The Jaffe Briefing - February 3, 2023

TRENTON – For business owners desperate for cheap manual labor, there’s been nothing better in New Jersey than the temp worker. Just imagine: You pay less, you ship workers wherever you darn please, you don’t pay insurance and you hire/fire at whim. Yeah, that outrageous, outdated practice seems to be vanishing, as Gov. Phil Murphy is poised to sign the “Temp Worker Bill of Rights.” New Jersey Monitor reports the Senate narrowly approved the bill yesterday, which now heads to the governor’s desk for signature. It is a huge win for 127,000 essential temp workers in the state, most of whom are now busy being underpaid and exploited, with zero clue this legislation will soon make their difficult lives much, much more equitable. Yes, staffing agencies are complaining this will hike costs to employers. Sorry, this ride is over.

NEWARK – If you run an affordable housing complex with a rat problem, you certainly shouldn’t be getting tax breaks. It looks like the City Council wholeheartedly agrees with us, voting to begin proceedings against the owner of the Georgia King Village apartment complex. TAPInto Newark reports the apartment owners reaped millions of dollars in tax benefits, awarded in exchange for this company doing major repairs to the worn, five-decade-old complex.  Now, the City Council wants all rent going to a third-party, who would use the money for much-needed repairs. The company now has 60 days to deal with the rats, the mold, the water damage, the leaky pipes and all the other issues. If it complies, it seems the tax breaks will continue. Everyone is now pledging to do the right thing, as skeptic residents – the victims in all of this – continue to wait and see.

JERSEY CITY – A wonderful night in NYC may soon include an infuriating early morning, with word the Holland Tunnel will be shut down at night, beginning Sunday, for much-needed repairs from Superstorm Sandy.  Yeah, the storm was more than 10 years ago, and the corroding tunnel has suffered at the hands of 30 million tons of untreated sewage and saltwater, NJ.com reports. So, even though we all celebrate this long-awaited final fix, it remains unclear what traffic mayhem lurks. NJ-bound tunnels will be shut 11 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and midnight to 9 a.m. on Friday nights into Saturday mornings. So, where will all the traffic go? The obvious thinking is the Lincoln Tunnel and GWB, which also have repairs done overnight. What a mess. So, for those determined to visit Manhattan, might we suggest a lovely Sunday brunch and matinee? And then get the heck home.

BRIEFING BREATHER

President Coolidge thought it was hilarious to push the emergency buzzer on his desk and then hide when the Secret Service came running.

WOODBRIDGE – Things almost went sideways for one Tesla Model Y owner when his steering wheel actually fell off while driving home from the Woodbridge Mall. Let’s call it a miracle that this driver was able to coax his week-old sedan to a safe location and wait for a tow truck last Sunday, NJ.com reports. If there’s a silver lining to emerge from this white-knuckler, it’s that Tesla has given this driver a choice: Keep the car (with an obvious repair) or get a new car, with a steering wheel that is actually bolted. The driver posed his quandary on Twitterverse. Of the 6,120 who responded, to date, 83.4% said to return that lemon and get a new one. Sage advice; no one on social media would steer you wrong. 

IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS

IOWA CITY, IOWA – There’s already bad blood between the Iowa and Illinois basketball teams, and tipoff for their Big Ten showdown isn’t until Saturday. The host Hawkeyes are complaining that a longstanding group of Illinois basketball fans tried to purchase 200 tickets at a deep discount, claiming the tickets were reserved for a Boys & Girls Club chapter in Illinois. That prompted Hawkeye officials earlier this week to reject the order, like a weak layup. Meanwhile, members of the “Orange Krush” fan group are, well, crushed, maintaining the tickets were “purchased legally,” ESPN.com reports. And, on top of it, the Fighting Illini fans say they won’t be able to recoup some $6,000 in travel expenses. The real winner here? The Boys & Girls Club of Iowa, now getting a pile of donated tickets.

YOKOHAMA, Japan – Forgo the M&Ms or the Zagnut. The big seller in these brand-new vending machines is whale meat. “The Whale Store” hosts three vending machines of whale sashimi, whale bacon, whale skin and whale steak, as well as canned whale meat. Prices range from the equivalent of $7.70 to $23, depending on which button you press. Conservationists are a bit concerned, saying all this easy access to whale meat is just going to cause even more whaling, an environmental disaster. Meanwhile, the plan is to expand the amount of vending machines to more than 100 across Japan, reaching a highway rest area near you.

