The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
49% Consider Memorial Day One of the Most Important Holidays
Monday, May 28, 2012
Nearly half of Americans continue to rank Memorial Day as one of the nation’s most important holidays . A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just five percent (5%) of American Adults consider it one of the least important holidays, but 44% see it as somewhere in between.
Ridgewood Fourth of July Celebration
Evening Activities and Fireworks Tickets
Summer’s Best Entertainment Value
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Alternate Date – Thursday, July 5, 2012
Veterans Field, Ridgewood, New Jersey
July 4th in Ridgewood is a very special day that our entire area looks forward to all year. This year’s theme is “Born in New Jersey.” The Ridgewood Fourth of July Celebration Committee is an all-volunteer community group that coordinates the day’s events and does not receive direct funding from the Village of Ridgewood.
We are actively preparing for what we know will be a spectacular celebration, and it is vital that we have community support. Please consider helping to “Support the Tradition”. Because of generous support from the community, we have one of the best small town Independence Day celebrations.
While the Parade is free, Fireworks Tickets are required for entrance to Veterans Field. Donations for Fireworks Tickets are one of the Celebration’s largest sources of income. Ticket sales cover the evening entertainment which begins at 6:30pm, the fireworks at dark, as well as the bands in the parade, additional security and traffic control. Come early and enjoy some great entertainment.
For many years the cost of our tickets remained the same while our costs increased. In recent years we have had to increase our ticket prices. It was a decision that the Committee did reluctantly in the face of rising costs. To keep the ticket prices as reasonable as possible for attendees, while covering costs, pre-sales of tickets are being made available through a wide range of local businesses.
Tickets to the Evening Entertainment and Fireworks are now on sale at the locations below. Buy your tickets in advance for $8.00 and save over 50% off the gate price of $15.00 for adults ($10.00 for children 6 to 12).
Backyard Living- 235 Franklin Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-689-9111
Daily Treat- 177 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-652-9113
Goffle Brook Farm- 425 Goffle Road, Ridgewood, 201-652-7540
Harding Wines and Spirits- 305 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-445-7122
Herold’s Farm & Garden Center- 909 Prospect Street, Glen Rock, 201-445-0069
Hillman Electric- 133 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-652-1045
Hogan’s Restaurant Diner- 20 Central Avenue, Midland Park, 201-445-2849
Hoskins Propane, 523 Goffle Road, Ridgewood, 201-444-1950
JT’s Wines and Spirits- 607 N. Maple Avenue, Ho-Ho-Kus, 201-652-2220
La Strada- 231 Godwin Avenue, Midland Park- 201-670-9233
North Jersey Community Bank- 171 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-670-8484
Ridgewood Auto Wash Co.- 450 South Broad Street, Glen Rock, 201-444-6037
Ridgewood Cycle Shop- 35 North Broad Street, Ridgewood, 201-444-2553
The Wine Seller- 6 West Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, 201-444-3300.
Town & Country Apothecary- 60 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood- 201-652-0013.
Many thanks to our ticket vendors! All ticket vendors are volunteers and make no money for their efforts.
Tickets will also be on sale at the Ridgewood Library –Monday, June 25 through Saturday June 30 from 9:00am to 3:00pm; and Sunday, July 1 from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Thank you to the Hobbyists and HILT for being our volunteer ticket sellers!
At the gate tickets are $15.00 for adults, $10.00 for children ages 6 through 12. Children 5 and under are admitted free of charge.
Patrons and belongings are subject to security checks when entering Veterans Field.
Handicap parking for the Parade is available on Dayton Street behind Van Neste Park.
Very limited Handicap parking for the Evening Entertainment is available at the parking lot to the east of Veterans Field. Approach Veterans Field on Linwood Avenue from the east. Turn left onto Northern Parkway. Turn right into the parking lot. There are just a few spaces available on a first-come, first-serve basis. A police officer will be posted there to direct you. Those who park in the handicap spaces will not have access to their cars during the fireworks due to the location of the fireworks drop zone.
The Ridgewood Fourth of July Celebration began in 1910 when the local papers, the civic section of the Woman’s Club and the Ridgewood Fire Department joined forces to create a “safe and sane” holiday with an emphasis on Patriotism. It has grown into one of the largest celebrations in the New York City area and has been featured on CNN and Good Morning America as well as local New York stations. The celebration was once again named Best Parade and Fireworks by the readers of 201 Magazine.
Additional information and answers to many of your questions can be found on the Ridgewood Fourth of July Celebration’s website at www.ridgewoodjuly4th.org. Thank you for “Supporting the Tradition”.
Honoring the Fallen on Memorial Day
On the last Monday of May each year, we come together as a grateful nation to honor the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces who paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our great nation. Although nothing can ever replace loved ones who laid down their lives to protect the United States and its citizens, let us find strength in knowing that these brave souls perished while fighting in defense of our country’s founding principles.
