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(The Economic Collapse Blog)—We are right in the middle of a tsunami of shoplifting that never seems to end, and as a result major retailers are closing down locations in major cities all over the country.
A few years ago, videos of brazen shoplifters ruthlessly looting retail stores were shocking everyone, but now this sort of thing is so common that very few of us are shocked anymore. We have come to expect that our retail stores will be regularly looted because this is who we have become as a nation. Sadly, even many of our politicians aren’t too concerned that the impoverished masses are stealing billions of dollars worth of merchandise from our major retailers.
Like so many others, maybe they figure that those retailers won’t even miss what is being taken. But the truth is that they do miss what is being taken, and CEOs have been complaining very loudly about it…
For much of the past year or so, executives at big retailers did something unusual: They talked about theft in their stores. A lot.
Walmart’s CEO warned it could lead to store closures and higher prices. Target’s CEO said it was costing the chain upward of a billion dollars. Home Depot’s finance chief called it a “consistent pressure” that the chain is “tackling every day.”
With a backdrop of viral videos showing brazen and violent thieves, crime became a common theme on retailers’ typically dry quarterly earnings calls. Executives often mentioned “shrink” — inventory missing for one reason or another — as a factor behind declining profits. The list grew long: Macy’s, Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods, T.J.Maxx, Dollar General.
Year after year, things get even worse.
It is being reported that “revenue loss to theft has been steadily rising since 2016”, and “shrink” is now costing our retailers more than 100 billion dollars a year.
That is about the size of Russia’s entire military budget for 2024.
Just think about that for a few moments.
We have never seen anything like this before.
So far this year, retailers in New York City have filed more than 21,000 shoplifting complaints…
Don’t believe pro-crime progressives when they lie about public safety here in NYC: This year so far has seen 21,578 shoplifting complaints from Gotham’s retailers.
That’s a 5% increase over last year’s obscene 20,552; more than 41% of the 2024 crimes are concentrated in Manhattan.
And that’s part of an ugly, persistent trend.
Full-year numbers since 2021 have jumped from 43,892 to 59,137, an increase of almost 35% — and the real problem is surely far higher, as exhausted merchants don’t bother to report many incidents.
Even in the very best areas of the Big Apple, major retailers are being routinely ransacked, and authorities seem completely powerless to stop the endless crime wave…
Many would argue that conditions are even worse on the west coast.
One store manager in California that recently had a “meltdown reaction” when a young woman was stealing from her store says that businesses “are closing left and right because of all this looting going on”…
“Businesses are closing left and right because of all this looting going on,” Jolly said. “The system is broken, nothing is being done about it.”
She says that when she called police to report the incident, they suggested she contact the store’s insurance company.
“I just think it’s like, the people are trying to get away with it because there’s no consequences,” Jolly said, noting that the “meltdown reaction” came from a place of concern for her community and even the girl in the video. “I’m worried for her and she’s already doing this.”
It wasn’t like this when I was growing up.
But this is our country now.
In a desperate attempt to reduce shoplifting in his stores, Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos is removing self-checkout options in thousands of locations…
Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos said Thursday that the company plans to remove self-checkout from “the vast majority of stores” as part of larger overall shrink reduction efforts that include changes in supply chain and merchandising. Dollar General has already removed self-checkouts from 12,000 of its more than 20,000 stores, Vasos said.
Walmart is also removing self-checkout kiosks from many stores, and the number of products that are being locked up just continues to increase…
A frustrated Walmart customer has revealed the latest item to be locked up on the shopfloor during the shoplifting crackdown – and it only costs $1.50.
Victoria Damor, 22, from Las Vegas, made a TikTok detailing her shocking experience at the big box retailer last month.
Her video, which she posted under her handle @toridamore, has already been seen by almost 90,000 people, who have flocked to the comments to share their outrage.
Talking to the camera, the shopper exclaimed: ‘This is the future of Walmart. I can’t even walk into Walmart and pick up a nail file worth $1.50 because it’s locked up.
When a $1.50 nail file has to be locked up in a cage so that the thieves can’t get at it, your country is in huge trouble.
Of course it isn’t just the United States that is descending into anarchy.
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Shoplifting has also risen to unprecedented levels all over Europe.
For example, just check out these eye-popping figures from the UK…
According to the Office for National Statistics, 2023 was the worst year on record for shoplifting, with more than 430,000 cases recorded, an increase of more than a third from the year before. But that is probably just a fraction of the real number. The British Retail Consortium – the body representing almost all of the major retail chains, incorporating food and drink, fashion, DIY, health and beauty and more – recently reported that incidents of customer theft more than doubled from 8m to 16.7m in the period between 1 September 2022 and 31 August 2023. Losses reached £1.8bn, up from £950m the year before.
Throughout the western world, the numbers are moving in the wrong direction. If things are this bad now, what will happen once economic conditions become extremely harsh?
Even though economic conditions are still at least somewhat relatively stable, chaos is already erupting all around us.
