Indoor Smoking Ban Anniversary

Sunday, April 15th is also the one-year anniversary of the indoor smoking ban- and, surprise surprise, it's been a success:

The first year of New Jersey's ban on smoking in restaurants, bars and other public places was pronounced a success yesterday by state and local health officials and anti-smoking activists.
The Smoke-Free Air Act, which will be a year old Sunday, has been met with widespread compliance by business operators, has overwhelming public support and has led to significant improvements in the air quality of indoor public places, state Health and Senior Services Commissioner Fred Jacobs said.
"I am pleased to say that patrons and employees are working in healthier environments thanks to the successful implementation of the Smoke-Free Air Act in New Jersey," Jacobs said. "This landmark law ... is a giant step forward in public health prevention."
...
Citing a survey conducted by the New Jersey Medical Society, the commissioner said 73 percent of people expressed strong support for the ban, and 89 percent believe it has made restaurants and bars safer for customers and employees.

Not everyone is happy, of course. It's a shame to see small businesses close and a reduction in business for some others. It's only a shift, however: overall, food and beverage service jobs have increased in the last year.

I have to agree with Dr. Conway:

...New Jersey lawmakers said they had seen little if any negative effect in the state and are unlikely to adjust the ban, unless it is to eliminate the exemption for casinos.
"The Legislature would have to see data before it would be prepared to subject people to the health risks of indoor smoke," said Assemblyman Herb Conaway Jr. (D., Burlington), a physician and sponsor of the ban. "It would be a very tough road to travel."

Breathe easy, Fair State.

Blogaversary

Sunday, April 15 will be two years here at the Center of NJ Life. It's pretty amazing to me that I'm still doing this and that folks are still visiting. Thanks, fans and friends.

Put your feet up, relax, grab a homebrew, and let's keep going.

How's about a check before you vote?

Here's something you've never heard me say before: I agree with Sen. Leonard Lance.

Property tax rebates coming N.J. homeowners via snail mail:

Gov. Jon S. Corzine had wanted a direct credit against tax bills instead of the checks, which the state has been sending for 30 years and which as sometimes viewed as an election-year ploy.
Corzine said the credits would be cheaper for the state to administer.
But he changed course at a forum Tuesday on property taxes. He said logistical complications and privacy concerns led him to ditch the credit idea.
Some Republicans, such as Senate Minority Leader Leonard Lance, say the switch is politics-as-usual in a state known for not always being on the up-and-up.
"It doesn't surprise me the checks will go out right before the election," he told the Star-Ledger of Newark for Wednesday's newspaper.

Me either.

Dammit.

A Tale of Two Movies

I saw two movies in the last week: An Inconvenient Truth and Grindhouse. Both movies were so remarkable that I feel I must remark on them.

Let's start with An Inconvenient Truth. I've been waiting to see this for a while, since we rarely go to movie theaters ($9.50 for a ticket- each- plus how much an hour for a babysitter? I can borrow DVDs from the library for free!) and the request queue for it was huge. Finally making it to the top of the list, we watched it last night.

This movie was everything I expected and then some. Al Gore was singularly impressive and his message even more so. The gravity of it is more than a little sobering and frightening. The sky actually is falling, and we're doing almost nothing to prop it up. It's not a liberal issue, it's not a political issue- it's a Human Problem and all humans need to act. If you haven't seen this movie, you should. No- you must. Then we all must get moving on it.

*Cool side note- the University of Delaware yesterday unveiled their new hydrogen fuel cell bus. Go Blue Hens!

*Hopeful side note- Al, run again. Please. We need you.

The second movie was Grindhouse. For this, we paid the $9.50 per ticket and bummed some free babysitting off a relative because it just wouldn't have been the same seeing it without a crowd in a theater. It was packed full on a Friday night in Edison so we ended up with rotten, crane-your-neck seats where we were stuck for three hours.

And what three hours they were. It was an assault on the senses from the first moment.

Grindhouse is a double feature. The first movie, Planet Terror, is insane. The action never really stops or barely slows down at all. Freddy Rodriquez is great in this campy, funny, gore-filled horror ride. I have never seen a better use for a missing reel, either , not ever. A go-go dancer with a machine gun for a leg? How could you possibly go wrong?

Then come the previews between the movies, which were almost as bloody, if not more so. Keeps the momentum up and the laughs rolling.

The second movie, Tarrantino's Death Proof, is true to his style. He spends a long time establishing characters- way too friggin' long, in my opinion, since we're pumping adrenaline from the first movie & trailers and in no mood to listen to women talk, and talk, and talk, and establish side plotlines that have no business being there.

But once he establishes the characters, he begins the killing. Then we establish more characters, and the real joyride begins. Fear and joyride, that's what the last half hour of this movie is, and it's truly spectacular. Kurt Russell reminds us why we loved him as he has the ability to be every part of the spectrum without really changing much more than his smile. Amazing.

*Side note- I don't like horror movies. How did I end up here? And why did I enjoy it so much?

So, to sum up: Al Gore puts the fear into us, and Rodriguez and Tarrantino ratchet up the fear and gore. I highly recommend both movies, for very different reasons.

The natives are restless

Coyote Attack at Monmouth Home

The toddler is ok, luckily.

Coyotes have been spotted in all of NJ. Coyote attacks are so rare that police accompanied the family to the ER because they thought their story wouldn't be believed otherwise. This one is believed to be sick- possibly mange or rabies- or it wouldn't have attacked.

Keepin' our eyes open...

Hate and Bigotry almost daily

State Sen. Raymond Lesniak has formed a "Coalition Against Bigotry and Hate" with several religious leaders, equal-rights activists and ethnic groups to oppose NJ101.whine's radio hosts Carton and Rossi, saying they are spewing hate and bigotry almost daily.

The response from the knuckle-draggers was just what you'd expect:

Carton said, "We are surprised and disappointed that at a time when we should be uniting communities, Senator Lesniak and his Coalition Against Free Speech have decided to pick the eve of the holiest of holidays to further divide us as a people.

Was it uniting communities to call Polish people "Polacks" who supported Nazis in the Holocaust- or did it serve only to divide us?

Was it uniting communities to slam Edison mayor Jun Choi, make fun of Asian accents and residents- or did it serve only to divide us?

How about picking on Mary Jo Codey, who wanted to bring attention to post-partum depression by being honest about her own journey through it? Where's the uniting force in that?

Y'know, now that I think about it, Carton and Rossi are a uniting force in the community: they've united the New Jersey Catholic Conference, Garden State Equality, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, the New Jersey Council of Churches, the Lutheran Ministry in New Jersey, the Interfaith Dialog Center, the Gender Rights Advocacy Association of New Jersey, the Anti Defamation League, the Polish Legion of American Vets, the Polish American Congress and the Pulaski Day Parade Committee.

All of those organizations are part of the Coalition Against Bigotry and Hate.

Brindle Brothers update

They took and ate a bag of eight bagels this morning.

Blackjack stole a bag of cornmeal the other day and got maybe a cup of it before I caught him.

Darkman stole a bag of oat bran the other day and I let him have at least a cup of it before I took it away; I figured it might help him, since he's been stealing and eating banana peels from my composting bins and therefore has ugly loose bowels. There were some whole wheat bagels, so maybe that'll help some too.

They're settling in just fine. And, contrary to their opinion, I am feeding them enough.

What do April Snow Showers bring?

It's flurrying in Western Monmouth and Eastern Mercer Counties.

Yuck.

Yes, I do have another blog

I got some emails about the previous post, which I mentioned was cross-posted to SFoodBlog. So, to clarify: Yes, I did start another blog, about food.

I do so love food.

From SFoodBlog: "My reason for starting this blog is that I've got several recipes that I promised someone or other that I'd share with them, and I haven't done so yet. Probably the most efficient way of disseminating information is to post it here, and that way anyone can use it."

Thanks for your interest, fans and friends!

Supporting Local, Sustainable Agriculture in the Center of NJ

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Washingtons Crossing is having a forum tonight to "introduce the public to area growers of organic foods and farmers engaged in other environmentally sustainable techniques," (according to a Trentonian article that I couldn't find online.) Called "Supporting Local, Sustainable Agriculture," the forum will include Honey Brook Organic Farm in Pennington as well as a grass-fed beef farm, an organic dairy from Pennsylvania, and a community supported agriculture program.

