# Making it more difficult for thieves to take your property **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 10, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945 "2010-05-10T18:35:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/41 "2010-05-11T19:30:09Z")
> [@Desert\_Nomad](#): > > Missed the edit window: If you walk along the Creek waterfront in Dubai at 1am you’ll see stacks of TVs, vacuum cleaners, lumber, tires and such left unguarded on the street. They are simply waiting to be loaded onto dhows (traditional boats) to be shipped around the Gulf/Pakistan/India etc. > > Why break into someone’s home when you can just grab a TV off the street? > > I’ve never heard of anything being stolen from the waterfront either. Wow, That stuff would be gone in 5 minutes flat around here. Of course on the street around here means free for the taking. I live in a safe area but as they say “Trust in God but lock your car” for a reason. I would not steal because when I got caught as a kid it was awful. I was hanging around with a girl my parents didn’t like and she was putting things in my handbag from behind me. I had a big floppy bag. The store detective caught us and we were brought to a room where they called our parents. My Dad showed up and I just lost it. I felt so bad for him. I cried the whole way home because I let my Dad down and that was worse then my own feelings of shame. I have never had the urge to steal since. I also don’t like the feeling of being stolen from. People always steal something that means a lot to me. The swiss watch my Dad gave me, A rabbit fur jacket from my Dad, My tenner, a one of a kind, My first bike, My violin. ☹ I guess they must have needed it more then I did. Desert Nomad, Your lucky to live in such a safe place! ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/42 "2010-05-11T19:39:49Z")
> [@emmaliminal](#): > > How big is your wheelchair bag? > > I highly recommend the Pacsafe “[Citysafe](http://www.pacsafe.com/www/index.php?_room=3&_action=detail&id=25)” purse for anyone (who carries a purse) worried about purse-snatching type theft. It’s a well-organized bag, lightweight, engineered to be comfortable to carry and all that, and the zipper-lock doohickey is easy to use when you want it, easy to ignore when you don’t, and not at all visible – no indicator that you’re _worried_ about theft, unlike the external mesh setup. I bought it for a long trip abroad and have ended up using it full-time ever since just because I like it better than my regular purse. That is kind of cool, actually. I am not so paranoid that I need a snatch-proof purse but I will work on crafting some sort of thingy like it has listed to make my zipper more difficult to open. It can’t be too hard and I think I already have a piece at home that will work. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/43 "2010-05-11T19:41:35Z")
> [@Perciful](#): > > \ > I guess they must have needed it more then I did. \ That’s just it - the little assholes around here don’t need it **at all** - they just steal, vandalize, and break things because they have nothing better to do. ---
**Author:** ![Desert\_Nomad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desert_nomad/32/177_2.png) [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/44 "2010-05-11T20:47:22Z")
> [@Perciful](#): > > Wow, That stuff would be gone in 5 minutes flat around here. Of course on the street around here means free for the taking. I live in a safe area but as they say “Trust in God but lock your car” for a reason. > > Desert Nomad, Your lucky to live in such a safe place! There is an Arab proverb… Trust in Allah, but tie your camel tight. I was trying to find a picture of the place and these are the best I found: [www.fuerstleur.com/gallery/stock-photography/dubai-creek/dubai-creek-cargo-for-dhows-sweets.jpg.html](http://www.fuerstleur.com/gallery/stock-photography/dubai-creek/dubai-creek-cargo-for-dhows-sweets.jpg.html) [www.fuerstleur.com/gallery/stock-photography/dubai-creek/dubai-creek-dockers-unloading-truck.jpg.html](http://www.fuerstleur.com/gallery/stock-photography/dubai-creek/dubai-creek-dockers-unloading-truck.jpg.html) The area is basically a large (75 feet wide or so) sidewalk along the waterfront (like big canal). It is about a mile long on a main road. It is a public space and accessible 24 hours a day. There may be a few police around, but it is unguarded and thousands of boxes of goods are left there at all hours. Most people here don’t give any thought to theft, pickpocketing or similar issues. Locals have to be told that when they go abroad they actually need to lock their doors. I love the Middle East. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/45 "2010-05-11T20:59:48Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Last year I had my portable GPS unit stolen from my car, in my driveway. Yes, I forgot to lock my car that night, but it was theft nonetheless. Now I make sure the car is locked and I take the GPS indoors at night. I had the same thing happen only with an MP3 player. Only it was taken from the glove box which means someone was looking for unlocked cars and rifling through them. I’ve since replaced it and if I do leave it in the car, I put it in the glove box, lock that, and then make sure the car itself is locked as well. Or I just bring it in with me. My solace comes form the fact that it was not an iPod but a Sansa e280. So at least it probably wasn’t worth much to whatever pawn shop it wound up at. Also, it has proprietary equipment for charging it or attaching it to your computer – except the jack looks just like an iPod jack. Trying to plug it into an iPod charger is a great way to fry it though. So I hope whoever wound up with it managed to fuck it up. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/46 "2010-05-11T21:44:12Z")
