Mother’s Day is a celebration that honors mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in March, April, or May. It complements Father’s Day, a celebration honoring fathers.
Celebrations of mothers and motherhood occur throughout the world. Many of these trace back to ancient festivals, like the Greek cult to Cybele, the Roman festival of Hilaria, or the Christian Mothering Sunday celebration. However, the modern holiday is an American invention and not directly descended from these celebrations.Despite this, in some countries Mother’s Day has become synonymous with these older traditions.
Julia Ward Howe was the first to proclaim Mother’s Day in 1870. Her Mother’s Day Proclamation was a pacifist reaction to the American Civil War and the Franco-Prussian War. The modern holiday of Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in America. She then began a campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday in the United States. Although she was successful in 1914, she was already disappointed with its commercialization by the 1920s. Jarvis’ holiday was adopted by other countries and it’s now celebrated all over the world.
The 37th Annual Fred D’Elia Ridgewood Run
Monday, May 28, 2012
Time: 8:30 AM
Veteran Memorail Field, Ridgewood, NJ, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
The 37th Annual Fred D’Elia Ridgewood Run is Memorial Day, Monday May 28th 2012! The events include: Wheelchair 10K begining at 8:25 am, Wheelchair 5K beginning at 10:15 am, Men’s Elite Mile at 11:40 am, Womens Elite Mile at 11:15 am and the Ridgewood YMCA Fun Run at noon.
Registration can be completed though www.raceforum.com/ridgewood, by mail entry with check to North Jersey Masters at 348 S. Irving St. RIdgewood, NJ 07450 or in person at the RIdgewood Cycle Shop, Ridgewood YMCA, or Road Runner Sports in Paramus.
Online registartion closes at midnight on May 23rd . Over 4,000 Runners Expected, Free Shirts, DJ, Refreshments, Massage Tent, and up to $5,000 in prize money avaible! Awards and Prize Money are both up for grabs!
long-term jobless Americans forced off federal extended benefits program
May 11 2012
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood ,NJ Over 200,000 long-term jobless Americans in California, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Colorado, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Texas will lose their unemployment checks this week, when eight states roll off the federal extended benefits program.
Nearly half of them live in California. The federal extended benefits program has provided the jobless with up to 20 additional weeks of unemployment checks after they’ve run through their state and their federal emergency benefits, which together last up to 79 weeks.
But the extended benefits program is expiring throughout the country as the the Obama administration claims the economy improving. States must show that its unemployment rate is at least 10% or more to be eligible for the program .
State unemployment rates have been falling as more and more workers exit the workforce and the job market shrinks .
Already, 25 states have rolled off the extended benefits program, with 15 of them exiting last month alone. But more unemployed folks will be affected by this week’s cessation than April’s, when about 135,000 people saw their payments end.
Ridgewood Native Julian Lynch Recognized as 2012 Scott Kloeck-Jenson Fellow
Global Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has awarded Julian Lynch a Scott Kloeck-Jenson Fellowship in support of his graduate work in Anthropology and Ethnomusicology, specifically on the role of festivals and music in India and their place within narratives of social change. Lynch, from Ridgewood, NJ, is recognized for his work that deepens international understanding and promotes global social justice. More information on Lynch, along with each of the other five fellows and their individual projects, can be found at https://global.wisc.edu/skj/fellows/.
The work of this year’s fellows embodies the Wisconsin Idea, the belief that education should influence and improve the lives of people beyond the university classroom. Scott Kloeck-Jenson, after whom this award is named, lived his life by this principle.
This year’s fellows again represent a broad range of country interests and disciplinary approaches. In addition to Lynch, the following graduate students will conduct research & internships in memory of Scott and his legacy:
• David Bresnahan, a doctoral student in African history, whose current research interests focus on pre-colonial coastal East Africa.
• Erin Kitchell, a master’s student in geography, whose academic interests include land-use planning in pastoral zones, local responses to climate risk in the Sahel, and the role of social learning in decision-making about environmental issues.
• Vijay Limaye, a joint Ph.D. student in the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and Department of Population Health Sciences, who will be working as an intern at The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in New Delhi, India, exploring the health consequences of ambient air pollution (particulate matter and ozone), a growing problem in many Indian cities.
