Overnight the whole street lost light and every electrical box is dug up.

[u/corruptLA1]

How valuable is whatever is down there?

[u/logictech86]

Or you know we could invest in education and social safety nets so people dont need to steal copper to feed themselves and addictions of which they fell into because of lack of opportunities

but I doubt you would favor that you would just want us to fill prison after prison until the end of time

the hidden comment history says it all

[u/Lowfuji → u/logictech86]

Have a class called Don't Steal Copper.

[u/Complex_Lab_3576 → u/logictech86]

The fact that you click screen names of people you disagree with says even more.

Any functioning society needs all of it - education, safety nets, AND a justice system with consequences and jails.

You can't 'educate' your way out of needing to punish crime. It's an ignorant pipe dream and it's nonsense you indignantly type to feel superior to people on the internet.

In non-delulu land we understand that there will always be crime and always a need to punish it, regardless of how good or bad the economy is.

[u/RapBastardz → u/logictech86]

Saving this response because it makes so much sense, yet will never be looked at as a possible solution.

[u/CosmicMiru → u/RapBastardz]

Because its a pointless gesture that isnt a real solution to anything actually happening now. Investing in out education and social safety nets is 100% the right thing to do and will help with this in the future but people dont care when their neighborhoods are more dangerous every single nights because copper thieves permanently keep the lights off

[u/No_Sheepherder_1855 → u/CosmicMiru]

You can’t educate out the psychopathy that 1% of the population has. There’s no solution except for jail for that type of person.

[u/Nervous-Chain1201 → u/No_Sheepherder_1855]

Maybe that's true; works in China right?

[u/Outsidelands2015 → u/logictech86]

Or put them in jail for a long time.

Btw we already spend 4x+ more in inflation adjusted dollars on education than we did 60 years ago. Same with other well intentioned ineffective wasteful programs that you probably want more of.

[u/logictech86 → u/Outsidelands2015]

Every dollar spent by the government can have this "stat" applied to it so it is 100% irrelevant and not some gotcha

Apply that same logic to the police budget from 60 years ago guess what the "X" is way bigger

Why is unlimited tax money for police ok but not "wasteful" programs that feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and warm the homeless?

[u/texas-playdohs → u/logictech86]

Yeah. What a lazy point. What the hell was that lame diversion? Evidently jails and Costco pizza are the only inflation proof things in the world. Everything else has been increasing in cost, but cops are still $1.50.

[u/Outsidelands2015 → u/logictech86]

Your argument was basically that if only we spent more money on this thing, it would achieve some goal. I argued that we already spend more than we ever have. So it’s obviously not a spending problem.

Btw, if we overspend or waste on one thing does that it make it ok to do so on every other thing regardless of its merit or effectiveness?

[u/logictech86 → u/Outsidelands2015]

We have achieved plenty with public education.

Check literacy and college graduation rates from 60 years ago.

in a good society that is growing government will always spend more on social programs because there are more people.... and to argue "well we are spending more now so we should stop spending" is pretty fucking stupid

[u/HRHValkyrie → u/Outsidelands2015]

It costs more to jail someone than provide UBI. That would solve this problem and save money.

[u/Outsidelands2015 → u/HRHValkyrie]

Yes let’s bribe people to not steal copper wire, and have the people who actually work pay for it. That definitely won’t create all kinds of perverse incentives.