I'd rather get a fruitcake

The New Jersey Federation of Democratic Women has come up with a new fund-raising idea - a calendar featuring New Jersey legislators and their pets. Quick, duck, before you're struck by the calendars flying off the shelves.
Among the featured pinups - Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts and his parrot Utley, Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman and her dog Caleb and Assemblyman Louis Greenwald (Dist. 6) and his yellow Lab Ridgley - along with his wife and three kids.
Former Gov. Florio, his wife Lucinda and their golden retriever Casey also posed for the occasion.
Advice to the federation's fund-raising committee: If you're inclined to do a calendar next year and are looking for ways to jack up sales, tell the pets to leave their owners home for the photo shoot.

NJ missing from list of world's best hotels

Travel & Leisure magazine just came out with its annual list of the World's 500 Best Hotels. Unfortunately, none of them is in New Jersey, one of a handful of states on the East Coast that isn't represented. New York City has nine on the list, but if you are thinking about staying at any of them, don't forget your credit card - one with a high credit limit. The average per night rate at NYC entries is $740. In 2003, the average hotel listed was $474.

Those rates are so far out of my league that I don't much care about the price inflation. Of greater concern is the lack of a nice place to put up relatives and friends visiting me and my family in northern Ocean County. The dirth of options in the Jackson/Howell/Lakewood/Freehold/Millstone area is embarrassing. Won't someone put up a decent hotel in the area -- please?

N.J. lapping the field on property taxes

We ran an editorial today based on a new Tax Foundation report on property taxes that helps explode the myth that the main reason New Jersey property taxes are so high is because N.J. is a wealthy state and it's located in the Northeast, where the cost of living is high.

As usual, New Jersey ranked No. 1 in median property taxes in 2005. Runner-up New Hampshire, whose median is 36 percent lower than New Jersey's, has no income tax or sales tax.

For comparison purposes, here are the 2005 property tax medians for New Jersey and nearby states:

New Jersey $5,352

Connecticut $3,865

New York $3,076

Massachusetts $2,974

Maryland $2,159

Pennsylvania $1,937

Delaware $806

As the editorial pointed out, only three states had median property taxes of more than $3,100.
Here's the editorial:
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061221/OPINION/612210367/1029

From the Tax Foundation report:
Property taxes by state (2005): http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/show/1913.html
Property taxes by county (2005): http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/show/1888.html

Mass transit on right track in NJ

A new report on transportation trends in New Jersey released today shows that rail and bus usage is on the rise in the state. More than 10 percent of New Jersey commuters take mass transit to work. New Jersey ranks second only to New York in mass transit use.

According to the report, prepared by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, rail ridership grew 15 percent between 1997 and 2004, while bus ridership increased 5 percent. The number of miles traveled by mass transit grew 30 percent, while the number of miles driven by car and truck grew 15 percent. Buses carry 57 percent of mass transit riders, compared to 42 percent for rail.

Among other noteworthy findings: Truck traffic is growing at a far greater rate than passenger travel; New Jersey has the highest percentage of roads in poor condition in the nation; and bus and light rail reliability - measured by the frequency of vehicle breakdowns - has deteriorated even though the fleet has become younger.

The report looks at 25 different measures of transportation in New Jersey, including infrastructure, service, congestion and impact on the economy and environment.
To read the full report: http://www.tstc.org/press/2006/StateofNJ.pdf.

More food for thought

In yesterday's blog about the 2006-07 Zagat Survey of New Jersey Restaurants, I noted that none of the 40 most popular restaurants in the state were in Ocean County. But there is no shortage of restaurants there with outstanding food ratings.
The top food rating in Ocean went to Green Gables in Beach Haven - a 27. Only two restaurants in the state had 28s. The Yellow Fin in Surf City got a 26 and the Mud City Crab House in Manahawkin had a 25.
There were several restaurants with 24s - Blue in Surf City, Dennis Foy's in Point Beach, Labrador Lounge in Normandy Beach, La Spiaggia and Raimondos in Ship Bottom, and Slowly and Tang Dynasty in Toms River.
Statewide, Hoboken had the most restaurants listed in Zagat's - 38. Atlantic City was second with 22, and Red Bank was third with 21.

