VATICAN CITY — On a sunny morning earlier this year, a camera crew entered a well-appointed apartment just outside the 9th-century gates of Vatican City. Pristinely dressed in the black robes and scarlet sash of the princes of the Roman Catholic Church, Wisconsin-born Cardinal Raymond Burke sat in his elaborately upholstered armchair and appeared to issue a warning to Pope Francis.
A staunch conservative and Vatican bureaucrat, Burke had been demoted by the pope a few months earlier, but it did not take the fight out of him. Francis had been backing a more inclusive era, giving space to progressive voices on divorced Catholics as well as gays and lesbians. In front of the camera, Burke said he would “resist” liberal changes — and seemed to caution Francis about the limits of his authority. “One must be very attentive regarding the power of the pope,” Burke told the French news crew.
Papal power, Burke warned, “is not absolute.” He added, “The pope does not have the power to change teaching [or] doctrine.”
Burke’s words belied a growing sense of alarm among strict conservatives, exposing what is fast emerging as a culture war over Francis’s papacy and the powerful hierarchy that governs the Roman Catholic Church.
ISLAMIC State terrorists are taking advantage of the waves of western sympathy towards would-be asylum seekers and sending trained operatives to Europe hidden among migrants crossing the Mediterranean in boats.
A sea-change in Britain and Europe’s approach to dealing with asylum seekers from north Africa and the Middle east was triggered last week when pictures of the body of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi washed up on a Mediterranean beach emerged.
Celebrities, politicians and even the Pope have been queuing-up to state they wish to take migrant families into their homes.
David Cameron was today expected to announce that the UK will take 10,000 more migrants – despite previously arguing taking in refugees would encourage more people to risk the hazardous sea crossing to Europe.
But EU prosecutor Michele Coninsx, warned the charitable aims came with a potentially deadly caveat – that Isis terrorists and bombers are continuously being smuggled across the Med – hidden among migrants.
Coninsx, head of the EU’s judicial co-operation agency Eurojust, said she received the intelligence as part of the agency’s fight against illegal immigration, terrorism and cybercrime.
According to the prosecutor, ISIS and similar terror groups are also using money from people-trafficking to fund terrorism.
She said: “It is an alarming situation because we see obviously that these smugglings are meant to sometimes finance terrorism and that these smugglings are used sometimes to have and ensure infiltrations by members of the Islamic State.”
The Question Remains :What did Cory get to Vote for the Iran Nuke Deal ?
PolitickerNJ’s sister site, Observer.com, is reporting that Sen. Cory Booker will be hosting a pair of meetings designed to shore up support in the Jewish community in the wake of his controversial decision to support the president’s Iran deal. PolitickerNJ Staff, Politickernj Read more
Under the brightest of Friday night lights, a little history was made on December 19 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. When Cedar Park took on Ennis for the 5A Conference, Division 2 championship, which Ennis won 38-35, it was more than a football game between Austin and Dallas-area schools.
A Pennsylvania-based company known as Unequal touted the matchup as the first time two opposing high schools would meet in a Texas State High School football championship game with supplemental protection — a product Unequal calls Gyro — inside their helmets.
The quarter-inch thick liner, which sells for $60, is made of a military grade composite — strengthened by Kevlar and Accelleron — which absorbs and disperses impact energy away from the head and body in a way that typical padding of equal weight and thickness cannot.
With growing concerns about traumatic head injuries in football, there are already coaches calling for this type of added protection to be mandated at all levels.
“I saw how effective the Kevlar products were for quarterback rib injuries, and running back shoulder injuries,” says former college and NFL coach June Jones, “and that triggered me to see if we could use it in thigh pads. The players were amazed at how good they felt after games. Finally, I wondered, ‘Why don’t we put it in our helmets?’ We did last year at SMU and it made a difference.”
Rob Vito, a Penn State business school professor who is president and founder of Unequal, says his company originally started with military contracts, until one day a United States Marine who was a student at Penn State told Vito, “You made a bullet proof vest that’s lighter, thinner and more flexible, and make soldiers safer. You should be able to dominate sports.”
