See Skatepark for Yourself

I remembered Linden's JohnELinden uploaded a couple of YouTubes of the Skatepark.  Notice the homes in the background.  The kids are fine, just having fun, but seriously, can you imagine living with that noise in your backyard?

Skatepark Clouded by Politics

At last night's council meeting, skateboarders came to question the governing body as to when, if ever, the skateboard park would be re-opened.  Keep in mind, the skatepark was closed two years ago.  The skateboarders, while not getting the answers they were looking for, remained tactful and respectful. 

Originally, the skatepark was placed in Dobson Park with no imput from the surrounding residents.  Worse, the residents weren't even notified of the drastic change that took place in their neighborhood.  I took a ride over there myself one day and the noise was thunderous.  The skatepark was practically in the backyards of the surrounding homeowners.  I also attended a wake at Leonard Lee during the period the skatepark was open, and I could see why the owner of the funeral home was upset.  He had every right to be as did the other residents who pleaded with council to shut the skatepark down.

Council President Bunk thinks the noise is just fine and dandy and said as much last night. I disagree. People should have a right to an expectation of some peace and quiet. A skatepark in your backyard is anything but peaceful.

Council President Bunk did little to hide the fact that the skatepark has become a political football and, in fact, added fuel to the fire last night by practically laying all the blame at Councilman Harvanik's door.  The only problem, real or imagined, is that Councilman Harvanik was not even a council member when the skateboard was voted upon nor was he when it was placed in Dobson Park.

While a skateboard park is a great idea, it was a hastily, poorly thought-out concept.  I found a skateboard website which contains a good deal of information here.  IMO, the first mistake council made, besides not having a practical location, was purchasing a pre-fabricated skatepark.  A poured concrete park, while more expensive, would have lessened the noise impact.  It also has a much longer life expectancy. 

Wherever council decides to place the skatepark, the decision should be made for the greater good of the entire community and the safety of the skatboarders as well.  Leave the politicking for election time.

Amendment:  According to President Bunk, the skatepark will be built at either Memorial Park inTremley or Wheeler Park.  The City will apply for Green Acre approval for the Memorial Park location, which may take up to 120 days.  Once that approval is received, council will decide between the two locations. 

Lawyer Mockumentary

Lawyers get a bad rap, a lot of it well deserved.  Here in Linden, we have four part-time attorneys on handsome salaries and accumulating pension benefits, benefits which aren't even being funded because that's how unaffordable they've become.  It's highly doubtful that those same attorneys offer those same benefits to their employees at their own law firms, but, incredibly, the taxpayers are on the hook for these lawyers' full time benefits for part time work. Kologi assures us it's a bargain though.  Poor overtaxed taxpayers.

Linden is embroiled in all types of litigation, even being sued by the wife of one of our very own attorneys.  A good lawyer is not only suppose to advise his clients, but he should do his best to keep his clients insulated from lawsuits.  Bad lawyering, bad governing or both?  Whatever the answer, the taxpayers pick up the hefty tabs.

Who can resist a good lawyer story? This particular lawyer take a novel approach to peeling back the lid off the worm can for a revealing look into one NJ law firm here in a blog he describes as a Mock U Mentary  I post it for entertainment value only, although the issue of free speech and other issues associated with this story are worthy of following.  It's also a human interest story as well.  Employers need to be mindful on how they treat their employees.

Governor-Elect Christie & Lt. Governor-Elect Guadagno

Congratulations are in order, not only to our new future Governor & Lt. Governor, Chris Christie & Kim Guadagno, respectively, but to the voters of this State for making it happen.

Thanks also to the State Democratic Committee for making those robocalls on behalf of Chris Daggett. The voters saw through that ill-conceived, amoral, half-baked scheme.

Union County residents didn't fair as well.  We still have an all democrat Freeholder Board.  That's a pity.

Although Assembly candidates Martin Marks and William "Bo" Vastine were unable to unseat Assemblyman Jerry Green and Assemblywoman Linda Stender, their numbers were pretty good.

Linden Democrat Chair, Chris Hudak, was unsuccessful in trying to capture a seat for his organization.   Councilman Bob Frazier retains his seat.

Finally a proud day to be from Jersey.

What Else Could the Democrats Be Capable of Doing in Order to Win?

 From PolitickerNJ.com:

"The Democratic State Committee now admits paying for a robocall to Somerset County voters that slams Republican Chris Christie and promotes independent gubernatorial candidate Christopher Daggett.

A Democratic spokeswoman says the party’s chairman, Joe Cryan, was not aware of the robocalls when he denied that the state committee had anything to do with them yesterday afternoon.

Cryan, who told PolitickerNJ.com yesterday afternoon that the Democratic State Committee had “absolutely” nothing to do with the call, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The call angered Republicans and further fueled conspiracy theories that Daggett is in cahoots with the Corzine camp. A disclaimer at the end says it was paid for by Victory ’09, “a project of the NJDSC” (Democratic State Committee), and gave the committee’s Trenton address.

Daggett, for his part, disavowed the call.

'Voters hate robocalls. This is just another instance of the dishonest ways Democrats and Republicans use to win campaigns and to fool voters' he said in a statement this afternoon. 'It is little wonder more and more voters are rejecting these kind of desperate dirty tricks and turning to my campaign for a positive message about how to make New Jersey more affordable and competitive.

