Why are there looters?

[sodaseller]

Lord of the Flies - it's within us all

 

[minniepumpernickel]

Lord of the Flies - it's within us all

Yes, I agree. I think that disasters just bring out the worst in human nature. People are depressed and panicking, and the whole place is a pit of anarchy!

 

[swilphil]

Lord of the Flies - it's within us all

Soda--You hit the proverbial nail on the head. It seems to be the mob mentality at its worst. We've seen it during blackouts and even when cities have won sports championships.

I do feel sorry for the small business owners who are losing their merchandise. There are so many beautiful little shops in New Orleans.

 

[Feralpeg]

I've never understood it. Durng the race riots in Kansas City a couple of decades ago, there was looting and fires. But the funny thing is that they did to their own neighborhood. They were hurting themselves. I just don't get it.

I was totally disgusted to see those two female uniformed police officers looting at Walmart.

I would hope that these people are the minority and that if more of us were put in the situation, we wouldn't fall into the same pattern.

 

[wvrevy]

Yes, I agree. I think that disasters just bring out the worst in human nature. People are depressed and panicking, and the whole place is a pit of anarchy!

Disasters don't just bring out the worst in people...they also bring out the best. The acts of unselfishness and outright heroism are probably far greater in number than the acts of selfishness and lawlessness. It's just that some people can't resist the temptation to take advantage of the situation. Greed takes over, and they become little more than animals. Others see people in need and decide to help their fellow man.

 

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[swilphil]

I've never understood it. Durng the race riots in Kansas City a couple of decades ago, there was looting and fires. But the funny thing is that they did to their own neighborhood. They were hurting themselves. I just don't get it.

I was totally disgusted to see those two female uniformed police officers looting at Walmart.

I would hope that these people are the minority and that if more of us were put in the situation, we wouldn't fall into the same pattern.

Weren't the race riots in Kansas City 35 to 40 years ago? Anyway, I think the vast majority of people didn't loot. It seem like they show the same footage over and over again. I saw several police officers trying to stop the looters. You wonder if people stayed behind purposely so they could loot and why didn't the city officials anticipate this problem? I guess it's one of those live and learn situations.

Is it possible the the people wearing police uniforms weren't really police officers??

 

[minniepumpernickel]

Disasters don't just bring out the worst in people...they also bring out the best. The acts of unselfishness and outright heroism are probably far greater in number than the acts of selfishness and lawlessness. It's just that some people can't resist the temptation to take advantage of the situation. Greed takes over, and they become little more than animals. Others see people in need and decide to help their fellow man.

Yes, you are so right! It is good to focus on the positive side of human nature too.

 

[DawnCt1]

Someone had shared yesterday about the cops looting (and I'm sure it is only a few bad seeds of course)....I couldn't believe it. I figured okay--maybe they swiped a candy bar are something. And there they are--on the news...at Wal Mart. With a shopping cart. .

All looters should be prosecuted to the highest extent of the law but the police should definately be held to a higher standard and a new level of "highest" should be invented. If convicted, they should also lose their pensions!

 

[totalia]

Gods, it's like anarchy down there.

Even if my fiance's apartment building survived, it would be almost worthless to go back because of the looting.

And yes, I meant it as a defense.

Canada has its problems too. I think that we aren't aggressive ENOUGH. Its one of our problems.

I understand why that is with my country too though. Yours was born out of blood, pain and suffering. Ours was a much more peaceful creation.

Its mostly about understanding the country's past and culture to understand the way they think.

Canadians are taught to be polite, and nice. Aggression is rare. Thats not to say that we wouldn't. We still have murder, rape, theft, and all the nasty little things humans can do to each other.

We are just different..

To understand Americans (as confusing as it can seem to us) its best to understand their history. I understood a whole heck of alot better after my American History classes in college.

 

[BkrsLoveDis!]

Saw Wal-Mart footage this morning. There were cops taking stuff--refusing to speak on camera. People riding bikes through the aisles..the place ransacked. And a pickup truck in the parking lot loaded to the gills with merchandise.

At this point--it isn't survival. It is complete social breakdown.

I so totally agree - the woman carrying out 4 or 5 handbags/purses didn't need those to survive and the teenagers riding bikes around in the aisles certainly don't need those - I also saw TVs and toys being looted. Absolutely disgusts me!!!

 

[MosMom]

Gods, it's like anarchy down there.

Even if my fiance's apartment building survived, it would be almost worthless to go back because of the looting.

And yes, I meant it as a defense.

Canada has its problems too. I think that we aren't aggressive ENOUGH. Its one of our problems.

I understand why that is with my country too though. Yours was born out of blood, pain and suffering. Ours was a much more peaceful creation.

Its mostly about understanding the country's past and culture to understand the way they think.

Canadians are taught to be polite, and nice. Aggression is rare. Thats not to say that we wouldn't. We still have murder, rape, theft, and all the nasty little things humans can do to each other.

We are just different..

To understand Americans (as confusing as it can seem to us) its best to understand their history. I understood a whole heck of alot better after my American History classes in college.

Frankly, I think your posts about Americans are painted with such a broad brush it is laughable. You post them with such authority as well. As a peaceful Canadian I would say you are pretty freaking agressive on these boards. I've lived in Canada and it isn't that much better honey. As far as you being raised to be polite and nice, too bad whoever raised you failed miserably.

I'm going to slowly back away from this thread because it is really starting to piss me off and my savage American ways might show through.

 

[jellymanoffspring]

Gods, it's like anarchy down there.

