Even NJ Hates NJ

From the Star Ledger:

N.J. residents’ positive feelings about their state hits 35-year low, poll shows

New Jersey and you, imperfect together.

The percentage of New Jersey residents considering their state a good or excellent place to live dropped to a 35-year low, according to a Monmouth poll released Thursday.

The poll said 55 percent had a positive opinion about their state, down from 63 percent in February and the lowest percentage recorded since the question was first asked in 1980. The previous low point was 57 percent in August 2011.

Residents felt differently about their hometowns: 71 percent felt positively, virtually unchanged from 72 percent in February.

“New Jerseyans still like their towns and their neighbors,” said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch. “They’re just having a hard time with the state as a whole.”

The statewide views lowered the Garden State Quality of Life Index to +18, down from +23 in February. It was last that low in September 2014, and hasn’t dropped below that since September 2010.

This entry was posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, New Jersey Real Estate, Unrest. Bookmark the permalink.

119 Responses to Even NJ Hates NJ

  1. caljn says:

    This governor has got to go…not only has he not accomplished anything positive, but his persona does not help the cause.
    Not to mention the continued weight problem, post surgery, and the manner in which he addresses constituents who question him is indicative of a man with issues.
    As they say, it rolls downhill.

  2. Rotten Pumpkin says:

    Why are left wingers consistently so angry? It’s sad. They disagree with someone politically so they make fun of them. Really mean spirited and sick.

  3. joyce says:

    [crazy right wingers hate the first amendment]

    A performance by the Chicago rapper Chief Keef — or rather, his likeness, beamed live via hologram from California — was shut down by the police on Saturday night in Hammond, Ind., after warnings from the mayor’s office that the performer could not appear, even digitally, promoters said on Sunday.

    The surprise appearance of Chief Keef at Craze Fest, a hip-hop festival in Hammond, about 25 miles outside of Chicago, was scheduled after a series of canceled hologram performances by the rapper, born Keith Cozart. Last weekend, a Chicago theater called off a similar show after representatives for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office deemed Chief Keef “an unacceptable role model,” whose music “promotes violence” and whose presence via hologram “posed a significant public safety risk.”

    Chief Keef, who has rapped in the past about his gang affiliations, was previously sentenced to home confinement as a juvenile for pointing a gun at a police officer, and later served time in jail for violating his probation in that case.

    More recently, the rapper has said he’s changed. Chief Keef, 19, had billed the performance as a “Stop the Killing” benefit concert, meant to raise money for Marvin Carr, a fellow Chicago rapper who died in a shooting this month, and Dillan Harris, a 13-month-old child killed by a vehicle fleeing the scene of that shooting. The rapper opted not to appear in the Midwest in the flesh, citing outstanding warrants for his arrest, stemming from two child support cases.

    Ahead of Saturday’s concert, Chief Keef’s team defiantly teased a live appearance by the hologram in downtown Chicago that night. “The location is being kept secret because of past efforts by city officials to keep the charity event from happening,” a spokesman said in a news release. A promotional video boomed: “Banned by the mayor of Chicago: Chief Keef, from a secret Chicago location.”

    But as showtime approached, Chief Keef posted on Instagram that the show would be held just over the Illinois border at the Pavilion at Wolf Lake in Hammond, the site of Craze Fest. Despite some subsequent misdirection, a representative for the rapper confirmed the location soon after. Malcolm Jones, a promoter for Craze Fest, said the Hammond police and a representative from the mayor’s office visited him on site after 7 p.m. on Saturday. The authorities asked if Chief Keef was present, or if his voice or music would be played. “I said his music had been playing all night,” Mr. Jones, 22, said. “His voice has been here since the beginning.”

    Mr. Jones said he told the police that Chief Keef would not be featured onstage. “No one ever gave me a reason why they didn’t want the hologram to appear,” he said. “They didn’t have a real reason. They believed that it would start trouble, but the first thing Chief Keef said via hologram was: ‘Chicago, we need to stop the violence. Let our kids live.’ ”

    “It was for a really good cause, but sometimes the authorities can’t see that,” Mr. Jones continued. “They’re not our age.”

    Advertisement

    Continue reading the main story
    Advertisement

    Continue reading the main story
    Advertisement

    Continue reading the main story
    Thomas M. McDermott Jr., the mayor of Hammond, said in an interview that his office became aware of the surprise performance, which was also streamed live online, through social media. All of the Craze Fest acts — which included Riff Raff, Lil Bibby and Tink — had been previously vetted because the event was held at a public park, he said.

    “I know nothing about Chief Keef,” Mayor McDermott, 46, said. “All I’d heard was he has a lot of songs about gangs and shooting people — a history that’s anti-cop, pro-gang and pro-drug use. He’s been basically outlawed in Chicago, and we’re not going to let you circumvent Mayor Emanuel by going next door.” (The Chicago mayor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

    Despite promises from the promoters that Chief Keef would not be appearing, the hologram took the stage around 10:30 p.m. Hammond police shut down the show about a minute later, Mayor McDermott said. There were no arrests, citations or incidents as more than 2,000 fans were cleared from the park.

    “It’s not like we’re anti-rap,” Mayor McDermott said. “It’s just this specific case. Gang violence in Chicago is the reality right now, and I’m not going to invite someone that might be a threat to public safety.”

    Alki David, chief executive of Hologram USA, which sponsors Chief Keef, said in a statement: “Shame on the mayor and police chief of Hammond for shutting down a voice that can create positive change in a community in desperate need. And for taking away money that could have gone to help the victims’ families.”

    “This was a legal event and there was no justification to shut it down besides your glaring disregard for the First Amendment right to free speech,” he added. “Mark my words, if you censor us, you only make us stronger.”

