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Readers say 500,000 to 1 million jobs will be lost due to the Minimum Wage Hike

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Readers say 500,000 to 1 million jobs will be lost due to the Minimum Wage Hike 

If you read the article, you’ll see that 500,000 jobs gone is the lower end of the CBO estimate. The upper end is 1million. ( https://theridgewoodblog.net/cbo-says-minimum-wage-bill-would-cost-jobs-boost-income/ )

How can Jason Furman, who claims to be an economist, be anything other than a government shill? The supply and demand theory that is the basis of economics says that when you raise the price of something by 40%, demand for it will surely fall. Surely, he knows better.

The ones who will be hurt the most by this are minority youth trying to enter the workforce. Look for inner city youth unemployment to rise significantly and hundreds of thousands more to land on the dole. Maybe that’s the goal here.

If you can’t pull better than a minimum wage job you’re the one whose going to lose here. Big government cannot dictate what businesses will do. So they force businesses to pay more. What happens? Employees are dismissed and those remaining are required to do more.

Most businesses that can only pay minimum wage are marginal at best. This could cause a few to close their doors. Thanks Barry!
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Reader says Class warfare never works

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Reader says Class warfare never works

Where are all these rising home values? Not here. Prices tanked from the high’s of 2006, 2007 and are nowhere near what they were.
Many of the big ‘earners’ left NYC years ago for CT. Then CT couldn’t resist and implemented an income tax. Many hedge funds are still in Greenwich and Stamford to avoid NY/NYC taxes.
Many of the very big earners that I know have moved to FL for their principle residence (when able). Unless they send their kids to boarding school, they’d stay around here until the last one graduates High school.
Many of the 500k-10million earner types have to have a presence in the area. But the real big earners head south. As such, their income taxes must be replaced by the rest of us.

Class warfare never works. But the left wingers keep using it to ‘rally the troops’ and in the end, the smart rich guys manage to legally keep as much of their well earned income away from the tentacles of the government. This crap never worked in Cuba and North Korea, and it wont work here. So will one of you Dumbocrats please tell Barry to pick a new subject.

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Readers says Financial Advisory Committee report and it contains inaccurate data, false assumptions

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Readers says Financial Advisory Committee report and it contains inaccurate data, false assumptions

First of all the report does not say the village should not have a paid fire dept. I have read the Financial Advisory Committee report and it contains inaccurate data, false assumptions and more important than those it has incomplete data. The people complaining about high taxes here are only telling half of the story. You don’t hear those people complaining about the higher salaries they earn here than in other states do you? And of course they are not complaining of the high property values either especially when they are going up! By a percentage ratio N.J. residents pay a similar percentage of their homes value in property taxes when compared to other parts of the country.

The state of NJ and specifically the Village provides more services (like garbage pickup, recreation services for kids, local police & Fire services, assistance and social services for seniors, just to name a few) and an overall better quality of life for the tax dollars than most of the other states. When you look at the complete picture you see those who are complaining about property taxes are focusing on only one thing and not giving you the complete picture.

These are state averages of 2012 property tax as a percentage of home value.

New Jersey $7,318 2.32%

New Hampshire $5,230 2.18%

Connecticut $5,200 1.88%

New York $5,040 1.68%

Illinois $4,469 2.28%

Vermont $4,328 1.62%

Rhode Island $3,820 1.67%

Massachusetts $3,805 1.19%

Wisconsin $3,530 2.07%

Alaska $3,290 1.28%

The state of NJ and the Village provide more services (like garbage pickup, recreation services for kids, local police, assistance and social services for seniors) and an overall better quality of life for the tax dollars than most of the other states. When you look at the complete picture you see those who are complaining about property taxes are focusing on only one thing and not giving you the complete picture.

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Readers warm about Pothole problems on Van Dien Ave, Ridgewood.

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potholes near Valley Hospital

Readers warm about Pothole problems on Van Dien Ave, Ridgewood.

The potholes on South Van Dien remind me of Sarajevo circa 1994.The potholes on South Van Dien are something to behold.

I defy you to name a street in town that’s in worse condition….

Once we get all the Christmas trees picked up we should turn our attention to the potholes.

Streets Proposed Paving in 2013

The Village Council has approved streets to be paved in 2013.

Click Here

to view the list.

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Village Sanitation and Recycling

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Sanitation Pick Up – Tuesday, February 18 and Wednesday, February 19

Sanitation will be picked up at the end of your driveway only:

Tuesday, February 18 on the West Side

Wednesday, February 19 on the East Side

Thursday – Regular schedule anticipated to resume

Recycling – Tuesday, February 18 and Wednesday, February 19

Recycling will be picked up Tuesday, February 18 in Area 5; Wednesday, February 19 in Area

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Poll: 71% of Obama voters, 55% Democrats ‘regret’ voting for his re-election

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Poll: 71% of Obama voters, 55% Democrats ‘regret’ voting for his re-election
BY PAUL BEDARD | FEBRUARY 18, 2014 AT 2:45 PM

Over seven in 10 Obama voters, and 55 percent of Democrats, regret voting for President Obama’s reelection in 2012, according to a newEconomist/YouGov.com poll.

