Perimeter Turnovers

I am curious what constitutes a clean steal on the perimeter versus an ordinary foul protecting possession, particularly when the official knows that the result of the steal is a high-percentage shot at the end of a counterattack.  Should I be weighing whether the attacker is playing such weak offense, doing such a poor job protecting the ball, that he should not only lose the ball but have a goal scored against him?  I tend to think of it this way (which may be my coaching mindset versus my officiating mindset).  Yet, with an ordinary foul protecting possession, am I not bailing out the weaker player/team?  

I see the perimeter called so inconsistently that I do not know what is right.