I have such mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, this prank is hilariously evil. (And the way it's put together is really cool!) On the other hand, you can tell that the people stealing...
I have such mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, this prank is hilariously evil. (And the way it's put together is really cool!) On the other hand, you can tell that the people stealing these things are not well off. That doesn't excuse their behavior, but you can at least understand why they might do it.
I might be being overly skeptical but I'm kinda curious how many of them are actors. It's kinda odd that some faces would be blurred but not all of them.
I might be being overly skeptical but I'm kinda curious how many of them are actors. It's kinda odd that some faces would be blurred but not all of them.
Yes, I feel the same way. Glitter causes serious eye injuries all the time, and this is basically a booby trap. I don't think a package thief deserves permanent injury.
Yes, I feel the same way. Glitter causes serious eye injuries all the time, and this is basically a booby trap. I don't think a package thief deserves permanent injury.
I can understand why Bernie Madoff scammed billions out of people too. Having billions of dollars would be pretty cool. I'm pretty ok with bad but basically harmless things happening to thieves....
I can understand why Bernie Madoff scammed billions out of people too. Having billions of dollars would be pretty cool.
I'm pretty ok with bad but basically harmless things happening to thieves. It's an incredibly scummy, shitty thing to do to someone.
Reading the comments here, am I a bad human for not caring if thieves get "glitter in their eyes"? They made a conscious decision to take something that didn't belong to them, that ostensibly...
Reading the comments here, am I a bad human for not caring if thieves get "glitter in their eyes"? They made a conscious decision to take something that didn't belong to them, that ostensibly contained consumer electronics. These aren't people that are poor and stealing meat or fruit from a grocery store, they're taking what are essentially luxury items at the expense of others, who are now disenfranchised from their purchase.
I'm not a punitive-punishment kind of person either. I do strongly believe prison is not an effective deterrent against the majority of criminal activity and should only be used where a person presents a physical risk to others in society. But I feel exactly zero sympathy for anyone who engages in petty theft or other minor crimes. This is a unique and interesting way to teach people that stealing isn't okay.
How many injuries does glitter cause a year? Mark didn't pour glitter into their eyes at will. This is their own fault—and it's not "bait" to leave a package out on someone's property either. At the risk of venturing into whataboutism: would the same people arguing this point support the banning of guns too? Or are guns fine because they're enshrined in an arbitrary piece of paper, and glitter isn't because some white slave owners 250 years ago were not as fabulous as they could've been?
I'm not sure how helpful it is to think in terms of personal judgments like this. Folks here were talking about the contents of the video as a sort of detached entity. But, with this framing,...
Exemplary
am I a bad human
I'm not sure how helpful it is to think in terms of personal judgments like this. Folks here were talking about the contents of the video as a sort of detached entity. But, with this framing, chats get so much more adversarial, because any criticism of the video becomes a criticism of you (and I don't think that's anyone's intention here). I don't think any of us should be opposed to one another; we're on the same side, looking at whatever this topic is together. :)
Anyways, my distaste for this video comes from the fact that it tries to mine entertainment from others' suffering. The video contains footage of people experiencing discomfort, regret, shock, and fear, all in the name of lulz. Regardless of someone's character or actions, I don't want to be the kind of person who derives pleasure from seeing those emotions in others. I feel uncomfortable with the thought of indulging in revenge fantasies. It feels... unnecessary? Unhelpful? I worry that it nudges me a little closer to becoming a cruel, sadistic, unforgiving person. I feel it primes me to engage in mob-like dog-piling, to be judgmental, to jump to conclusions, and to ignore context. To me, videos like this foster a primal, knee-jerk sort of reaction, leaving me susceptible to thinking in black and white. "Thieves are bad people. Bad people deserve retribution. End of story."
