With the holidays here, we are staying open a little later each night this week.
Holiday Hours Monday, Dec. 20 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Tuesday, Dec. 21 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Wednesday, Dec. 22 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Thursday, Dec. 23 10:00 AM to 8:30 PM Friday, Dec. 24 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM Saturday, Dec. 25 CLOSED
Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year! Gary, Barbara & Collin
The Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood | 10 Chestnut Street | Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450 Phone: 201-447-2204 | Email: [email protected] Hours: Monday – Saturday 10:00AM – 5:30PM and Thursday Night 6:30PM – 8:30PM
>Beware of Politician Bearing Gifts :N.J. lawmakers pass bills to boost economy
New Jersey lawmakers in recent days have approved tax breaks for the film industry, investors in technology start-ups, senior citizens, and historic-preservation projects. They’ve voted to change how corporate taxes are calculated and to start a job-training program for the unemployed. (Rao, The Philadelphia Inquirer)
>The state’s pension and retiree health care programs are like a giant blob in a science fiction movie
Can blob be stopped short of bankruptcy?
The state’s pension and retiree health care programs are like a giant blob in a science fiction movie, rolling over the landscape with ever-increasing speed, growing larger by the day until it’s big enough to consume everything in its path. The Legislature, pandering to greedy special interests with no regard for economic reality, created it. (Ingle, Daily Record)
>Christie says ‘day of reckoning’ has arrived for states facing budget gaps
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said U.S. states face a “day of reckoning” as they contend with looming budget deficits in the wake of the longest recession since the 1930s. (Dopp, Bloomberg)
Democrats put heat on FCC commissioner on net neutrality vote
By Sara Jerome – 12/18/10 06:00 AM ET
The Democrats have a message for Democratic FCC Commissioner Michael Copps: Don’t screw things up on net neutrality.
Democrats allied with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski are working to put public pressure on Copps as the net-neutrality vote draws near.
Genachowski needs Copps to vote for his plan during a commission meeting on Tuesday if the rules are to pass.
As a result, Democrats who support the plan are pushing this message in the media: If Copps doesn’t vote for Genachowski’s plan, the consequences will reverberate all the way up to the White House. They are arguing that the damage could even hurt President Obama.
>Garrett: All Congressional Staff Must Understand the Constitution
Introduces new House rule to require all congressional staffers to complete yearly training on the Constitution
WASHINGTON, December 17, 2010 – Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Founder and Chairman of the Congressional Constitution Caucus, yesterday introduced H. Res. 1772, a House rule resolution that would require congressional staff members to complete annual training on the Constitution.
“Members of Congress often consult their staff for advice about legislation and other official actions; consequently, I believe it’s important for congressional staff to have a firm understanding of the constitutional principles our country was founded upon,” said Garrett upon introducing the rule. “Having a training program dedicated to the Constitution would increase general awareness of the Constitution and thereby lead to a more constitutionally-sound manner of governing. Congress would better limit itself to enumerated powers if those who work on Capitol Hill are more familiar with what those specific powers are.”
Garrett’s House rule resolution has 25 original cosponsors and would require all staff to undergo mandatory training that is similar in format to the annual ethics training staffers are already required to complete. The Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties would be tasked with developing and managing the training.
>Village Council Schedules Special Public Meeting to Authorize Raises For Police Department
The Ridgewood Village Council will meet at 7:30 PM on Monday, December 20th in the Sydney V. Stoldt, Jr. Court Room for the exclusive purpose of introducing Ordinance #3275, “Police Officers and Police Superiors Salary Ordinance.”
This meeting is open to the public and will be televised on Cablevision’s Channel 77.
Tuesday will usher in the first lunar eclipse during a winter solstice in 456 years
For the first time in 456 years this year’s winter solstice will coincide with a full lunar eclipse. This celestial eccentricity holds very special significance for the many that believe in the energy of the winter solstice. The solstice signifies the shortest day of the year often a time that is associated with the rebirth of the sun.
Wiccans often refer to it as “a ritual of transformation from darkness into light” offering an opportunity for personal transformation. The move from dark to light is seen as a rebirth .Some see great significance in the unique coupling of the masculine energy of the sun and the feminine energy of the moon.
Our own local expert says ,”It’s a time when the Sun is growing stronger and the light in increasing. It’s a good time to work on prosperity and abundance. Many Pagans hold all night vigils to welcome the return of the Sun.”
