Ridgewood Council still considering plans for Schedler property
Tuesday November 26, 2013, 10:25 AM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
Concerns and comments on the future of the currently unused Schedler property should be directed to Ridgewood’s governing body, Councilman Tom Riche recently said, and all residents’ remarks will be considered when the council finally begins its formal discussions regarding future use of the land.
The council has not indicated when it will start those conversations, though chatter on the topic at public meetings has become increasingly prevalent.
At a council meeting in October, Riche encouraged residents to pose Schedler questions to the council after he met and consulted with the Ridgewood Historic Preservation Committee. His request also came on the heels of demands made earlier last month by Schedler neighbors.
At least two Ridgewood residents attending an Oct. 9 council meeting adamantly opposed the most recent schematics for a baseball diamond and multi-purpose playing field suggested for the densely wooded 7-plus acre parcel. The pair petitioned the governing body to reject the site recommendations filed last year by the Open Space Committee.
Ridgewood Police Issue Residential Diversion Theft Alert
November 25,2013
from the Ridgewood Police
Ridgewood NJ, On November 22, 2013 a Highwood Avenue resident reported that she had a male party come to her door claiming to be from gas and Water Company. He advised her that she should have received notice of an appointment to check her water and gas lines. The victim allowed him into the home. The male then distracted the victim having her check the water in the kitchen and he went upstairs and removed jewelry in a pillow case. The actor is described as a white or Hispanic male, 20-30 years old 5’9” with slight beard, wearing a white hard hat and safety vest. The matter is under investigation by the Ridgewood Detective Bureau.
“Heavy Drop” slows down Village Leaf Pick Up
November 23,2013
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, According to the Village Hall website ,”Due to the heavy drop of leaves we are currently running about 4 days behind schedule. Right now we are in Area D and will finish by Monday. We will begin Area A on Tuesday, November 26th and continue until after Thanksgiving. We will not get to Area B before Thanksgiving.”
So we decided to take a ride around the Village and see for our self’s . And yes no surprise but the leaves piles towered over our car and work crews were hard at working playing catch up .
NJT EXTRA RAIL AND BUS SERVICE SET FOR THANKSGIVING TRAVELERS
Kids ride free on NJ TRANSIT all holiday weekend
November 22, 2013
NEWARK, NJ — NJ TRANSIT is offering additional trains and buses over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend to make it even easier for customers to connect with family and friends, travel to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, or get started on holiday shopping at various malls throughout the state.
This year, NJ TRANSIT will once again offer “early getaway” rail and bus service on Wednesday, November 27, for the benefit of customers leaving work early, and to provide additional capacity for customers traveling to Newark Liberty International Airport. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is typically the airport rail station’s busiest day of the year, with ridership levels about twice that of a typical weekday.
On Thanksgiving Day, November 28, NJ TRANSIT will add extra trains and buses to the schedule in the morning and midday hours to accommodate customers traveling to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Then on Friday, November 29, traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year, enhanced bus service will be offered to shopping centers throughout New Jersey and additional trains will operate to and from New York.
NJ TRANSIT customer service representatives and volunteers will be deployed at major facilities throughout the holiday weekend to assist customers with their travels.
For complete schedule and fare information, customers may visit njtransit.com or call 973-275-5555.
On Wednesday, November 27, trains will operate on a weekday schedule on all lines with additional “early getaway” service from New York Penn Station, Newark Penn Station and Hoboken Terminal starting at 1 p.m. on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley, Morris & Essex, Pascack Valley and Port Jervis lines. Newark Light Rail, Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and River Line will operate on a weekday schedule. Bus schedules vary by route—customers are advised to check their timetables or visit njtransit.com for schedule information. Selected routes will operate on special holiday schedules to match service with ridership demand, including early getaway service from the Port Authority Bus Terminal between noon and 4:30 p.m. to accommodate the heaviest travel, with less frequent service during the peak periods and later in the evening due to lower ridership. Special holiday timetables are available on njtransit.com.