(Cross-posted at sfoodblog)

Super Jersey Tuesday!

It is done- NJ's primary is moved up to the first Tuesday in February. For the first time, Our Fair State will be a factor in picking the party candidates.

"It's going to be over on Feb. 5," Codey said of the race for party nominations. "If we were going to have a primary in June, we'd be irrelevant like wearing brown shoes with a tuxedo."
The increased relevance already is noticeable in the attention being paid New Jersey by the various campaigns, Corzine said, and not just for money but for endorsements and organizational support. "These candidates are all over us," he said.

Just what we want- Rudy Guliani and Hillary Clinton all over us. (Sorry for that mental image; must go wash brain out with soap.)

Don't get me wrong: it is a good thing that we matter in the primary. I just dread the vicious pandering ads that will sweep over us for months beforehand, only to have the losers suddenly recant and support the winners right after.

I better keep that soap handy.

Because it bears repeating

Snakes on a Plane.

Absolutely horible movie. Absolute fun.

I got together with two of the folks with whom I saw it in the theater, and three folks who hadn't seen it yet, and watched the DVD on Saturday.

We laughed just as much. It is such a fun movie to watch with a crowd.

Sorry

that I haven't posted in so long. I'll try not to do that again.

At the corner of Blank & Unreadable

The DoT has begun replacing 11,000 faded street signs:

To get anywhere of late, it seems, you have to travel along a lot of Blank Streets and Unreadable Roads, a consequence of thousands of street signs throughout the state fading away to obsolescence.
...
A DOT inventory found some 11,000 signs statewide that need to be re-placed, at a cost of about $6 million, Phalon said. The work is already under way and all of the signs in Monmouth and Ocean counties will be replaced by Memorial Day, she said.
That's sure to come as welcome news to many in the area who depend on the signs to get around, especially while they're driving in unfamiliar territory.

After this, we can no longer blame street signs if we're late, and must continue to blame MapQuest instead.

It has begun

My eyes are watering.

My nose is running.

My throat itches.

It must be Spring in the Center of NJ...

Why I like Chistopher Titus

(If you're not impressed, hold on for the last 30 seconds- it's the best part.)

Dissecting comedy is never the best way to keep laughing, but I can't help but notice how he keeps both his red state and blue state fans in on the joke. Well done.

I saw this while flipping channels the other night, but hat tip to Professor Kim for reminding me of it.

Thank you, Senator Menendez

I've been away from the computer for several days, so I'm late in printing this (sorry if you've already seen it.) But today, Senator Bob Menendez is my hero:

"The president this morning made a feeble attempt to lecture the Congress on our 'responsibilities' regarding the war in Iraq," Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said in a written statement. "With all due respect, Mr. President, you had a responsibility to use sound intelligence in formulating foreign policy. You had a responsibility to provide our deploying troops the equipment, body armor and support they needed."
"Instead of declaring 'mission accomplished' on a flight deck," Menendez said, "you had the responsibility of foreseeing a subsequent insurgency and civil war that find us escalating the war after four years in Iraq."

Teflon W's never been one for taking responsibility, has he?

The Klockner Woods Debacle goes on and on and on...

Hamilton has declined to fund the purchase of Klockner Woods:

The township council last night rejected an ordinance to fund the $4.2 million purchase of the land, ensuring that the ultimate price will be determined by the court.
"I will in no way support the purchase of this property at this price," said Councilman Dennis Pone. "If we pay this amount we will have less money to preserve other open space in this township."
The $4.2 million was to be used to fund the land while the township waited for about $1.3 million in state and county grants and a $2.9 million state loan to pay for the land.
The council has appealed a recent Superior Court judge's ruling upholding the purchase from Doylestown-based developer Fieldstone Associates and council members said they would continue the appeal rather than withdraw it and vote to pay for the controversial tract.

This appeal is a waste of time and money. Pone is absolutely right that by paying this outrageous price there's less funds to preserve other parts of this quickly-developing township, but the time to decide that was probably before the agreement was signed. The judge was pretty clear that the original agreement stands and Fieldstone gets their interest. Good luck with that appeal- you'll need it.

Hello, Computer!

Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg, who has been monitoring the state's ability to meet deadlines to retrofit electronic voting machines with paper printouts, yesterday urged the Attorney General's Office to appoint an advisory panel of computer experts for voting machines.

Feinberg is monitoring whether the state can meet a January 2008 deadline to retrofit electronic voting machines with paper printouts that voters can verify, and which can be recounted if discrepancies arise.
Activists claim some 10,000 Sequoia AVC Advantage machines used by 18 counties were never properly inspected, are not secure, and should be replaced by optical scanners that count paper ballots.
Voting machines now are approved by three volunteers who are not required to be computer scientists, and who lack legal authority to compel vendors to divulge their computer code. New Jersey laws governing this process predate electronic voting by decades.

It's pathetic that the people who pick our computerized electronic voting machines are not required to know anything about computers. Also, quite frankly, it shows- otherwise we would have had a paper trail long before now.

The Attorney General is planning to propose updates to those old laws. Let's hope it's very soon.

Tomorrow is Freebie day!

For the first day of spring tomorrow, March 21st:

Free Rita's Water Ice

Free Dunkin' Donuts Iced Coffee

Smells like what now?

smells_like_the_onion has the true scoop on the Katz litter here.

Registered to vote?

School board elections will be on Tuesday, April 17th. If you are not already registered, you have to register to vote by Tuesday, March 27th if you want to vote in these elections!

Here is the application form, which you can download and print. It has to be returned to your county commissioner of registration. The list (by county) is here.

School taxes are the largest portion of your property taxes, so you should find out about the issues and candidates on your ballot and vote.

Seal!

There's a harp seal in Crosswicks Creek, nicknamed Sally by the young person who first saw it:

The seal might be a Sally, but Marine Mammal Stranding Center co-director Robert Schoelkopf said yesterday it was too early to tell its gender.
The marine center, in Brigantine, sent a staffer to see the seal yesterday but after watching it determined it was not stranded. The center will not take action unless an animal appears to be sick, injured, or seriously stranded and not able to free itself back into the water.
As of yesterday, Sally the seal was just that, a seal, and appeared to about 80 pounds. Harp seals are used to hanging out on an ice floe on the Arctic Ocean, and since residents saw it eating, it's probably happy, Schoelkopf said.
"I saw it with a fish in it's mouth this morning," Chris Krupa said yesterday.
With warm waters and a food supply, Sally is probably summering in the area, Schoelkopf theorized.
"You know how New Jerseyans go to Florida every winter, well (seals) come down here from the Arctic," he said. "It's a heckuva lot warmer here."

Florida has snowbirds; we get snowseals!

Lazy Linkin' Tuesday

PoliticsNJ posted a good overview of the Senate race in the 12th district, Karcher v. Beck, called The Battle of Monmouth.

Exploding traffic

Now, we see what the public really wants.

I've been getting searches for well over a year for "Carla Katz photo" or "...picture". Somehow I doubt it has anything to do with interest in the visage of a prominent union leader; I expect it has a whole lot to do with the interest in what the millionaire governor's ex-girlfriend looks like.

To satisfy human curiosity, I finally put up a picture of this woman earlier this week, and my traffic has exploded.

To the tune of 4x the normal amount of hits. And today isn't over yet.

Folks, I'm sorry, but I haven't done any commentary on the union negotiations. I've written on the smoking ban, the silliness in Klockner Woods in Hamilton, and solar power in NJ, none of which garnered the attention Carla Katz has; even a cursory mention of an American Idol candidate hasn't taken my hits into the stratosphere like this has.

For you first-timers here, thank you for visiting the Center of NJ Life. Please, feel free to look around and comment on anything you want.

Unfortunately, I have no more pictures for you. If you want to talk about the contracts or the gifts "issue", use this as an open thread.

Bleach-blond evil dropped

Papers drop Coulter due to slur

They're not exactly huge papers, The Mountain Press in Sevierville, Tennessee, The Oakland Press in Michigan and the Lancaster New Era in Pennsylvania, but I guess it's something.

