Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008
It was just days ago that Gov. Corzine heralded the passage of a bloated state budget as unprecedented, fiscally responsible.
This budget takes us through a turning point and confirms our commitment to a common sense principle of finance, often ignored, that we should spend no more than we take in.
Of course this fiscally responsible state budget did not address school construction nor did it address infrastructure. The fiscally responsible state budget has nothing about the $3.9 billion Corzine is urging the legislature to commandeer from taxpayers.
Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday pressed the Legislature to revive New Jersey’s school construction program to the tune of another $3.9 billion.
No, that isn’t in the fiscally responsible state budget. Nor is the the threat Corzine issued taxpayers this morning on Good Day Philadelphia about funding infrastructure:
I’m not anxious to move forward with a gas tax. I really think we’ve got to find another way.
First of all Gov. Wall Street, the word to use is eager not anxious. Besides that, threatening to raise gasoline taxes if you do not get your toll increases just may be the issue that sinks your re-election. New Jersey voters are ultra-liberal, but they already know they are being gouged and aren’t going to accept much more.
They refused you on both issues previously. (Remember dear reader, Corzine’s first act as governor was to indebt us for 30 years to fund the Transportation Trust Fund for five years. Time is beginning to run out on that (of course, after the gubernatorial election) and he needs to find another shot of money to keep things going.) Now you’re pitting one tax against the other expecting the taxpayers to pick the lesser of two evils.
What was responsible about this monstrous budget you just signed? Bridges, roads, and school construction cannot continue to be funded outside the budget.
Posted in New Jersey, Photography | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 20th, 2008
There is a new coastal trail being proposed to snake through Cape May, Cumberland, and Salem counties here in southern New Jersey.
The Bayshore Heritage Byway is a route through unique natural and historically significant landscapes along southern New Jersey’s “western shore.” The proposed Byway through Salem, Cumberland and Cape May Counties offers travelers a multitude of destinations to explore the Bayshore’s natural, historic and cultural assets.
Offering views of the Delaware River and Bay, marshlands, wildlife, farm fields, historic architecture and evidence of past and present industries inextricably tied to land and water, the Bayshore Heritage Byway is seeking nomination for designation as a New Jersey Scenic Byway through the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT). Funding for this project was provided through the Federal Highway Administration’s National Scenic Byways Discretionary Grant Program.
This sounds wonderful. I am definitely among the target audience of such a trail. I favor it . . . in theory.
I would love for this project to succeed. The problem is that New Jersey cannot afford the project.
Notice who the participants include:
Delaware River Bay Authority
Policy and Planning
NJ Department of Agriculture
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources
NJ Department of Agriculture
Development Committee / Farmland Preservation Program
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), Green Acres Program
Planning & Information Management
NJDEP
Division of Fish & Wildlife
NJ State Park Service
Southern Region Office
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/
Cape May National Wildlife Refuge
NJDEP
NJ State Historic Preservation Office
NJ Department of State
Division of Travel and Tourism
Parvin State Park
NJ Park Service
Pinelands Commission
SJTPO
South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization
All taxpayer-funded agencies. There are more on the list. The big one who is spearheading the project is the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
Recall dear reader, that the DOT is broke. So broke that Governor Corzine indebted us for 30 years to fund it for five years. Those five years are coming to an end and Corzine has other ideas to fund it like raising the tolls on New Jerseys highways significantly. Recall that most New Jerseyans are not in favor of that plan.
The alternative is not to add to the spending of the DOT. Rather, it is to cut costs. The Bayshore Heritage Byway is a cost that needs to be cut. New Jersey taxpayers cannot afford such a project.
Would it be wonderful? Indeed. But severe financial issues need serious attention. We need to say No to new spending. This is new spending. Say No, no matter how much you want it.
Posted in New Jersey, Politics | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 30th, 2008
Tonight when I sat down to check something I noticed an e-mail from a fellow geocacher who asked me if I had seen today’s Star-Ledger. No, I had not. After searching online, I wasn’t able to see what Ken had pointed to so I went out and paid the $.50 for the paper copy. There it was on the Op/Ed page.
It seems New Jersey’s state paper printed part of the piece I wrote the other day about closing the state parks. Mind you, it ignored the under story to why Corzine proposed closing the parks. It would have been nice to have had a heads up that they were going to run the piece.
