Author: James

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RHS Band Program Citrus Sale last Day is February 16,2017 !

RHS Band

February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, tomorrow is the last day left to order for the RHS Band Program Citrus Sale. Sale runs through 2/16. Citrus will be delivered straight to your door on 3/4 by one of the awesome band members.

You can still choose from navel oranges, red grapefruits, a medley of apples, pears and navel oranges, or a sampler of navel oranges and red grapefruits.

To order or make a donation, please contact a band member, send in your mail order forms, or go online.

In February, citrus and mixed fruit packages are offered for sale. The sale begins with the students participating in a door-to-door campaign. On the designated blitz day, each four-student team with one parent driver is assigned a specific area of Ridgewood. The team canvases all of the houses in their assigned area and takes orders for the fruit, leaving mail order forms on the doorknob if nobody answers. The sale continues with the processing of mail orders and online orders over the following week. On the designated delivery day, students gather to distribute the fruit to homes where they were purchased.

Citrus Mail Order Form

Citrus Receipt

Place an order through our online store by clicking here.

Citrus Sale Co-Chairs:  Eileen Karanikolas, Laura Lutz

Saturday, March 4th:          DELIVERY DAY, 9AM – 12 Noon

                                              Pick up fruit at Ben Franklin Middle School

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The Ridgewood Newcomers Club will be hosting their 70th Anniversary Gala !

Ridgewood Newcomers Club celebrates its 70th anniversary

February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Ridgewood Newcomers Club of YWCA Bergen County is gearing up for the biggest fundraising event of this year. This year is a very special year the Ridgewood Newcomers Club celebrates its 70th anniversary! They have been connecting friends and families to our community since 1947!

On March 4th, 2017, The Ridgewood Newcomers Club will be hosting their 70th Anniversary Gala, at Park West Loft
38 Oak St, Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450 with all proceeds benefiting YWCA Bergen County’s healingSPACE – the country’s only designated sexual violence resource center. This program helps survivors of sexual violence and educates the community on prevention. It provides a 24/7 crisis intervention hotline for those in need of professional counseling, medical and legal support.

April is nationally recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, so we are asking our community to help us raise money and awareness.

Everyone is welcome! Extend the invite to neighbors and friends. This will be an event you don’t want to miss. As this is an open event tickets will sell out. Buy your tickets early as prices increase from February 20th.

To purchase tickets make a payment of $85 per person to @RidgewoodNewcomers via Venmo. Please include the name of each guest attending in the notes.

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Stuck on Stupid :Trenton Drops All Governing Responsibilities to Focus on Trump

14405_trenton_new_jersey_s_state_house_capitol_in_trenton

February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, public frustration continues to grow towards the New Jersey Assembly spending so much time and energy attacking President Trump instead of focusing on any of New Jerseys myriad of serious problems.

Trenton is ignoring everything from property tax relief, school funding, pension payments and reform, the list is endless. New Jersey ranks the number one state to move out of, and ranks near the bottom in almost every economic category, but instead of working on the difficult issues the state faces , Trenton Democrats and some Republicans assisted by the New Jersey media are engaging   non-stop Trump bashing.

 Assembly, New Jersey, 39th, Republican Holly Schepisi summed it up best ,”Tomorrow we have a “special” voting session in Trenton to vote on such pressing NJ matters as providing guidance to our municipalities on affordable housing, fixing the Pension crisis, reforming the school funding formula…..just kidding! Instead of fixing any of NJ’s major issues, we are voting on at least seven political resolutions targeting our President.”

Schepisi went on to call out her ccolleagues, ” Over the past several days several of my colleagues in the State Legislature have indicated they would try to move forward legislation protecting “Sanctuary Cities” who lose federal funding by mandating the State of NJ pay these cities any monies lost by their refusal to comply with federal law. While I understand the motive behind such bills seeks to protect the legislators’ constituent cities, the practical implications are financially destructive for all of the non-sanctuary areas of the State.

New Jersey is almost broke. We have not made a full payment on our pension obligations in decades. A majority of our schools receive virtually no funding from the State. Indeed most of the areas I represent receive less than $500 per student per year. On the flip side, below are just some of the numbers of aid currently being provided to our “Sanctuary Cities”. If these bills were to go through, the State would be on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars of additional aid into these communities. MONEY THAT DOES NOT EXIST.

