2020 ELECTION: Alp Basaran Seeking NJ-09 Congressional District Seat

In the NJ-09 congressional district, Alp Basaran, a formerly undocumented Muslim immigrant and lawyer, is running to unseat Bill Pascrell, a 12-term incumbent who during his tenure (1)

tipped off the INS and oversaw an immigration raid

(

view here

) leading to the arrest of undocumented workers and (2) turned his congressional seat into a family business with his sons (more on that below). If elected, Alp would be:

The

1st Muslim from New Jersey

and

3rd formerly undocumented immigrant

in Congress;

One of the few candidates in the country

calling for amnesty

for undocumented immigrants; and

Representing a broader shift toward

experienced progressives

who seek to unseat

corporate Democrats.

THE AMERICAN DREAM: Alp arrived in New Jersey with his parents when he was four years old and became an undocumented immigrant after overstaying his visa.

Raised by two-parents who did not speak English

and worked minimum-wage jobs, Alp was a product of a fairer America where he was able to

attend public schools and become a lawyer

, working at some of the best law firms in the country for almost a decade. Alp is

uniquely qualified to write laws

in Congress.

ANTI-CORRUPTION: While Rep. Pascrell writes our tax laws on the Ways and Means Committee, two of his adult sons serve corporate interests as professional lobbyists and are actively involved in getting their father reelected. Rep. Pascrell has received

hundreds of thousands of dollars

from corporate lobbyists in the 2020 election cycle alone. Not surprisingly, Rep. Pascrell has found himself on the wrong side of many major issues that define corporate Democrats. Rep. Pascrell:

Foreign Policy:

voted to authorize the Iraq War;

Economy:

voted for TARP and other key bail-out legislation;

Border:

voted for the construction of a border fence, which was the Tea Party precursor to Trump’s border wall; and

Healthcare:

remains opposed to Medicare-for-All legislation.

Alp Basaran is a progressive who will vote in a way that benefits his constituents instead of his donors because Alp understands their experiences.

Clyde Lederman

Communications Director, Alp Basaran for Congress

web:

www.alpbasaran.com

Nanning Food & Dining Guide: 10 Must-Try Top Restaurants & Cafes in Nanning

(Gloucestercitynews.net)(Jan. 13, 2020)–Nanning in China welcomes several tourists from across the globe annually! While the region has stunning tourist sites and attractions, the food options are attractive as well. If food is an essential part of your Nanning tour, you need to visit the following ten eateries.

Happy Link

It is the perfect place to taste Asian, Indian, and Pakistani cuisines. You will love the unique sweets and sauces. Make sure to try out the Peri-Peri and the tangy tamarind sauce. Their apricot dessert with walnuts and cheese pastry is also famous.

GanJia JiePai NingMengYa Dian

It is a Chinese restaurant that is clean and looks decent. The price of the platters is reasonable as well. The food quality is excellent. You can try out baby bok choy, pork, and lemon duck platters.

Babel

If you want to taste Western platter in Nanning, this is the place to be! The price is pocket-friendly, and the restaurant ambiance is good. Western food is not available in huge quantities in Nanning. This place offers the best platter, which tastes good and costs reasonable. To know more about such places, you can check out

Nanning Food & Dinning Guide: Top Restaurants, Street Food, Night Market Local Cuisine

The Queen’s Head English Style Pub

This pub is in business since April 2013. If you want a drink and grab finger food after a day\’s sightseeing, visit this pub. Here you get to choose from over 100 spirits and 30 global beer brands. There are also shooters, cocktails, and wines to select from. There\’s a big TV screen, live sports events and free pool table that adds to the ambiance.

Sihai Yijia

If you are visiting the Mixc Shopping Mall, walk into this restaurant. The ambiance is excellent, and the platters are South-east Asian. The food quality is good, and you can walk around the mall after your dinner or lunch.

KFC

It’s not hard to find a KFC wherever you go! And so, you have one at Nanning as well. The menu is the same as all KFC outlets.

Fuji Laoyoufen

When you think of rice noodles, this is the best place you can choose! The rice noodles here have pepper, garlic, and black beans and sour bamboo shoots as well. The place is known for its high-quality food and reasonable price as well.

