[excon]

In a way, yes, it is extortion, but on the other hand, it does allow the guilty party to pay a fine (or whatever you might call it) and skate down the road

Hi twink:

I LOVE Mexico. You can speed, get stopped by a cop, and pay the bribe.. If you want a particular license, you pay the bribe... Now, you can SAY the bribes are justified, because it does allow the guilty party to pay a "fine" and skate down the road...

But, it's CORRUPTION, and I don't care what you want to call it. Am I against corruption? Actually, no. I LIKE paying my fines on the spot. But, I don't pretend that it's anything other than what it is.

In the instant case, I maintain that to demand money in exchange for keeping silent about a crime, is nothing BUT extortion.

Some people seem to think my position has something to do with my name. NOTHING could be farther from the truth. I understand the cost of loss prevention. I PAY those costs along with you. I'm not a supporter of shoplifting, or any crime for that matter.

But, if there's a CRIME, the proper place to adjudicate it is in a REAL courtroom, where REAL restitution is ordered, and REAL fines are handed out. You DO notice in these letters, don't you, that the stores use MISLEADING language such as "restitution" and "fines", as though they really ARE restitution and fines?? This kind of language is used in an attempt to extort money, plain and simple.

Where does it stop? Let's say you catch a burglar in your house. Can you demand that he sign over his car or you'll call the cops?

excon

[twinkiedooter]

Hi twink:

Where does it stop? Let's say you catch a burglar in your house. Can you demand that he sign over his car or you'll call the cops?

excon

Now that's what I call a creative "citizen's arrest"!