Some new food for thought

The new 2006-07 Zagat Survey of New Jersey restaurants, edited by Press food writer Andrea Clurfeld and staff writer Shannon Mullen, is ubiquitous in the book stores for the holiday shopping season. If you are looking for a place to take family or friends visiting for the holidays, it's a great place to start.
Of the 40 most popular restaurants listed, four are in Monmouth County - Nicholas in Middletown (No. 7), Moonstruck (12) and Bistro Ole (33) in Asbury Park, and Doris & Ed's (36) in the Highlands. Ocean County doesn't have any restaurants on the list.
In the "Top Food" category, Nicholas is tied with Ryland Inn for best in the state. Nicholas occupied the top spot all by itself in the service category.

Fear on the streets of Long Branch

The outpouring of grief and outrage in our Internet forums over the fatal shooting in Long Branch last week of a former star athlete at Long Branch High was gut-wrenching. I was also surprised by how many people said they were fearful of walking the streets in Long Branch at night.

The murder in Long Branch was the first in at least two years there. And the overall crime rate in the city, though relatively high, doesn't rank in the top 10 in Monmouth County. Towns like Allenhurst, Deal and Loch Arbour actually had higher crime rates than Long Branch last year.
But Long Branch does have far more than its fair share of violent crime. Last year, it had the fourth-highest rate, behind only Asbury Park, Neptune Township and Belmar. And it trailed only behind Asbury Park in the number of aggravated assaults.
Click here for the Forum's thread on the shooting. http://forums.app.com/viewtopic.php?t=677

Carnage continues on N.J. roadways

It was nice to hear Gov. Corzine renew his commitment to reducing the state's auto fatalities at a symposium on traffic safety Tuesday. I hope he does a better job of following up on this commitment than some of the others he has made.

The carnage on the roadways remains unacceptable. More than 700 people have died on New Jersey roadways this year. The year-end total may not exceed last year's, but it will come close. And last year's total was the highest in four years.

Nationally, the number of people killed on roadways each year is more than 10 times greater than the number of American soldiers killed in Iraq since the war began. More than 6 million people are involved in accidents each year; 3 million are injured and 2 million suffer permanent injuries. It's insane.

This year, Ocean County could end up with the highest number of fatalities in the state. It had 59 through Wednesday - just three behind No. 1 Middlesex. Monmouth had 44. For up-to-date county-by-county breakdowns, click here: http://www.njsp.org/info/fatalacc/index.html

Pass the envelope, please

The first group of nominees for the New Jersey Hall of Fame was announced yesterday, and it's an impressive bunch. Twenty-five people were nominated in five categories - arts and entertainment, historical, enterprise, sports and general. Two of them have Shore-area ties - Bruce Springsteen and Bud Abbott. Springsteen was one of just two musicians on the list. Frank Sinatra was the other. Bud Abbott was born in Asbury Park and he and his partner Lou Costello used to perform at the Convention Hall.

Most of the nominees are New Jersey natives, but anyone who has lived in New Jersey for at least five years is eligible. There will be 10 to 15 people selected for the first class of inductees. The public will get to vote for their top choice in each category. The winner in the public vote will automatically be inducted into the Hall of Fame. The Hall board may induct one or two others in each category. Here's the full list: http://www.njhalloffame.com/bestandbrightest.htm

What are your choices in each category? Here are mine: Arts and Entertainment, Frank Sinatra; Enterprise, David Sarnoff; Historical, Thomas Edison; Sports, Althea Gibson; and General, Harriet Tubman.

Postal Service a model of customer-unfriendliness

It never ceases to amaze me how clueless the U.S. Postal Service is when it comes to customer service. The long lines around Christmas, Saturdays and weekday lunch hours are only part of it. The invariable screwups with vacation stops and starts. The inability to call the Post Office if you have a question or problem (Decisions about whether to list a phone number in the phone book and/or the U.S. Postal Service are up to the local postmaster/mistress. Most of them choose not to). The bankers' hours at most of the branches - hours, incidentally, which also are determined locally.

