The economics of stealing text books is easy. Imagine the benefit. You take a text book just sitting on the shelf above the coat hangers in Hazelrigg Student Union. You didnt have to pay the $99.95 for it, and at the end of the semester, when everyone sells books back to the school you can make a profit of about $45 with absolutely no cost. Sounds easier than stealing an Xbox or an iPod and selling it back on the internet or independently. I get the system.
What I dont get is how one student can steal an aspect of another students education. I paid the hundred bucks for the book and it is absolutely unethical to profit off of someone else work or their efforts to benefit their education. But money is money and Ill just go buy another book. The real burn on this is I no longer have a book to study from for my exam this week. Someone stole a tool I use to educate myself, a tool that I had to figure out a way to pay for. A fellow student, someone who knows how essential a book is to any given class, took part of my education. It is almost ironic. Luckily, there are ways to avoid this occurrence and if youre as adamant as I am to figure out the culprit, you have some options. First, pay attention to the position of the cameras in the Student Union. The best spot to place your belonging is near the couches so the cameras will be able to see anyone who touches your belongings. My bag was directly under the camera, and therefore, nothing can be seen. If the camera does not catch any footage or your bag is out of position, ask your professor to flag the class list.
Upon returning to the Gray Center without a book to study from, my Professor John Perlich said he could alert the book store staff. This way, when the end of the semester arrives and we sell our books back, the class roster is with the staff and before selling back my Communication Theory book, people will be asked for identification. If they are not on the class roster, they dont get the money for the book.
If they still dont pop out of the woodwork, then rest assured, it takes forever to sell a book online. Otherwise, keep books in your backpack or car. It is a real pain to study without one. For those who steal, karma balances everything out.
