Author: James

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Reader suggest “Civility ” meeting was violation of NJ Open Public Meetings Act

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file photo Boyd Loving

Reader suggest “Civility ” meeting was violation of NJ Open Public Meetings

Wait just a Ridgewood minute – Mayor Paul Aronsohn, Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli, and Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck all participated in this meeting. Isn’t that considered a quorum in terms of the Village Council? If so, why wasn’t this billed as an offical meeting of the Council, with minutes taken and legal notice given? A violation of the NJ Open Public Meetings Act or not? Matt Rogers where are you?

Ms Hauck has been counted before even when she was not present  . It is my understanding that there were two member of the council  hosting the meeting on civility last Monday. What is confusing is that the Deputy Mayor was in the audience and even took part in the conversation so I been told. If true does this now become a official public meeting  which should have been post in a timely manner ( not on Friday for a Mondaymeeting? ) Where there minuets taken and will they be available?  Can someone shed some light on this. Did the Deputy Mayor speak ?

But the Deputy Mayor only introduced himself  we are told , but its the spirit of the law that is still of concern?

Of course Mr. Pucciarelli was there, he is attached by a firm cable to Mr. Arohsohn Mr Arohsohn should keep his ATTACK DOG on a shorter leash. So was not the purpose of the Deputy Mayors presence to quell dissent , and intimidate people ?

The Deputy Mayor cannot for one moment pretend ignorance of the Sunshine Law. His adherence to the law was called into question early in his term – this gave him plenty of time to learn the law that he had been accused of breaking. The Village Attorney looked into the matter and decided that the DM had not violated the law at that time. Regardless, Mr. Pucciarelli knew full well that he should not speak last Monday night, but……………surprise surprise………….he spoke! Presto, the law was broken.

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Reader says “Civility” meeting, What a bunch of nonsense.

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file photo Boyd Loving

Reader says  “Civility” meeting, What a bunch of nonsense.

The mayor is simply taking a page out of the resident’s playbook, calling for civility only after he and his minions have already distorted the public discourse, intimidated or demonized well-meaning political opponents, and generally done the damage he intends to do.

Even this event is nothing more than a belligerent shot across the bow to those who would come to public meetings in the future and dare to voice a contrary view at the public microphone, or otherwise level any well-deserved criticism the Mayor’s way.
To his mind, now that we’ve gone and taken the trouble of having a silly public meeting about the need for ‘civility in public discourse’, we have established a new norm, in accordance with which anyone who goes to the microphone to disagree with or criticize the Mayor or his friends is, by definition, engaging in a social ‘taboo’, and will therefore have voluntarily opened themselves up to immediate public abuse from the elected official DuJour, shamelessly served with a culturally toxic side-dish of relish, impunity, and maddening condescension.

Problem solved!

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Reader says its time for Ridgewood to consider later start times for School

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Reader says its time for Ridgewood to consider later start times for School

The science on kids and sleep is the driver. The studies point to the need for more sleep, the fact that teens can’t physically go to sleep before 11 and the positive impact on the brain to getting 8hrs sleep.

School asks kids to be at their most alert when they are not, why not maximize the learning opportunities to the brain. A better educational experience is the best preparation for the real world.

It is more the science of sleep and impact on learning than preparation for a post-college life so the science is there…the test case in nearby Wilton, CT is there…when will Ridgewood start considering this?

Guilford weighs later start times for high school students
By Kate Ramunni
Posted: 11/29/14, 4:19 PM EST |

GUILFORD >> An extra hour of sleep is considered a luxury to most, but many say it’s a necessity for high school students. And now several school districts are considering giving that extra hour to its older students, not because they’re feeling magnanimous, but for the safety, physical and academic benefits that extra hour of sleep brings.

The Guilford Board of Education is one district contemplating the change. As the board begins its 2015-16 budget process, its list of priorities includes the investigation of the benefits of later starting times for the older students.

