Columns

The Bergen County Administration along with local legislators are working with NJ Transit to develop a passenger rail lineon the East Corridor of Bergen County. I am in full support of this initiative which will bring near immediate service to the towns of Tenafly, Englewood, Leonia, and Palisades Park and surrounding towns in District 37. This rail line will connect them with Ferries at Weehawken and the Hudson/Bergen Line in Hoboken. This plan is only the first step in a comprehensive plan that will provide one seat transportation into NYC (via the arc), and will be able to make connections to other parts on New Jersey within the next 15 years. The current plan utilizes existing freight lines and Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) technology.

There are those who favor “light rail”, the electric trains which require new rail lines to be built. This idea would cost over a billion dollars and could not be implemented for another 10 years. In my nearly 40 years in the State Legislature I have seen Bergen County miss out on too many opportunities to provide public transportation. There is fierce competition for Federal transportation funds from dozens of districts seeking to reduce automobile traffic, increase mobility between towns and to New York City, and bring commerce and economic development.

In this time of national uncertainty regarding our country’s security, and with our extended commitment overseas in various theaters in the War Against Terror, the military bases dotting the United States are more important than ever to establish success in our efforts to defend and expand the promise of liberty and to protect the safety of our troops in hostile war zones.

That said, the constant threats whispered from the direction of Washington of potential base closings in New Jersey do not make any sense. Why, at this juncture in our nation’s history, with our Armed Forces valiantly fighting a many-faceted war, would anyone in a leadership position in this country condone cuts in the training and research necessary to keep troops safe?

As the author of the Camden Revitalization Act, I’ve read with some concern recent reports citing Camden as the most dangerous city in America. While I do not believe that the high crime rates in the City of Camden will slow the momentum towards revitalization one bit, I do believe we have to look to ways to mitigate this disturbing trend.

We’ve always realized that the high crime rates in Camden would be a hurdle to revitalization efforts. However, even as Camden was being given its now-infamous distinction, we’ve seen $3 billion in private capital being invested into the city’s neighborhoods, it’s downtown and the waterfront. Revitalization is happening as we speak, and I doubt very much that the pace will be diminished due to new evidence of a problem we always knew was there.

New Jersey families deserve nothing less than a fully trained and experienced Director of Counter-Terrorism whose ONLY job is to identify and detect would-be terrorists before they strike.

New Jersey was a staging ground for both the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and for the horrific mass murders of September 11, 2001, which stole the lives of nearly 700 state residents.

Halloween at my house is a time of great anticipation and excitement. The excitement mounts as my family plans and creates our costumes, decorates our home, chooses the goodies we’ll hand out, and plans our trick or treating strategy. Both children and adults are anxious to see all the adorable, silly and scary costumes, as well as the great home and yard decorations. And while this is an enjoyable time, we cannot forget to remind our children of some simple safety tips to ensure our family’s safety as we enjoy this booootiful holiday.

Despite the popular belief held outside the Garden State, New Jersey is not the post-apocalyptic wasteland that many envision. We are a diverse state that thrives on balance. For every industrial complex along Route 9, we have acre upon acre of sprawling horse farms and open tracts in Colts Neck Township. For every block of urban landscape, we have miles of beaches “down the shore.” The tenuous harmony between environment and development is one of the defining characteristics that make our state great.

However, that harmony does not come without a price.

Within schools state and nationwide, racial disparity is a growing problem. The disparity is not between students . The disparity lies between teachers and students. Minority teachers cannot find jobs, and ALL students are without positive minority role models. I stress the word “all” because when there is no diversity within school districts, all students are robbed of different perspectives, different experiences and adequate preparation for the diverse workforce. During this 50 year anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education, we must make sure that our schools have racial diversity. Though the scope of the Brown lawsuit was different, two things remain true: education is very important, and students suffer from inequality and lack of diversity within schools.