Tiger Scouts from Pack 104

The Tiger Scouts of Pack 104 turned the tables on JTown today and became the reporters grilling correspondent Matt Genovese.

The Tiger scouts asked a lot of questions about journalism and communications.

Some of the things that the scouts were interested in were what does it take to become reporter. Also what schooling is needed to become a reporter and where do our stories come from.

But of particular interst to the scouts was where is the reporting on superheros?? We discussed that Jackson has a number of heroes in town including our police officers, firefighters, EMTs and military personnel.

The scouts learned about asking the who, what, where, when and why questions to get to the bottom of every story.

SPECIAL JTOWN SCOUT REPORTERS:

Mason Kinlan

Connor Nolan

Sean Logan

Sean Noble

Christopher Steppat

Timothy Devita

Christian Parrish

Ryan Noble

Tommy Imperiale

Parin Arya

32 schools will compete over the next two weeks in a single elimination tournament.  Jackson Liberty is seeded #11 and will host #22 Raritan today at 3:45pm at home.

This year, Liberty and Memorial are seeded on opposite sides of the bracket, which would give Jackon the first ever SCT crosstown final, but the Lions have an uphill battle after tonight’s game, where the winner would play #6 Colts Neck, followed by a potential showdown with #3 Toms River South to follow.

Toms River South will also get a first round bye and Toms River North will play Point Beach.

In Softball, neither of Jackson’s two schools qualified for the tournament.

In Lacrosse, Memorial will play Rumson Fair Haven in the SCT final in Holmdel at 7pm, in an attempt to become the first Ocean County School to ever win that title.

In the girls lacrosse tournament, Jackson Memorial was knocked out in the second round 13-8 by Red Bank Catholic after a 14-10 first round win against Toms River North.     Jackson Liberty did not qualify for the tournament.

 
This year’s festival theme is “Protect Our Bay, Protect Our Future”. The Barnegat Bay is in trouble and it’s up to all of us to learn what it was like in the past, what happened to change it and what we can do to protect its future for the generations to come.

 
The Barnegat Bay Festival is a chance to enjoy not only a day filled with events that promote good environmental stewardship, including children’s hands-on activities, eco-friendly arts and crafts, festival food, and recreational activities, but the perfect opportunity to see the work of dozens of environmental organizations and meet the dedicated people who have been working for decades to educate and inform those living, working, and recreating in the Barnegat Bay watershed.

 
Be a part of our celebration as we name this year’s Guardians of the Barnegat Bay winners at a special noon-time presentation. We will honor those selected to represent the categories of Lifetime Achievement, Community Caretaker, and Government Leading by Example.

 
Learn all you can about protecting and preserving the Bay. Take an eco-journey through this beautiful waterfront park which will be filled with activities and exhibits for the young and the young at heart to celebrate the natural beauty and uses of the Barnegat Bay. Enjoy a canoe eco-tour (pre-registration required) or a pontoon boat ride on the Toms River. Take a kayak ride (special festival pricing) with Mermaid’s Cove Marina at the Summit Avenue beach. Relax to the traditional music of the Greater Pinelands Dulcimer Society, the Acoustic Musicians Guild, folk singer Alice Axe, or a special children’s performance by YOSI; touch sea life in the Atlantic City Aquarium touch tank, participate in one of the many interactive workshops for both kids (Talking Trash or Ink from Acorns) and adults (Going Native, Invasive Species, or Attracting Wildlife to your Backyard). Our Native Plant Sale is always a hit! Master gardeners will be on hand to answer all your questions. Be a part of Lavallette Elementary School’s “Save the Bay” Puzzle Project or find out why there are so many jellyfish in the Bay. There is so much to do and learn…and it’s FREE.

 
So if you are staying closer to home this summer…save gas and save money, but most importantly learn how you can protect our most treasured natural resource-the Barnegat Bay.

 
If you would like more information or would like to pre-register for the canoe eco-tour, please call Betsy Hyle, Special Events Coordinator at 732-255-0472 x. 4. Visit our website bbp.ocean.edu for a full list of all the events and activities.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/111406978900671/

This event will take place at the Jackson Branch on Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 2:00pm. This program is free and open to the public, but registration is requested. Space is limited, so please register early. To register, call the Jackson Branch at 732-928-4400 or go online at www.theoceancountylibrary.org. Registration is currently available.

Brick Memorial and Jackson will play each other again tomorrow at First Energy Park in Lakewood in the Ocean County Tournament championship final at 7pm

The measure, A-2023, comes after a federal ban was lifted last fall that reverses a 2006 congressional ban on the slaughter of horses as it withdrew funding for the government to inspect plants that butchered horses for consumption.

“New Jersey does not eat horse meat,” Dancer said. “We appreciate these magnificent animals for their grace and beauty and do not want them slaughtered in our state, nor permit the sale of horse meat in the Garden State where the State Animal is the horse.”