As I draft this, I finally found the piece online. It’s part of the Ledger’s New Jersey Blogs section.
Posted in New Jersey, Politics | 1 Comment »
Sunday, April 27th, 2008
Governor Corzine has proposed closing nine state parks in order to keep spending down next year.
One in five New Jersey state parks would be forced to close at the height of the summer season and 80 parks workers would be laid off as part of cost-cutting measures forced by Gov. Jon S. Corzine’s austere budget.
There has been a lot of opposition to the plan. There was a rally at the statehouse earlier this week. Last week there was a rally at Parvin State Park, one of the ones slated to be closed. Geocachers have lambasted the governor’s plan. There is seemingly no one in favor of the closing the parks.
Unlike most, I say, close the parks.
No, it will not achieve what the governor desires (see below), but I favor reducing government spending. The governor is “trying” to do that. So, let’s support him. Sure, there are far better places to cut spending. Educational spending is up. That would be good to lop off. The state worker rolls are flush with salaries. We could carve out some there. Read the New Jersey blogosphere and you can find myriad other areas to cut spending.
But the man this state elected has targeted state parks and the elimination of the Agriculture Department. The Ag Dept. is kind of funny considering we are the Garden State. Oh well. Let’s support our governor. Any time a governor wants to save taxpayers spending, I think we should be open-minded.
I will be affected by state parks closing. But we are in difficult times. Corzine has challenged us to rise to the occasion in difficult times. If it will help the state of New Jersey to close nine parks, then so be it.
Let’s call his bluff.
The governor seems to be backing off his plan, however:
he said it was “pretty obvious” that plans to close nine parks and the Agriculture Department would be reworked.
That is not surprising. Closing the parks is not a money saver. Sure, there may be a couple million dollars saved, but in New Jersey, we spend in the billions. The entire plan was to draw attention to the budget crisis. How does a governor get people interested? He proposes cutting something folks use. That is what this was about.
So, folks paid attention. The parks will probably remain open, even if some services there are cut. Now what? Well, Corzine wants to spend tax dollars he doesn’t have. Since he doesn’t have them, he is holding the budget flat (essentially). Doing so puts the squeeze on all parts of government. If municipalities are flat-funded, then they have to deal with the four to five percent salary increases for employees, 12% (or more) increases in health benefits, and 10+% increases in fuel costs. Municipalities could raise local taxes. Although technically, there is a four percent cap on that. Millville circumvented it and I am sure others have too. But there is a political cost to raising taxes and not enough can be raised to gap the shortfalls so services are going to be cut.
Yup, services are going to be cut . . . unless . . . unless the governor can get folks to go along with his toll increase. That is what I believe all this is about. Corzine is still married to his asinine proposal of raising the tolls. With that influx of money, Corzine can once again spend.
And why is it that Corzine wants to spend? Because if he doesn’t, he can’t be re-elected next year. Without an influx of money, Corzine will be known as the one who laid off teachers, cut rebate checks, etc. He needs cash to spend so he can tout all the “good” he has provided.
I say we call Corzine’s bluff. That way we save tax dollars and we set up Corzine to go away. Now that’s a plan I can support.
Posted in New Jersey, Politics | 4 Comments »
Friday, April 25th, 2008
Sadly, this article is dead on about my favorite two actors . . . Someone said to me recently that anger is a big eraser; it erases what it perceives is a bigger emotion. Hmmm . . . Overheard from a public school teacher: “Clinton won Pennsylvania 55% to 47%” . . . There is a actually a Mac & Cheese group on Flickr . . . Spring is here, it’s time for sailing. I eagerly await a couple upcoming sails on the A.J. Meerwald . . . Gasoline prices are having us re-consider our summer vacation plans. It may be better to fly than drive . . . O’Reilly has another new segment (Reality Check). It’s a clunker. The show needs an overhaul; it is becoming far too segmented for my tastes . . . The two highlights of Corzine’s budget were closing nine state parks and eliminating the Dept. of Agriculture. Corzine has backed away from both proposals. That is fine, but not a penny more should be added to the bottom line. How much you want to bet more spending is added? . . . It’s good to see justice has been served: Wesley Snipes is going to jail (I bet there will be an appeal) . . . Wow! Zoomabooma sent me this article that explains how the Grateful Dead’s vault (stuff, not music) has been donated to Santa Cruz . . .
Posted in Miscellaneous | 4 Comments »