• Nancy Rydberg, a doctoral candidate pursuing a joint degree in Educational Policy Studies and Development Studies, whose current research focuses on how war, forced migration, displacement and war-related poverty relate to gendered changes in the material and social circumstances of communities living in northern Uganda.
• Bethany Wilinski, a doctoral student pursuing a joint degree in Educational Policy Studies and Curriculum and Instruction, who this summer will work as an intern for USAID in Ethiopia, assisting with an education project focused on facilitating home-school connections for children orphaned and made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS.
In its 12th year, the Scott Kloeck-Jenson Fellowship and Global Studies have provided 102 students with travel to more than 50 countries to pursue work and research on peace and social justice issues. Scott was completing doctoral work on rural poverty in Mozambique province of Zambezia with his family on a Fulbright scholarship. There, he was also the field director for the Land Tenure Center’s Mozambique project. He was due to return to the U.S. in January 2000 to complete his dissertation with UW–Madison but, tragically, on June 23, 1999, Scott, his wife, Barbara, and their two children, Zoe and Noah, were killed in a car accident in South Africa.
Former N.J. Gov. McGreevey hails Obama’s support of gay marriage, calling it ‘a moral turning point’
Former Gov. Jim McGreevey whose secret affair with a male aide led to the downfall of his administration, said President Obama’s position marked a turning point in American history.
“The President’s decision today represents a moral turning point that civil liberties and the basic dignity of all persons ought to be respected,” McGreevey told The Star-Ledger just moments after Obama publicly re-staked his position in support of gay marriage. (Giambusso, The Star-Ledger)
Alternative testing? Not under Christie’s change for high school graduation
As the Christie administration launches new high-stakes testing for New Jersey’s high school students, acting Education Commissioner Chris Cerf said yesterday that he intends to continue an appeals process that last year was the last resort for roughly 1,000 students to graduate.
Christie reaches agreement with largest public workers union
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and the state’s largest union announced a tentative four-year contract agreement that increases pay, reduces clothing allowances and recognizes a new law raising workers’ benefit costs.
Specifics of the tentative deal will be released next week by the administration and the Communications Workers of America, Christie said in a statement today. The union represents more than 35,000 state employees. (Servetah, Bloomberg)
Newcomers can only say what they WOULD do if elected. Incumbents ought to be able to say what they DID
Harshly and repeatedly criticizing one’s colleagues is not a convincing platform for reelection. Standard advice to job seekers is NOT to trash their former employers and co-workers because it would reflect badly on themselves and is hardly a strong argument for being hired. That should work here as well. Dirty politics has no place in a suburban council election.
The tax increase prematurely quoted in the press is very far from final. It was merely a first look at the budget. Many residents don’t realize that it would apply only to the small municipal government portion of the budget, which is mostly a blank check to the schools. They are mentally multiplying the number by their existing property taxes and panicking.
Raises: Aronsohn has voted for every police and fire union contract in the past 4 years. Employee contracts (not counting the current Village Manager’s) were approved by the former Council. Four reasonable council members voted for the village manager’s raise. Disagree? OK. But is their decision to give somebody a raise really a good enough reason to vote for somebody else? It was one thing, blasted out of proportion by Aronsohn when he (or White Horse Strategies) grabbed it as a key to reelection…because he has very little else to offer.
Besides the fact that a 0%-based budget is better as a soundbite than as a plan for municipal government, how can Aronsohn reduce taxes or keep them low, as he claims he will do, while fully funding the library, revitalizing downtown, and pressing for enormous so-called accessibility projects when more thought could have had the job done better and at far lower cost?
Take a look at the new sidewalk at the Stable. Who planned it–the designer of Candyland? Or maybe Chutes and Ladders. It takes you (that is, apparently everyone) up from the parking lot, turn left, turn right, turn left, go to the Maple Avenue regular sidewalk, then up to the door–it couldn’t be more circuitous, with hard 90-degree turns rather than rounded edges. The turn radius at each corner, and there are many, is sharp and not easily maneuvered.