On Thanksgiving Day, November 28, trains will operate on a weekend/major holiday schedule. To accommodate customers traveling to and from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, NJ TRANSIT will add extra trains on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley, Morris & Essex and Port Jervis lines. Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will operate on a weekend schedule; Newark Light Rail and River Line will operate on a Sunday schedule. Holiday bus schedules vary by route—bus customers are advised to visit njtransit.com. Selected bus routes will operate extra service to and from the Port Authority Bus Terminal for customers traveling to the parade. Special service on the No. 111 bus route from New York to the Jersey Gardens Mall will begin operating at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving night.
On Friday, November 29, one of the busiest shopping days of the year, trains will operate on a modified weekday schedule on all rail lines with additional New York-bound trains between 10 a.m. and noon on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast and Morris & Essex lines. Customers are encouraged to travel early, if possible, when ridership is light. Select morning peak period trains on the Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Line will not operate on Friday, due to expected light ridership—customers should visit njtransit.com and use the “Station-to-Station Trip Planner” to find trains on Friday. Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will operate on a weekend schedule. Newark Light Rail will operate on a Saturday schedule. River Line will operate on a weekday schedule. Holiday bus schedules vary by route—customers are advised to visit njtransit.com.
Extra bus service to New Jersey malls
Starting Friday, November 29 and continuing through December 24, NJ TRANSIT will offer additional bus service to major New Jersey shopping destinations to accommodate extended store hours and busy shopping times throughout the day. Throughout the holiday shopping season, extra trips or expanded service will be offered on several bus routes serving malls and shopping centers throughout the state, including Garden State Plaza, IKEA Paramus, Jersey Gardens, Livingston Mall, Harmon Meadow/Mill Creek in Secaucus, Willowbrook Mall, Wayne Towne Center Mall and West Belt Mall. Note: Special service on the No. 111 bus route from New York to the Jersey Gardens Mall will begin operating at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving night,
November 28.
Kids ride free on NJT
For the Thanksgiving holiday, NJ TRANSIT’s Family Super Saver Fare, which allows up to two children 11 and younger to travel free with each fare-paying adult, will be in effect from 7 p.m. Wednesday, November 27 until 6 a.m. Monday, December 2.
Travel tips
Check Schedules in Advance: Additional service will be provided on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Plan your trip online to take advantage of extra trains and buses.
Travel Early on Friday, November 29: On Friday, NJ TRANSIT rail lines will operate on a modified weekday schedule with additional trains during the late morning hours. Avoid the crowds by traveling during the traditional peak-period (6-9 a.m.) when ridership is light.
Allow Extra Travel Time: Traffic congestion during the holidays may affect bus travel times to and from New York City, so customers should plan accordingly.
Ticketing: Purchase round-trip tickets at the start of your trip to speed your return. Use ticket vending machines or see a ticket agent, if available, to avoid possible surcharges. Bus customers departing Port Authority Bus Terminal are reminded that tickets must be purchased before boarding the bus.
Luggage: Travel as light as possible. Passengers with luggage or packages should use the overhead racks or designated luggage spaces. On multilevel trains, customers with large bags should use the mezzanine levels at the ends of each car.
Almost 80 million with employer health care plans could have coverage canceled, experts predict
By Jim Angle ,Published November 26, 2013 ,FoxNews.com
Almost 80 million people with employer health plans could find their coverage canceled because they are not compliant with ObamaCare, several experts predicted.
Their losses would be in addition to the millions who found their individual coverage cancelled for the same reason.
Stan Veuger of the American Enterprise Institute said that in addition to the individual cancellations, “at least half the people on employer plans would by 2014 start losing plans as well.” There are approximately 157 million employer health care policy holders.
Avik Roy of the Manhattan Institute added, “the administration estimated that approximately 78 million Americans with employer sponsored insurance would lose their existing coverage due to the Affordable Care Act.”
Last week, an analysis by the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, showed the administration anticipates half to two-thirds of small businesses would have policies canceled or be compelled to send workers onto the ObamaCare exchanges. They predicted up to 100 million small and large business policies could be canceled next year.
According to projections the administration itself issued back in July 2010, it was clear officials knew the impact of ObamaCare three years ago.
In fact, according to the Federal Register, its mid-range estimate was that by the end of 2014, 76 percent of small group plans would be cancelled, along with 55 percent of large employer plans.
