New Jersey

updated 9:20 a.m.

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Iraq War: The President & New Jerseyans Speak Out

The $1 trillion Iraq war has gone from early successes, to the chaos of civil war, to a surge, and now to the draw-down to 50,000 troops. After eight years there has been immense suffering and loss on the part of Iraqi, American, and allied partners. President Obama spoke about the war Tuesday night from the Oval Office. New Jersey veterans, family of the fallen, and those who help returning vets ...
Blue Jersey - 8:09 a.m. - 2 clicks 2 clicks

News Roundup & Open Thread for Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010

Portraits of NJ Soldiers Fallen in Iraq As the US ends its combat mission in Iraq, Blue Jersey honors those New Jerseyans who served there. Sketches of a few who made the ultimate sacrifice. Schundler releases chronology, emails and documents regarding Race to the Top Called a liar by Gov. Chris Christie, his fired Education Commissioner is firing back . Documents, timelines, emails t...
Blue Jersey - 5:03 a.m.

It's Your Town Newsletter Volumn 2, Issue 18, 8/30/10; Special Budget Meeting

This edition of It's Your Town Newsletter covers the special budget meeting of the Middletown Township NJ Committee that was held on August 30th 2010 during the power outage. The purpose of this meeing was to introduce amendments to the Township's 2010 budget so that it can be finally voted on at the next township meeting on September 7th 2010 . This years budget will include an 11.8% increas...
MiddletownMike - 3:02 a.m. - 4 clicks 4 clicks

Let's Not Lose Sight of The Important Fact Here

There's been a lot of talk about lies, who said what when, getting to the bottom of things, changing stories, etc.  All of this can get confusing and obscure the basic facts of the Christie-Shundler blunder. The Christie Administration's incompetence cost New Jersey's schools almost half a billion dollars. Really, do we need to focus much on anything else? ...
Blue Jersey - Wed 11:23 a.m. - 3 clicks 3 clicks

Portraits of NJ Soldiers Fallen in Iraq

As the U. S. ends its combat mission in Iraq, we honor those New Jerseyans who served there. Below are sketches of a few who made the ultimate sacrifice. Cpl. Michael E. Curtin, 23, Howell - March 2003 The first New Jerseyan killed during the war in Iraq, he was a graduate of Howell High School where he played on the school football team and enjoyed recreational hockey and baseball. He worked...
Blue Jersey - Wed 10:29 a.m. - 3 clicks 3 clicks

The $400,000,000 BlueJerseyRadio Podcast. It'll set you free.

Did you miss last night's scintillating edition of BlueJerseyRadio? You know, the one where Jeff and I served up the pithiest political dish in the land? The one with chairman John Wisniewski rallying the troops to keep flogging Governor Christie whose latest hissy cost New Jersey students nearly a half billion dollars? Listen to internet radio with Blue Jersey on Blog Talk Radio T...
Blue Jersey - Wed 7:44 a.m. - 4 clicks 4 clicks

Middletown Special Budget Meeting: 15 Minutes Will Getcha 11.79% Municipal Tax Increase

I wasn't able to make it to last nights special budget introduction meeting in Middletown, I had a prior commitment that I needed to attend. However, even if I had been able to attend I may not have gotten there in time anyway, by all accounts the meeting lasted only 15 minutes. It was called to order at exactly 6pm and was over by 6:15pm, I'm told. Given the fact that there was a major powe...
MiddletownMike - Mon 10:29 p.m. - 11 clicks 11 clicks

NJPP Monday Minute 8/30/10: AND THEN THERE WERE TEN The gradual (and inevitable) decline of dual off...

Senate President Stephen Sweeney recently announced his retirement - from his other elected office, Director of the Board of Freeholders in Gloucester County. That the ranking Democratic lawmaker in the state could hold two elected offices at once is unthinkable in almost every other state in the nation. Not so in New Jersey. Here, dual office holding has traditionally been viewed as a peculi...
MiddletownMike - Mon 8:23 p.m. - 9 clicks 9 clicks

APP Editorial: Beck's rally not about honor

The following editorial is from today's edition of the Asbury Park Press . A simple Amen is all that needs to be said. It's hard to guess exactly what Glenn Beck is thinking today in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial, on the anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King's historic "I Have A Dream" speech. Is his "Restoration of Honor" rally a way to honor America's military, or is it ...
MiddletownMike - Fri 10:48 p.m. - 13 clicks 13 clicks

It's Official, Special Budget Meeting Scheduled For Monday In Middletown

It's Official! Monday night August 30th during a special meeting of the Middletown Township Committee, the Township operating budget will be introduced to the public. The following announcement was posted on the Township's website : August 30, 2010 Special Meeting Notice is hereby given that an “Open Public Meeting” of the Township Committee of the Township of Middletown is hereby scheduled...
MiddletownMike - Fri 9:04 p.m. - 12 clicks 12 clicks

Local Finance Board Meets With Middletown; Special Budget Meeting Tentatively Scheduled For Monday

Yesterday August 26th, Middletown appeared in front of the Department of Community Affairs Local Finance Board, seeking a tax levy wavier which would allow the Township to exceed the State mandated 4% cap on local property taxes. It has been well reported and is no secret that Middletown's 2010 proposed budget seeks to increase the local tax burden by nearly 14% (13.87% to be exact), which would ...
MiddletownMike - Fri 2:27 p.m. - 11 clicks 11 clicks

Chicago Blackhawks Coach Mike Haviland Brings Stanley Cup Home to Middletown August 30

For all you Hockey fans out there here's you chance to see the NHL's Championship trophy the "Stanely Cup" Monday afternoon. I saw it in person a number of years ago after the Devils won the NHL Championship, it was pretty cool see the Cup in person and looking at the rings for all for the names and dates of all the teams that had won the NHL Championship in the past. The following announcem...
MiddletownMike - Fri 1:43 p.m. - 9 clicks 9 clicks

In Case You Missed It: N.J. officials did not provide missing numbers during Race to the Top present...

