Category: Village of Ridgewood

Flu hits North Jersey
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
BY  BARBARA WILLIAMS
STAFF WRITER
The Record

Keep your hands out of the party mix.

The flu is spreading rapidly in North Jersey, and tossing that fistful of snacks into your mouth just might give you more than some pretzels and nuts — like one of the handful of influenza strains circulating among youngsters, college students and the elderly.

Influenza activity is at a high level, according to the state health department, a vast difference from last year, when the flu season never really ramped up and few residents were infected with the virus.

“We are escalating to a kind of activity level considered by New Jersey standards as high,” said Dr. Gary Munk, director of clinical virology at Hackensack University Medical Center. “It’s remarkable — we went from seeing no cases to these heightened levels early in the season.”

During the first week of December, New Jersey physicians said they were starting to see the first cases of influenza, but two weeks later the number of patients complaining of flu-like symptoms jumped significantly. Doctors attributed the rise to the refusal of many residents to get vaccinated.

“It’s a willful ignorance — they believe the vaccine will make them sick,” said Dr. Thomas Birch, president of the medical staff at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck. “But if someone feels like they have a cold after getting the vaccine, it’s just a coincidence. The vaccine doesn’t cause illness.”

Despite the prevalence of the illness in several schools, Dr. Jeffrey Bienstock, director of pediatrics at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, said he’s seeing reluctance on the part of some parents to have their children vaccinated.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/184730821_Flu_hits_North_Jersey.html

Readers takes an unconventional view of of the Connecticut School Shooting
December 23,2012
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, A readers pointed out a creepy idea and reminded us that Al Qaeda in the past has targeted schools and school children .

On September 1, 2004, Beslan’s Secondary School Number One was taken over by Islamist Chechen terrorists. 1200 adults and children were taken hostage on what was supposed to be an exciting first day of school. When the siege ended 3 days later, 344 were dead, including 186 children. Hundreds more were wounded.( https://www.nationalterroralert.com/2007/09/17/the-terrorist-threat-to-our-schools-pt-1/ )

Then speculated ,what would happen if a misguided lone wolf was convinced that this was the thing to do? A disgruntled alienated youth playing video games all day long is a perfect recruitment target .

Al Qaeda Targets Our Schoolchildren
September 25, 2007
By Marc Sheppard

Nearly 6 months have passed since I first challenged the inexcusable refusal by DHS and FBI authorities to publicly connect the obviously connectable dots representing an unnerving number of alarming events — particularly in the wake of the Beslan school massacre. These include:

Videotapes confiscated in Afghanistan showing al-Qaeda terrorists training to takeover a school [newly available Video]
Spokesman Suleiman Abu Gheith‘s declaration of al-Qaeda’s “right” to kill 2 million American children
An Iraqi national with known terrorist connections caught with a computer disk containing information detailing Department of Education crisis planning for U.S school districts.
Two Saudi men – one wearing a black trench coat despite the Florida heat — terrifying a busload of Tampa schoolchildren by boarding a school bus and remaining for the entire ride to school, all the while laughing and speaking Arabic.
A March FBI/DHS bulletin noting “recent suspicious activity” by foreigners who drive school buses, are licensed to drive them, or have actually managed to purchase them right here at home. Including “members of the unnamed extremist groups” who have obtained commercial drivers licenses with school bus endorsements.
Osama bin Laden’s promise that the 2004 terrorist attack at Beslan will happen many times over in the United States.
In that time, little or nothing has been done to relieve parents’ understandable anxieties, despite the fresh dots which continued to accrue on this disturbing non-puzzle.

Dots like the seventeen full-sized yellow school buses reported stolen from charter schools, business schools and private bus companies in Houston, Texas, over the past few months. Connect to that and previous disturbing stories the fact that thousands of school bus radios have also been stolen (2000 in California in 2005 alone), and the images shaped should be triggering earsplitting alarms throughout all branches of media and law enforcement.

But instead — the silence looms apparent while the question remains: Why?

https://www.americanthinker.com/2007/09/al_qaeda_targets_our_schoolchi.html

The Terrorist Threat To Our Schools Pt. 1 9/17/2007 https://www.nationalterroralert.com/2007/09/17/the-terrorist-threat-to-our-schools-pt-1/

 

Readers debate Arming Teachers as a Solution to Protect Children

maybe….

I like this in principle…in practice, I hope not ALL teachers have this privilege and that there is a thorough vetting process beforehand. All it takes is for a teacher with a gun to lose control and all bets are off!

But to this guys point, as long as a potential shooter knows that someone might be armed but not know who…might be a deterrent. In the case (as in Newtown) where someone has gone off the rails and shoots his way INTO a school, lives might still be lost but not nearly as many helpless children.