Statement required by the Open Public Meeting Act “Adequate notice of this meeting has been provided by a posting on the bulletin board in the Village Hall, by mail to the Ridgewood News, The Record and by submission to all persons entitled to same as provided by law of a schedule including date and time of this meeting”.
Please note: A curfew of 11:00 PM is strictly adhered to by the Zoning Board of Adjustment of the Village of Ridgewood. No new matter involving an Applicant will be started after 10:30 PM. At 10:00 PM the Chairman will make a determination and advise Applicants as to whether they will be heard. I f an Applicant cannot be heard because of the lateness of the hour, the matter will be carried over to a future meeting to be determined by the Board at 10:00 PM.
Roll call
Approval of minutes: January 13, 2015; February 10, 2015; February 24, 2015
Non-agenda items:
Board member comments
Members of the public comments
Public hearings
Old Business:
NEW YORK SMSA LIMITED PARTNERSHIP D/B/A VERIZON WIRELESS – An application requesting a D1 Use variance, and minor site plan approval with other variances and waivers, interpretations, and/or approvals as are necessary to permit the installation of a wireless telecommunications facility to be located at 6 South Monroe Street, Block 2404 Lot 3 in an R-110 zone. (A continuation from July 14, 2015 meeting)
AGENDA – CONTINUATION SEPTEMBER 8, 2015
New Business:
JOSEPH PANICO – An application for the construction of a one story addition, the enclosure of an existing porch, and the construction of a rear porch landing which will result in a front yard setback of 45.2 feet where 50 feet is the minimum required, a side yard setback of four feet to a wing wall attached to the garage, and eight feet to the garage addition where 10 feet is the minimum required for both, and a rear yard setback to the rear landing of 13.5 feet where 30 feet is the minimum required. The proposed will result in a total lot coverage of 21.3% where 20% is the maximum
permitted and a Gross Building Area of 36.3% where 34 % is the maximum permitted at 152 Valley View Avenue, Block 1816, Lot 2, in an R-2 zone. (Carried from July 14, 2015)
OLGA CHAIKOVSKY – An application for the construction of a detached garage which will result in side yard and rear yard setbacks of four feet where five feet is the minimum required for each at 170 Oak Street, Block 200, Lot 11, in an R-2 zone. (Carried from July 14, 2015)
XIOMARA OLIVO – An application for the construction of a two story, and second story addition and covered patio which will result in a front yard setback of 35.19 feet where 40 feet is the minimum required and a side yard setback to the second story addition of 7.97 feet where 10 feet is the minimum required. The construction will result in a total lot coverage of 27% and lot coverage within 140 feet of the front lot line of 27.4% where 20% is the maximum permitted for each at 525 Laurel Road, Block 4306, Lot 22, in an R-2 zone.
CLAIRE BENNETT – An application for the construction of a second story addition which will result in front yard setback of 34.42 feet where 40 feet is the minimum required at 345 Crest Road, Block 1909, Lot 26, in an R-1 zone.
Resolution memorialization: Ridgewood Park SG, LLC – 30 Oak St.
Lisa Danias – 32 Pomander Walk
Barry and Lisa Sands – 339 Spring Ave. Keith and Lisa Grace – 154 N. Pleasant Ave.
Dr. Patrick Higgins – 33 N. Pleasant Ave.
Keyvan and Lindsey Pourreza – 155 Beechwood Rd.
Discussion
Adjournment
VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE COUNCIL SPECIAL PUBLIC MEETING SEPTEMBER 8, 2015 7:30 P.M.
1. Call to Order – Mayor
2. Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act
3. Roll Call – Village Clerk
4. Flag Salute and Moment of Silence
5. Comments from the Public (Not to exceed 5 minutes per person – 30 minutes total)
6. Presentations by Vendors
a. Clark Caton Hintz
b. Desman Design Management
c. SNS Architects & Engineers, PC
d. Timothy Haahs & Associates, Inc.