Ban XianJu

If you love brunches, this is the ideal place to be! It would be best if you tried out the dim sums, which are a popular delicacy here. The ordering is easy, and food gets delivered fast. You can choose from multiple dim sum varieties. The BBQ pork puffs are also famous.

ZhongShan Road XiaoChiJie

It is a pedestrian street that provides you several snack stalls

. The best platters to taste here are the seafood platters, which are both tasty and reasonably priced. You can also try out other local food as well.

Ban Yi Sushi

If you love to taste Japanese and Sushi platters, this is the place to count on! You can select from the best dishes of the day. Both the restaurant ambiance and the cost are decent.

These are the best ten restaurants that you can opt-in to add to your Nanning food experience. Each place has something different to offer you.

The 10 Worst States for the Flu; NJ Number 9

This article originally appeared in

Apartment Guide

Flu season is ready to hit hard across the country and we’re just a couple months from its peak

While we think of flu season as part of life in cold-weather winter states, it hits the warm South just as hard, or harder

These are the 10 worst states for the flu in the U.S. and the flu-related cost-of-living expenses in each

Michael Hochman

For much of the U.S., it\’s the season for winter chill, slippery streets and snow days — which also means flu season. But even if, and maybe especially if, you live in a warm weather climate, you know flu season can hit you just as hard.

Flu season is no joke. Between October 2018 and February 2019, nearly

45 million Americans

came down with the virus. But from Maine to California, what are the historically worst states for the flu, and how is that a predictor of what might happen this year?

Determining the worst states for the flu

We took a look at flu season numbers over the past six years from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control during February — generally considered to be peak flu season — and assigned weighted scores for minimal, low, moderate and high flu outbreak weeks in every state and added up the numbers to determine the 10 worst states for the flu ahead of the 2019/2020 flu season.

Additionally, we analyzed two of the most important flu-related cost of living factors in each of the 10 worst states for the flu, the average cost of a visit to the doctor and the average price of a bottle of prescription Ibuprofen at a local pharmacy to get a bigger picture of where the flu hits hardest both your wallet and your immune system.

Here are the 10 worst states for the flu.

10.

New Mexico

Desert air, dry heat, lots of warm and sunny days. While that doesn\’t sound like a recipe for a flu outbreak, the comfortable and dry weather of New Mexico allows plenty of people to gather outside for concerts and games and gatherings where the flu virus, thriving in the gentle climate, can spread from face to face contact with a plethora of people.

Last flu season, New Mexico was one of the first states to be hardest hit, and it\’s possible for that to occur again. In fact, New Mexico has seen more “high\” peak flu level weeks since 2013 than all but five other states, and has rated “high\” for 17 of the past 18 peak flu season weeks — more than any other state.

In the desert Southwest, the cost of a visit to the doctor to check on your flu-related symptoms is higher than both the top 10 worst states\’ mean and median, at an average of $118.10. And if that doctor prescribes a few Ibuprofen to bring your symptoms under control, a bottle of the medicine will run an average of $8.37. And in individual population centers, prices only go up.

In the largest city of

Albuquerque

, a doctor visit averages just more than $106. But just north of ABQ, doctor visits in the large suburb of

Rio Rancho

jump up to an average of $138.

An entry-level one-bedroom apartment in New Mexico averages $847 a month.

New Jersey

From real life medical facilities like the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospitals to the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital from the television show “House,\” New Jersey has always had a reputation as a center for health services and medical care. But it\’s also the top state in the Mid-Atlantic for the flu, so it\’s a good thing there are a few doctors in the house.

While in past years, the flu had spread sporadically throughout the Garden State,

levels this season

seem to be affecting all regions of the state. So, whether you say “pork roll\” or “Taylor ham\” or you root for the Giants or the Eagles, it\’s likely that the flu has or will infiltrate your part of Jersey. A spike in flu symptom-related emergency room visits and admissions is proving the theory.