In Newark,19-percent of all city residents are undocumented entrants. Newark currently receives $206.7 million in federal aid, amounting to $733 per resident or $2,932 per family of four. This aid is on top of an additional $742 million in school aid given to Newark by the State of New Jersey and $31 million in transitional aid also given by the State of New Jersey.

Jersey City, also a sanctuary city with more than 10 percent of residents being undocumented, receives $148 million in federal aid on top of $417 million in school aid given by the State of New Jersey.

Other NJ sanctuary cities include:
Trenton – $10 million in federal aid, $229 million in State school aid
Camden- $52 million in federal aid, $280 million in State school aid
Union City – $32.5 million in federal aid, $179 million in State school aid
West NY – $17 million in federal aid, $94 million in State school aid

https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2016/Bills/S3500/3007_I1.PDF

 

 

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Reader says Contamination at the Town Garage was well known to the purchasers who rushed to beat the Village in buying the land–hoping to make a substantial profit

Town Garage Ridgewood

Contamination at the Town Garage was well known to the purchasers who rushed to beat the Village in buying the land–hoping to make a substantial profit when they then sold it to the Village. They own it. It should be their responsibility for cleaning it up before selling it to the Village at a handsome profit. Is the Village going to subtract the cost of cleanup from the eventual purchase price? Or are we paying a premium to purchase the land and then must add cleanup costs to that? The lawyer groups were in such a rush to buy–why aren’t they being forced to do the cleanup? A homeowner with a leaking oil tank can’t just pass that cost on to the buyer, so why are we cleaning up land we don’t own?

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New Jersey Department of Education Reports Increase of substance abuse cases reported at Ridgewood Schools

Ridgewood Police RHS

file photo by Boyd Loving

February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, we read daily that drugs and alcohol have become a pervasive problem in New Jersey’s cities and suburban areas.

In a recently released New Jersey Department of Education list of substance abuse cases reported by each school district every year, the Ridgewood School district came in 137th in 2015-16 with an increase of 6 cases over last period 2014-15.

The state Department of Education cautioned that while districts are required by law to report them these numbers are reported by each district, so each district is responsible for reporting its results fairly and accurately.

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The Garden State Ranks the 8th Worse Place for Retirees in the US

life insurance seniors

February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj, according to Kiplinger’s exclusive 2016 analysis of state taxes 10 states impose the highest taxes on retirees. Three of them treat Social Security benefits just like Uncle Sam does—taxing as much as 85% of your benefits. Exemptions for other types of retirement income are limited or nonexistent. Property taxes are on the high side, too. And if that weren’t bad enough, some of these states are facing significant financial problems that could force them to raise taxes, cut services, or both.

New Jersey placed 8 on the list Tax-UnFriendly States for Retirees 2016

State Income Tax: 1.4% (on as much as $20,000 of taxable income) – 8.97% (on taxable income greater than $500,000)
Average State and Local Sales Tax: 6.97%
Estate Tax/Inheritance Tax: Yes/Yes

The Garden State’s tax policies create a thicket of thorns for some retirees.

Its property taxes are the highest in the U.S. The median property tax on the state’s median home value of $313,200 is $7,452.

While Social Security benefits, military pensions and some retirement income is excluded from state taxes, your other retirement income could be taxed as high as 8.97%. And New Jersey allows localities to impose their own income tax; the average local levy is 0.5%, according to the Tax Foundation.

Residents 62 or older may exclude as much as $15,000 ($20,000 if married filing jointly) of retirement income, including pensions, annuities and IRA withdrawals, if their gross income is $100,000 or less. Those amounts will gradually rise so that by 2020 joint filers can exclude up to $100,000; single filers, up to $75,000; and married filing separately, up to $50,000.

New Jersey is one of only a couple of states that impose an inheritance and an estate tax. (An estate tax is levied before the estate is distributed; an inheritance tax is paid by the beneficiaries.) In general, close relatives are excluded from the inheritance tax; others face tax rates ranging from 11% to 16% on inheritances of $500 or more. Estates valued at more than $675,000 are subject to estate taxes of up to 16%. Assets that go to a spouse or civil union partner are exempt. The threshold will rise to $2 million on Jan. 1, 2017 and the estate tax will disappear completely in 2018.

To make matters worse George Mason University’s Mercatus Center ranks New Jersey 48th in its analysis of states’ fiscal health.

