One thing we'd really love to know is, does bag checking in shops actually work?
We've all had to go through bag checks in stores. Most of us probably aren't too bothered by it. We might feel a slight twitch of emotion - that feeling that you're being falsely accused or suspected of something.
There's that old adage that we shouldn't be bothered by things like bag checks, if we have nothing to hide.
Perhaps, though, we should be bothered by it because every day in stores across the Hunter and elsewhere, shop assistants get abused by customers who take exception to bag checking.
Human nature being what it is, there's always going to be a percentage of people who get their backs up over a bag check and unleash some anger at the shop assistant.
Supermarket workers told us that typical responses from irate customers when checkout operators do bag checks are: "What do you want to check my bag for? I haven't stolen anything. I'm a loyal customer, why are you accusing me of stealing? Why are you treating me like a criminal?"
Incensed customers sometimes throw their bags down in front of shop assistants and throw out a bit of sweary sarcasm to go with it, like: "Here, f****** check it then."
Barbara Nebart, Newcastle branch secretary of the SDA, said: "We've still got a long way to go in educating customers that the shop assistant or checkout operator doesn't make the rules".
"No company should be expecting anyone to do bag checks without training on how to handle an aggressive customer," she said.
Our two cents' worth is that companies wanting to do bag checks should employ a security guard to do them, like JB Hi-Fi does.
Obviously, it's the head honchos at corporations and retail chains who decree that bag checks are all important. But we'd love to know if there's any research to show that these checks actually work.
Common sense would tell you that if sneaky thieves want to steal, then they'll find a way to do so that avoids the cursory glance in the bag that comes with the bag check.
But it's everyone else - innocent people and shop assistants - who get the raw end of the stick.
The NSW bag checking guidelines state that "store personnel are only allowed to look in your bag".
"They are not allowed to touch the contents inside. However, if you are asked to remove an object in your bag so they can see inside properly, you are expected to co-operate," the guidelines state.
We had a look on Google Scholar and couldn't find any research into whether bag checks actually work as a deterrent.
How about the geniuses who get paid the big bucks to run these big retail chains start looking for a better, more ethical way to reduce theft in stores?
'Me and 16 women'
Elermore Vale's Tony Davis recently returned from a trip to Tasmania.
"My wife Elaine belongs to the Charlestown Ladies Probus Club. I belong to the men's club," Tony said.
The ladies invited their partners on what was a club trip.
"I was keen, as were three other blokes. When the time came in February, all the other blokes pulled out for various reasons. My wife was keen for me to go and so was I."
They spent four nights in Launceston and seven in Hobart. Jim the coach driver would address the group each morning in the coach as "Ladies and gentleman".
"Everything worked very well. Just me and 16 women," Tony said.
