A Very Bad Week for Civilization in California

A group of “up to 30” teens poured into a Nordstrom’s store in Topanga, Calif., in a “smash and grab” looting that went off with military precision.

#BREAKING: Dozens sought by police in mass looting at Nordstrom in Westfield Topanga mall in California. Suspects attacked security guards with bear spray, according to local media. #BreakingNews pic.twitter.com/bhKvDHt9eq

— Breaking 4 News (@Breaking_4_News) August 13, 2023

Note the eerie silence. These aren’t young people on a lark looting a store for fun or because “raaaaaacism.” It’s certainly not some last minute social media happening.  This is an organized gang of thieves carrying out a well-planned criminal operation.

That’s not the only outrageous act of anarchy that happened in California last week.

• A flash mob comprised of dozens of thieves hit the Yves Saint Laurent at The Americana at Brand Mall Tuesday, making off with $300,000 in merchandise, according to the Glendale Police Department.
• The Gucci (Florence, Italy) store in Los Angeles’ Westfield Century City Mall was robbed earlier this week by several thieves who pulled off a grab-and-go heist that was caught on video, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Police are investigating whether all three incidents of looting were carried out by the same gang of thieves.

“The suspects stole clothing and other merchandise before fleeing on foot and leaving the location in numerous vehicles,” Glendale Police Department Sgt. Victor Jackson said. “While still under investigation, the estimated loss is approximately $300,000.”

“These `flash mob’ burglaries involve a large, coordinated group of individuals simultaneously rushing into the store, overwhelming staff, and taking it over,” Jackson added. “The suspects grab as much merchandise as possible before fleeing in multiple vehicles.”

We’re no longer shocked by “flash mobs” looting stores. But the frequency of the crimes has exploded, and the manner in which they’re carried out has become far more professional.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a “strongly worded statement.” Yeah. That’ll work.

“What happened today at the Nordstrom in the Topanga Mall is absolutely unacceptable. Those who committed these acts and acts like it in neighboring areas must be held accountable. The Los Angeles Police Department will continue to work to not only find those responsible for this incident but to prevent these attacks on retailers from happening in the future.”

Maybe Bass should talk to Black Lives Matter, which has called looting “reparations” and held rallies in solidarity with looters in 2020.

National Review, August of 2020:

Members of Black Lives Matter Chicago held a rally on Monday night in support of more than 100 people arrested following widespread looting and rioting in the city the night prior.

Speaking at the rally outside a police station in the South Loop where organizers said the suspected looters are in custody, organizer Ariel Atkins excused the looting — which reportedly caused at least $60 million in property damage and left 13 police officers injured — calling the theft “reparations,” NBC Chicago reported.

“I don’t care if someone decides to loot a Gucci or a Macy’s or a Nike store, because that makes sure that person eats,” Ariel Atkins, a BLM organizer, said. “That makes sure that person has clothes.”

Dear Californians: It ain’t rocket science figuring out what’s happening in your beautiful state. This is a direct result of lax enforcement of the law and a reluctance of prosecutors and district attorneys to uphold the basic values of civilization.

Forget “Western Civilization” — I know many of you believe that to be racist, sexist, blah, blah, blah. You’re wrong, but I won’t argue with you about it. Suffice it to say there are minimum standards in any society that protect people and property from the lawbreakers and savages who just want to burn things down.

Yes, it does matter. You can’t have a just society without an orderly society.

Related: CNN Faces the Facts About Oakland

Granted, there are differences in the ways laws are enforced between races, socio-economic strata, and probably other metrics as well. So that’s an excuse to run wild in the streets, creating and encouraging anarchy? How idiotic is that?

Surely, your political leaders can do better than posturing about racism and claiming that looting is harmless because it doesn’t hurt anyone. That’s a wrongheaded way to think about looting. This kind of mass lawbreaking tears at the fabric of society. It contributes to the breakdown of order. And it cheapens and demeans the way we see ourselves as citizens, neighbors, and co-habitants of urban spaces.

With “criminal justice reform” taking hold, nothing is likely to change until citizens vote out the posturing blowhards who refuse to protect people and property and replace them with leaders who will.