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[[Image:Looting_AP.jpg|thumb|Looting of food aid]] |
[[Image:Looting_AP.jpg|thumb|Looting of food aid]] |
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'''Looting''' is |
'''Looting''' is the large scale, and often temporary, distribution of goods and services outside the framework of a voluntary contract or [[quid pro quo]]. Looting can occur due to the lack of effective law enforcement, or as is more often the case, because of it. As Reverend Al Sharpton said "the ones who have been looted are the people that have been a result of structural and institutional neglect in New Orleans that are watching grandmothers and babies die, when we should have prevented the infrastructural decay that collapsed under the weight of this hurricane." [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9173374/] Looting is also used to refer to CEO's who divert money from investors into their own pockets.[http://www.google.com/search?q=loot+CEO 300K examples] In countries all over the world, the labor of private individuals is "looted" by corrupt officials and ineffective, lazy, vacationing, ill-prepared, un-interested, and deceptive political leaders. The temporary absence of effective law enforcement can be caused by either lack of resources (e.g., [[September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack|terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001]]), lack of organization (e.g., [[1992 Los Angeles riots]]), or absence of a command structure (e.g., [[2003 invasion of Iraq]] and [[Hurricane Katrina]]). Causes of these events range from a [[natural disaster]], a [[war]], an [[evacuation]] or a [[blackout]]. The instability caused by these events to a society, and the possible damage to [[infrastructure]] creates an environment where government resources are somehow restricted, due to their own evacuation, or due to their already being committed to the destabilizing event, and also due to the failure of deterrents such as phones to report incidents, lighting to discourage them, and security systems to detect them. |
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==Causes of looting== |
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Looting is |
Looting is always opportunistic; as those in positions of authority have increased opportunities to take the property of others for their personal benefit, in rare cases, temporary circumstances can shift the balance of power such that people given the opportunity to redistribute wealth in their personal direction changes. If these people are poor and black, it is called "looting" by whites. If the people are white, it is called "looting" by black leaders. Looting also cascades through a group of people as one person believes that his contribution to the crime is lessened because someone else is looting. People may also believe that if the goods are not stolen, then they will simply be wasted, and see their act as a lesser of two evils. Finally, a looter may believe that if he doesn't steal the property, it will simply be stolen by someone else and he will gain nothing from his obedience. Looters are usually locals of the site of the disaster, and as such, may have lost a lot of their own property. This further encourages them to steal as it is reducing the negative impact of the disaster. |
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In extreme circumstances such as [[New Orleans]] after the [[Hurricane Katrina]] disaster, looting may be the only way for a person to procure necessities for themselves and their loved ones. Many see this as an act of survival rather than taking advantage of unfortunate events. Looting during Hurricane Katrina was carried out by many individuals who were not wearing shirts. One young man was seen drunkenly attempting to break the window of a bank with a large pipe. Police were required to "loot" gasoline out of "abandoned" cars in order to continue to operate their squad cars, and doctors have had to obtain medical supplies from abandoned drugstores under armed police guard.[http://counterpunch.org/henderson09012005.html] The media in Hurricane Katrina have come under criticism for portraying identical acts as justifiable "finding" or deplorable "looting" depending on the race of the perpetrator.[http://counterpunch.org/floyd09012005.html] |
In extreme circumstances such as [[New Orleans]] after the [[Hurricane Katrina]] disaster, looting may be the only way for a person to procure necessities for themselves and their loved ones. Many see this as an act of survival rather than taking advantage of unfortunate events. Looting during Hurricane Katrina was carried out by many individuals who were not wearing shirts. One young man was seen drunkenly attempting to break the window of a bank with a large pipe. Police were required to "loot" gasoline out of "abandoned" cars in order to continue to operate their squad cars, and doctors have had to obtain medical supplies from abandoned drugstores under armed police guard.[http://counterpunch.org/henderson09012005.html] The media in Hurricane Katrina have come under criticism for portraying identical acts as justifiable "finding" or deplorable "looting" depending on the race of the perpetrator.[http://counterpunch.org/floyd09012005.html] |
Revision as of 21:25, 10 September 2005
Looting is the large scale, and often temporary, distribution of goods and services outside the framework of a voluntary contract or quid pro quo. Looting can occur due to the lack of effective law enforcement, or as is more often the case, because of it. As Reverend Al Sharpton said "the ones who have been looted are the people that have been a result of structural and institutional neglect in New Orleans that are watching grandmothers and babies die, when we should have prevented the infrastructural decay that collapsed under the weight of this hurricane." [1] Looting is also used to refer to CEO's who divert money from investors into their own pockets.300K examples In countries all over the world, the labor of private individuals is "looted" by corrupt officials and ineffective, lazy, vacationing, ill-prepared, un-interested, and deceptive political leaders. The temporary absence of effective law enforcement can be caused by either lack of resources (e.g., terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001), lack of organization (e.g., 1992 Los Angeles riots), or absence of a command structure (e.g., 2003 invasion of Iraq and Hurricane Katrina). Causes of these events range from a natural disaster, a war, an evacuation or a blackout. The instability caused by these events to a society, and the possible damage to infrastructure creates an environment where government resources are somehow restricted, due to their own evacuation, or due to their already being committed to the destabilizing event, and also due to the failure of deterrents such as phones to report incidents, lighting to discourage them, and security systems to detect them.
