poor rice farmers...

With the Beijing Olympics just around the corner, metal prices are soaring and all sorts of machinery is disappearing from temples, manholes, rice fields, schools (aluminum silverware, bowls, plates) and more...my goodness, I hope this situation does not worsen!!!

RYUGASAKI, Ibaraki -- At least 56 faucets, worth a total 310,000 yen, have been stolen from water supply pipes at rice paddies in Ibaraki Prefecture, police said.

Investigators suspect that thieves stole them in order to make some cash, as metal prices are on the rise. Ditch gratings along roads and bells on fire-watching towers have been also been stolen in the prefecture