Do people have no shame any more?

[tachetastic]

I don't know if the worst part of this story is the fact that its theft or the fact people don't care.

I was in Tesco this morning buying eggs (the normal type, not chocolate) and a couple were standing by the egg display swapping the eggs from two half-dozen boxes of the fancy premium brand eggs into a box for 12 Tesco own-brand eggs. They weren't even being subtle about it. He was just standing there holding the boxes while she swapped the eggs over. He then double checked that the designer eggs she had put in the Tesco box were all unbroken, and then they put the expensive box containing the cheap eggs back on the shelf and put the cheap box with the expensive eggs in their trolley, and off they went.

During all of this I and three other customers were just standing openly watching them and casting glances at each other.

The difference in price was probably about 50p per box, so about a quid in total. But is that the point? Are the eggs so much better that it's worth a heist, or are people just so pissed off with the CoL crisis that anything they can do to feel that they are getting something for nothing is worth while?

The couple so clearly didn't care that I couldn't see the point in telling them it was theft, but when they left I moved the two boxes containing the cheap eggs to one side and left them open, so nobody would pick them up not realising they weren't the fancy eggs.

AIBU, this is fine and large supermarkets have it coming?

or AINBU, this is still theft and cheeky fuckery of the highest order?

And more interestingly, what cheeky fuckers have you seen lately who could beat this?

Well yes but most people cant be arsed to grow their own anymore, you still need to get the seeds from somewhere. Someone still has to work to grow the food we eat, or do you think food just appears from nowhere?

I know (re challenging thieves or reporting theft to security). But we can’t just give up altogether, we have to at least play our part in trying to uphold civil society. Otherwise we descend unchecked into degeneracy, as this will only get worse and worse.
I would tell security at least. Though I realise they are unlikely to do anything - poor chap just got sacked by Waitrose for trying to stop shoplifting ffs. But, I have seen security searching people’s bags, so sometimes they act.

Tampering with supermarket stock isn’t a new thing, alas. I just remembered my grandma once opened a bottle of Buttercup Syrup in a supermarket, tasted it, pulled a face, screwed the cap back on and put it back. This was in the 70s.

Not defending this in the slightest, it was gross and also very unlike her (no dementia or eccentricities) but this thread just reminded me of it for the first time in ages!

And now the government have lifted the 2 child benefit cap as well.

it would never have occurred to me that people swap eggs. I check for broken ones but now I’ll have to check that I’m not buying the cheap ones and paying for the ££ ones.

Why should someone be ashamed to claim out of work benefits?
People claim it due to disability. Why on earth should they be made to feel shame for that?

I wasn’t referring to out of work benefits. The PP was. I was referring to child benefit. I hope that this being extended results in a drop in people shoplifting to feed their families, but I highly doubt it, so those of us who work hard and pay taxes will just pay more for everything.

It won't change anything. The scraping of the 2 child limit is ridiculous. Most people stop at 1 or 2 kids. So we now have a crazy scenario of people being responsible and stopping at the number they can afford, paying tax to fund other people having as many kids as they want! I'd scrap it altogether. You want children, or pets, or a holiday...you pay for them.

I called the pp out on that too, upthread, and they seem to have chosen not to respond. Funny, that.

Agree completely. I will never, ever vote Labour again. They are destroying this country.

I don't condone this at all but I do understand why people feel aggrieved when we are being told there is a cost of living crisis yet supermarkets are recording profits in the billions. It's corporate greed not col. Maybe these people are fighting back, or maybe they're the type of arseholes that would have done this anyway.

Bring back shame. I stand by this.

I tend to agree. Since we removed stigma from just about everything, standards and expectations of basic civic and personal responsibility have absolutely dropped off a cliff. Everyone seems to think they have a god given right to have what they want, do what they want, take what they want and behave how they want, and it's someone other schmuck's duty to clean up their mess, both literally and metaphorically.

is "society" a better place because no one can now express a view without someone else "taking offence" and playing the relevant card to shame them in return ?

I know eggsactly what you mean. They really do need to crack down on their prices, talk about eggstravagant. 🤣

Most of us do have shame, an in-built moral code that needs no-one to reinforce it.

We are the type of people who would stand in an empty shop, waiting for the shopkeeper to come out from the back and serve us. We wouldn't throw litter, play loud music on public transport, or fuck and blind in the street.

We don't need anyone to tell us to not to do that.

However, there have always been those who do not have that in-built code and need the threat of punishment to behave. They behave because there is the threat of punishment not because they can self-regulate.

This ever growing group now sees that public authority-from teachers to police-has been vastly reduced and the chance of being punished is vanishingly rare.

They need that threat of punishment to behave. The threat of punishment is rarely there. Therefore they can behave in an anti-social and uncivilised way.

The threat of punishment needs to come back. Teachers need to punish in the classroom and the police need to punish in the courts.

Zero tolerance.

No Borstals or prisons-let the wrong-doers build them as part of their punishment.

Choose not to do so and we can look forward to the Barbarians rushing through the gates while we cower.

Absolutely.

In addition, I cringe when someone pops up on these very boards and points an accusing finger at a poster saying, "Don't be so judgy", as if this were a bad thing and making up all sorts of sill scenarios as to why some neer-d-well shouldn't be judged.

Shame and judgement need to start making a comeback. I don't care if what I'm seeing is a "snapshot" I judge that snapshot.

This is an example of such bollocks

Not the point of the thread, but how is it that ‘Cost of Living Crisis’ is a phrase that’s stuck so much?

There was the pandemic in 2020, then high inflation for a year-and-a-bit around 2022 before it went back to normal, three years ago – and yet the idea that we’re in some kind of perma-crisis has taken hold such that it doesn’t seem daft to suggest that it might be the reason why this couple are being such dicks.

So who would you want to shame and why?

if people were watching then nobody thought it was ok, of course that’s out of the ordinary, they were stealing!

Gosh it's such a long list, where to start?

Oh you know - all the usual things. I am sure you can imagine. You don't need me to spell it out, surely?

But I don't mean the way you were born and things you absolutely cannot be expected to control. So not your race or your sexuality or your disability if you have one.

I'm talking about entitled, irresponsible personal choices mainly. And selfishness or slovenliness in general when it impacts on other people. A blatant disregard for social mores.

A list. Feel free to add to it-this isn't exhaustive by any means. If you disagree with any of it, it would be interesting if you could say why.

Litter throwers
People who curse in the street
People who behave anti-socially on public transport-with loud music, feet on seats or roaring into a mobile phone on speaker
People who leave a mess when they leave a table in a cafe.
People who don't scoop up their own dog's shit
Queue jumpers
Shop Lifters
Those who ride bikes on pavements
Those who talk loudly or use mobiles in cinemas or theatres
Those who fail to control unruly children who are spoiling the enjoyment of others
Those who allow dogs to bark all day
Those who go to the supermarket or school pick up in their pyjamas

They need judging, they need shaming. No excuses. No "just a snapshot! No apologists.

However, they are so bold now it would probably take a horse whipping for some of them learn!

In the absolute worst way possible, this is pretty genius. I wouldn’t even think to do something like this! It is shameful obviously but also creative…

That's mad. I get the whole "if you see someone stealing baby milk no you didn't" think, but this is scummy.

I actually was sort of hoping you'd spell it out because I was curious as to what you'd define as shameworthy. Out of interest, how would you define 'entitled, irresponsible personal choices'?

Yeah, I have to say I agree with all these!