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

Quote for today… “Distrust and caution are the parents of security.” – Benjamin Franklin

• Anthony Wishard was named to the Dean’s List for the spring semester at Franklin & Marshall College; he is the son of Mary Schmitt and Dennis Wishard and a graduate of Columbia High School (Lancaster Intelligencer Journal/New Era)
• Two Columbia men charged in stabbing incident (Lancaster Intelligencer Journal/New Era) Wonder who the chief of police is in Columbia; evidently it’s the sheriff A/K/A the mayor? In other communities, it is the “police chief” or the “police” (not the elected “public servant”) who speak for law enforcement. The paranoia of despotic government everywhere is displayed by the maintenance of absolute control of information.

“Professional police chiefs are probably more aware of these limitations than anyone because it is their life’s work, their chosen career, that is, on the line. The chief will be there in some capacity when the current mayor is gone and a new mayor takes over. On the other hand, the mayor is normally not knowledgeable of the limitations that have been placed upon the police by society and the courts. The mayor is not usually trained in criminal law and criminal procedure and not attuned to the conditions under which an officer may or may not act. 

“Therefore, the mayor is wise not to assume the role of “senior police officer” and become involved in making decisions which should only be made by a trained police officer. Unfortunately, because the mayor is recognized by police officers as an authority figure, they often simply comply with the mayor’s directives and do not object even though what is occur ring is improper.  

“The appropriate role of the mayor in municipal policing should be that of liaison between the municipal government and the police chief, holding the police chief accountable for carrying out the policies established by elected officials and for the effective operation of the police department.” (SOURCE: Administering Police Services in Small Communities: A Manual for Local Government Officials)

• LEGAL NOTICE: Notice is hereby given that the Borough Council of the Borough of Columbia at its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, August 8, 2011, at 7:00 p.m. in the Municipal Building, 308 Locust Street, Columbia, Pennsylvania, intends to consider for adoption two Ordinances: 1) “An Ordinance of the Council of the Borough of Columbia of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, amending Ordinance No. 803-2009 to remove the termination date from said Ordinance which was adopted pursuant to the Improvement of Deteriorating Real Property or Areas Tax Exemption Act, 72 P.S. Section 7411-101, et seq. to provide exemptions from real property tax for certain improvements to deteriorated dwellings and for improvements of deteriorated areas by the construction of new dwell-ing units; and making this Ordinance effective upon adoption of a similar resolution by the Columbia Area School District”; and 2) “An Ordinance of the Borough of Columbia, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, pursuant to the Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance Act (Act of December 1, 1977, P.O. 237, No. 76) defining and authorizing tax exemptions from real property tax for improvements to certain deteriorated industrial, commercial or other business property or for the new construction of industrial, commercial or other business property; providing for an exemption schedule, procedures for obtaining exemptions, and determining the termination date hereof for those qualifying properties located within the Borough of Columbia.” A copy of the Ordinances may be inspected at the Municipal Building, 308 Locust Street Columbia, Pennsylvania, and at the Lancaster Law Library located at 50 North Duke Street, Lancaster, Pennsylvania during regular business hours. Zimmerman, Pfannebecker, Nuffort & Albert, LLP. (SOURCE: Lancaster Intelligencer Journal/New Era, July 30, 2011) 
• Don’t breathe easy yet: stink bugs will be back (York Dispatch)
• The labor situation with Armstrong update (Lancaster OnLine.com)
• The job of a housing inspector in Lancaster (Lancaster OnLine.com)
• Apple has more cash than the US (York Daily Record) 
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing a public health alert due to concerns about illnesses caused by Salmonella Heidelberg that may be associated with use and consumption of ground turkey.