'Flash Robs' Vex Retailers

Wall Street Journal ^ | OCTOBER 21, 2011 | ANN ZIMMERMAN and MIGUEL BUSTILLO

[fishtank]

The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success by Rodney Stark

The gospel of Christ never disappeared in the so-called "dark ages", as it is incorrectly labeled.

[crusader71]

Property crimes should be considered violent crimes for legal purposes. I don’t know why right-thinking state legislators can’t expand on the ‘home-is-your-castle doctrine’ and introduce state laws to immunize people who use deadly force to protect private property at private businesses. So even if you are not in immediate fear for your life, you should be able to shoot to protect merchandise.

Seems to me it would pass constitutional muster. We’d be dealing with the use of deadly force by private citizens and not any state actors — therefore no problem under the 14th amendment.

[Lazamataz]

[S]ecurity experts strongly discourage store employees from trying to intervene or stop shoplifters, due to the risk ardent hope that it could turn violent.

Correcting for grammar and punctuation.

[Verginius Rufus]

Some years ago, probably in the 1990s, I had a layover in the Houston airport and bought the local newspaper to read while I was waiting. They had a story about how the band for a local black university had been touring Japan and while there the members went into an electronics store and shoplifted a bunch of items. So this isn't entirely a new phenomenon.

The Japanese were upset with this--culturally insensitive of them.

[TheOldLady]

Click to Talk to the Hand

You have the right to chatter your little head off.
Anything you say will be laughed at hysterically.
Requests for an attorney will be ignored.
No one's paying for a dang thing for you.
I don't care whether you understand or not.

Prevent this kind of abuse
Abolish FReepathons!   Go Monthly

[Iron Munro]

As the demographics of America shift, every norm of society will change. Without a respect for property rights one cannot maintain retail shopping as we understand it.

We are rapidly heading toward a degraded culture where our living environment will be like a mix of Port-au-Prince, Ciudad Juárez, Mogadishu, and San Juan.

We will be enjoying the fruits of diversity every day and and every sleepless night.

People looking for jobs and work should learn welding and steel fabrication.
Installation of burglar bars and perimeter fences are already a fast growing industry.

[cherry]

"boys".....when my father was a "boy" at just 17 he left HS and joined the Navy during WW2....

funny how boys have changed over the years...

[cherry]

"boys".....when my father was a "boy" at just 17 he left HS and joined the Navy during WW2....

funny how boys have changed over the years...

[cherry]

ALL of our norms and our laws are based on the fact that most people will follow them...our tax system...our traffic laws....our retail...everything....

used to seeing fresh markets with fruit and veggies in bins outside the store?...or stacks of bottled water or charcoal?....

there is a reason people live where they live....its not racist...its simply smart...

[wolficatZ]

“WHO YOU CALLIN BOY????”

[Stosh]

I like my wife’s suggestion: make sure there’s only one door in, and it’s the same door out — and keep a couple of trained dogs there. Be sure they’re big dogs. Make it clear that if anything happens, the dogs are instructed to keep people from leaving the premises (until the police arrive). The nice thing about well-trained dogs is that they won’t bother anybody at all unless they’re told to.

In my experience, the sort of ‘utes’ typically involved in this sort of activity aren’t particularly fond of large, hostile canines - their very presence may be enough to keep the riff-raff away.

Now that strategy actually works only *if* the police actually arrive when called.

[Buckeye McFrog]

the electronic door locks would violate fire codes in almost any major city

[Howie]

You are probably right, though I notice that most banks lock the customers in (and out) at closing time. It is done with a key, though.

[little jeremiah]

[S]ecurity experts strongly discourage store employees from trying to intervene or stop shoplifters, due to the risk that it could turn violent.

Guaranteeing they will have more and more flash robs!

[Oatka]

[S]ecurity experts strongly discourage store employees from trying to intervene or stop shoplifters, due to the risk that it could turn violent.

Mark Steyn had a phrase for advice like that: "Preemptive cringing".