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U.N. Official Reveals Real Reason Behind Warming Scare

al gore climate hoax

Economic Systems: The alarmists keep telling us their concern about global warming is all about man’s stewardship of the environment. But we know that’s not true. A United Nations official has now confirmed this.

At a news conference last week in Brussels, Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of U.N.’s Framework Convention on Climate Change, admitted that the goal of environmental activists is not to save the world from ecological calamity but to destroy capitalism.

“This is the first time in the history of mankind that we are setting ourselves the task of intentionally, within a defined period of time, to change the economic development model that has been reigning for at least 150 years, since the Industrial Revolution,” she said.

Referring to a new international treaty environmentalists hope will be adopted at the Paris climate change conference later this year, she added: “This is probably the most difficult task we have ever given ourselves, which is to intentionally transform the economic development model for the first time in human history.”

The only economic model in the last 150 years that has ever worked at all is capitalism. The evidence is prima facie: From a feudal order that lasted a thousand years, produced zero growth and kept workdays long and lifespans short, the countries that have embraced free-market capitalism have enjoyed a system in which output has increased 70-fold, work days have been halved and lifespans doubled.

https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/climate-change-scare-tool-to-destroy-capitalism/

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Ridgewood Residents of the East Side are required to bring their sanitation to the end of their driveways for collection due to the snow and ice conditions

snow day
February 15,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15TH – EAST SIDE SANITATION COLLECTION

Ridgewood NJ, Wednesday, February 15th  – Residents of the East Side are required to bring their sanitation to the end of their driveways (near the curb but not in the street) for collection due to the snow and ice conditions.  This is for the safety of our sanitation workers.  If you are a senior citizen or  need assistance, please call the Sanitation Office at 201/670-5585 and they will respond.

Recycling  Collection will be Area 6 – as is printed in the calendar.

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Corzine 2.0 Phil Murphy Goes Commie

Communism

Phil Murphy Hits NJ Campaign Stops Alongside Bernie’s Son, Levi Sanders

By PolitickerNJ Staff • 02/12/17 11:30am

“It is critical we elect progressives like Phil at all levels of government,” asserted Levi Sanders, the son of 2016 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. The appearance of Sanders yesterday at a pair of campaign events, helped Phil Murphy accomplish two things as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor of New Jersey.

First, it put a little space between him and Goldman Sachs. With Bernie Sanders, the independent-socialist senator from Vermont, still a hero to the populist wing of the Democratic Party despite his eventual fall to Hillary Clinton in the presidential primary, the embrace from his son makes it clear that Murphy isn’t a reincarnation of previous Goldman-Sachs-to-Governor tripper Jon Corzine. Levi Sanders said of the decision New Jersey faces: “It’s Wall St vs Main Street. It’s exciting.” By awarding Phil Murphy, who made his fortune at Goldman Sachs, a place on Main Street, Sanders is clearly signaling that Murphy can be trusted by the forces that created such energy around his father’s campaign.

https://observer.com/2017/02/phil-murphy-hits-nj-campaign-stops-alongside-bernies-son-levi-sanders/

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Diner Bailout : GREECE could ditch Euro for US Dollar

tick toc diner theridgewoodblog.net

EURO HUMILIATION: Germany ‘freaked out’ as Greece ‘could ditch EU currency for US DOLLAR’

GREECE could be poised to humiliate Brussels by ditching the euro and instead choosing to be tied to the US dollar, Donald Trump’s reported pick as EU ambassador has sensationally claimed.

By NICK GUTTERIDGE IN BRUSSELS
PUBLISHED: 07:15, Tue, Feb 14, 2017 | UPDATED: 08:04, Tue, Feb 14, 2017

Professor Ted Malloch revealed that senior Greek economists have enquired about the possibility of adopting the greenback if the country crashes out of the single currency.

He asserted that Athens is so desperate it is prepared to tie itself to the dollar on the same terms as the likes of Puerto Rico if it means being able to quit the eurozone.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/766811/Eurozone-crisis-Greece-ditch-euro-US-dollar-Trump-Ted-Malloch

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Six BF string players have won placement into the prestigious Region I Intermediate Orchestra for 2017

christmas-music-notes-border-singing_8355-1

February 14,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, BFMS Orchestra Director Ms. Carol Sharar reports that six BF string players have won placement into the prestigious Region I Intermediate Orchestra for 2017. They are: Catherine Park (8th grade Violin) ; William Stewart (8th grade Bass); Ashley Kim (7th grade Violin); Isabella Harelick (7th grade Violin); Ludia Kim (7th grade Viola) and Karis Han (7th grade Viola).

