Again and again and still again, I have noticed penalties are not up. Wouldn't hurt to try that scenario to see if auto crime diminishes. But then again, bleeding heart Lieberals with statistics and bafflegab will shoot down my theory over and over again. Same old headlines, pal. Just change the date. Ho hum.

I have some experience with auto theft and while i agree with harbinger i would add that there is more to it than stiffer penalties.
Here is a tale of woe we could learn from.
My friend bought a used car from a guy and, being the untrusting type , insisted on getting it inspected and also checking the VIN to see if it was stolen. The local inspection station worked it ove, including ticking off the box labelled VIN number check and the service she paid to check whether it was stolen turned up no probs.
Weeks later ICBC asked her to come in because they were checking all alberta vehicles against their 'hidden VINS'. She brought it in and long story short, a few weeks later an RCMP officer showed up and try to take the car right there and then. There was little we could do (except make him come back with a warrant).
Now i talked to the guy and here are some of the things i found out:
All vehicles have VIN numbers hidden around on them. THe RCMP believe they are the only ones who know where they are. Judging from the calls i made, they may be mostly right about that. No one will help you check out these numbers on a car you want to buy.
Now talk aboput a lot of BS! If people were able to check these numbers out they could protect themselves. These numbers are stamped into the frame, etc and could not be modified like the little vin tag can. According to common sense and the RCMP officer there is NO WAY OF TELLING how many stolen cars are driving around BC these days by unwitting 'owners'. I think that giving people the methods to protect themselves , even if it was just added to the responsibilities of the inspection stations, would help curb theft.
Oh and by the way, the guy was actually caught in kelowna when he was recognized by someone whom he had ripped off the previous year. However, he skipped and though his whereabouts were known, since the warrant was not nation wide he just disappeared. It isnt the sentence here that is the problem. It is what leads up to it.
Also, i have learned that a large number of car thefts are what they call 'buybacks'? . Thats where people get out of their lease by having the truck stolen and /or torched. Thats a morality problem really, and probably more due to the prevalence of easy credit than to overly light sentences.

I have learned from RCMP that the so called auto thefts include ATV,s, Skidoos, Seadoos,motor bikes and god knows what. Now consider where the thefts are? My friend in Whitehorse tells me over 3000 a year go missing in WHITEHORSE alone. They are trasported to Alaska and sold and you can buy used alaskan skidoos cheap anytime in Whitehorse. So what is the problem? Too many cops sitting at Tim Hortons would be my guess. But even when arrested the judge would let them go so he can have a full day next month and keep his 160 grand a year job. Wouldn't you?