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/27/arts/music/hologram-performance-by-chief-keef-is-shut-down-by-police.html?_r=1

    http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-chief-keef-hologram-concert-20150725-story.html

  4. joyce says:

    (RET) General Wesley Clark: Well, we’ve got to identify the people who are most likely to be radicalized. We’ve got to cut this off at the beginning. There are always a certain number of young people who are alienated — they don’t get a job; they lost a girlfriend; their family doesn’t feel happy here — and we can watch the signs of that and there are members of the community who can reach out and bring them back in and encourage them to look at their blessings here. But I do think on a national policy level, we need to look at what self-radicalization means, because we are at war with this group of terrorists. They do have an ideology. In World War 2, if someone supported Nazi Germany at the expense of the United States, we didn’t say that was freedom of speech, we put them in a camp. They were prisoners of war. So, if these people are radicalized, and they don’t support the United States, and they’re disloyal to the United States as a matter of principle, fine, that’s their right. Its our right and our obligation to segregate them from the normal community for the duration of the conflict.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=52&v=HTPXOy2nWa8

  5. anon (the good one) says:

    Is Wesley taking about people like Cliven Bundy supporters?

  6. D-FENS says:

    I don’t hate the state, but I do hate how it’s run and worry we cannot turn the tide.

    It’s upsetting, NJ has so much history…

    Many Revolutionary War battles were fought here
    3rd state to Ratify the Constitution
    Trenton was once the capital of the US
    Countless inventors and great artists once called NJ home…
    etc.

  7. anon (the good one) says:

    @ianbremmer:

    Trump: If elected President, I’ll turn US 1/4 clockwise so our borders with Mexico & Canada will be oceans.
    #NewHorizonsForAmerica

  8. caljn says:

    #2 Not angry just want better…his tenure is damned by Exxon and the rail tunnel alone. And in predictable fashion you address the messenger rather than the message.
    Kindly present an argument in favor of this governor.

  9. JJ says:

    raises up .02%, rents up 4.2%

    how long can that last?

  10. JJ says:

    If you just dropped a neutron bomb on the middle east, India, China and Greece it would pretty much solve the worlds problems

  11. joyce says:

    First: That poster didn’t defend the governor at all.
    Second: https://njrereport.com/index.php/2015/07/30/fewer-underwater-homeowners-in-nj/#comment-697251

    caljn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 8:35 am
    #2 Not angry just want better…his tenure is damned by Exxon and the rail tunnel alone. And in predictable fashion you address the messenger rather than the message.
    Kindly present an argument in favor of this governor.

  12. joyce says:

    Christie is terrible. Happy?

    Kindly present an argument in favor of any politician.

  13. Rotten Pumpkin says:

    I actually like the fact that he brought the pension issue to light, stopped sending government money to planned parenthood, and vetoed a bunch of BS gun control bills.

    caljn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 8:35 am
    #2 Not angry just want better…his tenure is damned by Exxon and the rail tunnel alone. And in predictable fashion you address the messenger rather than the message.
    Kindly present an argument in favor of this governor.

  14. Rotten Pumpkin says:

    That said, Christie deserves more criticism than praise overall. But I’ll take him over Buono any day.

  15. D-FENS says:

    15 – I’m well aware of his present and past positions on the issue.

  16. JJ says:

    I say triple the money to Planned Parenthood but re-focus them from Fetuses to NJ Retirees.

    Rotten Pumpkin says:
    July 31, 2015 at 8:47 am
    I actually like the fact that he brought the pension issue to light, stopped sending government money to planned parenthood, and vetoed a bunch of BS gun control bills.

    caljn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 8:35 am
    #2 Not angry just want better…his tenure is damned by Exxon and the rail tunnel alone. And in predictable fashion you address the messenger rather than the message.
    Kindly present an argument in favor of this governor.

  17. joyce says:

    Are you posting under multiple names?

    D-FENS says:
    July 31, 2015 at 8:57 am
    15 – I’m well aware of his present and past positions on the issue.

  18. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    This is a RE blog right? Happy Friday!

    ‘Housing Bubble 2’ has bloomed into full magnificence
    As in many cities around the US, prices are soaring, buyers are going nuts, sellers run the show, realtors are laughing all the way to the bank, and the media are having a field day.

    Nationwide, the median price of existing homes, at $236,400, as the National Association of Realtors sees it, is now 2.7% higher than it was even in July 2006, the insane peak of the crazy housing bubble that blew up with such spectacular results.

    Housing Bubble 2 has bloomed into full magnificence:

    http://www.businessinsider.com/housing-bubble-2-has-bloomed-into-full-magnificence-2015-7

  19. Ragnar says:

    Music from Oingo Boingo this AM for the lefties:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqXAW2snGMI

  20. anon (the good one) says:

    @Gothamist:
    Chris Christie says he’ll fix New Jersey’s transit problems—once he’s president.

    New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who condemned his constituents to decades more of gridlock and crowded train platforms by pulling the plug on a Hudson River tunnel in 2010, after construction had begun, said he might, hypothetically, revisit the project. But first voters have to elect him president.

    If I’m president of the United States, I call a meeting between my secretary of transportation, the governor of New York, and the governor of New Jersey, and I say, “If we’re all in this even Steven, if we’re all going to put in an equal share, then let’s go build these tunnels underneath the Hudson River and walk away as equals. We’re all equal for the upfront costs, and we’re all equal for the cost overruns.”

  21. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    Fast Eddie, they should have asked you for an interview.

    Housing supply falls further, feeding prices

    “Finding a house is the last hurdle for many buyers who have saved a down payment and gotten pre-approved for a mortgage, but low inventory levels like those we’re seeing across the country can bring the homebuying process to a screeching halt,” said Stan Humphries, chief economist at Zillow. “In many markets, there just isn’t a lot to choose from in terms of homes on the market.”

