Can Corporations Commit Murder

Many deaths have occurred over the years from faulty products. From all of the product recalls, both food and otherwise, it makes us wonder how these businesses are being run. For some people this brings them to the conclusion that corporations and big businesses are committing murder in some form or another. I do not believe that. It is like a gun, guns don't kill people, people kill people. The same can be said for corporations, just because a company is big doesn't mean that the products will be bad and kill people, it is the owners and CEO's who do not pay enough attention that causes faulty products.
There is a documentary called "The Corporation" that looks at all of the faults of a corporation, mainly how they have all of the traits of a psychopath. The video is of coursed biased, but it does show how something can get so big and out of hand, that the owners and CEO's are unaware of what is happening, or if they do, their reputation is at stake and they don't want to lose it, so lying is the best choice in sticky situations. There is some truth in that, but I don't believe that all corporations are bad, it all depends on how it is run and how proud these people are.
This brings us back to the main question though, can a corporation commit murder? The answer, in my mind would be no, a corporation is not a human being, it cannot think for itself or act for itself, all of the products depend on workers, supervisors, manager, CEO's and the owners, it is them who control what comes out of their plant or business, not the corporation.

Auto Theft

The rate of vehicle theft generally coincides with the population of a city. Take Fort McMurray for example, in 2009 on the McLean's list of the cities with the most vehicle theft, the city came in 11th while in 2010 it jumped up to first. Fort McMurray though is a booming city where hundreds of thousands of people come every year from around the world to get work in the oil sands. The bigger the population and the crime rates rise. Winnipeg though dropped from first in 2009 to eighth in 2010. The majority of vehicle theft is in the western provinces, with B.C. having six of the top spots in 2009.

Top 10 Cities in Canada for Auto Theft -  2009

1	Winnipeg, Man.
2	Prince George, B.C.
3	Joliette, Que.
4	Chilliwack, B.C.
5	Edmonton, Alta.
6	Surrey, B.C.
7	Kamloops, B.C.
8	Abbotsford, B.C.
9	Saint- Jérôme, Que.
10	Maple Ridge, B.C.

Top 10 Cities in Canada for Auto Theft - 2010

1	Fort McMurray, Alta.
2	Joliette, Que.
3	Surrey, B.C.
4	Kelowna, B.C.
5	Brantford, Ont.
6	Edmonton, Alta.
7	Grande Prairie, Alta.
8	Winnipeg, Man.
9	Langley, B.C.
10	Saskatoon, Sask.

Looking at statistics though, the crime rate for vehicle theft has gone down drastically. According to McLean's it has gone down 40% in the past decade. So what have we done so differently in the past ten years to change the rates that much? Preventing vehicle theft starts by using your head. Lock your doors, roll up the windows, don't leave keys in the car or in an obvious spot to find, don't leave items that people want to steal in plain sight and most of all do not leave your car running unnatended. If you want to get more technical, there are alot of alarm systems and steering wheel locks that would prevent a thief from stealing your car also. 

There are also certain types of cars that theives take, so don't buy these:

1	2000 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
2	1999 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
3	2002 Cadillac Escalade 4-door 4WD
4	2004 Cadillac Escalade 4-door 4WD
5	2005 Acura RSX Type S 2-door
6	1997 Acura Integra 2-door
7	2000 Audi S4 Quattro 4-door AWD
8	2003 Hummer H2 4-door AWD
9	2006 Acura RSX Type S 2-door
10	2004 Hummer H2 4-door AWD

Hypermasculinity

Throughout history, men are viewed as powerful and dominant. Even religion is seen in this way, from Him, God, and the fact that Eve was made from Adam's rib bone, prove that the men were seen as more important in every aspect of life. Even now in our modern day times, young boys are shown "action figures" instead of dolls. So are we creating hypermasculinity, still, even in our time of understanding and equality, or is hypermasculinity a trait in boys that will always be there and we will never be able to get rid of, and does this lead to aggressive sexual behaviour?
When watching commercials on channels meant for kids, the toys that are being advertised for them varies widly concerning which gender they are going for. For the girl's it is baby dolls that can talk to you and they learn how to take care of babies and children, there is also easy bake ovens so they can learn how to cook, and Barbie so they know how to shop and wait around for Ken. So concerning the girls, advertisments are setting them up to be housewives and mothers.
On the flip-side boys learn at a young age to be manly. They have action figures that fight crime, Tonka trucks, race cars- toys that are generally active or violent.So does this create hypermasculinity? From a young age boys are learning to fight for what they want, in sports, parents tell their young boys to fight for the ball and score, the point of the game is to win. For girls it's "try your best" and if you don't win, well that's okay because we are all winners.
It seems unfair but it is not really noticeable; it has always been like this. Boys learn to get what they want and crush anybody in the way, when they grow up and become men, that state of mind still sticks with them and they take what they want, not always nicely. Sexual assault has been studied for years and hypermasculinity has been connected to it. If a man wants that girl at the bar, well he can just go over and get her. It's what he has been taught for his whole life because if he can get the most girls he is "manly".
Some think though that this is just boys being boys; that over the ages, violence has always been connected to sex. Warriors sent out to crush villages would pillage them and rape the women. So war and sex have always coincided, but in our day and age this doesn't make sense. Most men now do not join the army, so if they are not fighting a war, why is their still rape and sexual assault? Apparently men do think that the more aggressive they are, girls will like them more, and the more women they have the cooler they are. Like girls who sleep around, they are sluts, but a guy who does the same thing is cool in the eyes of his friends and peers. Does this make sense?
It is true though that sex and war go together. Just last year, it was reported that many women in Afghanistan who were there fighting with the Canadian Forces were sexually assaulted and raped. On October 6 2010 the  military had only confirmed one though, a far cry from what a 2008 report indicated. The Canadian Forces Marshal Provost report 170 incidents of sexual assault in that year. This report contained incidents, no matter the outcome of the investigation. It seems though that women who were sent overseas do not want to talk about what happened.  

