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News

Council members pay 'lip service' to principles of liberty

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Written by: Mark Richards
Category: Letters to Editor
Created: May 11, 2018
No comments on “Council members pay 'lip service' to principles of liberty”

Published in the West Milford Messenger, May 9, 2018

It comes as no great shock to me that our council members don't want to discuss marijuana legalization and consider it an "inappropriate" topic.

This once again shows that the majority of council members only pay "lip service" to the principles of individual liberty, limited government and the right to choose.

Read more …

Phillipsburg – A Public Theater

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Written by: Rob Case
Category: Latest News
Created: April 18, 2018
No comments on “Phillipsburg – A Public Theater”

Over the past several months, northwestern New Jersey has been treated to a political wild west of sorts, where Phillipsburg is the main character in a show no one wants to watch. From arguments to cronyism, this public theater has become nothing more than another side show in the issues that plague New Jersey.

“A Phillipsburg youth center's decades-long partnership with town government may be in jeopardy. It started with a town employee's Facebook post.” (Novak, 6 April 2018). 

This is an honest headline from an article from lehighvalleylive.com, which owns the most circulated newspaper in Town – The Express-Times.

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Stricter Background Checks, Even Closing Gun Show Loophole Won’t Prevent Mass Shootings

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Written by: Nicholas DeSimone
Category: Latest News
Created: April 14, 2018
No comments on “Stricter Background Checks, Even Closing Gun Show Loophole Won’t Prevent Mass Shootings ”

Nicholas DeSimone works in public policy for Reason Foundation in Washington D.C. He holds a B.A. in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and has written for Reason Foundation, Townhall.com and Penn Political Review. Follow him on Twitter: @nickyd8181

Every recent measure from the Democrat’s plan to ban the sale of semi-automatic rifles to Congressman Thomas Massie’s plan to repeal the Federal Gun-Free School Zone Act and even President Trump’s plans to arm teachers in schools and implement stricter background checks for mental illness have been suggested to prevent individuals from committing mass shootings.

While the background check system has prevented individuals from illegally obtaining guns from licensed dealers, the gun show loophole can allow individuals to purchase guns from unlicensed dealers. Attempts to close this loophole have been made in 19 states and Washington D.C. by requiring background checks on all handgun sales. However, guns, including the AR-15 are still widely accessible through unlicensed dealers.

The majority of guns used in 19 recent mass shootings were bought legally, with some of these individuals—possessing a history mental illness—able to pass federal background checks to purchase guns. Logic would follow that by making background checks stricter this would prevent people who have mental illnesses from illegally obtaining guns.

Let’s assume that all gun show loopholes are closed and we rely on stricter background checks for mental illness, as suggested by gun control advocates. There are few concerns with this.

First, what types mental disorders would prevent a person from owning a gun: depression, acute stress disorder, bipolar disorder, or anxiety/panic disorder? All of these mental illnesses have one thing in common; they all rely on self-report for accuracy so when determining who is classified to have one of these mental disorders there’s much room for inaccuracies.

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Meet Jim Tosone Candidate for Congress in the 5th District

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Written by: Mike Guadagnino
Category: Candidates and Elections
Created: April 12, 2018

The NJ Libertarian Party Nominates Tosone for Congress in NJ-5

Congressional Candidate Jim Tosone
with US Senate Candidate Murray Sabrin

Township of Washington, NJ, March 27, 2017 – Jim Tosone received the Libertarian Party’s nomination at the New Jersey LP Convention on March 24th, as their candidate for House of Representatives in New Jersey’s 5th congressional district.

Tosone is a lifelong resident of New Jersey. His wife and he have lived in Township of Washington, Bergen County, for 30 years. They have one daughter.

Tosone had a thirty-year career at a Fortune 50 healthcare company as a Director of Business Technology. He now consults with leading organizations to help them enhance their innovation, collaboration, and communication skills. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Mathematics and Technology Management from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.

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Video: NJ Trooper, donned in latex gloves, searches man's crotch after allegedly smelling marijuana

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Written by: John Paff
Category: Police Accountability Project
Created: April 02, 2018
No comments on “Video: NJ Trooper, donned in latex gloves, searches man's crotch after allegedly smelling marijuana”

I did not realize that the odor of marijuana, without more, justified a roadside, under-clothes search of a motorist's genitals and anus by a State Trooper clad in latex gloves. I received this video in response to an Open Public Records Act (OPRA) request made to the New Jersey State Police.

