Theft-proof car? Try Phil Collins

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/08/2011 (5177 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One day — though not today — I will write the top ten things I’ve discovered covering crime.

High up on the list would be the axiom you soon learn: if an object can be stolen, it will be.

So, that means items you’d never, ever, ever consider vulnerable to theft will end up being victim to sticky fingers.

In Winnipeg, that means I’ve heard of pilfered construction equipment and public art (a statue from the Leo Mol garden). Really?

Anyways, to the thieves who’ve been rummaging through my vehicle at night, I have finally found the trick — Phil Collins.

In the past few months, I have climbed into my (unlocked) car at least three times to find items astray and the glove box hanging open.

But no matter what’s gone — like loose change I soon stopped leaving there — these tricky little thieves always leave my good old Phil Collins CD behind.

This stuff is apparently Kryptonite to thieves looking for valuables.

In one case, it was even tossed on the seat after being removed from the CD player, like someone had recoiled at the concept of carrying dear old Phil home.

(News to Phil, they REALLY don’t want you. Like, um, apparently a half-used can of insect repellent was more attractive than listening to you sing the classics!)

Yes, I’ve also decided that perhaps my tactic to avoid a shattered window may have to change and I’ll have to start locking doors.

Regardless, I recall once going into a music store in Portage Place and inquiring why there were hip-hop CDs being kept behind the counter — and was informed by the clerk that those were the ones they felt were most likely to be taken by thieves. Musical profiling? You betcha.

Thanks to Phil, I’ve learned a valuable little lesson — listening to unhip music may be unhip, but man, does it have its benefits.