White guilt gave us a mock politics based on the pretense of moral authority.
By
SHELBY STEELE
Updated March 5, 2017 6:20 p.m. ET
The recent flurry of marches, demonstrations and even riots, along with the Democratic Party’s spiteful reaction to the Trump presidency, exposes what modern liberalism has become: a politics shrouded in pathos. Unlike the civil-rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s, when protesters wore their Sunday best and carried themselves with heroic dignity, today’s liberal marches are marked by incoherence and downright lunacy—hats designed to evoke sexual organs, poems that scream in anger yet have no point to make, and an hysterical anti-Americanism.
All this suggests lostness, the end of something rather than the beginning. What is ending?
America, since the ’60s, has lived through what might be called an age of white guilt. We may still be in this age, but the Trump election suggests an exhaustion with the idea of white guilt, and with the drama of culpability, innocence and correctness in which it mires us.
Without last-in first-out our schools (and village services) would be totally run by friends and family.
Look at the schools. There are lots of family trees in the RPS system. Some schools only hire on the friends and family plan. Who hires in the middle schools? Without regulation only unaffiliated staff would be let go and family members would be moved into safe positions. We have union rules to keep the politics out of the layoff process.
It is not about effective and ineffective teachers. It is about the “Friends and Family” plan that exists in this town and many others.
Welcome to the Ridgewood Public Library, where the board wants residents to pay million$$$ to replace books with a community center and performing arts venue, move the staircase (very expensive), and add a skylight and other unnecessary things precisely as we face steep property tax increases from full-day kindergarten, a bloated school budget, and the prospect of endless expenses from new residents in up to four apartment buildings (and possibly more later). We must fight this idea from the start. Attend the Monday 3/27 budget hearing (4th floor courtroom, Village Hall, 5:30 PM) at which the library will ask the council for permission and money for their daydream. Brief comments from the public are invited. Speak as an outraged resident and taxpayer against this idiotic plan, presented in part at a recent council meeting, before it can go any farther. (The opposition will no doubt haul people out to say it’s a great idea. It’s not.)
...Potential for a Major Winter Storm Monday night into
Wednesday...
...WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM LATE MONDAY NIGHT
THROUGH TUESDAY EVENING...
* Locations...Northeastern New Jersey, Orange, Putnam, Rockland,
Northern Westchester, Northern Fairfield, and Northern New
Haven counties.
* Hazard Types...Heavy Snow.
* Snow Accumulations...12 to 18 inches.
* Timing...Late Monday night through Tuesday evening.
* Impacts...Hazardous travel and potential for power outages.
* Winds...Northeast 10 to 20 mph with gusts up to 35 mph.
* Temperatures...In the mid 20s.
* Visibilities...One quarter mile or less at times.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Watch means there is a potential for significant
snow...sleet...or ice accumulations that may impact travel.
Continue to monitor the latest forecasts.
Ridgewood NJ, is it time for the Mayor and Village Council to step up and support Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi’s legislation , bill (A4666) which imposes a moratorium on all affordable housing litigation until the end of the year.
Please get your local Mayors and Councils to support these bills and call your legislators to co-sponsor them.
“The problem with this particular issue is that if people wait too long, there’s no way to reverse it,” said Schepisi. “I don’t think people know how critical of a timing issue this is for so many of the residents we represent and the municipalities we represent.”
As towns near the end of their court-granted immunity from builders’ remedy lawsuits, many are beginning to settle their affordable housing obligations.
“Municipalities, their mayors and councils, are feeling tremendous pressure to enter into settlement agreements which may not benefit their communities in any sort of fashion because they literally feel as though they have a gun to their heads,” Schepisi said.
Schepisi proposes putting the brakes on litigation while Legislature addresses affordable housing crisis. https://theridgewoodblog.net/schepisi-proposes-putting-the-brakes-on-litigation-while-legislature-addresses-affordable-housing-crisis/
Trenton, N.J. – New Jersey municipalities could get relief from building more than 200,000 low income housing units and 1,000,000 total new housing units under a bill introduced by Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi on Tuesday. The bill (A4666) imposes a moratorium on all affordable housing litigation until the end of the year.
“If we wait any longer the transformative impact on our communities will not be reversible,” said Schepisi (R-Bergen). “Now is the time for the Legislature to act.”
Municipalities have spent millions of taxpayer dollars over the years fighting affordable housing mandates in court. After a January NJ Supreme Court ruling forced towns to consider past housing needs for the first time, municipalities statewide are struggling to compensate. The far-reaching mandate increases low-income housing need by 142 percent while forcing municipalities to permit building that would accommodate a phantom 30 percent population increase.
