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

Quote for today … “Another cop, another car!” – Comment that came from someone (we’ll have to listen to the recording closer) at the U-shaped table near the end of Monday night’s meeting as the mayor made his follow-up bid for a new police car.

• At Monday’s meeting, councillor Kelly Murphy spoke to the borough’s contract with Comcast. He and councillor Jim Smith wondered about the automatic renewal of the agreement. Comcast has contracts with municipalities to serve as the exclusive cable (and cable Internet access) provider. This monopolistic crapola has been in place for years. There’s been more and more inquiring into these contracts. A Pittsburgh law firm, the Cohen Law Group, has begun to represent communities in delving into these contracts. – The Standard-Speaker, Hazleton, PA

• In fact, across the river, several municipalities are actively pursuing cable and internet provider audits – The York Daily Record

• It’s refreshing to read that two towns in the south, “Wilson and Chattanooga, Tenn., (are) seeking permission to expand their municipal broadband networks. The two cities have established successful networks that deliver low-cost, high-speed Internet access, but their ability to serve customers outside their borders is limited by state laws passed at the behest of commercial Internet providers.” Yepper, the “behest of the commercial Internet providers” – them that writes the checks to the elected public servants to keep them in their corners rather than serve the general public. Read this article here at Charlotte’s newsandobserver.com

• “Why the government won’t protect you from getting screwed by your cable company.” – Gizmodo.com

• Near the end of Monday’s council of the whole meeting, the mayor injected a few tidbits that, if and when they happen, are wondrous steps forward for Columbia’s citizens. Number 1 … He said that the Police Department will be implementing a safe haven for craigslist transactions. In communities across the country, there’ve been too many bad outcomes as a result of online transactions. In towns like this one, “The police department in Columbia, Missouri, announced Wednesday that its lobby will be open 24/7 for people making Craigslist transactions or any type of exchange facilitated by Internet services. The decision fits into a broader trend that has been gaining traction over the past couple of years.” Number 2 … He announced that the Police Department is close to having a new application called “CrimeWatch.” He said that a number of communities have signed up with CrimeWatch (click here or on the graphic above to see area departments) to share the daily police log information – the arrests, the warrants, the news about policing and safety – not only for the Borough but for other areas too. He said the pictures that now hang on the windows of the police station will be online. Number 3 … He said information about the above – the first two tidbits – would be posted at the Columbia Police Department’s facebook page. That’ll be a welcome addition for borough citizens – though there’ve been only 1o posts since the beginning of the year. 55 days and only 10 posts! We applaud the announced transparency and communication that’s been promised. The proof, as they say, is in the pudding. Bring on the pudding.

• Over a year ago, Columbia news, views & reviews observed that Berks County’s CrimeMapping was a robust crime reporting system.