The NBC meteorologist and “Today” show host took New York Mayor Bill de Blasio to task on Thursday for criticizing the National Weather Service, tweeting that the mayor’s “poor policy” was to blame for the city’s snow response.
Al Roker ✔ @alroker Follow
@NYCMayorsOffice says snow was faster/heavier than expected. No, Mr. Mayor. It came as predicted. Don’t blame weather for YOUR poor policy
Al Roker ✔ @alroker Follow
How dare @NYCMayorsOffice @NYCSchools throw NWS under the school bus. Forecast was on time and on the money
Al Roker ✔ @alroker Follow
I knew this am @NYCMayorsOffice @NYCSchools would close schools. Talk about a bad prediction. Long range DiBlasio forecast: 1 term
NJT : Systemwide Cross-Honoring still in Effect on Friday, February 14
Systemwide Cross-Honoring in Effect on Thursday, February 13 and Friday, February 14: To give customers additional travel options during winter weather conditions, NJ TRANSIT will offer full systemwide cross-honoring on Thursday, February 13 and Friday, February 14, enabling customers to use their NJ TRANSIT ticket or pass on an alternate travel mode—rail, light rail or bus—including private bus carriers.
For example, customers who normally take the bus from Rutherford to the Port Authority Bus Terminal may use their bus pass or ticket on the train from Rutherford to New York Penn Station. Similarly, customers who normally take the bus between Atlantic City and Lindenwold may use the Atlantic City Rail Line instead at no additional charge. Customers using their tickets or passes to travel to a destination other than the destination printed on their original ticket will be subject to the appropriate additional fare if applicable.
RIDGEWOOD PUBLIC SCHOOLS WILL HAVE A DELAYED OPENING FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14
DELAYED OPENING: Under the delayed opening plan, the school day will begin two hours later than usual. School bus schedules will operate two hours later. The morning kindergarten will be cancelled; the afternoon kindergarten will follow the regular hours. Children in grades 1-5 who have not ordered lunches must bring a bag lunch to school. There will not be sufficient time for children to go home for lunch when there is a delayed opening.
Internet governance too US-centric, says European commission
Commission says NSA revelations call into question US role in internet governance, which should be more global
The mass surveillance carried out by the US National Security Agency means that governance of the internet has to be made more international and less dominated by America, the European Union’s executive has declared.
Setting out proposals on how the world wide web should function and be regulated, the European commission called for a shift away from the California-based Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann), which is subject to US law, is contracted by the US administration and is empowered to supervise how digital traffic operates.
“Recent revelations of large-scale surveillance have called into question the stewardship of the US when it comes to internet governance,” said the commission.
“Given the US-centric model of internet governance currently in place, it is necessary to broker a smooth transition to a more global model while at the same time protecting the underlying values of open multi-stakeholder governance …
“Large-scale surveillance and intelligence activities have led to a loss of confidence in the internet and its present governance arrangements.”
Holder: State Laws That Bar Felons From Voting Are ‘Too Unjust to Tolerate’
February 12, 2014 – 7:11 AM
By Susan Jones
(CNSNews.com) – Three days after announcing that the U.S. Justice Department will recognize same-sex marriages in all legal matters, even in states that forbid it, Attorney General Eric Holder took a swipe at states that don’t allow felons to vote.
“In many states, felony disenfranchisement laws are still on the books. And the current scope of these policies is not only too significant to ignore — it is also too unjust to tolerate,” Holder told a criminal justice forum at Georgetown University Law Center.
Holder urged lawmakers “to stand together in overturning an unfortunate and outdated status quo.” And he called on the American people “to join us in bringing about the end of misguided policies that unjustly restrict what’s been called the ‘most basic right’ of American citizenship.”
Repeatedly raising the debt ceiling, offers a glimpse into the very real and very sad state of our nation’s finances.
Garrett Statement on Debt Ceiling Vote
Feb 12, 2014
Washington, DC – Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), a senior member of the House Budget Committee and Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, issued the following statement after voting against raising the debt ceiling on Tuesday night:
“Repeatedly raising the debt ceiling, as if it’s just a tedious task that must be dealt with, offers a glimpse into the very real and very sad state of our nation’s finances. While this bill has been heralded as a ‘no strings attached’ debt limit increase, the reality is there are strings attached and they’re directly attached to our children and grandchildren’s future.
“Politically, it is much easier to avoid the trillion dollar elephant in the room. But the cycle of borrowing and spending and borrowing more cannot continue indefinitely. The longer it goes on, the worse the problem will get, and the harder it will be to solve. It would be better to solve the problem now by cutting spending and adopting a plan to balance the budget in the near future with specific, achievable goals. Sadly, the political will to do so does not abide in this Congress.”
If Only a Snow Shovel Could Dig Us Out of This
Amy Payne
February 13, 2014 at 6:30 am
Thanks to Congress, the U.S. now doesn’t have a debt limit for the next year. Let two Heritage experts put this into perspective.
“President Obama, after less than five years in office, has already increased the debt limit by more than any other president in U.S. history, including President George W. Bush over eight years in office,” report Romina Boccia and Michael Sargent, authors of the newly updated Federal Budget in Pictures.
For the next year, now that Congress has given Obama a blank check, we’ll be following the borrowing and the spending and all the debt Washington is piling on Americans. The national debt, at $17.3 trillion, already exceeds $140,000 per household.
Sargent and Boccia, the Grover M. Hermann Fellow, teamed up with Heritage’s Senior Data Graphics Editor John Fleming to bring us 20 charts that will convince you the country’s in trouble.
There are some scary fiscal times ahead.
Imagine all of America and all of the taxes people pay to the federal government every year. Do you have an overwhelming idea in your mind? Just 16 years from now, ALL of that money will pay for just two things: entitlement programs and interest on the debt.