“The court’s social engineering will devastate all 23 municipalities I represent and suburban municipalities throughout the entire state,” said Schepisi. “The legislature needs to stop ignoring affordable housing and instead should immediately act to fix this problem in a responsible manner. While we focus our energies to vote on the State bird and State butterfly our communities are being turned into mini Brooklyns. We cannot let the court legislate what is best for individual communities. This isn’t temporary; this is forever. I am circulating a resolution to every Mayor and Council in the State seeking their support for an immediate legislative solution.”
Schepisi also introduced a companion bill (A-4667) creating a short term commission that will study prior court decisions, the effectiveness of past affordable housing practices, and analyze projected population increases and corresponding housing need. The commission will hold public hearings and is required to publish a report of its findings at the end of the year.
The January court mandate would unnecessarily increase housing supply by as much as 30 percent in the next 9 years anticipating a population growth of 2.73 million. If built, the number of new housing units in New Jersey would exceed housing numbers for the entire city of Manhattan. These projections would cost New Jersey taxpayers over $11.75 billion more in education alone. On the flip side, Rutger’s economists project a population increase of only .3 percent, or 219,000 people, per year until 2026.
I love books. I can’t leave a bookstore without at least one. But I also have a tendency to buy books and not actually read them. Somewhere along the way reading fell by the wayside in favor of other forms of entertainment. To get back on track, I made some simple changes that have helped me with my reading habits thus far—no speed reading necessary.
I Made My Environment More Reading Friendly
I Carry My Books With Me Wherever I Go
I Give Up on Books I’m Not Enjoying
I Started Reading Three—and Only Three—Books at a Time
The book supply is woefully lacking at the library. I reserve two to three books a month via my computer. 100% of the time they come in from other libraries, even from as far away as Hoboken. I used to go to the library to get books but they never EVER have the books I want, which are not off-beat rare titles, believe me, just run-of-the-mill popular titles, many of them on the NY Times bestseller listing. I finally realized that the only way to do this was by inter-library loan. I feel like Nancy Greene must order no books at all, and just lets all the other libraries buy the books for the Ridgewood customers to borrow from them. Disgraceful.
Ridgewood NJ, as previously reported on this blog Nancy Green gave a presentation about plans for remodeling the library. Basically, she presented a wish-and-hope plan, which included some architectural drawings. She stated that they will work within the existing footprint……although there was a quick mention of “squaring off” the empty space on the northwest corner of the building along the walkway from Maple Avenue (behind the auditorium). Tiered seating in the auditorium was discussed as a possibility. Nothing will happen without approval from the Council. She says this is all very preliminary, but clearly, a lot of work has gone into this very preliminary presentation.
Sounds like we have heard all this before,“Ms. Greene described the five-year planning process conducted by the Library, which included the development of a Strategic Plan with consultant Alan Gray of Darien Library, and a Building Program with consultant Leslie Burger of Princeton Library.” Do you think that hiring two consultants who gave their presentation at the
Readers seem to fall into “NO LIBRARY EXPANSION. Board has too much money to play with and can’t stop delusions of grandeur. Buy a new outfit for a big opening somewhere else. Stop charging a fortune for DVDs. At least the old ones should be free.” category.
Readers suggest, “If the plea is “We already spent a ton of money, so we have to spend more,” I recommend the following reply by the Council: “Your bad. Cut your losses.” Spending $5 million to create a performing arts center with no parking while reducing the number of books in the library would be as appalling in the current financial situation as Christie’s plan to spend $300 million upgrading the State House while state pension plans, infrastructure, and much more are in desperate need and our credit rating sinks and sinks. NO to library upgrade. Replace the board and stop charging a fortune for DVDs and so on.”
Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood Public Library continues with its oral history project. 2016 may be coming to an end, but our oral history project Storytellers @RPL will continue on. We’ve added two more recordings for you to listen to on ridgewoodlibrary.org/storytellers. Learn about Ali’s Broadway debut and Gwenn’s family ties to Ridgewood. You can also read the transcripts of Roberta’s stories and Bob’s experiences.
We’ll continue to add oral histories to the website, so make sure to check in to hear the different voices that make up Ridgewood’s rich history. If you’re interested in sharing your story, please contact Sarah Kiefer at 201-670-5600 x135 or skiefer@ridgewoodlibrary.org
Ridgewood NJ, So much for the Library Board’s recent statement that the building renovation plans announced by Councilman Jeffrey Voigt: ” . . thus far have been merely speculative” and ” . . . should not have served as an announcement.”
