Readers ask about Primary Election, train study

The following questions were asked recently on the Wonderline:

Q: What were the final vote tallies for the commissioner races in the Primary? I missed it and still want to see what they were.
A: The following are the total votes for the candidates: District 2: (Republicans) Kurt Bulgrin, 211; Ken Stuhr, 76; Mervin Ocken, 73; Erick Brekke, 67; Dean Blum, 41; (Democrats) Doug Deprez, 105. For District 5: (Republicans) Pat Bredenkamp, 252; Bob Wolfe, 193.

Q: Did a sample ballot, for the Primary Election, run in the newspaper?
A: Yes, the official notification of election ran in the Friday, March 28 publication.

Q: How is the train whistle study coming along? What is going to happen with that?
A: According to a month-end report from the public works department in March, "the railroad quiet zone review is in progress.” Cost estimates have not yet been presented to the council, so the review remains underway.

Q: We have so many animals at Adopt-A-Pet that have been abused and neglected. If there’s so much of that happening in York County, why isn’t anyone ever cited for animal cruelty?
A: Many times, the animals are abandoned, so there is no way to know who was responsible for the abuse and neglect. If there is evidence, regarding the person or people responsible, citations are issued. But unfortunately, again, the vast majority of the time, the animals are abandoned.

Q: Do entities, such as the college and the hospital, pay taxes on the rental properties they own?
A: If the properties are not being expressly used for their non-profit intentions, and are generating money, they are taxable. The issue comes before the Board of Equalization each year, as each application for exempt status is examined.

Q: I am looking for someone locally who teaches violin. Could you help me?
A: Wonderline encourages anyone who provides this type of service to contact the newspaper at 362-4478.

Q: Where can we call for our Medicare card, to get a card that only has the last four digits printed out and not our whole social security number?
A: Wonderline has been unable to find information regarding such a card. However, we did find a tip from the Identity Theft Resource Center about the topic.
They say that “many consumers complain that while they remove their Social Security cards from their wallets, their Social Security number is still on their Medicare cards. The IRTC would like to make the following recommendation:
1. Photocopy your Medicare card, front and back.
2. Put your original card in a safe, locked area. Only carry it with you on the days you KNOW you will need it.
3. Using scissors, cut the photocopies of your Medicare card down to wallet size, also cutting off the last four numbers of your Social Security number.
4. Staple these two business card-sized papers together, adding a third blank paper to the pack.
5. On this blank sheet, write down following: emergency contact with the name and phone number of a person who can be reached in the event of an emergency.
6. Your emergency contact person should have a sheet of paper with the last four numbers of your Social Security number and the following: your pertinent medical history, the name of your doctors and a list of all the prescriptions you take, including over-the-counter pills.
They point out that this recommendation should not be used in lieu of legal advice, and does not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Q: On my daily walks, on the park trails, there has been an abundance of blooming dandelions. Normally, they would be covered with bees. I have not seen one this year. It’s the same at home with the lilacs and other bloomers. Are insecticides a factor?
A: Bees are dying all over the world, according to scientists.
According to Wikipedia, it is called “Colony Collapse Disorder” or CCD. “It is a poorly understood phenomenon in which worker bees from a beehive or colony abruptly disappear. While such disappearances have occurred throughout the history of bees, the term was first applied to a drastic rise in the number of disappearances from colonies in North America. The cause or causes of the syndrome are not yet well understood. Proposed causes include environmental charge-related stresses such as malnutrition, pathogens, disease, mites and pesticides.”
"We have never seen a die-off of this magnitude with this weird symptomology," says Maryann Frazier, a bee researcher at Pennsylvania State University. "We've seen bees disappear over time and dwindle away, but not die-off so quickly."

Q: Why are China and India suddenly huge players in the oil market? Did the Chinese all go out and buy cars in one month and make oil jump through the roof?
A: Wonderline searched for authorities on the subject, to accurately address the situation and found pieces written by Associated Press writers, Joe McDonald and Malcolm Foster, who cover the news from Beijing and Bangkok. They say:
“Actually, oil demand from China and India has grown steadily for several years as their middle classes have expanded. So while that demand is contributing to surging oil prices, it isn’t the only factor.
“Also at play are worries about future supplies, production disruptions and geopolitical concerns, like unrest in Nigeria, a major oil producer. The dollar’s decline has also encouraged some traders to buy oil contracts, betting that future gains will offset weakness in the dollar — and greater demand for oil contracts pushes prices up further.
“Oil production has barely been able to keep up with consumption from the United States, Europe and Japan, so supplies are strained when newcomers like China and India jump in.
“With their vast populations, even small changes in spending in China and India can dramatically increase thirst for oil. General Motors Corp. says 10 million Chinese families already can afford a car, and that will rise to 75 million by 2015 — an eye-popping number, and still just a fraction of the total population of 1.3 billion people. India trails China by a few years but is following the same trend.
“Chinese oil producers are trying to increase total global supplies by investing billions to develop oil and gas sources in Africa, Central Asia and elsewhere that others consider too difficult or expensive.”

Q: Does anyone still redeem Green Stamps?
A: Wonderline has received a response to this question, from S & H Greenpoints. They says that S & H Green Stamps can be redeemed for cash or they can be converted to greenpoints, which can be redeemed for many valuable items from the S & H online catalog at www.greenpoints.com.
To redeem stamps, simply count them and then package them securely for shipment. Include a note with your name, address, phone number as well as the number of stamps enclosed. On the note, also specify if you are redeeming them for cash or converting them to points. If you are redeeming them for points and want these placed in your existing account, let them know your current account number. Do not mail loose stamps. If you do not have books, paste them onto an 8 1/2x11 sheet of paper. Send the package via U.S. Insured Parcel Post for the value of the stamps to: S&H Solutions; ATTN: Green Stamps Processing Department, 1625 South Congress Avenue; Suite 200; Delray Beach, FL, 33445.
If you are redeeming the stamps for cash, and there is no redemption value specified in your Saver Book, the redemption value is $1.20 per book of 1,200 Green Stamps. One book of Green Stamps is worth 1,200 points.
If you are converting the stamps to points and do not currently have an existing account, an online account will be created for you. Note that it can take up to six weeks for the points to post in your account. Once you see the points in your existing account or are notified your points have posted to your account, you will be able to place orders by ordering online, mailing in orders or phoning them in at 1-800-435-5674.