today’s news and information gleanings from here and there!

Quote for today… We’re going to do things in “the legalest (sic) way possible” to recover the K-9 funds. – Columbia K-9 Campaign officer Mike Beury commenting on the K-9 situation in Columbia at last night’s borough council of the whole meeting. Beury is also the president of the borough council.

• Mayor wants dog “trained to bite”: At last night’s meeting the mayor said, he wants Columbia’s K-9 to be a dog that is “trained to bite.” H-m-m-m.

• Railroad grants: “Columbia and Reading Railway Co. LLC — $732,200 to add five new tracks, five new turnouts, realign 390 feet of mainline track, add four new turnouts and 1,350 feet of new track.” – WHTM Channel 27

• Huge chunks of time at last night’s council of the whole meeting dealt with the evolving K-9 situation in the borough. As noted here on Sunday in the “Dog flap? Dog Crap” opinion Columbia is without a K-9 dog and officer for the first time since 1998. At last night’s meeting, the mayor made the announcement that the K-9 officer had resigned and that no other officer on the force has stepped up to accompany Pedro, the newly acquired and trained dog. At this point borough is paying to board the dog while the police chief is trying to find another police department to buy the dog. The mayor said Columbia’s K-9 program is “on-hold.” Though several citizens pressed the council and the mayor for an explanation on the current situation, the council and borough manager said nothing more than, “it is a personnel issue” and is not open for public debate.

• Pedro is a very smart dog, the mayor said, and the dog’s breeder has offered to take him back … but the money spent for him will not be refunded in cash, only as a credit. Pedro is a Malinois / Shepherd mix and the Malinois breed is an exceptional one. The dog engaged in the hunt for Osama bin Laden was a Malinois: “Cairo, the war dog. Cairo, like most canine members of the elite U.S. Navy SEALs, is a Belgian Malinois. The Malinois breed is similar to German shepherds but smaller and more compact, with an adult male weighing in the 30-kilo range.” – EuropaIceWolf

• “The Malinois needs an experienced master who is firm, but not heavy handed. If you are harsh or overbearing it will become uncooperative.” – dogbreedinfo

• The American Kennel Club says, “Intelligent and trainable, the Belgian Malinois possesses a strong desire to work and is happiest with regular activity and a job to do. A relatively easy keeper due to their medium size and short coat, this confident breed loves their families, but may be somewhat reserved with strangers. They are naturally protective of their owners without being overly aggressive.”

• US military legacy: do your job and get cut. “Proposal would shrink US Army to smallest size in 74 years” – York Daily Record

• High utility rates in York County: one homeowner got a $1,000 bill – York Daily Record

• Check out the letters to the editor in today’s Intelligencer Journal/Lancaster New Era. They’re about (1) snow and ice removal from sidewalks; (2) the insidious nature of the parasitic electricity providers illicit practices and (3) Comcast’s monopolistic empire.

• Communities with K-9 resources: “In addition to Lancaster city, six county law-enforcement agencies have K-9 units — Columbia, East Hempfield, Manheim Borough, Manheim Township, and Southern Regional police and the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office.” – LancasterOnLine

• One of the problems with K-9 officers: Google “police department k-9 excessive force” to see what often happens with “special duty K-9” officers.