MORE : https://www.manhattanstyle.com/news/tuesday-will-usher-in-the-fist-lunar-eclipse-during-a-winter-solstice-in-456-years/
>NEW PLAYERS ALUMNI PRESENT “A CHRISTMAS CAROL” The Holiday Classic with Musical Interludes 2nd Annual Benefit Performance by New Players Company Alumni Directed by Laurie Sales, RHS ’91
Monday, December 20 7:30 p.m. Little Theatre at RHS
All Proceeds To Benefit the New Players Capital Campaign For ticket information and order form:
>New Jersey Fiscal Crisis : N.J. Gov. Christie slows increase in debt burden
N.J. Gov. Christie slows increase in debt burden Sunday, December 19, 2010 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY DECEMBER 19, 2010, 9:37 AM BY JOHN REITMEYER STATE HO– USE BUREAU
New Jersey’s debt burden, which increased by nearly 700 percent during the last two decades, grew only 3 percent during the last budget year — something Governor Christie said did not happen by accident.
Under the administration of Governor Christie, New Jersey’s debt burden grew by 3 percent in the last budget year, but his frugality has also garnered scrutiny. Christie, a Republican who preaches lower taxes and smaller government, froze state spending and approved new borrowing only for transportation infrastructure and school construction since taking office in January, according to a report released by the state Department of Treasury last week.
And the $1.25 billion added to the state’s bonded debt total between June 30, 2009, and June 30, 2010, had already been set in motion through capital programs approved before Christie came to Trenton last year.
But Christie’s frugal use of the state’s credit card barely made a dent in the state’s overall bonded debt burden of $37.7 billion thanks to the borrowing habits of prior governors, who left New Jersey residents with a per-capita debt load of $3,669 — good for 4th-highest among all states in the U.S.
>Stuck on Stupid : The Real Question Remains Why was Anyone dumb enough to invest in Xanadu?
Public pensions at risk: Xanadu losses show danger of volatile funds Sunday, December 19, 2010 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY DECEMBER 19, 2010, 9:56 AM BY ANDREW TANGEL THE RECORD STAFF WRITER
Some $2 billion has been spent on Xanadu and much of it has gone to contractors, tradesmen and teams of politically connected professionals.
Public pensions in nine states lost a total of $600 million in high-risk private-equity funds that included the troubled Xanadu project, above. But where did all that money come from?
The answer, to a large degree, is pension funds for police, firefighters and other public employees around the country.
Nine public pension systems from Alaska to Texas to New York poured nearly $1 billion into two private-equity funds that include Xanadu among their investments, according to pension records reviewed by The Record. Those pensions have seen their collective investments in these funds shrink to about $360 million, a decline of about 60 percent, according to the pensions’ records spanning the last year.
>House Star Robert Sean Leonard Remembers Ridgewood childhood as pretty idyllic
House Call: The Doctor is in the ‘House’
Robert Sean Leonard is not a doctor. He just plays one – superbly – on TV. The actor, who grew up in Ridgewood, co-stars on Fox’s long-running hit drama House as Dr. James Wilson…
“It’s always tricky when people talk about their childhoods because you’re so tainted by nostalgia by the time you’re 40 that it’s difficult to remember anything with any kind of clarity or truth. But I remember my childhood in Ridgewood being bucolic, Oscar Hammerstein-like; riding my bike on the streets, utterly safe from every negative force on Earth. I remember Graydon Pool, and kickball games in the street until sunset. My memories of Ridgewood are pretty idyllic.”
>Senator Loretta Weinberg : NJ Obamacare Vote on MONDAY
The full NJ Senate is scheduled to vote MONDAY to create the “New Jersey Health Care Reform Implementation Council” — the state agency which would implement Obamacare in New Jersey (S-2239). Read the Bill Read the Amendment which adds members including SEIU The bill is not yet posted on Mondays’ schedule, but we understand that leadership will post it for a vote, nonetheless.
S-2239 was sponsored by Senator Loretta Weinberg, Bergen County Democrat. It is co-sponsored by Ronald Rice, a Newark Democrat. It buys votes for the Democrats and moves us toward socialism. This bill would name 29 representatives of organizations (nominated by the organizations, mostly unions, including SEIU), for appointment by the governor. These people would form the “Health Care Reform Implementation Council” and would have broad authority to “plan for and coordinate the implementation of health care reform in NJ pursuant to Obamacare.” The council would “determine the decisions that are required to be made to effectuate the purposes of … federal health care reform,” and would take office and be empowered immediately after passage. WE DO NOT WANT THIS TO BECOME LAW!!
>Holiday Fuentes Have Arrived @ Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood
“Special Holiday Fuentes Have Arrived! Opus X and Anejo as well as other specialty Fuentes will be available starting on Saturday, December 18.
Specialty cigars are limited to 1 or 2 per customer. We hope to share these special Fuentes with all our customers!
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! -Gary, Barbara and Collin“
The Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood | 10 Chestnut Street | Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450 Phone: 201-447-2204 | Email: [email protected] Hours: Monday – Saturday 10:00AM – 5:30PM and Thursday Night 6:30PM – 8:30PM
