>MUSIC FOR FARMS TO PLAY FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 10 BENEFIT CONCERT FOR ROCKLAND FARM ALLIANCE IN CHESTNUT RIDGE, NY
Rockland County, NY-based composer, pianist and percussionist John McDowell (www.johnmcdowell.net) teams up with Canadian violinist Emmanuel Vukovich, cellist Julia MacLaine (www.juliamaclaine.com), and string bass player Evan Premo (www.evanpremo.com) to create the musical ensemble Music For Farms which will perform a concert entitled “A Musical Harvest” at the lovely, wood-paneled Threefold Auditorium at 260 Hungry Hollow Road, Chestnut Ridge, NY on Friday, September 10, 2010 at 8pm. Tickets may be purchased at the door and are $20 ($15 for students, $10 for children). For more information, call 845-362-0207 or email [email protected].
John McDowell and Emmanuel Vukovich, who practice music and farming side by side (McDowell at Camp Hill Farm in Pomona, NY; and Vukovich in Quebec, Canada), have formed an international initiative, Music for Farms (www.johnmcdowell.net/musicforfarms), which works to revive and sustain local organic agriculture and farming communities through the arts. Julia MacLaine and Evan Premo join them for this special concert. The program, described below, includes the music of Bach, several original works in contemporary and classical idioms, and the quartet’s own creative arrangements that incorporate African drum rhythms and reflect a weaving of Eastern and Western traditions. This concert will be a benefit for the Rockland Farm Alliance (RFA). The mission of the RFA (www.rocklandfarm.org) is to facilitate local sustainable agriculture in Rockland County, New York.
Juilliard and McGill trained Emmanuel Vukovich is the recipient of Canada’s first Golden Violin Award, as well as the Canada Council for the Arts Orford String Quartet scholarship. His twin passions of farming and music are brought to expression in this artistic Musical Harvest. John McDowell is best known as composer of the score to Oscar winning Born into Brothels. He has toured with rock/world band Rusted Root as a pianist and percussionist and founded/led the internationally acclaimed band Mamma Tongue. Cellist Julia MacLaine has been consistently singled out by The New York Times for her rich tone, sweet vibrato and superb musicianship, and performs throughout North and South America and in Europe as a recitalist and chamber musician. Like Julia, an alumnus of Carnegie Hall’s resident Ensemble ACJW, Evan Premo performs chamber music regularly at Carnegie Hall and does outreach in public schools in NYC. An active chamber musician and soloist, Evan also practices farming, woodworking, and ‘homesteading’.
The program will be drawn from the following selections:
Bach, works for solo violin and solo cello
F Major, by John McDowell
Swara Kakali (transcription of a work by Yehudi Menuhin and Ravi Shankar)
The battle raging over the Ground Zero mosque is bringing new attention to another, less publicized controversy involving a house of worship in Lower Manhattan.
St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, which once sat right across the street from the World Trade Center, was crushed under the weight of the collapse of Tower Two on September 11, 2001. St. Nicholas was the only church to be lost in the attacks, and nine years later, while City of New York officials are busy removing every impediment to the building of the Cordoba mosque two blocks from the site, St. Nicholas’ future remains unclear.
The last bit of hopeful news for St. Nicholas came two years ago, in July 2008, when church officials and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced a deal which would have allowed the church to be rebuilt about two blocks from its original location.
The Port Authority agreed to give the church a parcel of land at Liberty and Greenwich Streets, and contribute $20 million toward construction of a new sanctuary. The Port Authority also agreed to build an explosion-proof platform and foundation for the new church building, which would sit on top of a screening area for cars and trucks entering the underground garages at the new World Trade Center.
Trouble emerged after St. Nicholas announced its plans to build a traditional Greek Orthodox church building, 24,000 square feet in size, topped with a grand dome. Port Authority officials told the church to cut back the size of the building and the height of the proposed dome, limiting it to rising no higher than the World Trade Center memorial. The deal fell apart for goodin March 2009, when the Port Authority abruptly ended the talks after refusing to allow church officials to review plans for the garage and screening area underneath. Sixteen months later, the two sides have still not met to resume negotiations.