7. Synopsis by Parking Steering Committee
8. Village Council Comments
9. Comments from the Public (Not to Exceed 5
minutes per person – 30 minutes total)
10. Adjournment
09/08/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Meeting 09/08/157:30PMVillage Coucil Special Public Meeting – Village Hall Community Center 09/09/157:30PMVillage Council Special Public Meeting 09/09/157:30PMVillage Council Public Work Session 09/15/157:30PMPlanning Board Public Meeting 09/16/158:00PMVillage Council Public Meeting 09/22/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Work Session 09/29/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Meeting 09/30/157:30PMVillage Council Public Work Session
Ridgewood
September 8,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Recent events once again point to critical weakness in the water supply of the Village of Ridgewood and surrounding towns serviced by Ridgewood Water company . I cannot emphasize enough the importance of obeying these restrictions – this is a public safety issue – our firefighters need to have the necessary water and water pressure to be able to fight fires and we also need to maintain reserves for household use.
As you are aware we have ratcheted up enforcement over the last several weeks issuing over 50 summonses and hundreds of warnings. This has had some impact but unfortunately we need to take this further – so, I have taken the additional step of appointing more Village employees who will have the authority to issue summonses in order to achieve a higher rate of compliance.”Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld
“I cannot emphasize enough the importance of obeying these restrictions – this is a public safety issue – our firefighters need to have the necessary water and water pressure to be able to fight fires and we also need to maintain reserves for household use.
As you are aware we have ratcheted up enforcement over the last several weeks issuing over 50 summonses and hundreds of warnings. This has had some impact but unfortunately we need to take this further – so, I have taken the additional step of appointing more Village employees who will have the authority to issue summonses in order to achieve a higher rate of compliance. “Roberta Sonenfeld.Village Manager
Water restrictions could be more effective if the town sent Postal Notice Flyers to all water customers, stage 2 and stage 4, or when Severely Urgent – drive around towns in evenings with loud speakers announcement, as they used to in past years. There are residents who are sincerely not even aware about Stage 4 water restrictions, only by word of mouth by good neighbors. Of course, there will always be those arrogant self entitles who will always defy rules.
* Please take note:
** Reverse Emergency Robo Calls – Not all residents get them, used to, how come? What happened?
** E- Notice – Not all residents get them or sign up.
** Website – Many residents do not refer to.
** Local News Newspaper – Many residents do not subscribe or refer to online.
** Link immediate release notice to BOE school website for more exposure.
** Mention the stiff fine of up to $1,250.00 That Stops Usage Abruptly!!
* Thanks to the Ridgewood Blog for posting – the Stage 4 News Release on Friday 9/4/15
SEPTEMBER 7, 2015 LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2015, 1:20 AM
THE RECORD
Village to hear plansfor parking garage
Proposals for a potential parking garage in downtown Ridgewood will be discussed during a special council meeting that has been called for Tuesday night.
The meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 131 N. Maple Ave.
Ridgewood officials said the meeting will include presentations from a number of the firms that responded to the village’s request for proposals.
The council will likely choose a firm to design a multilevel parking garage when it meets Wednesday night, with an official vote planned for Sept. 16.
Village residents will vote this fall on the proposed expenditure of $15 million for the garage, slated for a site within the central business district.
HONG KONG — China is burning through its huge stockpile of foreign exchange reserves at the fastest pace yet as it seeks to prop up its currency and stem a rising tide of money flowing out of the country.
Even after a record monthly decrease of nearly $100 billion, China still has the world’s biggest cache of foreign reserves, standing at $3.56 trillion at the end of last month, government data showed Monday.
The total has declined steadily from a peak of nearly $4 trillion in June of last year, as slowing economic growth caused investors to move money out of the country in search of better returns elsewhere. As a result, the Chinese central bank has had to sell huge amounts from its foreign reserves to maintain the strength of the nation’s currency, the renminbi.
The exodus of investors’ money accelerated last month after China made the surprise decision on Aug. 11 to devalue the renminbi by the most in over two decades. China’s foreign reserves fell $94 billion in the month, according to Monday’s report, as the central bank mounted an aggressive defense of the renminbi.
WASHINGTON – More than 300,000 American military veterans likely died while waiting for health care — and nearly twice as many are still waiting — according to a new Department of Veterans Affairs inspector general report.
The IG report says “serious” problems with enrollment data are making it impossible to determine exactly how many veterans are actively seeking health care from the VA, and how many were. For example, “data limitations” prevent investigators from determining how many now-deceased veterans applied for health care benefits or when.