    The bigger the city, the bigger the problem. Inventory fell in 19 of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. Supplies are also falling the most in the lower price ranges, making it even more difficult for already cash-strapped first-time buyers to get into home ownership.

    The reasons for tight supply are manifold: Homebuilders are putting up single family homes at a far slower pace than historical norms. They cite a shortage of labor for at least some of that weakness, but they also are not seeing strong demand, due to their higher prices.

    Another reason is negative equity. Millions of homeowners still owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, or they don’t have enough equity in their homes to afford to move up, leaving them unable to list their homes for sale. Still other potential move-up buyers are afraid they won’t be able to find a home to buy, so they stay where they are.

    http://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/30/housing-supply-falls-further-feeding-prices.html

  22. D-FENS says:

    19 – Real estate, economics, and politics.

  23. Lil Bibby says:

    There a Craze Fest goin’ on every day up in the mind of The Great Pumpkin.

  24. Lil Bibby says:

    Anon – You behind your gubner now?

    “If I’m president of the United States, I call a meeting between my secretary of transportation, the governor of New York, and the governor of New Jersey, and I say, “If we’re all in this even Steven, if we’re all going to put in an equal share, then let’s go build these tunnels underneath the Hudson River and walk away as equals. We’re all equal for the upfront costs, and we’re all equal for the cost overruns.”

  25. Fast Eddie says:

    FKA 2010 Buyer [22],

    It looks like they’ve been reading my posts. :)

  26. Fast Eddie says:

    In other news and not that anyone really gives a f.uck, I have two offers so far on my house. One was just about asking so if they come up with the proof, it’s a done deal. The other was a little low but I guess they expect a counter. The two offers came in within hours of the house going public so I guess it fits in that no inventory, priced right, clean house model.

  27. Essex says:

    Geeeeez JJ is dropping GOoooold here

  28. Essex says:

    27. Dude not rooting for failure here. That’s excellent news.

  29. JJ says:

    Chris Christie is a poor mans Rex Ryan

  30. JJ says:

    Sand 8.5% CPP
    OTCMKTS: SDRXP – Jul 31 9:30 AM EDT
    18.60Price decrease0.35 (1.85%)

    This oil perf stk was 167 exactly four years ago today. Man that is some fall. It is not even a common stock and still paying Div for now.

  31. NJGator says:

    NJ Lawmaker Says Gas Tax Hike Should Accompany Transit Fare Increase

    TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — A new push is underway to raise New Jersey’s gas tax after transit authorities announced that fares will be going up.
    As CBS2’s Christine Sloan explained, some lawmakers said if transit commuters have to fork up more money, why shouldn’t drivers?
    New Jersey’s gas tax hasn’t been raised in 30 years, and at 4 cents a gallon most drivers like it that way.
    “It shouldn’t go up because nothing else is going up as far as your pay is concerned,” one driver said.
    “People can’t afford it at the pump. Everybody’s hurting out here, people can’t get jobs,” Louis Koloranda said.
    Gas tax money goes to the strapped State Transportation Trust Fund which pays for road projects. Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Sayreville) said if NJ Transit can raise fares, which he opposes, and some have called a tax in itself, drivers should chip in too.
    “Part of the rationale, New Jersey Transit had to pay money back to our transportation trust fund, they borrowed money from the transportation trust fund and had to pay it back,” he said.
    Wisniewski has introduced a bill to raise the gas tax by about 25 cents a gallon. He cited studies showing drivers pay $600 a year for car repairs because of bad roads.
    “The average driver in New Jersey buys $750 gallons a year. It comes out to about 50 cents a gallon for the average driver,” he said.
    Governor Chris Christie, a Republican running for president, said he’ll veto any tax hike.
    An organization representing gas station owners supports a hike, but said the government better do it the right way.
    “If they say they didn’t raise the gas tax, but add sales tax onto gasoline that would be trying to pull the wool over the motorists’ eyes,” Sal Risvalto, New Jersey Gasoline, C-Store, Automotive Association, said.
    Lawmakers said not to expect anything to happen with the gas tax until way after November, that’s when legislators go back to Trenton and the presidential race heats up.
    CBS2 reached out to a spokesperson for Governor Christie, and has not received a response.

    http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/07/20/nj-gas-tax/

  32. xolepa says:

    Funny thing, Mr. 30 mentioned the other day how he bought a house on auction in Hunterdon for the first time. First question, if he is on today, what street is it?

    Then, I got curious and picked up the latest iteration of the County rag. Seems the foreclosure spigot is wide open, baby. Then, I look through the foreclosures and a name catches my eye. I can do that pretty well, having taken speed reading courses back in my relative youth, hehe. Either way, holy sht, its a former tenant of mine, from about 18 years ago. This guy could hardly afford $600 a month rent back then and now he is in the hole for $335k. On Main Street, in the crappiest town in Hunterdon County.

    Creep and his brain-drained wife went over the edge on that one.

  33. anon (the good one) says:

    you knew you had to give it away to avoid carrying two mortgages

    Fast Eddie says:
    July 31, 2015 at 9:54 am
    In other news and not that anyone really gives a f.uck, I have two offers so far on my house. One was just about asking so if they come up with the proof, it’s a done deal. The other was a little low but I guess they expect a counter. The two offers came in within hours of the house going public so I guess it fits in that no inventory, priced right, clean house model.

  34. Fast Eddie says:

    you knew you had to give it away to avoid carrying two mortgages

    Sorry to disappoint you sweatheart but it’s listed at my price. :)

  35. Alex says:

    CNBC: More homeowners drowning in debt.

  36. Libturd in Union says:

    That’s some fukced up logic. We should raise the gas tax since NJ Transit raised bus and rail fares.