Pennsauken quietly paid out $770,000 in 2006 to settle female police officer's sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit

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Written by: John Paff
Category: Police Accountability Project
Created: March 31, 2018
No comments on “Pennsauken quietly paid out $770,000 in 2006 to settle female police officer's sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit”

I normally do not post settlements of cases that are this old, but the size of the settlement, the nature of the allegations and the fact that the alleged sexual harasser has since been promoted to Police Captain and still serves in that position cause me to make an exception.

Pennsauken Police Officer Susan D. Holtz filed her sexual harassment civil lawsuit on June 4, 2003. Holtz, who was hired as a patrol officer in 1990, said that she was "a very close friend of" Michael Probasco, who was then a patrolman, until she met her husband, Larry Holtz. According to Holtz, her decision to cut off all personal interaction with Probasco so that she could "devote her entire romantic attention" to Larry Holtz "enraged Probasco" and resulted in Probasco spreading lies about her in order to sabotage her relationship with Larry.

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Trump is the opposite of a Libertarian

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Category: Press Releases
Created: March 30, 2018
No comments on “Trump is the opposite of a Libertarian”

For immediate release
March 28, 2018

During the 2016 presidential campaign, some libertarian-leaning voters wanted to give Donald Trump the benefit of the doubt. As a candidate, Trump talked about drastic reductions in spending and taxation, along with “draining the swamp” of its career politicians. He said he wanted to reduce spending for defense of other countries and wars of foreign intervention. He even leaned toward allowing states to determine their own marijuana policies. Whatever libertarian impulses Trump the candidate seemed to have, though, his actual performance as president stands in stark contrast. Donald Trump is the opposite of a Libertarian.

During his campaign, Trump said he was “in favor of medical marijuana 100 percent,” and that recreational marijuana policy should be left to the states. On that issue, he sounded moderately libertarian. Once elected, Trump appointed Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general. Sessions promptly rescinded the Barack Obama–era Cole Memorandum, a directive from former Deputy Attorney General James Cole that had effectively prevented the federal government from initiating marijuana prosecutions in states that had legalized cannabis.

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Gun Ownership Is Not the Problem

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Written by: Mark Richards
Category: Letters to Editor
Created: March 01, 2018
No comments on “Gun Ownership Is Not the Problem”

Published in the Suburban Trends, February 28, 2018

In the wake of the school shooting in Florida, it is disturbing to see the uninformed masses out there demanding more gun laws.

It is more than a reminiscent of the civilian population of Germany in the early 1930s demanding "law and order" and a strong government and leader to "save" Germany from the political violence in the streets that was occurring at the time.

A certain political leader did emerge at that time and I think we all know who that was!

There are approximately 300 million guns in private citizens hands, yet only a miniscule fraction of those are ever used in a crime or mass shooting, clearly gun ownership is not the problem.

Read more …

Lindenwold Borough confidentially paid out $9,300 to settle police excessive force lawsuit

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Written by: John Paff
Category: Police Accountability Project
Created: January 18, 2018
No comments on “Lindenwold Borough confidentially paid out $9,300 to settle police excessive force lawsuit”

On October 4, 2017, the Borough of Lindenwold (Camden County) quietly paid $9,300 to a woman who said that police roughed her up, false arrested her and humiliated her by groping and exposing her genitals and breasts in a public parking lot.

In her lawsuit, Ramona Berry, who at the time was 50, said that on September 12, 2014 she rode with her daughter Aisha to the location where Lindenwold police had detained her other daughter for a traffic stop.  She said that she identified herself as the detainee's mother and asked police what was going on.  Berry claimed that Patrolman Sean Williams screamed that if she didn't get back into Aisha's car she would be arrested.  Berry said that Williams was screaming in her ear as she was trying to open the car door at the same time that Aisha was trying to unlock it.  She said that after she gave up trying to open the car door, Williams "slammed her fifty-year-old body and head into a parked car, bent her over the car, handcuffed her violently, dragged and pushed her to a police car, tossed her roughly into the back of a police car, and violently shoved [her] legs into the car."

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Former Sea Isle cop sues to obtain handgun carry permit

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Written by: John Paff
Category: Latest News
Created: December 28, 2017
No comments on “Former Sea Isle cop sues to obtain handgun carry permit”

On December 26, 2017, a former Sea Isle City (Cape May County) police officer filed a lawsuit against the New Jersey State Police Firearms Investigation Unit claiming that the agency is dragging its feet on processing his permit to carry a handgun.

In his lawsuit, Vincenzo J. Macrino claims that he has met all the requirement of the statute that permits retired law enforcement officers to carry a handgun. Yet, despite seven months having elapsed since his application was submitted, the State Police Unit has not yet granted or denied his application.