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Bullying down, violence up in N.J. schools, in latest state report

RHS

file photo by Boyd Loving

By Adam Clark and Erin Petenko | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on February 13, 2017 at 5:26 PM, updated February 13, 2017 at 11:18 PM

TRENTON — New Jersey schools reported fewer bullying incidents for the fourth straight year in 2015-16, but violence in schools climbed to a five-year high, according to new state data.

The state Department of Education on Monday released its annual look at incidents in schools involving bullying, violence, vandalism, weapons and substances, which includes drugs and alcohol, a comprehensive report based on data submitted by school districts.

Confirmed incidents of harassment, intimidation and bullying dropped to 5,995 in 2015-16, down from 6,214 in 2014-15, continuing a decline that’s happened every year since New Jersey implemented a strict new anti-bullying law in 2011.

https://www.nj.com/education/2017/02/bullying_down_violence_up_in_nj_schools_state_says.html#incart_river_index

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Putting PARCC in reverse, NJ lawmakers look to block graduation requirement

Graduation 13

By Michael Symons February 14, 2017 3:45 AM

New Jersey lawmakers took a first step toward blocking the state Department of Education from requiring high-school students to pass the PARCC test in order to earn a diploma.

The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers is currently among an array of graduation requirements, but qualifying scores on alternative exams such as the SAT or ACT are being phased out. Starting with the Class of 2021 — currently in the eighth grade — students will have to pass the PARCC’s Algebra 1 and 10th-grade English tests.

Only about half of students are doing that so far in the PARCC’s first two years of use.

“I do not believe it was ever the intent of this Legislature to make PARCC a graduation requirement,” said Assemblywoman Mila Jasey, D-Essex.

“Most states have stopped using it altogether. The decision of state Board of Ed to make PARCC a graduation requirement was, in my view, designed to thwart the opt-out movement,” Jasey said.

Read More: Putting PARCC in reverse, NJ lawmakers look to block graduation requirement | https://nj1015.com/putting-parcc-in-reverse-nj-lawmakers-look-to-block-graduation-requirement/?trackback=tsmclip

Read More: Putting PARCC in reverse, NJ lawmakers look to block graduation requirement | https://nj1015.com/putting-parcc-in-reverse-nj-lawmakers-look-to-block-graduation-requirement/?trackback=tsmclip

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The Dark Origins Of Valentine’s Day

st valentines

February 13, 20118:36 AM ET
ARNIE SEIPEL

Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate romance and love and kissy-face fealty. But the origins of this festival of candy and cupids are actually dark, bloody — and a bit muddled.

A drawing depicts the death of St. Valentine — one of them, anyway. The Romans executed two men by that name on Feb. 14 of different years in the 3rd century A.D.

Though no one has pinpointed the exact origin of the holiday, one good place to start is ancient Rome, where men hit on women by, well, hitting them.

Those Wild And Crazy Romans

From Feb. 13 to 15, the Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia. The men sacrificed a goat and a dog, then whipped women with the hides of the animals they had just slain.

The Roman romantics “were drunk. They were naked,” says Noel Lenski, a historian at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Young women would actually line up for the men to hit them, Lenski says. They believed this would make them fertile.

The brutal fete included a matchmaking lottery, in which young men drew the names of women from a jar. The couple would then be, um, coupled up for the duration of the festival — or longer, if the match was right.

https://www.npr.org/2011/02/14/133693152/the-dark-origins-of-valentines-day

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Bill to Restrict OPRA in NJ Advances, Draws Criticism

Village Council

By JT Aregood • 02/13/17 3:38pm

After advancing in its first committee hearing Monday, a bill to restrict access to information available through the federal Open Public Records Act in New Jersey is drawing criticism from environmentalists who say it could pave the way for less transparency in the way the state doles out contracts for development.

The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Wayne P. DeAngelo in a bid to keep businesses and advertisers from using public records for marketing purposes, advanced in a unanimous vote.

https://observer.com/2017/02/bill-to-restrict-opra-in-nj-advances-draws-criticism/