today’s news and information gleanings from here and there! Today’s Weather!   Today in History!

Quote for today … “Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people, who have a right, from the frame of their nature, to knowledge, as their great Creator, who does nothing in vain, has given them understandings, and a desire to know; but besides this, they have a right, an indisputable, unalienable, indefeasible, divine right to that most dreaded and envied kind of knowledge; I mean, of the characters and conduct of their rulers.”                          John Adams, 1765

• Art and graffiti? In case you missed the superb piece of writing and photographic interpretation at “Cole Umber’s” site on Tuesday, we encourage you to take a look!
• from the Lancaster Intelligencer Journal/New Era: Article on page C10, Columbia budget meeting Tuesday – “Columbia Borough School District will hold a public presentation on the district’s proposed 2011-2012 budget at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the high school auditorium. Columbia is one of nine “municipalities (to) benefit from Phila program,” is the headline from an article statingthat “Nine Lancaster County municipalities (are benefiting from) Philadelphia’s red light enforcement cameras. The municipalities are among 106 in the state splitting money that represents half the fines paid by drivers who ran red lights in Philadelphia. Under state law, the fines generated by the cameras at 19 city intersections are evenly (shared) between Philadelphia and the state. Columbia, received $32,850 for new centerline rumble strips and upgrades to school zone warnings.”
• from the York Daily Record: “Harley-Davidson to resume hosting Open House at York Bike Night”
• from the Harrisburg Patriot-News: “Hershey seems to remain Chocolatetown, U.S.A., no matter where the candymaking goes” – What might happen when Hershey Chocolate shuts down production in downtown Hershey.
• Norfolk-Southern Press Release: “NorfolkSouthern reports first-quarter 2011 results” “NORFOLK,VA -April 27, 2011 – For the first quarter of 2011, Norfolk Southern Corporation reported net income of $325 million, or $0.90 per diluted share, 26 percent higher than $257 million, or $0.68 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2010.  “First-quarter 2011 results included a $58 million non-cash charge associated with an unfavorable insurance arbitration ruling that reduced net income by $36 million, or $0.10 per diluted share. For the same period of 2010, results were impacted by a $27 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, deferred tax charge resulting from the enactment of healthcare legislation. 
• “’NorfolkSouthern delivered an excellent financial performance during the quarter, reflecting the strong market for freight rail transportation and the value of our service product,’ said CEO Wick Moorman. ‘We see continuing opportunities for growth in almost every segment of our business, and we’re optimistic about our prospects for the balance of 2011.'”First-quarter railway operating revenues improved 17 percent to $2.6 billion, compared with the first quarter of 2010, as the result of 8 percent increases in revenue per unit and traffic volume.”General merchandise revenues were $1.3 billion, 10 percent higher compared with the same period last year. Coal revenues increased 30 percent to $816 million compared with first-quarter 2010 results. Intermodal revenues were $485 million, up 18 percent compared with the first quarter of last year. “Railway operating expenses for the quarter were $2.0 billion, up 20 percent compared with first-quarter 2010. The increase was largely due to higher fuel costs, which rose by $135 million or 53 percent, primarily as the result of increased prices as well as the effects of an unfavorable arbitration ruling and higher traffic volumes. ‘Income from railway operations for the quarter improved 8 percent to $600 million compared with the same period of 2010. “The railway operating ratio was 77.1 percent, compared with 75.2 percent in first- quarter 2010.”