  37. anon (the good one) says:

    @BernieSanders:

    I have introduced legislation that would make every every public college and university tuition-free.

  38. nwnj says:

    Sure, let’s make it free. Progressives already want to give money to illegals and ex cons to pay for school so why should anyone else.

  39. Fast Eddie says:

    I have introduced legislation that would make every every public college and university tuition-free.

    Who pays for the facility maintenance and staff, instructors, security, food services, etc?

  40. Alex says:

    38-

    No anon, it wouldn’t be “free”, taxpayers would end up paying for it.

  41. Libturd in Union says:

    Everything should be free. Vote for me!

  42. anon (the good one) says:

    same people who are paying for W’s Iraq war

    Fast Eddie says:
    July 31, 2015 at 10:36 am

    Who pays for the facility maintenance and staff, instructors, security, food services, etc?

  43. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    [21] Anon

    “If we’re all in this even Steven…who says “even Steven” anymore?

  44. anon (the good one) says:

    you mean like W’s war in Iraq?

    Alex says:
    July 31, 2015 at 10:43 am
    38-

    No anon, it wouldn’t be “free”, taxpayers would end up paying for it.

  45. nwnj says:

    So you want to justify one colossal boondoggle by pointing out another? Great logic genius.

  46. Libturd in Union says:

    Anon is always enamored by Platitudes. Still bitching about W’s war, even though his candidate voted for it. Simpleton.

  47. homeboken says:

    The idea of “tuition-free” public college education is often repeated and touted. Anyone that pushes this agenda forward that believes the tuition should truly cost $0.00 should be first in line to take an Econ 101 or FIN 101 course.

    The idea of “free-tuition” is so incredibly flawed that it makes me angry that college educated people defend and promote the idea.

  48. Fast Eddie says:

    “I was one who supported giving President Bush the authority, if necessary, to use force against Saddam Hussein. I believe that that was the right vote. I have had many disputes and disagreements with the administration over how that authority has been used, but I stand by the vote to provide the authority because I think it was a necessary step in order to maximize the outcome that did occur in the Security Council with the unanimous vote to send in inspectors.”

    – Hillary Clinton

  49. A Home Buyer says:

    48 –

    http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/05/the-high-price-of-a-free-college-education-in-sweden/276428/


    Swedish colleges and universities are free. Yep. Totally free. But students there still end up with a lot of debt. The average at the beginning of 2013 was roughly 124,000 Swedish krona ($19,000). Sure, the average US student was carrying about 30% more, at $24,800.

  50. Libturd in Union says:

    What have the Swedish ever invented? Besides Swedish Fish, too which I am forever indebted.

  51. A Home Buyer says:

    48 – Cont.

    Also why Europe can afford free schooling:

    http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2014/10/10/germany_college_is_free_there_even_for_foreign_students_why.html


    The German university experience isn’t worse than the American one, but there are vital cultural and infrastructural differences between our systems that bargain-hungry students (and their parents) might want to consider before bidding Auf Wiedersehen to Big State U.

    First of all, the concept of “campus life” differs widely between our two countries. German universities consist almost entirely of classroom buildings and libraries—no palatial gyms with rock walls and water parks; no team sports facilities (unless you count the fencing fraternities I will never understand); no billion-dollar student unions with flat-screen TVs and first-run movie theaters. And forget the resort-style dormitories. What few dorms exist are minimalistic, to put it kindly—but that’s largely irrelevant anyway, as many German students still live at home with their parents, or in independent apartment shares, none of which foster the kind of insular, summer-camp-esque experience Americans associate closely with college life (and its hefty price tag). It’s quite common for German students simply to commute in for class, then leave.

    Speaking of class: Academic life is quite a bit different over there. German students are typically accepted into particular majors—none of this “expanding your horizons” and declaring halfway through your junior year. You apply to college in Germany to study law, medicine, literature, engineering, etc.—and you take that program’s requirements, the end.

    There is also little in the way academic advising, which in the U.S. is now so hands-on that it has become its own cottage industry within the administration. Over there, you’re expected to know what you need to take, and to take it. And by “take” I mean something markedly different than American students might expect. For example, a freshman-level literature class in the United States might have 25 students registered, and a professor who is expected to know all of them by face and name by, say, week two—not to mention grade an entire semester’s worth of assignments. A similar lower-level Vorlesung (lecture) in Germany might have an ever-changing coterie of 200 or so students, who show up when it suits them. (Yes, that includes milling into and out of the lecture hall at any point during the advertised class period.) Even in more intensive upper-level courses, students are often allowed to forego official registration until the end of the semester, when they elect to sit the sole exam or turn in the lone seminar paper. (Or not!)

    Again, this system is not worse than the American one, it’s just different. But it is these differences, coupled with Germany’s higher tax investment in all things public, that account for a massive disparity in what students must pay. The tuition might be free, but if you are not a highly self-motivated learner who is fully fluent in German (with a social life based somewhere other than campus), you may still pay the price.

  52. Comrade Nom Deplume, the Answer says:

    [32] gator,

    Hike the transit fares. Hike taxes. Hike sales taxes. Hike everything but turnpike tolls and gas taxes. Lower those.

    I stand where I sit.

  53. Comrade Nom Deplume, the Answer says:

    [49] Eddie

    So being “for it before I was against it” isn’t a winning strategy?

  54. joyce says:

    Our trolls these days are now worse than jamil

  55. Libturd in Union says:

    I forgot about Jamil.

  56. Anon E. Moose says:

    Hey Banco/JJ, there goes the neighborhood!

    Neighbors infuriated over pilot with plane in driveway

  57. D-FENS says:

    57 – I don’t see the problem. I see people with boats, camp trailers, RV’s, snowblowers, atv’s, snowmobiles, lawn tractors, etc. in their driveway. What’s the difference? It’s not like the thing’s in disrepair.

