The Jaffe Briefing - February 1, 2022
NEW BRUNSWICK – $63. Just $63. Rutgers University students had the perfect legal argument: suing the school during the first wave of the pandemic for on-campus tuition, fees and other charges when they were unceremoniously sent home. Rutgers has agreed to settle the case for $5 million – which sounds great. But, as NJ Spotlight reports, the big cash settlement will be split evenly among 64,500 students, minus $950,000 in legal fees. A Superior Court judge considered the deal fair and adequate, handing each student a whopping $63. Consider it a big win for justice and, of course, for the lawyers.
BELLMAWR – The right-wing gym owner who scoffed at law and order is now thinking about becoming a lawmaker. Yeah, we are talking about the guy who owns a gym in Bellmawr who made national news for refusing to close his doors during the height of the pandemic, risking jail. Ian Smith now believes he should be in Congress and plans to formally announce his intentions on Thursday to take on Rep. Andy Kim, his polar opposite. There are a lot to unravel here, the NY Post reports, such as the fact the would-be Congressional candidate got drunk in 2007, got behind the wheel and killed a teenager. Smith was then sentenced to more than five years in jail for vehicular homicide. Learn more about the candidate below before Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
TRENTON – Is Gov. Phil Murphy too darn powerful? If you ask Republicans, who have been dealing with his “Executive Orders” since the beginning of the pandemic, that answer is an emphatic “Yes.” NJ.com reports there’s now proposed legislation coming from the back bench that would curb those powers, limiting the time a governor can declare a state of emergency to only 60 days. Currently, Murphy can just keep the emergency going and going, as he has shown. The proposed law would also allow the Legislature to terminate any of these gubernatorial declarations with a two-thirds vote. Perhaps the governor can use an Executive Order to kill the bill. If not, the Democrats will happily do it for him.
BRIEFING BREATHER
Groundhogs can climb trees to escape predators.
MILLTOWN – The borough's annual Groundhog Day celebration has been suddenly canceled after Monday’s startling news of the passing of Milltown Mel, the Garden State’s answer to Punxsutawney Phil, Staten Island Chuck, Dunkirk Dave and the other furry forecasters who emerge from their homes each Feb. 2. John McNamara, Mel’s handler, revealed that Mel met his demise earlier this winter, according to TAPinto Milltown/Spotswood. The original Mel first appeared on the scene in 2008. Through the years, the event grew into a festive party with hundreds of people descending on this hamlet to eat, drink and find out if we're in for six more weeks of winter. “Mel II” took the mantle in 2016 and is now gone. Broken-hearted fans took to the beloved burrower's Facebook page to express their sadness. “We love & miss you Mel,” wrote one woman, with a tear.
STATEWIDE - So much marijuana, so little to smoke. That seems to be the issue in New Jersey, where some pot cultivators are complaining that they have so much product, but the state is not yet giving them the green light to begin selling legal weed. It is getting so bad, NJ.com says, that some of these green businesses say they may have to destroy decaying product and lay off staff, as the market is just not developing as quickly as they need. Unclear if this is a real problem or a PR attempt to light a fire under the state, as many entrepreneurs are desperate to get going. State officials explain there are laws to follow. Howl from the rooftops, if you would like, but weed sellers still need to earn municipal approvals and prove an ability to keep up the business, after the bursting supply is sold. The NJ Cannabis Trade Association continues the fight in a Politico ad this morning.
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
AMITYVILLE, N.Y. — There’s yet another ‘horror’ for this Long Island town as two nurses just got busted for allegedly pocketing $1.5 million from selling forged Covid-19 vaccination cards. The Suffolk County DA tells Newsday the owner of Wild Child Pediatric Healthcare clinic and her head nurse face criminal charges for selling these bogus cards during the height of the pandemic. Cards went for $220 a pop to adults and a discounted $80 for the kiddies. A defense lawyer argues the nurses are “well-respected,” and he warns people to not believe the hype. Detectives, however, say they found $900,000 in cash inside the Wild Child owner’s home, along with a ledger detailing $1.5 million in profit from this alleged scheme. Didn’t Al Capone demonstrate it’s never good to keep a ledger of ill-gotten gains? Have these nurses learned nothing?
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
It was this day in 1987 that 38,873 fans watched the Chicago Bulls play against the Detroit Pistons. Unclear why that is interesting or relevant, but perhaps you know.
WORD OF THE DAY
Ultracrepidarian – [əltrəkrepəˈderēən] – adjective
Definition: Expressing opinions on matters outside the scope of one's knowledge or expertise.
Example: “I decided to sell my house in exchange for bitcoin, on the advice of my third cousin, a financial ultracrepidarian.”
WIT OF THE DAY
“People come down to Florida all the time. Most of them, sooner or later, decide to leave, but the stupid ones can’t figure out how to do this. So they remain, and in time are issued ballots.”
- Dave Barry
BIDEN BLURB
“You know, for the right to vote and to have that vote counted is democracy’s threshold liberty. Without it, nothing is possible, but with it, anything is possible.
-Joe Biden
WEATHER IN A WORD
Fair