This is a truly incredible story. The Chicago police cooperated with Norfolk Southern Railroad in putting a truck filled with Nike shoes in a low-income largely black neighborhood. When kids from the neighborhood saw the truck and came to take shoes they were arrested for burglary.

In a city with a sky-high murder rate, this is a great use of the police’s resources. It is also a great way to establish good relations with the community.

Since baiting people is apparently in style with law enforcement these days, how about putting together some clearly fraudulent securities, like the subprime mortgage-backed securities marketed by the investment banks in the housing bubble years, and see how many of the Wall Street folks will look to sell them? We can get them on camera and put them away for a long time.

I wonder why no one ever tries anything like this…