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Why Thieves Steal Soap

priceonomics.com

111–120 of 121 posts

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#111
TL;DR: Soap gets stolen because there is a market for it in the hood. No matter, if it's a corner store marking up the prices or an addict/door to door salesman, or people buying it from said addicts. There will always be a market for cheaper than retail goods.

I have multiple people in my neighborhood in Baltimore that sell stuff like this (detergents, soaps, deodorants, axe, febreeze, shower gels, razors, carpet, toothpaste and brushes, loofas, mouthwash). Including their food stamps. Well, not stamps but now they're debit cards that ironically say Independence on them.

So around the 1st-3rd of the month people get their stamps. They get enough in stamps that they can afford to sell some, maybe $200 FSD for $100 USD. Some folks actually budget and shop at the lower priced store like aldi, or food depot. So maybe a couple months out of the year they're able to sell sometimes more than half of the stamps that month. After that cash runs out for whatever reasons, a small minority, sometimes in groups steal from the local chain stores so they have quick cash. They're mostly drug addicts doing it for a fix or two for the day not for a living. But it's a daily thing.

One guy comes around often, sometimes everyday. He's got regulars sometimes he catches them on off-days and he'll need to come back to secure the sale. But fair is fair and he holds stuff for people. Most of his customers are the little old ladies you would imagine that spend hours peering over newspapers for coupons, or comparing the sales at store A vs store B. An $800 social security check doesn't go very far after expenses.

Seems like a way of life in the ghetto where I live. My family included, has always purchased these things from the guys in the neighborhood and still do. I'm not saying it's morally right. But as long as there is a cheap alternative to the corner store you will find someone in the hood willing to deal.

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#112
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you're saying it's purpose in the comment was to accuse the officer of 'racism.' That's silly. What purpose is served by accusing the officer of racism in the comment? Is it some kind of weird virtue signalling, like "she's racist! but not me, I'm a good guy!" Furthermore, if we agree that the subtext is the officer is being accused of racism, there is in fact no basis for that accusation. Noticing a facet of real…

> It might be 'racism' of the sort that everybody is desperately searching for in every nook and cranny to hang their ideologies on It seems to me as though you're looking in every nook and cranny to find people doing this! I wasn't there, so I don't know if it was racism. But the author's inclusion communicated to me that the police officer was racist. The author could have made that more clear by writing "[racial e…

If the officer had just said "black gangs" or "Mexican gangs" or something like that, then maybe the author read too much into it.

I thought it was something exactly along those lines, not necessarily one of those two groups, but something along those lines given that 'mexican' and 'black' are common descriptions for ethnic groups in the US.

by writing "[racial epithet]" rather than "[ethnic group]"

What do you think 'ethnic group' means?

An ethnicity is not an epithet, there's really no connection between the two at all, other than an epithet is a mean name people might call people. And all people happen to be of one ethnicity or another.

communicated to me that the police officer was racist.

Given the weight that some people give to such a charge in today's society, you're really doing no one any one favors by being so brash and cavalier in handing it out, given the paucity of evidence. Even OP should be very cautious with such a label given such a brief interaction.

I think we agree that that shows the author thought the officer was racist

No we don't, I think you may be confused about what an ethnic group is, or the meaning of the term. There is nothing racist about using the proper name for a group of people.

It seems to me as though you're looking in every nook and cranny to find people doing this!

I really should get better at self-editing, I notice how people will commonly grab onto to one little minor supporting snippet of a post while ignoring the real substance of what's been written.

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> is there meaningful information lost here? IMO, its not so much the loss of information, its the implication that racial problems should not be considered racial problems.

I agree it carries that implication, and I think it's right. Very little is added to the discussion of curbing gang crime by bringing race into the picture. What are the specifically Black solutions to gang behaviour? What are the Hispanic ones? On the other hand, the culture of racism and intolerance such discussions engender has real and measurable downsides. Cf. every discussion of police interactions by minoritie…

I completely disagree.

The culture of black Americans is unique. It's different than the culture of Asians, Hispanics, Whites, ect, and initiatives will effect each culture differently. That much seems certain to me.

To say that there is a one size fits all solution to gang violence is to ignore important cultural differences.

To just look at family structure: 75% of black families are not married and 60% of mothers with multiple children have them to different fathers.

As for how we tackle gangs, I'd need to study to problem longer. But its a hunch of mine that the above family statistics play a role in their formation.

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#114
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that combating racism, or is it combating information? Is there such a thing as a racist fact?

Sure there is. When reality is racist, so are facts.

Thats a jump in logic.

How does reality being racist imply that a fact is racist? And not other things? Is everything racists under a racist reality? How do we draw these lines?

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#115
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The irony is that the inhabitants of the "San Francisco Castro neighborhood" also form an ethnic group by virtue of living in the same place. Notably, it's a gay neighborhood. Takeaway? Gangs rob stores in gay villages. Oh, and cops are racists. Moral? Let people think for themselves, you can't get away from prejudice.

Homosexuals are not an ethnic group.

> An ethnic group or ethnicity is a category of people who identify with each other based on common language, ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences.

Seems to fit to me.

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure there is. When reality is racist, so are facts.

Thats a jump in logic. How does reality being racist imply that a fact is racist? And not other things? Is everything racists under a racist reality? How do we draw these lines?

I don't see why you think it's a jump in logic. And I'm saying facts are racist. I'm not saying other things are not racist. I'm not really sure where you're leading with this point.

Let me be more concrete and give an example.

Blacks living in the U.S. have (in a statistical average sense) a higher sensitivity to sodium than whites, leading to higher rates of hypertension in that demographic. If you're a physician treating black patients or you're a black American yourself, this is an important fact to know. This is a racist fact, because it differentiates reality along racial fault lines.

There are plenty of examples of situations where I could get you to say that one course of action is the rational or best option, but if I keep the same logical structure and swap out some nouns and adjectives, what was once the best option is now racist, and I'm a racist if I take this course of action. I won't give any examples because they're too inflammatory, and I don't feel like getting downvoted into oblivion. I'm pretty sure you can fill in the blanks if you're so inclined.

Since realizing this, I no longer view "racist" as a derogatory. It's the way the world already is, so my choice is either to have an accurate view of reality or an impoverished one.

Re: Why Thieves Steal Soap

#119
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd pay $50 for a gallon of Dr. Bronner's 18-in-1 Peppermint Castile Liquid Soap. You can easily resell it on the street in smaller containers, and make a big profit if you DILUTE! DILUTE! OK! [1] ALL-ONE-GOD-FAITH! [2] [1] http://www.lisabronner.com/dilutions-cheat-sheet-for-dr-bron... [2] http://dev.null.org/psychoceramics/collection/bronner.html

Not quite $50 for a gallon, but just about there with free shipping: Dr. Bronner's Fair Trade & Organic Castile Liquid Soap (Peppermint, 1 Gallon) $57.59 Prime http://www.amazon.com/Dr-Bronners-Organic-Castile-Liquid/dp/... If you like the soap, you might also enjoy the documentary: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dr_bronners_magic_soapbox/

I love the soap! It's worth the few extra dollars to know you're getting the pure stuff. You have to be careful about what you buy off the street in gallon jugs. [1]

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFUvmZWf4hI

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