hmm, I dunno if that simple example holds up very well. In the real world, folks do awful stuff that could be categorized as pestering individuals weaker than them than them, stuff much worse than stealing lunch money from little kids, and many of them never have to answer for any of it. Are we saying that someone who has successfully committed something really terrible like human trafficking without being caught is inherently not smart specifically because they are involved in human trafficking?

I would quote my original comment:

> ...risk of failure is greater.

Yes, some will succeed (I am not suggesting that crime doesn't pay at all, just that the risk of suffering consequences is bigger which discourages most people).