Google challenges U.S. gag order, citing First Amendment
By Craig Timberg, Updated: Tuesday, June 18, 3:39 PM E-mail the writer
Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it’s forced to give the government.
The legal filing, which cites the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech, is the latest move by the California-based tech giant to protect its reputation in the aftermath of news reports about sweeping National Security Agency surveillance of Internet traffic.
Google, one of nine companies named in NSA documents as providing information to the top-secret PRISM program, has demanded that U.S. officials give it more leeway to describe the company’s relationship with the government. Google and the other companies involved have sought to reassure users that their privacy is being protected from unwarranted intrusions.
A Little history on the property that is now known as the Habernickel Family Park
My name is Richard Huffman and I am writing to give a little history on the property that is now known as the Habernickel Family Park. I lived on the farm from 1950 until 1977.
My dad, Arthur C. Huffman, bought it in disrepair from a doctor who had previously bought it years before to become a recuperative home for his sickly child who suffered from breathing problems. The doctor spent a huge amount of money and time planting many of the beautiful trees that now grace the property, hoping that they would help his child,s breathing problems, but, unfortunately, the child died before the project was completed, We named the property Sweetbriar Farms. My dad founded Huffman & Boyle Furniture (later Huffman-Koos) and was a prominent member of the community.
Over the years, the farm was always open to the public. Ice skating on the pond all winter, fishing in the summer, Boy Scout camp outs in the lower fields, and hiking through the woods. The Kuiphers (Habernickel) family bought the farm part of the the property from my dad in the late 1970s and, in 1986, bought the last 2 acres where our house was located after my father had passed away.
I am surprised that the that the town chose to name the park after the prior owners since, at $7.4 million, it was in no way a charitable donation by the Habernickel family. They made a very handsome profit on the sale to the town. A more appropriate name for the park would have been Hillcrest Park.
Did the BOE ask the Ridgewood News to dig up dirt on at the time Principal Jack Lorenz?
The fly has learned that there we more than just philosophical conflicts between the former RHS principal Jack Lorenz and the BOE Lorenz resigned citing “conflicts with higher level district administration as the primary motivator behind his decision and discussed plans for his future in education.” https://www.northjersey.com/news/134479278_Lorenz_discusses_departure.html#sthash.TAts4y3H.dpuf
Going on to say “My relationship with the Ed Center has been a little rocky, and that was the primary reason for my departure,” Lorenz said. https://www.northjersey.com/news/134479278_Lorenz_discusses_departure.html#sthash.TAts4y3H.dpuf
Sources now indicate that there was far more sinister goings on at 49 Cottage Place where is has been alleged that certain Ridgewood News reported was asked directly by the BOE to “dig up dirt” on the then popular Ridgewood High School Principal
Reader says village should REQUIRE their own independent expert on Valley Expansion
It seems to me that the village should REQUIRE their own independent expert to review the BS the valley experts are spinning.
Valley’s “experts” should be ashamed of themselves. No effect on traffic, air, children, property values? Somebody with authority–a real expert–must call them on this.
If you ask 5 “experts” about anything, you’re likely to get 3-5 different answers, so why should they just take valleys experts at their word?
Every consultant I’ve ever seen in action found out what answer the bill payer wanted and found a way to reach that conclusion.
Benefit concert for the Nick Currey Fund featuring two local bands at the Kasschau Memorial Shell
June 19,, 2013,
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, ‘Real Estate’ will headline the second annual Benefit Concert for the Nick Currey Fund will begin at 6 p.m. Sunday, June 30 at the Kasschau Memorial Shell at Vets Field .
The bands sophomore album “Days” was rated “Best New Music” by online critic Pitchfork and ranked number 52 on Billboard 200’s best-sellers charts and in a 2010 piece on NPR band members have credited their Ridgewood education for there love of music.
The concert will also feature Glenn Mercer of the Feelies, who has performed on the David Letterman Show and on Broadway with Lou Reed, Patti Smith, R.E.M. and Bob Dylan, and whose debut album “Crazy Rhythms” was voted in the top 50 albums of the 1980s by Rolling Stone Magazine. Opening for the show will be Brian Milligram and his band.
The concert is free, but donations for The Nick Currey Fund dedicated to finding a cure for Ewing’s Sarcoma .
Advance sale VIP seating at $20 entitles the donor to a reserved seat and the possibility of winning free giveaways. A VIP Gold option ($30) will also include a T-shirt. Seating is limited; buy tickets at wepay.com/events/benefit-concert-for-nick-currey-fund.
The concert is again sponsored by Real Living Gateway Realtors. Last year’s inaugural concert raised more than $8,500 in donations
For more information on The Nick Currey Fund, visit curesearch.org/nick-currey-fund. For concert information call 551-574-2762 or 201-288-0004, ext. 200.
Photo of black bear up a tree before being captured near Orchard School., Photo Ridgewood PD Black Bear Captured Near Orchard School
June 18,2013
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to Ridgewood Police a black bear was captured around 6pm in the Orchard School area .
Reports surfaced earlier in the day of a black bear wondering in Wyckoff.
