Hoboken's biggest website exposing corruption and bad pols
As if Hoboken’s electric political environment isn’t hot enough, a late Friday story at the Hudson County View ended the week on a high note.
Well, maybe not.
The owner of the notorious Vape Van is in trouble with the law, for weed and perhaps some other related narcotic participation. It’s all somewhat vague with charges of intent to distribute the chronic.
According to the story by way of the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office and HCV:
A whirlwind of events in recent weeks finds the Mile Square City in a place few saw coming: a wide open mayoral election.
Four major campaigns are underway and some council candidates are being tossed into the mix as the battle for who will succeed Mayor Zimmer.
The failure to execute what many close political observers anticipated as the baton toss to the well established councilman Ravi Bhalla, who shepherded her legislative will in his two terms has opened the flood gates. Some observers will look back and say if that two step plan had been handled better, the seasoned council member would be a favorite against two Old Guard options as in 2013.
In many ways, life is about choices, and we were confronted with one in 2008. When our municipal taxes went up 70% in one year, Ravi told me he wanted to run for City Council and make a difference. I encouraged him to do so because this reflected our partnership and common vision.
This report comes courtesy of the Hudson County View:
The Hoboken City Council voted to repeal a controversial, decades old “500 foot rule” for bars and restaurants at last night’s meeting. The 500 foot rule was adopted in 1966 to help regulate the locations of bars and restaurants that serve alcohol. The law requires establishments to be at a minimum of 500 feet from each other in order to receive a liquor license. For the full story, please see the Hudson County View.
Councilman Ravi Bhalla today called on NJ Transit to provide Hoboken bus and rail commuters with the option of using their tickets on the new ferry service from Hoboken to 39th Street as a way of combating the overcrowding anticipated this summer due to service changes resulting from scheduled repairs. An additional 7,400 commuters, according to NJ Transit’s own estimate, will be diverted to Hoboken beginning on July 10, with the majority likely to use the already at or beyond capacity PATH or NJ Transit buses to get to New York City. These commuters are being diverted from the Morristown/ Essex line.
Decades back, Hoboken was a scalding hot election environment. The rich tapestry of Hoboken election history is to put it mildly, colorful. Back in the day, institutional power was used rather liberally.
From Hoboken author, Holly Metz on Hoboken’s depression era politics: I had heard from Hoboken old-timers (and later read in Department of Justice files deposited in the National Archives) that under the reign of then-Mayor Bernard McFeely, dissent in Hoboken was viciously quashed. Protestors would be hauled into the police station—the mayor’s brother, Edward, was the chief—and some would leave with broken ribs and swollen faces. The McFeelys did not want anyone to disrupt what one critic called their “nepotistic republic.” More than 60 McFeely kin or in-laws, according to reports I later consulted, pulled down rich salaries in city posts during the Depression years, while Poormaster Barck denied desperate families aid, asserting that the city had insufficient funds for moochers. The McFeelys cultivated support by dispensing small, low-paying jobs on the city payroll; in return, their “friends” became the administration’s eyes and ears on the streets. They reported on the actions of dissenters and threatened them with harm if they spoke out. Tomorrow, more on the state of the 2017 Hoboken race in MSV premium.Councilman Mike DeFusco had his campaign launch an initial salvo against Freeholder Anthony “Stick” Romano but didn’t stop there. The next target was Council President Jen Giattino who his campaign alleges she supported “the failed policies of Chris Christie” and “solicited a campaign contribution from Chris Christie’s brother Todd…”
A source close to the newly minted Jen Giattino mayoral campaign pointed to the City Council President’s six years on the City Council with a voting record of accomplishment for Hoboken voters to consider versus the junior councilman saying, “Jen Giattino is respected by people across the diverse community of Hoboken and is happy to put up her record in the community on and off the council against anyone.”
Today the United States celebrates its independence and those rights declared, too often forgotten, neglected or as commonplace these days tragically assaulted on multiple fronts.
The first 10 rights as would be later written in the Bill of Rights are listed below. A quick reading shows many myths and similarly many assaults being perpetuated on Americans today, often from within by foreign ideologies holding no historical or cultural place. Some of the roots of that infiltration can be traced to the Frankfurt School and Critical Theory, the means sought to tear down American institutions from within through an “abolition of culture.” Among the elements sought in its place, an impositions on words, deeds and ultimately thought, with a rigid curricula of political correctness.