All eyes on N.J. as online casino gambling rolls out
Online gambling in the U.S. today takes what industry experts say is the most significant step yet — the rollout of online casino gambling in New Jersey.
Nevada residents and visitors have been able to play state-sanctioned online poker since April, and those in Delaware have had that option since last month. (Brennan/The Record)
The New Economic Development – Not All of Us Can Be Hipsters
Pushing well-prepared urban students toward higher-education is one way to establish a home-grown creative class
Economic development used to be a fairly simple affair. States and cities would tout their plans for economic development by rolling out tax incentives, land swaps, trade missions (yes, some cities had trade missions), and efforts to improve the local quality of life (parks, neighborhood security).
These people- and capital-attraction policies can be useful tools for economic development. Increasingly, though, experienced practitioners will tell you that developing local economies is becoming a very complicated business. While attraction policies still have influence, the real base of economic development is inviting and nurturing talented residents who can drive the not-so-new information economy. (Anglin/NJSpotlight)
Commissioner Faces Difficult Choice on Coverage Option Offered by Obama
Experts say Kobylowski must balance wishes of NJ consumers with what works best for insurance marketplace
New Jersey Commissioner of Banking and Insurance Kenneth Kobylowski is weighing whether to allow thousands of state residents to keep their recently cancelled health insurance plans.
The decision will have major policy and political implications over the next year. (Kitchenman/NJSpotlight)
Thu, December 05, 2013 ,Time: 7:30 PM – 9:30 PM
Huntington Learning Center, 75 North Maple Ave, Ridgewood, 07450
Huntington Learning Center is having an SAT PARTY on Thursday, December 5th from 7:30-9:30pm. This is a free party for any high school students who are signed up for the December SAT or any of the upcoming winter/spring SAT tests.
There will be games(such as SAT Jeopardy), pizza, prizes and raffles (including gift certificates and free SAT instruction).
TRENTON — Is it time for the counties to take control of beaches — and beach badges — away from Shore towns?
Democrats in the Legislature say yes. Their argument: If Shore towns gave up control of their beaches, it would clear the way for a regional approach to fortifying against storms. There could be a single beach badge issued by the county, good in any town, and local officials would no longer have to worry about maintaining and policing the tourist hot spots.
Bill A-3891 from Democrats was advanced Monday by the Assembly Environment Committee in a party-line vote. A Senate committee approved the bill in April. Next up are votes by the full Assembly and Senate. (Jordan/Asbury Park Press)
TRENTON — State lawmakers are looking to upgrade the penalties for dealing drugs such as heroin, LSD and methamphetamine by letting prosecutors press charges based on the number of doses, rather than the drug’s weight.
The bill, whose primary sponsors include Assembly members DiAnne Gove and Brian Rumpf, R-Ocean, was advanced Monday by the Assembly Judiciary Committee, sending it to the full Assembly for possible consideration. A companion bill in the Senate hasn’t yet had a hearing.
The bill is intended to increase penalties for drug distribution, not possession. For instance, it would become a first-degree offense to have one ounce or more of heroin with the intent to distribute, rather than the current five ounces, or 500 units of cocaine or heroin. (Symons/Asbury Park Press)
Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt Coming to Ridgewood in 2014
November 22, 2013
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt, owned by Orange Leaf Holdings LLC in Oklahoma, has announced that it will open two New Jersey franchises in spring 2014, one n Hoboken and Ridgewood.Orange Leaf bills itself ultimate dessert experience with a unique blend of “choose-your-own toppings”.
Orange Leaf is currently promoting three limited-time-only winter frozen yogurt flavors: Chocolate Mint, Peppermint and new White Chocolate Mint. To celebrate the season’s frosty temperatures, the winter flavors will be available at Orange Leaf stores nationwide during the months of November and December.
Ridgewood businessman Paresh Patel will operate both franchises, the first of six the company expects to open in New Jersey by 2017. Patel also owns Galaxy Pharmacy in Guttenberg.
