And the rich can, in fact, be rich and not steal. Maybe we should put our efforts towards stopping the infantilization of the rich thieves that are responsible for the vast majority of theft in this country? Or are we only gonna clutch our pearls at the petty crime?

We could also acknowledge two problems simultaneously, without downplaying or minimizing either. That way, neither you nor your imaginary rhetorical opponent is "clutching their pearls".