  58. Grim says:

    G

    Fsbo?

  59. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Speaking of Sweden, I can’t wait to get my wife this. I was planning on getting her the x5, till we saw this at the nyc car show.

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-31/the-2016-volvo-xc90-a-new-suv-is-safe-square-and-sexy-

  60. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Def a serious seller….congrats.

    Fast Eddie says:
    July 31, 2015 at 9:54 am
    In other news and not that anyone really gives a f.uck, I have two offers so far on my house. One was just about asking so if they come up with the proof, it’s a done deal. The other was a little low but I guess they expect a counter. The two offers came in within hours of the house going public so I guess it fits in that no inventory, priced right, clean house model.

  61. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    Millennials have the lowest credit scores of all generations

    COSTA MESA, Calif., July 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — As millennials have now passed baby boomers as the largest segment of the U.S. population, this digitally independent generation is still much less savvy than older generations when it comes to their finances and credit management. Experian®, a leading global information services company, released key findings today that provide a glimpse into the credit management habits of millennials and show how coming of age in a challenging economy has had an effect on this generation’s credit profile.

    http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/LA68628.htm

  62. Statler Waldorf says:

    Who’s Iraq war?

    US Senators who voted YES to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq:

    Biden, Joseph (D-DE)
    Clinton, Hillary (D-NY)
    Kerry, John (D-MA)
    Reid, Harry (D-NV)

    http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=2&vote=00237

  63. JJ says:

    In unincorporated areas of Southshore it is up to Town of Hempstead Building dept for zoning. Litterally a 13 mile by 10 radius of homes jammed on small plots and at best 3-5 inspectors.

    I have neighbors with dumpsters, boats, cars with no plates. Some even leave non-running cars on street with a car cover. I even see sheds on front lawn, one kook a few blocks pitched a huge tent on front lawn and lives there since Sandy made his house a mold fest, Seen above ground pools, in side yards no fence. It is wild wild wild west. A guy two blocks from me has a roofing and gutter business on a 60×100 plot has like five work vans on street and every week day 10-15 mexicans are standing in front of house waiting for work to start. Folks have houses split up into mult family.

    The guy is right. A plane is a concern. Meanwhile his whole block is breaking code.

    Neighbors are just pissed as people most likely gawk at plane and cause traffic

    D-FENS says:
    July 31, 2015 at 11:58 am
    57 – I don’t see the problem. I see people with boats, camp trailers, RV’s, snowblowers, atv’s, snowmobiles, lawn tractors, etc. in their driveway. What’s the difference? It’s not like the thing’s in disrepair.

  64. JJ says:

    Up to 1978 CUNY schools were 100 percent free and we still had poverty and kids in the getto not going to college

    homeboken says:
    July 31, 2015 at 11:01 am
    The idea of “tuition-free” public college education is often repeated and touted. Anyone that pushes this agenda forward that believes the tuition should truly cost $0.00 should be first in line to take an Econ 101 or FIN 101 course.

    The idea of “free-tuition” is so incredibly flawed that it makes me angry that college educated people defend and promote the idea.

  65. Ben says:

    You know tuition is also free in Mexico….

  66. Comrade Nom Deplume, Device-Hopping Today says:

    [48] ‘boken

    “The idea of “free-tuition” is so incredibly flawed that it makes me angry that college educated people defend and promote the idea.”

    Well, look who stands to benefit: Employers who want people trained on gov. dime, parents who don’t want to pay that nut directly, and the entire educational complex.

    It isn’t that its free vs. not free. I seriously doubt anyone believes it is completely free. But there are plenty of precedents for people wanting the government to step in and provide something that costs them much less out of pocket or that puts them to work.

    Really, it’s completely rational.

  67. Libturd in Union says:

    Let the government socialize higher education and it will cost double.

  68. anon (the good one) says:

    @ProfDavidJaros:
    Inmates in education programs are 43% less likely to return to prison and 13% more likely to have a job after jail.

    “More prisoners may soon have access to federal subsidies to pay for college under a new Obama administration initiative, ending a 20-year ban on Pell grants for state and federal prisoners.”

  69. Statler Waldorf says:

    No boats, RVs, campers (or or airplanes) allowed in a driveway in my neck of the woods.

    That photo of giant airplane sitting in the driveway is a hoot. Time to sell that plane, fella.

  70. Statler Waldorf says:

    Sounds like a great neighborhood. There’s being frugal, and then there’s being silly…

    “I have neighbors with dumpsters, boats, cars with no plates. Some even leave non-running cars on street with a car cover. I even see sheds on front lawn, one kook a few blocks pitched a huge tent on front lawn and lives there since Sandy made his house a mold fest, Seen above ground pools, in side yards no fence. It is wild wild wild west. A guy two blocks from me has a roofing and gutter business on a 60×100 plot has like five work vans on street and every week day 10-15 mexicans are standing in front of house waiting for work to start. Folks have houses split up into mult family. “

  71. stu (51)-

    Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, was Swedish. Story is, he started the Nobel Prize out of guilt for it.

    “What have the Swedish ever invented? Besides Swedish Fish, too which I am forever indebted.”

  72. Libturd in Union says:

    Clot. I knew that already.

  73. Ben (66)-

    Yeah, but biggest problem in Mexico is students ending up beheaded in mass grave.

    “You know tuition is also free in Mexico….”

  74. anon (69)-

    Yeah, dicktard, I’m all for prisoners getting Pell Grants. Let ’em get them ahead of my own kid. Maybe I should tell him to knock off a 7/11…

    “More prisoners may soon have access to federal subsidies to pay for college under a new Obama administration initiative, ending a 20-year ban on Pell grants for state and federal prisoners.”