"We will not continue to publish the columns of someone who uses people as a punch line to get a cheap laugh and who so freely uses an offensive term to describe another human being," Mountain Press Editor Stan Voit wrote.

Here's a question: why did you continue to publish her column after she advocated the killing of a Supreme Court Justice? That was a "just a joke," too. Or, why did you continue to publish her column after she demonstrated her complete ignorance of the political history on which she was commenting? I could go on and on.

Why aren't her fifteen minutes over yet?

(Hat tip to The Opinion Mill)

Brindle Brothers update

The dogs are calming down and settling in to their new home. So far, we've had one incident where Blackjack got defensive over a toy and took a chunk off of Darkman's ear- it's healing fine now- and several stuffed animals have been stolen. Blackjack was definitely abused, but whether beaten or neglected we can't say. He's starting to warm up to us but it'll be a long road. Darkman, however, is just a big ol' goofball who is curious about everything.

The cats are still furious. The oldest, whom we've had for 13 years, keeps giving me looks that say, "WHY did you do it again? Why must there be dogs here?" Then she goes back to plotting the death and destruction of everyone around her, as it is her favorite hobby.

I get searches- Carla Katz photo edition

For some reason, if you type "Carla Katz photo" into Google, I'm the number one link. I've been getting searches looking for a photo of her for years; I've gotten almost a hundred hits yesterday alone looking for a picture of this woman. Which is funny, since I've NEVER POSTED A PHOTO OF HER.

Until now.

You ask at the Center of NJ Life, we sometimes get around to trying to deliver.

This photo is from PoliticsNJ's 2005 roundup, where she is named Ultimate Survivor:

Carla Katz, the CWA President whose onetime relationship with Jon Corzine overshadowed her own accomplishments as the head of one of the state's largest public employee unions.

Carla Katz is president of the Communications Workers of America Local 1034.

And the debate on the smoking ban continues

Two significant things are going on with the indoor smoking ban in NJ (which passed whether or not you like it):

• VFW posts are fighting it and want smoking in their facilities. Some feel as if they have lost business due to the ban and will not be able to contribute to charities as much as they have in the past. I just don't see a change in the law happening so folks can smoke at the VFW. Our veteran's health is just as important as every other employee in Our Fair State.
• The casino worker who is suing the Tropicana, saying the secondhand smoke he endured there caused his lung cancer, was fired. Yep: they fired him. His health insurance coverage will end in 30 days. The casino says he wasn't singled out- they've had 200+ layoffs this year and he was simply one of them. They'd really better be able to back that decision up in court.

My little blog here is getting targeted by the wingers again, who insist that Trenton is full of thugs who will force us to stop smoking in our own homes (not quite!) and- my favorite- "so grow up an face the facts you's don't control the world an soon or later us smokers will rise up against you self centered pieces of garbage" (sic). Good luck with that "rising up" thing you're planning. Drop by the library one day, I'll find you a dictionary, a punctuation primer and a spellchecker.

Skinny bleach-blond evil strikes again

Y'know, I'm not a John Edwards supporter, but somehow watching this makes me want to fill out the form and donate.

UPDATE 3/6 10:25AM: Jersey Goddess has a great post about this here. Really, go read it.

At least they're trying

The Senate health committee advanced the bill to close the loophole which allows smoking in casinos. This loophole should never have been there in the first place; hopefully this will go through.

Meanwhile, the casinos are attempting to find ways to make everyone happy, such as unstaffed non-gaming smoking lounges. That way, no employees will have to be exposed to the smoke, right? Just like they aren't with nonsmoking rooms in restaurants, I'm sure. Apparently, they'll clear them out before employees are sent in to clean them. (Fat chance of that happening.)

While all this goes on, the casinos are under a deadline of April 15th to make 75% of their casino floor smoke-free. I almost feel sorry for the casinos here; the improvements to their floors will cost a lot of money and they aren't sure if or what they have to do.

Let me repeat, I almost feel sorry for them for not knowing what they have to do. If they gave a fig about their employees, maybe we could feel bad for them.

The newest residents of the Center of NJ- The Brindle Brothers

This is Darkman. Darkman was a winner; he raced for two years and had a lot of wins under his collar before he came to live with us. He's a curious, active boy who glued himself to Andrew the minute they met. He also didn't get the memo that greyhounds are supposed to be scared of floors, don't like staircases and are nervous.

This is Blackjack. Blackjack is almost two years old. He never raced due to a broken toe, but he comes from a long line of winners. He's such a beautiful boy. He's nervous about everything that's new to him in the house, and while he doesn't seek out company, he hates to be left alone.

We're all going through an adjustment period right now, but it's great to have dogs back in the house again.

property tax on solar

This article appeared in yesterday's Times of Trenton about a Hamilton family whose property taxes went up because of their solar panels:

"We were surprised," said Char ley Rouse. "When we asked the tax assessor about it, we were told that it's considered an improvement to the home."
According to township records, the Rouses' property assessment jumped $12,000 for the solar panels, increasing their taxes by more than $400 this year.
The extra tax, Rouse said, outweighs the savings they have been realizing on their energy bills.
"The way I see it, by installing the solar panels, we are doing a good thing for the environment," he said. "I don't think we should be taxed on that."

Right now there is a bill in the Assembly, A1882, to exempt solar panels from property taxes. It's sitting in appropriations, but should be an easy bill to get passed, especially with the Gov's push toward reducing our greenhouse gasses. Write your legislators today!

Now, a quick word about saving money with solar. The Times ran a picture of the house in the print version, showing the size of the array in question. I think the Rouses should recalculate- they have 33 panels and they aren't saving $400 a year in electricity? I have that many and I am saving WAY more than that. Plus, don't forget the sale value of the SRECs- a tradeable certificate of renewable energy, which also helps offset the cost of installing and owning solar panels. The article makes it sound as if the solar installation is costing money in the long run, and friends, it just ain't so. Our panels are still on track to pay for themselves within about 10 years of installation.

Everyone should back up

The state needs a back up plan if they can't get their act together to provide a paper trail in time:

Though she stopped short of pulling the plug on 10,000 Sequoia AVC Advantage machines, Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg expressed doubts they will be upgraded by a January 2008 deadline set by the state Legislature. "I can't wait until a month or two before" the deadline, Feinberg said at a hearing in Trenton. "I need to have a game plan in place."
...
The Legislature has earmarked $21 million to retrofit the Sequoia machines with printers, which voters can use to verify their ballots and election officials can use in the event of a recount. Feinberg, the assignment judge for Mercer County, has been monitoring the state's progress as part of a lawsuit challenging the reliability of the electronic machines.
"My concern, quite frankly, is I'm not sure what's happening with Sequoia -- and they're providing most of the machines" used in New Jersey, Feinberg said.

We should all have a back-up plan. Of course, we should all have a paper trail, too. There ought to be a law...

I hate Connecticut

Now, I'm sure there are lots and lots of nice people in Connecticut. It's not you I hate.

It's the TRAFFIC. My gawd, the traffic!

How long is 95 going to be under construction? It took me over an hour yesterday to go twenty miles. Horrid, horrid traffic.

Not like Our Fair State.

...

Ok, maybe just like Our Fair State. But it was really bad.

(Needless to say, light blogging for the next few days. I'm out of town.)

Ice

It isn't warming up; it's barely 20 degrees in the Center of NJ. However, the sun has warmed the roof enough that large sheets of ice are melting off of our solar panels and sliding to the ground. It's kind of cool.

Snowing, a lot

The snow has begun- and, if you're like me and don't compulsively check the weather forcasts, you might have missed the fact that they increased the predicted snowfall. I only just heard it on the radio.

Have fun! Make your plans now for what to do since the kids'll be home tomorrow!

Princeton Hospital update

The next step to an improved facility has been approved:

Princeton HealthCare System's proposed Plainsboro hospital received its final state health regulatory approval yesterday, which means that planning for the 269-bed acute-care facility now can focus entirely on obtaining the building and land-use go-ahead from Plainsboro.
The hospital, which Princeton HealthCare (PHCS) hopes to open in 2010 at Route 1 North and Plainsboro Road, would replace PHCS's 88-year-old University Medical Center at Princeton on Witherspoon Street in Princeton Borough.