Before the Democrats owned up to it, Daggett media advisor Bill Hillsman said the call might be Republican trick to generate a sympathetic newspaper story.'"

A few observations are in order.

1. Why was Daggett was so quick to blame Republicans before the Democrats finally owned up to their dirty trick? Moreover, he still blames the Republicans for this kind of desperate dirty trick when he is now fully aware that it was the Democratic State Committee.

2. Wouldn't the Democratic State Committee have an obligation to keep their candidate, Corzine, advised of all campaign activity they perform on his behalf?

3. I just can't buy it, not even for a minute, that State Dem. Chair/Assemblyman/Union County Undersheriff & Former Camelot Title Agency interest owner, Joe Cryan, didn't know the organization he heads had nothing to do with it, when only yesterday he said his organization had absolutely nothing to do with the call.

What else could the democrats be capable of doing to pull off a win? I'm afraid to even contemplate what else we might be dealing with. ACORN might be here too. Dear God.

The Star Ledger, who endorsed Daggett, not once, but twice, has it so wrong that its endorsement is practically insane. It has been speculated that Daggett is syphoning votes from Christie. By its own actions in making robocalls for Daggett, the Democratic State Committe must believe this to be true. The Star Ledger's unreasonable reasoning is that by voting for Daggett, voters will send a strong message to Trenton or some such nonsense. Daggett cannot and will not win.

The only way to send a clear and strong message to Trenton is to vote Chris Christie for Govenor. In this fashion, we not only get a new governor, but we send a powerful message to Trenton and Corzine, who has been a big donor to Trenton entrenched politicians, that they are no longer acceptable.

Get out tomorrow, vote and help save this State from further damage.

Big hat tip to MoreMonmouthMusings for breaking the story.

You Really Want to Keep This Mess Going?

I left the following comment on Assembly candidate's Bo Vastine blog. Might as well post it here too, slightly modified.

Can Assemblyman Jerry “Dumped his Dumps” Green, or any of his running mates, explain why Union County is the 10th top taxed County in the Nation?

Or why Union County decided to increase taxes for Linden homeowners by 13% this year?

Or why the State of NJ is paying Corzine’s ex, Goldman Sachs, nearly $1 million a month on bonds that have already been redeemed?

Or why NJ has the highest unemployment rate in the region?

Or why Corzine’s own cabinet was instructing other departments to “be creative” even if it was a stretch to try and come up with with an event or two or three that show job creation?

Or why the State Division of Investment bought Lehman stock and lost $118,000 million in pension assets?

Or why NJ has a projected deficit of $10 billion?

Or why Govenor Corzine and his running mate, Loretta Weinberg, were trying to scare women with fake "mammogram hysteria" ?

Encap?

Xanandu?

Plus two failed UCIA projects right in Linden, not to mention the ISP/Dupont mess where Sen. Lesniak’s client, the Morris Group, was named the redeveloper of property it didn’t even own.

Never mind the out and out corruption.

We have an incompetent, self-serving, anything goes form of government. What else could explain this mess of a State?

With the exception of the Surrogate, I'm supporting all the Column B Republican candidates. I think Jim LaCorte does a fine job as Surrogate.

The obvious choice for Govenor is Chris Christie and his running mate, Kim Guadagno.

For Assembly, Martin Marks and William "Bo" Vastine. I've posted both of their blog sites. Go read for yourself about these two candidates. If you really want a laugh, I've also posted Jerry Green's blog so be sure to read that one to for a "balanced" view. Time to retire Jerry Green and Linda Stender. They've both done ok for themselves, but not for overtaxed taxpayers. Let's give someone else a try.

Under no uncertain terms would I even think of voting for any incumbant freeholder, or the new guy running with them for reasons too numerous to list. Remember though that the freeholder jammed us up with a 13% county tax increase. Republicans Anthony Sytko and Nicole Cole would bring two sets of sorely needed eyes to that Board.

One contested council race in Linden in the 9th Ward. The incumbent, independent candidate Bob Frazier has done a good job. The Linden Democrat Chair, Chris Hudak, has expressed a concern for getting that seat back into the hands of a democrat. That's a horrid thought.

A little more attention to the landfill and the excessive overtime is in order. Former Mayor Paul Werkmesiter has suggested an independent audit of our City government. Council should really get that going. Again, why all the attorneys on staff? Cut that by at least one. Council should also petition the Public Advocate to undertake an audit of the Union County Improvement Authority. That should be a priority.

The Clown's in Town

Gov. Corzine brings the circus to Linden today.  In order to make the Governor feel right at home, someone ought to give him a tour of the failed South Wood Avenue and St. George Avenue projects.  Like the State's inability to properly manage projects like Encap and Xanadu, Linden and the Union County Improvement Authority share that common incompetence, all at taxpayer expense. 

The State, not to be outdone by paying out money for nothing like Linden taxpayers do, has jumped on board in this game as well.  See Bloomberg article here on how Corzine's other ex, Goldman Sachs, is ransacking NJ and NJ goes right along with it.   Pitiful.