I can’t even imagine what things will be like once tens of millions of people feel like they have nothing left to lose.
We really are in the early stages of a horrifying societal meltdown, and most of the population is not even close to ready for what is coming.
Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
Conor McGregor Announces That He’s Running for President of Ireland
by PJ Media
The former Irish Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion, Conor McGregor, is once again saying he is exploring a potential run for the President of Ireland, with a promise to throw out the “charlatans in their positions of power” in Ireland’s lower legislative house, the Dáil. McGregor had previously hinted…
An Abusive ‘Cult’ Masquerading as Education: Harvard’s New ‘Queer’ Course Sparks Outcry From Experts
by Harbingers Daily
The cult of “queer” is getting stronger. As tens of millions of American children struggle with reading and millions more deal with sex abuse at the hands of “educators,” Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education will teach future teachers how to combat the alleged evils of “heteronormativity” and “cisnormativity” in…
Grassley Drops FBI Records on Iranian-Backed Assassination Plots Against Trump, Biden, and Haley
by Just The News
Republican Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley on Thursday released FBI records from a whistleblower on the alleged Iranian-backed assassination plots against President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump, and Nikki Haley. The assassination plots were allegedly in retaliation for the death of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corp officer Qasem Soleimani, who was…
Germany Considering Sending Illegal Migrants to Rwanda Camps Set up for the UK and Abandoned by Starmer’s Labour Government
by The Gateway Pundit
With Chancellor Olaf Schulz and his ‘traffic light’ coalition enjoying dismal poll numbers, and with the recent victories by the Eurosceptics right-wingers of AfD in Eastern states, Germany’s government has decided to at least pretend to do something about one of the most concerning issues for the population: unchecked mass…
Great Replacement Job Shock: 1.3 Million Native-Born Americans Just Lost Their Jobs, Replaced by 635,000 Immigrants
by Tyler Durden, Zero Hedge
(Zero Hedge)—At the start of the year, many months after we first pointed out that the biggest untold story of the US labor market was the “great replacement” of native born workers with foreign-born workers (most of whom we subsequently learned were illegal aliens), we asked how is the great…
As Concerns Over the Recession Grow, a Faith-Driven Gold IRA Company Offers Unique Solutions
by Sponsored Post
Depending on which economist you ask, we are either in a recession or are about to be in one. The definition of “recession” has been adjusted so many times over the past couple of years that it has become a punchline, albeit one that’s not very funny for average Americans…
NY’s Chinese Consul General No Longer in Position After Former Hochul Aide Charged as Spy
by Zero Hedge
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said on Sept. 4 that Chinese consul general Huang Ping is no longer holding his position after her request to the U.S. State Department that he be ousted. The State Department said the diplomat left because he reached the end of a regularly scheduled rotation….
7 Cover Stories Big Pharma Forced on MSM to Hide Disastrous Health Consequences of mRNA Clot Shots
by S.D. Wells, Natural News
(Natural News)—If you are wondering why mainstream media is finally publishing some science-based facts about the health detriment caused by commonly used products, that is because MSM is engaged in multi-faceted cover stories while they continue to pretend the Covid-19 mRNA jabs aren’t so bad. Remember, Covid-19 did not kill…
Pope Francis Kisses Hand of Muslim Imam, Declares All Religions ‘Have a Role to Play’
by Western Journal
Pope Francis is embarking upon a 12-day trip through four nations in Southeast Asia and Oceania. His intent with the voyage is to pledge the Catholic Church will combat religious violence while inspiring stronger ties to other religions. On Thursday, the Associated Press reported the Pope made his first stop…
Elon Connects the Dots in Dems’ Election Fraud Plot, and He’s 100% Spot-on
by Revolver News
If you claim you want to save “precious democracy,” shouldn’t securing elections be the number one priority? Because without secure elections, there is no “precious democracy” to even save, right? This should be the question every media hack grills the Dems on, over and over again—but they never will. Why?…
Trump Says He Will Help Israel Survive ‘for Thousands of Years’
by Nathan Worcester, The Epoch Times
(The Epoch Times)—Former President Donald Trump said at the Republican Jewish Coalition Leadership Summit on Thursday that he is committed to helping the State of Israel survive for the long haul. “I will put America first. I will keep America safe, and I will work with you to make sure…
Meta Oversight Board Says ‘River to the Sea’ Not Inherently Hate Speech
by Zero Hedge
In a development that will be cheered by those who promote open discourse on social media platforms and condemned by ardent supporters of the State of Israel, Meta’s independent Oversight Board for Instagram and Facebook on Wednesday ruled that the controversial slogan “from the river to the sea” is not…
Volkswagen Considers Shutting Down a German Factory for the First Time in History After Overestimating the EV Market
by Owen Klinsky, DCNF
(DCNF)—Volkswagen (VW) AG is considering shuttering factories in Germany as European car companies struggle to compete with Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers. The company has not closed a German plant in its entire 87-year history, but facing a slowdown in European car sales and stiff competition from Chinese EV maker…
