LOCAL CHARITY THEFTS.

SOME OF THE NON EXISTENT VICTIMS OF CHARITY THEFTS FROM SCOPE COLLECTION POINTS (above)
Call me soppy but I've never had much time for those who steal from charities, although I have generally tended to focus my dislike at the 'city' level wages of those higher up the ladder, near the top of certain dodgily run charities.
Lately though I have come to dislike those 'little' people at the bottom as well. I never have nor never will ill judge a cold person who takes a jumper or coat for their own personal warmth during winter either, that is not a problem with me.
What is bugging me is the increasingly, blatantly organised thefts from the charity collection clothes bins of stuff, stuff that ends up being sold as 'shop marked' or even new, on stalls from Wembley, Portobello Road to Church street market and, who knows where else where?
And a business which can and does on occasion, includes and relies on small children as essential tools of the trade.
I'm not talking about people taking one off random advantage of an over filled, uncollected bin, I am on about the adults who bring their small children with them (to fit into the bin and pass out clothes), I have witnessed this on quite a few occasions so have others with me.
Take yesterday, while one lady got her small child (the little girl most adept at bin climbing incidentally) to help her stop the pile of clothes fall off the buggy as they tottered away with the heaving McClaren buggy bulging left and right, another mother was getting her two youngsters to help her fold up and bag clothes for the arrival of the car that drove up and had its boot filled with the clothing (the male driver just stood watching the woman and children fill black bags and load them). The car then drove off, leaving the woman and kids to walk away but, in a different direction.
I'm no car expert but it was not an old banger they used, and, if you can afford to run a decent car, do you really need to steal and wear clothes from charity bins?
I swear on my life that this misuse of children to steal from charity box's is still happening, in a way it has a charming Dickensian feel, what with the Victorian, green taxi cafe cabin next to the charity bin. Joking apart, it really it is wrong that it should be happening. "oh its a victimless crime" people say because they only see bags of tops and Jeans etc go missing.
I hope though, the above photo of some of the potential victims who receive Scopes care disproves that old 'victimless crime' excuse rubbish.
Now Skips, as far as Skips go, they're a different matter entirely...