I would rather be the kind of person who gives people the benefit of the doubt, and who asks "What circumstances would cause this to happen? What might be going on in a person's life to drive them to do this?" I want to foster in myself a default reaction of understanding. I want my first thoughts to be ones focused on the inherent complexity and nuance in life. There's a scene in the video that stuck out to me, at around ~13m, where I think it's a mum and a tween-ish child. I feel all sorts of knotty feelings when I hear quotes like "So... we won't get in trouble for stealing?" He didn't ask to be dragged into this. I feel innocence and helplessness. I feel a sense of solidarity amidst systems that grind the life out of people. I like to think of people of all sorts as unlikely allies against forces much bigger. Petty theft seems very small in comparison, so I don't think pitting us against one another over it is worth it.
Is this a cloying, romanticized worldview? Maybe, yeah. But, those are the priorities I want to have, and that's the sort of perspective I want to cultivate in myself. And, I think I should be consistent about that, even in situations like this one where the people are easy, socially acceptable targets.
This is a unique and interesting way to teach people that stealing isn't okay.
One last note: I'm not sure I agree. There are 6 boxes. A few get only 1 use. Maybe... 10-20 people get glitter-bombed? Multiple years worth of effort, thousands of dollars in materials. I don't think this is something someone plans out as a famous YouTuber if you truly want to change the behaviors of others. The unwitting victims aren't really the audience -- we are. To me, then, It feels wasteful, frivolous, excessive, indulgent. It's like a MrBeast video. I don't want luxury like that to be normalized in my head; I want it to feel weird and uncomfortable.
Not defending theft in the slightest, and I haven’t watched the video so I don’t know if it applies here, but in general theft is usually more about stealing something of value rather than a...
These aren't people that are poor and stealing meat or fruit from a grocery store, they're taking what are essentially luxury items
Not defending theft in the slightest, and I haven’t watched the video so I don’t know if it applies here, but in general theft is usually more about stealing something of value rather than a specific item for that item’s sake. The goal isn’t usually to obtain a desired good but instead to cash out whatever you take for money. Often it’s a bad idea (from the perspective of someone trying to evade accountability) to keep the stolen item(s) yourself, as you’re holding on to the evidence against you and potentially marking yourself should the item be identifiable or trackable. Someone trying to feed their family might steal luxury items as a manner of generating income for necessities and not because they’re particularly interested in using those goods themselves.
...what? I don't think we're calling to ban glitter by saying you shouldn't use it on someone just for stealing a luxury item from you. I'd apply the same thinking to guns: they both have a...
At the risk of venturing into whataboutism: would the same people arguing this point support the banning of guns too? Or are guns fine because they're enshrined in an arbitrary piece of paper, and glitter isn't because some white slave owners 250 years ago were not as fabulous as they could've been?
...what? I don't think we're calling to ban glitter by saying you shouldn't use it on someone just for stealing a luxury item from you. I'd apply the same thinking to guns: they both have a legitimate purpose and people should be able to own them, but if you harm someone using them or anything else for something as nonviolent as taking property, I believe you're doing something wrong. There's not even a self-preservation element at play here, and hell this isn't even a scenario where the glitter bomb was necessary to not have something stolen...it's just being shitty for the fun of it.
The morality of stealing gets complicated, imo, and the many times when it's justified (shoutouts to /f/illegalism) usually require knowledge of who you're stealing from and generally shouldn't be against just someone in your neighborhood. I don't know enough about this person to make a judgement there, but even if it's a case where it's not okay...what's the point of this?
Well, yeah, but he also has their faces on video, sometimes very close up. So he has some good footage to give to the police if something like that happens. Plus they now know he has cameras all...
Well, yeah, but he also has their faces on video, sometimes very close up. So he has some good footage to give to the police if something like that happens. Plus they now know he has cameras all around his property.
All true, but that also expects due consideration from people that have proven themselves to be impulsive criminals. And as sad as it is, somebody wearing a mask to hide their identity would not...
All true, but that also expects due consideration from people that have proven themselves to be impulsive criminals.