St. Nicholas Church’s difficulty in getting approvals to rebuild stands in stark contrast to the treatment that the developers of the proposed Cordoba mosque have received. New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, state Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo, and a raft of city officials have all come out publicly in favor of building the mosque, and the city’s Landmarks and Preservation Commission recently voted unanimously to deny protection to the building currently occupying the site where the mosque is to be built.
The mosque is proposed to rise 13 stories, far above the height of the World Trade Center memorial, with no height restrictions imposed.
Inspired by former representative Vito Fossella (R-NY), Human Events and RedState.com are sponsoring an online petition calling on New York officials to take action to stop the mosque from being built.
The contrast has not been lost on at least one candidate for Congress. George Demos is a Republican running in New York’s 1st Congressional District. Demos has made the Cordoba mosque an issue in his campaign, even though his district is on Eastern Long Island, and is highlighting the plight of St. Nicholas Church.
In an exclusive interview with Human Events, Demos had harsh words for the Port Authority, which he accuses of blocking the church from being rebuilt. “The Port Authority is a creation of Congress and should be answerable to two states [New York and New Jersey], but in reality is answerable to no one,” Demos said. “The Port Authority is insular and simply doesn’t care about public opinion. They are simply not making this a priority. Chris Ward is the Port Authority director and he is not allowing this to go forward.”
For its part, the Port Authority says it had no choice but to break off negotiations with the church to avoid delaying the World Trade Center project any longer. The authority said that the church retains the right to rebuild on its own at its original location. “We made an extraordinarily generous offer to resolve this issue and spent eight months trying to finalize that offer, and the church wanted even more on top of that,” Stephen Sigmund, a spokesman for the Port Authority said last year. “They have now given us no choice but to move on to ensure the site is not delayed. The church continues to have the right to rebuild at their original site, and we will pay fair market value for the underground space beneath that building.”
Demos said it is the church that has been unjustly delayed. “One place of worship was destroyed in the attacks. That should be the first thing on that board’s agenda. That should be the first priority,” he said. “There were actually relics of St. Nicholas in that church that were lost in the attacks. Why is it that the same government officials who are so ferverently fighting for the mosque’s right to be built aren’t also fighting for the church to be rebuilt.”
Demos was critical of Mayor Bloomberg’s recent comments on the occasion of the Landmarks Commission vote. In a speech immediately following the vote, Bloomberg said, among other arguments, that allowing the mosque project to go forward would be a victory of sorts over the forces that attacked America on 9/11.
“Let us not forget that Muslims were among those murdered on 9/11, and that our Muslim neighbors grieved with us as New Yorkers and as Americans,” Bloomberg said. “We would betray our values and play into our enemies’ hands if we were to treat Muslims differently than anyone else. In fact, to cave to popular sentiment would be to hand a victory to the terrorists, and we should not stand for that.”
Demos called those remarks “premature” and echoed New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio’s call for an investigation into the funding of the mosque. “We need to investigate sources of funding for the mosque. If in fact it is being funded by terrorist regimes, then it is the terrorists who are winning by building a mosque at Ground Zero,” Demos said. “Bloomberg’s comments only beg the question of why aren’t we investigating?”
Demos calls his district, currently represented by four-term Democrat Tim Bishop, a bellwether for Republicans in the fall elections. The district is a traditionally Republican seat, which President Obama narrowly won with 51% of the vote in 2008. While Demos is focusing his campaign on the issues of jobs, government spending, and his opponent’s voting record—which he characterized as out of step with the district—he said that the plight of St. Nicholas Church is resonating with voters.
Recent polling in New York shows that a majority disagrees with the plan to build the mosque so close to Ground Zero.
Asked what prompted him to take up St. Nicholas’s cause, Demos said the apparent favorable treatment the mosque’s developers received served to illuminate the issue to him as simply a question of right versus wrong.
“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “It’s an issue of fair-minded candidates for office stepping up and doing the right thing. The focus should be something we can all agree on—getting the church rebuilt.”
Want to cruise but don’t like being regimented? Freestyle Cruising® from Norwegian Cruise Lines® was created just for you. It’s the new age of cruising where you have the freedom of choice to cruise your way. Relax or be adventurous, eat a burger or a filet, dress up or go casual – and never have a set schedule or restriction to slow you down.
