Stealing: part duh

The weirdness never stops. In the news today (well, yesterday) was a story about a San Diego couple who steal from stores for a living, reselling on eBay everything from toys to swords (how the heck do you steal a sword?). Apparently, they approached the Dr. Phil show to talk about their thefts, and admitted on national TV to transporting stolen goods across state lines, which attracted the attention of the feds. Yep, arrested and indicted now. And pleading not guilty... Sounds like they're trying to shift the blame onto mental problems (kleptomania, because utter stupidity alone is not a defense), but they clearly were totally prepared for and focused on their crime strategies. Proud of it, too. Just watch these videos where they talk about how "successful" they are. http://www.orcawareness.com/ThievesinAction2.htm

Weird note number one: their dream was to open a toy store one day with all their purloined loot (we're talking a LOT of stolen merchandise, more than 500 boxes alone at the time of their arrest). I did a little coffee spit take on that one. Tried to imagine them as shopkeepers, staying up all night worrying about expenses. And then they realize: "Oh wait! We don't have expenses; we stole all our inventory!" Or greeting families who come in for the good old-fashioned fun of choosing a toy or game for their children ("Welcome to our bastion of family values! Let us know if we can help you steal, I mean find something.") What would they do if someone tried to make off with some of "their" merchandise? Scream bloody murder? Or just say, "Dude. I understand. Just go ahead and shove those games down your pants, because we didn't pay for them anyway."

Weird and tragic note number two: they took their three pre-school children along with them and used them as decoys to seem more "normal." That part leaves me speechless.