Considering how much population New Jersey has surrounding the metropolises of New York and Philadelphia, you\’d expect cost of living statistics like doctor visits to be through the roof. But across the state as a whole, the cost of an appointment with your doctor remains moderate at $98.26.

Likewise, the price of a bottle of Ibuprofen runs $8.74 on average. Looking deeper at some of Jersey\’s metro areas,

Middlesex

/Monmouth, not too far from several RWJ hospital campuses, has the lowest cost for a doctor\’s visit in the state at $93.75, while Bergen/

Passaic

, one of the wealthier regions of the state and closer to New York City, tops out at $102.47.

Rent prices in New Jersey vary greatly from the New York suburbs to the southern part of the state. A one-bedroom unit starts for an average of $1,828 a month.

Alabama

In the movies, flu-sufferers are often depicted as bed-ridden and covered in used tissues as snow falls outside and those of sound health are jauntily building snowmen and tobogganing and the like. But in the real world, most of the worst flu states in the country are in the southeast, far away from cold winters and whiteout conditions.

And this season seems to be no exception. “We are already at really high levels nationwide and especially in the South,\” says the Children\’s Medical Group\’s

Darren Scoggin

on this season so far.

The rule stays true down in Alabama. Last year, flu patients filled more than

90 percent

of hospital beds in seven of Alabama\’s eight public health districts. This year is starting out early and could be severe, as well. As of October,

every county

in north Alabama showed an uptick in flu-related illness, and cases are expanding down to the Gulf.

Fortunately, some of the lowest costs to see a doctor in Alabama are in the regions in the north end of the state. The average charge for a visit in

Florence

is just about $70 and comes in at about $75 in

Anniston

Meanwhile, down on the southern Gulf Coast, the most expensive metro area to see the doctor in Alabama is

Mobile

at about $120.50 on average. Statewide, the average cost to be seen by a doctor is $93 and a bottle of Ibuprofen to fight your symptoms will set you back $9.18. But if you happen to be in

Dothan

, you\’ll pay a lot more, as the average cost for Ibuprofen is the priciest of any city among the 10 worst flu states at $11.23.

You can find a one-bedroom apartment in Alabama for $870 a month on average.

Louisiana

Between 2013 and 2016, the flu danger level in Louisiana was rated at minimal, low or moderate 11 out of 12 weeks. But boy, times have changed. Since then, flu levels have jumped up to “high\” 15 of the last 16 peak flu season weeks. Down in the bayou, it may be a sign of a bad flu season.

This fall, Louisiana was already ranked with the

highest level

of flu cases in the U.S. and the season is barely underway. In fact, in mid-October, Louisiana was already in the red for number of people seeing a doctor with flu-like symptoms, while every other state was low or minimal for flu activity.

“We seem to be really at the forefront of the flu season this year,\” says Dr. Alex Billioux of the Louisiana Department of Health.

And if you need to go see the doctor to diagnose your fever and chills, you\’re going to pay up if you happen to be in

New Orleans

. At $144.17, a visit will cost you more than just about anywhere in the U.S. and the most of any city in the top 10 worst states. (And to add insult to injury, the cost of a bottle of Ibuprofen in the Crescent City is the second-most expensive of any city at a pricey $11.06.) Compare that to the southern Louisiana Acadiana town of

Houma

, where the cost of a doctor visit is well over half that of NOLA at just $65.75 on average.

An average one-bedroom apartment in Louisiana starts at around $970 a month.

Mississippi

With its heel jutting out into the Gulf of Mexico and a big, dirty, mighty eponymous river running aside the length of the state, Mississippi has historically been a state where viruses and diseases have traveled over long distances to infect a swath of the population. In fact, the historic flu pandemic of 1918 killed more than 50 million around the world at the end of World War I, and took the lives of 6,200 in Mississippi alone.

Last year, the peak of the flu season hit around the

end of February

, much later than in previous years in Mississippi. The year prior, peak struck around Christmas, a much more usual time for the state. That makes this season vulnerable for a late peak, early peak or any time in between.

Around the state, a doctor\’s visit to check on those flu symptoms will cost you nearly $90 on average. And if your doctor tells you to take two Ibuprofen and call him in the morning, $8.58 will snag you a bottle at the store.

