http://www.jerseyconservative.com An ongoing discussion about conservatism in New Jersey. 60 Sat, May 19 2012 13:05:19http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000218.htmlThu, 23 Feb 2012 05:07:54 -0600The New Yorker has published a truly first-rate exploration of the Clementi case, in which a gay Rutgers freshman leapt to his death from the George Washington Bridge after being exposed online by his roommate, Dharun Ravi. The author of the article, Ian Parker, has brought forward a trove of new facts, and his many insights and perceptions are unfailingly deft. The case is a morbidly fascinating one for many reasons. It is also sad, puzzling and enraging.Because this case lies along the modern ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000217.htmlThu, 26 Jan 2012 20:54:26 -0600Somehow, when I saw the grizzled mane and sunglasses on the agency photo of Robert Hegyes, I knew what I was about to read next. And so it was: "The actor died of a heart attack at his New Jersey home on Thursday." From his unmistakable look, and Eastern European name, I couldn't imagine that guy living anywhere else. What I also couldn't imagine was just how Jersey he was.A former Sweathog, famous for playing a Puerto Rican Jew on Welcome Back Kotter, Hegyes could easily stand for ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000216.htmlTue, 06 Dec 2011 12:06:40 -0600Writing in the Star Ledger, columnist Paul Mulshine asserts:Any federal law banning abortion would be rooted in the same section of the Constitution now being challenged by conservatives in the suits against Obamacare: the Interstate Commerce Clause. Conservatives argue the original meaning of that clause permits Congress only to facilitate interstate commerce, not restrict it. If that’s true of Obamacare, then it’s true of abortion.In fact, the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000215.htmlTue, 27 Sep 2011 11:37:21 -0500Word comes from the NY Times that Gov. Christie has blocked an otherwise approved tax credit for the next iteration of "Jersey Shore." In the delightful Jersey cut-to-the-chasery of State Senator Joseph F. Vitale (D, Middlesex Cty.), the cast is "just a bunch of deadwoods getting drunk and getting arrested."Christie is letting tax credits go forward for other shows, like Law & Order, SVU. Christie, however, claimed a duty to prevent taxpayer from "footing a $420,000 bill for a project which ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000214.htmlThu, 15 Sep 2011 03:06:58 -0500Bullying has become a cause célèbre in NJ these days, due largely to one particularly grievous recent crime. Unfortunately, the seemingly inevitable law that has resulted is loonier than the usual faddish overreaction. School superintendents are rightly complaining about it and its 18 pages of "required components" for schools' now-mandatory "comprehensive antibullying policies." The new law brings the police to lunch lines, and trains kindergarteners (for six full class periods) on fine ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000213.htmlFri, 29 Apr 2011 01:21:12 -0500The Clementi case, in which a Rutgers student outed by webcam leapt to his death, has now resulted in an indictment against one of the two people originally named as co-conspirators. While Molly Wei has been let off for now, apparently because she will testify for the prosecution, Dharun Ravi has been charged on 15 counts, which in the words of the New York Times includes "acting with antigay motives." The hate-crime element bumps up Mr. Ravi's potential penalty from probation to a jail ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000212.htmlTue, 08 Feb 2011 14:45:18 -0600PolitickerNJ has today reported that Gov. Christie has canned an additional 71 "employees" of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission (PVSC), a government body that until recently has lacked government oversight. The Christie firestorm began when the Star Ledger published an exposé of the Commission, which the paper described as "an island of job security for the connected, their families and their friends." The level of nepotism and backscratching is epic, and making an example of this body ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000211.htmlSat, 05 Feb 2011 00:37:27 -0600In the wake of a sting video showing a New Jersey Planned Parenthood worker helping a "pimp" to maximize the output of his "14-year-old prostitutes," some media outlets (such as the New York Times) have written about this affair as though it happened in a vacuum. However, the public should know that Planned Parenthood has an extensive and distressing history of such actions. In addition to what is documented on the videotapes in the previous link, consider the following sickening details from ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000210.htmlFri, 04 Feb 2011 16:22:52 -0600From oddities to high art, NJ sends out a country's worth of culture, and can't be pigeonholed or typecast. (This is no surprise, since the immensely diverse NJ would be the third most densely populated major country on earth if it were independent.) In the face of some recent perusals, I got to thinking about one of our odder sorts of inhabitant.There has been a surprisingly fair, accurate and interesting report on BBC comparing perceptions and realities invoked by Jersey Shore. ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000209.htmlTue, 01 Feb 2011 15:14:58 -0600A new undercover video shot by the new Live Action site gives a disturbing peek into the abortion industry in the Garden State. In the video, the office manager of the Perth Amboy Planned Parenthood advises two people she thinks are a pimp and a prostitute seeking treatment for a stable of imported Asian prostitutes (aged 14 years old and up) who can't speak English. The office manager recommends a certain clinic for abortions for the 14 year-olds, advises how to get good prices on ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000208.htmlMon, 13 Dec 2010 14:38:10 -0600Tim Pawlenty, governor of Minnesota, has an excellent piece in the Wall Street Journal today on the destructive impact of public-sector unions on government expenditure. The whole thing should be read, but here's his diagnosis:The majority of union members today no longer work in construction, manufacturing or "strong back" jobs. They work for government, which, thanks to President Obama, has become the only booming "industry" left in our economy. ...