Woo-hoo!

(I still get a lot of searches on Princeton Hospital. It's actually called "University Medical Center at Princeton" but rarely if ever do locals call it that.)

Sad sack

This is pathetic. Not the ad, me.



Every time I see it, I cry.

I miss my dogs. I miss them something horrible.

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is on tonight and tomorrow night. I've watched it without fail since 1998, and will again tonight, even though the dogs look exactly the same year to year (which is the point, actually.) Unfortunately I'll be at work when they show the hound group tomorrow, but I'll watch the rerun.

And if I see that ad one too many times, I'll be on the phone to the greyhound adoption people tomorrow. I had planned to wait until we had the new deck installed and did some weekend traveling we want to do.

But somewhere out there, there is a good dog. In a cage. Who has to race tonight. And he just wants to come home.

I want him home.

The Fightin' twelfth

(I wrote this for Blue Jersey's Forty District Strategy. I'm also posting it here because it gives us a nice little picture of the Center of NJ. -Sharon)

The 12th Legislative District is cut across Central New Jersey, including a little of Mercer County but much more of Monmouth. Towns in the 12th are: Colts Neck Township, East Windsor Township, Englishtown, Fair Haven, Freehold Borough & Freehold Township, Hightstown, Little Silver, Manalapan Township, Marlboro Township, Millstone Township, Oceanport, Red Bank, Shrewsbury Borough & Township, and Tinton Falls.

The district has a population of 215,000 (2000 Census) and is mostly suburban/urban- only 452 live on areas considered "farm." The population is 80% white, 6% African-American, 7% Hispanic and 6% Asian. There is a striking contrast in economic situation in the twelfth; Colts Neck has a median household income of $309,190 and virtually no poverty, whereas Shrewsbury Twp. has a median hh income of $36,875, and both Freehold Borough and Red Bank both have 12% of the population below the poverty line.

Much of the district is being developed (or recently has been.) If you ask anyone who has lived here 25 years or more, you'll get the stories about how "all this used to be farmland." Some of the big issues here, therefore, are sprawl, property taxes, and road congestion. Consolidation of towns is also an issue, as the district contains several "doughnut" boroughs which are completely surrounded by other towns, including Englishtown, Freehold borough and Hightstown. It also contains a successful example of regional school district consolidation- the Freehold Regional High School District, which contains six high schools covering eight municipalities.

The district is represented in the Senate by Ellen Karcher (D) and is one of only three districts to have split representation in the Assembly: Michael J. Panter (D) and Jennifer Beck (R). In 2003, Karcher won her seat by beating Senate Co-President John Bennett III, who was under scrutiny for double-billing some legal work. In the 2005 Assembly race, incumbent Panter very narrowly defeated Little Silver Councilman Declan O'Scanlon while the other incumbent, Dr. Robert Morgan, fell to Beck. Karcher is seen as somewhat vulnerable and, of course, Beck is running for the Senate seat; she has a primary challenger, Manalapan Township Committeeman Joseph Locricchio. O'Scanlon has announced that he will run for the Assembly again, as have Fair Haven Borough Council President Thomas Gilmour and Manalapan municipal attorney Caroline Casagrande. Panter and Karcher are running for re-election, but Panter's running mate has not been selected yet.

Grasping at memos

I read this on Sunday, and quite honestly, I just stood there shaking my head.

This is significant because almost EVERYTHING I've read on the Klockner Woods boondoggle since I started this blog has sent me sprinting for the computer. I read it, get ticked off/laughing/sad/scared/whatever, and I just have to write about it. This time, all I could do is shake my head, and wonder what they really expect to gain this time.

A previously un disclosed memo from a township planner has cast fresh doubts on the $4.1 million price the municipality paid for Klockner Woods, re kindling the bitter debate over the property.
The memo, written in December by township planner Allen Schectel, was not disclosed to Superior Court Judge Linda R. Feinberg before she ruled last week that the township is obligated to honor its deal to buy the land.
A township official called the memo routine and said the Gilmore administration had no reason to make the planner's opinion part of the court record because it does not affect the value of the property. But township council members are crying foul over the withholding of the document. The memo surfaced last week after council members learned of its existence and demanded to see it.
In the memo, Schectel raised questions about 12 of the 40 home lots identified by consultant Van Note-Harvey Associates.

So, let me get this straight- a township planning official disagreed with the professional surveyors' report and had questions, that memo wasn't disclosed to the judge, so the council is saying that if it was disclosed the judge may have made a different ruling?

HALF THE TOWN disagreed with or had questions about the lot sizes and yield in Klockner Woods. That's WHY an independent firm was hired to survey it. The official wasn't swayed by the independent firm's audit? Wow, I'm shocked.

I'm no lawyer, but I can't really believe that the judge would take this with more than a grain of salt.

(The township planner's boss, Director of Planning Lloyd) Jacobs said "there was no reason to" disclose the memo, because Feinberg was already aware that six lots needed variances and had already dismissed them as minor.
"The memo was an internal communication and is consistent with what the planner does on any application," he said. "All of the is sues raised in this memo were addressed by the judge in her ruling."

This council is frantically grasping at straws. According to the esteemed Darryl Isherwood in the article, the town has already spent over ten thousand dollars on their case and hasn't decided whether to appeal or not, which will cost even more.

For the sake of Hamilton property taxpayers, drop it. It's over. Stop spending more money on it. You want the town sufficiently pissed at Gilmore before the election and look like the good guys, we get it. Spend campaign money on that, not precious tax dollars.

School Report Card

Our Fair State's school report card for 2005-2006 has been posted. Go see how your school district is doing! Find out if they've been spending your property taxes well.

Trenton Times: Let It Go

I think the Times of Trenton editorial speaks for most Hamiltonians here:

Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg's lengthy opinion in the Klockner Woods property-tax case may be a bitter pill to swallow for the Hamilton Township Council's Republican majority. But for the sake of the taxpayers in the township, they should let it go and rethink their tentative plan to appeal the ruling.
An appeal likely will be costly and time-consuming and a further distraction in the running of Mercer County's largest municipality.

They acknowledged that they "understand (the council's) bewilderment" at the exorbitant price. However, this town council majority was elected on the bewilderment of the voters at this in the first place- and they now want to milk it. Bad idea. Folks, if you push this too hard, you'll look like you're only trying to ensure your "we did all we could" stance at the next couple elections while costing taxpayers even more money on unsuccessful appeals.

I'm angry. Anyone who follows this story, Hamilton resident or not, should be angry. What I'm angry about, however, isn't the ruling- which we were sincerely hoping but not expecting to go a different way- but about how his debacle was handled from the very beginning. The ruling isn't what was screwed up here.

Please, after this parcel is saved and you put up those preserved open space signs, have the dignity to call it "Taxpayers' Preserve." We deserve that much- we sure paid enough for it.

St. Baldrick's Day

My buddy Nathan Rudy is shaving his head for children with cancer:

This is my third year getting my head shaved for St. Baldricks, and I am thrilled to be doing it again to find a cure for childhood cancer. As a father of a two year old little girl, I would want people stepping up to help my family if we found ourselves facing this tragic disease. Please, step up to help those families who already do.

St. Baldrick's is a foundation to raise awareness and funds to cure kids' cancer by supporting cancer research and fellowships. This is their eighth year. There are eight venues in Our Fair State this year holding St. Baldrick's events, most of them in March.

Shave your head for a good cause, or support someone who is!

Better than I could've said it- ralph edition

George Amick on the front page of today's Times of Trenton:

Ralph Nader is back in the spotlight again.
He's the subject of a new documentary film, "An Unreasonable Man." And he's making the rounds of the talk shows, promoting his latest book -- and continuing to insist that he didn't cost Al Gore the 2000 election. In fact, he claims, Gore would have received fewer votes than he did if Nader hadn't been on the ticket as the Green Party candidate, pushing him to the left.

If this kind of rationalization gives Nader comfort as he contemplates the ruinous handiwork of the Bush administration, he's welcome to it.