Conducted to test the media hype about a comeback by 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, the new poll found voters still uninspired by Romney, but also deeply dissatisfied with Obama who has so far failed to capitalize on his victory over 15 months ago.

The poll asked those who voted for Obama’s reelection a simple question: “Do you regret voting for Barack Obama?”

— Overall, 71 percent said yes, 26 percent no.

— 80 percent of whites said yes, 61 percent of blacks said no and 100 percent of Hispanics said yes.

— 84 percent of women said yes, and just 61 percent of men agreed.

— 55 percent of Democrats said yes, as did 71 percent of independents.

After Secrets first published their poll, YouGov.com noted that the sample for the question was small and recharacterized the sample as “those who reported voting for Barack Obama in 2012 but would vote for someone else if the election were held again” from “those who voted for Barack Obama in 2012.”

https://washingtonexaminer.com/poll-71-of-obama-supporters-regret-voting-for-his-reelection/article/2544165

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CBO says minimum wage bill would cost jobs, boost income

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CBO says minimum wage bill would cost jobs, boost income
February 18, 2014, 01:41 pm
By Erik Wasson

President Obama’s proposal to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour would cost 500,000 jobs in 2016, according to a report released Tuesday by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

The report also found raising the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 would significantly boost income for about 16.5 million workers, raising their income by $31 billion and potentially pulling nearly 1 million people out of poverty.

The White House and economic groups on the left immediately pushed back at the CBO’s conclusions on jobs, arguing its findings ran counter to other research.

“CBO’s estimates of the impact of raising the minimum wage on employment does not reflect the current consensus view of economists,” Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman wrote in a blog post. “The bulk of academic studies, have concluded that the effects on employment of minimum wage increases in the range now under consideration are likely to be small to nonexistent.

Furman also highlighted the positive findings of the CBO report, starting with the estimate that 16.5 million workers would see their incomes boosted.

He told reporters that the CBO report is an overall a positive for raising the minimum wage and would not diminish the idea’s popularity.

Read more: https://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/economy/198605-cbo-minimum-wage#ixzz2tiHUbJBC

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Homeland Security blocks road salt delivery for New Jersey

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no salt for you

Homeland Security blocks road salt delivery for New Jersey 

NJ salt shortage continues

Posted: Feb 17, 2014 5:57 PM ESTUpdated: Feb 18, 2014 9:07 AM EST
By ADRIENNE SUPINO,

The salt shortage persists in New Jersey. Officials have failed to get permission for a barge with 40 tons of salt to set sail for the tristate region

Angel Morales, a resident of Jersey City says her car just won’t go anywhere.

“Look, you see I went up and I started sliding back,” she said.

N.J. officials were hoping a barge with 40 tons of salt would arrive from Maine.  But the vessel wasn’t flying the American flag and officials couldn’t get clearance from Homeland Security to come to the Port of Newark.

The problem is because of the 1920 federal Maritime Act. It prevents foreign vessels from moving cargo from one U.S. port to another. It was designed to protect the U.S. shipping industry from foreign competition.

Read more: https://www.myfoxny.com/story/24746649/nj-salt-shortage-continues#ixzz2tggIY7aJ

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Bid to be awarded for Ridgewood turf cleanup

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Bid to be awarded for Ridgewood turf cleanup
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 18, 2014, 10:09 AM
BY  DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Ridgewood Council members expressed satisfaction over the second round of bids received to clean the flood-damaged turf at Maple Park, and they are expected to award the project contract this week to the LandTek Group.

In December, the council rejected the lone proposal received for the artificial turf cleanup job after concerns were raised that the initial bid process might have been flawed. At the time, Councilman Tom Riche noted several vendor complaints, some of which suggested that the village advertisement “was misleading” or that the municipality did not distribute bid packets in a timely manner.

As a result, the council opted to open a second bidding process, which ended last month.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/245978341_Bid_to_be_awarded_for_Ridgewood_turf_cleanup.html#sthash.qyddiTx9.dpuf

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RHS boys indoor track sets county record for 4-x-800

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RHS boys indoor track sets county record for 4-x-800
Sunday, February 16, 2014
The Record

Ridgewood sets mark

NEW YORK — The indoor track state Group championships were postponed this weekend, but that didn’t stop the Ridgewood boys 4-x-800 team from a record-setting performance at the Millrose Games Eastern 4-x-800 meter race Saturday.

