Free Republic

ERMA — Lower Township Police Chief Edward Donohue announced that the Department of Homeland Security will provide the Lower Township police with a Real Time Video Surveillance System through the U.S. Army’s Commercial Equipment Direct Assistance Program, or CEDAP. Donohue stated that the police department applied to the Army’s CEDAP Program last year for the system. The system consists of several cameras that can feedback live video to police headquarters or vehicles from several miles away. Donohue states the system will be utilized for police surveillance operations, tactical operations, and to monitor critical infrastructure as needed. For security reasons, Donohue...

The Philadelphia Inquirer's former editor, Chris Satullo, says we should not celebrate Independence Day because we sinned as a nation. I respond to his arrogant holier-than-thou screed by pointing out his hypocrisy, among other things. Here is the link or click on the Bulletin link near the title http://www.thebulletin.us/site/index.cfm?newsid=19826547&BRD=2737&PAG=461&dept_id=576361&rfi=8

A Hudson County trial judge has issued a very interesting decision recently regarding a litigant's claim that the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, N.J.S.A. 2C:25-17 to 35, is violative of the NJ and US Constitutions. The argument was that because domestic violence proceedings may result in serious consequences by the issuance of a Final Restraining Order (i.e. possible jail sentence for future violations; removal of all weapons and inability to obtain weapons in the future; fines; registry on a list of offenders), the Chancery court with equity jurisdiction should not hear these matters. The decision should rest with a jury...

NJ Lotto sells tickets after winners are redeemed "That's the lottery for ya…they make money, on top of money, on top of money. It's ridiculous."

I was walking around Rutgers the other day when I came upon a memorial to students who had fought in World War II. The list of names was impressive, but I imagine most major universities in America have similar memorials. It was only when I happened to walk by Old Queens that I noticed something you wouldn't see on just any campus. It was a plaque honoring the Rutgers men who had fought in the Revolutionary War. Nearby is the spot from which Alexander Hamilton directed cannon fire against the British in cover of George Washington's army. You don't see...

Washington is poised to make driving while talking on hand-held cell phones illegal. New Jersey has already been down this road. The cell-phone ban for Washington will start Tuesday and will be similar to a New Jersey law that went into effect in 2003. Washington's law makes it a secondary offense. That means police must find a driver committing another violation such as speeding before stopping drivers for holding a cell phone up to their ear. New Jersey's law also began as a secondary offense. State officials there found the law toothless and difficult to enforce, said William Cicchetti,...

The Denver Group was recently formed to ensure that Howard Dean and the Democratic National Committee conduct the Democratic Party's presidential nomination process in keeping with democratic principles at the Party's convention this August. This means an open convention, which includes Senator Clinton's name on the ballot, allowing speeches by Clinton supporters on behalf of her candidacy, and the taking of a roll call vote, all of which is the norm. The Denver Group (www.theDenvergroup.blogspot.com), organized by Marc Rubin and Heidi Li Feldman, is a non-connected committee, established on June 24, 2008. It is not affiliated with Hillary Clinton for...

President Bush has awarded Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), General Peter Pace the US’s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Not surprisingly, he is once again enduring a “moral lynching” at the hands of liberal media and homosexual activists across the nation.  Controversy began plaguing General Pace, a Catholic, after his March 12 statement that homosexual acts are immoral and therefore, should not be condoned by the military.[1]  Following this statement, General Pace was maligned and ultimately lost his position as JCS Chairman, making him the first in over forty years to hold...

The U.S. Supreme Court ruling recognizing an individual right to bear arms set off an immediate debate on how it will affect New Jersey's gun laws, which are among the toughest in the nation. State Attorney General Anne Milgram saw minimal if any impact, noting the District of Columbia handgun ban that was invalidated by the high court is unlike anything in the Garden State. "We regulate the possession of handguns; we don't ban handguns," Milgram said. "We believe the court affirmed the right of states to regulate gun ownership to protect public safety and endorsed common-sense licensing of firearms...

