The Rush wrote:
....An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, I say.
The way to significantly reduce, if not prevent, theft, is to prevent the mindset which devalues others, and their work. Every piece of property represents someone's Time and Energy - work.
Theft is the somatic equivalent of saying, "What I'm taking from you, is worth much less to me - and perhaps to whom I'll sell it - than it is to you."
The thieves you mentioned didn't receive a sufficient quality of Time and Energy from others to begin with - again, prevention, rather than cure.
I'd rather properly raise a child, than correct an adult. Rare is the child who is treated with respect, and taught that respecting others and respecting oneself are two sides of the same coin, who yet goes on to become a thief.
You make some excellent points that I totally agree with.
Yes far easier to discipline a child than deal with that child's experiences of learned bad behaviours.
But to discipline children or teenagers early enough you have to tackle the parents. A recent story shows (exceptionally) how a family's children (think it is 5) have all been taken away as they are all 'fat'! The parents are upset to say the least.
So how far do you go to state that 'not enough discipline' or do parenting classes - this is a vast amount of power being throuwn about by the State. Not good. So how to make the parents
want to learn and help their children by ensuring goo discipline.
I think it is a whole 'state of mind' social pattern - people are stressed and unhappy feel totally demotivated and so the children are too.
So incentives and motivation have to be the key to establish better mind sets.
I also wonder if some serious encouragement for teenagers to go into the services, many people have been 'made' by taking this 'action', and can learn on the job too.