29 Comments

This post exemplifies why I am a subscriber. Thank you for your work. I hope it gets more coverage.

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I remember a lot of attention on the shoplifting. Why would a news organization publish or give air to a story that hasn’t been vetted? Why would they skip a story that has major implications? Is it as simple as ‘because they can’? In fairness to this particular circumstance, we were focused on a little something in November, but this is media deciding what’s news. I’m starting to think I need to find a series of independent newsletters or even news feeds that cover or at least list the top stories in business, economics, healthcare, etc., because it sure isn’t available elsewhere.

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Go Baby, Go!. Way to tell the truth about 1 % corporate scam and the MSM not covering it.

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This is the continued danger of right wing ownership of news sources. It’s not surprising.

I am glad you mentioned the fact that most can’t afford to go to an attorney for employer-related issues.

I fought for money from 2 class-action lawsuits. In both instances, I had access to years of records and copied everything I mailed in.

Then I fought over one year to get money due to me. It’s exhausting and most people can’t do this, nor do people save information from 8 years ago for things like washers/cars.

These rt wingers always have the nerve to complain about anything when they supported a deadly insurrection without consequences. We need the list if their crimes unpunished every time!

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People like to watch a guy ride a bike out of a store with a bag of stolen gear more than they like to ignore a newsreader telling them some numbers and settlement facts. I suggest we smarten up the human race. Alternatively, we could make the class action suits more entertaining by eliminating judge in favor of a large explosion w/ tanker trucks flying around. We could replace the lawyers with laser wielding robots. And the news reader could have four tits. Welcome to America.

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Organized retail theft is real. It is not uncommon and a safety risk to other shoppers. Organized corporate theft is also real and infuriating. Neither should be tolerated.

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From the 18th century:

"The law doth punish man or woman

That steals the goose from off the common,

But lets the greater felon loose

That steals the common from the goose."

Haven't made much progress, have we?

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I'm off to post this elsewhere. I will get rude pushback from some. And I will get silent OMGs from people who had no idea.

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Walgreen's does not have enough medicine to prevent vomiting at a story like this robbery. As with banks, it is always better to rob from the inside, but robbing employees is a new low.

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Wow. Stick it to them, Judd. My hope is that these thieving corporate dinosaurs end their miserable lives as footnotes in a shameful history of greed.

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when will we lock up the thieving trump?

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Excellent article. Just heard about one of the largest employers in our small resort area who charges tips for events but doesn't pass them to workers. The people who own the company are billionaires and the company is notoriously cheap with its staff. This article provides context. This pattern must be exposed on a local level. People do care.

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Thanks Judd for a wonderful article. I’m going to follow up with my Representative and Senators.

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I have to say that I have not researched the Walgreens story, but to equate what Walgreen's supposedly has done to someone walking off the street with a garbage bag and stealing almost $1000 worth of merchandise is truly unbelieveable. Again, I do not know the specifics of the Walmart case and I think that there is alot more to know about this whole story than we have all been privy to. It is never okay for someone to walk in off the street and start wholesale stealing things and implying that just because a company makes a profit is an excuse to start robbing them or stealing from them is wrong. I firmly believe in voting with my dollar and that means not shopping at places that do not treat their employees fairly and with dignity--but that does not mean that I steal from them or condone anyone else stealing from them. This man that performed the grand larcency is not one of the people in the Walgreen's lawsuit and does not deserve anything from Walgreen's-He deserves to be in jail for his crime. You appear to be saying that one crime is justified because SUPPOSEDLY Walmart stole from their employees. Again, IF and this is definitely a subjective IF Walmart had rules about overtime, breaks, and passing through security when reporting to or leaving work, these are rules that the employee agreed to prior to employment. There are plenty of employment laws that are just outrageous and again I do not know enough about the Walmart case to make an educated judgement, but I do know that walking into any store and loading up your garbage bag and leaving without paying is just plain wrong and is never justified. Quite frankly Josh, I have learned alot from you and your column in the past 6 months, but stories like this are both beneath you and do not further your point that main stream media is not to be trusted. This has given me pause to question you and no longer trust you just as I never trusted FOX News or CNN. I have only seen limited stories on what is going on in San Fransisco and Chicago and those stories show a break down in both civil society and law and order. Your example shows none of that and absolutely shows that you may be what you are constantly critisizing

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founding

Thank you again, Judd and team, for going beneath the surface, for being open and curious about what often goes uninvestigated. Can this be:"employees are increasingly required to waive their right to sue for wage theft as a condition of employment." ? I find this situation to be analogous to the endless and far reaching cheating thought to be committed by Trump and his family and many associates. They have the money, power, and legal help to avoid paying for criminal behavior.

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