IN THE MEDIA

PARIS – So, does the media really hate the French? It appears like an obvious “yes” when you thumb through the latest edition of the Associated Press Stylebook, the reference guide that most U.S. newspapers follow. The guide oddly suggests: “We recommend avoiding general and often dehumanizing ‘the’ labels such as the poor, the mentally ill, the French, the disabled, the college-educated,” wrote the self-declared Bible “for writers, editors, students and professionals.” It all prompted plenty of French jokes. There was the French Embassy, posting it is now the “Embassy of Frenchness in the US.” Others said it was time for compassion: as French people should now be thought of as “suffering from Frenchness” and deserving of prayer and pity. Others mentioned the AP’s strange reference to “college-educated,” noting that could also be truly offensive, depending on your college.

FROM THE MAILBAG

Dear Jaffe Briefing:

I agree with you about the loss of newspapers and the fact that it is resulting in no oversight of politicians. 

But there's another huge problem -- and one that absolutely is the reason George Santos got elected: Too many people don't read and refuse to take the time to be informed, especially on the local level. There is a paper on Long Island that absolutely outed Santos months before the election... but people ignored what they were being told. Read this.

Even in cases where a politician's misdeeds are well-known, people continue to elect them because of their political party. It leads to further corruption, more crimes ... and people point fingers in the aftermath. 

The mindset of blindly voting for someone based solely on political party is doing immense damage.  

Karen Bush
Bayville

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

It was this day in 1993 that former Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott is suspended for one year and fined $25,000 for her chronic “use of racially and ethnically insensitive language.”

WORD OF THE WEEK

Bona fides – [boh-nuh-FYE-deez] – noun

Definition: Evidence of qualifications or achievements.

Example: Perhaps political bloggers would have more credibility if they showed their bona fides.

WIT OF THE WEEK

“Government always finds a need for whatever money it gets.“

- Ronald Reagan

BIDEN BLURB

“For too long as a nation, we have been lulled by the anthem of self-interest. For a decade, led by Ronald Reagan, self-aggrandizement has been the full-throated cry of this society: I’ve got mine, so why don’t you get yours and what’s in it for me?”

-Joe Biden

WEEKEND WEATHER IN A WORD

Frigid

TRENTON – For business owners desperate for cheap manual labor, there’s been nothing better in New Jersey than the temp worker. Just imagine: You pay less, you ship workers wherever you darn please, you don’t pay insurance and you hire/fire at whim. Yeah, that outrageous, outdated practice seems to be vanishing, as Gov. Phil Murphy is poised to sign the “Temp Worker Bill of Rights.” New Jersey Monitor reports the Senate narrowly approved the bill yesterday, which now heads to the governor’s desk for signature. It is a huge win for 127,000 essential temp workers in the state, most of whom are now busy being underpaid and exploited, with zero clue this legislation will soon make their difficult lives much, much more equitable. Yes, staffing agencies are complaining this will hike costs to employers. Sorry, this ride is over.

NEWARK – If you run an affordable housing complex with a rat problem, you certainly shouldn’t be getting tax breaks. It looks like the City Council wholeheartedly agrees with us, voting to begin proceedings against the owner of the Georgia King Village apartment complex. TAPInto Newark reports the apartment owners reaped millions of dollars in tax benefits, awarded in exchange for this company doing major repairs to the worn, five-decade-old complex.  Now, the City Council wants all rent going to a third-party, who would use the money for much-needed repairs. The company now has 60 days to deal with the rats, the mold, the water damage, the leaky pipes and all the other issues. If it complies, it seems the tax breaks will continue. Everyone is now pledging to do the right thing, as skeptic residents – the victims in all of this – continue to wait and see.

JERSEY CITY – A wonderful night in NYC may soon include an infuriating early morning, with word the Holland Tunnel will be shut down at night, beginning Sunday, for much-needed repairs from Superstorm Sandy.  Yeah, the storm was more than 10 years ago, and the corroding tunnel has suffered at the hands of 30 million tons of untreated sewage and saltwater, NJ.com reports. So, even though we all celebrate this long-awaited final fix, it remains unclear what traffic mayhem lurks. NJ-bound tunnels will be shut 11 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and midnight to 9 a.m. on Friday nights into Saturday mornings. So, where will all the traffic go? The obvious thinking is the Lincoln Tunnel and GWB, which also have repairs done overnight. What a mess. So, for those determined to visit Manhattan, might we suggest a lovely Sunday brunch and matinee? And then get the heck home.

