Author: James

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Today is Founders day for the Ridgewood blog

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James J Foytlin founder of the Ridgewood Blog

The Ridgewood blog was founded in March of 2006 by James J Foytlin aka PJ Blogger . Mr. Foytlin was born and raised in Ridgewood ,New Jersey and is a graduate of Ridgewood High School .

Ridgewood NJ, – Oct. 26, 2009 – RIDGEWOOD, N.J. — The Ridgewood blog ( https://theridgewoodblog.blogspot.com/ ) was founded in March of 2006 by James J Foytlin aka PJ Blogger .[1] Mr. Foytlin was born and raised in Ridgewood ,New Jersey and is a graduate of Ridgewood High School .[2] [3]

After many years living in New York City[4] Mr Foytlin returned to Ridgewood after a divorce and the tragic events of 9/11 . Once he settled in he noticed a lack of sufficient news coverage of local events . One day a friend from Brazil[5] showed him her home town on the internet and to Mr. Foytlin’s great surprise when he tried to reciprocate he was utterly dismayed at the absolute lake coverage of his home town. After all Ridgewood is only 18 miles from midtown Manhattan[6] the media capitol of world and there was not a single picture of Ridgewood to be found . How could this be? Ridgewood is a picturesque upper middle class village of around 25,000 located in Bergen county in northern New Jersey[7] . Founded by Dutch settlers before it became an English colony[8] . The town or village as its called is steeped in  rich history and tradition .Known for a large amount of Victorian era housing , a quality school system and a family friendly atmosphere.

Though busy getting reacquainted with his home town the fact that the Village of Ridgewood  was so under represented on the internet  continued to disturb Mr. Foytlin. Mr. Foytlin had been writing news letters for his job in financial services since the mid 1990’s . The popular flip, off beat investment strategy news letters had become email blasts with the advent of readily accessible internet.[9] By 2004 the email blasts were converted into blog format for the One Small Voice blog (https://onesmallvoice.blogspot.com/ ). [10]

Around that time the Village of Ridgewood had finally completed it’s much anticipated and long delayed renovation of the Village hall which has been flooded out due to Hurricane Floyd.[11] The renovation was marred by huge cost over runs and lengthy delays. In 2005 it opened with great fan fare , was once again flooded with the very first rain . Mr. Foytlin was more shocked by the abject lack of responsibility taken by elected officials than the fact that the $9 million dollar renovation had to some extent been a failure . That was the breaking point and Mr. Foytlin had had enough so he decided to give , citizen journalism a go and created the Ridgewood blog in March of 2006. [12]

The birth of PJ Blogger .By this time Blogging its seems had become quite the rage and mainstream news anchors such as Dan Rather had questioned the validity of information from non professionals sitting around in their Pajama’s blogging.[13] Mr. Foytlin not a fan of Dan Rather or any of the mainstream media decided to blog under the name PJ Blogger as a play on words and to plant himself firmly in the camp of the new digital media.

Innovations by the Ridgewood blog to citizen journalism.

“The Fly” is a column on the Ridgewood blog the originates from the expression ,”I’d like to be a fly on the wall “ . The idea is that every citizen has both a unique perspective and experience and these two factors can be used to gather news and opinions about local issues. Originally only of handful of people in town participated but with time the Ridgewood blog can now count on 20–40 semi regular contributors. These post are both anonymous and signed and are largely opinion as well a breaking news.[14]

The Ridgewood blog brings a free market lassie fare point of view to local issues . Mr. Foytlin aka PJ Blogger has stated that for local issues there are only two kinds of people ;the ones who say spend what every you want because I will not be around to pay the bill and the second group which are more focused on the ,”be careful this is my money your spending” . The Ridgewood blog is dedicated to the interplay of there two groups.[15]

