a tractor set. Don't know why I did it, but for the rest of that week I felt miserable. I threw the stolen item away at the end of the week.

My experiences with theft in the store have been mentioned over at off-topic though it still boggles my mind. Maybe it's my built-in moral compass (I'm like Captain America when it comes to my senses of right and wrong, only not as cool and my outfit has little windmills instead of wings on the cowl) but I just can't fathom why people do it.

Why do people feel guilty?I don't when I do something bad, I am scared but not guilty...Like when I refuse to do my homework or break someone's window

My major theft story was when I was 16. the funnier thing is that I wasn't there for this one and it was the one I got charges for (now expunged but they were there for a bit of time). Me and some buddies were hanging out on my friends boat (he didn't live in a house, he lived on a sailboat on the river). We got hungry and 2 of them decided to go get something to eat. It was in February and I wasn't feeling well so I decided to stay at the boat and wait for them. About 45 minutes after they had left (we had a gas station near by but from where he lived walking it was about 30 minutes) I realized that none of them had any money and figured they would of been back rather soon. Well within the next 20 minutes they come strolling up with about 20 cans of soda and a bunch of snacks. They had broken into a vending machine at the near by golf course.

I left in the morning when it wasn't 15 Fahrenheit outside and walked home. I saw quite a few sheriff's drive by and was somewhat perplexed as to why, I thought they had just pulled the snaking the arm into the machine to get the snacks. About 4 hours later we get a knock on the door at my place and apparently they had stole a flat bed truck, drove it around on the green and then pushed it into one of the ponds before breaking the vending machine to get the snacks. I got lumped into it with them and had to pay for quite a bit of that stuff also.

and there's my theft story. Aside from things that I feel no moral pull to (torrenting, photocopying books, P2P, connecting to a unprotected network and using power/water), I've never really stolen anything. I've been given things that were stolen.

as a teenager, i see stealing going on with great regularity. school for example someone will get thier food slip the queaue before the regester an saunter away. it enrages me alot.
only once have i seriously considered stealing something and that was about four years ago. I was in church and the service had ended and everyone was out in the pourch talking. i came to this pew and saw this little white evelope. i pick it up an look inside and theres four 20 euro notes inside. in that moment i seriously considered taking them and at ten years old my mind didnt even think about weather it was right or wrong, or even the fact i was in church! thankfully some little voice told me not to and gave the money to the man who had been sitting in the pew.
when i was in london for my new year celebrations some one tried to steal a jacket off my body! thankfuly my cousins boyfriend at the time was a good runer and he got it back.
but if in the center of london( no offense to londoners) people see it as acceptalbe to steal then i am shocked at our world...
assult marine

Samus_aran115 wrote:I really find you guys hard to believe. "omg,the only thing I've ever stole was a paper clip!".Yeah right. Give me a break. I'm sure at least someone here has stolen a phone,or an iPod, or a wallet. I wouldn't be surprised if any of you stole a car,tbh.

The world's a tough place. I find it hard to believe that people like you exist in this day and age.

Yeah, you caught us, we've all committed grand theft auto.

I've never stolen any thing like that in my life, never have, never will. I've had my phone AND iPod stolen from me, and I know how it feels. Maybe you're the kind of waste of space that does these things, but most other people don't.

Captain_Trips01 wrote:

Yeah, you caught us, we've all committed grand theft auto.

according to a Courthouse in a North Carolina county I have. Theft sucks even more when you weren't there for it and you get charged for it. It would of made it worth getting the false charges if I would of been there doing it. But that is another rant for another time.

Ketara wrote:

Samus_aran115 wrote:I really find you guys hard to believe. "omg,the only thing I've ever stole was a paper clip!".Yeah right. Give me a break. I'm sure at least someone here has stolen a phone,or an iPod, or a wallet. I wouldn't be surprised if any of you stole a car,tbh.

The world's a tough place. I find it hard to believe that people like you exist in this day and age.

To be perfectly honest, the kind of crowd we encourage here on Dakka:- that is to say, literate, mildly intellectual, and the kind of person who plays with toy soldiers in a fantasy universe - is not really the kind of people who tend to do Grand Theft Auto in real life.

I mean, considering the kind of careers I know the regulars here have....let's see....soldiers, lawyers, businessmen, students, artists, etc, we don't seem to be comprised very highly of the 'criminal' element.

That's a good point. The kind of people who play poker on the internet 24/7 and shoot heroine, those are the kind of people who I'd expect to steal a car...(if they played poker 24/7,when would they have time to steal a car,lol?)!


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Captain_Trips01 wrote:

Samus_aran115 wrote:I really find you guys hard to believe. "omg,the only thing I've ever stole was a paper clip!".Yeah right. Give me a break. I'm sure at least someone here has stolen a phone,or an iPod, or a wallet. I wouldn't be surprised if any of you stole a car,tbh.

The world's a tough place. I find it hard to believe that people like you exist in this day and age.

Yeah, you caught us, we've all committed grand theft auto.

I've never stolen any thing like that in my life, never have, never will. I've had my phone AND iPod stolen from me, and I know how it feels. Maybe you're the kind of waste of space that does these things, but most other people don't.

Um,okay? WTF are you getting angry for? Are you gonna cry or something?

No need to shoot accusations at me for questioning the morality of individuals in an internet situation. I guarantee If I went to a forum for something like...Rap music, the results would be overwhelmingly negative. I still find it hard to believe people can uphold such good values.