(Washington, D.C.) – The following is a statement from Rep. Rush Holt (NJ-12) in reaction to today’s announcement by the Federal Bureau of Investigation that it had agreed to pay former Army biowarfare expert Dr. Steven Hatfill $5.8 million in a settlement related to the FBI’s previously naming Hatfill a “person of interest” in the investigation of the 2001 anthrax letter attacks on the United States. The attacks originated from a postal box in Holt’s central New Jersey congressional district, disrupting the lives and livelihoods of many of his constituents: “As today’s settlement announcement confirms, this case was botched from...

New Jersey is prepared to "vigorously enforce" its tough firearms laws following a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down a handgun ban in the nation's capital, state officials said Thursday. Attorney General Anne Milgram said the decision affirmed New Jersey's right to regulate firearms ownership, while gun rights proponents took a different tack, calling the ruling an "opening salvo" to a nationwide overhaul. "We regulate the possession of handguns — we don't ban handguns," Milgram said. "But we have strict licensing requirements and we are prepared to maintain those requirements and vigorously enforce our laws." Wayne LaPierre, executive...

Remember that incredibly stupid "smart gun" law that McGreevey signed back in 2002? How will Heller reflect on that? The reason I'm thinking about this is because a big part of the Heller case was about not being able to ban an entire class of firearms. "Non-smart guns" is a HUGE class of firearms..... Reference: NJ smart gun law

TRENTON, N.J. — A New Jersey surgeon's medical license was suspended after state regulators found he removed the wrong lung from a patient, then tried to conceal the error. The State Board of Medical Examiners found Dr. Santusht Perera moved a portion of the patient's right lung when he should have been removing a tumor in the left lung, the state Attorney General's Office said Wednesday. Perera, according to the board, then told the patient that the right lung contained a life-threatening tumor, though there was no such growth. He also altered the patient's records to show he intended to...

Farmer: Obama's Sellout On Funding Fuels Cynicism By JOHN FARMERGeorge Carlin, who died June 22, wasn't my favorite comedian, but he uttered an immutable truth when he said that if you scratch a cynic beneath the surface you'll find a disappointed idealist. That was never truer — at least about American politics — than it is at the moment. And the reason is Sen. Barack Obama, the self-styled reformer who pledged to bring a new kind of uplifted politics to Washington. Last week, Obama renounced his commitment to public funding now that he's awash in private cash. And there's more...

The Garden State's farmers could be raising a new crop in the near future: renewable energy produced from windmills and solar panels. A bill before the Legislature would classify solar and wind energy generation as an agricultural activity. It's a novel idea that deserves serious consideration at a time when the coun try needs to explore alternative energy sources that are more environmentally friendly and cheaper than burning fossil fuels such as oil and coal. The legislation would allow the owners of farmland to install and operate wind or solar energy devices on their farms. The measure also would protect...

Jack Kakolewski of Ridgewood chipped in $250 for Bill Bradley's bid for the presidency, convinced that he was an authentic antidote to a country weary from the Clinton-era scandals. Nine years later, Kakolewski remains a Backer of Bill — this time as a possible running mate for Barack Obama, the likely Democratic nominee for president. "He is a thoughtful and independent thinker,'' said Kakolewski, a marital therapist, who was unaware of the Bradley for VP buzz that started in a newsletter last week and continues to churn in political cyberspace. "I think we need a moderate perspective and a change...

Legislation that would make it illegal for holders of a New Jersey handgun-purchaser permit to buy more than one firearm during any calendar month is going before the state assembly on Monday, June 23. "There's no good reason why anyone would need to purchase large quantities of handguns all at the same time," said Assemblywoman Joan M. Quigley (D-32nd District), a sponsor of Assembly Bill 339, in a news release. "Criminal applications or unrecorded resale are the obvious implications of purchasing handguns in bulk." Quigley added that passage of the measure -- a similar version of which was approved by...