[1][12] the Ridgewood blog website https://theridgewoodblog.blogspot.com/
[2] Birth Certificate born in Valley Hospital , Ridgewood 04/09/1962
[3] Ridgewood High School Class 1980
[4] 444 East 86th street ,530 East 72nd
[5] Monica Rocha
[6] Mapquest
[7] United States 2000 Census, the village population was 24,936.
[8] https://www.americantowns.com/nj/ridgewood/organization/vi…
[9] Fahnestock & Co. now Oppenheimer & Co.
[10] https://onesmallvoice.blogspot.com/
[11] https://www.ridgewoodlibrary.org/localhistory/lh_vh_pease.htm
[13] https://www.opinionjournal.com/diary/?id=110005611
[14] [15] James J Foytlin

sign up for the Ridgewood blog eblast https://theridgewoodblog.net/stay-updated/

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Decision on notice of recall of Mahwah mayor due Thursday, April 9

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APRIL 8, 2015    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2015, 3:31 PM
BY TOM NOBILE
STAFF WRITER |
MAHWAH SUBURBAN NEWS

Mahwah – Township Clerk Katherine Coviello said she expects to announce her findings bynoon Thursday, April 9, as to the validity of a notice of intention to recall Mayor William Laforet.
A Notice of Intention to Circulate a Recall Petition, signed by five township residents, was delivered to the mayor’s office early March 30. If approved by the Coviello, the petition would require signatures from 25 percent of Mahwah’s registered voters – roughly 4,000 residents – to place a recall question on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Annette Freund, one of the petition’s sponsors, said a series of poor decisions by Laforet led to the recall initiative, but it was “escalated” by the mayor’s handling of the recent Department of Public Works controversy.
Laforet had moved to terminate DPW Director and political foe Ed Sinclair after according to Laforet, pornography was discovered on at least one public works’ computer. Supporters of Sinclair objected, calling the move a political ploy, and on March 26 the council voted to overturn the mayor’s action. Councilwoman Lisa DiGiulio, enraged by the mayor’s tactics, called him “a piece of (expletive)” during the meeting and led 150 residents in a “recall” chant. A 4-3 vote of “no confidence” in Laforet’s leadership followed.
The notice cited a number of reasons for the recall, including:
n Goss incompetent management of personnel matters with reckless disregard for township policies.
n Failure to abide by municipal statutes governing the protection of the township’s real property assets.
n Breach of fiduciary responsibilities in allowing significant over-expenditures of the police overtime budget without advising the Township Council.
n Accepting political contributions from applicants before the Planning Board on which he sits, and voting favorably on their applications.
n And misuse of the township police communications channel for self-promotion.
Gary Montroy, a former construction official who also sponsored the petition, said the DPW situation was the “straw that broke camel’s back.”
“After what happened with Mr. Sinclair, I was appalled by that whole thing,” he said.
Laforet has stood by his decision to terminate Sinclair, saying the petition is “politically motivated and it disregards the facts.”
“Inappropriate material was being viewed on town computers,” he said.
Members of the governing body declined to comment on the petition, but indicated that the growing between the mayor and governing body began early in his tenure.
Council President John Roth said the tension is often due to a “lack of communication between him and the council.”
“The communications that we get are often suspect [and] misleading,” Roth said.
The installation of an ice rink on township property without the council’s knowledge and using the Nixle system for political purposes are among the most recent disputes.
While Freund remains confident the petition can achieve the 4,163-signature threshold, supporters face an uphill battle.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/mayor-targeted-by-residents-alleging-poor-decision-making-1.1304798

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Tsarnaev guilty on all charges in Boston Marathon bombing

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AFTER BOMBER’S CONVICTION, JURY TO DECIDE LIFE OR DEATH

BY DENISE LAVOIE
AP LEGAL AFFAIRS WRITER

BOSTON (AP) — Now that a jury has convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges, even more is at stake in the next phase of the federal trial: The same 12 people must decide whether the 21-year-old lives or dies.

Tsarnaev was found guilty Wednesday of 30 counts against him, including conspiracy and deadly use of a weapon of mass destruction. Seventeen of those charges are punishable by death.

The verdict was considered practically a foregone conclusion since Tsarnaev’s lawyer admitted he participated in the bombings.

