VPD undercover sting in DTES - unexpected findings
- Thread starter wetnose
- Start date
I saw the broadcast on the news and wondered what would transpire. Luckily the Community took care of him.
I've spent some time in the DTES on volunteer work and this is not uncommon.....during the day. The community is wary of strangers but once they know you, they look out for you. you beomce part of the family and people will ask for you if they haven't seen you in awhile. At night however, it's a different story...especically after the bars close. The cover or darkness and deserted streets raise the potential for crime. I wonder if the VPD operation covered these hours of the day. The video only showed daytime activity.
I think they did an episode of night sting ops on a locally produced TV series The Beat–
the cop went undercover, dressed in homeless attire and he would pretend to be asleep
or passed out in one of the alleys. lo and behold, common thieves took advantage of
the situation by rummaging through his pockets and backpack. little did the thieves know
they were being surveilled from across the street. keep in mind, the undercover officer wasn't
on a wheelchair so I'm not sure if that made a difference.
The sort of people who would rob a disabled person are few and far between, even among thieves. I don't think it is surprising at all. Those sorts of crimes make a big splash when they happen, but it is a tiny sliver of the population who thinks like that.
It does mean the guy they were looking for is still out there though.
It does mean the guy they were looking for is still out there though.
This is a really sad commentary about society in general. You find compassion on a personal level at the bottom 1% of the population, where people know what it's like to be impoverished. So they help each other out as best they can. You find compassion at the top 1% of the population where people like Bill and Melinda gate setup foundations to help out on a global scale. Then there's the rest of us, who are simply too busy fighting for parking spots at Costco or wondering which phone we should get next....
There are plenty of wealthier people who help out those in need. The probability of someone who is poor being altruistic is no different from people who are better off. While a few people offered this guy advice, I'm betting that the vast majority, while not trying to rob him, ignored him.
I think you will find that those least likely to help are the ones in the middle. The ones who have enough but not enough, who are interested only in drinking, hockey and sex, and resent anything that gets in the way of any of those three. Those are the ones who won't do squat to help others. They think they are better than others even though they themselves are just drones whose lives mean nothing at all.