“It’s been on the table for years,” said Board of Education Chairman William Bloss. “It’s really driven by medical science — it seems like every year or two there is a study that describes the advantages to later start times for teens and how medically and educationally it is in the students’ best interest.”

https://www.nhregister.com/general-news/20141129/guilford-weighs-later-start-times-for-high-school-students

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Scientists hail the most ‘advanced anti-ageing serum’ in the world

woman hands using skin cream

Clinical trials over 18 months have already suggested that the product, named Geneu (pronounced ‘gene you’), reduces fine lines and wrinkles by up to 30 per cent within just 12 weeks

Scientists hail the most ‘advanced anti-ageing serum’ in the world

New research suggests skincare tailored to individuals’ DNA may be the best way to combat the appearance of ageing

By Sarah Knapton, Health Editor

7:00AM GMT 30 Nov 2014

Those who believe that beauty is only skin deep may need to think again.

A most advanced anti-ageing serum ever created is going far deeper in the pursuit of the ultimate skincare regime, right into our DNA.

By studying the genetic code, experts can discover how fast the body degrades collagen – the structural protein which keeps the skin plump and supple – and the level of antioxidants which protect against damaging free radicals.

Clinical trials over 18 months suggested that ‘Geneu’ – pronounced ‘gene you’ reduces fine lines and wrinkles by up to 30 per cent within just 12 weeks.

But, intriguingly, it has not been created by a cosmetics giant, but by one of Britain’s leading scientists.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11262873/Scientists-hail-the-most-advanced-anti-ageing-serum-in-the-world.html

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Democrats assail Wall Street ties in Obama administration

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Democrats assail Wall Street ties in Obama administration

By Peter Schroeder – 11/30/14 02:31 PM EST

President Obama’s nomination of Antonio Weiss to serve as the Treasury Department’s top domestic finance official is drawing fire from an unusual sector: his fellow Democrats.

Liberal lawmakers like Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have been quick to oppose Weiss, a major investment banker with Lazard.

Among their grievances is the fact that Lazard’s work is primarily in international finance and he is nominated for a domestic position. They’re also critical of his role in structuring several tax inversion deals, which have drawn criticism from the president himself.But an underlying thread to the Democratic opposition is a fatigue with filling top-ranking administration spots with officials that have spent significant time working for or on behalf of Wall Street titans. Warren penned an op-ed in The Huffington Post criticizing the administration’s approach under the headline “Enough is Enough.”

https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/225434-dems-assail-wall-street-ties-in-administration

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Obama Pushed ‘Fullest Extent’ of His Powers on Immigration Plan

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Obama Pushed ‘Fullest Extent’ of His Powers on Immigration Plan

By MICHAEL D. SHEAR and JULIA PRESTONNOV. 28, 2014

WASHINGTON — Months before President Obama took executive action last week to reshape the nation’s immigration system, Jeh C. Johnson, the secretary of Homeland Security, quietly convened a small group of advisers to explore the legal limits of the president’s powers.

Working in secrecy, Mr. Johnson’s team huddled for hours daily under orders to use “our legal authorities to the fullest extent” on a new deportations policy, a senior administration official said. In five White House meetings over the summer, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Obama, both lawyers, pored over proposed changes, eventually concluding that the president had the authority to enact changes that could affect millions of people and significantly alter the way immigration laws are enforced.

“I don’t think he wanted to be in the position of taking executive action,” Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, an advocacy group, said of Mr. Obama. “It was not the way he wanted to fix the system.” Nonetheless, “at the end of the day, he felt this was the only option he had.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/29/us/white-house-tested-limits-of-powers-before-action-on-immigration.html?_r=0

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Is it any wonder no one wants Chuck Hagel’s job?

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Is it any wonder no one wants Chuck Hagel’s job?

https://www.thenational.ae/opinion/comment/is-it-any-wonder-no-one-wants-chuck-hagels-job

Does anyone want Chuck Hagel’s old job? (AP Photo above /Mark Wilson, Pool)

First, Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed said ‘no’. He’s enjoying serving his constituents too much to consider leaving the Senate.

Then, former undersecretary of defence Michèle Flournoy announced she wasn’t interested either. She is committed to spending more time with her family.

Nobody, it would seem, wants to succeed the dismissed Chuck Hagel as Barack Obama’s defence secretary.