The former college student was found responsible for the deaths of three people who died in the bombings as well as the killing of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer who was gunned down days later as Tsarnaev and his now-dead brother, Tamerlan, attempted to flee.

In addition to the people who were killed, more than 260 others were injured when twin pressure-cooker bombs packed with shrapnel exploded near the marathon’s finish line on April 15, 2013, turning the traditionally celebratory home stretch of the world-famous race into a scene of carnage.

https://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_BOSTON_MARATHON_BOMBING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-04-08-13-35-08

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Judge: Ridgewood doctor accused of stockpiling bomb-making materials can represent himself

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APRIL 8, 2015, 1:57 PM    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2015, 5:19 PM

BY KIBRET MARKOS
STAFF WRITER |
ASSOCIATED PRESS

A Ridgewood doctor accused of stockpiling bomb-making materials and weapons at his home can represent himself in his upcoming trial, a judge in Hackensack ruled Wednesday.

Judge Edward Jerejian granted Roberto Rivera’s request to be his own lawyer, after a lengthy line of questioning to make sure that he understood the charges against him and that he was knowingly waiving his constitutional right to have an attorney.

Rivera, who has been represented by the Bergen County Public Defender’s Office since his arrest in 2012, had stated from the outset that he wanted to be his own attorney and has maintained his position despite being advised to get legal representation, said Ian Silvera, who has been Rivera’s attorney.

“I still take the position that it’s bad idea for a client in any criminal matter to represent themselves,” Silvera said at a hearing Wednesday.

Police said they went to Rivera’s home in November 2012 on a hazardous-material report and found large amounts of nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide, glycerin, sulfuric acid and other chemicals used for making explosives. They said they also found bomb detonators, two assault rifles, a .40 caliber handgun and a large-capacity magazine. Authorities did not say why Rivera was stockpiling the materials or whether he had any plans to use them.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/judge-ridgewood-doctor-accused-of-stockpiling-bomb-making-materials-can-represent-himself-1.1304765

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Here’s the Top Concern for Many Municipal Bond Market Analysts

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By Bill Lucia
April 7, 2015

Public pensions are one of the top issues confronting the municipal bond market, according to the vast majority of credit analysts responding to a survey released on Monday.

The survey asked 162 municipal bond credit analysts to name the five most important issues or trends currently facing the market. Of the respondents, 86 percent included matters related to pensions, such as funding levels and pension obligation bonds, on their top five list.

The second most-noted topic was Puerto Rico, which 50 percent of the analysts included as one of their top five issues or trends. The island commonwealth is currently mired in a debt crisis.

Tom Kozlik, a sell-side municipal credit analyst at the Philadelphia-based financial services firm Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC, conducted the survey.

While he emphasized that he was not speaking for all of the respondents, Kozlik said that, for him, public pensions are a key source of concern.

https://www.govexec.com/state-local/2015/04/public-pensions-municipal-bond-market/109510/?oref=state_and_local_nl

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Village Council and Village Board Meetings

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file photo by Boyd Loving

04/07/157:30PMPlanning Board Public Meeting – Village Hall Court RoomAvailable
04/08/158:00PMVillage Council Public MeetingAvailable
04/14/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Meeting
04/21/157:30PMPlanning Board Public Meeting – Village Hall Court Room
04/22/157:30PMVillage Council Public Work Session
04/28/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Work Session
05/05/157:30PMPlanning Board Public Meeting – Village Hall Court Room
05/06/157:30PMVillage Council Public Work Session
05/12/157:30PMBoard of Adjustment Public Meeting

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How the U.S. thinks Russians hacked the White House

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By Evan Perez and Shimon Prokupecz, CNN
Updated 7:06 PM ET, Tue April 7, 2015

The State Department computer system has been bedeviled by signs that despite efforts to lock them out, the Russian hackers have been able to reenter the system. One official says the Russian hackers have “owned” the State Department system for months and it is not clear the hackers have been fully eradicated from the system.

As in many hacks, investigators believe the White House intrusion began with a phishing email that was launched using a State Department email account that the hackers had taken over, according to the U.S. officials.