And as sad as it is, somebody wearing a mask to hide their identity would not be out of place right now.
If it's a dick move, it's about 1/1000th of a dick move as stealing things. Personally, if I was a package thief who got glitter bombed I'd be thanking my lucky stars that I didn't just get...
If it's a dick move, it's about 1/1000th of a dick move as stealing things. Personally, if I was a package thief who got glitter bombed I'd be thanking my lucky stars that I didn't just get arrested instead.
I have such mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, this prank is hilariously evil. (And the way it's put together is really cool!) On the other hand, you can tell that the people stealing these things are not well off. That doesn't excuse their behavior, but you can at least understand why they might do it.
I get your point, but I'd have more sympathy if they were stealing food from a grocery store.
Yeah I’d say fuck that sympathy noise. They’re not stealing something essential. They’re purposefully stealing what they think are luxury headphones.
I might be being overly skeptical but I'm kinda curious how many of them are actors. It's kinda odd that some faces would be blurred but not all of them.
It seems like all that happened was in the first video some reactions were faked without his knowledge: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/21/glitter-bomb-video-was-partially-faked-former-nasa-engineer-confirms.html
Hard to see the controversy but the internet sure does love “gotcha” moments. Seems like a reasonable mistake and he rectified it immediately.
What was the controversy?
I assume this is due to different laws in different states?
Yes, I feel the same way. Glitter causes serious eye injuries all the time, and this is basically a booby trap. I don't think a package thief deserves permanent injury.
How many cases of glitter causing eye damage are there in a year, on average?
I can understand why Bernie Madoff scammed billions out of people too. Having billions of dollars would be pretty cool.
I'm pretty ok with bad but basically harmless things happening to thieves. It's an incredibly scummy, shitty thing to do to someone.
Reading the comments here, am I a bad human for not caring if thieves get "glitter in their eyes"? They made a conscious decision to take something that didn't belong to them, that ostensibly contained consumer electronics. These aren't people that are poor and stealing meat or fruit from a grocery store, they're taking what are essentially luxury items at the expense of others, who are now disenfranchised from their purchase.
I'm not a punitive-punishment kind of person either. I do strongly believe prison is not an effective deterrent against the majority of criminal activity and should only be used where a person presents a physical risk to others in society. But I feel exactly zero sympathy for anyone who engages in petty theft or other minor crimes. This is a unique and interesting way to teach people that stealing isn't okay.
How many injuries does glitter cause a year? Mark didn't pour glitter into their eyes at will. This is their own fault—and it's not "bait" to leave a package out on someone's property either. At the risk of venturing into whataboutism: would the same people arguing this point support the banning of guns too? Or are guns fine because they're enshrined in an arbitrary piece of paper, and glitter isn't because some white slave owners 250 years ago were not as fabulous as they could've been?
I'm not sure how helpful it is to think in terms of personal judgments like this. Folks here were talking about the contents of the video as a sort of detached entity. But, with this framing, chats get so much more adversarial, because any criticism of the video becomes a criticism of you (and I don't think that's anyone's intention here). I don't think any of us should be opposed to one another; we're on the same side, looking at whatever this topic is together. :)
Anyways, my distaste for this video comes from the fact that it tries to mine entertainment from others' suffering. The video contains footage of people experiencing discomfort, regret, shock, and fear, all in the name of lulz. Regardless of someone's character or actions, I don't want to be the kind of person who derives pleasure from seeing those emotions in others. I feel uncomfortable with the thought of indulging in revenge fantasies. It feels... unnecessary? Unhelpful? I worry that it nudges me a little closer to becoming a cruel, sadistic, unforgiving person. I feel it primes me to engage in mob-like dog-piling, to be judgmental, to jump to conclusions, and to ignore context. To me, videos like this foster a primal, knee-jerk sort of reaction, leaving me susceptible to thinking in black and white. "Thieves are bad people. Bad people deserve retribution. End of story."