On this solemn day, Americans across the country and around the world remember the courage and sacrifice of a few who protect the freedom and liberty of all. If it were not for their selfless dedication, their unwavering commitment to a cause greater than themselves, we would not be here to enjoy the freedoms we have today.
As we gather with friends and family to enjoy the long weekend and celebrate the start of summer, let us not lose sight of the real meaning of Memorial Day by honoring those lost on the field of battle. Be sure to fly your flag at half mast, visit a cemetery or local memorial in honor of those who died while serving, or volunteer to place flags on the headstones and graves at one of our national cemeteries. Whatever you do, let us not forget their sacrifice.
May God bless America and may God bless the men and women of the United States military.
Sincerely,
Scott Garrett
Memorial Day – Remembrance
On this Monday, Memorial Day, let’s take time to remember and honor all those who served in our military and those that serve today. Never forget the men and women who sacrificed and many who gave their lives so that we could have our freedom. As we remember them and say a heartfelt prayer for them all, try to get out and attend a parade locally so others see ‘We the People’ are out and about and want to be included in the remembrance.
MEMORIAL DAY SERVICE :American Legion Post 53
Memorial Park at Van Neste Square, May 28 at 11AM, American Legion Post 53 will present A Memorial Day Service to honor and eulogize all Ridgewood Veterans who gave their lives during war in the armed service of their country. All are invited to attend.
Monday, May 28 – Village Offices Closed
Village Hall Offices are closed in observance of Memorial Day. There will be no regularly scheduled garbage, recycling or yardwaste collection. Residents with Monday collection will have their garbage and recycling colleced on Tuesday.
How Google used tech to ‘pry into people’s lives’
David Streitfeld & Kevin J O’Brien | May 24, 2012, 06.39AM IST
After months of negotiation , Johannes Caspar, a German data protection official, forced Google to show him exactly what its Street View cars had been collecting from potentially millions of his fellow citizens. Snippets of e-mails , photographs , passwords, chat messages, postings on Web sites and social networks – all sorts of private internet communications – were casually scooped up as the specially equipped cars photographed the world’s streets.
“It was one of the biggest violations of data protection laws that we had ever seen,” Caspar recently recalled about that long-sought viewing in late 2010. “We were very angry.”
The 37th Annual Fred D’Elia Ridgewood Run
Mon, May 28, 2012
The 37th Annual Fred D’Elia Ridgewood Run ,Memorial Day, Monday May 28th 2012 , 8:30 AM at Veteran Memorail Field, Ridgewood, NJ, Ridgewood, NJ 07450 The event includes: Wheelchair 10K begining at 8:25 am, Wheelchair 5K beginning at 10:15 am, Men’s Elite Mile at 11:40 am, Womens Elite Mile at 11:15 am and the Ridgewood YMCA Fun Run at noon.
Registration can be completed though www.raceforum.com/ridgewood, by mail entry with check to North Jersey Masters at 348 S. Irving St. RIdgewood, NJ 07450 or in person at the RIdgewood Cycle Shop, Ridgewood YMCA, or Road Runner Sports in Paramus.
Awards and Prize Money are both up for grabs! Over 4,000 Runners Expected, Free Shirts, DJ, Refreshments, Massage Tent, and up to $5,000 in prize money available!
Road Closure Extended – Crossing from Ho-Ho-Kus Train Station into Ridgewood
Please be advised that the subject roadway crossing into the Borough of Ho-ho-kus from the Village of Ridgewood over the train tracks will be closed by New Jersey Transit for work on their crossing starting May 21, 2012 for a period of approximately 1 to 2 weeks. ***We have received new information that conditions were worse than expected causing the closure to continue into late June. The crossing will be closed during the duration of the work. The road will be closed with barricades and signs on both approaches (Ridgewood and Ho-ho-kus).
The work is the replacement of the track crossing area and some paving work on the approaches.
Pedestrian access across the tracks will be maintained during the road closing so that the walking commuters can get to the Ho-ho-kus Train Station.
Please share this information with those who travel in that area that utilize the subject crossing.
Number of the Week: Half of U.S. Lives in Household Getting Benefits
By Phil Izzo
49.1%: Percent of the population that lives in a household where at least one member received some type of government benefit in the first quarter of 2011.
Cutting government spending is no easy task, and it’s made more complicated by recent Census Bureau data showing that nearly half of the people in the U.S. live in a household that receives at least one government benefit, and many likely received more than one.
The 49.1% of the population in a household that gets benefits is up from 30% in the early 1980s and 44.4% as recently as the third quarter of 2008.