Read more …

Cumberland Democratic Chairman fined $200 for ethics violation

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Written by: John Paff
Category: Open Government Advocacy Project
Created: December 22, 2017
No comments on “Cumberland Democratic Chairman fined $200 for ethics violation”

On December 13, 2017, the Local Finance Board, the primary enforcer of the Local Government Ethics Law (LGEL), fined a former Deputy Director of the Cumberland County Board of Chosen Freeholders $200 for voting to appoint the former mayor of Willingboro Township (Burlington County) to head the County's Office of Purchasing while the former Deputy Director served as Willingboro's Labor Counsel. 

The Board, which has the statutory authority to issue fines between $100 and $500 for LGEL violations, found that Douglas Long, who formerly served as Freeholder Deputy Director and presently chairs the Cumberland County Democratic Committee, violated the LGEL by voting in favor of appointing former Willingboro Mayor Jacqueline Jennings to head the purchasing office while he simultaneously served as Willingboro's Labor Counsel. According to its Notice of Violation, the Board determined that Long's vote in favor of Jennings' appointment constituted an official act where Long had an interest or involvement "that might reasonably be expected to impair his objectivity or independence of judgment."

Read more …

GOP Tax Plan Analysis

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Written by: Jay Edgar
Category: News
Created: December 19, 2017
No comments on “GOP Tax Plan Analysis”

(UPDATED FOR CURRENT VERSION OF BILL 12/20/2018) I've spent quite some time looking at how the GOP tax proposals will impact income tax rates. If you want to know how to determine the impact on your taxes I've developed an online calculator for you to use below. The major impacts of the proposals on taxpayers are:

      • Updated tax brackets with generally lower rates. Top rate has dropped from 39.6 to 37%.
      • Standard deduction has been doubled. This will reduce the number of people who itemize. Currently about 30% of filers itemize. The Tax Policy Center estimates that this will drop to 5% of filers.
      • Personal deduction has been eliminated.
      • State income tax and property tax deduction has been capped at $10,000 (combined). This impacts those who typically itemize.
      • Child tax (for children under 17) credit has been increased to $2,000 from the existing $1,000 per child. Income restrictions have been raised for this credit.
      • A credit of $500 for elder care or children 17 and over has been added. (I'm unsure if the income restrictions apply to this credit. I applied the restriction in the below calculator.)

Read more …

Letter to the Editor: Why So Cautious On Legalizing Marijuana

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Written by: Mark Richards
Category: Letters to Editor
Created: December 14, 2017
No comments on “Letter to the Editor: Why So Cautious On Legalizing Marijuana”

Originally published in the Suburban Trends, 12/13/2017

Regarding "Take time on legalizing marijuana" (Suburban Trends, Editorial, Dec. 10):

Why are so many in the journalism profession timid and lukewarm about defending individual liberty on all issues? A case in point would be the editorial in which you urge caution in repealing laws against marijuana in New Jersey.

Read more …

Libertarian movement promotes personal freedom

Details
Written by: Mark Richards
Category: Letters to Editor
Created: December 07, 2017
No comments on “Libertarian movement promotes personal freedom”

This letter was published in The Record, 12/6/2017

In the Dec. 5 edition of The Record, a letter appeared in which the writer insinuates that Libertarianism is somehow part and parcel of conservative Republican politics. Most Republicans I know are just as hostile towards the Libertarian pro-freedom viewpoint as Democrats on the left are. Neither group thinks that individuals should be allowed to make their own choices in life with regard to personal freedom or economic freedom. To their way of thinking, we exist to serve the greater collective; this is the basis for every authoritarian and totalitarian ideology that has ever blighted human history.

Read more …

  1. Moore's Views Don't Jibe With the Constitution
  2. Former Ridgewood Mayor and Manager each fined $100 for Local Government Ethics Law violation
  3. Government Forces Payments Through Coercion
  4. November General Meeting Proposed Agenda

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The Police Accountability Project is a committee of the NJ Libertarian Party. Its goal is to search out cases of police misconduct, file former Internal Affairs (IA) complaints when appropriate, and to publicize violations of rules and laws by the police. There may be other stories posted on the NJLP Police Internal Affairs Complaint Blog page.

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The NJ Libertarian Party is NJ's third largest political party, founded in 1972. Our vision is for a world in which all individuals have the right to exercise sole control over their own lives, and have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live as they choose. Our goal is to build a political party that elects Libertarians to public office, and moves public policy in a libertarian direction.

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