I would rather be the kind of person who gives people the benefit of the doubt, and who asks "What circumstances would cause this to happen? What might be going on in a person's life to drive them to do this?" I want to foster in myself a default reaction of understanding. I want my first thoughts to be ones focused on the inherent complexity and nuance in life. There's a scene in the video that stuck out to me, at around ~13m, where I think it's a mum and a tween-ish child. I feel all sorts of knotty feelings when I hear quotes like "So... we won't get in trouble for stealing?" He didn't ask to be dragged into this. I feel innocence and helplessness. I feel a sense of solidarity amidst systems that grind the life out of people. I like to think of people of all sorts as unlikely allies against forces much bigger. Petty theft seems very small in comparison, so I don't think pitting us against one another over it is worth it.
Is this a cloying, romanticized worldview? Maybe, yeah. But, those are the priorities I want to have, and that's the sort of perspective I want to cultivate in myself. And, I think I should be consistent about that, even in situations like this one where the people are easy, socially acceptable targets.
One last note: I'm not sure I agree. There are 6 boxes. A few get only 1 use. Maybe... 10-20 people get glitter-bombed? Multiple years worth of effort, thousands of dollars in materials. I don't think this is something someone plans out as a famous YouTuber if you truly want to change the behaviors of others. The unwitting victims aren't really the audience -- we are. To me, then, It feels wasteful, frivolous, excessive, indulgent. It's like a MrBeast video. I don't want luxury like that to be normalized in my head; I want it to feel weird and uncomfortable.
Not defending theft in the slightest, and I haven’t watched the video so I don’t know if it applies here, but in general theft is usually more about stealing something of value rather than a specific item for that item’s sake. The goal isn’t usually to obtain a desired good but instead to cash out whatever you take for money. Often it’s a bad idea (from the perspective of someone trying to evade accountability) to keep the stolen item(s) yourself, as you’re holding on to the evidence against you and potentially marking yourself should the item be identifiable or trackable. Someone trying to feed their family might steal luxury items as a manner of generating income for necessities and not because they’re particularly interested in using those goods themselves.
...what? I don't think we're calling to ban glitter by saying you shouldn't use it on someone just for stealing a luxury item from you. I'd apply the same thinking to guns: they both have a legitimate purpose and people should be able to own them, but if you harm someone using them or anything else for something as nonviolent as taking property, I believe you're doing something wrong. There's not even a self-preservation element at play here, and hell this isn't even a scenario where the glitter bomb was necessary to not have something stolen...it's just being shitty for the fun of it.
The morality of stealing gets complicated, imo, and the many times when it's justified (shoutouts to /f/illegalism) usually require knowledge of who you're stealing from and generally shouldn't be against just someone in your neighborhood. I don't know enough about this person to make a judgement there, but even if it's a case where it's not okay...what's the point of this?
I’d be so scared about revenge visits. They literally know where he lives.
Well, yeah, but he also has their faces on video, sometimes very close up. So he has some good footage to give to the police if something like that happens. Plus they now know he has cameras all around his property.
Fair enough. That’s some real home warfare situation, though, lol.
All true, but that also expects due consideration from people that have proven themselves to be impulsive criminals.
And as sad as it is, somebody wearing a mask to hide their identity would not be out of place right now.
I'm looking forward to the scamming-the-scammers report myself.
Glitter is dangerous and causes eye injuries.
To set up a trap like this, yes, even for a thief, is inhumane, heartless, and amoral. Shameful.
It's bio-degradable glitter, which is the same stuff used in glittery facial makeup, which is eye-safe.
That's good to hear. I still think this is a dick move, but at least a less concerning one.
If it's a dick move, it's about 1/1000th of a dick move as stealing things. Personally, if I was a package thief who got glitter bombed I'd be thanking my lucky stars that I didn't just get arrested instead.
That seems perhaps overstated. Could you put some numbers to that? eg. total hospital visits per year caused by glitter-related accidents.