# I was caught stealing gas, and now a sandwich board is my fate **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 31, 2004, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693 "2004-07-31T03:13:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![lemon\_martini2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@lemon\_martini2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lemon_martini2)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/21 "2004-07-31T14:01:59Z")
Oh boy come and visit Britain…our petrol is 88p/liter…for a gallon,that’s £4.20 or US$7.67!!! ---
**Author:** ![MizQuirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/94ad74/32.png) [@MizQuirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizQuirk)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/22 "2004-07-31T14:32:42Z")
> [@wolf\_meister](#): > > **Jenaroph** > > _this is the new digital video camera that caught Purnell. It’s so clear you can read license plate numbers._ Wish they’d used that one to take the picture of the thief! After all, seeing how she feels about her embarrassment is half the fun of the punishment, isn’t it? I can’t tell if she’s laughing or crying, or what. Maybe my computer’s at fault. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/23 "2004-07-31T16:00:22Z")
> [@Johnny L.A.](#): > > WAG: I think this is because if it clicked off right at the amount, there will still be some fuel in the hose. But isn’t that what essentially happens to every person if they go for the full tank? I know when I’m filling my car up, it doesn’t slow down when it’s almost full, it just shuts right off. ---
**Author:** ![Mercury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e95f7d/32.png) [@Mercury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mercury)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/24 "2004-07-31T16:21:02Z")
Where I am (NE and central PA), most of our gas stations are not pay-before-you-pump. In fact, I refuse to partonize pay-before-you pump places. I never carry cash, and only fill up with a debit card. IME, the way most of those places work is that you put your card in, it takes $50 out of your account, and whatever you don’t spend goes back into your account. However, between the taking out and the putting back in there’s about a day lag. Dangerous for a college student. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/25 "2004-07-31T16:45:06Z")
I seem to recall a news story recently where the pre-pay ATM device actually pre-charged the card about $150 on the off-chance that the person filling up was a mutant rhinoceros driving a Caterpillar 797B, even though the person might only be putting in two bucks’ worth into a gas can. I can’t remember the ruling, but I muzzily recall that the judge wasn’t pleased with this gas station’s excuses. ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/26 "2004-07-31T16:51:04Z")
> [@Mercury](#): > > IME, the way most of those places work is that you put your card in, it takes $50 out of your account, and whatever you don’t spend goes back into your account. However, between the taking out and the putting back in there’s about a day lag. Never had that happen to me. They always do some sort of “authorization charge” which I guess makes sure there’s money on the card. It’s usually something like $1. ---
**Author:** ![Fionn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fionn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fionn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/27 "2004-07-31T17:12:27Z")
If not for the photo, I would have assumed the article was written by some high school kid on a summer internship. And not edited. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/28 "2004-07-31T17:31:51Z")
> [@Fionn](#): > > If not for the photo, I would have assumed the article was written by some high school kid on a summer internship. And not edited. I was just about to say that. This is one of the worst pieces of journalism I’ve ever read. > [@](#): > > “It takes me an hour and a half to research our video drive offs, so no I don’t feel that. She should be held responsible,” said Phipps. Don’t feel _what_? It doesn’t say. > [@](#): > > “You basically send her out and then get a bunch of stones and stone her. What is this the middle ages?” said one supporter. 😕 > [@](#): > > “Just to stand here for 3 hours? They should give her 110 degree weather send her to Iraq,” said another supporter Supporter? Of whom? WTF? > [@](#): > > Phipps says she hopes everyone gets the message, Gas and Go, Everyone will know. Good God. Rubbish. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/29 "2004-07-31T18:38:11Z")
Ordinarily, I wouldn’t be so harsh, but that story was so poorly-written, I used their “Contact Us” option and sent them this message: * * * Regarding the story about gas theft: [http://www.wmdt.com/topstory/topstory.asp?id=1005](http://www.wmdt.com/topstory/topstory.asp?id=1005) Never mind the actual story, reporter Josh Davidsburg’s writing style is horrible. The wording is so bad, there are some sentences which contain several mistakes. Okay I’ll cite just one sentence: * * * “At the suggestion of the gas station’s manager, The courts ordered her to stand outside the gas station with a sign reading I got caught stealing gas.” * * * error #1: ‘The’ is in the middle of the sentence and should not be capitalized. error #2: The wording sounds as if the court ordered the gas station manager, Jan Phipps, to carry the sign. (That particular error is called an ambiguous pronoun reference.) error #3: It sounds as if the punishment is to stand outside of the ‘gas station with a sign’. Don’t ALL gas stations have signs anyway? Oh, the PERSON is to CARRY a sign maybe?) error #4: The punishment is for the thief to 'stand outside … with a sign reading “I Got Caught Stealing Gas”? This seems as if the offender is forced to read a book about the confessions of a gasoline thief. error #5 & #6: The message of the sign should be in quotes and have the first letter of each word capitalized. (See the way I typed this in error #4?) But other than that, a fantastic, incisive story. * * * Yes, it might seem I’m being excessively anal retentive, but I’ve seen people send in “Letters To The Editor” that have been much more exacting. Some time ago, I read a letter in “The Boston Globe” commenting about a story which stated that a professor had participated in many symposiums. The writer commented that they should have used the more formal plural which is symposia. :smack: YIKES !!! ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/30 "2004-07-31T18:42:25Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > I would like to see the CEO’s of Chevron, Texaco, Shell and others stand out there with a placard saying, “I got a 40 million dollar bonus last year.” To be fair, by far the largest share of gasloine prices are the taxes associated with it. If the government really was concerned about the rising price of gasoline, they’d lower the taxes. Another thread included the fact that in one state (Minn?) the price of gas is mandated at a certain profit per gallon. If the same thing could be done for refineries selling to the stations, that would make a difference as well. The price of oil can easily be tracked using futures and cash market prices. I also think that’s a great punishment. ---