Another indication of how little the Postal Service cares about the customer is how so many of the branches have inadequate parking. That's compounded by the large "employee only" areas of parking lots and the prime spots reserved for the postmaster/mistress with the "violators will be towed at their own expense" warning signs. During busy times, why can't the Postal Service require that the scarce spaces be reserved for customers, not employees?

The final insult? If you want to complain to someone in authority, try finding the name and phone number or e-mail address of someone - anyone - on the Postal Service Web site http://www.usps.com/. I gave up after about 10 minutes.

I did find the snail-mail address of Postmaster General John "Jack" Potter on another site: Postmaster General and CEO, United States Postal Service, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, DC 20260. Snail mail, fittingly enough, is apparently the only way to get in touch with him.

Do a one-year deal with state unions

The only three public officials in New Jersey who really matter - the governor, Senate president and Assembly speaker - have decided that reforming the benefits of the more than 500,000 government workers in this state might jeopardize the ongoing negotiations with the state employee unions, who represent less than 20 percent of the public employee workforce. That decision will essentially gut the reforms proposed by a special legislative committee.
The best way to minimize the damage is for Gov. Corzine to negotiate a one-year deal with the unions, instead of the usual three or four. That way, if he gives away the store, lawmakers - all of whom are up for re-election next year - can do legislatively what he failed to do through collective bargaining.
Senate President Richard Codey and Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr. didn't have to agree to Corzine's request to back off on the proposed pension and health care reforms. Their decision to do so does not free them of their obligation to bring about significant reform - not only as it relates to state workers but to teachers, police and firemen, and local and county workers.
If Corzine doesn't get a deal with the unions that mirrors what the legislative committee suggested, it's on Codey and Roberts as well. To cover their own backsides, they should insist that Corzine do a one-year deal with the unions. If he doesn't agree, they should move on the original reforms. If they don't, taxpayers should take to the streets, en masse, in Trenton.
Think the one-year contract is a good idea? Urge your legislators to put pressure on Corzine to make it happen. Click here for a list of your local legislators' e-mail addresses and phone numbers: http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/99999999/OPINION/60530007

Would you mind if I put my feet on your lap?

Driving in to work this morning, I heard on the radio a story about NJ Transit rolling out roomier multilevel train cars. Among the improvements: more room between seats, which are two to an aisle rather than three, and more leg room.
More leg room? If the AP photo of the new rail car that ran with our story today is any indication of how much roomier the cars are, it looks like riders will have to hope there are plenty of empty seats. Can you imagine having to sit across from either of these two guys?

Indian Point and the 'n' word

Driving home last night, I heard an ad on the radio for the Indian Point "Energy Center," a.k.a, the Indian Point nuclear power plant. The ad was designed to sell the public on the very debatable idea that nuclear power is cheaper and safer than other types of energy, and it fights terrorism by reducing dependence on foreign oil.
If nuclear power is so wonderful, why did Indian Point drop the word "nuclear" from its name? Because Entergy Corp., Indian Point's owner, is painfully aware that nuclear power has a negative perception - one the industry can't shake despite the best efforts of its hired guns on Madison Avenue to put lipstick on the radioactive pig.
We're surprised Exelon Corp., the owner of Oyster Creek, and its high-priced hidden persuaders haven't taken the same tack and dropped the name nuclear from its formal title. Exelon seems far more concerned about altering perceptions than addressing the problems that make Oyster Creek a ticking time bomb.
A post-script on that Indian Point ad I heard: It was immediately followed by a test of the Emergency Alert System. That's as bad as running a newspaper ad for an airline next to a story about a plane crash.