Even if my fiance's apartment building survived, it would be almost worthless to go back because of the looting.

And yes, I meant it as a defense.

Canada has its problems too. I think that we aren't aggressive ENOUGH. Its one of our problems.

I understand why that is with my country too though. Yours was born out of blood, pain and suffering. Ours was a much more peaceful creation.

Its mostly about understanding the country's past and culture to understand the way they think.

Canadians are taught to be polite, and nice. Aggression is rare. Thats not to say that we wouldn't. We still have murder, rape, theft, and all the nasty little things humans can do to each other.

We are just different..

To understand Americans (as confusing as it can seem to us) its best to understand their history. I understood a whole heck of alot better after my American History classes in college.

Canadians are not aggressive..they just invented ICE HOCKEY!!!


Don't forget that any course you took could be easily skewed by a professors opinion..........

 

[Feralpeg]

Weren't the race riots in Kansas City 35 to 40 years ago? Anyway, I think the vast majority of people didn't loot. It seem like they show the same footage over and over again. I saw several police officers trying to stop the looters. You wonder if people stayed behind purposely so they could loot and why didn't the city officials anticipate this problem? I guess it's one of those live and learn situations.

Is it possible the the people wearing police uniforms weren't really police officers??

It was about 37 years ago. I was 16 at the time. It was very scary to hear what was happening down in the area along Troost and Paseo. I remember thinking at the time that they were setting fire to the stores they would depend upon. My next door neighbor owned a drug store down in that area at the time. They were robbed. His father was shot and killed. He was wounded. His was one of the few pharmacies that had remained open in the area. He had stayed there because he thought the people needed them. After that, he closed down the store.

 

[RickinNYC]

Frankly, I think your posts about Americans are painted with such a broad brush it is laughable. You post them with such authority as well. As a peaceful Canadian I would say you are pretty freaking agressive on these boards. I've lived in Canada and it isn't that much better honey. As far as you being raised to be polite and nice, too bad whoever raised you failed miserably.

I'm going to slowly back away from this thread because it is really starting to piss me off and my savage American ways might show through.

MosMom, you hit the nail on the head. I've been to Canada many, many times and what I've seen in Toronto is comparable to many major metropolitan areas of the U.S.

"Nice" or "aggressive", Totalia, now is not the time to get into a pissing contest to see which country is better. And it's in poor taste to do so.

 

[jellymanoffspring]

MosMom, you hit the nail on the head. I've been to Canada many, many times and what I've seen in Toronto is comparable to many major metropolitan areas of the U.S.

"Nice" or "aggressive", Totalia, now is not the time to get into a pissing contest to see which country is better. And it's in poor taste to do so.

Amen Rick!!!

 

[totalia]

Frankly, I think your posts about Americans are painted with such a broad brush it is laughable. You post them with such authority as well. As a peaceful Canadian I would say you are pretty freaking agressive on these boards. I've lived in Canada and it isn't that much better honey. As far as you being raised to be polite and nice, too bad whoever raised you failed miserably.

I'm going to slowly back away from this thread because it is really starting to piss me off and my savage American ways might show through.

Thanks for proving what I just said.

Did I not just say that there are exceptions to that within Canada? Or did you not even read what I posted?

Yes, I'm aggressive. But I'm different from most other Canadians. I lived in the US a while. I even say some of the slang common in the US. Its also the internet. Who cares? You can blow me off if you don't like it. Thats the beauty of the net.

I never called you a savage. YOU DID. I also never said Canada is better. YOU said I did.

I said...

Aggression is rare. Thats not to say that we wouldn't. We still have murder, rape, theft, and all the nasty little things humans can do to each other.

We are just different..

I think your reading into it things that aren't there.

 

[AC7179]

Is it possible the police offiicer "looters" were taking things for rescue or for food or drink for the stranded? Let's face it, much of what is in the stores will be bad and unable to be sold anyway after this tragedy. Maybe they were just putting it to use for people that could use them?

I know that I would have evacuated, BUT had I not or had I been taken suprise by a natural disaster, I would loot to feed my family, no doubt. I wouldn't loot things like Nike's, clothes, etc, but water, formula, diapers, etc., you bet. Those things could be paid back later. I'm trying to p ut the best spin on this as possible, in case you can't tell.

 

[ThAnswr]

Inspired by Dan Murphy's thread about the treatment of looters:

Over here in Europe we just heard about those looters in the catastrophe areas in Missisippi and Lousiana.
When we had the big flood in East Germany three years ago, or the horrible floodings in the Alps last week, there wasn't any looting.
How comes that as soon as there's a quake, a flood or similar occurences in the USA there's so much looting?

Looting doesn't happen everywhere. We were ground zero for Hurricane Charley last year and there was no looting. Then again, we are not an urban area and this area is primarily made up of private homes.

Unfortunately, there are segments of American society in which there has been a total breakdown of what keeps a civilized society together. I think a lot of it has to do with drugs and the breakdown of the family. I don't accept poverty as an excuse because there has always been a bottom of society.

Add a disaster like Katrina with the extreme stress that it causes and you get extreme lawlessness.

However what really scares me is what's going on in the Super Dome. It's just going to be a matter of time before a riot breaks out.

 

[MosMom]

So calling you on your dislike for Americans is proving your point? Oh, I'm sorry. Should I have batted my eyelashes and said "Oh dear" while I read your attacks on Americans time and time again? This isn't the first or the last time you spew nasty things. Have some freaking TACT. You are right, you aren't a typical Canadian...thank goodness!