Something has to change. I have a 2 year old and if this shit is still happening when she is 5, I will simply leave the country. Nobody in Hong Kong or Singapore is shooting up kindergarten classes.

 no.. 

Rob, it seems that we agree there should be someone at school who has the ability to act immediately as a first line of defense. However, I am concerned about the idea of arming teachers because:

(1) How do we train people, who are not police officers, to act like police officers when a gunman enters the school creating an extreme pressure situation that even police officers have difficulty handling? We can’t just send teachers to a weekend training course and expect that they will be up to the challenge of dealing with an armed intruder, let alone being able to kill that intruder if necessary.

(2) Teachers are in too close contact with the students, and thus having them carry a gun may lead to unfortunate accidents or offer a student with bad intentions easier access to a weapon.

If the cost of hiring a new police officer for each school is too much, then perhaps we hire a few additional officers. The current police force and those few additional officers could cover each school (it’s not like there is a lot of crime that takes place during school hours that would be neglected if a few of our current officers were diverted to the schools).

Anyway, the point of my original post is that our government wastes so much money on nonesense that perhaps we should insist that some of the money be used instead to protect our children while they are at school.

Photo by Boyd Loving

How to Talk to Your Children About Violence

Tragic events such as shootings with mass casualties serve as a shocking reminder that violence can
happen anywhere, even in good schools in affluent communities. Parents who wonder whether a violent
event has troubled their children should face the issue head on by inviting their kids to talk.
Child care experts recommend listening first. Find out how your children feel, and then ask open-ended
questions. See what their reactions are and how they’re responding.
You know your children best. Tailor the type and amount of information you share based on their age and
maturity. For teenagers, knowledge is power. They may want specific details so they can feel more in
control. Watching the news together can provide an opportunity to talk about what issues come up—
emotionally and intellectually—as stories analyzing the tragedy unfold.
Don’t bombard younger children with too much information
Parents shouldn’t let younger children watch TV accounts of the violent events or be overexposed to
graphic photographs in newspapers and magazines. Don’t give pre-school and grade-school-age children
a lot of details, but if they have questions, answer them briefly. If they’re worried, be sure to ask them
what they’re worried about. Let them tell you their fears.
While acknowledging how scary and heartbreaking such incidents are, parents should also emphasize
that it is extremely rare for children to be hurt by this kind of violence. Remind children that there are
many adults who look out for their safety: teachers, neighbors, police.
Don’t pretend to have all the answers. It’s OK to say, “We may never know why it happened. Maybe
something was lacking in their lives.” Discuss what might have been missing. Children are very perceptive
about these things.
Watch for signs of stress
Children react to fear, stress or trauma in different ways. Over the next few weeks after a violent incident,
you may notice disrupted sleep patterns, frequent nightmares and/or insomnia; changes in eating habits,
loss of appetite or overeating; decline in school performance; lack of concentration; irritability or
prolonged depression. Younger children may display separation anxiety, not wanting to be left alone in a
room, or getting upset when parents leave the house. They may cling to parents more than usual.
Remember, these symptoms are common reactions to anxiety. However, if symptoms persist for longer
than six weeks and disrupt your child’s daily routine, seek help from a social worker, pediatrician or
psychologist. A professional cannot only help your child deal with his emotions, but can provide valuable
tips and guidance to parents.
How you react to a traumatic event gives your children clues on how to act. If you react with alarm, a child
may be more scared. The following tips may make it easier for you to talk to your children and alert you to
early warning signs of a child at risk:
How to talk to teenagers
1. Don’t force the issue. Let them know that you’re willing to listen when they’re ready to talk.
2. Ask open-ended questions about what they think or feel.
3. Don’t lecture, preach or interrupt.
4. Watch the news together and discuss the information in the broadcast.
5. Reassure them that it’s normal to feel anxious after such an incident. . Emphasize that such violence is rare.
How to talk to younger children
1. Don’t let young children be bombarded by graphic images on TV or in newspapers and
magazines.
2. Don’t bring up the subject of the violent event, but if children ask questions, answer them briefly
and honestly.
3. Remind children that there are many adults watching out for their safety.
4. Don’t pretend to have all the answers.
Resources
ValueOptions® Behavioral Healthcare Services
(800) 700-8646
Behavioral Health Appointment Assistance
(877) 298-3514
TRICARE Assistance Program (TRIAP): A video Web-based counseling service
https://www.humana-military.com/south/bene/health-wellness/triap.asp

Humana Military Healthcare Services
https://www.humana-military.com/south/bene/beneficiary.asp
(800) 444-5445
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