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I just watched this brief and interesting report on the phenomenon of a spike in petty crime committed by the elderly in Japan. Just more proof that seniors the world over are struggling just to survive changes in family structure, the economy and strained social support systems in a country with one of the oldest populations. Currently 1 out of every 3 people is 65+ -- or 29% of the total count. Italy is 24%, Germany is 22% and the US is 18%.
https://youtu.be/A3Jbk49tCr8?si=117Ur_-PW8hv9aW3

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Fawnby, they are shoplifting essentials and many are so old they are not punished. Others want to get caught because Japanese jails are much nicer than living on the streets: in jail they get “3 hots and a cot”. Yes, every country has homeless people it’s just so much more tragic when they’re in their 90s and shocking when it’s in a wealthy and “orderly” country.
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Could it be that elderly populations are realizing that they are unlikely to be punished for petty crime? From what I can tell, younger populations aren't punished much either. Takeovers of city streets and shopping malls, shoplifting, beach riots on spring break, whatever. Unfortunately, we defunded the police in many places. We admire sports heroes who are punks and thugs. So what if a 65-year-old man steals a grapefruit from the supermarket? Who cares? (Except for you and me, of course.)
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