Intent to deprive
Why the fuck do some people insist on eating or drinking items in a store that they’ve not yet paid for? How little self-control do they have that they can’t wait a few minutes to pay for what they’ve selected?
I see them at the store at my local shopping centre where I work (one of the most exclusive in the city). Smugly, and with contempt for the entire human race, they whip open a chocolate bar or an expensive bottle of water and stare down anyone who would protest. The sum total of what hangs on their person is more than the entire staff’s combined salaries for the month. It's not like they're scrounging.
Some will say that I’m being a bit picky and most people will get it scanned at the till. Yes, most will, but in my mind, no transaction has taken place yet. The item still belongs to the store but it’s not theft – yet. It’s only theft once a person steps out the store without paying for it.
It’s privileged cunty behavior. The polite term is ‘grazer’ but it’s potentially self-criminalizing behavior.
Questions need to be asked about an individual’s self-control. Frankly, how hard is it to fucking wait a few minutes until you’ve paid for the thing. There is no life-or-death situation.
The culprits will say, ‘but I’m going to (or I always) pay for that at the counter!’. Sure, but many don’t. It’s a well-known tactic to eat and drink items and ditch them before paying. The result is shrinkage and higher prices for everyone else.
My solution: Next time I see someone doing that, I’m going to pick them up and throw them out the store entrance, with the offending item in hand so the security alarm goes off as they pass the threshold. Unless, of course, the store has extended a line of credit to that customer for that specific item. Then I’ll avert my eyes and mind my own fucking business.