DURING HER FOUR years as a Princeton undergrad, Michelle Robinson lived in a world of white privilege she'd never experienced before. She did her work, graduated with the Class of '85, and moved on to law school and a career. In the past few weeks, Michelle Robinson Obama has seen her every word and gesture examined under a microscope. A wrong move has the potential to topple her husband's carefully constructed image as a healer. A rumored recording of her using a derogatory term for whites in a speech never materialized. There's no evidence that she ever said the word,...

A historic tower built by a Paterson silk baron has stood neglected and decrepit for nearly 40 years. Passaic County officials received a $1 million federal grant to renovate it, but lost it because they didn't start the project on time. Now they want to tap into taxpayer money to finally restore the landmark. "It's ridiculous. That money is never going to come back," said Thomas Vatrano, 79, of Wayne, who began his workday for 30 years as a Passaic County Park Police officer by raising the American flag at the tower. When Vatrano returned to the tower for the...

The city has 12 days to return at least $700,000 in federal housing aid due to its misuse of money from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development and poor oversight of a project. The city was informed June 3 that it has until July 3 to send the money to HUD's bank. The penalty could increase if the city cannot defend nearly $100,000 in additional costs HUD officials are questioning for unspecified reasons. A spokesman for HUD declined to comment Friday on penalties if the city cannot pay. The misdirected funds, found during a standard review in 2007,...

Their names are not well-known and their accomplishments little chronicled, but their inventions changed the world, helping to usher in the era of electronic communication. Without Erna Hoover's computer program for handling telephone traffic, our lives would be filled with busy signals and dropped calls; without Amos Joel's switching invention, there would be no mobile telephone. "He gave us the 'cell' in 'cell phone,'" said Fred Allen, editor of Invention & Technology magazine. In placing a call, "half of what makes it possible -- the switching of cells -- is so fundamental but so difficult." Last month, the two retired...

Two former managers at investment bank Bear Stearns have been arrested in New York over the collapse of the bank's hedge fund last year. Reports say Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin will face charges in connection with their management of hedge funds that collapsed in June 2007. The bank's hedge funds bet on the high-risk sub-prime mortgage market in the US before it collapsed. Authorities in Brooklyn are due to give details about the case later. FBI spokesman Jim Margolis told the BBC the men faced criminal charges of "securities fraud related to their management of two Bear Stearns hedge...

A Gannett New Jersey study finds the number of government employees with two or more public jobs that paid more than $100,000 together swelled by 20 percent last year. Those multiple job holders had a collective salary of $107.8 million. My colleague James W. Prado Roberts reports there were 6,271 multiple job holders including one woman who had 12 jobs. Sen. Stephen Sweeney asks "Is it really right for part-time workers to be in the pension system?" Does the question really have to be asked? To take a look at the double-dippers click here.... http://php.app.com/NJpublicemployees/results2.php

Eight months after state officials broke ground on New Jersey's new center for stem cell research, the once-heralded $150 million project has quietly been put on indefinite hold. Despite continuing assurances that the 18-story tower in New Brunswick would remain on track -- even after voters rejected proposals last year to finance $450 million in stem cell science grants -- state officials behind the scenes pulled back millions in construction funding for the research facility late last year. They now acknowledge they are re-evaluating the entire project. Gov. Jon Corzine said the project is in limbo and could not offer...

A World War I aviator from Tenafly who died during battle will be honored today on two continents. The Italian town of Vittorio Veneto will dedicate a room in a World War I museum to Lt. DeWitt Coleman, serving with the U.S. Army Air Service. That town's mayor is sending flowers to be placed on Coleman's grave at Brookside Cemetery in Englewood. Members of the Presbyterian Church of Tenafly, which Coleman attended, will place the flowers and hold a small prayer service at the gravesite at 10 a.m. today. Tenafly Mayor Peter Rustin and several World War II veterans are...

