defend the indefensible: new jersey

this is a weird ass state for sure.

Just another day in Jersey government:

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2009/07/23/nyregion/23jersey2-500.jpg

Weysan Dun, the special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Newark office, said the rabbis arrested — including the grand rabbi of the Syrian Jewish community in the United States, Saul Kassin of Brooklyn — were part of a vast money-laundering conspiracy with tentacles in Israel and Switzerland. Another person, Levy-Izhak Rosenbaum of Brooklyn, was accused of enticing vulnerable people to give up a kidney for $10,000 and then selling the organ for $160,000.

The timing of the investigation dovetails with the timing of bank fraud charges against Solomon Dwek, son of the founders of the Deal Yeshiva, a religious school that teaches children in the Sephardic Jewish tradition. Mr. Dwek passed a $25 million bad check at a PNC Bank branch in 2006, according to The Asbury Park Press.

In the investigation that yielded the arrests Thursday, the cooperating witness posed as a real estate developer looking to build in one city after another, repeatedly engaging politicians in illegal conduct through a variety of middlemen, prosecutors said.

In Hoboken, for example, prosecutors charge in their complaint, Mr. Cammarano eagerly agreed in a meeting at a diner earlier this year to help the fake developer with his projects in exchange for cash. Prosecutors said that when the man asked for assurances that his requests would be expedited by the Hoboken City Council, Mr. Cammarano replied, “I promise you,” adding, “You’re going to be, you’re going to be treated like a friend.”

The fake developer responded that he would give a middleman $5,000 in cash for Mr. Cammarano and another $5,000 after his election as mayor.

“O.K.,” Mr. Cammarano replied, according to the complaint. “Beautiful.”

And Mr. Cammarano expressed confidence that he would be elected no matter what, according to the complaint. “Right now, the Italians, the Hispanics, the seniors are locked down,” he is quoted as saying. “Nothing can change that now.”

“I could be, uh, indicted,” he continued, “and I’m still going to win 85 to 95 percent of those populations.”

But just to step back a bit -- $25 million! Yeah I'd be careful with a check like that.

"I have seen more "no right on red" signs..."

Just go across the river to NY, it's illegal to do that there. the no pumping of gas thing is stupid, I agree.

lol when i first moved here i was driving around NYC making right turns on red and getting pulled over by the police. they laughed at my CA plates and gave me a warning. i had no idea.

the no-pumping-your-own-gas is a thing of beauty

once in college i took a trip out to the beach w/ two friends from oregon and it took us like 20 minutes to fill up the gas tank the first time

i have seen nj peeps doing this while in upstate NY.

"the no-pumping-your-own-gas is a thing of beauty"

Lots of people agree, i just find it frustrating to wait most of the time. At least gas in NJ is pretty cheap, compared to the rest of the country.

tentacles

!

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/churchill/interactive/_html/_items/wc0213.jpg

O_O

Yeah, I know. Can folks just find some other word in situations like that? CC'd: Matt Taibbi

http://www.wpix.com/news/local/wpix-turkey-terrorizing-nj-neighborhood,0,4669745.story

TENAFLY, N.J. (WPIX) - A wild turkey is taking charge and running amok on a block in a northern New Jersey neighborhood, residents say.

The terrorizing turkey is apparently bullying the residents of Hillside Avenue in Tenafly, where neighbors claim that it has chased them down the street, pecked at the tires of a postal service truck, and even has engaged in standoffs with cars attempting to pull out of driveways.

Resident Gary Zamchick said one encounter with the 4-foot tall bird left him fleeing for his life.

"I was attempting to put a garage sale sign up on the spot where the turkey was standing," Zamchick said, recounting his meeting with the turkey to PIX News. "He then started walking toward me and then he started chasing me. I ran as fast as I could back to my house."

Later in the day, Zamchick got in his car, drove to the same spot and successfully posted his garage sale sign.

According to residents, the first time anyone ever heard about the wild turkey in town was when the animal had a run-in with the neighborhood mailman.

A couple of weeks ago, Zamchick said he was approached by the visibly upset mailman who launched into his story, claiming the turkey chased him down Hillside Avenue, and prevented him from delivering mail. The mail carrier told residents, the bird also targeted his postage truck by pecking at its tires.

A number of neighbors have experienced similar encounters with the animal, but none of them ended in injuries.

"We see raccoons, some skunks and sometimes opossums but it is unusual to have such a very large bird on our block," Zamchick said. "I actually love the fact the turkey is on our block, I'm not concerned about it at all."