The Bear had been spotted in Ridgewood in the early afternoon and was removed by New Jersey Fish & Game .
Students and staff at both George Washington Middle school and Orchard were keep safely inside until the bear was removed.
In 2011 former Mayor Keith Killion and employees of Tyco animal control removed a small black bear from Linwood Ave .
Steve Lonegan is New Jersey’s number one champion for taxpayers. As a Mayor and as Americans for Prosperity state director, Lonegan has led the fight for the men and women who work hard and pay government’s bills.
Taking over as Mayor, Lonegan immediately cut municipal spending, bringing a “Taxpayers First” philosophy to borough government, leading to the elimination of wasteful and duplicative services, privatization of some functions and a more cost-efficient user-friendly government.
As a result, Bogota’s municipal spending remained constant for the entire twelve years of Steve’s tenure. Mayor Lonegan kept debt and tax increases far below inflation despite massive state mandates and aid reductions to suburban towns like Bogota. None of the other 565 New Jersey Mayors could boast of such a record.
Thanks to Steve’s strong, conservative leadership, Republicans kept council control for eleven straight elections and Steve was reelected in 1999 and 2003 by double digit margins over his Democratic opponent. He did not run for reelection in 2007, keeping a promise not to serve more than three terms.
As Mayor, Lonegan stood up to powerful public employee labor unions by bringing in civilian dispatchers rather than highly paid police officers. Steve Lonegan created the Taxpayer Protection Act requiring a public vote for new municipal debt or public employee contracts that exceed inflation and under Lonegan, Bogota was the first town in New Jersey to pass a ballot initiative restricting Eminent Domain.
As Mayor, Lonegan refused to fill out affirmative action forms and stated that he would not comply with state laws purportedly requiring him to perform Same-Sex Civil Unions, as it violated his Catholic faith.
Steve Lonegan saw that his role as Mayor took him beyond municipal borders. Whether it was fighting the Newark Arena, illegal state bonding, proposed gasoline tax hikes or countless other taxpayer rip-offs, Mayor Lonegan found that his work led him to speak out more and more for frustrated taxpayers all over the state — even taking on Governors and legislators in both parties to do what was right for working families and all taxpayers.
After twelve years as Mayor, Lonegan stepped down to devote full-time to his role as New Jersey Americans for Prosperity state director. He had compiled a record of cutting taxes, spending and debt far below inflation — a record unmatched in any of the other 565 New Jersey municipalities.
Since coming to Americans for Prosperity in 2006, Steve continued his fight for taxpayers by defeating two state ballot questions in 2007. The first would have forced an 8% sales tax for phony property tax “reform” and the second that would have bonded nearly a half billion dollars for taxpayer financed Embryonic Stem Cell “research.”
The Star Ledger’s Paul Mulshine said that “Lonegan single-handedly ignited the biggest taxpayer revolt since the Florio years” by defeating these two questions. With the ink on the results barely dry, Lonegan led the successful fight to stop Governor Corzine’s $38 Billion Toll Hike and Borrowing Scheme. His efforts so perturbed the embattled Governor that his staff even ordered the Mayor arrested for daring to challenge Corzine’s radical proposal. And Lonegan’s AFP efforts led to the defeat of taxpayer-financed legislative elections in the state.
In between all this, Steve published a book Putting Taxpayers First, where he outlines a blueprint for Republican victories in the Garden State.
Since then, Steve worked to get Governor Chris Christie to take New Jersey out of Cap and Trade, stop the Obamacare Exchanges, defeat the destructive Residential Foreclosure Act and fight increases in the State Income Tax.
Steve Lonegan was born in Teaneck’s Holy Name Hospital on April 27, 1956. He grew up and graduated from High School in Ridgefield Park where he set several high school track records. Steve earned a B.A. in Business Administration from William Paterson College where he was Football Team Captain and an All Conference Division Center, later earning an M.B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Steve built and managed retail, custom homebuilding and manufacturing businesses employing dozens of workers, prior to becoming Americans for Prosperity state director for New Jersey.
Steve and his wife Lorraine (Rossi) live in Bogota and have two adult daughters: Brooke and Katherine (Parany). The Lonegan family attends St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church in Bogota, where Steve’s daughter was the third generation of Lonegans to be married at the altar of St. Joseph’s Church.
Whether it is speaking out for taxpayers, taking on bureaucrats or fighting for homeowners, no one in New Jersey is as vocal, as active, and as determined to succeed as Steve Lonegan. Tough and independent, Mayor Steve Lonegan is the undisputed champion of New Jersey’s overtaxed and overregulated working families. He will be that champion in the United States Senate.
CNN Poll : 50% felt the White House ordered the IRS to target conservative groups
CNN Poll: Did White House order IRS targeting?
Posted by
CNN Political Unit
Updated 8:01 a.m. ET, Tuesday, 6/18
Washington (CNN) – A growing number of Americans believe that senior White House officials ordered the Internal Revenue Service to target conservative political groups, according to a new national poll.
And a CNN/ORC International survey released Tuesday morning also indicates that a majority of the public says the controversy, which involves increased IRS scrutiny of tea party and other conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status, is very important to the nation.
