I wimped out and stayed inside because of extremely sore ankles. Basically, I didn’t want to commit to a specific distance, which I’d have had to do if I ran outside. I kept the pace moderate and managed four miles. So I consider that a victory.
iPod: podcasts
This is a show and a half — no, more than that, much more than that:
Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen will do a benefit concert for Senator Barack Obama’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee next month at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Oct. 16.
Mr. Obama will be appearing on stage as well for the event, which is set for the day after his debate with Senator John McCain at Hofstra University on Long Island.
The concert was being billed by Obama fund-raisers as the first joint concert for Mr. Joel and Mr. Springsteen, although they have appeared together on stage at least once before in 1987 during a benefit concert for homeless children at Madison Square Garden with Paul Simon, among others.
Tickets for the fund-raiser, which is slated to be Mr. Obama’s last in the New York area, are not cheap. Balcony seats are going for $500; a “premiere seat” costs $2,500; and a “lounge ticket” is $10,000.
I took this picture this morning with my cell phone (I pulled over to the side of the road) before I came into work and then made a quick call to the Middlesex County Engineering Department to find out what was happening with the bridge replacement. I take this route everyday — like so many in town — and thought it was time to offer an update. Here is the update, which will run in Thursday’s paper:
Drivers on Ridge Road in Monmouth Junction will face another three months of detours while Middlesex County finishes work on the bridge over a small stream.
Ron Sensor, of the county Engineering Department, said Lucas Bros. of Manalapan is making progress on the $580,980 project that began during the summer.
The project includes replacing brick arch, widening the roadway from 27 feet to 32 feet and adding a sidewalk across the span.
I’m not sure what to make of this response to Gov. Jon Corzine’s ethics reform package from a group calling itself GOP STRONG — a Passaic County conservative group. The organization issued a press release Monday that called for legislators and officials in the state’s counties to “reject Gov. Corzine’s new ethics proposals because they will further tilt the balance of power in New Jersey toward public unions and that will ultimately lead to higher taxes.”
“The reforms we need are more immediate reporting of contributions, an open and fair contract process and severe limits on donations by public employee unions – the unions that Corzine has been protecting since he got elected,” said Ramaglia. “Jon Corzine isn’t a governor; he’s union leader.”
Corzine’ plan proposes to limit donations and end wheeling the practice of a political organization in one county from donating to a political organization in another county. But Corzine proposes no limits on donations from public employee unions.
“Corzine’s plan will take money out of the political system from the private sector leaving public employee unions with a bigger say in the outcome of elections. That will be a disaster for the taxpayers,” says Robert Fass, a GOP Strong co chair and a business owner.
“The last thing New Jersey taxpayers need is for public employees to control politicians even more than they do now. The reason taxes are so high in this state isn’t because of pay to play from the private sector, it’s because of salaries benefits and ridiculous pensions given to the public employees that taxpayer are forced to pay for,” added Fass.
The group is oposed to the governor’s proposed ban on wheeling — a practice that allows money to be contributed to one candidate but moved to other candidates running for other offices — because it would make “it nearly impossible for party building because it would outlaw donations across party lines.”
The key to understanding the group, I think, is its harsh and constant rebuke of the state’s public employee unions — an obsession that seems to be its entire reason for existing. Consider this comment from the press release:
“Gov. Corzine’s plan is another sham designed to protect the public unions that are driving up the costs of property taxes in New Jersey,” says GOP Strong co-chair Mike Ramaglia.
Or this:
“The reforms we need are more immediate reporting of contributions, an open and
fair contract process and severe limits on donations by public employee unions –
the unions that Corzine has been protecting since he got elected,” said
Ramaglia. “Jon Corzine isn’t a governor; he’s union leader.”
Or this:
“Corzine’s plan will take money out of the political system from the private sector leaving public employee unions with a bigger say in the outcome of elections. That will be a disaster for the taxpayers,” says Robert Fass, a GOP Strong co chair and a business owner.
“The last thing New Jersey taxpayers need is for public employees to control politicians even more than they do now. The reason taxes are so high in this state isn’t because of pay to play from the private sector, it’s because of salaries benefits and ridiculous pensions given to the public employees that taxpayer are forced to pay for,” added Fass.
Apparently, the unions are more powerful than the business community, according to GOP STRONG — a thought so absurd it boggles the mind.
Hank Kalet 