The most expensive spot in the state to make that doctor\’s appointment is down on the Gulf Coast in

Gulfport

Biloxi

where it will run you an average of $99. But fear not, if you\’re self-medicating and happen to live in the state capital of

Jackson

, the average cost for Ibuprofen is just $6.86, one of the lowest in the nation and the cheapest of any city in the top 10 worst flu states.

One-bedroom rent in Mississippi is among some of the most affordable in our top 10 list. An average entry-level unit starts for just over $800.

Kansas

Ask any Kansan. When the wind rolls down the Rockies out west and across the plains country towards the Flint Hills, there\’s no stopping whatever is in the air. And dead in the center of the nation, Kansas experiences hot summer, cold winters and, you know, tornadoes and straightline winds throughout storm season. That wind and those conditions come flu season aren\’t ideal for keeping the flu virus from spreading. In fact, in 2018, Kansas was the

second-most “flu-ridden\” state

in the nation.

Since 2013, Kansas has experienced 20 “high\” condition flu season weeks, the fourth most of any state in the union. As well, the Wheat State has rated “high\” every single peak week since the start of the 2016 season, one of only three states that can make that unwanted claim. Statewide, a stop at the doctor\’s office will cost an average of $102.71, while picking up a bottle of Ibuprofen on the way home will knock you back $8.42.

The highest prices in Kansas for a doctor\’s visit are at the junction of I-135 and I-70 in

Salina

, at an average of $117.75. But way out in Western Kansas, you don\’t have to get out of Dodge to see the medicine man on the cheap, with an average of $86.88 in

Dodge City

for a doctor\’s visit.

Wichita

, the biggest city in the state, comes in around midway in pricing for the state. It will run an average of just more than $105 for a visit to the doctor in the Air Capital, with the price of medication running $8.23.

You can get into a one-bedroom apartment in Kansas for about $900 per month for an average entry-level unit.

Arkansas

Last flu season in 2018-2019, flu-related deaths in the state of Arkansas

were the highest

in nearly two decades and hit the state hard. And the state had an issue with false positives, sending infected people back to home and school thinking they were in the clear. Clinicians fought back by treating everyone that came in with symptoms regardless of their test during the worst flu season weeks.

\”A lot of clinicians don\’t even test in the middle of a heavy flu season because if they test positive, they\’re going to treat that patient for the flu, if they test negative, they\’re still going to treat that patient for the flu,\”

said Jennifer Dillaha

of the Arkansas Department of Health.

Across the state, the average cost of a doctor\’s visit ran $101 and Ibuprofen listed for just more than eight bucks. The

Little Rock

and

North Little Rock

areas were the most expensive in the state for doctor\’s visits at nearly $120, and

Hot Springs

had the most expensive medication, averaging $8.23.

Fayetteville

, and all its college students, had the lowest doctor\’s visit prices and the lowest cost for Ibuprofen, at $84.10 and $7.97 respectively.

Arkansas also has the lowest average rent prices for one-bedroom units at just over $750 a month.

Connecticut

Bitter cold, brutal winters and drifting snow. For centuries, the hard New England winter and red noses and sore throats are the stuff of turn-of-the-century novels. Flu outbreaks have been severe and deadly since the Mayflower days.

But there\’s only one New England state in the top 10, and it\’s probably not one of those one would first think. In Connecticut, the flu season has come in hard like the cold weather, with the first

flu-related deaths

in early November, one in Litchfield and one in Fairfield.

As an affluent state, one of the factors that makes the flu bad at times in Connecticut is the number of people that travel abroad and bring back the flu virus from places where the flu shot and other flu preventative measures are less common than in the U.S. Statewide, an average doctor visit runs over $124, unsurprisingly the highest figure among the 10 worst states, and $8.76 will get you an average bottle of Ibuprofen.