Republicans argue that the Obama administration used the IRS to intimidate and harass political opponents. Democrats say poor management at the tax agency, rather than political bias, is to blame. Congressional sources on both sides say that interviews with IRS workers so far have found no evidence of political dealings by the White House. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, touting an independent IRS inspector general report, has said the scrutiny appears to have originated with “IRS officials in Cincinnati,” where the agency’s tax exempt division is centered.
Ridgewood Japanese Association promotes friendship
Tuesday June 18, 2013, 9:39 AM
BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
Like many village parents, five-year resident Nahoko Sonoda moved to Ridgewood for her children’s education. But as a former resident of Japan, Sonoda has come farther than most villagers for the educational experience.
“Most of the Japanese come here because the education is very good in Ridgewood,” Sonoda said.
Getting acclimated to a new culture isn’t always easy, but Sonoda and other Japanese families have a good support system to turn to. Sonoda’s family is one of 50 village families with membership in the Ridgewood Japanese Association (RJA), a group that helps residents adjust to the schools and the new culture.
The RJA was established in May 1990, when there was an increase in families moving to Ridgewood who struggled with the language barrier, members said.
Tuition cut sought for illegal immigrant children in N.J.
Monday, June 17, 2013 Last updated: Monday June 17, 2013, 9:50 PM
BY MONSY ALVARADO AND MICHAEL LINHORST
STAFF WRITERS
The Record
New Jersey college students who have lived in the country illegally or whose parents are not legal residents would pay in-state tuition and be eligible for state aid under a package of bills that advanced Monday and will be voted on by the full Assembly later this month.
Proponents of the legislation said the change makes sense for the state, and that it’s a matter of fairness because it would prevent students who have attended elementary and high school in New Jersey from being excluded from accessing higher education.
But opponents, a few who spoke at the hearing in Trenton, said they objected for various reasons, including that it would take classroom seats away from New Jersey citizens, and that state taxpayers shouldn’t have to foot the bill of subsidizing the college for students whose parents broke the law.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/NJ_lawmakers_approve_tuition_bill_for_those_in_US_illegally.html#sthash.BXDvt1jt.dpuf
FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY 201 PM EDT TUE JUN 18 2013
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN UPTON NY HAS ISSUED A
* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR… EASTERN BERGEN COUNTY IN NORTHEAST NEW JERSEY…
* UNTIL 400 PM EDT…
* AT 159 PM EDT…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED FLASH FLOODING FROM A NEARLY STATIONARY THUNDERSTORM OVER THE WARNED AREA.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO CROSS SAFELY. MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.
NASA picks 8 new astronauts, 4 of them women
Posted: Jun 17, 2013 12:12 PM EST Updated: Jun 17, 2013 12:31 PM EST
By MARCIA DUNN
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has eight new astronauts — its first new batch in four years.
The space agency announced its newest astronaut class Monday. Among the lucky candidates: the first female fighter pilot to become an astronaut in nearly two decades. A female helicopter pilot also is in the group. In fact, four of the eight are women, the highest percentage of female astronaut candidates ever selected by NASA.
The eight were chosen from more than 6,000 applications, the second largest number ever received. They will report for duty in August at Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden says these new candidates will help lead the first human mission to an asteroid, and then Mars.
Scammers Using So-called ‘Obamacare’ To Target Seniors
June 17, 2013 6:25 AM
DETROIT (WWJ) – They say what you don’t know can’t hurt you. But, a new scam is banking on seniors having a limited knowledge of so-called “Obamacare.”
According to consumer watchdogs, scammers are trying to fool consumers, in many cases seniors, into giving up personal information by claiming they’ve been selected to be among the first to get insurance cards for “Obamacare.
The solicitors, sometimes pretending to be federal government workers, tell people they can get all signed up by giving them their bank account and Social Security numbers. Better Business Bureau officials say the fact that not many people know about the Affordable Care Act only helps the flimflammers.
A day ahead of schedule, FEMA has rolled out its its revised flood maps that give people in four counties in New Jersey their true flood zones and elevations, showing superstorm Sandy victims how high they must raise their homes. Asbury Park Press
Valley Hospital will open new research center in Paramus
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
BY BARBARA WILLIAMS
STAFF WRITER
The Record
Plans are under way to convert the former Community Blood Services building in Paramus to The Valley Hospital’s medical research center and a site for outpatient services.
Hospital officials are aiming to open the Bolger Medical Arts Building in December 2014, said Maureen Curran, a hospital spokeswoman. It will house all the Ridgewood hospital’s research work as well as a number of outpatient services, she said.
The 28,000-square-foot site was dedicated Monday when it was announced that design work is being done before renovations begin on both the interior and exterior of the building.
The Valley Arrhythmia Institute, which involves the subspecialty of cardiology that diagnoses and treats heart rhythm disorders, and cardiac outpatient services will move from the hospital to this location. Valley’s Center for Cancer Research and Genomic Medicine will transfer to the new building from its current site at the Daniel and Gloria Blumenthal Cancer Center in Paramus. Physicians’ and staff offices will also be constructed.