The whole piece is on instant runoff voting, and idea whose time is more than come.

The Fleecing of Hamilton and NJ- The Last Word (?)

Superior Court Judge Linda R. Feinberg has made her ruling. Just as she hinted she would, she said the sale's going through as planned:

A Superior Court judge upheld yesterday the township's agreement to purchase the 50-acre plot known as Klockner Woods and ordered township officials to pay for the land within 30 days, capping more than three years of dispute over the tract.
In her complicated 80-page ruling, Feinberg also ordered that some $327,000 in interest the township has already paid will not be credited toward the purchase price as the township had requested. The ruling means the township's final price tag for the land will be nearly $4.6 million.
Judge Linda R. Feinberg also shot down claims by the township council that the purchase agreement was illegal because the council never voted to appropriate the funds and ordered the township to abide by all terms of the consent order she issued in June 2005, which set the terms of the purchase.
...
In the strongly worded opinion, Feinberg took a chastising tone with the township and the council, going as far as to say she regretted a decision made last year to postpone the purchase while the township investigated the land's value. The judge seemed to blame politics for the strife over the purchase.
"Looking back, the court regrets that decision (to postpone the ruling,)" the opinion said. "Now, several years later, clearly the allegations by the township were wrong. Furthermore, at this juncture, the action by the township appears to have been motivated purely as a result of outcry from members of the public, who while urging the township to preserve the property, objected to the price."

She's right, of course. This was all motivated by the outcry from the public, who objected to having to buy land for $4.1 million that they sold barely four years earlier for $375,000. Clearly, if the land is really worth $4.1 million (and it sure looks like it is), we got screwed when it was sold off for vastly less than it was worth.

The payment is now $4.6 million. The article by Times reporter Darryl Isherwood explains that the interest from Sept. 2005 to Sept. 2006 must be paid, but the interest since then may be credited to the purchase price.

Mayor Glen Gilmore sent out a news release yesterday, tooting his own horn:

Gilmore, who only days before, in his State of the Township address, re-asserted his belief that Klockner Woods were, in fact, worth preserving, said, after learning of the Court's decision: "I am glad that the court has confirmed what we had said from the very beginning, namely, that these woods are woods that could become a housing development, and that the price we offered to pay for them was a fair price." Gilmore went on to say, "This is an important vindication for a number of good citizens whose reputations went on the line to save these woods."
The judge's decision also contained a stern warning that additional costs to fight the purchase are an unnecessary and unwarranted burden on the taxpayers of Hamilton that are to be laid directly at the doorstep of the Council, who, from the beginning, has misrepresented the land, its price and their motives for opposing the preservation purchase.
Rejecting all the arguments raised by the special council retained by Council, the Judge has ruled:
1. The price negotiated by the Mayor was a fair price and that if the negotiated price were set aside, the taxpayers would have to pay more for the same land;
2. The purchase of this land can be made without direct resort to using money raised from local property taxes and that the council's contention that the agreement was void was without merit;
3. Further delay by opponents of the purchase can only waste taxpayers money and endanger the preservation of this parcel of green.

Surprisingly he didn't go so far as to thumb his nose while shouting, "I told you so!" Hamilton has a mayoral election this year, if you hadn't guessed. Gilmore doesn't mention that he was mayor when the land was sold to Fieldstone in 2001 for $375,000.

Let me state again that the reason we're all being fleeced by this deal is spelled out by the mayor in #2: Mercer County and the State are chipping in for this one, so we all have to pay. Also let me state again (because it bears repeating) that there is no question that this parcel of land should be preserved; just whether or not the price was fair.

So, is that it? Is this the last word?

Councilman Dave Kenny, who raised issues about the land before he was elected to the council and later led the effort to nullify the purchase, said the opinion represented "a sad day for Hamilton taxpayers" and promised to appeal.

Somehow I doubt that will help. Since the judge was pretty clear that the price was fair, I think an investigation needs to be launched into original sale price, including into the rumor that Gilmore recieved campaign donations from Fieldstone during his last election battle (he denies this.) Also, maybe a look should be taken at the the decision to avoid the costs of a court battle by not using Eminent Domain to secure the land for preservation.

It appears that the court decision was fair, but that doesn't guarantee that justice was served.

Go Red for Women

Today is National Wear Red Day, part of the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women Campaign.

Heart disease is the #1 killer of women in our country- not breast cancer, not lung cancer. Heart disease kills nearly half a million American women a year. You should know what your risks are. Know your numbers, then eat better, get moving and take care of yourself*.

You're important to us here at the Center of NJ Life.

(*Men too. Thing is, heart disease is often thought of as a men's issue, when it really isn't- it doesn't discriminate by gender.)

Biggest Solar in the Country

Biggest corporate solar installation in the country, coming to South Plainfield:

Business icon Ted Turner stopped by Hall’s Warehouse in South Plainfield today to announce the installation of a 1,400 killowatt (kW) solar-energy system spread across two roofs on the company’s site.
...
The system will hold nearly 8,000 solar panels when completed. It is expected to produce 1.5 million kW hours of electricity per year and to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by some 24,000 tons over the system’s 30-year lifespan.
Hall’s Warehouse expects energy savings in excess of $600,000 a year.

Woo-hoo!

Some 12th district news

Assemblyperson Jennifer Beck has officially unoffically decided to run for Ellen Karcher's State Senate Seat, according to Wally Edge, who's announced this before and been wrong. This time he sounds a little more sure of himself. As with all politicians, Beck isn't running until she's running. But, seriously, why else was she having all these Town Hall meetings?

I admit, I blew off the Town Hall meeting near my home. I was going to go, but it was cold, I was tired, and I was in no mood to listen to her dis the Dems and run for Senate for an hour and a half.

The Death Chamber

Atlantic City council will support the "compromise" to will allow smoking rooms in casinos.

But smoking ban proponents -- including many casino employees -- said it was not a compromise because they were never given a seat at the bargaining table.
"How could you broker a deal behind closed doors and not bring all parties to the table?" asked Vincent Rennich, a 25-year employee at the Tropicana, who said he lost one-third of his lung to cancer from second-hand smoke on the casino floor. Rennich is suing the Tropicana.
...
Supporters of a ban felt slighted. More than 200 people packed the council chambers last night, and dozens more -- mostly employees and residents against the compromise -- spoke out, many carrying signs and wearing orange T-shirts that said "Nobody deserves to work in an ashtray."
Jennifer Guillerman, a 22-year employee at Caesars, said no one will want to work in the smoking sections, which she dubbed "the death chamber."
Atlantic City resident Ray Mazzoli said the amendment wasn't a compromise, but a "capitulation." He said the only way to get a ban was to "take that ventilation system and pump it directly into the executive suites."

Venting into the profiteers' offices- sounds fair to me!

From the Press of AC (AP article):

Jennifer Guillermain, who has worked as a gaming supervisor for 16 years at Caesars Atlantic City Hotel Casino, said employees are already balking at working in the smoking rooms.
"No one is going to volunteer. And now we're afraid for our jobs if we say we don't want to work in those rooms," she said.

Which doesn't surprise me. Sickens me, and sickens them too, but not surprised.

Blood Drive in honor

The White Horse Fire Company in Hamilton Township will hold a blood drive tomorrow, January 26th, from 3-7PM at the firehouse, 19 Locust Ave, in honor of fallen member Pfc. Eric R. Wilkus.

Pfc. Wilkus died in Iraq on Christmas Day. He was 20 years old.

Blood supplies are very short right now; this is a great way to honor a local hero as well as make a contribution to our community.

(I tried to call the fire company to confirm, since it's not on their web site and the Times of Trenton didn't put the story up online, but was unable to reach anyone. You may want to call in the evening if you want any more information.)

Compromise? More like sell-out

A compromise is being proposed so that Atlantic City could ban smoking in casinos but allow up to 25% of the gambling floor to be designated a smoking section, enclosed and with separate ventilation.

“I have an understanding that we owe the casino industry some kind of a compromise instead of banning (smoking) completely,” said Councilman Dennis Mason, who sponsored the measure after about four weeks of negotiations with the Casino Association of New Jersey, a trade group representing the resort's 11 casinos. “I think this is fair.”

