The crime its OK to like

I Heard about two minutes of an interview between Gerry Ryan and some scottish fraudster last night. It was a replay of the mornings show. It made me laugh, but not in a good way. Ryan was chatting and joshing, like he might with an old school chum, and generally licking the arse of this fellow. He thought this criminal was great. He stole money from banks, I think I couldnt listen to too much of it, and then took expensive holidays, flights and went on spending sprees in general. He was a "Catch Me if You Can" type of character. And all the while we were lead to believe by Ryans joshing and laughing that this guy was great. It is after all OK in the views of well off Irish people, that if we are sticking it to faceless financial institutions that it is some how OK, a bit of a lark,
Sure they can afford it, and they rip people Off all the time...

Well just so you Know Mr Ryan, I am pretty Sure that there are lots of poor young men in all the suburbs of Dublin, and from the inner city areas who believe that fat rich radio presenters are fair game too. That they can afford to be ripped off, and sure they probably ripped people off themselves...

If we are going to start thinking that fraud and crime is OK, then it has to be all OK, not just whatever suits your mood for the day.

It reminded me of when I was loaned a Book By Howard Marks back when I was in College (it was written , not loaned by Howard Marks). I read about 3 chapters before I swiftly returned it to its owner. Here was a criminal (purporting to be some robin hood figure) telling us how clever he was, and of all the many ways that he was cleverer than everybody else. No tongue in cheek, no cleverly disguised admission of how he was so clever, but barefaced outright declaration that he was the cleverest and coolest of us all. But what I drew from reading those opening chapters was that he was a drug smuggler, and a smug wanker and nothing more. And I watched all the dope kids who never read any other books reading this, and saying how great it is.

Now I am not saying I am anti drugs, or even anti Dope smuggling, I smoked and I inhaled and I choose not to anymore. I dont care if people smoke, or what they smoke but why do we have to buy into this cool crime. Crime that it s OK to joke about. Its like the drunken student stealing a Traffic cone that might seem like mad crack, and look at me with a cone on my head. I am breaking the law but, its nothing I would ever get sent to jail for, and look I am still much better than those guys in the tracksuits and nikes outside the childrens court. They are real criminals, they even look like criminals...