Apologies for no roundup Wednesday! Some days I have ragestroke and am unable to function. Also, some of us were traveling (side note – it’s possible to get from Atlantic City to La Guardia on public transit in three hours and fifteen minutes and for under $50).
Anyway.
In yesterday’s news, Ferdinand Augello, the chieftain of the Pagans, or something, was found guilty on all counts for his role in the murder of April Kauffman, everyone reports, but Lynda Cohen’s story’s here.
Meanwhile the Alcoholic Beverage Control director, Dave Rible, reversed course on the new limits he’d just imposed on craft breweries, following a, “week of hearing from irate brewery owners” as the valuable Spotlight put it. Score one for our beery amigos in the hops lobby.
Lastly, Seth Grossman, who is an actual candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, compared the mildly uncomfortable questioning faced by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh at the hands of a beard friendly attorney that was hired by his political patrons, to the actual lynching faced by African-American men “100 years ago” [sic].
The Kavanaugh hearing, “reminds me of when innocent Jewish and black men were lynched 100 years ago based on unsubstantiated accusations of a single woman,” Grossman reportedly said.
Grossman also called his opponent an ultra-leftist radical Democrat or something for believing the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford.
Whatever. Grossman is down 23 points and Kavanaugh’s about to get appointed to a lifetime position on the Supreme Court, but at the risk of sounding like the god-damned Young Democrats (and for the record, I wrote this yesterday), I do wonder what people like Chris Brown or Dennis Levinson think of this. Their party enabled this freakshow. Is this the future? Or are they just hoping to keep their heads down until we can stuff this unpleasantness back down the memory hole?
The last two years have taught me more about the supposed adults in the room than anything else. But I’m just one weirdo on the internet.
Anyhow!
In realer news from around your special, special region:
The Tropicana deal closed (really) the Press of AC reports, that Menendez-Hugin poll everybody was talking about yesterday seems slightly less important after this new Menendez-Hugin poll and a “conservative organization” (code for in-touch with workers) is suing to further bust up the mostly busted unions that some workers still insist on joining.
100 days in, Atlantic City’s reopened casinos looking good–One has Elvis Presley’s Rolls Royce, the costumes the Beatles wore onstage, and the management know-how and money of one of the world’s largest and most successful hospitality companies — even as it replaces its boss. www.pressofatlanticcity.com
Compromise Is Reached On High School Testing–The Murphy administration and the State Board of Education reached a compromise on the future of high school testing in New Jersey that will mean a couple of fewer tests going forward and more flexibility on what counts toward graduation. Whether that settles the debate is yet to be seen, not to mention that a court case over the state’s graduation requirements still looms. www.njspotlight.com
Glassboro police chief defends officers who pulled guns on Rowan students–Two days after video of a controversial police stop on the Rowan University campus went viral, Glassboro Police Chief Franklin S. Brown Jr. broke his silence Wednesday and released a body-cam video to show why officers had pulled over two college students and aimed their weapons at them before searching their car for a gun. www2.philly.com
New State Funding For Autism Center To Boost Research And Treatment–The site of the highest rate of childhood autism nationwide, New Jersey will also now be home to a center dedicated to improving research, treatment, and services for the tens of thousands of residents living with some form of the disorder. www.njspotlight.com
After abortions were botched, he lost his N.J. medical license. Will his clinics stay open?–It has been four years since abortion doctor Steven Brigham, whose record of botched procedures goes back decades, lost his New Jersey medical license and was ordered to sell his seven clinics in the state. The clinics, advertised as American Women's Services, are still open today. www2.philly.com
I’ve seen your tweets about transportation service from AC to NY. Greyhound is cheap but unpredictable. I take that back, it’s predictable that someone will have a meltdown. NJTransit’s 319 is pretty reliable. If you arrive at Gate 3 a half hour before departure, you’re likely to get on. Just avoid the restrooms at the AC bus terminal. Oh, and not all buses have toilets. And the guy who says he lost his ticket home, he’s there every day. I think the tiles and retro lights in the terminal are from the old train station. And in the very middle of the compass in the floor is an electrical outlet that homeless people would fight over to charge their phones.
AC to PHL airport is actually quicker and easier than LGA: NJTransit 551 bus to Philly, cross the street (Jefferson Station) for SEPTA Airport line right to the terminal.