Was that understanding arrived at after intensive lobbying by the casino industry, perhaps? This isn't about being "fair" to the casinos- it's about protecting the workers.

But Councilman Bruce Ward, who proposed the full ban, maintained that he and fellow ban proponent Councilman Gene Robinson will not waiver from their stance to ban casino smoking outright.
“We have signed off in a blood bond,” Ward said. “I'm going to continue do everything I can to protect the employees and patrons so they can work in a safe and healthy environment.”
That environment should include everyone, Ward said, pointing out that while employees working in the smoke-free areas will maintain their health, there are still employees who must work among the smokers in the limited smoking sections.

Actual people, with lungs, will have to work there.

The article also mentions a study by University of Nevada-Reno showing the percentage of gamblers who smoke is just about the same as the percentage of the population who smoke, refuting the old argument that there would be a devastating economic impact to a ban. Honestly, most smokers are quite used to having to smoke outdoors, even during their leisure time; I highly doubt that it will have some huge impact on casino profits. (Don't forget that's what the casinos are actually concerned with- not jobs in Atlantic City, but their profits.)

Thanks for standing firm, Councilmen Ward and Robinson. Hopefully this ban will pass and all the workers who are being treated as second-class citizens by this loophole in the state law will be protected.

Not just 75% of them.

Really?

I read this this morning:

Couples who cite "irreconcilable differences" will be able to get divorced in six months under a bill signed into law yesterday by Gov. Corzine.
State law had required that couples wait 18 months. The bill was approved last year by the Senate and Assembly. It was supported by the New Jersey Bar Association and opposed by the New Jersey Catholic Conference.

Really? The lawyers wanted easier divorces and the Catholics didn't? Shocked, I am.

Must've been the only way to get four whole sentences out of that story.

Phony-baloney war gets even phonier

This morning, splashed across the very top of the front page of my Times of Trenton, is the headline:

Saints alive! More questions arise over holidays

Right after that, is the inset quote:

"Will they let our children draw shamrocks and leprechauns when they won't let them draw reindeer and Santa Claus?"

Ok, now that we've gotten past the O'Reilly-like phony-baloney war-on-Christmas sensationalism, here's the actual story:

Hopewell Valley Regional Schools decided to eliminate religious celebrations of Christmas. Some parents got bent, as often happens when people try to separate church and state, and a "local radio station" got involved in whipping up controversy- it doesn't say which one but I'm sure we can all guess. Anyway, at this week's school board meeting where they were trying to standardize the policy about the holidays across the whole district for future years, some parents- from the article it seems to be two, a couple- asked if this would be applied to Saint Valentine's and Saint Patrick's day as well- a valid question since these two holidays, although secularized much more than Christmas, have roots in a Christian tradition. The school board said they maybe will review other holidays in the future, but right now, no:

"No, we're not doing anything with Valentine's Day," said Hopewell Valley
Regional Superintendent Judith Ferguson.

And that's pretty much it. But you wouldn't know that from the huge headline and the inflammatory quote across the top. This absolutely does not deserve big-headline, front-page-above-the-fold treatment- but controversy sells, so the Times splashed it nice and big across the front.

The old line about a "liberal" media is so much hogwash. What we have is a "sensationalist" media- maybe sometimes with a political slant, or a complete Republican lie and twist job, like Fox Newz- a media that is intent on getting us to pay attention to the most sensational stories. That's what sells. I'm disappointed in the Times for making such a big deal of a school board meeting which simply clarified a district policy, but I'm not surprised.

Would everybody- newspapers, bad TV "journalists", religious zealots, anti-religious zealots- please just stop trying to inflame us all about not agreeing with one another? Diversity is a big asset of Our Fair State, not a flash point.

I get searches

Rather often, I get searches on "NJ night life" or variants of such. Got quite a few recently.

It's a shame because I'm the mother of two school-age kids; I know nothing about NJ night life.

But, luckily, someone else does and decided to write about it. The Star-Ledger has an article this morning titled I Love the Nightlife which should help you find your bars or clubs or whatnot in North and Central NJ. There's also KatManDu in Trenton, somehow open ten years and I still never made it over there (even when I worked a couple miles away.) And don't forget to check out The Crooked Beat, which has calendars, maps and news on brews for bunches of clubs in the NJ and NY area. I also found some news on South Jersey's nightlife- and I admit to having visited several of those places, back before I was a mommy and I had a night life too.

I hope this helps. Now, you go have fun with your nightlife; I'll probably be asleep before you even leave home.

Snowing!

It's snowing here in The Center of NJ, quite heavily in fact. It's even sticking in some places!

I had to go to the grocery store today, now I don't want even to go near it.

Give change a chance

Our Fair State's seriously in the weeds, financially. We have high property taxes (thanks, Christine!) and a wicked debt load. So, we go and elect ourselves a financial guy as a governor and hope for a change; a real change, a true change, a shot at overhauling the money house of cards we've built for ourselves.

He proposes a change in how schools are run to consolidate and save money; people bitch bitterly that they won't even try it.

He wants to work with unions to negotiate some changes in state worker benefits; people bad-mouth him and criticize his efforts.

He wants to cap property tax increases at 4% (with some exceptions): people complain about how impossible that will be.

I guess everyone expected Corzine would just get to Trenton and pull the excess money that the legislators have been hiding out from under a mattress? Or wave a wand, perhaps?

This is reality, folks- sacrifices will have to be made. This ain't George W., the only moron to cut taxes in the face of a disastrously expensive war; this is someone who has a financial background and realizes money doesn't just fall from the sky and hope is not a sound financial strategy. We voted for him so he would make the tough changes. For chrissakes, let him change something. Maybe some of his proposals won't work, but face it- it ain't working how it is now.

Give change a chance.

(Special to the woman who I heard on the WHYY report on the Washington Township meeting where they screamed about the chance that they might have to consolidate within their county as a pilot program, the woman who said that Home Rule is what made our education system so great- honey, what are you smoking and will you share? Home Rule isn't what made our education system great, but it is what has made it crazy expensive. Wise up.)

The Worst Person in the World

Last night I finished reading The Worst Person in the World by Keith Olberman. It's funny, it's poignant, it's more than a little scary.

It'll also take you very little time to read. Highly recommended.

No joke

Teen driving rules often aren't followed and aren't enforced. After the recent accident in Freehold where a teenager was driving and four people were killed, the Star-Ledger found that convictions for violations are rare at best and teenagers simply ignore their licence restrictions:

A tragic two-vehicle crash in Freehold Township last week brought a new focus on the law. One of the drivers, 17-year-old Michael Dragonetti, had two other teenagers in his vehicle, violating the terms of his provisional license. Dragonetti and his passengers were killed, along with the driver of the other vehicle. All four were buried yesterday.
Stand in the student parking lot at any New Jersey high school and you are likely to learn that Dragonetti was not alone in ignoring the restrictions that came with the provisional license he was granted on Nov. 27. Cars and SUVs with three or four students are commonplace.
Teenage drivers interviewed last week said they and their friends are well aware of the restrictions, but pay them little heed.
"I'm breaking them right now," 17-year-old Rachel Borweegen said as a group of her friends piled into her burgundy Chrysler Cirrus at the end of the day at Edison High School.

I wonder if Rachel's parents read the Star-Ledger?

There doesn't seem to be much reason to worry. Between July 2004 and November 2006, only 12 provisional drivers in New Jersey were given tickets for carrying too many passengers in their cars, according to data provided to MVC by the courts, commission spokesman Mike Horan said.
Violations of other restrictions set out under the graduated driver's license law were no more likely to result in convictions. During the same time period, only nine provisional drivers were cited for driving late at night, Horan said.

Does this really shock anyone? It's a shame- these laws were set up so teenagers could learn to be better drivers before they take on full licence privileges, and so they could save lives while that learning happens. Instead, they're a joke for both the young drivers and cops.

Michael J. Dragonetti wasn't supposed to have James S. Warnock or Andrew Lundy in the car with him last week. They and Ruth Mac Arthur, who was driving the minivan they struck, were killed.

