Target starting to lock up merchandise. (Phoenix, Mesa: live, law, legal)

[My2cents55]

Originally Posted by Kracer

Target aptly named!

Target has this section by the Deli called Grab & Go I think some are taking it literally

[Greenvalleyfan]

Originally Posted by Voebe

Har har. I love this. One reason that Target has a lot of theft is because it is too stingy to hire staff to be on the floor. Yes, it's sad to think how many criminally-inclined people there are, but it's growing because there's no one to see them.

So Target's own stinginess is leading to greater theft.

Twisted logic. The thieves stealing is the reason for greater theft, not Target's stinginess.

[RayHammer]

I wonder how far chopping off the hand of a thief would go toward deterring shoplifting?

Seems like a society willing to lop off a "handful" of hands every year would likely see thefts start to approach (but perhaps never "reach") zero.

And every once in awhile you'd pass by someone with a hand lopped off. It would be a highly visible reminder of the penalty for such socially+economically destructive behavior.

It would also be a good teaching moment for parents to be able to explain to their children how to behave like civilized human beings.

[My2cents55]

Originally Posted by RayHammer

I wonder how far chopping off the hand of a thief would go toward deterring shoplifting?

Seems like a society willing to lop off a "handful" of hands every year would likely see thefts start to approach (but perhaps never "reach") zero.

And every once in awhile you'd pass by someone with a hand lopped off. It would be a highly visible reminder of the penalty for such socially+economically destructive behavior.

It would also be a good teaching moment for parents to be able to explain to their children how to behave like civilized human beings.

You'd have many one-armed thieves walking around in Phoenix.

[Burning Madolf]

I did a search of what PPD had on shoplifting:

https://www.phoenix.gov/police/safeb...plifting-theft

If you read through to the bottom they reprinted an article "The Art of Shoplifting" with this disclaimer:

This is the original article on shoplifting featured in Rabelais that is at the center of this issue. This article is not reprinted to encourage any person to commit any illegal act, but for purposes of informing discussion of the issues at hand.

I know they think it's to help retailers understand shoplifting but reprinting a full how to guide just seems funny.

[DAXhound]

Originally Posted by My2cents55

The Christown spectrum one.

When I first moved to phoenix..north central...an insurance agent told me the trouble starts south of Bethany...looks like he was spot on.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by RayHammer

I wonder how far chopping off the hand of a thief would go toward deterring shoplifting?

Seems like a society willing to lop off a "handful" of hands every year would likely see thefts start to approach (but perhaps never "reach") zero.

And every once in awhile you'd pass by someone with a hand lopped off. It would be a highly visible reminder of the penalty for such socially+economically destructive behavior.

It would also be a good teaching moment for parents to be able to explain to their children how to behave like civilized human beings.

It go would a long way towards establishing Sharia law in the United States. No thanks to any legal code based on the teachings of any specific religion.

[blisterpeanuts]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

I doubt it was all the merchandise. There's no practical way to lock up lawn chairs, lamps, bathrobes, strawberries, Cheerios, and many other items the store sells. Yes, shoplifting is a problem, as is retailers' exaggeration of the problem, but hyperbole doesn't help the cause.

Retail is an exact science, actually; they know precisely how much product is sold, versus how much stolen. They can also track most products as they walk out the door.

I'm in the RFID business and have been to the conferences, and I can assure you, every incoming pallet has an RFID tag, as do most higher priced items as well as many apparel items. These tags cost pennies and Walmart at least has put them on almost everything; I think Target is similar. Scanners built into the front and rear doors identify what products are leaving the premises and whether they have been marked as paid in the system. They even have a good idea of how much is stolen by employees versus "customers".

I see no reason why retailers would lie or exaggerate these numbers. Obviously they don't want to inconvenience customers as well as incur huge extra costs of locking stuff up. It's a matter of survival -- if they're losing money, they will close the location. If it costs $5K a day for the extra security, versus losing $10K a day in theft, they'll go for the extra security. If that fails, they'll close the location, but that tends to have political ramifications. The city, and activist groups, will try to shame them for creating a food desert or similar, & force them to stay open, even if taking a loss.

Now when I lived in north Glendale, I used to go to the super Walmart and super Target on Bell and didn't notice a lot of stuff locked down, but this was 13 years ago. As you go south, though, the retail shops seemed to get grimier, more trash in the parking lots, more "tweakers", more "ghetto", etc. Not making any ethnic observations here, just physical ones. I think it's a shame that things have come to this. People need to get back to strict law and order mentality, arrest criminals and prosecute them, because nothing else is going to stop this deterioration of the social order. Just my opinions

[TimAZ]

Originally Posted by MN-Born-n-Raised

Once upon a time, thieves were looked down on by everyone. And when they stole, there were consequences. Now, employees are told not to approach a thief. Of course, losers are going to steal more because they learned the game.

I was leaving Home Depot last week with a piece of moulding (paid for) balanced on a shopping cart. At the exit door (only ten feet from the register) the cart’s wheels locked up and an alarm sounded. I had to wait for a clerk to come over and electronically unlock the cart wheels. The customers behind me started cheering and shouting things like “Run for it, they’ll never catch you!”, and “Go, go!”. The clerk just rolled her eyes and we both laughed.

[phetaroi]

Originally Posted by RayHammer

I wonder how far chopping off the hand of a thief would go toward deterring shoplifting?

Seems like a society willing to lop off a "handful" of hands every year would likely see thefts start to approach (but perhaps never "reach") zero.

And every once in awhile you'd pass by someone with a hand lopped off. It would be a highly visible reminder of the penalty for such socially+economically destructive behavior.

It would also be a good teaching moment for parents to be able to explain to their children how to behave like civilized human beings.

A few weeks ago I did self check-out at Kroger. I missed a very small item, which had fallen behind 2 'cases' of drinking water bottles (you know...the 24/case bottles). I walked out having not paid for that very small item. Should my hand have been cut off? Even though when I discovered it I went back into the store and said, "I goofed" and paid for the item.

Get real. People make mistakes and I don't want some nut case cutting off my hand if I make a mistake but can't prove it.