NCL was the first to pioneer Freestyle Dining with no set dining times, no assigned tables, a relaxed dress code and a multitude of restaurants on every ship. You’re free to enjoy whatever you’re hungry for, whenever you’re hungry.
Now, with the introduction of Norwegian Epic,* NCL’s newest, largest and most innovative ship, cruising is once again re-imagined. The Travel Center / American Express would like to help you become one of the first to experience Epic’s exciting entertainment options and amazing nightlife. Whether it’s Blue Man Group, the Aqua Park, the world-class health spa or the first true ice bar at sea, Epic truly has an adventure for you. And we haven’t even set sail…
The Epic cruises the eastern and western Caribbean from Miami through the spring of 2011. She will then head to Europe to cruise the western Mediterranean out of Barcelona until the fall when she will return to the Caribbean and resume her eastern and western itineraries through the spring of 2012.
Receive up to a $250 onboard credit per stateroom plus exclusive Cardmember benefits, when you book a qualifying Norwegian Epic cruise with The Travel Center / American Express and pay with your American Express® Card. Contact a travel professional at The Travel Center / American Express for details:
>DONOVAN LEADS McNERNEY BY 12 POINTS AMONG LIKELY VOTERS, 49% – 37%, IN BERGEN COUNTY EXECUTIVE RACE
Republican County Clerk Kathe Donovan leads incumbent Dennis McNerney among ALL voter demographics in the upcoming election for Bergen County Executive; Poll was commissioned by NJ Laborers’ Political Action Committee
“Kathe Donovan is well known and well liked by a majority of voters in all voting demographics and is poised to win on November 2nd,” said Raymond M. Pocino, vice president and eastern regional manager of the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA). LIUNA has endorsed Kathe Donovan for election as Bergen County’s next County Executive.
Other key findings include:
Donovan currently defeating McNerney 48% to 38% among seniors 52% to 32% among independent and unaffiliated voters 50% to 33% among voters 18 to 44 years old 52% to 35% among men President Obama has a 37% approve, 51% disapprove rating in Bergen County. Governor Christie has a 48% approve, 36% disapprove rating in Bergen County.
“Simply put, it’s virtually impossible for Dennis McNerney to win, given the numbers and Kathe’s overwhelming popularity among all voter groups,” said Jeanne Baratta, Communications Director for the Donovan campaign. “Voters know Donovan and trust her. Donovan won re-election as County Clerk in 2008 during a massive democrat landslide and Kathe Donovan will win again in 2010.”
The survey was conducted prior to the recent Bergen County Improvement Authority scandal which led to the resignation of its Democrat chair, and subsequent calls for investigation of that agency.
Methodology: This automated poll was conducted July 14-17 with 833 likely voters for the laborer’s Political Action Fund. Voters with prior vote history were contacted with a special emphasis on G09, G07 and G06 to reflect turnout in a non-presidential year. Plus, a “vote intensity screen” was used to filter out voters unlikely to vote in the upcoming election. The margin of error for an 833 sample size is +/-3.39% at the 95% confidence level.
Susquehanna Polling and Research is a Pennsylvania-based, survey research and polling firm for GOP clients and conducts polls both nationwide and in many Northeastern and Midwestern states.
On July 20, 1969, the human race accomplished its single greatest technological achievement of all time when a human first set foot on another celestial body.
https://history.nasa.gov/ap11ann/introduction.htm
Six hours after landing at 4:17 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (with less than 30 seconds of fuel remaining), Neil A. Armstrong took the “Small Step” into our greater future when he stepped off the Lunar Module, named “Eagle,” onto the surface of the Moon, from which he could look up and see Earth in the heavens as no one had done before him.
He was shortly joined by “Buzz” Aldrin, and the two astronauts spent 21 hours on the lunar surface and returned 46 pounds of lunar rocks. After their historic walks on the Moon, they successfully docked with the Command Module “Columbia,” in which Michael Collins was patiently orbiting the cold but no longer lifeless Moon.
This Tuesday Americans for Prosperity will hold an important press conference rally in Morristown against Cap & Trade with Assemblywoman Alison McHose and Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll.