All of it.
The entitlement programs include Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare’s new entitlements. So if you think anything is important besides these mammoth entitlement programs—like national defense, a real constitutional priority—Congress needs to get going on some major reforms.
These are just a few of the mind-boggling facts you can see and share—if you dare—in this visual resource. Find out where your tax money went and get the latest on Obamacare’s tax hikes.
Teenagers in the United States are experiencing higher levels of stress than many adults, USA Today reported.
Posted: Feb 12, 2014 7:25 AM EST Updated: Feb 12, 2014 11:30 AM EST
By FOX News
As a part of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Stress in America survey, more than 1,000 teenagers and 2,000 adults answered questions about their overall stress levels and coping habits. Though the APA has conducted similar surveys in the past, this was the first to focus specifically on stress among teenagers.
Overall, the survey revealed that 27 percent of teenagers reported feeling “extreme stress” during the school year, compared to 20 percent of adults.
While levels of “extreme stress” among teens fell to 13 percent over the summer months, 34 percent of teens surveyed said they expected their stress levels to increase over the next year due to a variety of stressors, including school, work, family and friends.
“The last two years in high school have been the most stressful for me and my friends,” survey participant Hannah Sturgill, 18, of Portsmouth, Ohio told USA Today. “We have to do everything and be perfect for colleges and we have a big workload. Most of the time we talk about how stressed we are.”
Many of the teenagers surveyed said they were suffering from irritability or angriness (40 percent), nervousness or anxiety (36 percent) or depression and sadness (33 percent) because of their stress. Sturgill told USA Today she sometimes skips meals because of high levels of stress.
N.J. renews support for Common Core learning goals
Wednesday February 12, 2014, 9:43 PM
BY LESLIE BRODY
STAFF WRITER
The Record
The state Board of Education voted on Wednesday to express its commitment to the Common Core, a set of guidelines for what children should learn that has sparked opposition from some parents.
The standards, adopted by New Jersey in 2010 and phased into classrooms more recently, face critics from various points of the political spectrum nationwide. Some argue that they represent federal overreach. Others say they overemphasize testing or will be too daunting for already struggling students.
Reader urges caution for Schedler development do to its uniqueness
Jane S
I didn’t ask them to build or not to build anything in particular. I only asked that the Council be aware of its geographical reality (for lack of a better description) before they decide on anything.
The property is right on the highway. A parking lot, especially if it has lights and no developed police presence, is an obvious spot for drug sales. You’d pull in, buy or sell drugs and be back on Rte. 17 and in NY in minutes.
It wouldn’t be like trouble at Vets Field or the high school. It’s a bit remote and off the radar. #4, I’d agree that people might use spike in crime, child safety, pedestrian safety, etc. to win other arguments, but this is one of the most unique spots in town and as such makes it worthy of extra caution.
The following service advisories are in effect for Thursday, February 13, due to weather conditions:
Rail Service: On Thursday, February 13, NJ TRANSIT will operate on a regular weekday rail schedule. All rail service is subject to potential delays, adjustments and cancellations due to the winter weather conditions. Customers are strongly encouraged to plan accordingly and build additional time into their travels.
Bus Service: While every effort will be made to continue operating bus service systemwide on a regular weekday schedule on Thursday, February 13, customers may experience delays, detours or service adjustments on certain routes in the event of significant snowfall. Customers are strongly advised to plan accordingly and build additional time into their travels as buses will be subject to local road conditions.
Light Rail Service: On Thursday, February 13, NJ TRANSIT will operate light rail lines on a regular weekday schedule. All light rail service is subject to potential delays, adjustments and cancellations due to the winter weather conditions. Customers are strongly encouraged to plan accordingly and build additional time into their travels.
Access Link Paratransit Service: On Thursday, February 13, Access Link service will be suspended statewide. On Friday, February 14, Access Link will resume service at 12 noon should road conditions permit. In addition, all transfer trips will be cancelled statewide on both Thursday and Friday.
In addition, NJ TRANSIT is reminding customers of the following:
Systemwide Cross-Honoring in Effect on Thursday, February 13 and Friday, February 14: To give customers additional travel options during winter weather conditions, NJ TRANSIT will offer full systemwide cross-honoring on Thursday, February 13 and Friday, February 14, enabling customers to use their ticket or pass on an alternate travel mode—rail, light rail or bus—including private bus carriers.
Waiting Room Hours Extended on Thursday, February 13: Due to the impending storm, all NJ TRANSIT rail station buildings and waiting rooms will remain open for extended hours Thursday evening into Friday morning.
All customers are strongly advised to check njtransit.com for up-to-the-minute service information before starting their trip.
Due to the severity of the winter storm forecast, the Ridgewood Public Schools wiil be CLOSED on Thursday, February 13, 2014. All after-school activities are also canceled.
Bus riders frozen out as fight over snow removal leaves many NJ Transit stops packed in ice
Tuesday, February 11, 2014 Last updated: Tuesday February 11, 2014, 11:25 PM
BY ABBOTT KOLOFF, MINJAE PARK AND MATTHEW MCGRATH
STAFF WRITERS
The Record
Commuters getting on and off NJ Transit buses along highways in Bergen and Passaic counties have been climbing over boulders of ice and snow for the past week because no one seemed to know who was supposed to plow the bus stops.
One woman hung onto an NJ Transit bus stop sign that poked out of a mound of packed snow on Route 3 east at Passaic Avenue in Clifton as she waited for a bus to New York City on Tuesday morning. Others, grumbling about conditions at the bus stop, walked around the ice and onto a shoulder of the road to wait for a bus, with rush-hour traffic passing just inches away.
