Dear Larry: What do you do when you observe someone breaking the law?

I was in a major department store buying some clothes for my little girl, when I observed a woman and two children stealing clothes and putting them in a shopping bag. They were actually looking through the store and picking out the clothes they really liked. They did not try to hide the fact that they were stealing. They just got the clothes and put them in a bag, which was concealed under her oversize dress.

While she was stealing, she happened to see me staring, and she responded with a look of contempt. I went to the saleslady and told her what was going on. The saleslady acted as if she was too busy to be bothered with a shoplifter. The saleslady told me she knew what that lady and children were doing because they come in all the time and take things. The saleslady also told me it was not her store, and if management will not stop her, she is not going to "stick her neck out." I couldn't believe what I heard.

Larry, can you believe someone who works in a store would not care that people are stealing, and can you believe someone would shoplift without thinking twice about it?

I feel like a fool for even mentioning the theft and even a greater fool for paying for items when others are getting them free.

The race of the woman and family is not important, but if you must know, she looked white. — Clara

Dear Clara: Yes, I can believe it.

At one time, my niece worked in a retail clothing store, and she told me how she observed shoplifters all the time. She said that in the beginning, she would call security or confront the shoplifters. However, with time, she said, she just got tired of dealing with the problem.

The supervisor told my niece the cost of shoplifting is built in to the prices of the items, and it is cheaper to look the other way than be sued because security hurt a thief while arresting him or be accused of discrimination.

The supervisor also told my niece she should avoid catching minority shoplifters because the local civil rights group accused her store of discrimination because more minorities were caught. As an aside, my niece, who is black, told me 90 percent of the shoplifters in her store were minorities. She was in a no-win situation. In response to her dilemma, she found another job.

I believe as a rule, it is best to confront rather than ignore. I believe we all should obey the laws. I am the kind of person who will get involved whenever I see wrong. If I had witnessed the shoplifting crime, I would have told that lady and children in a loud voice that they were stealing and that I would report them. A normal shoplifter would put the clothes back and flee. It sounds as if your shoplifter and the saleslady may have an understanding, and my approach might not have had an impact on those criminals.

Edmund Burke, an 18th-century philosopher, once said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." It is too easy to look the other way at wrong, but this world would be in chaos if no one reacted to wrong.

Evil cannot be allowed to rule; we all must get involved, even if we risk leaving our comfort zones.

To find out more about Larry G. Meeks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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