But who would want the job?

Given what Mr Hagel had to deal with, and what happened to him as a consequence, the downside of any such appointment is glaringly obvious.

Since the financial meltdown of 2008, it’s almost universally agreed that significant budget cuts are essential to restore the American economy. Cuts in military spending are an indispensable component of this because the overall share of the Armed Forces’ funding is at least 17 per cent, which is a significant part of annual government spending. Many believe that 17 per cent is a gross underestimate.

It is often said that the Pentagon is effectively the largest corporation in the United States. It is also one of America’s biggest employers, of both uniformed and civilian personnel. In such circumstances, one of the key tasks of any defence secretary is to preside over some pretty ruthless downsizing.

The pain is even greater because in this case the expenditures are public rather than private. Jobs are lost every time a base closes, a contract cancelled, or a deployment scrapped. Mr Hagel was initially brought in partly to oversee another phase in this politically damaging process.

His successor will be the fourth defence secretary to preside over the giant rollback.

As the process moves on, it becomes more difficult, and the cuts more controversial. Indeed, Mr Hagel was reportedly upset that Mr Obama did not fight harder in Congress to secure the Pentagon’s budget.

https://ibishblog.com/2014/11/29/is-it-any-wonder-no-one-wants-chuck-hagels-job/

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Meteorologists: Cuomo’s weather claims are all wet

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Meteorologists: Cuomo’s weather claims are all wet
Nov 29, 11:38 AM (ET)

By DAVID KLEPPER

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants New York to create the nation’s best weather monitoring system, one more robust than even the National Weather Service and more capable of predicting events like the snowstorm that buried parts of the Buffalo area under 7 feet of snow.

But although Cuomo’s $18.7 million initiative will help the state respond to events like floods or wildfires, it’s unlikely to live up to his grander expectations, meteorologists say.

To accurately predict lake-effect snowfall in western New York, the state would need weather satellites and a supercomputer to handle complicated weather modeling, plus monitoring stations in the Midwest and Canada, said Christopher Vaccaro of the National Weather Service.

“It will definitely help with short-term weather,” Vaccaro said of Cuomo’s idea. “But when you’re forecasting three days in advance for lake-effect snow, it’s not really going to be helpful.”

(AP) In this Nov. 24, 2014 file photo, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, right, helps…
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Cuomo picked a fight with the weather service following the storm in Buffalo, saying the federal agency failed to predict its intensity and timing. His comments prompted meteorologists Al Roker and Jim Cantore to defend the accuracy and precision of the weather service’s forecasts.

The day before the storm hit, the agency correctly predicted a “historic” storm that would bring feet of snow and localized snowfall rates of 3 to 5 inches per hour.

“Seems like (Cuomo’s) folks didn’t look” at the forecasts, Roker tweeted.

Don Paul, chief meteorologist at WIVB-TV in Buffalo, wrote that “Cuomo’s attempt to scapegoat the National Weather Service for an inaccurate forecast in advance is not only completely in error — the NWS did an outstanding job — but is a disservice to the public and to the hardworking staff of this federal agency.”

Cuomo later said he never meant to offend forecasters, adding that weather service meteorologists “perform the best they can with the information they have.” He said he was just trying to highlight the value of the state’s new weather service — which he said in January would be “the most advanced weather detection system in the nation.”

https://apnews.myway.com/article/20141129/us–new_york_weather_service-b6098f4c48.html

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Bricks-and-mortar sales edge lower at start of holiday season; online surges: data

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Bricks-and-mortar sales edge lower at start of holiday season; online surges: data

Reuters

(Reuters) – U.S. shoppers spent slightly less money at brick-and-mortar stores on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday than across the same two days in 2013, while online sales surged to record highs, data showed on Saturday.

Sales at retail stores totaled about $12.29 billion on Thursday and Friday, down 0.5 percent from the $12.35 billion spent last year, according to estimates by ShopperTrak. The research firm stuck by its forecast for November and December sales to increase 3.8 percent.