Yes, a very gentle specific maximum slope is required for wheelchairs; on hills, that requires a twisty-turny path. But accessibility to a building is supposed to give everybody a fair shot at getting through the door, not make things harder for everybody else every day. Did a single accessibility engineer review the plans? Unless another path will be added, and it doesn’t look that way, people attending meetings at the Stable (there are many) will have to leave home 5 minutes earlier–no exaggeration–just to get from the parking lot to the main door.
That trip is entirely exposed to the elements, too. When it’s raining or snowing or windy, this will be a long, wet, cold trip for all. And it will have to be cleared routinely of ice, snow, and debris in order for ANYONE to get in.
People in wheelchairs are not the only population needing better access. Those with Parkinson’s, a cane, a walker, crutches, a small child in tow, etc.–far greater numbers–will be exhausted. It can be difficult, but it’s not impossible, to accommodate all, and that’s what it’s all about. Why didn’t Aronsohn find and consult an expert? These projects require care and expertise. But no–just having the concrete poured is good enough for Paul Aronsohn, and now, 6 figures later, we are stuck with it.
Weak Economy Disappoints Again
Mike BrownfieldMay 4, 2012
Every day, America waits for a brighter future to arrive — the promise of change that President Barack Obama made in 2009 when he set a benchmark for his success on the economy, remarking, “If I don’t have this done in three years, then there’s going to be a one-term proposition.” More than three years later, very little has changed. As today’s jobs report shows, the U.S. economy only added 115,000 jobs in April — well below expectations and far, far below what is necessary to drive the economy back to full employment.
Lackluster employment results dominate today’s report. It’s been three years under the Obama policies, and 12.5 million Americans remain out of work. No demographic group except black workers saw an improvement in their unemployment rate, and 13 percent of black workers remain unemployed. What’s more, the labor force participation fell to the lowest level since 1981 at 63.6 percent. Americans are fleeing this economy when at this stage workers should be returning to the labor force.
This shouldn’t surprise anyone. While little has changed with the economy, little has changed in President Obama’s failed policies. Rampant federal spending continues unchecked; the debt continues to grow; a monstrous tax hike is set to hit Americans on January 1, 2013, infecting the economy with renewed and debilitating uncertainty, and the country’s energy policy remains in shambles.
The latest example of the president’s recycling of his Administration’s failed ideas came in a speech this week to the Building and Construction Trades Department Conference. Obama used the opportunity to pander to his Big Labor allies and called for more federal spending on infrastructure as a panacea for job creation, claiming that his proposals would put “hundreds of thousands of construction workers back to work repairing our roads, our bridges, schools, transit systems.”
People ask, why all the talk about dogs and contraceptives? The reason is: jobs.
Tomorrow the Labor Department will release its April employment report. If the rate goes down, the administration will brag a bit, but they won’t dwell on it. They know that the unemployment rate does not reflect the actual number of people who need work. Did you ever wonder how many of them are really out there?
Let’s put in a pre-recession, real numbers perspective. In July 2007, at the peak of the bling-years boom, there were 146.1 million people employed, 7.1 million unemployed, and 4.5 million working part-time “for economic reasons,” which added to the unemployed gives the number for “underemployed” (U6). There were 78.7 million people not in the labor force. The unemployment rate was 4.6%.
Last month, in March 2012, there were 142 million employed, 12.7 million unemployed, 7.7 million U6, and 87.9 million “not in the labor force. The unemployment rate is now (supposedly) 8.2%.
Ridgewood veterans seek support to repair village flagpole
Thursday May 3, 2012, 4:19 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
American Legion Post 53 is hoping for village and community support as its members embark on a mission to replace the flagpole at Veterans Field. Post member Chris Stout appealed to the governing body last week, asking for the mayor and council’s permission to begin the project, as well as minimal financial assistance.
Mother Nature and Father Time have taken their tolls on the flagpole, which has fallen into such a state of disrepair that Stout referred to it as an “eyesore” in “sore need of rehabilitation.” Deterioration of the structure is evident from top to bottom.
