Wednesday, March 02, 2011

Actions and far-reaching consequences

I have heard much dribble about thieving and how it's 'just things' and a petty crime- not something to lock a thief up for.

I have always said that this is bullshit. Property crimes are not entirely about the financial cost of the stolen property. There are a host of hidden losses the victim suffers- the lost time, inconvenience, the over cost of insurance passed on to all of us and the fact that the money used to pay for the goods is NET, after taxes and other hidden costs- plus represents surplus over what is needed to live.

But nowhere have I seen the consequences of a 'petty crime' have such a profound impact on many people, on a personal level, than when Jayden Andrews-Howland had his bike stolen. He took a bus into Christchurch on February 22nd, having no bike to ride.

Now he is dead.

The bus was destroyed in the earthquake.

Who knows what would have happened, had he rode his bike to town? But that doesn't really come into it.

Thanks to some lowlife committing a 'Petty Crime', he took a fatal bus trip.

So it's 'just things', eh...


3 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is true at a certain level but for each of these sad outcomes I bet (and know) there are others where a chance encounter, tying a shoe lace, being called off a scaffold for luch 30 secs before it was crushed (this one is real personal), being off work sick and so on kept people from meeting their maker. While we do our best to stay safe it seems some things are simply not up to us. So, try to be ready.

That doesn't excuse theft though. I'd lock 'em up first time unless we had the rattan or stocks to use first time.

Oswald Bastable said...

Random events are a whole other matter. Theft is a deliberate, concious act and while I doubt the intent was to cause a fatality, this WAS the end consequence of that action.

Paul Goodsort said...

Let’s try and find the losers that stole it and publish their names and address. Then let the court of public opinion pass judgment.