Orange Leaf’s New Jersey plans are part of its overall aggressive growth plans for the U.S. and internationally. The company has 93 stores under construction and 331 committed to open based on signed contracts, doubling the store count from more than 300 stores to more than 600 stores in the next few years. Orange Leaf’s website lists the total turnkey investment in a U.S. franchise at “less than $400,000.”
‘Modified’ tailgating at MetLife for Super Bowl
Monday, November 25, 2013 Last updated: Monday November 25, 2013, 6:24 PM
Associated Press
EAST RUTHERFORD — Tailgating will be allowed in the parking lot at MetLife Stadium for February’s Super Bowl, in a modified capacity.
In other words, don’t expect to bring your deluxe grill to the festivities. In fact, don’t bring any kind of grill unless you want to be turned away at the entrance.
The National Football League won’t allow grills in the parking areas at the Meadowlands sports complex on game day. League spokesman Brian McCarthy said Monday that’s a standard rule that’s been employed at previous Super Bowls.
Published reports last week suggested tailgating might not be allowed. But McCarthy said fans can bring their own food and beverages as long as they don’t bring a grill or spread out taking up empty parking spots as many fans do at New York Giants and New York Jets games.
The complex has more than 25,000 parking spots available for a typical Giants or Jets game, but more than half of those will be taken up by security and television equipment, organizers have said.
A good read, and important information for Ridgewood residents to familiarize themselves with if our school district is to avoid remaining mired in the political and cultural trap that is the Common Core State Standards Initiative…
November 25, 2013 The Progressive Myth of Creativity
By Bruce Deitrick Price
Creativity has been a big theme in progressive education for more than 75 years: We are constantly lectured (see https://www.americanthinker.com/2012/06/progressive_educations_war_on_knowledge.html) that kids need music, art, theater, etc. This theme is now metastasizing into an oppressive dogma. But, why?
Ken Robinson, the guru of creativity, is famous for saying “We are educating people out of their creative capacities.” (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY) The premise seems to be: if kids do arty things, they will end up being artists. Empirically untrue. Conversely, Robinson says that if children do something rigorous and academic, they will be prevented from being creative. Dangerously untrue.
Rearranging knowledge in new ways is arguably the very essence of creativity. (see https://anniemurphypaul.com/2012/11/the-false-dichotomy-between-facts-and-creativity/) It follows that the systematic acquisition of knowledge is one of the best things you can do if you want to be creative. (see https://www.supermemo.com/articles/20rules.htm)
Furthermore, there are habits of mind or consciousness that can be developed only through practice and discipline. It’s always been understood that students learn by mastering basic skills and then by completing more and more difficult projects, not empty make-believe projects, but real projects such as speaking French, understanding American History, or figuring out how computers work.
Professor Robert Weisberg wrote a book called “Creativity, Genius and other Myths” where he stated: “There is evidence that deep immersion is required in a discipline before you produce anything of great novelty….There is this concept that genius has leaps of insight way beyond everybody else. If you look at the background of these people, there is much more of a progression. They don’t make leaps — they build in small pieces.” In short, Weisberg says that drills do not stifle creativity. They engender it. (see https://www.improve-education.org/id39.html)
It’s fascinating to observe how many famous writers started off as doctors and lawyers. What could be less creative than a premed and medical curriculum? What could be more stifling than studying to be a lawyer?
John Grisham, Erle Stanley Gardner, Scott Turow, Wallace Stevens, Henry Fielding, Louis Auchincloss, David Baldacci worked as lawyers. There is nobody more creative than Wallace Stevens.
Zane Grey, Anton Chekhov, Robert Ripley, Michael Creighton, Somerset Maugham, Arthur Conan Doyle, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Robin Cook, and William Carlos Williams were doctors.
Question for education professors: Anthony Trollope was a postal inspector. He wrote three hours each morning before going off to work. He published 47 novels. How would you propose to make Trollope more creative?
Let’s stipulate that creativity is a good thing and should be encouraged. So are sports a good thing; but nobody proposes that we transform schools into gymnasiums. The problem is Ken Robinson’s overstatement “Creativity now is as important in education as literacy, and we should treat it with the same status.” The next sound you hear will be children struggling to read, and traditional textbooks being tossed in the trash.