The data highlights the waning importance of Black Friday, which until a few years ago kicked off the holiday shopping season, as more retailers open their doors on Thanksgiving Day and start discounting earlier in the month.

It also points to the intense price competition among retailers, which have been discounting by 40 to 70 percent this year compared with 30 to 50 percent in the recent past, ShopperTrak founder Bill Martin told Reuters.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/bricks-mortar-sales-edge-lower-start-holiday-season-000828754–business.html

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The Name-Dropper: Franklin Turnpike

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William Frenklin not Ben ( Actor Barry Stevens)

The Name-Dropper: Franklin Turnpike

November 27, 2014    Last updated: Thursday, November 27, 2014, 1:21 AM
By JEFFREY PAGE
SPECIAL TO THE RECORD |
The Recor

Who was Lee of Fort Lee, Votee of Votee Park and Merritt of Camp Merritt? The Name-Dropper gives you the lowdown on some of the people whose names you see on public statues, memorial plaques, park signs, highways and even some local streets around North Jersey. Have suggestions? Email them to [email protected] and put Name-Dropper in the subject field.

Everybody knows that Franklin Turnpike was named for the grand old man of the American Revolution, Benjamin Franklin, right?

You remember Ben, the heavyset guy who flew that kite in the electrical storm, who invented bifocals and the concept of the lending library. Ben, who told us: “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”

Caution: Don’t bet on Ben. Truth is that the turnpike, an important north-south route through parts of Bergen County, was not named for Ben, not for Aretha, not for FDR and certainly not for Moe, who played 61 games for the Detroit Tigers in the early 1940s.

The Franklin in question was Ben’s illegitimate son, William, whose politics were far removed from his dad’s. Ben was part of the Colonial revolution. William was a staunch loyalist and, in fact, the Colonial governor of New Jersey for 13 years, appointed in 1762 by no less than King George III. It was during this period that the turnpike was developed and named for William. Franklin Lakes is also named for the former governor.

William made no secret of his loyalist leanings and his devotion to the king. And in William, King George clearly had a man he could trust. In William’s appointment, the king granted remarkable authority to his new governor: “We do hereby give and grant unto you full power and authority to suspend any of the members of our said council from sitting, voting and assisting therein if you shall find just cause for so doing.”

Later in the appointment document George said: “And you shall and may likewise from time to time as you shall judge it necessary adjourn, prorogue [discontinue] and dissolve all general assemblies as aforesaid.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/ben-franklin-turnpike-not-so-fast-it-s-named-for-his-illegitimate-son-1.1142587

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Christmas – The Joy and Spirit at Bethlehem Lutheran Church

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Christmas – The Joy and Spirit at Bethlehem Lutheran Church

Ridgewood NJ, Celebrate the Christmas Season at Bethlehem With Greg Caldarone and The NJ Brass Quintet Sunday Dec. 7 at 3:00PM This concert will feature classic and contemporary Christmas songs and instrumentals plus a carol sing along. Greg Caldarone and The New Jersey Brass Quintet, accompanied by Bethlehem’s organist and pianist Elena Crudge, will perform a free concert “Christmas: The Joy and Spirit 2014”.
Come celebrate this joyous time of year with old classics and contemporary Christmas favorites. The NJ Brass Quintet is a fabulous ensemble that will immediately give you that warm wonderful feeling of an old fashioned Christmas. Greg Calderone will feature some classic Christmas songs as well as some newer ones. Invite your friends and neighbors to this concert. It’s a wonderful way to celebrate the Christmas season!

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Black Self-Sabotage

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Black Self-Sabotage
Walter E. Williams | Jul 31, 2013

If we put ourselves into the shoes of racists who seek to sabotage black upward mobility, we couldn’t develop a more effective agenda than that followed by civil rights organizations, black politicians, academics, liberals and the news media. Let’s look at it.

First, weaken the black family, but don’t blame it on individual choices. You have to preach that today’s weak black family is a legacy of slavery, Jim Crow and racism. The truth is that black female-headed households were just 18 percent of households in 1950, as opposed to about 68 percent today. In fact, from 1890 to 1940, the black marriage rate was slightly higher than that of whites. Even during slavery, when marriage was forbidden for blacks, most black children lived in biological two-parent families. In New York City, in 1925, 85 percent of black households were two-parent households. A study of 1880 family structure in Philadelphia shows that three-quarters of black families were two-parent households.

