Woman working full-time at giant has to steal from giant because she can not afford to buy food. Maybe Giant should start paying a decent wage. cheap bastards!

There is no reason to steal. Perhaps she could have requested food stamps or a discount on her groceries. I have to pay full price and I don't buy what I cannot afford. Her children must be brought up to understand that when you do something wrong, you are going to pay the price. Now the price they will pay is far more than the cost of the groceries they stole and this will go down in their records. It's their mother's fault! She's is suppose to be a good example for them.

3 abled body people adults sharing 1 modest house and they cannot afford their groceries? BS

@Bob19006 - According to court records, the three listed their home address as an apartment on Willowpenn Dr.

Buying groceries is more and more expensive every day. I understand financial hardship. I understand it's hard to make ends meet but stealing is just not okay.
If there are 3 adults they should be able to each have a job and afford adequate food bills. They need to budget, look for sales and cut those coupons. There is no reason to steal food.
I know it's hard ...I know the food bills keep rising. Believe me...I'm feeding 6 kids on one income and still paying my bills and it's tough but the thought of stealing...has never entered my mind.
There have been times after I've left the store that I've looked over my receipt and noticed an item was not scanned nor entered on my receipt. I go back and in and let them know and pay for it. I'm not going to those pearly gates one day only to be told..."well ya know the eggs you skipped on." just not worth it to steal.

I think she possibly could have asked to work more hours if she was in financial straits in addition to not having her grown kids be so irresponsible. No excuse for not having a job at their ages and there is always a job to be found. They should be prosecuted.

If they are so poor, how did the each manage to come up with $20,000 bail money?

It never ceases to amaze me that to begin with people lack any self respect for themselves and let others know of their financial situations. That once was something that was kept within the walls of a home and not for public knowledge. There is absolutely no excuse for stealing period. People who claim to be poor need to make a trip to other countires less fortunate than ours and really see people in need.

What we should all probably do in this situation is blame the poor. @TominPA - when you make bail, you basically take out a loan and when you show up at court, that money is refunded. @Ingrid - how are they going to afford the plane ticket? Stealing? Yeah, I guess it's stupid. But how many of you have ever, really, ever, been hungry? How many of you have gone 2 or 3 nights in a row without food? How many of you have supported three people on a minimum wage income? It's easy to say, "They should get a job!" but the reality is getting a job is hard. Especially now. Especially without a solid education or connections. No excuse for stealing? Maybe, maybe not. Do we really know how dire their situation was? Their background, their history?

I'm not saying it was a smart move, just saying, you know... life is hard. And it's harder for some folks a lot more than it is for others.

@Eric- that IS an awful lot of food...

Tom, the sad truth though is that our poor people get poorer every day. And not much is really being done to reverse that trend. Soon we may not have the richest poor people in the world (and in reality, we already don't - just spend a few days in Switzerland or Norway... oh wait, they don't really have "poor" people there... hmm...) The "Haves" have been pillaging the "Have-nots" since the beginning of time. Typically, by preying on ignorance the haves have even been really good at rallying a large percentage of the have-nots to their causes (take the Tea Party for a contemporary example.)

That's a lot of "haves" in one paragraph. Not really sure how the conversation got turned this way when it started as comments about grocery store theft - but I like it! Well done!

Points for the best criminal charge I've come across - theft by unlawful taking. That may be the most redundant phrase ever uttered in a court of law.

That being said, Occupy Second Street Pike! It's on.

It got turned this direction as we delved into the causes of such actions as theft. It's a natural progression as we contemplate the human condition and how we got this way. It's a very complex issue, some steal because their character is poor, others might steal because circumstances have left them no option. But then, what caused either of those situations? It just keeps getting deeper.

As for Switzerland and Norway, since military service is mandatory and in Switzerland a battle rifle is by law kept in every home, the citizens have taken a greater stake in their own country. Couple that with much less lienancy towards crime in general and I think the answer becomes clear. They are less tolerant of crime and more invested in their national identity.

It sure helps when the majority of your people aren't completely disenfranchised.

Anthony from what I have personally seen, many occupy protestors are college kids probably living off daddy's credit card not having a clue what a real work ethic is. While I understand people's frustration with our current administration and I certainly have voiced my dissatisaction, I can almost be certain that these protestors were Obama supporters and now look where that has gotten us. I do know if that is what a fancy college education produces, we are all in trouble.

