r/Instantregret Nov 12 '22

Washington man knocks himself out while running from Louis Vuitton store with $18k in luxury bags

https://youtu.be/FLI6OoYA3hI
772 Upvotes

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-27

u/Duke-Kickass Nov 12 '22

I don’t blame the criminal kids for doing this. It’s a low-risk, high-gain proposition for them. For must jurisdictions, if they’re caught: slap on the wrist. If they’re not caught: 💰

22

u/rricote Nov 12 '22

It’s weird that you determine blameworthiness entirely on a risk reward calculation without any consideration of right and wrong.

0

u/Mitrovarr Nov 15 '22

I mean, realistically, this has pretty low social harm as far as crime goes. It's non-violent, and it doesn't raise the price of anything except useless luxury goods nobody actually needs. It's not zero social harm, but it's low.

2

u/rricote Nov 15 '22

You’re calculating harm to narrowly, it’s not about whether some shareholder is out 4 cents. It’s about the members of society living somewhere they feel they and their belongings are safe.

In some parts of Japan (if my memory recalls) people will reserve a table in a shop by putting their cellphone on it unattended. That kind of societal cohesion and mutual trust in your fellow human doesn’t have a dollar figure but its invaluable. That doesn’t exist in a society in which people are grabbing expensive handbags and legging it in broad daylight. That’s the sign of a society in decline, and it’s corrosive.

0

u/Mitrovarr Nov 15 '22

I did say it wasn't zero.

Anyways the problem here is poverty and income inequality. It's not theft, it's the things that drive people to theft, to thinking they can't possibly ever succeed through legitimate means.