New Jersey Choral Society “Symphony of Voices”
The New Jersey Choral Society presents “symphony of voices”, the stunning finale to its 2011-2012 season, on Friday, June 1 at 8:00 pm at the West Side Presbyterian Church, 6 South Monroe Street, Ridgewood, NJ. The choir will be performing with world-class soloists Jessica Rivera and Mark Womack, the Connecticut Choral Society, and a symphonic orchestra of fifty-one musicians.
A second performance will be held on Sunday, June 3 at 3:00 pm at the Naugatuck Valley Community College Fine Arts Center in Waterbury, CT. Under the direction of dynamic conductor Eric Dale Knapp, the choir will present Ralph Vaughan Williams’ monumental work, “A Sea Symphony”. When it was first presented to British audiences in the early years of the twentieth century, “A Sea Symphony” marked the beginning of a new age of both philosophical thought and musical excellence.
Drawing from the poetry of Walt Whitman, Vaughan Williams embraced the idea of a sea voyage as a metaphor for the voyage through life of the human soul. Organist Linda Sweetman-Waters will perform the finale of Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Organ Symphony”. Guest soloist, soprano Jessica Rivera, has been established as one of the most creatively inspired vocal artists of today. Her voice has been praised by the San Francisco Chronicle for its “effortless precision and tonal luster”, and the New York Times calls her “vocally luminous”. Mark Womack, baritone soloist, continues to garner praise for his commanding vocal and dramatic interpretations, both in the operatic and theatrical worlds as well as that of the classical musician. He has been hailed for his “rich clear voice and good looks” by the Salt Lake Tribune, and as “strikingly warm, gracefully honey-toned,” by Opera News.
Come one hour prior to concert time for The Inside Line, a complimentary lecture about the music for all ticket holders. In support of the Center for Food Action, the New Jersey Choral Society will be collecting nonperishable food items at the Ridgewood concert. The Center for Food Action is a non-profit organization that provides emergency food, rental and utility assistance, counseling and advocacy for people in need.
Advance tickets for June 1 are $30.00 for general admission, $27.00 for students, seniors, and patrons with disabilities, and $12 for children 12 and under (Add $5.00 at the door). Group discounts are available. West Side Presbyterian Church is wheelchair accessible. For reservations or more information, visit https://www.NJCS.org or call the New Jersey Choral Society at (201) 379-7719. Funding has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts
House to examine plan for United Nations to regulate the Internet
By Brendan Sasso – 05/26/12 08:10 AM ET
House lawmakers will consider an international proposal next week to give the United Nations more control over the Internet.
The proposal is backed by China, Russia, Brazil, India and other UN members, and would give the UN’s International Telecommunication Union (ITU) more control over the governance of the Internet.
It’s an unpopular idea with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in Congress, and officials with the Obama administration have also criticized it.
“We’re quite concerned,” Larry Strickling, the head of the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, said n an interview with The Hill earlier this year.
Become the Memorial Day Grill Master
Memorial Day marks the start of the serious grilling season, and there’s no better weekend to try your hand at outdoor cooking, or bolster your established grill-master game. Luckily, honing your outdoor culinary skills is a lot more simple than it seems, given the right tools, a little preparation, and a few tips on technique. Here’s a look at some pointers on getting the right gear, turning out great meals, and even preparing for uncooperative weather.
https://lifehacker.com/392818/become-the-memorial-day-grill-master
“Remember, I am in the Army with many friends.”
— Felix Roque, mayor of West New York, N.J., in an email to a resident of the small town who had contributed information to an anonymous website advocating that Roque be recalled. Roque, 55, and son Joseph, 22, were arrested Thursday, charged with unauthorized access to computers. A co-conspirator identified only as a West New York public official was not charged. The younger Roque allegedly took down the recall website just a couple of days after it was created in February — after searching on Google for “hacking a Go Daddy site” and “html hacking tutorial” — as well as gained access to email and Facebook accounts of those involved with the site. According to the criminal complaint (PDF), the mayor then proceeded to try to intimidate the creators of recallroque.com, at one point telling one: “A friend of mine, he works in the — I can’t tell you — three letters: C.I.A. You know, that’s how I get information.” The Roques face up to 11 years in prison and $600,000 in fines. They were released on $100,000 bond each, according to the New York Times.
Christie accepts monitoring of Muslims
The New York City police did not violate New Jersey laws when they conducted cross-border surveillance of Muslim businesses, mosques and student groups, Gov. Chris Christie’s administration said Thursday.
The determination, by the state attorney general, concerned tactics of the New York Police Department like videotaping mosque-goers and collecting their license plate numbers.
Such operations were part of a Police Department program to collect intelligence on Muslim communities in New York and beyond, even when there was no evidence of a crime. (Associated Press)