The team of Michael Thurston (1:58.4), David Frering (1:56.1), Brian Collins (1:59.6) and Luke Dublirer (1:54.7) combined for 7:48.82, breaking the 42-year-old Bergen County record by more than two seconds (7:51.2), leading the race for most of the way before getting caught by Averill Park (Va.) and State College (Pa.) in the final 100 meters. Ridgewood finished third.

“All four guys raced hard and I’m so proud of them,” said coach Josh Saladino after the Maroons broke the 7:51.2 mark set by Bergen Catholic in 1972. “It’s amazing that we finished under 7:50 and only took third.” Averill Park ran 7:47.02 and State College was second in 7:47.75.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/sports/245721221_H_S__boys_indoor_track__Ridgewood_4-x-800_team_sets_county_mark.html#sthash.j9Yobn4z.dpuf

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Solar panels topple over at Teaneck elementary school

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are you thinking what I am thing?

Solar panels topple over at Teaneck elementary school
MONDAY FEBRUARY 17, 2014, 7:42 PM
TEANECK SUBURBANITE

A Teaneck police officer surveys the damage from a collapsed large solar panel in the Bryant Elementary School parking lot on Tryon Avenue. The structure toppled over Saturday night after the weekend snow storm dumped heavy snow and ice in the area. The panel has trapped cars parked underneath.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/245898741_Solar_panels_topple_over_at_Teaneck_elementary_school.html#sthash.zSLpUwvx.dpuf

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Reader says Outsourcing may be appropriate in some cases. But, that is not necessarily a panacea

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file photo Boyd Loving

Reader says Outsourcing may be appropriate in some cases. But, that is not necessarily a panacea.

People… Take a step back and look at the bigger picture. It is not just about decisions that this or the previous council made.

It is definitely not about snow removal.

It is not about the 2010 reduction in village staffing in a few unfortunate departments (employee-related liabilities have dramatically increased, NOT decreased).

Read the Financial Advisory Committee report that was posted to the Village website a while back. It is eye-opening and spells out very clearly the situation that has developed over decades and is totally unsustainable, without thoughtful (but dramatic) cultural and management changes across ALL village departments.

Outsourcing may be appropriate in some cases. But, that is not necessarily a panacea.

wine.com

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Village should say ‘no thanks’ to high-density housing

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Village should say ‘no thanks’ to high-density housing

Monday February 17, 2014, 11:45 AM
The Ridgewood News

Village should say ‘no thanks’ to high-density housing
Francis H. Schott

To the editor:

Over the past decade, Ridgewood has made great progress in improving our citizens’ quality of life. Our schools have been enlarged and modernized to make them adequate for our 5,800 students, a number that has steadily grown over the decade. Our recreational space, although still below state and federal standards, has been substantially augmented for the first time in generations by the acquisition and development of Habernickel Park and the purchase of the Schedler property as well as the enlargement of Citizens Park.

Admittedly we are still struggling with parking and traffic problems downtown, but the positives outweigh the negatives of the early 21st Century by a wide margin.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/245838491_Letter__Village_should_say__no_thanks__to_high-density_housing.html#sthash.bUE3N6wk.dpuf

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Village services should be shared

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file photo Boyd Loving

Village services should be shared

Monday February 17, 2014, 11:42 AM
The Ridgewood News

Village services should be shared
0Wilkin Santana

To the editor:

As per current village ordinance, the police department table of organization calls for 30 patrol officers.

It is my opinion, a council’s public safety committee should have heard in advance about the intention of the police chief to extend an offer of employment to two individuals, especially when one of them, as reported by the media, is related to a former councilman and mayor and this action will increase the table of organization as per village code. All legal, ethical and managerial considerations should be first made at the village council’s committee level before attempting to support a last minute retroactive amendment to the code. There are legal, cost, ethical and managerial implications to increasing the size of any department.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/245838171_Letter__Village_services_should_be_shared.html#sthash.673b9oDf.dpuf

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USA Plunges To 46th In World Press Freedom Index…

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Biggest rises and falls in the 2014 World Press Freedom Index

The 2014 World Press Freedom Index spotlights the negative impact of conflicts on freedom of information and its protagonists. The ranking of some countries has also been affected by a tendency to interpret national security needs in an overly broad and abusive manner to the detriment of the right to inform and be informed. This trend constitutes a growing threat worldwide and is even endangering freedom of information in countries regarded as democracies. Finland tops the index for the fourth year running, closely followed by Netherlands and Norway, like last year. At the other end of the index, the last three positions are again held by Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea, three countries where freedom of information is non-existent. Despite occasional turbulence in the past year, these countries continue to be news and information black holes and living hells for the journalists who inhabit them. This year’s index covers 180 countries, one more than last year. The new entry, Belize, has been assigned an enviable position (29th). Cases of violence against journalists are rare in Belize but there were some problems: defamation suits involving demands for large amounts in damages, national security restrictions on implementation of the Freedom of Information Act and sometimes unfair management of broadcast frequencies.
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