Since an attack by the turkey has yet to be reported, Bergen County animal control has not gotten involved in the case. However, a spokesperson for the Tenafly Nature Center is urging residents not to feed the animal because it is clearly associating food with humans, which is sparking the ongoing chases in the neighborhood. If residents come face to face with the bird, they are advised to clap, stomp, and yell to scare it away.

oh, hudsoncountypaws.

Love me some Jerz.

in case anyone wondered why the sopranos was set in north jersey.

Cammarano is a slimy piece of shit -- i knew him (casually) from law school (though i didn't go to the same law school), he was a douchebag then and he's an (indicted) douchebag now.

also, Corzine is pretty much boned right now ... time to get used to saying Governor Christie.

Well at least you have time to practice.

Well at least you have time to practice.

indeed ... Christie made his name prosecuting other NJ political crooks (like sharpe james). not to mention that Corzine got into politics by dropping tons of his Goldman Sachs cash on North Jersey Dem leaders (like who got busted today) and constantly kissing up to them. i'm not saying that Corzine has any connection to today's events (though i wouldn't be surprised if he did), but even before today he was behind in the polls to Christie.

i also imagine that former gov. Jim Florio (a previous Corzine victim) is privately laughing up his sleeve at Corzine's problems right now.

LOLZ, we're so scummy out here

The corruption scandal is being reported in the papers today thus:

"'Organ trafficking': Rabbis arrested over massive crime ring"

Uh... lol?

I'm finding this all a bit confusing -- was the organ trafficking somehow linked to the money laundering and/or the bribe-taking mayors? Or was it just a bunch of different corrupt stuff that this one guy led the authorities to.

more about the early years of my city's (now arrested) mayor. very soap-operesque and gossipy (and not usually my thing), but i link it to show what an utter douchebag cammarano is.

Corzine is absolutely toast at this point. He's been totally ineffective as gov. Not so fun fact: he lives in Hoboken, commutes to Trenton. No way this chump Cammarano got elected without the sign of the cross from Corz.

Peter Cammarano, ready for a night on the town:

http://blog.nj.com/ledgerupdates_impact/2009/07/large_peter%20cammarano%20fed%20court.JPG

Wearing white pants during your perp walk, C or D?

What a fucking loser.

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/video?id=6931297

was the organ trafficking somehow linked to the money laundering and/or the bribe-taking mayors?

ha, I keep trying to find more details about this, because it actually sounds as if one of the money-laundering connections was just, like, "hey, so long as you're here, you know anyone who needs some kidneys? cuz I can get some kidneys"

The NYTimes article from today makes it sound like they were completely separate things and this guy just happened to know about both.

"And while you're at it, there's the dude at the deli not putting enough mustard on my sandwiches without a payoff."

I stand corrected: so it was an informant who was like "hey, so long as we're doing this, you wanna take down some organ traffickers? cause I can find you some organ traffickers"

The Real Teenagers of New Jersey

http://fourfour.typepad.com/fourfour/2009/07/super-sweet.html

Yeah, that was pretty confusing.

One of the 44 arrested found dead

another example of one of our homegrown finest (courtesy of njguido.com, where else?!?)

http://nj-guido.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/guid8.jpg

> also, Corzine is pretty much boned right now ... time to get used to saying Governor Christie.

― some sick fuck with a bow and arrow killing roos and koalas (Eisbaer), Thursday, July 23, 2009 9:30 PM (3 months ago) Bookmark

cant believe we have a fat governor

now no one will respect new jersey politics

"now no one will respect new jersey politics"

hahahaha, that's hilarious

This is where I'm originally from:

http://www.njn.net/about/pressroom/highlandsrediscovered/

Up north in West Milford.

Also, if anyone has seen The Station Agent... there.

pretty

Thanks :)

after being here for like 5 years i'm finally down to defend new jersey.

Where do you live? I live in Morristown. Its like every other state, there are good and bad places. Morristown is nice. I work in Saddle River, that's REAL nice.

had nothing against jersey before I moved to nyc

jersey license plate in manhattan has a amazingly high correlation to asshole driver

hawthorne xp

reason i was thinking about this is because we may be moving to Astoria, Queens. which is nice but not jersey

I moved from Astoria to JC and preferred Astoria a lot. But here I am anyway.

have some good friends in JC and have spent a lot of time there lately. i dig it,much love for Downtown Taqueria especially