The

Stamford

area is among the highest in the nation for doctor visits, and the highest of any city among the top 10 states, with an average of $133.20, with a bottle of Ibuprofen retailing for an average of $8.57. Hartford County is where the

most cases

of the flu occurred last season, and the city of

Hartford

, despite being the lowest metro area price in the state, still averages $108.77 for a doctor\’s visit, and has a slightly higher price for Ibuprofen, at an even nine bucks.

New England living comes at a price. A one-bedroom apartment in Connecticut will start at an average of $1,520 a month.

Oklahoma

If you\’ve already sneaked a peek at the No. 1 state below, it\’s not hard to extrapolate why Oklahoma is No. 2 on this list. While Oklahoma is less urban and less spread out than its top ranked neighbor, it\’s still a warm flu season in the southern Plains, and people are outside spreading the virus whether it be in the crowd at an OU game or a crowd at the mall. Since 2013, 22 weeks of peak flu season have been rated as “high.\”

The flu season in OK is nothing to take lightly. Last season,

more than 60

Oklahomans died from the flu, with another 2,500 hospitalized in what was the

longest flu season

in a decade. Officials are saying that this season is going to be a severe one, as well, but the good news is a flu shot may be

more effective

this time around.

The price of an average doctor visit in Oklahoma is below midrange, at about $99. A dose of Ibuprofen averages $8.87. Costs around the state vary, with a high for a doctor visit of $125 in

Enid

and a low of $63 and change in

Ponca City

. In OK\’s capital and largest city,

Oklahoma City

, a doctor\’s visit runs just more than $100 on average and medication runs $9.61 per bottle.

Rent in Oklahoma is also second-most affordable of all states in the top 10. The average one-bedroom starts at an average of $759 a month.

Texas

While we tend to associate the flu with cold winter weather, it\’s warm weather Texas that takes the crown as ground zero for the worst state for flu sufferers. The CDC reported 23 widespread flu activity weeks in Texas out of the 30 peak flu season weeks tracked since 2013, with just one week rated as “low.\”

As the second most populated state in the Union, maybe it\’s not a surprise that Texas is the worst state for the flu in 2019/2020. A lot of people living in close proximity but also in a wide-open state, a lot of travel by car and plane, and warm temperatures that don\’t force people inside for the winter.

Texas is a diverse state, containing three of the biggest cities in the nation but also a lot of farm, ranch and open land, where the level of medical care can fluctuate pocket by pocket. Statewide, the cost for a trip to the doctor runs about $104 on average, and a bottle of Ibuprofen sells for $8.60.

Of all the large metro areas in Texas, it\’s the city of

Temple

, near Killeen\’s Fort Hood military base, that\’s the most expensive in the state for doctor visits at $189 on average, and

El Paso

, on the border, where Ibuprofen skyrockets to nearly $11. In the state\’s largest city of

Houston

, a visit to the doctor will cost $88.30 and a bottle of Ibuprofen sells for just more than $8.

Rent prices in Texas are slightly higher than some of the other southern states on this list, where an average entry-level one-bedroom apartment costs $1,115 a month.

Flu data in all 50 states

Still looking for data from your state or where your loved ones will need you to send them chicken soup? Here\’s the full list of flu severity data for all 50 states and D.C.

Rank

State

Weeks of High Flu Activity

Weeks of Moderate Flu Activity

Weeks of Low Flu Activity

Texas

Oklahoma

Connecticut

Arkansas

Kansas

Mississippi

Louisiana

Alabama

New Jersey

New Mexico

Virginia

North Carolina

South Carolina

New York

Georgia

Arizona

Missouri

Pennsylvania

Tennessee

Hawaii

Rhode Island

Kentucky

Indiana

Illinois

Wyoming

Colorado

Minnesota

California

Vermont

Maryland

Alaska

West Virginia

Utah

Nebraska

South Dakota

Massachusetts

Oregon

Nevada

Florida

Michigan

Wisconsin

North Dakota

Idaho

Iowa

New Hampshire

Ohio

Delaware

District of Columbia

Washington

Montana

Maine

Methodology

Flu data comes from the

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\’s weekly flu reports

for February since 2013. February weeks were selected because this month is generally considered peak flu season. We counted the number of weeks during this time period for high, moderate, low and minimal flu activity and weighted the totals. States with the highest overall score were determined to be the worst for flu.

