Well I miss it. However most of today's players never played a actual town thief, which was the most challenging when the towns were crowded. Even today's PvP thieves don't come close as far as the tactics and skills that a town thief had to muster.
If I remember right a few months ago the Devs mentioned thieves would get some love. I hope so, but where either it be Fel or Tram rule set there should be some risk vs reward.
My view as far as risk vs reward as far as thieving is this. Tram stealables (depending on the type of item) should be guarded by either traps or some kind of guardian.
As for Fel rule set I would like to see desirable items in towns with the same rules as above, but turn the thief Gray for 5 minutes or another color and if the thief is killed, the attacker receives double the insurance and maybe some kind of ticket for a turn in for a random reward.