During the 1960s, devastating nonsense emerged, exemplified by a Johns Hopkins University sociology professor who argued, “It has yet to be shown that the absence of a father was directly responsible for any of the supposed deficiencies of broken homes.” The real issue, he went on to say, “is not the lack of male presence but the lack of male income.” That suggests marriage and fatherhood can be replaced by a welfare check.

https://townhall.com/columnists/walterewilliams/2013/07/31/black-selfsabotage-n1651550/page/full

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Photo Project: ” Ridgewood’s 60+ Population”

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Dom Nizza

Ridgewood  Photo Project: ” Ridgewood’s 60+ Population”

The purpose of this photography project is to highlight the lives of residents over 60 yrs. old, who have stayed in Ridgewood even after raising children.

We are seeking beginner or professional-level photographs of 60+ residents that portray the variety of reasons people over 60 yrs. old do chose to stay in our Village. They can be at social events, at work, or play, at sporting events, at clubs, committees, concerts, restaurants, downtown, etc….

Also, in individual, group, only-senior, or in intergenerational settings…….

A kick-off event will take place at 12 Noon, November 18, in The Senior Center at the Village Hall. A professional photographer will explain photography tips for novices and cameras (donated by Wholesale Camera in Midland Park) will be available for anyone who needs a loaner camera.

Photographs must be submitted by December 21, 2014 to the Ridgewood Village Hall Clerk’s office or sent electronically to [email protected]. Submit photos as often as you want. A editing team will select the best photos for the Final Project. These photos will be made into a slideshow and a book to be displayed at the Ridgewood Library and in the Community Center in February, 2015.

“One picture is worth a thousand words!” 50 photos should tell a lot about the 3500 seniors who live in Ridgewood; their friends, families and connections……

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Ridgewood Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration!

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Ridgewood Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration
Fri, December 05, 2014
Time: 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM
East Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood NJ
Event Description

Come to Ridgewood to start your Holiday season!
Join us on Friday, December 5, 2014

SANTA arrives on Saturday, December 6, 2014..
comes up E. Ridgewood Ave. and goes to Columbia Bank 10am-1pm…pictures and gifts for all the kids!

Starting at 5:30pm
Santa in Memorial Park at Van Neste Square
Live Entertainment on E. Ridgewood Ave.

7:00-8:00pm
On Stage
Live Entertainment & Tree Lighting Celebration

8:00-9:00pm
Santa in the Park
Live Entertainment
more merriement!

Thank You Sponsors:
Columbia Bank,
The Valley Hospital,
Van Dyk Health Care,
The Ridgewood News,
Prestige Motors,
Camp Wekeela,
The Originals Salon
Atlantic Stewardship Bank
The Original Salon Inc.
Precision Orthodontics
From the Top Music Studio,
Art of Motion,
Porch Light Production,
Little Ivy Learning Center,
YMCA of Ridgewood
Janjigian Trading Co., Inc.
CareOne Ridgewood Avenue
West Bergen Mental Healthcare
Huntington Learning Center
C. C. Van Emburgh Funeral Home
Ulrich, Inc.
Duxiana
Huntington Learning Centers
Panico Hair Salon-Ridgewood
Daily Treat
Country Pancake House and Restaurant
It’s Greek to Me
Dr. Frances McGorty
Moxie Blowdry & Beauty Bar
Ridgewood Press
Please say “thank you” to these business for
keeping the “tradition” in Ridgewood.

Breakfast with Santa, The Office Beer Bar & Grill
Saturday 12/6/14 – 8am-10am
Saturday, 12/13 & 12/20 8am-12Noon
call for reservation 201-652-1070.

Store Specials during this event:
Alex and Ani with hot chocolate, holiday cookies and a gift with purchase of $75 or more.

For more details, please call us at 201-445-2600 or email [email protected] www.experienceridgewood.com

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