The bill would prohibit anyone from knowingly slaughtering or selling a horse for human consumption. Violators would be guilty of a disorderly persons offense with penalties up to $100 and 30 days imprisonment plus civil fines between $500 and $1,000 for each horse slaughtered or each carcass or meat product sold. The penalties and fines are consistent with the current state law in effect that bans the slaughter of man’s best friend, the dog, for human consumption of dog meat.

Dancer pointed to the recent incident of a champion horse rider and trainer in Pennsylvania who avoided prison by agreeing to enter a first-offender program after she was charged with selling retired race horses to a slaughter plant after promising their owners she would retrain the animals and find them a new home.

“Every cent of taxpayers’ money should be held accountable. That’s just common sense. And with hard working people in this state paying 20 percent more in property taxes in the last two years, they should not be forced to pay a nickel more because of any kind of government waste and fraud,” said Sweeney (D-Gloucester, Cumberland, Salem).

Media accounts last year highlighted an increase in the amount paid out through the pension disability system in the last few years, from $68 million in 2007, to $91.5 million in 2010. The increases came after a series of court decisions that expanded who might be eligible for pension disability. That, in turn, has created a greater opportunity for potential abuse of the system.

Under the bill, S1913, anyone applying for ordinary disability and accidental disability benefits must be certified as not only incapacitated for their former job, but also for another other available job that might be assigned for the same pay. In addition, in the Judicial Retirement System (JRS), the bill would establish an ordinary disability (needs 10 years of service to qualify) benefit at 1.5 percent of compensation multiplied by years of service with a minimum of 40 percent. Currently, JRS does not distinguish between ordinary or accident disability; it only has a disability retirement with a benefit of three-fourths of final salary.

For members of JRS, Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS) and State Police Retirement System (SPRS), an ordinary disability retirement would not be available until the member has attained 10 years of service instead of the current requirement of four years for PFRS and SPRS and nominal years for JRS. This is the current requirement for Public employees Retirement System (PERS) and Teachers’ Pension and Annuity Fund (TPAF).

“There is no question that there are individuals who have suffered serious work related injuries and are entitled to disability payments. At the same time, there are those looking to game the system at the expense of the taxpayer. We cannot allow that to continue to happen. The measures outlined in this bill will go a long way towards eliminating fraud in the system,” said Sweeney.

The bill would also establish a fraud unit within the Office of the Attorney General, for the prevention and identification of fraudulent disability pension claims and payments. Other changes to the current structure include that an application for accidental disability must be filed within two years, instead of the current five years, of the original traumatic event: Also, a temporary joint labor and management Accidental Disability Pension Review Committee would be created. The committee would study the current requirement that a member of TPAF, JRS, PERS, PFRS and SPRS must be permanently and totally disabled as a direct result of a traumatic event in order to be deemed eligible for the receipt of an accidental disability benefit and develop a recommendation for specific criteria.

“For some services, the term ‘user fee’ is just a clever way to avoid actually calling it what it is: property tax. Property taxes are high enough without local officials trying to come up with clever and new ways to raise them even more. The cap was put in place because New Jerseyans have had it with ever increasing property taxes. It shouldn’t be seen as simply something to get around,” said Sweeney (D-Gloucester, Cumberland, Salem).

The bill, S-1914, would prevent local officials from moving spending items traditionally covered by the property tax levy, like trash collection, off the property tax bill into a “user fee” to get around the state’s 2 percent property tax cap. Instead, services shifted from a property tax base to a “user fee” base would continue to be counted as part of the cap.

Since the enactment of the 2 percent cap in 2010, seventeen New Jersey municipalities have gone to referendum asking voters to override the cap, with several of those attempts tied to the creation of a new “user fees” to fund services that would be taken off the property tax bill if the vote failed, but would continue to be publicly provided as they were before. Current law isn’t clear about prohibiting this practice. The Senate President’s bill would make it clear that any services that get shifted out of the property tax base to a user fee are still subject to the 2 percent cap.

“Hard working families in this state need a break. They are already, on average, paying 20 percent more in property taxes under this administration. They don’t need their property taxes increased in other ways. When we eliminate these kinds of loopholes and implement our proposed 10 percent property tax cut, we are going to start to see real relief for New Jersey’s middle class,” added Sweeney.

The bill now heads to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

File Photo. JTOWN Magazine 2011.

As a result of voting conducted online by volunteer District Administrators around the world, the Little League International Board of Directors on Saturday approved a measure to create a new division of Little League Baseball. The vote took place at the annual Spring Meeting, held at the Little League Western Region Headquarters in San Bernardino, Calif.

Featuring a pitching distance of 50 feet and base paths of 70 feet, the new baseball division for players who are league-age 11-13 will be offered for the 2013 regular season. It will include postseason tournament opportunities, including a World Series.

The new baseball division will serve as a bridge between the current “Little League” size field (46-foot pitching distance, 60-foot base paths) and a standard baseball diamond with 60.5-foot pitching and 90-foot base paths.

