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\Can We Stop Vandals?
• Summer is here, and as you drive, walk, or cycle along the Jroads and byways of beautiful Rappahannock County, you pass an endless array of beer cans, paper, and assorted trash.
More serious than the littering is the widespread vandalism recently, including knocked-over road signs and route numbers. And it can be a felony offense when dogs get poisoned or church windows get shot.
Eventually the cost for this comes out of your pocket as your tax dollars go to work to pick up the trash, replace missing signs, and pay for investigations.
Hidden costs are harder to quantify but are no less real. Our community becomes a less pleasant place to live. Revenue is lost when tourists decide not to return because of the unsightly trash. Tax dollars don’t get spent on books and education, wildflower plantings or serious criminal investigations because they’ve already been spent on littering and vandalism.
Here are some things you can do to help:
• Don’t you litter-not even a Kleenex. Most trash builds up a piece at a time.
• Ask your friends and family not to litter. Don’t let them toss cans or other litter out the car window . The road sign may look cute in your daughter’s bedroom, but it is vandalism or stealing nevertheless.
• Contact the sheriffs office when you see vandalism happening. Because this is a hit-and-run offense it leaves fewr clues. Your information may supply the sheriff w'ith the missing piece needed to solve the case. If nobody reports it, it definitely won’t get solved.
None of these suggestions will solve the problen, but some may help. And if you have a idea that is useful, please share it with us.
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