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, in a speech at an FBI cyberconference in January, warned government officials and private businesses to teach employees what “spear phishing” looks like.

“So many times, the Chinese and others get access to our systems just by pretending to be someone else and then asking for access, and someone gives it to them,” Clapper said.

The ferocity of the Russian intrusions in recent months caught U.S. officials by surprise, leading to a reassessment of the cybersecurity threat as the U.S. and Russia increasingly confront each other over issues ranging from the Russian aggression in Ukraine to the U.S. military operations in Syria.

https://www.cnn.com/2015/04/07/politics/how-russians-hacked-the-wh/index.html

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How states got into such a pension fix

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JOEL L. NAROFF

POSTED: Sunday, April 5, 2015, 1:09 AM

Pension reform is like the weather: Everybody talks about it, but nobody does anything about it.

Despite years of dire warnings that pension shortfalls could become the monster that ate state budgets, little progress has been made to reduce the gap. Since changes must occur, it’s time to understand the causes of the crisis so past mistakes will not be repeated.

Pensions in Pennsylvania and New Jersey are staggeringly underfunded. This misery, though, has lots of company. Recently, the Dallas Morning News wrote an editorial about the looming crisis in Texas, which it called “an embarrassment.”

Not being alone is no excuse. Public-sector pensions are promissory notes between the public, through their elected representatives and government workers, for future payments. Unfortunately, politicians have been very willing to fail their fiduciary responsibilities.

Pension plans are underfunded because governing bodies have underfunded them. Contractually agreed-to plan payments have been diverted to other uses, and the trend continues. In New Jersey, a state court recently ruled the Christie administration violated a 2011 pension-reform law by not making this year’s required pension payment.

Let’s be clear: The failure to make necessary pension payments was not because of an inability to pay. The funds that should have gone to the pension plan went, instead, to fund other programs and to keep taxes from rising. The fiscal capacity to fund the pensions was there. The political will was not.

Who got the billions of dollars that didn’t go into the pension plans? The beneficiaries were individuals and businesses who paid lower taxes, and programs that received extra funding. In other words, everyone, which is why this is a politically feasible transfer of income.

Read more at https://www.philly.com/philly/business/20150405_How_states_got_into_such_a_pension_fix.html#M5Kojp7yDCs2SuO3.99

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Coyote euthanized after it attacks Saddle River man

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APRIL 6, 2015, 9:25 PM    LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, APRIL 7, 2015, 1:35 PM
BY JIM NORMAN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

SADDLE RIVER — A man working in his garden in the Twin Brooks area of the borough was attacked Monday by a coyote that was then hunted down and euthanized, authorities said.

The man, whose identity was not released, was taken to a hospital for treatment and then released for recovery at home, according to a report on the Saddle River Police Department’s Facebook page.

The man was attacked from behind by the animal and managed to escape, the police report said.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/coyote-euthanized-after-it-attacks-saddle-river-man-1.1303757

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RHS COLORGUARD TO HOLD WORSHOPS FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS

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April 0,2015

Ridgewood NJ, The weekly workshops are for girls in grades 6-8 who are interested in finding out more about the high school Colorguard.The workshops take place on Wednesdays through April 22, from 5-6 p.m. in the RHS Band Room. The concluding showcase performance is Thursday, April 23 at 7 p.m. Click here for more information

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Reader says At this point, every agenda item that this Council majority brings to the table is worthy of a second look

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file photo by Boyd Loving

In a broader sense, this issue is like many others in that we have a Council majority that meets separately from the entire Council and outside the public eye. They come to each Council meeting with their own agenda and publicly humiliate any non-majority Council member that questions or disagrees with their agenda.

Whether these 3 violate the Sunshine laws is a topic for another post. Or maybe a special prosecutor. Regardless, the sad truth is that Ridgewood is being run by 3 individuals that think they know better than the rest of us. They preach transparency while they exclude their constituents and Council mates from the governing process. They preach civility as they engage in petty name calling and public condescension. They insult our intelligence by acting this way and thinking that nobody notices such blatant hypocrisy.

