California, in particular, has very stringent laws around catalytic converters. If my cat got stolen off my car, I could replace it with a straight pipe and the state of Ohio would not bother me about it. In California you can't do that.
In 2023, catalytic converter thefts are a serious problem in Los Angeles and in other large cities in America (although, mysteriously, not a problem at all where I live, despite widespread poverty in our cities here). One of the councilwomen in L.A. in the liberal-progressive caucus (it is an entirely Democratic governing body, but has a progressive wing and a more centrist wing) thinks it's Toyota's fault that they're so easy to steal:
The city council is considering[2] passing a law requiring that someone maintain proof of ownership of any loose catalytic converters they have, much like a car title. (I am not necessarily opposed to this kind of law, either.) Yet this is what the liberal-progressive caucus has to say:
He went on to want to place more burdens on lawful car owners and drivers, who are already burdened by government regulation requiring them to have a cat in the first place:Hernandez said the city’s ordinance, which would treat possession of catalytic converters as a misdemeanor, would disproportionately target Black, Latino, Indigenous and low-income residents.
“A criminal conviction and jail time can damage someone’s life forever, leading to collateral consequences like the inability to obtain jobs, rent apartments and get a loan,” she said. “This puts people in a revolving door of desperation and recidivism.”
This is the fundamental problem with the liberal-progressive wing. They first mandate that a person such as myself MUST have a catalytic converter on their car. People like me comply and keep our vehicles in legal order, with working emissions and up-to-date registration and insurance.Hernandez and Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez said a better strategy would be for the city to help residents attach cages or other anti-theft devices to their cars to protect their catalytic converters. Harris-Dawson said the ordinance would cause more Black and Latino drivers to be pulled over and questioned by officers about what’s inside their cars.
Punishing people for possessing unattached catalytic converters “doesn’t help anybody,” he said.
“When somebody gets something stolen, the city should be doing everything we can to make sure they’re made whole — not to punish another person,” Harris-Dawson added.
We then have to face thieves who want to steal parts off of our cars that make them no longer legal to operate.
Instead of appropriately punishing theft, the liberal-progressive proposes to shift the burden even more on to lawful, law-abiding people. There isn't a need for cages or anti-theft devices. There is a need for thieves to (a) be terrified of the consequences of being caught stealing, and (b) not desire to steal in the first place. To quote the Bible, "Let him who stole steal no more, but rather let him labour."
[1] I am not saying that this is a bad thing. I share the concern for the enviornment that many progressives have.
[2] I believe this bill did pass, 8-4, along the caucus lines of the centrists (8) and progressive caucus (4).