If you are unwilling to pay twice as much for your electricity bill in the name of bogus “climate change,” then join us this Tuesday to help put a stop to New Jersey’s Cap & Trade program.
Unbeknownst to many New Jerseyans, our state is already participating in a Cap & Trade program identical to the one Barack Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are trying to ram though in Washington. The Cap & Trade program is called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative – or RGGI – a coalition of ten northeastern states from Maine to Maryland.
RGGI is being looked at as a model for a federal program. In fact, the bill’s language actually states that it is a prelude to a federal program.
That’s why it is no coincidence that the current head of the EPA is none other than Lisa Jackson, the former head of the DEP under Jon Corzine.
Believe it or not, RGGI has already held seven auctions of carbon permits since 2008 which has amassed a whopping $660M! This cost will be passed along to consumers in the way of higher and higher energy costs.
The Heritage Foundation analysis of the Waxman-Markey Cap & Trade bill estimates that by 2020 New Jerseyans could pay 58% more for gas and 90% more for electricity. An estimated 65,000 jobs could be lost. Cap & Trade is nothing less than a stealth energy tax that will cause irreparable harm to our economy. That’s why you and I need to stop this program now.
On Tuesday, we will join with Assemblywoman Alison McHose and Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll who have introduced legislation to repeal RGGI and end New Jersey’s participation in this program. You and I need to stand up with these two courageous lawmakers and send a strong message to Trenton that taxpayers will not allow Cap & Trade to take root in our state.
If you would like to join us on Tuesday, please contact our office at (201) 487-8844 or e-mail our Communications Director, Mike Proto, & mailto:[email protected] > [email protected] for more details. We will also need volunteers on Monday to help us prepare for this important press conference. On to Victory, Steve Lonegan State Director Americans for Prosperity-New Jersey, 24 River Road, Suite 205, Bogota, NJ 07603
Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.
The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.
The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.
Local Observances Claim To Be First Local springtime tributes to the Civil War dead already had been held in various places. One of the first occurred in Columbus, Miss., April 25, 1866, when a group of women visited a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen in battle at Shiloh. Nearby were the graves of Union soldiers, neglected because they were the enemy. Disturbed at the sight of the bare graves, the women placed some of their flowers on those graves, as well.
Today, cities in the North and the South claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866. Both Macon and Columbus, Ga., claim the title, as well as Richmond, Va. The village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims it began there two years earlier. A stone in a Carbondale, Ill., cemetery carries the statement that the first Decoration Day ceremony took place there on April 29, 1866. Carbondale was the wartime home of Gen. Logan. Approximately 25 places have been named in connection with the origin of Memorial Day, many of them in the South where most of the war dead were buried.
Official Birthplace Declared In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. There, a ceremony on May 5, 1866, honored local veterans who had fought in the Civil War. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff. Supporters of Waterloo’s claim say earlier observances in other places were either informal, not community-wide or one-time events.
By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the nation. State legislatures passed proclamations designating the day, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.
It was not until after World War I, however, that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress, though it is still often called Decoration Day. It was then also placed on the last Monday in May, as were some other federal holidays.
Some States Have Confederate Observances Many Southern states also have their own days for honoring the Confederate dead. Mississippi celebrates Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday of April, Alabama on the fourth Monday of April, and Georgia on April 26. North and South Carolina observe it on May 10, Louisiana on June 3 and Tennessee calls that date Confederate Decoration Day. Texas celebrates Confederate Heroes Day January 19 and Virginia calls the last Monday in May Confederate Memorial Day.
Gen. Logan’s order for his posts to decorate graves in 1868 “with the choicest flowers of springtime” urged: “We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. … Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.”
The crowd attending the first Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery was approximately the same size as those that attend today’s observance, about 5,000 people. Then, as now, small American flags were placed on each grave — a tradition followed at many national cemeteries today. In recent years, the custom has grown in many families to decorate the graves of all departed loved ones.
The origins of special services to honor those who die in war can be found in antiquity. The Athenian leader Pericles offered a tribute to the fallen heroes of the Peloponnesian War over 24 centuries ago that could be applied today to the 1.1 million Americans who have died in the nation’s wars: “Not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.”