Here’s How the Biden-Harris Open Border Has WILDLY Changed the U.S. Labor Market
by The National Pulse
Data produced by the U.S. Congressional Budget Office (CBO)—and based on census numbers—is shedding more light on claims that a bulk of American job growth under the Biden–Harris government hasn’t gone to or benefited native-born Americans at all. The CBO numbers reveal that labor force participation among foreign-born residents has…
Netanyahu Humiliates White House: ‘There’s No Gaza Deal In The Making… It’s Not Close’
by Zero Hedge
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday issued a bombshell of a statement which constitutes a glaring contradiction of the White House narrative on how things are going with Hamas negotiations toward a ceasefire deal. “There’s not a deal in the making,” he told Fox News. “Unfortunately, it’s not close.”…
It’s Spreading: America’s Top Oil Field Terrorized by Armed Cuban and Venezuelan Gangs
by Tyler Durden, Zero Hedge
(ZeroHedge)—It’s only going to get worse from here, as the Biden-Harris administration’s disastrous open border policies have now come to a ‘neighborhood near you’ (for some of you). In the past week, we saw armed Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua members terrorize the northern Denver suburb of Aurora and…
Major Study Discovers ‘Off Switch’ for Covid mRNA Shots
by Slay News
A group of eminent medical experts and leading scientific researchers has announced a major breakthrough after a groundbreaking study discovered an “off switch” for Covid mRNA shots. The historic discovery, which offers hope to the billions of people around the world who have been injected with the “vaccines,” was revealed…
James Carville Suggests Fact-Checkers Abandon “Impartial” Reporting to “Help Save Constitution” From Republicans
by Daily Caller
(DCNF)—Democratic strategist James Carville on Thursday suggested that fact-checkers should focus their reporting on “Republicans” to assist in rescuing the U.S. Constitution. In a June episode of his “Politics War Room” podcast, Carville advocated for media outlets to increase their “slanted” coverage of former President Donald Trump to prevent his…
Budget-Friendly Tips to up Your Prepper Game
by Natural News
As a prepper, one of your main goals is to prepare for different emergencies. But prepping goes beyond preparing for cataclysmic events like earthquakes or societal collapse. You can also prepare for smaller-scale emergencies like power outages or unexpected personal financial crises. One of the best ways to prepare for…
Kids these days aren’t trying to get jobs (well – that’s not universally true, but hear me out). The “solution” that will be pimped is Universal Basic Income (tied to your social credit score, of course). Automation isn’t destroying everything fast enough – so this slip into the downward spiral is a BOON to the globalists who want to enslave everybody. Never let a crisis go to waste, eh?
Another indication the end is near is everything I read is trying to sell me something……My answer is I do not want what you are selling…….
Police enforce the laws, they haven’t jobs for some time. The US is riots, shoplifting and lockdowns along with jailing political prisoners. Equals a banana republic.
I think you have e a bad strategy. You do not allow us newbies to share your content without first content moderation hurdle
Retail theft is out of control…you bet it is…nation wide…many stores have closed because of the daily onslaught of blatant criminal stealing merchandise and threatening store employees if they attempt to intervene….but its NOT just retail stores…don’t get sick, get mugged, have a vehicle accident or ever need hospital emergency treatment or an ambulance to get assistance.
Why must US Citizens pay excessively more for Emergency Hospital Treatment, Emergency Ambulance Services and Emergency Room Doctor Bills ?
Since undocumented immigrants can’t participate in the healthcare insurance exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act, millions of illegals will be excluded, leaving hospitals to continue to pick up the cost of their care, ambulance services write off uncollectible transportation charges and the same goes for higher Doctor Fees.
According to Pew Research, there are approximately 10.5 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. other sources say that estimate is much too low and the actual count should be 30-50 million.
The current estimate cost of treating uninsured undocumented immigrants, primarily at emergency rooms and ‘free’ clinics, is estimated at $4.3 billion annually, according to the Center for Immigration Studies.
So who makes up for these losses? Hospitals, Ambulance Services and Emergency Room Doctors in order to pay their bills inflate their respective charges to US Citizens Health Care Insurance who then deny the claim in-part or in-whole and pass those charges to the respective US Citizen that received such emergency services who now has to pay HUGE sums of money or get sued, negative/adverse credit report on their credit bureau, massive amount to ‘dune-letters’ threatening civil foreclosure on their homes, bank accounts and/or all potential monetarily catastrophic possibilities are substantiated and in full endorsements by the current Presidential Administration that has encouraged the largest mass invasion of illegals in American History beginning on day one when President Biden took his oath of office to defend this nation and uphold the US Constitution.
What now ?…millions of US Citizens are sick and tired of ‘underwriting’ the ‘free emergency medical and child birth costs for the people that are designed to ‘replace US Citizens’ and become benefited non-citizens voters so that a apparent One-Party Political System may come into reality.
We need to pull together and vote this November as if our lives depend on it…because they do !