The pattern for the last century is that our Education Establishment is always looking for ways to justify dismissal of the traditional curriculum. One day they’ll assert straight out that academics are a waste of time. The next day they’ll argue slyly that we need to devote more time to nonacademic goals, such as creativity, critical thinking, or dressing for success.
The key to understanding all this confusion is to note that “progressive” educators are socialist educators. They want children to end up more or less equal (a result which they call social justice). So they pretend to care about creativity. But what they really care about is making sure that little time is left for children to learn who George Washington was.
Ken Robinson made a famous speech about creativity several years ago. (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U) He railed against the so-called “factory method of education.” One video has been viewed 11 million times. There are only 3 million teachers in the US. Apparently, our Education Establishment loves the message in this speech and forces it on everyone. “Factory method” is code for children going to class on time, sitting at desks, and memorizing stuff. “Factory method” is what most education has been for thousands of years, long before there was a factory. Such schools are orderly and designed to achieve educational progress. That seems to be what progressive educators can’t stand.
Robin Eubanks, an attorney who wrote the new book “Credentialed to Destroy: How and Why Education Became a Weapon,” sees the road to serfdom everywhere in our educational system. In a recent blog she wrote: “Only an electronic color billboard in Times Square could be more explicit. It is indeed slam dunk time in our effort to show that the education reforms known as Common Core or 21st Century Skills or social and emotional learning are actually a means of gaining much broader transformations.”
That would be the same “fundamental transformation” that Barack Obama bragged of achieving. That would be the drive to impose socialism on this country.
Does that strike you as something new? It’s not. John Dewey launched this offensive a century ago. (see https://www.americanthinker.com/2012/10/john_dewey_is_a_fraud.html) Our Education Establishment is defined by this offensive. A word to the wise: whatever these people recommend is probably designed to do the exact opposite of what they claim. More creativity? No, you’ll just be an ignorant serf.
Robin Eubanks wants a different future: “Unfettered by government seeking to restrict what any American can know or do, we can prosper again.”
Finally, can creativity even be taught? John Saxon who created Saxon Math and other highly successful curricula, famously said that creativity cannot be taught. All you can do is create a context where creativity can express itself. (see https://www.rightsidenews.com/2012062223739/life-and-science/health-and-education/the-legend-of-john-saxon-math-warrior.html)
But I’ve often wondered, if creativity could be taught, how do you do it? Speaking as a writer and painter, I don’t think you teach ordinary students to be creative by having them do so-called creative things. What then? What would fit in with elementary school subjects and work for everyone? I start thinking about mazes and optical illusions, puzzles and riddles. I start thinking about checkers, bingo, Chinese checkers, and card games such as as Go Fish and War. And let’s not forget simple machines, models, electric circuits, and tools. Especially let’s not forget Aesop’s fables and maxims of all kinds. (Why is it true that a stitch in time saves nine??) Kids do most of these things for fun. They stimulate the mind to be more flexible and opportunistic. You see problems, you try to solve them. So it would be easy to build an enjoyable “creativity curriculum” from toys and games, a curriculum that would encourage creativity and logic, and as well arithmetic and reading.
Bruce Deitrick Price explains education theories and methods on his site Improve-Education.org
Page Printed from: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/../2013/11/the_progressive_myth_of_creativity.html at November 25, 2013 – 10:41:04 AM CST
Reader says Despite being ‘on the village calender’ the street department MISSED area B COMPLETELY
The leaves still don’t get picked up on even close to reasonable schedule.
Despite being ‘on the village calender’ the street department MISSED area B COMPLETELY the weeks of October 8 and 16th despite the posted schedule. We got picked up once and the whole area looks like crap.
Maybe we should hire private contractors (just like the snow removal) . They seem to do a very good job.
We would not have the massive piles if those in charge didn’t skimp on the manpower and did the job when the piles were smaller.
The large piles, used as lame excuses, are there because the street department MISSED the scheduled removal. Since they cant blame superstorm sandy or the October storm they try to bluff the residents with these big piles that are their own creation. A tree has the same amount of leaves every year. In fact since we have FEWER trees due to the hurricane, leaf removal SHOULD have been easier.