This is no joke.

Happy MLK Jr. Day

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I Have A Dream

A voice for blue Jerseyans

Philly Inquirer article on Blue J.

Face It, It's Over

It's January 12. The twelfth day of Christmas has long since passed.

Even if you don't take them down, please, turn off your holiday lights!



Thank you.

Screamin' Carrot

Thank you to those who voted for us, but CoNJL did not take the Screaming Carrot this year for Best New Jersey Blog. City Belt took the honors, followed by The Alternative Press.

Even though CoNJL didn't take a top spot, it was incredibly encouraging to receive so many votes! Thank you, thank you, fans and friends.

Extended duty

New Jersey National Guard members face extended tours in Iraq:

The Pentagon yesterday also announced policy changes that would allow for National Guard and Reserve troops to be involuntarily recalled to the combat zone more readily and add three divisions to the active-duty Army and one to the Marine Corps over the next five years.
New Jersey officials said the expected homecoming for a reconnaissance unit and a combat support unit will be pushed back from March until at least July. The units, the 2nd Battalion of the 102nd RSTA and the 250th Brigade Support Battalion, drill from armories in West Orange, Vineland and Bordentown.
(Gov.) Corzine, a Democrat who voted against the war as a member of the U.S. Senate, visited the soldiers at their base in Balad, just north of Baghdad, in November.
"People were ready to come home. They are stressed out," he said.

Corzine said last night about this that he's "mad as hell" about the extention for 159 of New Jersey's Army National Guard. He's not alone:

Army National Guard Spc. Tony Musgrave, will be staying in Iraq until at least the end of the summer -- one of 21,500 more troops President Bush is calling into the increasingly violent, shattered country.
...
"I'm not too happy," Dawn Musgrave said from her Hamilton home. "I think someone else needs to take over. I don't think Bush knows what he's doing at this point."
Musgrave said servicemen like her husband haven't even been told that they will be staying -- the official who called her yesterday said soldiers in Iraq won't get the news until the week's end.

Good luck to the Musgraves, and to all our folks in uniform.

"Restructuring New Jersey's Future"

With Rep. Rush Holt, Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh of West Windsor, and Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes in attendance, Corzine held a town hall meeting entitled "Restructuring New Jersey's Future" at Mercer County Community College in West Windsor earlier this evening. The Governor was brief in his opening remarks, mentioning that he'd just given a long speech the day before, and let most of the evening be led by questions.

Two themes emerged with the questions: First, people were concerned about how the proposed 4% cap on property tax increases would affect their town's ability to provide services, especially with so many unfunded state mandates they must shoulder. Boards of Education have been cutting their spending already since voters are unwilling to pass budgets; how will towns live within a 4% cap? Corzine answered that there would be budget items excluded from the cap, but they were "still working hard at negotiating" the details of the proposal. He also mentioned how he would like to give towns the ability to add revenue raisers, such as impact fees, but hadn't been able to get the legislature on board with it. Corzine also repeated several times that he wants the state aid formula amended to be "per child, not per zip code," so school boards that have received flat funding for years might see an increase.

The second theme was state workers being concerned about a loss of their benefits. Corzine reminded each person who questioned this that negotiated and agreed benefits are non-forfeitable. Workers with 5 years in shouldn't see any impact. A current Turnpike employee who will soon retire was assured that his pension benefits would be assured even if the Turnpike is sold or leased out. Showing his financial background, Corzine took some time to explain why the pension has spread some of its savings into higher risk investments. He was also quick to point out that even if benefits ware changed for new hired employees, that won't make a huge impact on our state budget- "This budget won't be balanced on the backs of the state workers."

When questioned about town and school district consolidation, the governor reiterated his support for the county superintendent pilot program and his support to offer incentives to towns to consolidate to take advantage of economies of scale. But he was clear that this is a democracy and if towns declined to join together he didn't support economic punishment.

When questioned about medical marijuana use (S-88 and A-933, perpetually in committee,) Corzine stated that he did support it but he was clear that it was not a priority at this time. He did mention support for universal health care and needing to get coverage for the 1.3 million in Our Fair State who have no health insurance.

"Mad as Hell" was how Gov. Corzine expressed his feelings about extending Our Fair State's National Guard's time in Iraq and more call-ups of reservists. Amen to that.

Overall, Corzine stuck with the same underlying points that he made in his State of the State address the day before, stressing the ballancing of interests in the common good. The questions from attendees were more specific and much less angry than I've seen at town hall forums like this in the past; almost as if these folks realize that he gets it, and is really working to balance the wants and needs of Our Fair State.

(MCCC's cable channel 26 ran their tape of the forum shortly after it ended. I'm not sure when/if they will run it again; if I find out when they will, I'll post the info.) (Cross-posted on Blue Jersey)

Governor's Forum

If you weren't in the privileged few who got to go to the Gov's speech earlier today, Mercer County College in West Windsor is hosting Gov. Corzine in a town hall meeting on Thursday at 7PM. It's expected to last about an hour and a half. If you want to attend, RSVP 609 777 0994. According to the Times, "Corzine is expected to cover issues of property taxes, shared services and cost-cutting in a state that has the highest average property taxes in the country. "

BTW: NJN has up their archived coverage of the State of the State speech, so you can watch it at your leisure.

Racisim Rears its Ugly Head in South Jersey

The mayor of South Harrison Township (Gloucester County) has been recieving threatening calls:

SOUTH HARRISON TWP. Despite racist threats lobbed at the township's first black mayor, this rural community does not have a racial intolerance problem, assured Police Chief Warren Mabey.
The threats, which began before Charles Tyson took the oath as mayor on Jan. 1, have been described as politically motivated both by Tyson and the township police.
...
The threats began on Dec. 14 when Tyson received the first threatening call. The threats continued on both his home and cellular phone, carrying over to the new year when he began his first term as mayor.
Tyson, who received one such threat calling him "a dead n..." four days into his one year term, stated that the threats have only made him stronger.
"It isn't going to affect anything," said Tyson. "I am going to move forward and be there for the people of South Harrison. Life goes on, we have a job to do."

Thank you, Mayor Tyson, for staying focused. I hope they catch the trash that would threaten a man based on his skin color.

Tell it to her Tuesday- satire edition

Janet asked about the best satire songs.

Let's just admit that Wierd Al is the best at doing this on a pop culture level. He just is. Every couple years he comes out with an album and he's got at least one or two songs on it that are stellar satire and damn funny. I'll Be Mellow when I'm Dead, Yoda, I Lost on Jeapordy, Eat It, Smells Like Nirvana, Jurrasic Park, Amish Paridise, White & Nerdy- I could go on forever. Some of the videos are pure gold, too.

Others who list will hit the other highlights, but there's three who got life on the internet that I must include:

The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
Stick Magnetic Ribbons on Your SUV
This Land (Jib-Jab)

The State of Our Fair State

Gov. Corzine will hold the State of the State address today at noon. NJN will broadcast it live on TV, as well as radio and online. If you miss it, they will rebroadcast at 10PM. He is expected to stress property tax relief as the top issue for state government.

Blog Maintenance

Did some quick maintenance this weekend:

• deleted non-updating or defunct blogs from the sidebar
• added a blog or two that should've been there already
• updated some older posts with labels, so I don't have to do that awkward "list of related posts" anymore
  

If there are any blogs I missed adding, please let me know.

Thank you to the readers who have voted for me for the Screaming Carrot. There are some much more worthy blogs out there than CoNJL, this I know full well, but it's truly gratifying to be nominated and receive votes.

The Fleecing of Hamilton and NJ- Was it in 2001?

According to Superior Court Judge Linda R. Feinberg, who will issue her official report later this month, the idea that Klockner Woods* is too much wetland and couldn't be developed is "totally unfounded." Darryl Isherwood reports in today's Times of Trenton:

Judge Linda R. Feinberg said a consultant's study of the wetlands on the tract clearly showed the land could hold as many as 40 homes as township officials and the land's owner, Doylestown, Pa.-based developer Fieldstone Associates, have said and was not a swamp as detractors of the township's purchase of the property have alleged.

