Seems to me that you're suggesting treating bad rp with more mechanics. Just teach them how to rp and there would be no need of this discussion.
No, I'm just pointing out that the current mechanics work against roleplaying.
Recently one of my toons, just created, arrived in town and was immediately greeted by a helpful citizen, speaking "in character," who addressed him
by name.
In order for my toon to remain IC, he had to either "ignore" the fact that a seemingly perfect stranger knew his name, or he had to incorporate this bit of contradiction into some kind of imagined "backstory."
Most people don't know how to roleplay at all. They fail to understand that their character knows his own world, and his own past, perfectly well, but he doesn't know anything at all about the new person he's just meeting. But at the same time, the game mechanics are working the opposite, keeping simple "common knowledge" details about the environment, government, etc., "secret," while putting helpful labels on everything that can be interacted with. So they get confused about what their characters should know and not know.
So, in this thieving situation, suppose you RP with somebody that you're a pickpocket, and you've managed to sneak up and grab a couple of coins from him. That person might be able to shout "Stop, thief!" but the only thing he's going to know about you IC is that he sees an anonymous stranger running away. He won't be able to tell your name to anybody. He won't recognize you on the street the next time you meet.
Now, you tell me how many prospective "victims" your pickpocket is going to find - he could make a better living selling rat hides.