**Author:** ![raz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@raz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raz)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/31 "2004-07-31T18:43:22Z")
Wait a second. Some places make you pay _before_ you pump? I have honestly never heard of that. What if you want to pay with cash? How much more inconvenient can you get? Here in Kansas you can use your debit card or credit card and swipe it before you gas, but since I don’t have either I just gas up, then go inside and give the clerk my money. I had no idea that some places made you pay before you pump. Poor innocent Kansas. We think everyone is honest I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Baraqiyal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@Baraqiyal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baraqiyal)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/32 "2004-07-31T18:59:38Z")
Okay, re-reading the article, I see what people mean by it being poorly written. I wonder if the editor called in sick that day. > [@](#): > > “You basically send her out and then get a bunch of stones and stone her. What is this the middle ages?” Missing comma between “this” and “the”. > [@](#): > > “Just to stand here for 3 hours? They should give her 110 degree weather send her to Iraq,” said another supporter As someone else said, the quote makes absolutely no sense. How can you “give” somebody weather? Why would a “supporter” suggest she be sent to Iraq? Missing period. > [@](#): > > “I don’t have a job right now, we’re struggling to get by we had to eat, that’s it,” said Robert Nelson, her husband Commas shouldn’t separate complete sentences. Missing period. > [@](#): > > Manager Jan Phipps says it’s a fair punishment, since gas prices have risen, a lot of people are skipping out at the pumps. Comma problem again. ---
**Author:** ![Salem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@Salem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Salem)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/33 "2004-07-31T19:15:55Z")
I just read a few more of the articles on that website to see if the poor writing/editing was a freak occurence. As my bleeding eyes will demonstrate, it wasn’t. The three other articles that I read contained nearly equal the amount of grammatical and syntax errors. As an editor [sub]of a teeny, tiny, really-doesn’t-count-for-much weekly paper[/sub], it hurt to read those. ---
**Author:** ![Eegba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Eegba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eegba)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/34 "2004-07-31T19:24:01Z")
Regarding the bad writing, my guess would be that it was originally a TV spot in the evening news, and someone did a quick editing job on the audio and posted it as a news story. ---
**Author:** ![Largo62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@Largo62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Largo62)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/35 "2004-07-31T19:28:15Z")
I like the idea of shaming petty thieves (assuming that they have any shame), but it seems to me that it would only be effective in a small town where passers by were likely to recognize the culprit. As far as pre-payment for gas is concerned it’s been pretty much the norm in California ever since the “gasoline crisis” of the '70s, when “fill and run” became a big problem and people were siphoning gas from each other’s cars. Sadly, there’s nothing new about the idea that falling on hard times makes it okay to steal. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2004, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/36 "2004-07-31T20:33:48Z")
Another one checking in that has never paid before pumping. Pump the gas, then give the man his cash. Many, many years ago I stopped at a station, asked them to fill it, and then went in to get a soda. It wasn’t until I went to pay for the drink that I realized I only had about two bucks on me. The car was already filled by that time, so I had to have the attendant copy down my drivers licence and plate info, and then run home to get more cash (pre-ATM days). Of course, you’re not allowed to operate a gas pump yourself in Jersey, so that may play a part in their “no pre-pay” angle. ---
**Author:** ![JimSox5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5a626/32.png) [@JimSox5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimSox5)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2004, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/37 "2004-08-01T02:02:14Z")
I’ve seen (and patronized) a pre-pay gas station once, after dark at a Citgo in Canton, Ohio. The neighborhood looked a little run down, but I don’t know about bad. Besides that one station, though, everything else I’ve ever been to (inside Indiana or not) has been pay afterwards. I don’t particularly like the idea of pre-pay gasoline, but I do see where the advantages are. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2004, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/38 "2004-08-01T02:20:21Z")
> [@Ruby](#): > > I’m amazed at the people that think stealing from someone else is OK when “they are struggling and don’t have enough money to eat”. Get a job (or 2). Reduce your standard of living. This is America. Make it work. If you are starving, I accept stealing enough food to feed yourself and your family as not being immoral. But since I’d say you’d have to exhaust every other avenue, it’s pretty hard to get there in America. ---
**Author:** ![Bookkeeper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bookkeeper/32/281_2.png) [@Bookkeeper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bookkeeper)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2004, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/39 "2004-08-01T04:16:06Z")
> [@Anonymous Coward](#): > > Change? From a 20? Oh man I wish… > > On average, a 50 liter tank will cost about 45 dollars to fill. On the plus side, I’ve never seen a pay before pumping station in Canada. Our local PetroCan required pre-pay after midnight for a couple of years, then they went to the card swipe pumps. I usually use a PetroCan card but when I use an ATM card there is just the normal gas charge against my account, with none of the odd charges mentioned by others. ---
**Author:** ![SanibelMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2004, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693/40 "2004-08-01T05:23:25Z")
Continuing the prepay tangent… I’ve noticed an odd sticker on a Mobil station here. It has the credit/debit card slot, but there’s a notice that says, “If you do not receive a receipt, your card did not go through - please see attendant.” But I always hit “no” when it asks me if I want a receipt. If that were a bug in the software and I owned the gas station, I’d be raising holy hell with whoever sold me the pumps to make sure it was fixed. Has anyone else ever heard of such a thing? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-was-caught-stealing-gas-and-now-a-sandwich-board-is-my-fate/257693.md?page=3)