If the judge is right, the Central NJ town of Hamilton's mistake wasn't in buying back the land for $4.1 million; it was in selling it for $375,000 six years ago. It certainly looks as if her ruling will go that way.

On the other "fun" part of this deal, the claim that since the town council never formally approved funding for the purchase, it is illegal under state laws:

In a separate aspect of the complicated land deal, Feinberg said she would consider the township council's arguments that the entire purchase should be voided because the council in power at the time of the agreement never approved a bond ordinance to pay for the land. If the new council's argument is upheld, the land would revert back to Fieldstone and the price would become irrelevant.
But in her comments, Feinberg warned that the new council should be "careful what they ask for." If the purchase is voided, she said, the township could be liable for damages to Fieldstone.
"One thing for sure is Hamilton Township wants that property for open space, and if I were to do anything the township would probably end up paying more in damages than the $4.1 million purchase price," Feinberg told the three attorneys representing the township, Fieldstone Associates and the council.

Don't forget the $400,000 owed in interest on the money, making it a total of $4.5 million.

So, it looks like the land is worth what Fieldstone wants for it after all. Since it looks like the taxpayers of Hamilton and Our Fair State will be footing the bill for this, I wonder if the two strange parts of this debacle will be formally investigated:

• the decision in the first place to sell the land for what was clearly VASTLY below its market price to Fieldstone
• the decision to not try to force an eminent domain issue in order to avoid a costly lawsuit

I can't wait to see the formal ruling. I'm sure all of Hamilton is on edge waiting.


*Hamilton Twp. sold this wooded property to Fieldstone Developers in 2001 for $375,000 with the intent of development. Four years later, Hamilton agreed to buy it back for conservation for $4.1 million. Hamilton foots part of this bill but monies come from the county and the state, through the DEP and low-interest loans- hence the fleecing of all of us on this deal. The key posts of the Center of NJ Life continuing series:
Cut the price, 40 Lots and a scam?, Like a bad marriage, The Fleecing of Hamilton and NJ, Deal postponed, 41 lots not feasable, Klockner Woods, Deceptions, Wheeling and dealing, Lawsuit, Paying interest, Money flow

Meteorite!

It's official- the sky IS falling on Freehold:

The mysterious object that shot through the roof of a two-story home earlier this week was identified by scientists as a meteorite, police said Friday.
...
New Jersey's only other known meteorite, weighing an ounce, fell in Deal in 1829.
The precise research value of New Jersey's newest meteorite won't be known unless it ends up in the hands of scientists who would study its composition.
But Delaney said the Freehold meteorite might be of some interest to researchers because it is rich in metals, a sign that it came from the deep interior of an asteroid.

Best Blog

Blue Jersey is holding voting for the Best NJ Blog of 2006. The Center of NJ Life has been nominated and needs your support. This being Our Fair State, the voting requirements will be strictly enforced:

You don't have to live in New Jersey to vote.
We don't care if you live anywhere. Dead people are people, too.
Vote as often as you'd like, or have surrogates pay others to do it for you.
Unless you're not white - we hear the cops are monitoring the vote and arresting people.
We spent all our money on our new high tech voting system that doesn't keep track of the tally, so if you can hack in and rig the vote, you win - and nobody will ever know or care. Plus, we're all out of money, so it's better for everyone if we just pretend the problem doesn't exist.
Shameless self-promotion and mean-spirited mocking of opponents is encouraged and expected. Lawnmowers optional.

Here's my Shameless Self-Promotion! Vote for CoNJL! Last year, the CoNJL garnered an honorable mention, and I'd love to get it again. We need you to vote for us!

As of right this minute, only 34 folks have voted- have you? Go vote!

Gov. Corzine came to the funeral

Gov. Corzine came to the funeral today of Army Pfc. Eric R. Wilkus, a Hamilton firefighter who died on Christmas Day of injuries sustained in Iraq.

Though there's nothing Corzine could say to make the family's pain go away, he expressed his gravest sympathies and told them he is ready to do whatever he can -- anything that may help.
"He was so young, and it breaks my heart," he said as he left the Kingston & Kemp Funeral Home. "I try to attend as many of these services as I can. They've all made such a commitment to their towns and their country."

George Bush has not come to the funerals. 3000+ American soldiers have died in this conflict.

Restricted Freedoms in Central NJ?

Twin Rivers, a community in East Windsor governed by homeowners' association, had their day in Our Fair State's Supreme Court today. The association is being sued by a group of residents who feel their rights are being violated by the restrictive rules on free speech issues such as where political signs can be placed, and such trivialities as whether a particular screen door may be used. From Sunday's Star Ledger:

The legal dispute began in 2000 when a group of homeowners sued in state court, claiming they were being deprived of free speech and assembly. They said the association's rules allowed political signs only in obscure and isolated locations not easy to see; people who were not part of the association's board or committees were not given the same access to the community room and had to pay; and access to the community newsletter was not equal.
Initially, a trial court judge rejected their claims and agreed with the Twin Rivers Homeowners Association. The Mercer County judge ruled the dissident residents had agreed to the conditions when they purchased their properties.
However, in February 2006, a unanimous appeals court overturned the decision, ruling the state Constitution should apply. That decision -- the first of its kind in the country -- set the stage for the current showdown.

It's been a hot topic here in the Center of NJ for quite a while. This is a big issue not just for the residents of Twin Rivers, but for the estimated 1.2 million people in Our Fair State who live in homeowners' associations. This case is being watched closely as precedent.

So, one has to wonder, weren't the folks notified before they bought in that there were rules?

For some residents, moving into a community is all they can afford, and others don't know about the rules, the lawyers argued.
Indeed, (Margaret)Bar-Akiva said she had no idea about the rules when she and her husband bought a townhouse in 1984. "This house was available, we bought it. We didn't even know there was a board," said Bar-Akiva.

There's a lesson there about reading the fine print, I'm sure. But one way or another, it sounds like freedoms, particularly speech, are being restricted by the association- the question is, is it legal? Do the contractual homeowners' association rules trump constitutional rights? Owners of homes all over the country will watch to see what the our Supreme Court says on this one.

(cross-posted at Blue Jersey)

Easy to be Green

Newsweek has a short, simple list of the very least of things you can do to feel like you're helping the environment in the new year.

Seriously, it's some of the very littlest things you can do- but if you aren't doing them yet, you should be. (Except the date-a-vegan one; I can't do that, my husband frowns on my dating.)

The Sky Is Falling!

Or something fell on Freehold on Tuesday, anyway:

It came from the sky.
But from how far up the small, silver-gray, rocklike item with a metallic sheen came before crashing through the roof of a Colts Pride development home Tuesday afternoon is open to speculation.
The Federal Aviation Administration, after viewing the lumpy but smooth object, which measures about 2 1/4 inches by 1 1/4 inches and weighs about 13 ounces, believes it did not come from a conventional aircraft, township police Lt. Robert Brightman said.
"Their investigation leads them to believe it's not an airplane part," Brightman said.
...
"It could be a meteor," said Harry Conover, Monmouth County's emergency management director. "It could have been something floating around in space. We've had satellites fall to earth. What do they call it — space junk?"
Approximately 20 to 50 rock-like objects fall every day over the entire planet, said Carlton Pryor, a professor of astronomy at Rutgers University.

Meteorites in Monmouth County? It's certainly possible. The last recorded meteorite in Our Fair State was in 1829- maybe we're due.

As nearby resident Andrea Hurley said,

"It's weird," she said. "How do you explain that to your insurance company?"

Global Warming Winter

It's going to be 60 degrees today.

My tulips came up already.

I need to mow my lawn- it's been growing.

I miss winter. I miss snow. Me, and the polar bears.

Better than I could've said it- blind followers edition

Fixer at Alternate Brain is sick of armchair generals and sheep.

Beta Blogger Blocker

Blogger Beta makes me sign in every single time I want to post something. Every single time, I check the little "remember me" box and every single time, it forgets me and I have to sign in again.

When do ya think you'll get it fixed, folks?

Cough, cough

Beware- the flu has officially arrived in Our Fair State. If you didn't get your flu shot yet, now's the time; there's no shortage.

And, please, wash your hands!