Serial and Mass Murder

Two of the most famous Canadian murderers are serial killer Clifford Robert Olson and mass murderer Marc Lépine. What they did shocked our country and angered many. They of course had their reasons for this though. So what makes someone murder many people and what, exactly, is the difference between serial and mass murder?

École Polytechnique at the University of Montreal was the scene of a tragic incident on December 6 1989. Marc Lépine, only 25 years old, shot 14 women, stabbing one to death, and wounding 13 others; only taking 20 minutes to act out his plan; at the end he shot himself. The reasons for his siege were quite clear though. In a letter that he wrote that day, which was found in his jacket pocket, as well as everything he said during this 20 minutes, told everyone why he had done this. Marc believed that feminists were the reasons that he could not get or keep a job. It seemed that he had done his research, a list of 19 women who were in positions of power, such as various police women and politicians, was found complete with their phone numbers; but he decided he did not have the time to find all of them, instead he would kill women who were trying to get ahead in occupations, he thought, were meant for men; showing why this school was chosen- École Polytechnique is an engineering school.
Marc Lépine was a mass murderer. What he did killed a lot of people at the same time which is the difference between mass and serial murderer. Clifford Robert Olson Jr. was a serial killer. Over a long period of time he murdered a lot of people, and he didn't commit suicide in the end, like most mass murderers do.
Clifford Robert Olson Jr. was born in Vancouver BC, and at the end of his long murder career, he would admit to eleven murders that took place all over the province. During his child, unlike most serial murderers, he grew up in a stable home, yet showed signs of delinquency at a young age. He was known as a bully and rumoured to torture and kill animals. At the age of 13 he was arrested for the first time for theft. His first murder victim was 12 year old Christine Weller. On November 17 1980 he abducted her and she was found later on strangled with a belt and stabbed several times. His next two victims were 13 year old Colleen Daignault, on April 16 1981, and 16 year old Daryn Johnsrude, who was found bludgeoned to death with a hammer and thrown into a ditch. Just one month after the murder of Colleen Daignault, Clifford got married, while still under suspicions of molesting a 5 yr. old girl, but the case was dropped due to lack of evidence. He than took someone's life just four days after the wedding, 16 year old Sandra Wolfsteiner; and one month later, Ada Court, 13. In the next month, July, Clifford killed six more youth. by this point police were getting suspicious. Only three bodies had been found, and the latter seven were tentatively being called runaways, but the police quickly realised that there was a serial killer. Louise Chatrand, 17, was his last victim, she was buried in a shallow grave on July 30. On August 12, Clifford was arrested for the abduction of two girls, ending his long murdering streak.
Upon his arrest, Olson decided to make a deal, in turn for the 11 bodies, he wanted $10,000 given to his wife for each body he gave the police; giving the first one as a 'freebie'. In the end, the families of the missing children just wanted a proper burial, so the deal was made; giving Olson's wife $100,000. In January 1982, Olson plead guilty to 11 counts of murder and was given 11 life sentences. Trying for parole for a few times, has not been helpful for him, he is still in maximum security jail.
For crimes such as these I think that there is no way to know it is going to happen and to stop it. Nobody knew of what Marc Lépine wanted to do, and even as it was happening the police were unwilling to go inside the school because they didn't know where, exactly, he was in the building. As for Clifford Olson, his victims ranged from gender to age, making evidence and catching him quite hard. It was also his mistake of getting caught on a back road that led to his arrest, not the work of the police. Therefore I think that catching murderers is only really possible, if the murderers aren't very good at it and leave a lot of evidence, or police can read peoples minds, and they can't.

