[ExI] crowdsourced crimefighters

[spike at rainier66.com]

-----Original Message-----
...> On Behalf Of BillK via extropy-chat
Subject: Re: [ExI] crowdsourced crimefighters

On Sat, 6 Mar 2021 at 21:09, spike jones via extropy-chat
<extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
>
> BillK, your Reddit site solved it within minutes.
> So now we know the sleazy perp drives a 2014 Volkswagen Tiguan.
>
> spike
> _______________________________________________



>...I am reading that the police in California don't bother with minor
crimes now...

Tis true sir.  Read on please.

>..."Rampant Shoplifting Forces Ten Bay Area Walgreens To Close     March 5,
2021"

Walgreens was first to go.  They tended toward the lower end of the market,
so they were more likely to be in areas where more homeless people's
not-homes were located.  They already were on shaky ground before the
constables were told to not bother with petty stuff anymore.  This killed a
lot of bricks and mortar places.  

Another casualty of that was the Big 5 Sporting Goods.  Anyone could walk in
there, gather up whatever they wanted, walk out with it.  No point in
summoning the constables: they could only write a misdemeanor fine
(comparable to a speeding ticket) which of course would be ignored.
Translation: bricks and mortar retailers were finished.  Covid merely put
flowers on their graves.

A notable exception: gun shops.  Those never closed during covid, they have
a booming business and never lost a single firearm to shoplifters.  Funny
how that works: a shop employee can legally use lethal deterrence against
anyone who pulls a gun.  The shoplifters seemed to have an uncanny intuition
on that one.


<https://dawsoncountyjournal.com/blog/2021/03/05/rampant-shoplifting-forces-
ten-bay-area-walgreens-to-close/>
Theft of less than $950 in goods is treated as a nonviolent misdemeanor
under California law. But in most cases, for shoplifting, the criminal is
released.

>...So finding their vehicle might not help much...

On the contrary sir.  We think the perp is a local.  We have an online
community that shames people into pretending to be a decent person.

In this particular case, we think the perp has a loose screw.  She drives a
2015 VW Tiguan.  She came in the night, ripped a plant right out of
someone's lawn, while clad in her pajamas and slippers, in full view of two
different security cameras, both equipped with infrared capabilities.  Now
the whole neighborhood is talking about the Great Jade Plant Caper.

>...Solution - Move to Florida or Texas like the rest of California
escapees!   :)

>...BillK
_______________________________________________

On the contrary again sir.  Many have resorted to those kinds of solutions
(Nevada being another very popular refuge) but plenty of us recognize that
the pendulum swings.  In the USA, this process has already begun.  In
California, it is already happening.  Even Seattle and Portland will recover
from their current malaise.

spike