Causes of looting
Looting is always opportunistic; as those in positions of authority have increased opportunities to take the property of others for their personal benefit, in rare cases, temporary circumstances can shift the balance of power such that people given the opportunity to redistribute wealth in their personal direction changes. If these people are poor and black, it is called "looting" by whites. If the people are white, it is called "looting" by black leaders. Looting also cascades through a group of people as one person believes that his contribution to the crime is lessened because someone else is looting. People may also believe that if the goods are not stolen, then they will simply be wasted, and see their act as a lesser of two evils. Finally, a looter may believe that if he doesn't steal the property, it will simply be stolen by someone else and he will gain nothing from his obedience. Looters are usually locals of the site of the disaster, and as such, may have lost a lot of their own property. This further encourages them to steal as it is reducing the negative impact of the disaster.
In extreme circumstances such as New Orleans after the Hurricane Katrina disaster, looting may be the only way for a person to procure necessities for themselves and their loved ones. Many see this as an act of survival rather than taking advantage of unfortunate events. Looting during Hurricane Katrina was carried out by many individuals who were not wearing shirts. One young man was seen drunkenly attempting to break the window of a bank with a large pipe. Police were required to "loot" gasoline out of "abandoned" cars in order to continue to operate their squad cars, and doctors have had to obtain medical supplies from abandoned drugstores under armed police guard.[2] The media in Hurricane Katrina have come under criticism for portraying identical acts as justifiable "finding" or deplorable "looting" depending on the race of the perpetrator.[3]
In many countries, even in Western democracies that otherwise ban the death penalty, extraordinary measures may be taken against looters, during times of crisis. Looters may be summarily shot by the police, army, or property owners. Extraordinary measures, combined with an impressive show of force, help to discourage looting and to disperse crowds that would now find a normal show of force non-threatening. This is also common police practice in discouraging potential riots, which are often associated with looting, from escalating.
The shooting of looters may also prevent further damage to the economy. However, this also shows the relative value of economy vs. human life in some societies.
Looting in the world
Without a police presence, looting will nearly always occur in large scale disaster situations.
Following the death of Valentinian III in 455, the Vandals invaded and extensively looted the city of Rome.
Another example of looting occurred during the American Civil War. The New York Draft Riots (July 13 - July 17, 1863) began as protests against President Abraham Lincoln's Enrollment Act of Conscription drafting men to fight in the ongoing United States Civil War. Considered by some to be the worst civil unrest in American history, the riots included 50,000 participants and lasted several days, claiming hundreds of lives and destroying millions of dollars in property. The violent demonstration could not be contained by the civil police force, and required the intervention of regiments of the New York State Militia, who marched back to NY from the battlefield of Gettysburg, to restore civil order.
During the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 many ATMs were robbed in New York City.
After the United States occupied Iraq, the absence of Iraqi police and the reluctance of the US to act as a police force enabled looters to raid homes and businesses, most notably the Iraqi National Museum. During the war, many hospitals were stripped of nearly all supplies.