Vote to go forward in Bedford County

EDITORIAL

As the county grows amid the stresses of change, voters should prepare for  the future by electing candidates who would lead in that direction, not cling to the past. 

BEDFORD COUNTY voters feeling both the benefits and the drawbacks of rapid growth have a clear opportunity to choose forward-looking, progressive government over micromanagement and obstructionism when they pick among candidates for their Board of Supervisors and sheriff. Our recommendations: 

Sheriff, Mike Brown: Republican Mike Brown is completing his first term as Bedford County's sheriff, but the retired federal agent draws on 34 years of experience in police work at the local, national and international levels to serve county residents. He has earned re-election. 

Under Brown, the Sheriff's Department has won accolades for investigating child porn on the Internet and grabbed headlines for drug arrests. The attention is deserved. The sheriff has gone after federal grants that extend the department's reach -- for example, placing resource officers in the high schools and two middle schools. 

Brown faces two opponents, but only one serious challenger: Democrat Charles Reid, a corrections officer. Reid is a no-nonsense lawman who probably would serve well. But Brown's achievements are real, and should easily keep him in office.