  75. The Great Pumpkin says:

    19- This comment from that article tells me all I need to know. Building too much, too fast. You would have to put a gun to my head to buy in this location. Can only imagine how fast their taxes will rise with the increase in demand for services that will accompany this kind of growth. Wonder how long the no income tax in Texas will last with this kind of growth? Lure them in with no income tax, then when they are trapped, boom, income tax is born. People are running from jersey to this mess? Wow. These people really have no idea what they are in for.

    “The housing market in north Texas has nothing to do with rentals or a bubble…it has to do with the simple fact that a ton of companies have relocated, or are the process of relocating to the golden corridor of the DNT from Legacy in Plano all the way up to 380 in Prosper. The sections of DNT running north/south connecting downtown Dallas to Propser, plus 121 running east/west connecting the airport to 75 in Allen, has only been open for the last 10 years. This has lead to tremendous growth in the area..it has become its own economic hub much like Addison, Irving and Richardson become exurban commercial hubs from Dallas. Toyota is moving 5,000 jobs to a new HQ they are building in Plano, Liberty Mutual 6,000 jobs, Dallas Cowboys new HQ and facility, FedEx office, Nebraska furniture mart…over 7 billion in development in the are around DNT/Legacy/121…none of it is on spec..they all have tenants/relos committed to them….the boom in NTX is real because the jobs are real…real people, making real wages, no horse sh!t fake mortgages from the last bust…new housing development popping up in what was a farm 10 years ago…with 10 cars outside of the model homes all day on the weekends…3,000 to 5,000 sq ft homes with media, game rooms, 2 bedrooms upstairs, guest bedroom down stairs( for the grand parents) with huge master suites down stairs that go for between $125 to $150 a sq foot…go calculate how much your house costs and compare…75% of the housing and schools in the town I live in have been built in the last 15 years…that is progress my friends.”

    Read more: http://wolfstreet.com/2015/07/29/home-buying-panic-record-prices-crashing-homeownership-rate-low-rental-vacancy/#ixzz3hUdhbDrC

  76. The Great Pumpkin says:

    76- Companies will milk this area for 10-20 years and then move onto a new area to take advantage of, leaving the place in dire straits 30 years from now. Truly feel bad for these people. Sort of what happen to jersey in the 1900’s. We just never had that kind of population growth, nj land was always valuable, so we never saw that kind of development where towns are born over night. Why people are running to these places I have no idea. Too naive or stupid to see the writing on the wall.

  77. clotluva says:

    Punkin,

    Are you aware that Volvo is a wholly owned subsidiary of a Chinese company? Not that there is anything wrong with that, I just didn’t have you pegged as a full-blown global capitalist…I figured you’d want your $ to go into the pockets of hard working Americans.

    I guess the 0.1% should be the ones forced to support US manufacturing…

  78. Statler Waldorf says:

    Yesterday a loony Hackensack mother left her 2-year-old daughter in car while shopping on a 90 degree day. Police smashed the window, saving the child.

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3181220/Horrifying-moment-screaming-child-2-rescued-car-mother-leaves-90-degree-heat-just-one-window-barely-open-food-shopping.html

  79. JJ says:

    Love it or hate it there are pluses and minus. I have the condo in a snooty town with condo rules and what a pain to rent, park on street, get folks on beach. Heck you cant even mow your own lawn or use power tools in your own house on weekends in the summer.

    The incorporated towns near me pay an extra 12-20k a year in taxes to have a whole govt enforcing rules. And some even require you to register rental apartments and pay fees. And no parking on street overnight. Can get a ticket in front of your own house.

    Statler Waldorf says:
    July 31, 2015 at 1:36 pm
    Sounds like a great neighborhood. There’s being frugal, and then there’s being silly…

    “I have neighbors with dumpsters, boats, cars with no plates. Some even leave non-running cars on street with a car cover. I even see sheds on front lawn, one kook a few blocks pitched a huge tent on front lawn and lives there since Sandy made his house a mold fest, Seen above ground pools, in side yards no fence. It is wild wild wild west. A guy two blocks from me has a roofing and gutter business on a 60×100 plot has like five work vans on street and every week day 10-15 mexicans are standing in front of house waiting for work to start. Folks have houses split up into mult family. “

  80. The Great Pumpkin says:

    I really liked the Ford Explorer, but my brother has it. Lincoln is starting to step it up, but most of the American suv’s are just too big. When it comes to luxury suv’s, I’ll go with the euro designs. Yes, I wish America provided me with an option, but they don’t. Sad.

  81. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    [76] Pumpkin

    You do realize that if you go back 20 years….the development of land, relocation (Midtown direct lines, NY to Jersey City, etc)…..you are talking about New Jersey?

    In addition to your argument that high taxes = we are rich?

  82. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Volvo was owned by ford, that’s why they didn’t come out with a new suv in 12 years. Ford didn’t give any money to r&ad. Now China has given as much r&d money to the Volvo engineers as they wanted, the SUV is a reflection of that and why I’m buying.

  83. D-FENS says:

    Millennials are more likely to live with their parents than their parents were

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/07/31/millennials-are-more-likely-to-live-with-their-parents-than-their-parents-were/

    On Wednesday, Pew Research published a soberly titled report: “More Millennials Living With Family Despite Improved Job Market.” It documented the extent to which young people, defined here as aged 18 to 34, continue to live with their parents, despite the improved economy and decreased unemployment rate of the demographic.

    Pew has been tracking this data for some time, analyzing numbers collected through the Current Population Survey. Not only are millennials still living at home; they are actually more likely to live at home with their parents now than they were when the recession was in full force.

    This is of particular interest to me for two reasons. First, because generational identities like “millennial” are largely made-up marketing gimmicks. And, second, because the innate earnestness of many “millennials” makes it that much more fun to tease them. (Editor’s note: Philip is old.)