In cased you missed it, the U.S. Department of Education released a video yesterday of New Jersey’s Race to the Top presentation that was held earlier this month in Washington, D.C. It clearly show that New Jersey's delegation was ill prepared and did not respond to questions that were asked of them in the correct fashion even after being given multiple opportunities to do so, which appears to c...
MiddletownMike - Fri 8:26 a.m. - 11 clicks 11 clicks

sheriff candidate challenges golden’s fiscal management

by Brophy for Sheriff on Wednesday, August 25, 2010 Monmouth County Democratic Sheriff Candidate Eric Brophy today criticized Sheriff Shaun Golden’s failure to take action to halt Monmouth County Correctional Institute’s (“MCCI”) daily revenue loss of almost $30,000. The Monmouth County Sheriff has contracted with various governmental entities such as the U.S. Marshal Service, the New Jersey...
MiddletownMike - Aug 25 - 9 clicks 9 clicks

who really controls middletown? and what are they doing?

I received today and interesting email from various Middletown friends and residents. Attached to the email was a well thought out article/letter that points out a number of issues that are effecting the Township of Middletown. The article itself was not signed by any individual so its author at this time, remains anonymous. I hope, that at some point the author steps forward because this perso...
MiddletownMike - Aug 25 - 7 clicks 7 clicks

Rep. Holt: Economy, security would benefit from alternative energy

Nice presentation by Rush, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to explain the benefits of renewable energy and how it can effect the bottom line to small business owners, but I am glad that one did! From the Asbury Park Press - MANALAPAN — Small-business owners, looking for breathing room in a sluggish economy, can capitalize on government incentives designed to help them make their ...
MiddletownMike - Aug 24 - 5 clicks 5 clicks

N.J. loses bid for federal Race to the Top money

Nice job the Governor did in helping to secure "Race to the Top" grant, if he tried any harder we may have come in 12th or 13th. What a shame!! BY LESLIE BRODY THE RECORD New Jersey lost its bid Tuesday for $400 million in federal Race to the Top grants for school reform — by a nose. Judges ranked New Jersey number 11 but only the top 10 contestants got money. Its score of 437.8 out of 500 f...
MiddletownMike - Aug 24 - 5 clicks 5 clicks

Middletown's Hearing With Local Finance Board Scheduled For August 26th

Middletown is one step closer to finalizing it's 8+ months over due budget. It looks like the Township's hearing in front of the Department of Community Affairs Local Finance Board has been rescheduled for August 26th, two weeks after the original date was cancelled for the lack of a quorum on the part of the LFB. According to the LFB website Middeltown will be participating in two meetings ...
MiddletownMike - Aug 24 - 6 clicks 6 clicks

It's Your Town Newsletter Volumn 2, Issue 17, 8/16/10

Get it while it's hot, the latest edition of It's Your Town Newsletter has just been released! This edition of the newsletter contains information about the Middletown Township Committee meeting of Monday August 16,2010. This was suppose to be the meeting in which the Township budget was to be adopted but because of the cancellation of the Townships meeting with the Local Finance ...
MiddletownMike - Aug 24 - 2 clicks 2 clicks

NJPP Monday Minute 8/23/10: Extending Bush Tax Cuts for Top 2% Shortchanges the Economy

When Democrats in New Jersey raised the top rate on the state income tax last year, it was billed as a one-year, temporary increase on millionaires. When it expired this year, Democrats voted to renew the increase for another year. Republicans, emboldened by Gov. Christie's veto threat, said "no." They reasoned that Democrats purposefully wrote the expiration into the legislation, and so it sh...
MiddletownMike - Aug 23 - 3 clicks 3 clicks

Reform Party Regroups At Convention and Selects a Candidate To Run In the 5th Congressinal District

For immediate release REFORM PARTY OF NJ 2010 CONVENTION On August 14th, 2010, delegates of the Reform Party of New Jersey gathered in Piscataway for the party’s first convention in over a decade. The Reform Party of the United States was America’s most successful third party during the 1990s. The populist appeal of candidates like H. Ross Perot, Jesse Ventura, and Donald Trump helped to estab...
MiddletownMike - Aug 20 - 4 clicks 4 clicks

"SoundBites" From Middletown's Recent Township Committee Meeting

This past Monday night's Middletown Township Committee meeting once again did not disappoint those that were in attendance when it came time for comments by Committee members. I walked into the meeting late and didn't have the opportunity to witness or hear for myself the introduction of Resolution 10-210, which calls for supporting property tax relief through State assumption of per pupil edu...
MiddletownMike - Aug 18

Superintendent: IJIMS Strengthened Learning and Professional Development in New Jersey School Distri...

Click to Play In June, 2009, my colleague Ursula Wolz and I had a chat with outgoing Ewing New Jersey Public Schools Superintendent Raymond Broach about his views on the IJIMS Project. IJIMS or the Interactive Journalism Institute for Middle Schoolers, is collaboration between Ewing township's middle school and The College...
Kim Pearson - Aug 17 - 2 clicks 2 clicks