My fellow team members are so trusting about leaving expensive stuff all over the place. I hate it. While it would be nice to know that everything will be okay, the world isn't that type of place you can live in with unlocked doors anymore. We haven't had any specific instances of stealing that we can point to but a couple very expensive items are mysteriously lost or missing. It is nearly impossible to imagine anyone in FIRST stealing anything. However, at the competition, people from outside FIRST are now inside. They have not been conditioned on the ideals of gracious professionalism so for them, the temptation is large. It is sad but I am afraid true. Don't get me wrong, most people in the world are good people. It is just that the few bad people ruin it for all of us. This may be going a bit far but you can even relate this to the terrorism issue. However, that is left for another discussion another day.
Anyway, it really "inhales audibly" to have something stolen. The only good feeling that comes from it is knowing that you would never do such a thing.
Just as a note, I know several people who lie, cheat, and steal on a daily basis. They all go into the same category for me. These people make me very angry. I tell them that it is wrong, and it will only hurt themselves in the end but they don't listen. I know a kid who has cheated on every single quiz/test we have had in this certain class. He thinks he has to get caught before he will stop. It is so sad. I can only laugh at the day he actually has to do something himself. He will be stranded.
The risks involved with lying (sp?), cheating, and stealing ae far greater than the benefits. Even if one has "beat the system" it is still morally wrong and those who commit such crimes should be punished to the full extent of the law. I don't care what the circumstances are, we all think before we do something and there's no reason criminal's can't too. So, they should be fully aware of and prepared to serve the consequences of their actions. And if something isn't learned by all this, the consequences will eventually get more severe.
It is hard to say what kind of place the world will be not even 20 years from now. Statisticians are being payed millions of dollars every year to answer this question.
What is certain though is that organizations like FIRST will continue to make the world a better, more productive, more desirable place to live in and the number of people these organizations reach will only increase.
