Red Bank or ‘Wal-Bank’?

By Sean DiSomma

In 2012, the Red Bank RiverCenter re-branded Red Bank as “A Cool Little Town.” After the Democrats get done with it, RiverCenter may want to consider renaming our beloved small town “Wal-Bank.”

As a person who is lucky enough to have spent time in over 40 different states of this great country, I am outraged by the “genericization” of some our greatest small towns. When Fredricksburg, Virginia looks like New Iberia, Louisiana, it takes away from the experience of living in or visiting one of these places. If Democrats get their way, Red Bank will become another one of these generic towns . . . or worse.

Can you imagine a day where after finishing up your McRib sandwich on the corner of Monmouth and Broad you take a nice leisurely stroll down the street to Payless to pick up some fresh “Buy One Get One Half Off” kicks? Don’t laugh because this is the Red Bank that the Zipprich, Horgan and Lee Council envision.

I can’t imagine ever getting to the point where I would want to grasp a fledgling political career so badly that I would support a generic big box that is contrary to the culture of our community, presents serious health hazards and furthers the genericization of our small town.

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N.J. Supreme Court to issue major affordable housing decision

N.J. Supreme Court to issue major affordable housing decision (via NJ.com)

Keith A. Muccilli/For The Star-Ledger TRENTON — The state Supreme Court will hand down a long-awaited decision today on how many affordable-housing units New Jersey’s towns must provide for their lowest-income residents. At issue, again, is the…

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this weekend, September 27-29, 2013

SPONSORED BY SEASTREAK

 By Greg Kelly

 Sunday, Sept. 29

• Hudson River Fall Foliage Cruise via Seastreak (Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Twin Lights Bike Ride (Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Harvest Home Festival (Holmdel) – MORE INFO

• Dearborn Market Apple Festival (Holmdel) – MORE INFO

• New York Mets vs. Brewers via Seastreak Ferry (Highlands) – MORE INFO

• On Borrowed Time at TRT (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Oktoberfest at Bear Mountain via Seastreak (Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Colts Neck Art & Craft Festival – MORE INFO

• Fold Forming Metal Class (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Eco-Kayak Tour of the Navesink River (Middletown) – MORE INFO

• The Full Monty at Algonquin Arts Theatre (Manasquan) – MORE INFO

• Allaire 5k (Wall Twp) – MORE INFO

• Civil War Reenactors Encampment (Freehold) – MORE INFO

• Oktoberfest Celebration at Keansburg Amusements – MORE INFO

• Hunger Games Overnight (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Broomstick at NJ Repertory Theater (Long Branch) – MORE INFO

• Danny Kaye: 100th Birthday Celebration (Freehold) – MORE INFO

• Englishtown Swap Meet & Auto Show – MORE INFO

• Play Dates in the Park (Howell, Wall Twp) – MORE INFO

• Manasquan Reservoir Boat Tours (Howell) – MORE INFO

• Snuggy Science Experiments (Wall Twp) – MORE INFO

• Wine, Martini & Beer Tasting (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

• Pyramid Mountain Hike in Morris County (Lincroft departure) – MORE INFO

• Central Jersey NF Walk & Run (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Tribute to Girl Groups (Manalapan) – MORE INFO

• NJ Mandatory Safe Boating Course (Eatontown) – MORE INFO

• Book Swap Drop In (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Workshop: Turn Your Stories into Art (Middletown) – MORE INFO

• Damn Yankees at Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Jersey Shore Wine Weekends at Four JG’s (Colts Neck) – MORE INFO

• Asbury Fresh Local Artisan Market – MORE INFO

• Vinnie Brand Comedy Benefit (MIddletown) – MORE INFO

• Festive Flutes Concert (Spring Lake Heights) – MORE INFO

• Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Trip to Kempton, PA (Lincroft departure) – MORE INFO

*     *     *

And Next Weekend . . .

Friday, October 4: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at Allaire Village – MORE INFO

Saturday, October 5: Bradley Beach Tour the Town Garage Sale – MORE INFO

Sunday, October 6: Historic Walnford Day (Upper Freehold) – MORE INFO

*     *     *

And Next Month . . .

Nov. 2: National Theatre of London: 50 Years On Stage (WLB) – MORE INFO

Nov. 8:  Bill Cosby at Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

Nov. 17: Atlantic Highlands Art Show & Sale – MORE INFO

Nov. 30: Classic Holiday Horse & Carriage Rides (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

Greg Kelly is a longtime Monmouth County journalist. He welcomes comments or questions at monmouthcountylife@gmail.com

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To Live and Die In Asbury Park (Part Two)

By Ernesto Cullari (originally published in triCityNews)

There have been seventeen victims of shootings this year in Asbury Park and five murders. According to some reports we are on track to match violence levels not seen in 20 years. People on both sides of the train tracks are scared.