To ensure the sacrifices of America ’s fallen heroes are never forgotten, in December 2000, the U.S. Congress passed and the president signed into law “The National Moment of Remembrance Act,” P.L. 106-579, creating the White House Commission on the National Moment of Remembrance. The commission’s charter is to “encourage the people of the United States to give something back to their country, which provides them so much freedom and opportunity” by encouraging and coordinating commemorations in the United States of Memorial Day and the National Moment of Remembrance.
The National Moment of Remembrance encourages all Americans to pause wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day for a minute of silence to remember and honor those who have died in service to the nation. As Moment of Remembrance founder Carmella LaSpada states: “It’s a way we can all help put the memorial back in Memorial Day.”
This Memorial Day, nearly three-out-of-four Americans (74%) have a favorable opinion of the U.S. military, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Just 12% hold an unfavorable opinion, and 13% are not sure.
These figures have held steady for the past two years.
Thirty-five percent (35%) of Adults say they have a relative or close friend currently serving our country in Iraq or Afghanistan, down nine points from a year ago.
Forty percent (40%) also say they’ve lost a relative or close friend who gave their life while serving in the military. Fifty-two percent (52%) have not lost a relative or close friend in the line of duty, but eight percent (8%) more are not sure
>Patrick & Sons Super Cellars 32 South Broad St, Ridgewood 201.444.0012
——————-Rewards Beer Deal ———————-
Corona Extra or Light Your choice 24-12oz bottles loose pk case
$22.99 Our local distributor offered us a one shot sale on this most popular of traditional summer brews and we’ve passed the savings on to you. We haven’t seen this price in several years. Let’s hope its de’ja vu all over again! While supplies last thru 6/30/10
Start the summer right……..on the hammock….…we sell limes!
>Towns Challenge New Jersey Voters’ Wishes By WINNIE HU Published: May 27, 2010
“To have the Village Council go through and save a dollar a month is a joke,” said Greg May, 39, a recording engineer who is among the 25,000 residents of Ridgewood. “It almost makes me feel like what good was my vote? I think that’s the general consensus.”
Ridgewood’s school budget was defeated, by a vote of 2,639 to 2,537, for the first time since 2003. Afterward, school officials identified $100,000 in lower-than-expected transportation costs, and the Council decided not to seek any further reductions. (The district had already planned to lay off 21 teachers and 33 classroom aides to offset an expected $3 million reduction in state aid.)
The result: the average tax bill will increase by $355 instead of $367.
James Foytlin, 48, who runs a popular Web site, The Ridgewood Blog, said there was now talk in town of recalling members of the Council. “It’s just ridiculous,” he said of the $100,000 cut. “I’m sure the school board spends more on paper clips.”
Even so, the $100,000 cut was still too much for one councilman, Paul S. Aronsohn, 43, a public relations consultant, who wanted to reduce the municipal budget rather than school spending to lower property taxes. “I felt like the budget was being balanced on the backs of students,” he said. “I completely understand the need for tax relief, but I don’t think we should take it all out of the schools.”
Patrick A. Mancuso, another member of the Council, acknowledged that the $100,000 cut would make little difference, but said it was a start. He has asked village and school officials to begin looking for ways to save money in the 2011-12 budget by sharing equipment and services like vehicle and property maintenance.
“People say, ‘Are you kidding?’ ” he said. “At least we’re trying to demonstrate that we hear you, we’re going to try harder, we’re going to start now, and that’s important.”
RIDGEWOOD – Village officials plan to lay off 27 staffers by early August, according to Village Manager Ken Gabbert.
The layoffs include 24 full-time employees, Gabbert said in a press release. There will be eight retirements this year. An additional three staffers are no longer employed by the village.
“The Village will offer retiring and laid off staff support services during this difficult time,” the release said. “Services will include Job Assistance Workshop, Department of Labor Information Session, Employee Assistance Program and Local employment resources. Services will be offered directly to any staff desiring the assistance.”
The New Jersey Civil Service Commission approved the reduction and elimination with the initial layoffs effective in mid-July.
Amendments to the 2010 Village budget will be introduced on June 2 and adopted on June 9. This year’s budget shows a 5.2% increase in municipal taxes, a total of $3,588 per average residence and $182 over last year. Expenditures in 2010 have been cut by $802,039, a 1.9% reduction from last year’s level, according to Gabbert.