Ridgewood Board of Education names summer school principal
Wednesday May 2, 2012, 7:13 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News
The Board of Education (BOE) last month named Keith Cook as principal of the Ridgewood High School (RHS) 2012 summer school program. Cook will receive an $11,000 stipend to manage the school’s day-to-day operations.
Cook is currently a social studies teacher at RHS and is head coach of the Maroons’ boys and girls swimming teams as well as the coach of the freshman boys lacrosse team. He also has principal certification.
Ridgewood Council reviews proposed changes to Graydon Pool
TUESDAY MAY 1, 2012, 10:49 AM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
With about one month remaining before Graydon Pool’s scheduled opening, village officials pushed forward with discussion over several proposed changes to Ridgewood’s historic swimming park.
During their work session last week, council members reviewed plans to change the hours of operation and privatize the facility’s concession stand, while they received a daunting report of the pool’s current state and overall appearance.
Due to budget constraints the Village of Ridgewood May day parade has been canceled
In many countries, May Day is also Labor Day. This originates with the United States labor movement in the late 19th Century. On May 1, 1886, unions across the country went on strike, demanding that the standard workday be shortened to eight hours. The organizers of these strikes included socialists, anarchists, and others in organized labor movements. Rioting in Chicago’s Haymarket Square on May 4th including a bomb thrown by an anarchist led to the deaths of a dozen people (including several police officers) and the injury of over 100 more.
The protests were not immediately successful, but they proved effective down the line, as eight-hour work days eventually did become the norm. Labor leaders, socialists, and anarchists around the world took the American strikes and their fallout as a rallying point, choosing May Day as a day for demonstrations, parades, and speeches. It was a major state holiday in the Soviet Union and other communist countries.
Labor Day is still celebrated on May 1 in countries around the world, and it is still often a day for protests and rallies. In recent years, these have often been targeted against globalization.
May Day is related to the Celtic festival of Beltane and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night. May Day falls exactly half a year from November 1, another cross-quarter day which is also associated with various northern European pagan and neopagan festivals such as Samhain. May Day marks the end of the unfarmable winter half of the year in the Northern hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations. As Europe became Christianized the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either changed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were merged with or replaced by new Christian holidays as with Christmas, Easter, Pentecost and All Saint’s Day. In the twentieth century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Day as a pagan religious festival again.
Graydon Pool Resident Memberships Now Discounted through May 19th
The Village Council and the Ridgewood Department of Parks and Recreation are pleased to offer discounted rates to Village residents who purchase their pool memberships early, through May 19th. Badges are now on sale and can be purchased from home on Community Pass at www.ridgewoodnj.net/communitypass (Visa and MasterCard are accepted).
Adult and child badges will be discounted $13 each while seniors will benefit a $5 savings from their already discounted fee.
In person registration assistance will be available Saturdays, May 12 and 19, from 10:00 am to 12 noon, as well as Memorial Day Monday, May 28th, from 10:00 am to 12 noon, at the Graydon Pool Badge Office, 259 North Maple Avenue. Badges will be sold daily throughout the operating season. Proof of residency (Driver’s license, utility bill) must be provided for all new memberships; checks are to be made payable to The Village of Ridgewood.
Village priced memberships are available to Ridgewood residents, non-residents who pay local property taxes to the Village of Ridgewood, and employees of the Village of Ridgewood and the Board of Education.
Non-resident seasonal memberships are available to all. The cost for each adult is $175; each child (2 through 15 years of age) $155.
Graydon Pool will open on Saturday, June 2nd with a festive weekend celebration (free to Village residents) including live entertainment, organized games and more. For season details please visit www.ridgewoodnj.net/graydon.
Pool amenities include “The Wibit”, a modular play system aquatrack providing added physical fitness, a lending library of reading books, volleyball, basketball, ping-pong tables, shuffleboard, four-squares, hop-scotch, as well as a shaded playground, water features, shade kites, Adirondack chairs, picnic area, sheltered pavilion, charcoal grills, and The Water’s Edge Café. Special programs include “Storytime Under a Tree” for the little ones and swim instruction for children and adults, as well as an adaptive swim class.
Don’t hesitate to contact the Recreation Office at 201-670-5560 with any questions or if special accommodations are needed.