Pay Florio like an adjunct

In response to an article in the Sunday Press about politicians who are hired by state colleges - an article that noted former Gov. James Florio was being paid $96,000 to teach one course, one day a week, at Rutgers - the P.R. folks at Rutgers fired off an e-mail to me saying that Florio did much more for Rutgers than simply teach one course. He also guest lectured extensively, helped students get internships and served on several advisory boards.
When the P.R. people followed up the e-mail with a phone call, I asked what Florio's contractual obligations were to Rutgers and whether they could send me a copy of the contract. They said they weren't sure they could do that, but would get back to me with the general terms of Florio's arrangement with the university and a list of the advisory boards he serves on. I'm still waiting to hear back.
I don't care how many internships Florio arranges, how many guest lectures he gives or how many advisory boards he serves on. Paying him $96,000 is a major taxpayer ripoff. Many former public officials teach college courses for free. Most people guest-lecture for free. None that I know of get paid to find internships for students. And most people aren't paid to serve on advisory boards.
By all accounts, Florio is a good teacher. But to teach one course, he should be paid the same as any adjunct - peanuts. Better yet, given his appreciation of Rutgers' and the state's budget troubles, he should do it gratis.

Don't rip up Schiano's contract, unless...

What a great guy! That was my initial reaction when I heard Rutgers football coach Greg Schiano turned down an offer from Miami University that would have nearly doubled his salary. But it is now clear that Rutgers intends to sweeten the pot. Apparently the $1.1 million he will receive in salary and bonuses this year isn't enough.
We have no problem with people being paid what they're worth. And Schiano has done a nice job at Rutgers over the past two years. But this time last year, on the heels of Rutgers haven't its first decent season in years, he signed a seven-year contract extension that nearly doubled his compensation from the previous year. Now Rutgers is ready to rip it up and give him a new one? Rutgers shouldn't re-write Schiano's contract unless he agrees to allow the university to renegotiate it downward in the event the football team returns to its mediocre ways.
It's nice Rutgers has finally had some success on the field. But it has had winning seasons for only two straight years. I don't care what anyone says: The Big East today is not nearly as strong as it used to be. Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida are not Miami, Boston College and Virginia Tech. Part of Rutgers' recent success is due to its weakened competition.
We're glad the alum finally have something to cheer about. But they, and the Rutgers Board of Governors, need to keep things in perspective.

NJEA gearing up for "Back-off" rally

The unions will be out in full force over the next few weeks trying to convince legislators that they will pay the price in next year's election if they support the pension and other benefit reforms proposed by a legislative committee.

In the latest NJEA Reporter, there are several articles explaining how the reforms would affect members and what steps members should take to convince their legislators to vote against the proposals. In addition to encouraging members to attend the rallies planned for Trenton, they are asking them to become a "two-minute activist." They have printed the names and phone numbers of every legislator in the state and are encouraging members to call them. One article provides the talking points:

"Tell your legislators that you:

- Oppose tiering of pensions and benefits.

- Oppose premium sharing on health care.

- Oppose the repeal of a nonforfeitable right to a secure pension.

- Oppose state-mandates that undermine collective bargaining.

- Oppose restrictive caps on school funding."

If you want to see the reforms implemented, start dialing your legislators yourself. Click here for their phone numbers (and e-mail addresses): http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/99999999/OPINION/60530007

Naming rights for job titles

When Joe Scott was playing on the Toms River East basketball team more than two decades ago, he never could have dreamed he would one day become the Cappon-Green Head Coach of Men's Basketball at Princeton. Yes, that's how the Princeton University basketball Web site is referring to him these days. Not plain old Princeton coach Joe Scott. The Princeton coaching job is endowed. With it, apparently, comes the naming rights to the coach. Yale has a similar deal. Coach James Jones is identified in university Web site game stories as "Joel E. Smilow Class of 1954 Head Coach of Men's Basketball James Jones."
The basketball coach endowment at Princeton isn't new. It was established in 1984, when the legendary Peter Carril was still working the sidelines. It's only recently that the university started putting the name of the endowment in front of the coach's name in press releases.
The Cappon-Green endowment, in the unlikely event you're curious about its etymology, was begun with gifts from alumnus Edward G. Green and other supporters of Franklin C. Cappon, the head coach of Princeton basketball from 1938 to 1942 and 1946 to 1961.