To the gentleman who stole my camera

[castlecraver]

Dear $#!thead,

Hi. You don't know me, but if you browse through the photos on the memory card inside the camera you stole out of my luggage yesterday, you'll get a pretty good introduction. There's a couple of Christmases on there -- that older guy missing half his fingers is my dad. He just lost his retirement recently. And of course there's my mom in the gaudy holiday sweatshirt -- she's a public school teacher. Remember your elementary school days? She's the teacher that kept up the futile fight every day to get kids like you to take learning seriously and develop some ambition, but then took the blame when it didn't stick and you eventually dropped out.

And then there's me. I'm the chubby, well-shaven younger guy in the glasses. I'm a graduate student studying the molecular biology underlying adverse immunological events in cell-based leukemia therapies. Didn't understand that? Put more simply, I'm trying to contribute to the betterment of mankind. Might even (in some small way) help treat your sorry *** someday, that is if you keep away from the shady pawn shops and back alley drug dealers you're almost certainly headed to with the camera you just stole from me. Folks like you don't often die of cancer, for some strange reason.

I hope you get a lot of money for the camera. I hope the drugs you buy with the money give you the best high you've had in years. Because the camera made me happy too. And it might as well be making someone happy, now that I don't have it anymore. Unfortunately, I've seen the same camera I paid about $800 for not long after it came out on sale for $500 brand new recently, and I suspect without all the accessories or battery charger I left in Cleveland it's going to bring you as much as you expect it will. It's not a Nikon or a Canon, but I doubt you took a moment to consider that there were almost surely more valuable cameras in the other luggage on that flight.

When you get a chance, thank the nice folks at the Continental baggage office and the TSA for me. I had the distinct pleasure of being the hot potato in their "pass the buck" game last night in trying to find out who to file the report with. If you know a lady named Jane, thank her sincerely for me for admitting definitively that without any TSA stickers or cards on my bag, I needed to deal with the airline. If you ever encounter anyone way up the chain at Continental, thank them for ensuring in their contract of carriage that they're conveniently well-disclaimed from responsibility in the case of just about absolutely anything that might be valuable, fragile, or attractive for you to steal. I'm still going to file a report and enclose my receipts, but I sincerely doubt I'll ever get reimbursed for your theft. Yeah, it sucks -- as much as I'd like to take this out on someone, and the satisfaction I'd get in making that someone a big faceless evil airline company (although I've been completely satisfied with your airline up to this point), I have to be a realist. Also, thank them for certainly compensating you as a baggage handler better than the biomedical researcher you stole a camera from. Yup! It's true!

In closing, please tell everyone you know to be sure to carry on stuff like cameras. I was on my way to a conference in San Diego, and had a ton of conference itinerary materials I wanted to go through on the flight, plus my laptop and my poster, so in the interest of space and convenience I decided the camera would have to go in the suitcase. I've done that before, and haven't had any problems. I'm definitely going to do things differently now, if I can save up the money to buy a new camera that is.

Also, if you're still in a stealin' mood, keep a lookout for my bag when I'm on my way back to Cleveland on Wednesday. There's a Merkur 38C DE razor in there, a Simpson's travel brush, some blades, and a couple tubes of cream. Steal that and give it a whirl. It'll change the way you shave, I promise.

Sincerely,

Pat, the guy you stole the camera from.



Sorry guys, I'm on my own out here this time and I really, really needed to vent.

 

[thirdeye]

Damn, that just isn't right. I am sorry to hear about this. I wish I could say something to help but unfortunitly there are no words. Just now I feel for you.

If you ever find the clown that did this, vent on his face!!!!!

 

[BMWRider]

That effing sucks, sorry you lost the pictures, the camera can be replaced, the pictures cannot. It blows all around.

 

[R-James]

Vent away my friend any "£$%^& that does such a thing deserves to be strung up

 

[castlecraver]

That effing sucks, sorry you lost the pictures, the camera can be replaced, the pictures cannot. It blows all around.

Thanks. Fortunately, I have the most of the better shots transferred to my HD, but there were a lot of dupes and shots I thought weren't as good that were still on the card that I didn't back up.

 

[-bp-]

Man, that truly sucks. I hope against all odds that you get it back.

 

[analog_kid]

That is just absurd! I hope you ripped TSA and Continental a new one.

 

[johnniegold]

It is truly disturbing when bad things happen to good people. Sorry to hear about your bit of misfortune Pat.

 

[Radar O\'Reilly]

Sorry man. I remember reading this many moons ago about someone who had the exact same thing happen, and he got justice(kind of) in the end.

http://consumerist.com/consumer/com...his-camera-delta-still-wont-refund-234548.php

And here is where Delta admited responsibility after a radio show picked up the story.

http://consumerist.com/consumer/complaints/update-delta-finally-refunds-man-who-tracked-down-and-got-prosecuted-baggage-handler-who-stole-his-camera-244973.php

 

[AaronX]

you may want to keep an eye on ebay. Most thieves realize they can get more money for electronics on ebay than at a pawn shop. There was also a story a bit back about a German business man who had a camera stolen out of his luggage only to buy it back from the thief on ebay and then get the airline to admit their fault.

 

[Ltltony]

This is part of an interesting story I heard on NPR. It's worth reading.


'Stressful, Strenuous, Tiresome'
...
Of course, police say burglaries have gone down because they police better. There's no way to know whether police are preventing burglaries, but they're certainly not catching many burglars. According to the Justice Department, police solve fewer burglaries than any other crime, around one in every 10. They're more likely to catch a car thief than a burglar.