[A]cross the country, at every level of ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000207.htmlFri, 29 Oct 2010 00:40:50 -0500A couple of people have asked me for an explanation of the lone NJ ballot question in the upcoming election. Typically, these are tough to parse, but the interpretative statement on the ballot helps to clarify matters. This time, however, the interpretative statement is more confusing than the actual question.There seems to be widespread approval of this initiative on both sides of the aisle. My assemblyman (Jay Webber, a conservative) is in favor of it, as is the New Jersey Education ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000206.htmlWed, 27 Oct 2010 22:03:58 -0500On October 21, 2010, I had the pleasure of interviewing Congressman Leonard Lance (R, NJ-7) for Jersey Conservative. The major theme of our wide-ranging conversation was, unsurprisingly for this year, the need for fiscal responsibility and reducing deficits. We did, however, also discuss the role of unions, the rise of Gov. Chris Christie, what conservatism means in New Jersey, environmentalism and nuclear power, immigration and sanctuary cities, the age of the webcam, and conservatives and ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000205.htmlFri, 01 Oct 2010 11:37:22 -0500I echo Peter Hansen’s wise and insightful sentiments and also express my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Tyler. It is heartbreaking to see this talented young man’s life cut short, and I pray this sad incident serves as a wake-up call to all of us about the importance of kindness and decency.Yet, something struck me about the wall-to-wall coverage of this tragedy. I remembered recently reading about several analogous incidents that did not receive nearly as much attention, ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000204.htmlThu, 30 Sep 2010 05:20:19 -0500A very sad case out of Rutgers today shows how the modern mania for livestreaming video, combined with an absolute lack of moral standards, has led to the suicide of a talented young violinist.The facts of the case are simple. Mr. Tyler Clementi, a freshman at Rutgers, requested exclusive use until midnight of the room he shared with Dharun Ravi. Mr. Ravi acceded, but then went to the room of his high school friend Molly Wei. Mr. Ravi turned on a hidden webcam to watch the unwitting Mr. ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000203.htmlTue, 28 Sep 2010 14:49:49 -0500In a recent National Review Corner note, Robert Costa reports a statement by David Axelrod of the Obama Administration: More from David Axelrod, in conversation with Politico’s Mike Allen at the Newseum: Asked about New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Axelrod calls him an “attractive” political figure. “I actually like him, and I just doomed his candidacy by saying that.”What candidacy could Mr. Axelrod be dooming? The presidential primary nomination? That's seriously in ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000202.htmlThu, 26 Aug 2010 11:40:45 -0500While the Democrats and the teachers union are "piling on" Gov. Christie for allegedly whiffing on Race to the Top funds, this is not only unlikely to harm Gov. Christie with average folks, it will likely be to his long-term benefit. Why? It comes down to basic management and basic politics. First, Christie publicly protected the people in the Department of Education who screwed up, like a great boss should. Second, Christie can wave that single sheet of paper like a bloody shirt whenever ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000201.htmlWed, 28 Jul 2010 22:27:57 -0500Gov. Christie's newly adopted plan to transform the NJ gaming and mass-entertainment industries (including the Xanadu project) is sweeping. There are no doubt serious reasons for the State to seek solutions to these industries' massive problems. Billions in taxes and economic benefits (read: jobs) are on the line. At the same time, however, there is little indication that the State can really "turn a profit" here. There is also a serious question whether the State should even be ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000200.htmlFri, 09 Jul 2010 09:56:17 -0500According to North Jersey.com, Governor Christie’s government reform commission, headed by former Congressman Dick Zimmer, has come up with some unique plans to shrink the size of government – good old privatization. Finally! After fighting the unions, the legislature and conventional wisdom about the role and scope of government, he finally got to the crux of the problem with New Jersey. Government services are too all-encompassing and vast. It’s time to scale back what government does ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000199.htmlWed, 07 Jul 2010 10:58:12 -0500There is something inherently satisfying about constitutional amendments one likes – they're more permanent, and all that. Christie's effort to impose a constitutional cap on property-tax increases (at 2.5%) was, however, never a very sound one. The reason is simple: it would freeze one moving part in a complex machinery, and cause no end of disruptions.Let's say that inflation kicks up again, to a modest 3%. This means that property taxes would have to rise 3% just to stay the ...http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000198.htmlThu, 01 Jul 2010 15:54:22 -0500For those who have ever searched for primary source data on NJ state government finances, you know what an arduous process this can be. Thankfully, we now have some help via the NJ Government Transparency Center, which was just launched today by the Christie administration. It’s a work in progress, but I already see vast improvements over the antiquated, clumsy system that preceded this.http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000197.htmlWed, 02 Jun 2010 21:33:55 -0500A very substantive discussion, and a great prelude to the roundtable! I'll consult with the Contributors and keep our readers posted on when this will take place.Thanks again!http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000196.htmlWed, 02 Jun 2010 21:33:36 -0500We should find out if we can do a podcast in the future.http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000195.htmlWed, 02 Jun 2010 21:31:55 -0500Very apt, Murray!http://www.jerseyconservative.com/Entries/Item000194.htmlWed, 02 Jun 2010 21:31:30 -0500I have been shocked by the ability the governor to crystallize the discussion for people who aren't wonks. He actually is leading the way...the question is, can we convince constituent groups who are normally out of touch with a republican leader on board? I am gonna say yes...but it will require a consistent, focused effort.