Let's get one thing pretty clear - this mess we're currently in is the product of decades of poor economic policy. This is not Obama's mess. If Obama did anything, it's stave off the complete economic collapse of the country.

And Eric, do you remember how the Tea Party first started? Do you remember what their "original" grievance was (before they had some "huge problem" with higher taxation of the 1% - or, the "job creators")?

That's right - they were opposed to the banks getting those huge bailouts. Look how quickly that cause gets perverted once someone with some money and an agenda goes to the front of the room.

How do you guys propose we fix it?

Boycott the banks? People already are - and not by choice. They don't have any money to put in the banks.

People wonder why we're broke? How about 2+ unsanctioned quagmires in Iraq and Afghanistan. Wars that the American people, a majority of the American people, want no part of. Did Obama start these wars?

Did Obama give the tax breaks to the "job creators" that are currently leading to us having very minimal tax revenue?

Granted, a lot of these protestors might be college kids with too much free time on their hands. But they're also the same college kids that are going to emerge into the real world with not many legitimate job prospects, saddled with thousands of dollars of student loan debt.

Your correct, this wasn't casued by President Obama's policies. But his policies are going to make it much worse. As complex as economics might seem, in the end they are quite simple. You cannot borrow or print money and not expect a bill to become due. Putting it off just makes it worse.

The TEA Party did indeed protest the bailouts. The Occupiers are not. They are protesting big business as the cause of our problems. They(business) are partly to blame. Congress is partly to blame. And we are partly to blame. We have allowed too many programs to go unchallenged. We have forgotten that WE are the government and WE ultimately hold the power.

The Occupiers seem to forget that close to 50% of the population pay NO taxes. Yet they want the upper tiers to pay more. Equate it this way. You earn more than I do. I want some of your money till we're even. Give it to me.

They pay no taxes because they have no money. 1%. That's all I have to say. 1% control 40% of the country's wealth. If you're not outraged by that, then something isn't right.

The average minimum wage is somewhere in the neighborhood of $6.50

The top 400 people alone have more money than the bottom 50%.

We're in the age of the robber-baron again.

Then again, fuel for the daily use of a private jet ain't cheap.

In your own words, WE have forgotten that WE are the government.

Then again, we're really not - are we? It's more like that 1%.

I'm not sure these protests are going to amount to anything, but I think it's good to see people taking a stand, being noticed. Something has to change. The job creators are still not... creating any jobs - despite still being at the same tax rate they're crying poor about.

History has shown us time and again that when all the money gets concentrated into a few hands... everything goes to hell.

Well Anthony, you and I are at odds to a point on the cause, effect and solution to the problems we have. Which is fine, I would imagine in the end we're both right and wrong. It's a heady mix of everything that has gotten us to this dilemma. But I think we can both agree that these protests, whether they are for good cause or bad, whether they are cloaks for a more sinister enity, are causing people to discuss the overall issue that can't be denied. We are in serious trouble and the solution is going to be harsh. Just as Tea Partiers see a problem and are seeking a solution, so are the Occupiers.

Myself, I don't see taxing the rich at higher precentages will be advantagous for the rest of us. With so many paying nothing the system is overall plainly unfair. This is why a flat tax makes sense. As you noted previously, we are disenfranchiced. Why? Because so few of us have an honest stake in the game. If everyone is paying a percentage into the pot we all have a much more vested interest in how that pot is spent.

My word, we have gotten a far way from stolen groceries haven't we?

Opps, one more thing here Anthony. You post with respect and intelligence. I may disagree with you, but it's all being done with civility. Thank you. As Americans we're allowed, even urged to disagree. It's how we do it that matters. You do it well.

I agree, Eric. It's one of the few bright spots we have left. Let's hope we can hold on to it.

But the biggest argument I think for raising taxes on the mega-wealthy is because that money can go into programs that will create jobs (rebuilding roads, bridges - revitalizing schools, etc.)

Businesses don't hire more workers unless they absolutely have to. The biggest, I think, long-lasting effect of this recession, is that companies are learning how to do more with much less (the exponential development of technology isn't helping on that front either.) Hence, CEOs are cutting themselves much more impressive checks.

I think if everyone was getting a piece of the pie, a lot of these people that aren't paying taxes because they can't afford it would be more than happy to fork over a chunk of their change.

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Giant needs to update its employee supervision standards apparently.

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Why don't we stick to the point of the crime? Stealing is not right, no matter where or when. Especially from your employer! Thou shalt not steal...didn't we read that somewhere?