DOROTHY PHILBIN | CNBNewsnet

GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ –Years ago, I took a Criminal Justice course at St. Joseph’s University.  The instructor was a captain of the Philadelphia Police Department who brought his police-issued laptop with him to every class.  The first thing he told us was that what he was going to present was the truth and he had and would show us the documentation to prove it.  He said that if anyone was easily offended, this was the time to drop the course.

That was one of the best courses I took in my long educational career and one thing that I took away from the course and stayed with me was “The Broken Window Theory.”  Many times, I read on Gloucester City Facebook pages that this is not the city in which many of us grew up. I’ve lived here for 70 years, and I can attest that the Gloucester City of today is not the Gloucester City of years gone by.  The difference?  The Broken Window Theory.

Continue reading “The Story Behind the Story: How Many Broken Windows in our City?” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

TRENTON, NJ (April 27, 2022)(CNBNewsnet)–In New Jersey the Democrats and Republicans are actually working together on the unemployment problem.  They might as well hold up signs reading “election year, our friends and we want your vote.”

Many State Senators have formed a new committee to investigate the Department of Labor have said the same things.  The residents they represent, every single one, complained that they never got through on the phone and no one ever called them back. They heard everyday “There is no one [at the Dept of Labor] to talk to. After weeks of being ignored the claimants would go to their state representatives for help.  State Senator Michael Testa (R-CM) claims to have helped thousands and thousands of people and finally had to dedicate staff just to do the job of the Department of Labor.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Help For Unemployment Claims” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews Contributor

Is there ever a story behind the story when it comes to Disney it all started in 1967.  The story also includes other major theme parks in the Orlando, FL area.

In 1967 when Disney was buying thousands of acres of land in the Orlando area they made an “agreement” with the state of Florida that they could manage themselves.  “Manage” included zoning, planning, utilities, as well as governing themselves. If Disney wanted to build a nuclear power plant in the middle of the Magic Kingdom, they could do it and no one could do anything about it.  Again, this is not based on any law; it is based on an agreement. As time went on, the other theme parks got the same agreement.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY:What is Happening with Disney?” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

GLOUCESTER CITY NJ (April 21, 2022)–Every year I buy a subscription to the Walnut Street Theatre and one of my favorite things to do is scan the list of supporters.  Last year I noticed that one of the financial supporters was The Shriners’ Hospital.  I think most everyone has seen the ads for Shriners’, a boy named Alec is in a wheelchair and shows you the adorable blanket you will get if you give $19 per month.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: $19 Per Month Charities Part II” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

Planning to fly?  You can now do it mask free, thank you to an 11th District Federal Court judge, centered in Florida.  On the evening news was a clip from inside a plane.  People’s cell phones were going off, masks were being torn off and people were applauding.  So, what happened?

The federal judge ruled, as other courts before, that the Center for Disease Control (CDC) only has the responsibility to advise the government and citizens.  It does not have the authority to make law, as it has been doing for the past two years.  The big difference in this case is that this was a federal decision.  The decision applies only to those areas within the lawsuit.  In this case, federal transportation – plane travel, TSA agents within airports, trains and buses because they are federally funded.  Only minutes after the decision was made public the following airlines announced that masks are now optional:  Alaska Airline, American, Delta, Frontier/Spirit (now merged,) Jet Blue, Southwest, and United.

Continue reading “The Story Behind The Story: Thank You, Florida” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

I recently read an article from the Philadelphia Inquirer; it was called “These Are Your Rights if the Police Knock at Your Door.”  Unfortunately, it offered a lot of advice from the ACLU (Americans Civil Liberties Union.)  That organization tends to be very anti-police and in favor of the individual’s right to speech.  I’m very much in favor of the First Amendment – tempered with common sense.

Please allow me to start with a personal narrative.  Early one morning there was a bang at my front door.  It wasn’t a tap.  It wasn’t a knock.  It was a bang.  I looked out the living room window and saw a man wearing camo with his hands around his eyes looking into the house.  This was strange but I still had to answer the door.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Your Rights if the Police Knock” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

I recently read an article from the Philadelphia Inquirer; it was called “These Are Your Rights if the Police Knock at Your Door.”  Unfortunately, it offered a lot of advice from the ACLU (Americans Civil Liberties Union.)  That organization tends to be very anti-police and in favor of the individual’s right to speech.  I’m very much in favor of the First Amendment – tempered with common sense.

Please allow me to start with a personal narrative.  Early one morning there was a bang at my front door.  It wasn’t a tap.  It wasn’t a knock.  It was a bang.  I looked out the living room window and saw a man wearing camo with his hands around his eyes looking into the house.  This was strange but I still had to answer the door.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Your Rights if the Police Knock” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews 

Have you noticed how many appeals you see on television for $19 a month for this charity or $11 a month for another?  These commercials run so often that you might have to wonder how much $19 buy and is it enough to cover the cost of advertising?  Personally, I never understood it, so I had to do some research.

The reason for only $19 a month?  That only amounts to $228 per year.  Contributions of $250 or more per year generate files that must be kept for the IRS.  Even with that being true, something just doesn’t feel right.

Then I came across lawsuits against, of all charities, St. Jude’s Hospital for Children.  At first, I thought the complaints were ridiculous.  Despite all the free medical care, travel, housing, and meals people were complaining, people wanted more!  They complained that St. Jude wasn’t paying for their cell phones, rent at home, gas and electric bills, etc.  Free medical, which in many cases amounts to millions of dollars, wasn’t enough?

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: $19 a month charities – Part I” →

Dorothy Philbin | CNBNews

First:   If you choose/have chosen a paid tax preparer, pick a good one and not just the most convenient one.  About 20 years ago (give or take) one of the nation-wide tax preparing companies had an 80% error rate on itemized returns.  As a result the IRS now requires all paid preparers to be certified.  If you are paying someone to prepare your taxes, make sure s/he is certified. 

If you happen to choose someone who has a record of errors (innocent or not) with the IRS, expect an audit.  This is not a certainty but the odds are favorable that, if you itemize your deductions, you will hear from the tax man.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Friday is Tax Day so here is the last of my advice.” →

Dorothy |Philbin

The Internal Revenue Service has announced the triggers which will mark a taxpayer for audit.  Here they are:

1.  Those who itemize their deductions rather than taking the standard deduction.  Sometimes you don’t have a choice but don’t get carried away.  Keep it reasonable.

2.  Millionaires – there is so much there to audit but millionaires usually have very good accountants and lawyers.  My personal opinion is that millionaires are on the list just to make the rest of us feel better.

3.  Income does not match lifestyle – This usually applies to people who work in cash-oriented industries.  Hairdressers/barbers (especially those who work out of their homes,) food servers and bartenders all have a better chance of audit.  If the IRS sees someone living in Haddonfield, has a mortgage, and luxury cars but makes only minimum wage – expect an audit.

4.  No or negative net income (adjusted gross income) – let’s be real.  How could you have so many expenses or business losses that you have no money to live on?

5.  Earned Income Credit – this is an oldie but goodie.  It is an easy audit and the assignment is usually given to seasonal employees who has little training.  Most likely a letter will be sent and no personal trip to the IRS is necessary.

Continue reading “THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: IRS Announces Audit Triggers” →