Month: December 2012

Ridgewood superintendent, mayor respond to tragedy
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2012
By DANIEL FISHBEIN
COLUMNIST

Note: To underscore their community-wide commitment to protect your children and safeguard schools, this month Ridgewood Superintendent Daniel Fishbein is sharing this space with Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn.

The winter holiday season should be a time of joy, happiness and peace, but this year a veil of uncertainty has dimmed our outlook as we reflect on the tragedy and insanity that occurred in Newtown, Conn. At the heart of our thoughts, alongside our sorrow and disbelief, we all no doubt share a common concern that takes form in the following questions: Could this happen in Ridgewood? And can our children be really, truly safe at school?

As community leaders and as parents of children in the Ridgewood Public Schools ourselves, we want to assure you that our district’s students and staff are safe and that we are doing everything we can to protect them and keep them from harm’s way. In loco parentis: This phrase, which means that we assume the parental responsibilities for your children when they are in our care, is one that we take very seriously.

In the aftermath of the Newtown tragedy, from the White House on down, we’ve been reminded many times over that the first and foremost priority of any school system is to safeguard its children.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/184377971_Ridgewood_superintendent__mayor_respond_to_tragedy.html

file Photo by Boyd Loving

Ridgewood residents claim Village Hall violated New Jersey’s Open Public Meetings Act

THURSDAY DECEMBER 20, 2012, 4:19 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

An informal meeting organized by a Ridgewood councilman last month is now being questioned because some residents claim the gathering violated New Jersey’s Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA).

Points presented by Ellie Gruber at last week’s Village Council meeting raised the legal uncertainty of an information session on the Graydon Pool ramp that was called by Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli on Nov. 27. The concerns were the latest curveball in what has already been a controversial debate and discussion.

After nearly two years of reviewing site plans, expert opinion and public input, the Ridgewood Council voted, 3-2, on Nov. 28 in favor of the ramp design known as Option 1.

The design is considered by its proponents to be the most inconspicuous while using the least amount of concrete. Opponents previously argued that the ramp design is flawed as it leads into the facility’s spillway and only several feet away from the pool’s deep end.

Pucciarelli invited approximately 10 members of the public to his information session, held Nov. 27 at Village Hall. The invitees included members of the Preserve Graydon Coalition, a grassroots group that has spoken against Option 1, as well as some members of the Ridgewood professional staff.

No other member of the Village Council was invited to the session; however, Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck was in the same building and eventually attended the session. Mayor Paul Aronsohn was not present at the meeting, and council members Tom Riche and Bernadette Walsh said they were unaware that it took place until the following day.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/184325281_Ridgewood_residents_question_informal_meeting_at_Village_Hall.html

Mayan new era — or end of world — about to start

Tucked away in thick forest, an exquisite site of Mayan ruins began hosting winter solstice ceremonies on Thursday as the region’s indigenous people marked the end of an era.

Or perhaps the end of the world, depending on your point of view.

At the site, there were no signs that doomsday — the stark scenario conjured by proponents of one minority reading of the ancient Mayan calendar that underlies the festivities — was imminent.

At sunset, Guatemalan President Otto Perez was to kick off a long night of Mayan dance and other rituals, lasting until dawn, when Mayan natives will greet the rising sun on December 21, 2012 — a date feared by some.

Around the world, superstitious people have fretted over a quixotic, not to say apocalyptic, interpretation of the calendar — taking refuge in mountains or bunkers, with some stockpiling guns and survival rations.

In the United States, still in shock after a massacre at an elementary school, officials in one county of the midwestern state of Michigan sent thousands of students home early for the Christmas break.

The Lapeer County district said “rumors connected to the Maya calendar that predicted end of the world” had distracted students and teachers, even though they have been “thoroughly investigated and determined to be false.”

Still, classes were cancelled Thursday and Friday.

The mystery stems from a carved stone found in Tortuguero, a Mayan site in Mexico. The relief contains a cryptic allusion to something really big happening on Friday.

However, most experts interpret the calendar to mean December 21, 2012 is simply the end a 5,200-year era for the Maya and the start of another.

https://www.afp.fr/es/news/topstories/765596/

Tax Increases Coming Whether Fiscal Cliff Is Averted or Not
December
By Sudeep Reddy

Neither the Obama administration nor congressional Republicans want to increase taxes on everyone, but most workers are likely to see lower take-home pay in 2013, eating away at economic growth.

The White House, in its latest offer Monday to resolve the fiscal cliff, made a key concession that would be felt by every U.S. wage earner: allowing the expiration of the payroll tax cut, a provision that has lowered the workers’ share of Social Security taxes by two percentage points for the past two years. That translates into an average tax increase of about $1,000 a year for the typical American household making about $50,000 annually.

https://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2012/12/19/tax-increases-coming-whether-fiscal-cliff-is-averted-or-not/

file photo by ArtChick Photography

Gov. Christie balks at free beach access in towns accepting Sandy aid

TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie was skeptical tonight about a bill that would require all towns accepting state or federal aid to rebuild their beaches after Hurricane Sandy make access to them free.

(Matt Friedman; Star-Ledger)

https://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2012/12/gov_christie_balks_at_free_pos.html#incart_m-rpt-1

NJ Turnpike Authority to use social media to promote safe driving

Editors Note : many would argue that ‘social media ” is the prime cause of distracted driving

NJ Turnpike will tweet about safe driving ???

The number of fatalities on New Jersey’s two main toll roads fell 40 percent over the first 11 months of the year compared with the same period in 2011, with total accidents down 7 percent, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority reported Wednesday.