Story on Detroit TV. The thieves apparently have tired of robbing the same homes. They have skipped the ones with dogs ,because they want your stuff not a confrontation. So, they are throwing hot dogs soaked in antifreeze to kill dogs. Then they come in after it is dead. Even little dogs will help keep a house safe. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/47 "2010-05-11T21:53:14Z")
> [@PokerAKQJT](#): > > For example, after I put my license registration sticker on my license plate, I use a razor blade to make vertical and horizontal cuts on it so that if a thief tries to steal it, it will come off in many pieces. The idea here is for them to not even try to take it. We did this with our last tags, after they were stolen the first time. I think the thief just got pissed off that they weren’t coming off whole, so they scraped them off out of spite. Our new tags came pre-scored, which was nice - then we covered them in super-glue. A year later, we still have them. ---
**Author:** ![Lok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e8c25b/32.png) [@Lok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lok)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2010, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/48 "2010-05-11T23:46:01Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Hmm, maybe I’d feel a little better if I believe that God intends for the assholes who stole my spendy little solar lights to have rapid-onset, debilitating, explosive diarrhea. Yeah, that _does_ help a bit. 🙂 > [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > No, that’s not what you want to happen to them. You want what’s happened to me to happen to them (Note: I did NOT steal your solar lights). You want a dead animal to crawl into their house and die, ideally somewhere where they can’t get the carcass out. I think you are trending in the direction of [this song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atBg9zLI2bA), if not for quite the same reasons. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/49 "2010-05-12T00:16:21Z")
> [@emmaliminal](#): > > How big is your wheelchair bag? > > I highly recommend the Pacsafe “[Citysafe](http://www.pacsafe.com/www/index.php?_room=3&_action=detail&id=25)” purse for anyone (who carries a purse) worried about purse-snatching type theft. It’s a well-organized bag, lightweight, engineered to be comfortable to carry and all that, and the zipper-lock doohickey is easy to use when you want it, easy to ignore when you don’t, and not at all visible – no indicator that you’re _worried_ about theft, unlike the external mesh setup. I bought it for a long trip abroad and have ended up using it full-time ever since just because I like it better than my regular purse. I have this [one](http://www.amazon.com/EZ-Access-Wheelchair-Back-Carryon-Bag/dp/B0001549XS) 17.5 x 16.5 x 4.5 inches. I figure that the external mesh would make it plain that getting the bag off my chair is going to be a _challenge_. One would have to turf a 300 lb person sitting in a 35 lb chair to get it. Not something that one could zip past and grab. Anything small and fingerable would be in the small pacsafe city purse that I have had for a while =) and slung over my shoulder and sitting in my lap. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/50 "2010-05-12T00:35:17Z")
> [@Lok](#): > > I think you are trending in the direction of [this song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atBg9zLI2bA), if not for quite the same reasons. 😉 Heh heh heh - I should start praying for the people who steal from me and hit my cars on the street. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TPWombat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbce88/32.png) [@TPWombat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TPWombat)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/51 "2010-05-14T04:01:55Z")
> [@Perciful](#): > > People always steal something that means a lot to me. The swiss watch my Dad gave me, A rabbit fur jacket from my Dad, My tenner, a one of a kind, My first bike, My violin. ☹ > > I guess they must have needed it more then I did. Just wanted to say {{{{{hugs}}}}}} ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/52 "2010-05-14T04:39:37Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Then you come back to find a smashed window and a note saying “Just checking!” Or simply, “Get one!” ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/53 "2010-05-14T17:19:48Z")
Many years ago my husband bought a used sports car as a fix-it-up. He spent eons replacing stuff. Finally, the big day and he turns the key, and, YEAH! It starts! Hooray! One minute later it stops. Lather, rinse, repeat ad infinitum. Much cursing ensues. He finally tracked down one little extra wire, barely noticable in the tight confines of the engine compartment, that was not on the wiring diagrams. It lead to a toggle switch in the back of the glove compartment. If this toggle was not “on,” some vital thing, I want to say it was the fuel pump but am not sure, would not work. So any thief would get about 20 feet or so and be stuck! We kept the feature, but AFAIK nobody ever actually attempted to steal it. ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945/54 "2010-05-14T19:11:22Z")
All the big stuff in my shed is cabled together - mowers, tiller, etc… It could be stolen, but it will take more time and effort than your typical burglar wants to spend. Make any noise doing it, and two of [these](http://www.dogobediences.com/dog-breeds/dachshunds/dachshund-images/dachshund-1.jpg)will end you. I have Gunvaults in my vehicles so no smash and grab punks will ever get my handguns. Closet shotgun? Not going [anywhere](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v677/ural/misc/Picture003Medium.jpg), but readily available… Our house is alarmed, camera-ed and monitored. I’m always in Condition [Yellow/Orange](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Cooper), so I think I’ve done all I can. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-it-more-difficult-for-thieves-to-take-your-property/538945.md?page=2)