Let’s hope that Ms. Knudsen and Mr. Sedon have the courage to stand up to these 3 every step of the way. At this point, every agenda item that this Council majority brings to the table is worthy of a second look

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Reader says Does anyone thinks it’s a coincidence the human resource and village manager are both from Bergen leads and this residency requirement is being changed when the hr person isn’t from ridgewood?

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Does anyone thinks it’s a coincidence the human resource and village manager are both from Bergen leads and this residency requirement is being changed when the hr person isn’t from ridgewood. Old friends from the bergen county program . Ridgewood owes a debt of gratitude to councilwoman knudsen for standing up for ridgewood residents when aronsohn, pucc and hack don’t care about the people they represent. What’s wrong there’s no one from ridgewood to fill these jobs.

Regardless of what the law might become, the fact is that these people are not willing to hire anyone now under the current law. That is outrageous. Holding off on hiring until they can change the law. Sounds like a massive lawsuit to me.

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Ridgewood mulls over automated parking garage idea

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APRIL 7, 2015    LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, APRIL 7, 2015, 9:31 AM
BY MARK KRULISH
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

With a dearth of places to build parking in downtown Ridgewood, officials may need to look at technological solutions to maximize the remaining space.

One of those solutions could come in the form of an automated parking system, which could potentially house more cars than a standard parking garage in the same amount of space.

Village Engineer Chris Rutishauser and his team gave a presentation on this kind of parking system – in which a patron drives into a stall, exits their vehicle and their car is automatically parked within the structure – at a Village Council meeting last month

Interest in automated parking systems has been spurred in recent weeks by a presentation made by Langan Development in early March, which proposed a type of automated parking as part of its development at North Walnut Street.

The Hudson Street lot, which is another desirable site for a parking structure, is also a candidate to receive automated parking if the village decides to go in that direction. Rutishauser described Hudson Street as a “tight site,” and an automated setup would allow the village to park significantly more cars.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/automated-garage-mulled-in-ridgewood-1.1304067

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Village sets ambitious street repair and resurfacing schedule for 2015

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file photo by Boyd Loving

April 07,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood  NJ, Ridgewood will be paving this spring and summer in two rounds with two separate contractors. The Village posted an updated schedule on March 26, 2015.

According to the Village website during 2015 the Village will embark on a very ambitious street resurfacing and repair schedule
staring this spring .

Ridgewood Street Resurfacing and Repair Program – 2015

For the 2015 street paving list

Click Here

For the criteria for paving and maintaining streets

Click Here

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Wall Street Journal: Castros Smelled Obama’s Weakness and Pounced

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Monday, 06 Apr 2015 01:44 PM
By Jennifer G. Hickey

As a consequence of President Barack Obama’s decision to chart a new course in U.S.-Cuban relations, Cuban dictator Raul Castro will attend this week’s Summit of the Americas with the upper hand and an opportunity to set the regional agenda, says Wall Street Journal columnist Mary Anastasia O’Grady.

“Repression is on the march in the Americas, and U.S. ambivalence is part of the problem. In the White House’s lack of moral clarity, the region’s bullies smell weakness. One result is that a Caribbean backwater run by gangster brothers now has the upper hand in setting the regional agenda,” writes O’Grady.

For the first time, Cuba was invited and chose not to boycott the event, which O’Grady says is a sign of how much damage the Obama administration has done to the cause of democracy in the region.

“Being outcasts made Raúl and Fidel Castro feel disrespected. So they pressured much of the rest of the region to say that if Cuba were again left out, they would boycott the event. In December Mr. Obama folded. It was a sign of how bad things are in the Americas. Authoritarian governments now rule in Nicaragua, El Salvador, Venezuela, Ecuador,

Evidence of Cuba’s anti-democratic actions was seen on Sunday when dissident Rosa Maria Paya was arrested on Sunday night at the airport in Panama, according to The London Telegraph.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com https://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Cuba-Raul-Castro-Americas-summit/2015/04/06/id/636706/#ixzz3WZFidlZe