Seven ninth-graders at Pascack Valley High School have been suspended for the rest of the school year for distributing racy photos of middle school girls via cell phones and school-issued laptops. A student who saw the photos on a laptop tipped off a teacher, and the administration alerted Hillsdale police last week, district Superintendent Benedict Tantillo III said today. More than 20 girls who are now in ninth grade were in the photos, the superintendent said. Some pictures appeared to have been taken two or three years ago, and some of the subjects moved to private high school instead of...

Federal investigators sharply criticized state and federal environmental officials in a report for failing to clean up seven of the worst toxic sites in New Jersey, including two in the Meadowlands. More than 20 years after the sites were designated as priorities for remediation, none are completely cleaned up. Both the state Department of Environmental Protection and the federal Environmental Protection Agency caused “unnecessary delays” by failing to communicate with each other, develop clean-up schedules and review documents in a timely manner. For example, the DEP took 15 months to respond to a clean-up plan at a site in Gloucester...

The high price of gasoline pushed the possibility of drilling in the Atlantic Ocean for oil onto the front burner this week, and politicians from New Jersey and other coastal states are pushing back. Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who had previously supported an existing ban on drilling in the Atlantic and most of the Pacific, said yesterday he would support giving states the option to allow offshore exploration. President Bush followed up today, blaming Congress for high energy costs by standing in the way of expanded production. In reality, the ban is contained both in an executive order...

New Jersey's public employee pension and health benefit system -- a program that covers about one in four adult workers -- is paying out benefits that critics say the state simply can't afford any more.For a look at the system, how it got this way and what some say should be done, read the following stories.N.J.'s pension system is stretched to limitYears of risky gambles put state in $25B bindLegislative deal would tighten rules on pensions

BOSTON -- Park rangers who patrol the Cape Cod National Seashore around Provincetown and Truro are trying to come up with strategies to discourage increasingly common incidents of illegal public sex on area beaches. They say complaints about explicit, open public sex on the national park beaches have tripled in the past decade, with activity ranging from flashing to men's public orgies. The rangers have been trying to crack down by enforcing a federal misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct, which prohibits obscene acts, the Cape Cod Times reported. Seashore rangers issued 132 citations for public sex acts last year, compared...

H.R.6257 Title: To reinstate the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act. Sponsor: Rep Kirk, Mark Steven [IL-10] (introduced 6/12/2008) Cosponsors (4) Rep Castle, Michael N. [DE] - 6/12/2008 Rep Ferguson, Mike [NJ-7] - 6/12/2008 Rep Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana [FL-18] - 6/18/2008 Rep Shays, Christopher [CT-4] - 6/12/2008 Latest Major Action: 6/12/2008 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. TITLE(S): * SHORT TITLE(S) AS INTRODUCED: Assault Weapons Ban Reauthorization Act of 2008 * OFFICIAL TITLE AS INTRODUCED: To reinstate the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act.

Please Contact Your Assembly Members and Assembly Leadership Immediately! On Monday, June 23, the New Jersey Assembly is scheduled to vote on A339 - New Jersey's latest version of gun rationing legislation, which affects collectors, sportsmen, target shooters, and interferes with the inheritance of firearms.The legislation, sponsored by Assemblywoman Joan Quigley (D-32), would criminalize the purchase of more than one handgun per month by honest citizens, even though they have already been pre-certified by the state as law abiding citizens after passing a comprehensive 13-point background investigation. Multiple handgun permits could not be used during the same 30-day period,...

Does anybody think that the new mayor will keep his campaign promise about initiating action to stop the horrendous murder rate in Philly? Follow this link: http://www.thebulletin.us/site/news.cfm?newsid=19779492&BRD=2737&PAG=461&dept_id=580169&rfi=6

NEW YORK (AP) -- John McCain rolled into New Jersey for a town hall-style meeting Friday, declaring the Garden State "winnable" in November and criticizing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing Guantanamo prisoners to challenge their detentions in federal court. McCain, a former Vietnam POW, called Thursday's Supreme Court ruling "one of the worst I've seen," saying the decision compromises the military's ability to defend the country by giving constitutional rights to non-U.S. citizens. "These are enemy combatants, they're not citizens, and they've now been granted rights which I don't think was ever contemplated by any of us following the...

