It is a good thing cars have headlights. That is a no-brainer. I admit that the headline above could be misleading, however, had cars not been equipped with high-powered headlights in Utah recently, they would have been unable to drive.

So, what happened here? A massive copper theft back in March has motorists on I-15 driving in the dark, and Utah Department of Transportation officials say it could be some time before the lights are back on. As reported in www.deseretnews.com.

The lights were out along a 1-mile stretch of I-15 because thieves stripped between 30,000 feet and 35,000 feet of copper wire from 11 junction boxes. Repairs would cost UDOT roughly $60,000.

The thieves are still at large. This is another example of how we all are hurt by theft. I know plenty of people who would avoid driving this corridor because they do not like to drive in the dark – even with headlights.

Like many government departments these days – there are no funds to replace the copper wires. When funds come available, the wires will be replaced with less expensive aluminum wires. They also less-likely to be stolen.

So how do you steal more than 30,000 feet of wire? Officials believe the thieves likely dressed up as a construction crew.

Just how costly are these thefts? In Utah alone, the Utah Department of Transportation has spent $450,000 in taxpayer money replacing copper wiring.

I believe that mandatory theft prevention education would help abate this kind of theft and even shoplifting. I find it hard to swallow, but many people who steal, do not believe that thievery is wrong. What do you think?