A Heartwarming Act Of Kindness
Over the weekend the New York news media literally gushed over what they termed was, and I quote, a “heartwarming act of kindness.” The editors at WCBS Radio were so touched by the story that they broadcast it every twenty minutes for nearly 24 hours. CBS Channel 2 Television ran the clip numerous times. Sky News picked up the story as did Google News and countless online sites. It even went international with the Daily Mail newspaper in the U.K. running it as well.
So what, ladies and gentleman, was the the story behind all the brouhaha?… Well, it was… shoplifting…. Yes, shoplifting. It seems that “caught in the act shoplifting” inspired an act of humanitarian beneficence by none other than… the NYPD.
The shoplifting incident occurred at a New York City Whole Foods Market. Whole Foods is a national supermarket that specializes in nutritionally minded (and expensive) groceries and prepared foods. Apparently the thief is quite a health conscious thief! She was apprehended by store security having pilfered several items of prepared (and scrumptious) food, placing them into her closed purse. Now, the way the NewYork media ran the story, the items in her purse were said to be… “UNPAID”! (By the way, “unpaid” is “progressive” jargon for STOLEN.) The thief, who a video of the event shows to be quite LARGE and unlikely to be suffering from malnutrition, admitted to the theft. By way of explanation, she said simply that she was hungry…. Well, all right then!… Get a hunger pang, steal a burger! Do you have a problem with that?… Apparently, the NYPD doesn’t. Instead of arresting the woman, the responding officers, Lieutenant Sojo and officers Cuevas and Rivera, decided to PAY for the lady’s repast (all thirty dollars worth). So, there IS such a thing as a “free lunch” after all! And the whole episode received the blessing of Police Department Chief Terrance Monahan, who seemed to revel in the “good publicity” such benevolent police behavior would engender.
At the risk of being a curmudgeon, ladies and gentlemen, I must take exception to the celebration of what I believe is irresponsible behavior on the part of the police. What effect do you think that this “act of kindness” will have on the thief? It’d be nice to think that the woman will realize the error of her ways and return to a life of rectitude and saintliness. Perhaps, get a job. Or, at least, choose free food provided by the many City Harvest Centers and other charitable providers throughout the city, rather than an upscale market for her quotidian nutrition. But I bet that won’t happen. The next time she gets a hunger pang, I think history will repeat itself. To minimize the chance of recognition, she will, probably, choose another venue in a different part of the city for her illicit browsing. But, browse she will. And, although Whole Foods is a highly profitable enterprise, much shoplifting takes place in smaller stores that run very small “profit margins” and struggle to survive. And, what if EVERYONE decided it’s okay to shoplift? Riots and anarchy would ensue. So, although the officers involved were certainly well intentioned, the story, I feel, is more disturbing than “heartwarming.”