I’ve read many opinions about how to stop the violence among our youth in Asbury Park and in other cities, where poverty is an issue and most of the solutions focus on more government and more police intervention.

It isn’t government intervention or the threat of jail time that makes a person stop in the moment of anger and refrain from pulling a trigger. Laws don’t prevent kids from joining gangs. Government programs won’t stop a 14-year-old boy from engaging in unprotected premarital sex with a young girl his age and the government certainly won’t raise their child; The government doesn’t teach our youth about the value of human life; but parents do, good role models do too and the Bible does, as well.

Did Martin Luther King, Jr. quote from some government handbook handed down from Valerie Jarrett and Kathleen Sebelius when he faced down both the rising influence of the Black Panthers and social oppressors or did he quote from scripture? If we’re going to rely simply on more government programs, more police and new political initiatives to fix the rising tide of violence in our communities then we’ve failed before we’ve begun. If Christianity, shared in the public square, changed the world then its message certainly can help change the course of our societal problems now. To think otherwise is to ignore the last 2013 years of Western history.

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The Big Lie: “You can keep it”

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If Cory Really Loved LynsieLee…

….he would introduce her to Lady Gaga’s agent.

Cory Booker’s twitter love, @LynsieLee, has stepped up her devotion to her man. She’s asking her new followers to contribute to Booker’s campaign.

Booker has lots of friends in the entertainment industry.  Four employees of Lady Gaga’s agent, Atom Factory, have contributed $21,400 to Booker’s campaign.

Hook her up Cory!  Make an extraordinary effort for your extraordinary friend!

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Booker’s Cyber Love: @LynsieLee

Cory Booker’s love goes beyond the Guv.

It’s not likely to generate the attention Anthony Weiner’s sexy tweets did.  The NJ Media is likely to give more ink to Booker’s tweeting with a Portland, Oregon stripper than they did Barbara Buono’s  vulgar tweets about the Tea Party and less than they gave Steve Lonegan’s stupid silly tweets last month.

BuzzFeed has the story ( if female nudity or tattoos depicting guns offend you, do not click on that link) of Booker’s professed love of Lynsie Lee (if you didn’t click on the previous link, you really don’t want to click on this one which will take you to lovely Lynsie’s tumblr page.)

Booker follows @LysnieLee on twitter. They share public and private messages in the wee hours of the morning.  BuzzFeed says their cyber relationship started because they were both in a film about twitter, #ffthefilm.

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Christie and Booker Share Some Love

Governor Chris Christie and Newark Mayor Cory Booker cut the ribbon for Newark’s Teachers Village this morning.  Teachers Village is a $150 million project in the heart of the city’s downtown district that will house three charter schools, a day care center, 200 rental housing units for teachers and 65,000 square feet of retail space.

The private development being lead by the RBH Group, was financed with the help of a $39.5 million Urban Transit Hub tax credit.

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Lonegan: “I’m blind. That’s not your problem”

Ben Dworkin, Director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics, introduces U.S. Senate candidate Steve Lonegan. September 24, 2013

GOP nominee for U.S. Senate Steve Lonegan took a break from bashing Newark Mayor Cory Booker and ObamaCare last night, and gently assaulted the psyches of the young Democratic students of Rider University in attendance at the University’s Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics Governing New Jersey presentation.

Lonegan’s personal story of raising a family and building a business in the 1980’s while going blind, was the context he set up to espouse his Libertarian philosophy and policies to the group of about 100 (mostly students) attending the event.

The Federal Reserve Bank’s quantitative easing policy of pumping $85 billion per month into the economy and keeping interest rates at record lows, was the focus of Lonegan’s remarks as he urged students to “play the hand you’re dealt” in life and avoid becoming dependent on government to solve their own, and society’s problems.

Lonegan shared how as a young man, he rejected a life of “being destined to the entitlement state”, of being sustained by disability benefits and food stamps, in order to build a successful life.  “Interest rates were 10-12 percent in the 80’s, yet I was able to build a successful business and employ a lot of people, ” the candidate said, “I couldn’t do that with today’s regulations and economic policies.”

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Trends Toward Greater Doctor Shortage Worry State Legislators

New Jersey policymakers looking to address a looming shortage of doctors in the state need to act quickly, as the problem appears to be getting worse and more quickly than predicted. More of the state’s medical residents are planning to leave the…

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