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- To draw attention to the way abortion disproportionately affects the African-American community, black pro-life advocates will be protesting outside the upcoming annual meeting of the nation's largest organization representing blacks. The NAACP protest will also reach the Democratic presidential candidate. Rev. Clenard Childress, a New Jersey pastor, told LifeNews.com about the protest and said pro-abortion presidential candidate Barack Obama and former candidate Hillary Clinton will be at the convention.  "Because 2008 is an election year, the presidential candidates will undoubtedly speak at the convention. This gives us a national stage to make our case to the...

New Jersey U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg leads former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, his Republican challenger, 47 - 38 percent in his reelection bid, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today, but most voters say Sen. Lautenberg is too old to begin another six-year term. Democrats back Lautenberg 80 - 11 percent, while Republicans back Zimmer 79 - 13 percent and independent voters back the Republican 43 - 35 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. New Jersey voters approve 46 - 35 percent of the job Lautenberg is doing, his highest disapproval in 12 years of surveys. Democrats...

Senator McCain says New Jersey is a "winnable" state in his quest for the presidency. The Republican presidential candidate says he'll spend time and money campaigning in New Jersey. He says he expects to be competitive here against rival Senator Obama. Mr. McCain talked about the high price of gasoline, doubling federal tax credits for families and bringing American troops home with honor during a town hall meeting at Burlington County College in Pemberton on today. This is Mr. McCain's third public visit to the state this year, a sign that the Arizona senator thinks he can win in Democratic-leaning...

Police may have found the smoking gun — literally — that could ensure convictions for six suspects in the gruesome, execution-style murders of three college-bound New Jersey youths. The gun, a .357-caliber revolver, was recovered from the Long Island, N.Y., house of a reputed MS-13 gang member, and it may have been used in several other killings, authorities said Thursday.

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   New Jersey Assembly Committee Passes Gun Ban!   Thursday, June 12, 2008   Please Contact Your Assemblymembers Today!Today, Thursday, June 12, the New Jersey Assembly Judiciary Committee passed A2116 by a vote of 5-1.  As passed, the legislation will ban virtually all firearms over .50 caliber.  While the Committee attempted to address some of the concerns of gun owners and sportsmen, it still bans many popular hunting guns, historical American firearms, and large bore target firearms, based on alleged public safety concerns.  Included are historical American firearms and replicas, including those...

CNN's Lou Dobbs isn't talking about rumours that he's thinking about running for governor of New Jersey. Dobbs lives on a 300-acre farm in Sussex County. Dobbs told The Star-Ledger of Newark he's "not going to comment.'' State Republican chairman Tom Wilson tells the newspaper the Dobbs' buzz is circulating among GOP officials and fundraisers in New York City and Washington. Wilson says the first thing Dobbs should do is register as a Republican. The CNN host switched from the GOP to an independent in 2006. Dobbs gained fame hosting "Moneyline.'' Gov. Jon S. Corzine became a multimillionaire on Wall...

NJ Assembly Committee To Consider Gun Ban!Bill is an Attack on Sportsmen, Collectors, and Target Shooters On Thursday morning, June 12, the New Jersey Assembly Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider legislation that would ban the purchase, transfer, and inheritance of many popular hunting guns, historical American firearms, and large bore target firearms, based on alleged public safety concerns. Touted as a ban on .50 caliber and larger firearms, A2116 assaults New Jersey sportsmen by banning dozens of models of popular hunting guns, including traditional .50 muzzle loaders with synthetic stocks, fiber optic sights, or scopes in lieu of sights....

emocrat Frank Lautenberg, seeking a fifth term in the U.S. Senate, is in a virtual tie with Republican challenger Dick Zimmer in New Jersey, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey. Forty-five percent (45%) of likely voters in the predominantly Democratic state favor Lautenberg, while 44% are backing Zimmer, a former U.S. congressman who is running as a fiscal conservative. The survey was taken 24 hours after Lautenberg, capturing over 60% of the vote, easily defeated another congressman, Robert Andrews, in the state's Democratic primary. Andrews, 50, who was endorsed by most of the state's newspapers, had aggressively attacked...

