The recent arrest of two Concordia Parish residents sparks an interesting question for local government: Do you know where all of the taxpayers’ “stuff” is?

The two, authorities believe they were living together and perhaps dating, were apparently in possession of three police radios, originally owned by Concordia Parish’s Office of Homeland Defense.

The radios in question were to be used in the case of a significant emergency that required more widespread communication.

One could easily argue the radios probably represent some of the millions of dollars our nation wasted in buying stuff no one truly needed in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, but that’s an argument for another day.

The possession of the radios by two unauthorized people suggests that the parish doesn’t have good inventory control over its equipment.

These are not $50 walkie-talkies; these are full-fledged police radios, estimated to cost well above $1,000 each. While the use of the radios is still being investigated, we urge all local governments to stop now and take an inventory of equipment and alert the authorities if something isn’t where it belongs.

To not do so is a dereliction of duty.