Average prices for physician visits and Ibuprofen come from the

Council for Community and Economic Research

\’s Q3 2019 Cost of Living report.

The rent information included in this article is based on December 2019 entry-level multifamily rental property inventory on Apartment Guide and Rent.com and is used for illustrative purposes only. The data contained herein do not constitute financial advice or a pricing guarantee for any apartment.

When to Consult the Best ENT Specialist Doctor in Singapore For Ear Nose Throat Treatments?

(Gloucestercitynews.net)(January 13, 2020)–Our nose, throat, and ear are vital and delicate parts of our body! It helps us to breathe, smell, speak, swallow, and hearing, respectively. However, keeping in mind our fast-paced lifestyle, we often overlook minor and major problems that might occur to these body parts. Minor discomforts like a nose allergy or throat infection can get cured with regular antibiotics or home remedies. However, things become dangerous when there\’s any severe or critical issue. If you want to know about health and treat the condition, it is necessary to get in touch with an expert ENT specialist.

Reasons to visit an expert ENT doctor

The ear, nose, and throat are sensitive body organs! Hence, when you\’re having a nose irritation or ear pain, you need to know what\’s wrong with the body part. Average doctors might give you generic medicine to suppress the symptoms. It might provide you with temporary relief, but will make the ailment recur back. So, you need to tap into the root cause of the disease right at the start. For this, you need to count on the

top ENT specialist doctors in Singapore

Signs that you shouldn’t ignore

The ear, nose, and throat function in different ways! While mild bacterial infections, pains, and discomforts go away in a few days, serious issues persist! So, if you witness the following,

make sure to get in touch with an expert ENT specialist at the earliest

The ear

It is common for our ear to produce ear wax! Also, the ear has its internal cleaning mechanism as well. Also, the ear passages get mildly blocked because of cold winter air or during a flight. However, if you find that your ears are paining excruciatingly suddenly and persisting, you need to take that seriously. Also, sudden hearing impairment and ear mucus are causes of worry that you shouldn\’t ignore.

The throat

The throat is yet another vital body part! It helps us to speak and is the channel through which food passes down to the stomach. Minor throat infections leading to coughs and a husky voice are common. However, if your cough persists for months and it affects your swallowing capacity, you should consult an expert ENT. You should also get worried if your voice quality changes suddenly, and you witness other throat irritation, like an allergic reaction or burning sensation as well.

The Nose

You need to get extra careful about your nose! Our breathing gets affected if there\’s any discomfort with your nose. Hence, you shouldn\’t be taking sudden nose-bleeds and strange colored nose mucus lightly. Also, sometimes pollutants can get into the nasal tract and create irritations. You can witness a burning sensation and a running nose as a reaction to that. Only an expert ENT specialist can determine whether the condition is severe or not.

Most often than not, an expert ENT specialist asks people to observe their symptoms for a while. Along with medicines, they recommend medical tests to determine the condition of the ailment. It helps them to make the correct diagnoses and also treat the disease accurately, back to normalcy.

STUDY: New Jersey One of the States Hit the Hardest by Robo Calls

It’s not just in your head: the number of robocalls has increased sharply over the last couple of years. Robocall blocking company YouMail estimates that between 60 and 75 billion robocalls will have been placed in 2019, up from 47

billion last year and 30 billion the year before. What’s more, scams increasingly account for the majority of robocalls—45% of them in 2019, compared to just 17.6% in 2016.

To investigate this issue further,

Let’s Talk

culled robocall complaint and call frequency data from Federal Trade Commission and YouMail, and assigned each state in the U.S. a score. Based on this methodology, Maryland, Nevada, Colorado, Delaware and New Jersey have been hit the hardest by robocalls in 2019. The average Maryland resident receives a whopping

18 robocalls a month

Alaskans have suffered the least from robocalls this year—residents receive an average of 3.3 of them a month—followed by North Dakota, Indiana, Hawaii, Mississippi. Here’s a full list of the state robocall rankings.