    Curious about how this trend looked over the long term, I reached out to the author of the Pew report, Richard Fry, and he very generously provided annual data back to 1968. That allowed me to compare the millennial generation to Baby Boomers (which is an actual defined generation), what is often called the Silent generation (the Boomers’ parents) and Generation X, the cool generation of cool people. (Editor’s note: That’s debatable.)

    From 2008 until 2011, the percentage of people aged 18 to 34 who lived outside the home slipped downward rather dramatically. The same thing happened between 1981 and 1983, another period during which the country was in a recession.

    What’s interesting is what else happened from 2008 to 2011 that didn’t happen from 1981 to 1983: The generation that composed most of the 18-to-34-year-old population shifted from one to the next. (To the extent that generations exist, etc. etc. etc.)

    In 1968, most 18-to-34-year-olds were from the Silent generation. In 1980, most were Boomers. In 1999, most were Gen X. Now, most are millennial. And they’re more likely to live at home than their parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.

    Why? Fry explores this question, but isn’t able to narrow down an answers. (No, it isn’t student debt, for example, because the same trend affects those who didn’t go to college.)

    Perhaps it is because millennials are little babies? We’re going to assume it’s that until we have evidence to the contrary.

    (Editor’s note: Philip speaks for himself and only for himself.)

    (Philip’s note: And his cool generation.)

  84. D-FENS says:

    I personally feel it is because Generation X was addicted to crack, and Millennials are more likely to be addicted to heroin, which makes them lazy.

  85. Banco Popular Trust Preferred Shares says:

    Ikea….meatballs &
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DkQBPpun0M

    Libturd in Union says:
    July 31, 2015 at 11:19 am
    What have the Swedish ever invented? Besides Swedish Fish, too which I am forever indebted.

  86. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Texas is huge. Endless land in the middle of nowhere, far away from the coast. That’s a big difference between nj and Texas. Also, nj is directly in the middle of Boston and Washington, D.C., smack down right next to philly and nyc, and directly next to the ocean (ports). Location is top notch. What kind of people is Texas generally attracting? Not wealthy, that would be sf and nyc. That’s why nj is rich. It’s about location. Texas is one big boom town after another. Imo, it won’t end well. When Texas is no longer “cheap”, what do they really have to offer? Fire ants eating away at everything? Crappy soil that forces you to fix your foundation on a regular basis?

    The development of nj is nothing like the development going on in the southern states. Nothing. Just my opinion.

    FKA 2010 Buyer says:
    July 31, 2015 at 2:43 pm
    [76] Pumpkin

    You do realize that if you go back 20 years….the development of land, relocation (Midtown direct lines, NY to Jersey City, etc)…..you are talking about New Jersey?

    In addition to your argument that high taxes = we are rich?

  87. D-FENS says:

    87 – Michael I hope you’re right, but NJ should be making steps to be more competitive with other states. Instead we seem to be chasing business and skilled workers away.

  88. FKA 2010 Buyer says:

    My point is that the development of NJ has already happened and still happening in some areas in Southern NJ but what ever

  89. JJ says:

    Nothing but Steers and Queers in Texas

  90. The Great Pumpkin says:

    I agree. I just thought you meant nj was developing like the south, with towns coming up over night.

    Stated this a couple times on here….all the future growth will happen inside 287 border. The land past 287 will most likely stay the same for next 30 years. Inside 287, forget about it, will look drastically different. Rich towns will prob stay the same, but middle tier or lower will become drastically urbanized. Prob will see this area become some kind of tech hub in the next 20 years.

    FKA 2010 Buyer says:
    July 31, 2015 at 3:03 pm
    My point is that the development of NJ has already happened and still happening in some areas in Southern NJ but what ever

  91. Banco Popular Trust Preferred Shares says:

    A little JJ to launch the summer weekend….
    https://youtu.be/VK99cB3s-J4?t=1m21s

  92. The Great Pumpkin says:

    70’s and 80’s saw rapid growth in nj, with a “surprise” rise in taxes that followed. What do you think will happen to Texas (south in general) with this kind of rapid expansion? That’s the trick to attracting people on low cost, it’s a trap, the more people that come, the more it costs to live there.

  93. Ragnar says:

    It all depends on how much government, bureaucracy, pension promises, and debt Texas is building during the growth.
    I’ll bet not as much as NJ has.

  94. The Great Pumpkin says:

    When those businesses built on low cost start leaving Texas, or they blackmail Texas citizens into covering some of their taxes(or they will leave threat), then we will have our answer. Happened every else in America, why is Texas and the south special?

    Ragnar says:
    July 31, 2015 at 3:41 pm
    It all depends on how much government, bureaucracy, pension promises, and debt Texas is building during the growth.
    I’ll bet not as much as NJ has.

  95. The Great Pumpkin says:

    “Do not correct a fool, or he will hate you; correct a wise man, and he will appreciate you. “

  96. Ragnar says:

    95, Why is Texas and the south different?
    Right to work laws is one big difference.
    Also leftist redistributionists don’t generally run their governments, that’s another difference.
    Hope this helps fill in the gaps of your knowledge.

  97. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Fair enough. Let’s see if this makes a difference.

    My bet, won’t make a difference. Wherever you go in the world, if the area attracted a lot of people and had tremendous growth, they are now no longer cheap to live. Right to work and lefty redistributionist had nothing to do with it….competition did.

    Ragnar says:
    July 31, 2015 at 4:34 pm
    95, Why is Texas and the south different?
    Right to work laws is one big difference.
    Also leftist redistributionists don’t generally run their governments, that’s another difference.
    Hope this helps fill in the gaps of your knowledge.

  98. NJT says:

    #80 [JJ]

    “Heck you cant even mow your own lawn or use power tools in your own house on weekends in the summer. ”

    Spend some time in Deutschland (Germany). The laws are RIDICULOUS!

