The criminal within

Does everyone have one inside?

from JoeUser Forums
Strange the things that can come to mind when watching a movie. I was watching the movie “Fun With Dick And Jane” the other night, no this is not a review on this movie, though I have to say Jim Carey can still make me laugh till it hurts. This is his best movie since Bruce Almighty. Anyways, an interesting movie about how a family, where the father worked in the corporate world and was being promoted, found themselves in chaos when his company’s stock dropped faster than a skydiver without a parachute. After the both found themselves without jobs, having no luck finding a decent job and about to lose their house, they turn to robbing stores and eventually end up liking it to the point of getting good at it. This is where I found myself thinking about them choosing a life of crime to solve their problems. I began to ask myself if every person had the instinct to become thieves in order to survive. I also began to wonder how many people now a days who are criminals were actually that way before, did they have the desire to steal from the moment they could think for themselves or were situations similar to that of this movie were the reason for their bad choices.

I admit to have made mistakes when I was young, mostly due to ignorance and peer pressure. At one point in my life I found myself taking money that did not belong to me and it got easier and easier, ‘till I realized how much money I had taken. I eventually stopped, but the others did not. The irony is that I ended up losing that job but not because of the money, simply because we had a new manager and he was there to clean house and eliminate those who made more that minimum wage to save money and look good. I was a target just like the guy who helped me get the job was when he got fired. Soon enough I was on my way home with my last check but he did find out about the money thing, till one of the idiots who worked there got caught over a year later doing it and tried to take everyone down with him, including me, but I wasn’t even in the same state anymore, besides they didn’t believe him much. The fact that it became easy to get the money made it more and more tempting to continue everyday. I was not in any financial woes so I had no need to do it, but I did it anyways.

These past few years I have been in a few financial woes, I actually moved to Puerto Rico looking to start over from the bottom. Talk about a bad idea. I have come really close to poverty; I’ve lost my water once already. I’ve even found myself with an empty fridge and no gas in the car for days, not to mention being close to not being able to pay my rent and getting kicked out. But even this has not been enough to make me pursue a life of crime to fix my problems. But how many others have been in the same situation as me or worse or not as bad and chose to steal to try to fix their problems? It’s a sad truth about life, one that I believe could be avoided if 1) money was not everything (let’s be honest) and 2) people were more educated.

What do you think?
1,672 views 6 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top

Need is not really an indicator of dishonesty.  I have been where you were, with 3 kids to boot!  But I did not steal.  Eventually I got a job, paid off my back debts and am doing fine.

Many people who do resort to theft dont do it for the money.  They do it for the thrill, challenge or other reasons.  Some do it for the money, but those tend to be the wastes of society.  The Drug addicts and such who have no motivation past getting their next high.

Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top
I see what you mean. It's is funny to think that the trhill of stealing is more important than the items stolen at times. But, and that's a big but, why not just return the stolen goods if the thrill was what mattered most? Of course thats an easy answer but it makes no sense to me in a way though, in the end it proves that even though thr thrill was more important, it doesn't take away the fact that they stole for the money or items that can be later sold for money. I will always believe that in most cases money is always the reason, even Val Kilmer proved that to me in his movie The Saint.

BTW, just in case, I have never stolen while with my family, what I did in the past I did when I was 18 and single. Just in case.
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Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top
some of us are more geared for SURVIVAL than others, I have been to that bad place and moved away from it, am I proud of some of my past? nope. Would I do it again in order to SURVIVE? prolly so.
Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top

Back in 1991,  due to health reasons, I had to leave my good paying job.  I had no source of income and was trying to raise my son alone after having kicked out an abusive spouse.

No job, hospitalized, house payments to meet, electric bills, phone bills, no food, no gas in car,  and no hope.

NOPE,  didn't steal.  Didn't want to, still won't and have no desire to steal from others.

I stole a lighter from a man when I was 20 years old and am still mortified over it.

Some steal because they see no other choices,  and they have other choices. 

Some steal to feed a drug habit,  and that's a choice too.

We always have a choice.

I'm not saying I"m "holier than thou art" because of my choices to not steal when in need,  I just couldn't bring myself to do it.  Stealing that lighter, ( I was drunk) brought with it a heavy cross for me to carry.

Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top
Stealing that lighter, ( I was drunk) brought with it a heavy cross for me to carry.


I know what you mean. I'll never forget the first time I took something that wasn't mine. I was about 8 or 9 years old and I was addicted to LEGO toys. I could build anything out of them. One day I went with my dad to a friends store and as I walked in I noticed a some LEGOs on the counter. I was a small car, missing pieces. But what attracted me the most was the steering wheel. I did not have one in my collection and I liked it, so I took it. I haunted me for years to come. Every time I remembered it was like everyone knew and I was embarrassed. No one ever found out and the kid probably thought he had lost it, but I could only imagine if that would have been me and how bad I would have felt.

I am ashamed of some of the things I have done in the past, I can't really explain why I did it. It makes no sense to me. I have such high morals and I think very low of those who do it. Talk about not taking one's own advice. But no matter how bad it gets I will never steal again. Not unless the world goes to hell, robots rule and the only way to survive is stealing, then maybe.
Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top

I'll never forget the first time I took something that wasn't mine. I was about 8 or 9 years old

I was about the same age and stole some money (about 50 cents) from my mother.  For years I feared I was going to hell.  But I swore never to do it again!  Never got caught, but the guilt was worse than anything my mother would have done to me.