As mentioned, scams account for the largest percentage of robocalls (45.7%), followed by alerts and reminders (22.7%), payment reminders (20.3%), and perpetually annoying telemarketing calls (11.3%). The percentage of telemarketing robocalls has hovered around 11-13% over the past three years.

Fortunately, there’s help on the way. A new federal law raises the penalty for a single robocall to a whopping $10,000—which should make spammers think twice. The major carriers have already rolled out a new robocall fighting measure called STIR/SHAKEN, which promises to help to ameliorate the problem as well.

METHODOLOGY

To come up with our state robocall rankings, we calculated each state’s ranking by giving them a weighted score based on two data points: the monthly number of robocalls per person in each state (weighted at 40%) according to YouMail, and the number of monthly robocall complaints per person made to the Federal Trade Commission in each state (weighted at 60%). The states were then ordered and ranked according to this score.

SOURCE: LET\’S TALK

NJ Camp Fairs connect great kids with great camps

…FREE admission! –

Weekends starting January 18 – February 22, 2020

Throughout,New Jersey (PR MediaRelease)

For 2020, NJ Camp Fairs, along with the American Camp Association, will have an exciting lineup of 7 summer camp fairs for NJ families throughout Northern and Central New Jersey communities. This is a great time to seek out summer camps and programs for your child, whether it is a sleep away camp, traditional day camp, or specialty camp such as sports, adventure, travel, community service, academic, art, robotics, gymnastics, precollege, performing arts, foreign language, nature, and more. Will it be a full summer away in the woods, a month traveling, a 4- or a 2- week camp, a broad one or a specialized one focusing on learning a new skill? Many ACA accredited camps will be present.

Different camps will be at each fair. Meet face to face with a diverse set of high quality camps from various locations all under one roof. Kids ages PreK through High School go to camp! Older kids can seek summer jobs too. Don’t surf the internet; bring your kids and explore.

Sat, Jan 18 – Bergen County @ Bergen Town Center, Paramus, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sun, Jan 19 – Mercer County @ Quaker Bridge Mall, Lawrenceville, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sat, Jan 25 – Essex County @ Livingston Mall, Livingston, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sun, Jan 26 – Union County @ The Grand Summit Hotel, Summit, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sat, Feb 8 – Bergen County @ The Village of Ridgewood, Ridgewood, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sun, Feb 9 – Essex County @ Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, 12-3pm, FREE!

Sat, Feb 22 – Middlesex County @ Menlo Park Mall, Edison, 12-3pm, FREE!

RSVP at www.njcampfairs.com and receive a free gift and free admission at the fair.

About

Contact

For over 36 years, the NJ Camp Fairs and the ACA has been connecting kids to great camps. Please RSVP @ www.njcampfairs.com to let us know you’re coming and you’ll receive a free gift at the fair. For more information, please go to www.njcampfairs.com and check out the camp directory. Email info@njcampfairs.com for questions.

Former Newark Police Officer Admits Bribery And Assisting In Preparing False Federal Tax Return

NEWARK, N.J. – A former Newark police officer today admitted soliciting and accepting cash payments from a brothel owner in Newark in exchange for protecting brothels from police action, and to failing to report those cash payments on his personal federal income tax returns, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Julio I. Rivera, 50, of Old Bridge, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court to two counts of an indictment charging him with bribery (Count Six) and aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false 2015 personal federal tax return (Count 13).

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From September 2014 to August 2015, Rivera solicited and accepted cash payments from a Newark brothel owner (“Individual 1”) who ran brothels located on Lafayette Street and Emmet Street. In exchange for these cash bribes, Rivera performed official acts and violated his lawful duties for the benefit of Individual 1, including declining to arrest individuals who were committing and promoting prostitution, agreeing to protect these individuals from arrest by other Newark police officers, and agreeing to take adverse action against a competing brothel. Rivera collected between $40,000 and $95,000 in bribes in exchange for protecting those and other brothels in Newark.

Rivera also intentionally withheld information from his tax preparer regarding the cash bribes that he received, which caused Rivera’s filed federal tax returns for certain tax years, including 2015, to understate the total amount of income that Rivera received. Rivera stipulated that this misconduct resulted in a loss to the IRS of $15,000 to $40,000.