A state appeals court ruled yesterday that Steven Fortin -- convicted, retried and convicted again of the 1994 murder of a Woodbridge woman -- cannot be sentenced to life in prison without pa role because that penalty did not exist when the crime occurred. Fortin was facing the possibility of a death sentence for the killing of Melissa Padilla when capital punishment was abolished in New Jersey last December. The law that repealed the death penalty replaced it with life imprisonment with no chance of parole, and the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office sought that penalty for Fortin. The judge in...

The Marcellus Shale play is the latest huge thing in natural gas, considered by some to be a "super giant" gas field. Read more here http://www.petroleumnews.com/pntruncate/246893563.shtml The edge of the Marcellus Shale in Northeast PA and NY is about 100 miles from NYC, which means the gas needs only a very short trip by pipeline to the major metropolitan centers. Natural gas is the cleanest of the fossil fuels and also is a source for hydrogen for hydrogen powered vehicles. So here are a bunch of "concerned citizens" planning to oppose it with all their might. "The Damascus group has...

An immigrant couple, here legally, and their U.S.-born son have joined a statewide lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security after their Paterson home was raided last month by federal agents looking for illegal immigrants. Walter Chavez and his wife, Ana Galindo, said Thursday that on April 2, agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, forced their way into their home, pointing guns at Galindo and their child. "It was a nightmare for our family, and continues to be even today," said Galindo, 42. "The very worst part of it all was when an agent, who screamed at me...

Another New Jersey school principal -- the third educator in a month -- has been indicted on car arson charges in Essex County as prosecutors crack down on suspected insurance fraud. The charges against Amanda Wright-Stafford, principal of the Lincoln Avenue Elementary School in Orange, come as cases of auto insurance fraud are growing nationally, according to experts who blame the souring economy. Wright-Stafford, 51, faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted on charges she faked the theft of her 2000 Honda Passport, which was found burning in East Orange in 2006. An indictment handed up in Superior...

Robert Gilmartin was able to cash out $70,000 in sick days when he retired as schools chief in West Milford in 2005. Now, as the interim superintendent of schools for Passaic County, Gilmartin has to make sure others don't get such sweet deals. All of the 21 county superintendents will have to make sure that any new administrative contracts in local school districts cap sick-time cash-outs at $15,000 — the maximum under a new state law. But taxpayers are still on the hook for big cash-outs afforded by current contracts, including more than $150,000 each for the two top administrators...

River Dell Regional High School was one of three schools statewide to get a grant for its random drug testing program, federal officials said today. The school was awarded $43,100 for the upcoming school year as part of a $5.8 million grant program from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Schools in Hillsborough and Brick also received grants. “It’s another tool to reinforce positive decisions,” said Stephen Schatz, spokesman for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. “It’s really geared toward treatment.” River Dell Superintendent Patrick Fletcher said the money will fund better testing that...

U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, who supported Hillary Clinton throughout the primary season, disclosed he received a phone call shortly before the April 22 Pennsylvania primary from a top member of Clinton's organization and that the caller explicitly discussed a strategy of winning over Jewish voters by exploiting tensions between Jews and African-Americans. "There have been signals coming out of the Clinton campaign that have racial overtones that indeed disturb me," Andrews said at his campaign headquarters in Cherry Hill Tuesday night after he lost his bid for the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination.

A Muslim cleric graphically described the torture to which he claims he was subjected to in Israeli custody as he fought to block U.S. efforts to deport him on grounds he lied on his residency application. "Judge, you cannot imagine," Mohammad Qatanani said Monday, his voice breaking. "They say, 'We will kill your family.' They say: 'You know what your family is doing now? We will go to them, we will burn them.'" Qatanani paused to compose himself before telling Immigration Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl, "At that time, you feel that death is better than life." The detention is at...