But the findings would appear to confirm reports that first surfaced last year that many veterans died while awaiting care, as their applications got stuck in a system that the VA has struggled to overhaul. Some applications, the IG report says, go back nearly two decades.
The report addresses serious issues with the record-keeping itself.
More than half the applications listed as pending as of last year do not have application dates, and investigators “could not reliably determine how many records were associated with actual applications for enrollment” in VA health care, the report said.
The report also says VA workers incorrectly marked thousands of unprocessed health-care applications as completed and may have deleted 10,000 or more electronic “transactions” over the past five years.
Linda Halliday, the VA’s acting inspector general, said the agency’s Health Eligibility Center “has not effectively managed its business processes to ensure the consistent creation and maintenance of essential data” and recommended a multi-year plan to improve accuracy and usefulness of agency records.
Halliday’s report came in response to a whistleblower who said more than 200,000 veterans with pending applications for VA health care were likely deceased.
The inspector general’s report substantiated that claim and others, but said there was no way to tell for sure when or why the person died. Similarly, deficiencies in the VA’s information security — including a lack of audit trails and system backups — limited investigators’ ability to review some issues fully and rule out data manipulation, Halliday said.
Sammy Hagar Monday, September 14th @ 6:00pm
Legendary Lead Singer with Van Halen & inductee in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Sammy Hagar, will sign his new book, Are We Having Any Fun Yet?
Books available September 14th
Cat Cora Wednesday, September 16th @ 7:00pm
Catherine Ann “Cat” Cora is a professional chef best known for her featured role as an “Iron Chef” on The Food Network, Cat Cora, will sign her new book:Cooking as Fast as I Can
Josh Altman Wednesday, September 30th @ 7:30pm
Star on Bravo TV’s Million Dollar Listing, Josh Altman, will sign his new book:
It’s Your Move
Appearing authors will only autograph books purchased at Bookends and must have valid Bookends Receipt.
Availability & pricing for all autographed books subject to change.
First In Line Certificate use is the the discretion of Bookends. Blackout dates may apply.
Bookends cannot guarantee that the books that are Autographed will always be First Printings.
Autographed books purchased at Bookends are non-returnable.
While we try to ensure that all customers coming to Bookends’ signings will meet authors and get their books signed, we cannot guarantee that all attendees will meet the author or that all books will be signed. We cannot control inclement weather, author travel schedules or authors who leave prematurely.
Bookends, 211 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450 201-445-0726
NEW YORK (MainStreet) — Unemployment numbers out of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) are a cause for celebration on both sides of the political aisle and that is, because the current rate reported today for the August Jobs Reportis 5.1%, a huge improvement over the 10% notched in October 2009. Just one problem: that number is so misleading it just about counts as a lie.
You have just quit looking for work because it’s pointless? Officially you do not count as unemployed. Ditto for if you’ve taken a part-time job, however wretched, just to put a few bucks in your pocket. You are not unemployed,
The real numbers may be twice as high. Maybe one in ten of us is unemployed or we have just plain given up on the idea of a fulltime job. The BLS acknowledges this in a different tally that it calls U-6. By its count, 11.3% of us have given up on the dream of a good full-time job. Those workers, in BLS parlance, are “discouraged.” Some have given up looking for fulltime work. Others work part-time because that’s all they can get.
Some states do especially poorly. In West Virginia 13% count as discouraged. In Arizona, 13.8% of the potential workforce is not even close to where it wants to be. Nevada is a stomach churning 15.2%, the nation’s biggest clump of dissatisfied workers and the discouraged unemployed.
Polling company Gallup, by the way, says the BLS discouraged workers numbers are low. It claims that 14.7% of us – that’s one in seven – is underemployed
Watercolors – Figures and Portraits – Ridgewood Recreation welcomes outstanding artist Nora Winn to provide new watercolor instruction, specific to figures and portraits, on Wednesday mornings at the Stable, 259 N. Maple Avenue. $95/6 classes. Students must bring own materials.
Acrylics with Sandi Chanoch – Individual and personalized attention helps all find their personal techniques. Tuesday afternoons at the Stable, 259 N. Maple Avenue. Students must bring own materials. $70/5 classes.