The maximum potential penalty for the count of bribery is 10 years in prison and the maximum potential penalty for the tax fraud is three years in prison; both counts carry a maximum potential fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for April 30, 2020.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark, and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John R. Tafur, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cari Fais of the Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.

Defense counsel: Kristen Santillo Esq., New York

Philadelphia-Area Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Unlawfully Distributing Oxycodone

A Philadelphia-area doctor was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison and ordered to pay a $100,000 fine yesterday for the illegal distribution of

oxycodone.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Harpster of the FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Philadelphia Regional Office, Special Agent in Charge Jonathan A. Wilson of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division and U.S. Marshal Eric S. Gartner of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania made the announcement.

Richard Ira Mintz, D.O., 69, of Dresher, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael M. Baylson of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, who also ordered Mintz to serve three years of supervised release and 90 days of home confinement following release. Mintz pleaded guilty in March 2019 to eight counts of distributing controlled substances (oxycodone) outside the scope of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose.

Mintz has surrendered his medical license and DEA Certificate of Registation.

The FBI, HHS-OIG, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, and Philadelphia Police Department investigated the case. Trial Attorney Adam G. Yoffie of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Macko of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania handled the parallel civil case, in which Mintz paid a $107,584 monetary penalty.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at

www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years

FAC Prevails in Lawsuit Against Bakersfield Over Open Meetings, Records Violations

The First Amendment Coalition has

prevailed

in a lawsuit against the city of Bakersfield, with a judge ruling that the city council violated open-government laws when it held three closed-door sessions to discuss city finances and then refused to release public records related to those meetings.

The ruling, a complete victory for FAC and Californians Aware, which sued to enforce California\’s open-meetings and open-records laws, requires the city to turn over records, record any future closed-door sessions for a year as a preventative measure and pay attorney fees associated with the lawsuit.

FAC and CalAware

filed suit

in 2017 under the Ralph M. Brown Act and the California Public Records Act after learning the council held three closed-door sessions from July through September of that year to discuss city finances and a proposed sales tax increase, eventually placed on the ballot as Measure N and passed by voters.

The lawsuit brought to light damning emails from staff to council members showing that city leaders discussed in secret fundamental issues of city governance, including revenue, staffing and taxation. The city defended the closed-door sessions by saying discussions involved anticipated litigation, and therefore were exempt from the Brown Act\’s public meeting requirements.

Kern County Superior Court Judge Stephen Schuett rejected that argument. \”To permit the City Council to use this exception as a subterfuge to allow the discussion of the City’s critical budget issues, the potential solutions to those issues, impacts on City revenues, and potential staff layoffs and curtailing of services would allow the exception created by section

54956.9

to swallow the rule,\” the judge said in his 16-page ruling issued on Wednesday, Jan. 8.

\”The City Council shut the public out of crucial discussions on exactly the kinds of topics California law requires be discussed in full public view,\” said FAC Executive Director David Snyder. \”Bakersfield refused for two years to back down from its position that it was entitled to this extraordinary secrecy. They were wrong, and we are grateful Judge Schuett has set them straight.\”

In ordering the city to record its closed-door sessions for a year, Judge Schuett said the city \”has demonstrated a pattern of past conduct that indicates the existence of potential future violations.\”

He added: \”Moreover, the City has been adamant that it has not violated the Brown Act by considering these issues in closed session. In light of that, the Court may presume that the City will continue similar practices absent the court\’s intervention.\”

Attorney Kelly Aviles of Los Angeles is representing both FAC and CalAware in the case.

Read the full ruling

JEROME BY DAVE WOLFE

ARTIST Dave Wolfe

Vol. 6 No. 29 (Jan. 12, 2019)

Editor\’s Note: Each Sunday morning we post a weekly comic strip provided by cartoonist Dave Wolfe. Dave has been drawing since he was 5 years old, he knew he wanted to be a cartoonist at the age of 8. He’s been distributing his comics in school since 3rd grade. (click image to enlarge)