BRIEFING BREATHER

President Coolidge thought it was hilarious to push the emergency buzzer on his desk and then hide when the Secret Service came running.

WOODBRIDGE – Things almost went sideways for one Tesla Model Y owner when his steering wheel actually fell off while driving home from the Woodbridge Mall. Let’s call it a miracle that this driver was able to coax his week-old sedan to a safe location and wait for a tow truck last Sunday, NJ.com reports. If there’s a silver lining to emerge from this white-knuckler, it’s that Tesla has given this driver a choice: Keep the car (with an obvious repair) or get a new car, with a steering wheel that is actually bolted. The driver posed his quandary on Twitterverse. Of the 6,120 who responded, to date, 83.4% said to return that lemon and get a new one. Sage advice; no one on social media would steer you wrong. 

IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS

IOWA CITY, IOWA – There’s already bad blood between the Iowa and Illinois basketball teams, and tipoff for their Big Ten showdown isn’t until Saturday. The host Hawkeyes are complaining that a longstanding group of Illinois basketball fans tried to purchase 200 tickets at a deep discount, claiming the tickets were reserved for a Boys & Girls Club chapter in Illinois. That prompted Hawkeye officials earlier this week to reject the order, like a weak layup. Meanwhile, members of the “Orange Krush” fan group are, well, crushed, maintaining the tickets were “purchased legally,” ESPN.com reports. And, on top of it, the Fighting Illini fans say they won’t be able to recoup some $6,000 in travel expenses. The real winner here? The Boys & Girls Club of Iowa, now getting a pile of donated tickets.

YOKOHAMA, Japan – Forgo the M&Ms or the Zagnut. The big seller in these brand-new vending machines is whale meat. “The Whale Store” hosts three vending machines of whale sashimi, whale bacon, whale skin and whale steak, as well as canned whale meat. Prices range from the equivalent of $7.70 to $23, depending on which button you press. Conservationists are a bit concerned, saying all this easy access to whale meat is just going to cause even more whaling, an environmental disaster. Meanwhile, the plan is to expand the amount of vending machines to more than 100 across Japan, reaching a highway rest area near you.

IN THE MEDIA

PARIS – So, does the media really hate the French? It appears like an obvious “yes” when you thumb through the latest edition of the Associated Press Stylebook, the reference guide that most U.S. newspapers follow. The guide oddly suggests: “We recommend avoiding general and often dehumanizing ‘the’ labels such as the poor, the mentally ill, the French, the disabled, the college-educated,” wrote the self-declared Bible “for writers, editors, students and professionals.” It all prompted plenty of French jokes. There was the French Embassy, posting it is now the “Embassy of Frenchness in the US.” Others said it was time for compassion: as French people should now be thought of as “suffering from Frenchness” and deserving of prayer and pity. Others mentioned the AP’s strange reference to “college-educated,” noting that could also be truly offensive, depending on your college.

FROM THE MAILBAG

Dear Jaffe Briefing:

I agree with you about the loss of newspapers and the fact that it is resulting in no oversight of politicians. 

But there's another huge problem -- and one that absolutely is the reason George Santos got elected: Too many people don't read and refuse to take the time to be informed, especially on the local level. There is a paper on Long Island that absolutely outed Santos months before the election... but people ignored what they were being told. Read this.

Even in cases where a politician's misdeeds are well-known, people continue to elect them because of their political party. It leads to further corruption, more crimes ... and people point fingers in the aftermath. 

The mindset of blindly voting for someone based solely on political party is doing immense damage.  

Karen Bush
Bayville

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

It was this day in 1993 that former Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott is suspended for one year and fined $25,000 for her chronic “use of racially and ethnically insensitive language.”

WORD OF THE WEEK

Bona fides – [boh-nuh-FYE-deez] – noun

Definition: Evidence of qualifications or achievements.

Example: Perhaps political bloggers would have more credibility if they showed their bona fides.

WIT OF THE WEEK

“Government always finds a need for whatever money it gets.“

- Ronald Reagan

BIDEN BLURB

“For too long as a nation, we have been lulled by the anthem of self-interest. For a decade, led by Ronald Reagan, self-aggrandizement has been the full-throated cry of this society: I’ve got mine, so why don’t you get yours and what’s in it for me?”

-Joe Biden

WEEKEND WEATHER IN A WORD

Frigid