Leave the Copper, Take the Syrup

| Before the crash of 2008, when commodity prices for everything from oil to copper to lead were at record levels, the news was rife with stories of odd thefts. Manhole covers went missing, stolen and sold off to scrapyards. Foreclosed homes were stripped of their copper wiring and pipes. Lead roof tiles were pilfered from churches. Bruce Schneier has a good post on the economic impact of commodity theft — a manhole cover might be worth $5 in scrap, but it costs $500 to replace, for example — and how thefts have gone down with commodity prices as we slipped into recession. He did miss one important story: In Canada, where maple syrup prices have nearly doubled since last year, thieves recently made off with eight barrels of the sweet stuff, at a value of some $16,000. [%comments]