Annie’s Artisanal Cookery – International Inspired Meals Join Annie as she spices up meals with international zing. Enjoy recipe favorites from the Mediterranean, Latin America, Asia, France and Italy with a final session of “good old American desserts”. Friday afternoons at the Stable, 259 N. Maple Avenue. $120/6 sessions, all ingredients provided.
Pickleball- Enjoy beginner instruction of this newest popular racquet game at a free clinic Sunday, September 20th. Afterwards, join Ridgewood Recreation for adult instruction on Friday mornings. $30/6 weeks. Held at the Glen Courts, 865 E. Glen Avenue.
Tennis – Adult offerings with All Pro Tennis are on Fridays (beginning September 4th). Morning sessions are 9:30 to 10:30 am or 10:30 to 11:30 am. $115/6 weeks at Bellair Tennis Courts. Seniors (62 and over) can enjoy reduced registration fees, $60/6 weeks – 10:30 to 11:30 am, also at the Bellair Tennis Courts.
***Please visit the Recreation homepage at www.ridgewoodnj.net/recreation for more details and to download the registration forms for in-person/by mail signups to the Stable, 259 N. Maple Avenue, Ridgewood 07450. Online registration through Community Pass is available for programs (unless otherwise noted) at www.ridgwoodnj.net/communitypass.
Don’t hesitate to call the Recreation Office at 201-670-5560 for more information of if special accommodations are needed. Non-residents may register if space allows; an additional $10 fee will apply.
New program suggestions are always welcome! Please be sure to bookmark the Recreation homepage on your computer for easy access to updated program and special event information.
YWCA Offers Youth and Adult Synchronized Swimming! The YWCA Bergen County is offers synchronized swimming classes for ages 7 to adult at 112 Oak Street in Ridgewood. Instructor Laura Alt, certified US Synchronized Swimming coach, invites swimmers with at least Level 3 swim skills (swim the front crawl with coordination of side breathing, elementary back stroke, and tread water for 1 minute) to join in.
Synchronized swimming promotes healthy competition as an individual and as part of a team. It demands strong swimming skill, discipline and commitment on the part of its athletes. The sport develops strength, flexibility and the ability to work cooperatively within the team. Synchro students also learn to act as role models, and to support and respect those around them. The Syncho Swim Program assists young athletes to strive for excellence while enjoying swimming. Synchro swim is a performance sport (similar to ice skating or ballroom dance) which is performed in deep water. A swimmer learns basic swimming strokes, body positions, and stunts that are choreographed into routines that are performed in front of judges or an audience.
The YWCA offers two levels of youth synchronized swim classes, Synchro Stars team, and an adult synchronized swim class. For details about Synchronized Swimming, please call 201-444-5600, ext. 400. Bring a swimsuit, cap, and goggles.
Sarah Knapton, The Telegraph | September 4, 2015 2:56 PM ET
Rudyard Kipling was right. Cats really do walk by themselves, and do not need their owners to feel secure and safe, a study has shown. Although absent owners might worry that their pet is pining, in fact, cats show no sign of separation anxiety.
Researchers at the University of Lincoln have concluded that cats, unlike dogs, do not need humans to feel protected.
Before cat lovers start despairing about their aloof pets, however, animal behaviourists said they should take the finding as a compliment. If cats stay, it means they really want to be there.
Daniel Mills, Professor of Veterinary Behavioural Medicine at the University of Lincoln’s School of Life Sciences, said: “The domestic cat has recently passed the dog as the most popular companion animal in Europe.
“Previous research has suggested that some cats show signs of separation anxiety when left alone by their owners, in the same way that dogs do, but the results of our study show that they are, in fact, much more independent than canine companions.
“It seems that what we interpret as separation anxiety might actually be signs of frustration.” To find out if cats needed their owner to feel secure, the researchers observed how 20 cats reacted when they were placed in an unfamiliar environment together with their owner, with a stranger or on their own.
The study monitored the amount of contact sought by the cat, the level of passive behaviour, and signs of distress caused by the absence of the owner.
“Although our cats were more vocal when the owner rather than the stranger left them with the other individual, we didn’t see any additional evidence to suggest that the bond between a cat and its owner is one of secure attachment,” Prof Mills said.