From the official minutes of the Ridgewood Public Library Board of Trustees dated January 21, 2016:
“LIBRARY SCHEMATIC PRESENTATION”
Ms. Greene described the five-year planning process conducted by the Library, which included development of a Strategic Plan with consultant Alan Gray of Darien Library, and a Building Program with consultant Leslie Burger of Princeton Library.
Ms. Campbell welcomed Mr. Gisolfi, Ms. Abate and Mr. Mintzes (of Peter Gisolfi Associates, Architects) as participants on the Ridgewood Library schematics team.
Mr. Gisolfi explained his goal of developing transparency and further unifying the Library’s architectural styles from the 1950s and 1990s. He narrated a slide presentation which included these recommendations:
• Install a square clerestory in the center of the original roof to admit additional light.
• Create a 28′ x 28′ opening in the center of the original building, between the 1st and 2nd floors.
Mr. Gisolfi also showed an alternate location for the opening which had been considered earlier.
• Transform the Auditorium into a Performing Arts Center: expand the footprint and height, build tiered
seating, eliminate the raised stage and add backstage and storage areas.
• Create a large new meeting room against the 1st floor south wall, and a smaller new meeting room on
the northwest corner of the 2nd level (location of existing staff room.)
• Enlarge Young Adult Center on the 1st floor and move it against the building’s west wall.
• Enlarge Tech Training Center, encompassing existing Silent Study room and part of Heritage Archives.
• Enlarge 2nd floor Lobby to envelope elevator.
• Open east wall of Bolger Heritage Center toward Reference Center.
• Add Silent Study and 2 smaller study rooms to south wall of Mezzanine; add windows to solid walls.
• Reduce size of staff service desks and offices; add small staff “pods” in all public areas.
The estimated cost for construction and finishes is $5,252,126 to $6,374,583.
The following questions from members of the Board, Friends and Foundation were answered by Mr. Gisolfi.
(1) Will the parking issue be addressed? A: No, Parking was not in the Schematics proposal.
(2) Would the Young Adult area get larger? A: Yes, it would increase by almost 66%.
(3) How will the Performing Arts Center be different? A: The new space would allow for both fixed
seating and removable chairs, and could fit up to 260 seats all together.
(4) Will there be a new kitchen and ticket sale areas for accommodate entertainment and events?
A: The Lobby will feel larger due to the new layout of cafe counter. The larger kitchen area will be
on the 2nd level.
(5) Can the Auditorium open up to the outdoors? A: It’s possible with doors opening toward the patio.
The layout of the stage is also changed to encourage a more fluid flow of people.
(6) Is the total area of shelving changed? A: There is a slight reduction.
(7) To add versatility to the space, can you avoid using fixed table lamps? A. There can be mostly
ceiling lighting.
(8) How can we be sure the proposed budget is feasible? A: The owner’s architect contract would
include a clause requiring the architect to stay within proposed budget.
(9) Construction management? A: Construction supervision is included in the architect cost.
Mr. Fisher pointed out that from a taxpayers’ point of view, the library will be more multi-functional.
Ms. Campbell and the Board thanked Mr. Gisolfi and his team for the detailed presentation.
From the official minutes of the The Ridgewood Public Library Board of Trustees dated November 22, 2016:
“ARCHITECT PRESENTATION —Peter Gisoifi & Robert Mintzes”
Mr. Gisoifi presented revised floor plans and new hand-drawn renderings for the proposed library renovation.
Option A is the new plan which gives the Teen Center a prominent location with windows and an adjacent Makerspace Lab. Option B places a large Meeting Room in that location. Both versions show new meeting rooms of all sizes throughout the Library, and feature a circular central opening with spiral staircase that connects the 1st and 2nd floors under two new rooftop skylights. Phase 1 of the project would renovate all areas of the existing library, and Phase 2 would update the Auditorium into a Performing Arts Center, featuring tiered seating in a slightly larger footprint. From very early cost estimates, Phase 1 and Phase 2 are forecast to cost roughly $4 million and $1 million, respectively.
The plans were well received by all present. Mr. Gisoifi will firm up and verify the construction cost estimates, and will prepare a proposal for architectural design development.
Ms. Greene noted that the Library will need to develop a full Capital Budget Proposal to include all related costs – construction, site work, professional fees, furnishings, technology, moving and storage of all holdings and contingency. The Trustees discussed where to base the Library’s operations during the year or so of major construction. Ideas mentioned: Elks Club, Zusy Center at Village Hall, Brakeorama site, a storefront similar to the mini-mall space used by Wyckoff Library during their construction, or a temporary modular library in the parking lot, delivered by tractor trailer.
