The Big Bus Heist – The Weird Side of the Internet – by Liam Sweeny.
The essence of crime is getting away with something, however small, as a rebellion against the social order. But a crime story. A genuine noir, is when that one little gain comes with a whole lot of loss. Save a penny, lose the world, that sort of thing, If you’re in for a crime story, a true Noir, look no further than the case of Japanese bus driver who pinched up a 1,000 yen note (basically seven dollars) off the bus floor and pocketed it. Little did he know there are cameras everywhere, though how, after working a bus for over three decades he didn’t know that is amazing, but either way, his mug ended up of the Kyoto Municipal Transportation Bureau, and he was fired. Notably, he lost his pension, which was $80,000 American.
I don’t get this. If you’re three decades into your job, why do you take such a stupid risks?
This reminds me of that Twilight Zone episode where the banker can hear everybody’s inner voice. And he hears the other banker plotting a big heist, which freaks him out and it’s revealed later that the guy was never going to rob the bank but dreamed about it every day.
Maybe that was the thing with this guy, he just couldn’t hold back that day.
And of course, he sued the bus company. Can you imagine that, suing the bus company that you just robbed. That’s like a burglar suing you for having a cool pool to break a leg in.
So he robbed, they fired, he sued, and they won. The question is this: what did he need for seven bucks? Was the theft an “FU” or didn’t he like really need a cop of coffee? What can you even get in Japan for seven bucks?