Ketara wrote:

Samus_aran115 wrote:I really find you guys hard to believe. "omg,the only thing I've ever stole was a paper clip!".Yeah right. Give me a break. I'm sure at least someone here has stolen a phone,or an iPod, or a wallet. I wouldn't be surprised if any of you stole a car,tbh.

The world's a tough place. I find it hard to believe that people like you exist in this day and age.

To be perfectly honest, the kind of crowd we encourage here on Dakka:- that is to say, literate, mildly intellectual, and the kind of person who plays with toy soldiers in a fantasy universe - is not really the kind of people who tend to do Grand Theft Auto in real life.

I mean, considering the kind of careers I know the regulars here have....let's see....soldiers, lawyers, businessmen, students, artists, etc, we don't seem to be comprised very highly of the 'criminal' element.

We seem to be in no short supply of the stupid ones though...

LOL...

.......lol

.

Inquisitor_Syphonious wrote:

Ketara wrote:

Samus_aran115 wrote:I really find you guys hard to believe. "omg,the only thing I've ever stole was a paper clip!".Yeah right. Give me a break. I'm sure at least someone here has stolen a phone,or an iPod, or a wallet. I wouldn't be surprised if any of you stole a car,tbh.

The world's a tough place. I find it hard to believe that people like you exist in this day and age.

To be perfectly honest, the kind of crowd we encourage here on Dakka:- that is to say, literate, mildly intellectual, and the kind of person who plays with toy soldiers in a fantasy universe - is not really the kind of people who tend to do Grand Theft Auto in real life.

I mean, considering the kind of careers I know the regulars here have....let's see....soldiers, lawyers, businessmen, students, artists, etc, we don't seem to be comprised very highly of the 'criminal' element.

We seem to be in no short supply of the stupid ones though...

Examining the three posts above me, you may have a point.

Tony the guardsman wrote:Why do people feel guilty?I don't when I do something bad, I am scared but not guilty...Like when I refuse to do my homework or break someone's window

Because they have morals and ethics?

Tony the guardsman wrote:Why do people feel guilty?I don't when I do something bad, I am scared but not guilty...Like when I refuse to do my homework or break someone's window

At the risk of extrapolating, this tells me that your only incentive not to do bad is the fear you'll be caught? Doesn't speak well for personal character, but Hobbs would be proud.

Edit: Bah, Frazzled, you ethics ninja you!

Well I know they have pride and moral, but I don't know what guilt feels like!I m sure I've felt it before, but I dun know when to call it guilt, is it connected to fear?

Frazzled wrote:

Tony the guardsman wrote:Why do people feel guilty?I don't when I do something bad, I am scared but not guilty...Like when I refuse to do my homework or break someone's window

Because they have morals and ethics?

lol no way judging by all of Tony's post he's like the pope of morality (sarcasm)

First let me say I've been clean for over 10 years now witch is a huge accomplishment for me. The funniest thing I've ever stolen is a 36 pound turkey from Safeway. Did it for fun when I was very young as a dear me and my friends came up with. You know who can get the biggest thing from the store out without getting caught.

I think at some point in your life you stop and realize that stealing even from a huge store like Wal-Mart or safe way still hurts a person. My thought was it just hurts the rich Person who owned the store. So why should I care. It took me till I was 18 to realize that that manager might not get his bonus and feed his children because his shrink was too high. I just took me 18 years to realize that.

Tony the guardsman wrote:Well I know they have pride and moral, but I don't know what guilt feels like!I m sure I've felt it before, but I dun know when to call it guilt, is it connected to fear?

Most functioning societies strive for the education of the young in the mastery of ethics and morality. Evidently its not taking this time around.

You sir, have a career in politics, just waiting for you (or home remodeling bidding).

Tony the guardsman wrote:Well I know they have pride and moral, but I don't know what guilt feels like!I m sure I've felt it before, but I dun know when to call it guilt, is it connected to fear?

Tony, at this point, I find it highly necessary to ask how old you might be? I'm surprised and terrified that you have such a lacking of the concept of guilt, and I'm honestly wondering (hoping) if you're just not old enough to grasp it fully yet and feel it moreso than you realize. I would not say it is fear-induced. The only way I can think to explain it is maybe have you done something once that you wished in retrospect you did something different? It's kind of like that. Regret is another good word that comes to mind.

Regret!Thats the word Im looking for here, thank you~!

I'm just blown away by how many non thieves we have on Dakka. I mean, it's the INTERNET. None of you stealing naysayers have downloaded a video, song or codex?

Seen a show or movie on Youtube, Dailymotion etc?

Made a digital copy of a cd your friend bought?

I'm shocked...and more than a little bit disappointed in some of the reactions I've read.

Technically those are different crime. Attempt to obfiscate the issue...FAILED.

Frazzled wrote:Technically those are different crime. Attempt to obfiscate the issue...FAILED.

Indeed. Haven't you been to YMDC? We're all about semantics and technicalities here.

Taking the property without purchase is covered in theft. Y'know, that big U.S. Federal warning is about infringement of copyright and theft of sales.

Downloading movies ripped from dvds and physically taking the disc is the same thing. Stealing
Or are you saying that if I download paper plans of GW products it's not theft? I'm certainly not buying the model and it hurts my lgs. And I'm pretty sure the the def of stealing applies.

Technically those are different crime. Attempt to obfiscate the issue...FAILED.

Hmmm...

Hmmm...