And that's something one burglar has always appreciated. In 20 years as a burglar, William Long got caught only a few times. But he never enjoyed the work.

"It's definitely no fun," he says, walking down a quiet street where he lives with his wife. "It's stressful, strenuous, tiresome."

As he walks, he still separates in his head the inviting houses from the ones he would have passed over. Skip the ones with iron gates, he says. Wood is easier than iron to break in to.

Long says he didn't care much about alarms or locks or police patrols. He says he was no cat burglar. He just looked for open doors and windows.

"If you got someone who really wants to go in something, nothing can stop him, I don't think," he says.

His biggest problem? People don't seem to keep cash in their houses anymore. Everybody uses credit cards and bank cards. Only diamonds have any real payoff, he says. But diamonds take too long to find.

Recently, Long had something stolen from him. He was devastated when a thief stole a brand new video camera from his car. It isn't the camera he misses, he says. He knows where to get a new one for just a few dollars. It's the tape inside that Long wants — because it has footage of his dying stepfather.

"They could have had the camera. Just give me that film," he says. "I want the film of that moment we had."

Asked if he ever wonders whether he took something sentimental that belonged to somebody else, he pauses for a moment.

"I never thought of it that way," Long says.

Long steps back inside his house to grab his janitor's uniform before heading to work. On his way out, he makes sure to lock his door.


The whole story can be read or listened to here

 

[htownmmm]

This is part of an interesting story I heard on NPR. It's worth reading.


'Stressful, Strenuous, Tiresome'
...
Of course, police say burglaries have gone down because they police better. There's no way to know whether police are preventing burglaries, but they're certainly not catching many burglars. According to the Justice Department, police solve fewer burglaries than any other crime, around one in every 10. They're more likely to catch a car thief than a burglar.

And that's something one burglar has always appreciated. In 20 years as a burglar, William Long got caught only a few times. But he never enjoyed the work.

"It's definitely no fun," he says, walking down a quiet street where he lives with his wife. "It's stressful, strenuous, tiresome."

As he walks, he still separates in his head the inviting houses from the ones he would have passed over. Skip the ones with iron gates, he says. Wood is easier than iron to break in to.

Long says he didn't care much about alarms or locks or police patrols. He says he was no cat burglar. He just looked for open doors and windows.

"If you got someone who really wants to go in something, nothing can stop him, I don't think," he says.

His biggest problem? People don't seem to keep cash in their houses anymore. Everybody uses credit cards and bank cards. Only diamonds have any real payoff, he says. But diamonds take too long to find.

Recently, Long had something stolen from him. He was devastated when a thief stole a brand new video camera from his car. It isn't the camera he misses, he says. He knows where to get a new one for just a few dollars. It's the tape inside that Long wants — because it has footage of his dying stepfather.

"They could have had the camera. Just give me that film," he says. "I want the film of that moment we had."

Asked if he ever wonders whether he took something sentimental that belonged to somebody else, he pauses for a moment.

"I never thought of it that way," Long says.

Long steps back inside his house to grab his janitor's uniform before heading to work. On his way out, he makes sure to lock his door.


The whole story can be read or listened to here

Poetic justice i say!


marty

 

[tim8557]

Pat, I feel for you. I don't want to minimize your loss but when something nasty has happened to me or my family, I simply walk through the Oncology Ward of Childrens' Hospital. It puts life back into perspective for me.

I've always told my kids when they were growing up, that if the latest malady in their lives was the worse thing that ever happens to them (stolen bike, broken heart, losing the big game, etc.).....make sure to thank God for giving you a wonderful life.

 

[netsurfr]

Sorry to hear about your loss. That really stinks that we leave our bags unlocked for our protection and then end up being vandalized.

 

[_JP_]

Pat, I know how you feel having been the victim of theft several times myself.
I've never checked bags of flights for that very reason.

 

[Rolo]

Man, I'm really sorry to hear that... I know that feeling, it sucks.

I'll take my valuables with me in the future.

 

[Must Dash]

That really stinks that we leave our bags unlocked for our protection and then end up being vandalized.

Pat, I sympathize and empathize. It's a really lousy feeling. Been through my own versions, as most of us probably have.

But, the point above has me confused. I always lock my checked luggage, and often use anti tamper tags such as the ones below. Is this not allowed on US flights?

Cheers

Jeremy

 

[ouch]

Damn, that stinks.

 

[waerloga]

But, the point above has me confused. I always lock my checked luggage, and often use anti tamper tags such as the ones below. Is this not allowed on US flights?

Not in my experience.

Last time I flew the TSA pre-screened about 90% of luggage. Those that had locks they 'requested' that you remove all locks. Someone I know who was a baggage handler also said that those few bags that do come through with locks on them are almost always slected as a 'random' check and the locks are ripped off.

--
Jason

 

[WithTheGrain]

Thanks. Fortunately, I have the most of the better shots transferred to my HD, but there were a lot of dupes and shots I thought weren't as good that were still on the card that I didn't back up.

Yeah... It is funny, but you never know how much the pictures mean until you lose them. I had a drive crash and I lost the pics of the first 2 years of my marriage. I kept the drive incase I am ever rich enough to send it off to drivesavers. In any case, it is really sucky. That isn't even bringing up the cost for the camera. While it can be replaced, 500 bucks is a hard pill to swallow when you should have been able to trust it being safe.