Darts and laurels

Dart to the rash of break-ins and metal thefts plaguing Salisbury and Rowan County. While the notion of thieves taking “everything but the kitchen sink” was once considered a bit of hyperbole, these days they may not only take the kitchen fixtures but air-conditioning units and copper gutters as well. Similar thefts are occurring across the country, fueled in part by the economy and rising prices for some metals. If you think the problem is a headache here, consider Phoenix, Ariz., where police recently formed a metal theft unit in an attempt to crack down on a problem that cost the city $30 million in damages last year.

One of the best deterrents against residential thievery is a neighborhood watch program in which residents take note of strange vehicles (especially trucks or vans) cruising the streets or parked at neighbor’s houses while they’re away. This is a case where people shouldn’t be bashful about being nosy neighbors. If you see someone taking apart a neighbor’s AC unit, a quick phone call might confirm whether it’s a routine service call or a crime in the making.

If you see something suspicious, report it to authorities and take down tag numbers and a vehicle description. A little meddling might protect someone else’s metal.

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Laurels to Carson High Principal Kelly Withers, the Rowan-Salisbury School System’s principal of the year and now Northwest Region Principal of the Year. This puts her in an elite group of eight regional winners from whom the state principal of the year will be selected. But whatever happens when that choice is announced a few months hence, this is a proud moment for Withers, the Carson High community and the school system as a whole.

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Dart to the unusually warm weather that’s driving daffodils daffy and stirring a buzz among bees. While nobody wants a blizzard or tree-snapping ice storm, lack of sufficient chilling out time can have several unfortunate side effects. Besides the potential for serious crop damage, lack of our normal number of cold days and nights will mean more mosquitos and other bugs next summer, not to mention the sleds languishing on store shelves. Perhaps we might as well get used to it, however. The Farmers’ Almanac forecast for the winter of 2011-2012 says that “above-normal temperatures are expected across most of the southern and eastern U.S.”