Column for November 30, 2006

Stand up and fight against organized crime

If you read the police report in this paper each week, you will find a lot of reports of theft. Theft is committed in various forms. Victims of theft come in various forms, as well. There are more victims of theft than you think, and by the end of today's column, you will know what I mean.

I am sure that many retail stores have dealt with theft by shoplifters, especially with "Black Friday" last week. There are always news stories about such crimes. I actually saw one about calendar stores having a high incident rate of supermodel calendars being shoplifted.

I was a victim of theft just this past week. A man whom I have hired to perform yard work has stolen from me. This man comes to my house often asking for work to do. When I have the work and the cash (I rarely carry cash) at the same time, I allow him to perform chores. I always pay him fairly, often generously. What I do like is that he is willing to work for the money rather than just beg for a handout. This time, however, he has earned my distrust. After the last job, he stole one of my rakes that I left out for him to use.

It is needless to say that the man will never get any more of my business again. He has been in and out of jail for theft over the years. Just within the past few months, he stole from another local resident, and it didn't take CSI Selma long to apprehend him. He had a history of theft, but never against me, so I wanted to give him a chance.

This whole scenario brought to mind so vividly the idea that we do the same thing on a regular basis as taxpayers. We ignore a long history of thievery and yet continue to pay money to known thieves. Surface arguments can be made that citizens of the entire United States were tired of theft by Congress and voted many of the culprits out of office this recent election. If history is any indicator, we will only get more of the same, just a different party at the helm.

On a more local level, we have been stolen from regularly. The Global Transpark has been a boondoggle for years, but we continue to dump millions of dollars into it. Illegal dredging of the Intracoastal Waterway has sucked millions of dollars from taxpayer pockets. The Triangle Transportation Authority (TTA) was sucking millions of dollars from taxpayers and was looking for another billion dollars for a light rail system. Illegal immigrants drain our economy of billions of dollars in government services. A school bond in Wake County is about to steal millions of dollars from taxpayers. We will have a bond referendum here in Johnston County soon.

Believe it or not, I collect antiques. They are not the sort that I can find here in Selma, unfortunately. The latest purchase for my collection has not even arrived yet and I found that I am being overcharged on my credit card. Will I seek to rectify that with the dealer? You bet I will. Do I seek the same with our government? I sure try.

Whether it is a $15 rake taken from my car port, unnecessary tax dollars taken out of my paycheck, fees for emissions testing on my car, or an increase in my property taxes while attempting to tear down an old water tower, I see it all as theft. The heinous part about governmental theft is that it is institutional and seen as acceptable.

When one person steals from you, you have legal recourse, you may get your property or money back, and the perpetrator may go to jail. When government steals from you, it is with threat of force, jail time if you fail to assent, and we as citizens have little recourse.

Get involved. Fight against legalized theft. Contact your elected representatives. Attend town council and county commission meetings. Let your voice be heard. Be like McGruff the Crime Dog, and "take a bit out of crime", even if it is legalized governmental theft.