(Steve Strunsky; Star Ledger)

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/12/nj_turnpike_authority_to_use_s.html#incart_river_default

Clinton accused of faking illness to avoid Benghazi testimony
By Paul Richter
December 19, 2012, 3:01 p.m.
The State Department slammed former United Nations envoy John Bolton over his suggestion that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton falsely claimed a concussion to avoid a potentially embarrassing appearance before Congress to explain the deadly terrorist attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya.

In an appearance on Fox News, Bolton said that Clinton’s claim that she had fainted because of the flu, hitting her head and suffering a concussion, was what foreign service officers call a “diplomatic illness,” intended to free a diplomat from an unpleasant duty. Clinton was supposed to appear before congressional foreign affairs committees on Thursday to respond to questions about whether security failures opened the way for the Sept. 11 attack.

“This is a diplomatic illness to beat the band,” said Bolton, who served during the George W. Bush administration. “I mean, I hope it’s nothing serious. But this was revealed in a way that I think was not transparent and I think there is an obligation here.”

https://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-clinton-faking-illness-benghazi-20121219,0,5649917.story

Opus X and Anejo at Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood

Opus X and Anejo as well as other rare and special Fuentes have arrived for the holidays!

Specialty cigars are limited to 1 or 2 per person as we hope to share these limited cigars
with all of our customers

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

~Gary, Barbara and Collin
The Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood

The Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood | 10 Chestnut Street | Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450
Phone: 201-447-2204 | Email: info@tobaccoshop.com
Hours: Monday – Saturday 10:00AM – 5:30PM and Thursday Night 6:30PM – 8:30PM

Uncle Sam Books 50% Loss As Government Motors Buys Back 200MM Shares From Tim Geithner
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 12/19/2012 08:14 -0500

A few days after divesting its stake in the firm that started it all, AIG, and at a profit at that (ignoring that the risk has merely been onboarded by the Fed whose DV01 is now $2+ billion as a result), the US Treasury continues to divest of all its bailout stake, this time proceeding to GM, where the channel stuffing firm just announced it would buyback 200MM shares from the US government at a price of $27.50. More importantly, the “Treasury said it intends to sell its other remaining 300.1 million shares through various means in an orderly fashion within the next 12-15 months, subject to market conditions. Treasury intends to begin its disposition of those 300.1 million common shares as soon as January 2013 pursuant to a pre-arranged written trading plan. The manner, amount, and timing of the sales under the plan are dependent upon a number of factors.” Assuming a price in the $27.50 range, this implies a nearly 50% loss on the government’s breakeven price of $54. So much for the “profit” spin. One hopes all those Union votes were well worth the now booked $40+ billion cost to all taxpayers.

One wonders why the US government did not open up this particular buyback to a public tender: after all some taxpayers may still care about the financial mismanagement of Uncle Sam. Then again, perhaps not.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-12-19/gm-buys-back-200mm-shares-us-government-uncle-sam-divest-remaining-stake-50-loss

PARENT RESOURCES FOR TALKING TO CHILDREN ABOUT THE SANDY HOOK SHOOTINGS
December 19,2012

Ridgewood NJ , The Ridgewood School district has compiled a list of suggested readings for adults in order to help them speak to their children about the shootings at Sandy Hook School. The articles are located under the “Parents” tab of the district website. Scroll to the “Resources” sub-tab.

Click here to go directly to the Parent Resources web page. Links to the articles on talking to children about the Newtown, CT tragedy are at the top of the page. https://tinyurl.com/c62toag

West Bergen Mental Health also has therapists available to answer questions, free of charge.
https://www.westbergen.org/newsevents/Warm%20Line.jpg

Rumor of threats at Ridgewood High School unfounded, officials say
Wednesday December 19, 2012, 1:33 PM
BY  LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News

A rumor of threats to the school and students at Ridgewood High School (RHS) this week stirred some anxiety among students and parents, but is completely false, according to RHS Principal Tom Gorman. The Ridgewood Police Department and school district administration have looked into the rumor and found no cause for concern, he said.

“We take all this very seriously, and we investigate all leads as warranted,” he said. “We’ve talked to all the appropriate parties.”

According to Gorman, who sent an email to parents Wednesday in response to an influx of concerned inquiries, the rumor was spurred by concerns brought on by the supposed “end of the world” coming on Friday, when the Mayan calendar concludes.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/184132421_Rumor_of_threats_at_Ridgewood_High_School_unfounded__officials_say.html

Pascack Valley officials looking for info on county’s offer for free dispatching
Tuesday December 18, 2012, 3:10 PM
BY  KIMBERLY REDMOND
MANAGING EDITOR
Pascack Valley Community Life

Local officials are hoping to gather more information from the county on its offer to provide emergency dispatching services out of its Mahwah-based facility at no charge to municipalities.

During the Dec. 17 Township of Washington Council meeting, Councilman Steve Cascio said that he learned during conversations with Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan and Bergen County Police Chief Brian Higgins that “the county is going to offer dispatching to all municipalities in the County of Bergen at no cost” from the Bergen County Communications Center.

Westwood Mayor John Birkner, Jr. said Tuesday that he’d been approached last week by Higgins and County Chief of Staff Jeanne Barratta at a county award dinner for Hurricane Sandy first responders regarding bringing Westwood and Washington Township up to Mahwah at no charge.

“It’s certainly an attractive offer,” Birkner said. “But, I still think the Westwood-Washington Township plan is probably the best for all concerned as far as reducing costs. It’s really ideal.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/183993771_Pascack_Valley_officials_looking_for_info_on_county_s_offer_for_free_dispatching.html