Crime and charity

[rmcdra]

At midnight last night, my hotel was robbed at gun point. I am okay and I was not shot. While I would like to see justice carried out I forgive this guy. If anything, I feel sorry that he was so desperate that he had to threaten my life over something so petty, barely $300. It's not worth it.

Please involve yourself in charity and encourage those who are in need to lower their pride and seek charity. Desperation is a horrible thing to witness. The idea of being so hopeless that nothing else matters is frightening. What even more frightening is that if I had not been blessed with risk assessment skills, a fiancée and many other people I care deeply about, that could have been me holding that gun because I know I have been in need before. If you are in need please do not be afraid to beg and ask for help. If you are capable of helping in what ever way you can do so with no strings attached. Please prevent a tragedy from happening not only to a victim's life but to the criminal's life as well.  

[Matt Pniewski]

People aren't born criminals. Criminals are made, through bad experiences, through childhood trauma, through desperation. Some people find a way out of it. For others, it's impossible. The only way to stop crime is to cut it off at the source.

Is this why Christ so highly endorsed helping the poor? Probably not, but it's another good reason. If we stamp out poverty, if we fight for equality, if we stand against the abusers and the exploiters, we stamp out crime.

A friend of mine, a superhero (yes, that is the accurate description) once told me why he stopped going out to patrol for crime. He said he didn't want to send criminals to jail, he wanted to stop them from becoming criminals, and put all of his efforts into charity.  

[freelance lover]

As someone who is currently working, in a low income community and has previous worked in one of the poorest areas of Dallas, I can absolutely says that I agree that criminals aren't born, their made. Poverty is generational, or children grow up without adequate role models.

There's a really great line from the movie Ever After that I feel sums it up pretty well...

"If you suffer your people to be ill-educated, and their manners corrupted from infancy, and then punish them for those crimes to which their first education disposed them, what else is to be concluded, sire, but that you first make thieves and then punish them?"

In any case, I'm glad you're okay. I'm sure that must have been frightening.  

[rmcdra]

Thank you all so much and I agree with you both.

I do not believe criminals are born. I believe we both have two dogs inside of us and it's the one we feed that becomes the stronger. I also believe that others can help feed these dogs as well. Which dog in ourselves and in others are we feeding?