Progressives continue to insist that the so-called “shoplifting epidemic” is vastly exaggerated.

The Council on Criminal Justice insists that shoplifting has decreased in 17 out of 24 major cities it surveyed and “is now fairly rare” outside of the anomaly of New York City.

But why then are Walmart and Target locking up underwear and socks – the latest items it says have to be guarded from thieves – in markets all over the country?

‘It comes to the point of how ghetto does it look that they have to lock up the socks or whatever it is that they have under the key,’ shopper Olga Leon told NBC in San Francisco.

The shorts and socks lockup means that at understaffed stores, busy commuters have to wait between ten and thirty minutes for a staff member to retrieve their purchase.

Seven in ten retailers think organized shoplifting has been more common in recent years, says the National Retail Federation.

Even California Governor Gavin Newsom has finally given in and introduced legislation to toughen penalties on retail theft.

Even though store lockups are spreading nationwide, the people hurt most by them are in poor neighborhoods. Target recently closed nine stores in lower-income areas due to rampant theft, forcing shoppers to travel further to get basic items like toiletries or prescriptions.