The Morning Briefing - April 7, 2016
NEWARK – It makes little sense to sell brioche French Toast, with heavy cream, syrup, and bacon, at the airport, and then kick passengers off the plane for being too fat. A Jersey City man is furious at United Airlines over an incident when he tried to board a Newark-bound flight in Las Vegas on Tuesday morning. The Huffington Post reports a fellow passenger complained about his 385-pound frame that was bursting from the center seat, and so he was escorted off the plane. The man was stuck waiting for six more hours in the terminal, plenty of time for more of that lip-smacking brioche French Toast. The passenger was given an extra seat on that follow-up flight, with the additional $117 fee waived. But he was still peeved.
STATEWIDE – Want to get married? Elope! It's much cheaper. Going down the aisle in the Garden State may mean going into hock. (And that’s before buying a house.) The average full-scale wedding in Northern and Central Jersey costs nearly $55,500, according to The Knot's 2015 Real Wedding Survey. Things are a bit cheaper in South Jersey, with wedding prices running about $43,200. That’s still half the cost of the average $82,300 Manhattan nuptials. The thrifty solution: Bring the wedding party somewhere else. Maybe to Butte, MT, where an average wedding goes for $20,300; or Lubbock, TX, $19,250; or perhaps Sioux Falls, S.D., $18,900. Sarah Palin says Wasilla, Alaska is quite lovely and it's got the lowest-priced wedding: $17,360. But you may need to invite her.
CLAYTON – The borough's official seal is officially under siege. Lawyers for a national atheist group say the depiction of a church and cross are unconstitutional. And, even if Clayton really is a “great place to live and play, work and pray,” atheist attorneys say the motto’s gotta go, too. The Freedom From Religion Foundation in Madison, Wis., has tried for months to get Clayton officials to secularize the emblem and motto, saying both are “unmistakably religious.” Finally, last week Clayton's mayor and council said heck, no, they won't change a thing, NJ Advance Media reports. By comparison, the atheist group comes from a quirky city that's nickname is “Madtown,” and whose “official bird” is – no kidding – a plastic pink flamingo. Is there an organization that fights bad taste?
EAST BRUNSWICK – Middle Eastern “street meat” finally meets Main Street in the Garden State. Within a few weeks, The Halal Guys – a hugely popular Halal restaurant chain – is opening its first East Coast eatery outside Manhattan, at 621 Route 18 South. What began in 1990 as a single food cart at Sixth Avenue and 53rd Street in NYC has seen meteoric growth since its owners opened their first East Village restaurant in 2014. Central Jersey gets its first taste of the gyros, falafel, chicken and rice platters, hummus, tabbouleh, baba ghanoush and Mediterranean salads. Next month, another opens on Halsey Street in Newark (cool for us), with three more in the works for North Jersey.
ATLANTIC CITY – If you are trying to keep up with the financially crumbling city, here’s the latest in 80 words: City employees will now get a paycheck every 28 days to help stave off bankruptcy. Mayor Don Guardian is “a liar,” says Gov. Chris Christie, adding the guy doesn’t know math or simple concepts. The governor wants to take over the city; the mayor and the unions say “no way.” Christie is holding back state aid until the city bows. Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto is introducing his own legislation today to help the ailing city without an outright takeover. (P.S. Did you really count the words?)
IN THE MEDIA
NEW BRUNSWICK – You would think a member of Lyndon Johnson’s Administration would have little appeal or relevance for today’s college graduates. But it is a clear coup for Rutgers University to mark its 250th anniversary by having veteran broadcaster Bill Moyers as commencement speaker. Many of the millennials will likely need to ask Siri “Who is Bill Moyers?” to learn he was the press secretary for President Johnson before a tremendous career at PBS. Many millennials may also have to Google “What is PBS?” Moyers was also publisher of Newsday, prompting millennials to hit Safari with “What is a newspaper?”
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
LOS ANGELES – A 24-year-old father may not end up “Father of the Year” in California, busted by cops for leaving his nine-month-old daughter in the car while he frequented a strip club. Let’s assume he was likely visiting the joint for the bargain lunch buffet and barely even noticed the gyrating entertainment trying to distract him from the chicken fingers and dollar drafts. But, for cops, it didn’t really matter why he was in the club, with his daughter abandoned in the parking lot for an hour. Club employees noticed her and called the cops – likely sitting at the next set of bar stools – and were easily able to make the arrest, without losing the view.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
Happy symbolic birthday to the internet, which on this day in 1969 received its first “Request for Comments” document, which recorded unofficial notes on the development of the web’s specifications. Boring, yet important, for anyone who may happen to venture online from time to time.
WORD OF THE DAY
Cheimatophobia – (ky-MA-ta-foh-bee-uh) - noun
Definition: Irrational fear of the cold, of cold things, and of being cold.
Example: When subzero temperatures grip New Jersey in April,even my therapist says that my acute cheimatophobia doesn't seem irrational.