As you all know, we have a fiscal crisis in New Jersey: a $10.9 billion deficit on a $29.3 billion budget.
At 37 percent, it’s the worst budget deficit percentage in America-worse than California, worse than New York, worse than Illinois-and we need to take bold steps to deal with it.
On March 16, we put forward a budget with $10.9 billion in reductions against proposed spending of the Corzine administration.
This was not easy to do, so I want to start off by saying that while I stand firmly behind the cuts we proposed, please don’t take my firm stance in favoring those cuts as meaning that I don’t know how painful they are.
Everybody would love to be governor in a time when you can just give things away and make everybody your friend and make everybody happy.
That’s not the time that I’m getting to be governor.
I feel an obligation to stand up and do what the people elected me to do, which is to get our government under control, and to start to reduce the amount of money that people have to pay to the government in taxes.
But if all we do is cut, and we don’t get at the underlying problem, we’re just going to be back in this spot year, after year, after year.
New Jersey Is On An Unsustainable Fiscal Course
Over the last ten years, municipal spending has grown by 69 percent, and property taxes have grown by 70 percent, until New Jersey property taxes are now the highest of any state in the nation.
This is an unsustainable course.
For nearly 30 years, the citizens of New Jersey have placed in the hands of politicians-mostly politicians from Trenton-the responsibility for fixing property taxes. And in every gubernatorial election since 1973, we’ve had folks dancing around this property tax problem, putting band-aids on it, but not doing a thing to address the structural issues that allow politicians to hike property taxes year, after year, after year.
We can’t increase municipal aid, increase aid to school districts, and increase property taxes without end. At some point, the people’s ability to pay runs out.
And now we’re there.
With property taxes up 70 percent in ten years, people in New Jersey are now voting with their feet, and they’re leaving.
Senior citizens are leaving the homes that they raised their families in, heartbroken because they can’t pay the property taxes anymore.
Young couples can’t buy their first homes, not because of home prices, but because of the property taxes.
And middle class families are suffering from 9.8 percent unemployment in New Jersey, the highest in the region-higher than Pennsylvania, higher than Connecticut, higher than New York. Many of them are finding that after they’ve lost their jobs, they’re going to lose their homes as well, because their property taxes got raised beyond their ability to pay.
In every poll you’ll ever see, New Jerseyans say our biggest problem is property taxes.
So how do we fix it?
The Centerpiece of the Solution: Cap 2.5
First and foremost, we have to impose discipline on every level of the political system. I propose that we start with Cap 2.5, a constitutional amendment to cap property tax increases at no more than 2.5 percent per year.
For 30 years, politicians in Trenton have been passing the buck, and property taxes have gone up and up and up. The people of New Jersey have had enough.
I believe in less government, lower taxes, and empowering local officials who act on behalf of the people who elected them. I came here to do what the people sent me to do.
That may lead to a disagreement or two. Just recently, I had a friendly little exchange with a reporter you might have seen….
But anyone who comes to this discussion talking about “you can’t cut this” and “you can’t cut that” who doesn’t have some way to pay for it besides jacking up property taxes is just joining that pathetic, 30-year tradition of passing along the problem for the next guy to deal with.
When we enact a constitutional amendment to limit property tax increases to no more than 2.5 percent across the board annually, we will have put in place the foundation for getting our fiscal house in order for the first time in a generation.
With that in place, then and only then can we begin to look at doing-in a sustainable way-what New Jerseyans want for urban revitalization, education, and every other big-picture issue.
Proposed legislation that would change the way affordable housing is apportioned and built in the state may not survive a constitutional challenge. That was the finding of the Office of Legislative Services regarding the bill (S1) sponsored by state Sens. Raymond J. Lesniak, D-Union, Christopher Bateman, R-Somerset, and Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May. The OLS analysis, in a letter dated April 13 but released Wednesday by the Fair Share Housing Center in Cherry Hill, says the Legislature does not have the statutory authority — under the two state Supreme Court Mount Laurel decisions in the 1970s and 1980s — to amend the Fair Housing Act and abolish the Council on Affordable Housing, which the legislation would do. (Bowman, Gannett)
