The Jaffe Briefing - July 7, 2022
TRENTON – Now that New Jersey is home to recreational weed, could mushrooms be next? The New Jersey Law Journal is focusing on Senate President Nick Scutari’s proposed legislation, known as the “Psilocybin Behavioral Health Access and Services Act,” legalizing shrooms for medical purposes, such as relieving depression, anxiety and stress. Some lawyers are concerned that any somewhat clever person could qualify for a medical card for mushrooms – just like what happened with medical marijuana – creating a whole new hazy loophole for stoners. Sure, from a lawyer’s perspective, this type of law could bring in wheelbarrows of cash to establish infrastructure to produce and regulate mushrooms. But is there real support for such a law? And shouldn’t we just wait to see if recreational cannabis is the economic windfall that everyone is hoping for?
TRENTON – The state’s legislative process can be maddeningly slow – or not. New Jersey Monitor reports that nearly half of the bills and resolutions approved by the full Senate this legislative session were somehow accomplished in just one day, as lawmakers clearly avoided a lunch break. And that day was June 29, hours before the state budget for fiscal ’23 needed to be adopted. The upper chamber ripped through the approval process for 106 bills, as shouts of “Yea!” reverberated throughout the State House. For comparison purposes, the Senate approved a total of 213 bills over a six-month period beginning January 11. The state Assembly was also scrappy on June 29, passing 81 bills. But paling in comparison to the Senate’s frantic pace.
BRIEFING BREATHER
About 100 Americans die on average each day from gun violence, compared to 60-100 Ukrainian soldiers dying each day in the war against Russia, the New York Times reports.
TRENTON – There’s no question that high schoolers have struggled during the pandemic. But they should still be able to display some basic knowledge to earn a high school diploma in New Jersey, right? Apparently not, NJ.com reports. Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation that stipulates a new statewide standardized test for the Class of ’23 won’t be used as a graduation requirement. New Jersey had been one of 11 states to require exit exams to graduate, thus ensuring our next generation has a decent baseline in which to pursue work or higher education. But now the exam will be considered a “field test” for future graduating classes, offsetting lingering effects of learning loss and student mental health. OK, as these teens will soon be sent out to navigate the stresses of whatever comes next.
NEW BRUNSWICK – The Record continues to dig into Rutgers athletics, now dropping a story on USA Today about how gobs of money are blown to support a Big 10 program. Yeah, the details are not pretty, and certainly not unusual, as recruitment of premier athletes doesn’t come cheap. The Record writes: “A luau and beach yoga at sunset in Hawaii. A guided snorkeling tour in Puerto Rico. Ax throwing in Texas. Tickets to Disney World and Broadway shows. Luxury hotels in Paris and London. Chilled lobster, seafood towers and Delmonico steaks back home in New Brunswick.” Meanwhile, the university continues to bleed red from its athletic department. Should we be outraged over a $31,000 beach party, a $20,000 bowling outing or $18,000 for just one night at Steakhouse 85 in New Brunswick? Nah, as long as the football team trounces Boston College in the Sept. 3 opener. Good seats, still available.
IN THE MEDIA
ATLANTA – CNN is going to try something new: Only using the “Breaking News” banner at the bottom of the screen when the news happens to really be “breaking.” A new CNN boss, Chris Licht, told the staff that the “Breaking News” banner has become so grossly overused and abused – such as being used for when the President pets his German Shephard – that “its impact has become lost on the audience.” Breaking News: Licht is absolutely right.
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
LOS ANGELES – Is a bee a fish? Depends which lawyer is arguing the case. Environmental attorneys seeking to have bumblebees protected by the Endangered Species Act have successfully argued the case before the California court. Because the law defines fish to include any type of “invertebrate,” that should include bees. And why? Because bees don’t have spines, lawyers argue. A state appellate court somehow agreed with all this logic, while noting the term “fish” is “colloquially and commonly” understood to refer to living things that swim around in water.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
Perhaps, on this day in 2014, Apple realized people were going blind with all the time they spend staring at the iPhone 5. And perhaps that was why the tech giant announced the iPhone 6 would be much larger, providing much-needed relief.
WORD OF THE DAY
Torpor – [TOR-per] – noun
Definition: A state of lowered physiological activity typically characterized by reduced metabolism, heart rate, respiration, and body temperature; or apathy, dullness
Example: With all this early July humidity, it’s sure tough to shake off the torpor.
WIT OF THE DAY
“I’m not only legitimate, but running a casino. And that’s like selling people dreams for cash.”
-Sam “Ace” Rothstein
a.k.a. “The Golden Jew”
BIDEN BLURB
“Over the objections, where they sound like squealing pigs, over the objections of Romney and all his allies, we passed some of the toughest Wall Street regulations in history, turning Wall Street back into the allocator of capital it always has been and no longer a casino. And they want to repeal it.”
- Joe Biden
WEATHER IN A WORD
Cooler