In the early stages of my work on crime, I was puzzled by why theft is socially harmful since it appears merely to redistribute resources, usually from wealthier to poorer individuals. I resolved the puzzle (Becker [1968, fn. 3] by recognizing that criminals spend on weapons and on the value of the time in planning and carrying out their crimes, and that such spending is socially unproductive - it is what is now called “rent-seeking” - because it does not create wealth, only forcibly redistributes it. The social cost of theft was approximated by the number of dollars stolen since rational criminals would be willing to spend up.
