Proof That I Am The Classic Bleeding Heart Liberal

[filkertom]

This is a story of heroism -- at least, that's obviously how the TV station is playing it. And it is, no question -- many kudos to Brent Alvarez and Billy Denney, not merely for stopping a crime but for their humility and compassion while doing so. But it's also a story of luck, good and bad.

The good luck, of course, is that no one got shot. Best possible situation: The robber put his gun in the duffel bag before he'd even left the office, let alone the crime scene.

The bad luck, of course, is that of the robber. I don't know if he was b.s.'ing about his daughter... but the story gives it the ring of truth. And I can't help but worry about him and his kid, and what this arrest will do to them (although it would have been much worse if someone had indeed been injured or shot).

So, here's to the heroes, Alvarez and Denney. Thanks for the cool heads, guys, and may your lives go well. And here's hoping Luis Rosales, the robber, whose bail is set at $101,250 he can't possibly have, can somehow put his life back together -- for his sake, his daughter's, and ours. Surely we need a father more than we need another guy in jail.

This is not to excuse his crime, but to lament that crimes like this happen every day. This time we got lucky and no one was killed. But the worse things get, the more crime like this we'll see.

I believe the phrase that goes along with the mindset is, "I've got nothing left to lose."

Comments

[wyld-dandelyon.livejournal.com]

"Surely we need a father more than we need another guy in jail." Yeah--this. We also need honest and honorable ways that fathers--and mothers--can provide for their children.

And so long as so much of our wealth is concentrated in making such a tiny portion of the people mind-bogglingly wealthy, that will continue to be a problem.

It's not just having nothing left to lose it's also having already lost hope that you will ever be able to earn a minimally decent life.

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

On the nose, m'friend.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

I disliked one of the comments, "there are so many ways to make some cash in a honest way." as if the guy didn't try that first; as if the millions of those in poverty didn't try that. I bet this guy actually believes the "hard work will make you rich" like the 1% has been feeding us.

People are cheering because things went right. They could have gone wrong very easily. One commenter mentioned his father's friend who fought back only to fall victim to the lookout with the gun.

Honestly, I'm not sure whether to stand on principle and cheer that a crime was stopped or chide them for not leaving well enough alone. THIS time we got lucky. How many times were we NOT lucky.

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

Am I missing something? How does the story give it the ring of truth? I heard one reference where he was trying to escape and told the guy who was holding him he needed the money for his daughter. Could it be true? Maybe, but criminals tend to tell very believable lies.

Am I jaded? Having been lied to and scammed myself, yes. I hope the daughter isn't real. And if she is, hopefully she'll end up in the custody of a responsible relative.

[dornbeast.livejournal.com]

Career criminals tell believable lies. They have to.

People who are desperate enough to turn to crime for money don't necessarily tell believable lies. There's no reason for them to have picked up the skill.

Is Luis Rosales a career criminal? I don't know. Do you?

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

No I don't, and my default attitude is to assume someone is decent and honest. When they start waving guns around and demanding cash, that attitude is subject to modification.

[lemmozine.livejournal.com]

The comments people have entered on the site where the video is (I don't mean here!) detracted from my already low opinion of humanity in general.

Seems to me if this guy had really needed money to help his daughter, he could have sold the 9 mil for a little something. And if he really cared about that, he wouldn't put himself in a situation where he could go to jail and not be of any help to his daughter for a long time.

100 out of 100 times, armed robbery is not the best way to raise money.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

Desperate people do desperate things. What do you think the gun was worth? Do you think it would have done anything?

[chaotic-nipple.livejournal.com]

There's a saying common in NRA circles that goes "A gun will get you through times with no money better than money will get you through times with no gun". Ostensibly it's about hunting and not having to buy food, but I have my suspicions about what they're REALLY thinking.

[catlin.livejournal.com]

Considering the average Joe living in town doesn't actually know how to hunt, yeah. That and while there are alot of squirrels in the average backyard, it isn't actually legal to hunt them.

[catlin.livejournal.com]

It falls into a trap I have seen a few times. The few items that Can be sold, can't be sold for enough money to help for more then a meal, mabey two. My husband and I are book dragons. We have probably accrued thousands of dollers of books during our marriage. Selling them though is next to impossible. Take a hundred dollers worth of books to the average used book dealer and you MIGHT get ten bucks back for them. Used video games are the same way, and jewelry. Guns have the added difficulty of liscences. The police like to know where guns end up.

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

Most states (California being a notable exception) have no "licensing" of any sort. The background check is for purchasing from an FFL. Private sales have no such requirement. And unless you're desperate to sell on short notice, guns tend to retain at least 90% of their value or increase in value.

But this gentleman does live in California, so he'd have to register his private sale with the state.

Quick Fix

[baronet.livejournal.com]

Re: 100 out of 100 times, armed robbery is not the best way to raise money.

If he sold his gun, he would have enough money to make it though a week. Do you think that he wasn't able to project a week into the future and despair over what to do then?

I think that 80 out of 100 times, it is an effective, if not socially desirable, way to raise money. The other 20 it is a catastrophic way to raise money. Or maybe the numbers are 50 and 50 or 99 and 1.

Sleeping in a bathroom with your son is a bad way to spend the night. But sometimes that is (or looks like) your best alternative. Just ask Chris Gardner.

I, as a potential mugging victim, have a vested interest in making sure that mugging isn't (and doesn't look like) the best choice for anyone around me.