Ridgewood NJ, Councilman Voigt has a message for residents about his ruthless attacks,”I can’t and won’t apologize. I don’t intend to and I just want to make sure people know that.”
In a comment to the Ridgewood blog,similar to one posted on Facebook Councilman Voigt Says He will Continue to Speak Out:
“Nice to see all the comments.Actually, I am quite consistent in how I treat people. When I find that someone is abjectly unfair, deceitful to others, and violates the Faulkner Act, I will speak out. We need this in government. I would be happy to speak to any anonymous person above about what occurred any why you should be concerned.
Ridgewood NJ, Jeff Voigt’s announcement last week about the library turns out to have been premature. Mayor Knudsen had to announce that the library is only in very preliminary discussion and was in no way prepared to publicly announce a 5 million dollar renovation that would involve the library being closed for a year. Good job Councilman Voigt, jumping the gun unprofessionally and getting everyone riled up for no reason. Boyd Loving later suggested that the library should include the Village Council in the process of their plans and pipe dreams, rather than presenting The Nancy Green Palace as a fait accompli.
Mayor Knudsen also announced that subsequent to last week’s meeting, at which Councilman Voigt verbally accosted Mayor Knudsen, she and her council colleagues received numerous emails from residents complaining about the behavior of Mr. Voigt. As she began to explain that the council will aspire toward civility moving forward, Mr. Voigt unbelievably attempted to rudely interrupt her as she spoke. When she politely asked him to wait, he did so. Upon completing her report, she ceded the floor to Councilman Voigt. He then lit into her, referred to her only as Susan, not as the Mayor, and called her comments and actions deceitful, disrespectful, and stated that she disregarded other people who actually care about this town (meaning that Mayor Knudsen does not actually care about this town). Yes, he said those and things, and he went on to say that he cannot and will not and does not intend to apologize for anything he said. This guy is Albert Pucciarelli without the toupee.
Ridgewood NJ, It would appear that the barrage of negative social media posts regarding the Ridgewood Public Library’s planned $5 million “interior renovation and expansion of the current auditorium” have caught the library’s Board of Trustees completely by surprise. So much so that Mayor Susan Knudsen read a prepared statement during Wednesday night’s Village Council meeting in which the Board of Trustees claim that their discussions about renovating “. . . thus far have been merely speculative.”
Councilman Jeffery Voigt, who is the Village Council’s liaison to the Library Board, had publicly reported the Library’s renovation plan on December 7. Immediately following his report, The Ridgewood Blog and other social media sites were flooded with reader comments about the grandiose renovation plans. The Library Board of Trustees’ prepared statement, read by Mayor Knudsen, claimed that Voigt’s comments “. . . should not have served as an announcement.”
A review of Library Board of Trustees meeting minutes will determine if Councilman Voigt’s December 7 report was indeed accurate.
Ridgewood NJ, it has been pointed out by some readers that unless the published list of Ridgewood Library Trustees is incorrectly stated on their website listing the ex-mayor and one of his appointees on the Library Board as the current mayor .
Last time we checked there was a new mayor in the Village of Ridgewood , and she seemed eminently qualified to represent the residents of the Village.
Removing the Ex-mayor and his appointee and adding the current mayor with her appointee would help restore the public’s confidence as to the direction of the Library . The continued association with the ex-mayor only leads one to conclude for many residents that something nefarious is going on.
Ridgewood Library Board of Trustees
Gail Campbell
President
Arlene Sarappo
Vice President
Daniel Cummings
Treasurer
Christine Driscoll
Secretary
Jean Cleary
Member
Janis Fuhrman
Member
John Saraceno
Member
Paul Aronsohn Mayor of Ridgewood
Albert Pucciarelli Mayor’s Delegate
Dr. Daniel Fishbein
Superintendent
Linda Diorio
Superintendent’s Delegate
Ex Officio
Paul McCarthy
Friends
Betsy Giordano
Foundation
Nancy Greene
Library Director
Meetings are held in the Library’s Administration Conference Room, 3rd Floor
125 N. Maple Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Meetings will be held monthly on the 4th Tuesdays of each Month at 7:30 PM
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Councilman Jeffery Voigt announced during Wednesday evening’s Village Council Work Session that the Ridgewood Public Library plans to undertake a massive $5 million renovation, and will close for at least one (1) full year to facilitate construction.
The planned renovations will focus on changing the facility to be more in line with the Library’s new focus as a “community center,” this according to Voigt.
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