Impacts of Crime on Victims

For any crime, be it theft to sexual assault, there will be long and short term impacts on the victims. These crimes could make anyone nervous, depending on someone's personality, their nervousness could make their time after a crime better or worse. A person who is all ready apprehensive of most things, will have a harder time after a crime than someone who is more self-assertive and fearless; but the severity of the crime as well, will affect the severity of impact on that person.
To anyone who has had anything stolen from them, such as a statue - or something more personal, the short impact of that crime would be the anger of the victim. Angry at whoever did it, angry at themselves because there might have been a chance that they could have stopped it, or just angry because it's gone, but the impact could go so much deeper. Over time the victim could spend more and more money on security, especially if something was stolen from their home. The more personal the item and where it was when it was stolen will make the effects last that much longer. If it was an item that was trivial, and not really expensive, than the victim will most likely get over it quicker.
If the crime is violent and physical though, the consequences could be much greater. The effect of an assault, sexual or not, is lasting. The victim would have a greater long term impact, possibly completely changing their lives. In the case of a rape victim, they might go as far as to move away, change their appearance, attitude and totally alienate their friends and family around them. Depending on if it was someone they knew, than they may never trust anyone ever again, leading to stress in all areas of their life.
In the case of others, kidnapping is also a crime that would lead to a change in life. On April 8 2009, Victoria "Tori" Stafford was abducted, her body was found July 19 2009.  Terri-Lynne McClintic plead guilty to first-degree murder, and her partner Michael Rafferty, was also charged with first-degree murder. On April 27 2010 victim impact statements were made by Tori's family on the request by the judge. On December 9 2010 they were published on the Global News website. They talk of how much they miss their daughter and only sister and wonder what she would have missed in life. Tara McDonald, Tori's mother, writes of how she has nightmares now and cannot sleep. Tori's brother, Daryn, writes about how he is scared to be on the street now and does not like going anywhere by himself. 
Click here for the statements on the Global News site. 

Crime, Increasing or Decreasing?

According to Statistics Canada, violent crime is on the decrease; but watching our local news networks, it seems that this is not true. The portrayal of violent crimes in the media shows a mass problem of gangs and homicides. In the first minutes of a show alone, there is a slew of gang shootings, assaults and fires in half of the buildings in town. So is violent crime actually on the decrease? If it is, what about other, less harmful crimes; are we becoming a safer Canada?
After watching our local news network, we might have to work harder to find the courage to leave our houses. Story after story about homicides, gangs and sexual assaults, especially in the larger cities, could be frightening, but according to the Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, "From 1977 to 2006, the total rate of both violent and property crime declined from 5,039 to 4,539 incidents per 100,000 Canadians"and it "reached it lowest level in almost 30 years". In 1977 the rate of violent and property crimes was 5,038.52 per 100,000 people, it steadily increased through the years, finally peaking in 1991 at 7,219.52, ever since then the numbers have steadily decreased ending up at less than it started at. This isn't to say though that this is all over Canada, yes it is on the decrease, but these rates are still higher in western and northern Canada.
There are many factors that lead to this decrease. One would be age. The baby-boomers are getting on in years and there are now less youth than there were before. It is proven that it is usually younger males who do crime, so if there is less then them, than there is less crime. The economy would also be another factor. Right now we are recovering from the recession, but we aren't completely recovered. When the economy is good, there is more theft, because these items would create a larger profit, but now with the recession, items are not worth as much, making theft and B&E's less profitable. One major reason though, even though it is shown a little too much, is the news. If everyday gang shootings and homicides are shown, what do you think the police are working on? It is the fear of the people that makes the police crack down harder to stop the violence.
Just recently, in Nanaimo BC, it was reported that crime was considerably down, with a few exceptions. On the Global News website on December of 2010 it wrote that according to recent reports from the RCMP "overall, crime rates fell in October and November compared to the same time last year with a decrease of 10% and 13% respectively." Drug-trafficking offences dropped 36%, while weapons-related offences dropped an outstanding 33%. There are of course exceptions to this that included residential break-ins and motor-vehicle theft. The officers say they were not surprised on the rise of thefts seeing as how it was around the Christmas holidays and temptations were everywhere.

Crime, Why it Happens

For centuries, there have been many theories on why crime happens. From the witch hunts to modern day science everyone's theories have been different. For most of us today though, we can figure it out for ourselves. There is the most obvious reasons of revenge, drugs, or money; but if we dig deeper, what really makes people snap and commit a crime?
Each of us have grown up differently. Be it in a rich family or in poverty, our surroundings mold us into who we are today. An example would be gangs.  A lot of the gang crimes, are tied to impoverished teens. Growing up in broken homes they may be seeking the "family" they've always wanted, joining gangs gives them the opportunity to be a part of something. Of course the benefit being money and drugs. For these teens though, they may all ready be used to this lifestyle. Growing up around family members, like an older brother or father, who may be part of a gang. This then gives them the opportunity to get closer to their brother or dad, something they may have been missing when they were younger.
Of course though, crime is not just related to poverty. Most of the crimes of embezzlement or the "white collar crimes" are associated to individuals of a higher social standing. These people are usually smart, they went to school and have good paying jobs. In 2008 workers from the Canada Revenue Agency were charged with embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars by filing fraudulent tax returns and diverting refunds and related benefit payments to their personal bank accounts. These two people had good paying jobs and been working with the agency for many years. Their names were never released though. They prove the point that it's your surroundings that dictate what kind of a crime you will do.
For the many reasons of why people commit a crime, not all of them are because of their surroundings, like mental health issues or revenge, but the majority occur because of where these people grew up, who they were surrounded by and what they were surrounded by. Be it family members or the people we work with, ideas for these crimes come from everything around us.