Decriminalization: The way forward for New Jersey municipalities

By Daniel Takash | Watchdog Opinion

This summer, the Asbury Park city council joined the 53 percent of Americans who support legalizing marijuana, with a resolution citing both the economic benefits of legalization as well as the unnecessarily severe sanctions imposed on users of the relatively harmless drug.

Unfortunately, this is largely a symbolic gesture. Governor Chris Christie’s opposition to marijuana legalization is no secret. An Assembly bill introduced in 2014 would create a ballot initiative to remove all penalties for possession under one ounce. But the bill is unlikely to overcome Governor Christie’s expected veto.

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COMMENTARY: Pope Visits To U.S. are Occasions for Ugliness

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September 8, 2015

The upcoming U.S. visit by Pope Francis is bound to unleash the fury of anti-Catholic activists. Here is an example of what happened when his two predecessors visited America:

1995: Pope John Paul II\’s visit to New York City, Newark, and Baltimore

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CNB Hunting/Fishing New Jersey: DEP\’S WILD OUTDOOR EXPO SEPTEMBER 12 AND 13

POPULAR FREE EVENT SHOWCASES OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES, OPPORTUNITIES AT $\"6a00d8341bf7d953ef0148c6c83ff2970c-500wi\"$
NEW JERSEY\’S PARKS, WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREAS AND NATURAL SPACES

(15/P74) TRENTON – The great outdoor venues and experiences of New Jersey will be featured September 12 and 13 during the Department of Environmental Protection\’s sixth annual WILD Outdoor Expo at the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area in Jackson Township, Ocean County, Commissioner Bob Martin announced.

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The 2015\’s Best & Worst Cities for Sports Fans

With fall sports season approaching and the North American sports industry pulling in more than $60 billion annually, the leading personal finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2015’s Best & Worst Cities for Sports Fans.

To help avid sports fans maximize their spectating experience, WalletHub compared 341 cities — varying in size from small to large — across more than 50 key metrics. Our data set includes such metrics as the performance level of the city’s team(s), average ticket price of a game, number of sports bars and attendance rate.

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With help from Rutgers, a tiny smoothie stand at the beach becomes a busy storefront

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MBA alumnus and his partners see sales soar after they invest prize money from annual business plan competition

BELMAR, N.J., Sept. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — In the dog days of summer, a tiny company selling fruit bowls and smoothies made with exotic acai berries was one of the hottest businesses in Belmar.

Playa Bowls opened last summer as a sidewalk stand built around a giant cooler on the cement. Still, it drew crowds – large ones. This year, fans of the acai berry bowls returned as if they had been waiting all winter for another taste of the fruity snacks. It wasn\’t long before lines of customers started forming again, sometimes winding down Ocean Avenue toward Eighth.

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CNB Medical News: Sleepiness and Driving a Dangerous Combination

The National Transportation Safety Board in August cited a Walmart truck driver’s fatigue as the chief cause of a crash on the N.J. Turnpike last year that killed, that killed one man and seriously injured four others, including comedian Tracy Morgan.

\”The fact is, sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination\” says Jeffrey P. Barasch, M.D., FACCP, FAASM; Director of Pulmonology and Medical Director, The Center for Sleep Medicine at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, NJ. \”While most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving, they don’t realize that sleepiness can impair driving performance as much as or more so than alcohol.\”

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Pennsylvania AG\’s Use of Outside Law Firms Draw Scrutiny | Watchdog.org

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ON RETAINER: Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane speaks during a news conference Aug. 12 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.

When Attorney General Kathleen Kane sued a chain of for-profit nursing homes across Pennsylvania, she had backup from a powerful private law firm that stood to reap millions from a controversial arrangement with the state’s top prosecutor.

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FORMER MISS AMERICA VANESSA WILLIAMS RETURNS TO THE STAGE FOR THE 95TH ANNIVERSARY BROADCAST

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 32 YEARS,

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Photo Credit: Bruce Vartan Boyajian

WILLIAMS WILL SERVE AS HEAD JUDGE OF THE \”2016 MISS AMERICA COMPETITION\”

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The Highest Tax Increase in Chicago\’s History on the Horizon; Homicide Rate Climbs to 308

Chicago Democrat Mayor Rahm Emanuel is set to call for the largest property tax $\"Images\"$ increase in modern Chicago history to raise enough money to make a major pension payment for police and firefighters next year, the mayor\’s City Council floor leader and a City Hall source told the Chicago Tribune last Wednesday.

The mayor also plans to push a new garbage collection tax, a new per-ride fee on taxis and ride-hailing services such as Uber and a new tax on electronic cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products.Fewer details were available on the e-cigarette tax and new taxi and ride-hailing fees. Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, previously had proposed a $1-per-ride fee on rides from taxis and companies such as Uber and Lyft. Emanuel will unveil his budget on Sept. 22.