    An old buddy a mine was a big shot in DoD…and that was the only reason I wasn’t arrested. Funny thing; There’s no speed limit on the Autobahn (at least back in the 90s) but you can pee in the street then buy porn and booze at a rest stop. However, if a train is passing and you don’t shut off you engine while waiting…Nazis (Das Gruns) will do it for you and the cops look the other way.

    Nice place to visit (seen it all) but I wouldn’t want to live there.

    Food (and beer) was good. No, EXCELLENT.

  99. Essex says:

    Don’t forget the delicious tex mex cuisine.

  100. Marilyn says:

    I guess I see it different. I see loss of business and decline in NJ. I mean everyday I look at things closing up, or see or read something new about NJ business closing stores, bank branches, etc. I think if you live near NYC or a train town your fine. If your old money in Bedminster your fine. However I felt worried and I don’t see what you people see. I see Edgewater totally built up and all Asians. I think money is good for those who can hide it in NJ, are part of the club, or have a great career. But this building up , Maybe Im having bad drug flashbacks, I don’t see NJ growing. I see it becoming slowly Upstate NY.

  101. Marilyn says:

    or maybe I just don’t do the wheeling and dealing like the upper crust so I don’t see it. I guess if your a nobody you would not see it.

  102. Marilyn says:

    one last thing, I guess maybe Im wrong. When I check NJ MLS.com I see pages and pages of million dollar plus houses. I was looking at how much Mahwah has grown to 4 pages on the MLS of all over 1 million dollars and up. So I guess when you live in Lake Foreclosure your out of touch with the real NJ.

  103. Marilyn says:

    middle class is dying that’s the real truth in NJ. Lets not sugar coat it.

  104. Ottoman says:

    Selective reading on your part. easily 20% of the comments on this blog include a personal dig on the intellectual capacity of liberals and leftists. Not to mention, all the assumptions that they live in basements and sweep floors at Starbucks. Of course, science has proven that it’s those on the right with the intellectual deficit.

    http://www.livescience.com/18132-intelligence-social-conservatism-racism.html

    Rotten Pumpkin says:
    July 31, 2015 at 7:42 am
    Why are left wingers consistently so angry? It’s sad. They disagree with someone politically so they make fun of them. Really mean spirited and sick.

  105. Ottoman says:

    The middle class was created directly through the rise of unions and collective bargaining. There are no more unions in the private sector and public sector unions are hanging by a thread. No mystery why the middle class is nearly gone. And you can thank all the right wing corporate d!ck suckers on this blog for cheering it on.

    Marilyn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 6:42 pm
    middle class is dying that’s the real truth in NJ. Lets not sugar coat it.

  106. A Home Buyer says:

    So a college deprives a union officer his “due process” in the termination of his job resulting from the killing of a minority… so the union wants his job reinstated.

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/07/31/fop-union-university-police-officer-job/30954209/

  107. A Home Buyer says:

    Ottoman,

    Curious what you think of that article I posted.

    Personally I think the college is correct, and the union is wrong in this case, but what do you think?

  108. NJGator says:

    Vigoda > Rowdy Roddy Piper

  109. Libturd at home says:

    The unions themselves killed the unions. You can see it firsthand with the NJEA.

  110. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Unfortunately, you hit the nail on the head.

    Marilyn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 6:42 pm
    middle class is dying that’s the real truth in NJ. Lets not sugar coat it.

    Marilyn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 6:41 pm
    one last thing, I guess maybe Im wrong. When I check NJ MLS.com I see pages and pages of million dollar plus houses. I was looking at how much Mahwah has grown to 4 pages on the MLS of all over 1 million dollars and up. So I guess when you live in Lake Foreclosure your out of touch with the real NJ.

  111. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Nj has developed already, and this is the result. This is what happens after all the growth. The fierce competition drives up the cost of everything. Eventually, you are left with the rich, and the poor that “service” them.

  112. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Dead on. That’s the bottom line difference in the economy of 60 years ago and today.

    Ottoman says:
    July 31, 2015 at 7:27 pm
    The middle class was created directly through the rise of unions and collective bargaining. There are no more unions in the private sector and public sector unions are hanging by a thread. No mystery why the middle class is nearly gone. And you can thank all the right wing corporate d!ck suckers on this blog for cheering it on.

    Marilyn says:
    July 31, 2015 at 6:42 pm
    middle class is dying that’s the real truth in NJ. Lets not sugar coat it.

  113. njescapee says:

    We bought our first house in 77. Somerset County population was less than 100k. Houses, taxes insurance were very affordable. Our neighbors were all middle class hard working people with decent jobs. They worked at Ford, Ma Bell, some self employed. Not many show offs sporting BMWs back then and life was just not that complicated. People today have such high aspirations but seem really miserable.

  114. Ben says:

    At some point, the unions need to stop coasting on the gains they made in the early part of last century. It’s 10 times worse than a Met’s fan bragging about 86.

  115. Comrade Nom Deplume, Thankfully Not Greek says:

    [114] Ben

    No, that pretty much suck still

  116. Marilyn says:

    113 I agree. Where did you escape too?

  117. caljn says:

    Marilyn: 30 years of trickle down that has driven wealth to the top has killed the middle class nationally, not only in NJ.
    Throw in globalization that drives down labor costs and the demise of unions that built the middle class and you’re left with a population that is “miserable”.
    (and NJescapee never really ‘escaped’…he’s been posting on this blog for years.)

  118. Marilyn says:

    117 thanks. I guess you could look at Unions two different ways. I guess they are fine in the private sector because the market could absorb them or go out of business. The Govt. never goes out of business they just come for more of your money. Public sector unions I see as a gravy train.

Comments are closed.