It is the first new division of play in Little League since 1999, when Junior League Softball was added to the list of 12 current programs that are part of the Little League International Tournament. Little League Baseball and Softball games are played by more than 2.5 million boys and girls ages 4 to 18 in 80 countries.

Little League International is now preparing rules and regulations for regular season and tournament play. More information on this new division, including the site for its first World Series in August 2013, will be released in coming months.

“We want to thank all of the volunteers in our leagues and districts who participated in the 50-70 Pilot Program over the past two seasons,” Patrick Wilson, Senior Vice President of Operations and Program Development, said. “The input and opinions we received from them was invaluable in crafting the new division of play. We are pleased to be able to offer this new option to our local leagues around the world.”

The creation of the new division, and the ages that would be involved in it, was among several items on the agenda for a series of Round Table meetings held in recent months at various locations around the world. The agenda was provided to local leagues before the Round Tables, so volunteers could have input with their District Administrator on crafting the wording of the changes. Those District Administrators then voted online in April whether or not to send each individual measure to the International Board of Directors, or the Little League International Tournament Committee.

A total of 231 District Administrators voted for the measure to create the new division, or 67.54 percent of those casting votes. There were 111 District Administrators (32.46 percent) who voted against the measure.

In the case of a Rule or Regulation, a measure must receive at least 66.7 percent of the vote for it to be automatically acted upon by the International Board of Directors. That Board ratified the measure unanimously on Saturday in San Bernardino, as it did with all other measures receiving the minimum votes by District Administrators.

In the case of an International Tournament Rule, a measure requires at least 50 percent of the vote by District Administrators for it to be automatically considered by the International Tournament Committee.

“This is just one of the ways Little League gets its local volunteers involved in the decision-making process,” Mr. Wilson said. “Although our organization is very large, and Little League is played on six continents around the world by millions of children, we recognize the importance of receiving input from the local level.”

Also at that meeting, three new members of the International Board of Directors were formally elected: Darlene McLaughlin, of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Linda North, of Peachtree City, Ga.; and Kristian Palvia, of Skovde, Sweden. Each was nominated by their peers in the Canada Region, Southeast Region, and the Europe, Middle East and Africa Region, respectively, for a three-year term beginning this fall.

Stories regarding the nominations of Ms. McLaughlin, Ms. North, and Mr. Palvia, can be found at the links below.

“Although red light cameras were sold to the public as a way to make dangerous intersections safer, it’s become clear that municipalities are primarily interested in the revenues generated by the cameras through tickets and fines,” said Doherty. “There is little if any evidence that the use of red light cameras in New Jersey has reduced the number or severity of accidents at the intersections where they are used. When combined with serious questions regarding personal privacy and the process and constitutionality of being ticketed by a machine, I believe it’s time that we put this ill-conceived red light camera experiment to rest.”

The legislation prevents municipalities that do not currently use red light cameras from employing the systems, and would prohibit municipalities that already use the systems from renewing contracts with the vendors that operate and maintain them. Additionally, the bill removes the provision from current law that provides law enforcement with a 90-day time frame to issue tickets for violations of traffic control devices, including those generated by red light camera systems.

“It’s nearly impossible to challenge a ticket generated by a red light camera when it arrives in the mail weeks or even months after an alleged violation,” said Doherty. “When a police officer pulls you over, you have the opportunity to talk to the officer to explain why a ticket should not be issued or to make notes to challenge a ticket while the situation is still fresh in your mind. You don’t have those options with a camera. Who really remembers the exact details of one specific instance of passing through an intersection when an automatically generated ticket arrives in the mail 90 days later?”

Doherty noted that at least nine states have banned the use of automated red light camera ticketing systems due to privacy and constitutional concerns. Additionally, a number of local governments across the county that have employed cameras and automated ticketing systems have scrapped the cameras due to their ineffectiveness.

“People question the propriety of having governments and unaccountable vendors taking photos and videos of them and recording their location as they go about their lives,” said Doherty. “People should be free to travel without worrying that their every move is being tracked in a database somewhere. These systems represent a further encroachment of our civil liberties, all to help local politicians keep spending. It’s time to say enough’s enough and pull the plug on red light cameras.”

A passerby advised officers that she had seen a white male, approximately 5’6″ tall with a thin build and short brown hair wearing a black button down shirt with short sleeves, dark jeans and carrying a black back pack in the area when the alarm was heard.

If anyone has any further information or can identify this person, please contact Detective Robert Reiff at 732-928-1111.

How did you spend Mother’s Day in Jackson?  While most Jackson moms probably would never think of spending their day at Great Adventure, since many locals go there so often during the season, pop diva Mariah Carey and hubby Nic Cannon got their Mother’s Day thrills on at the park.   The pair, who are roller coaster fanatics even celebrated their wedding vows in 2008 at Six Flags Magic Mountain.    On Sunday,they rode Kingda Ka, the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster,  El Toro, the world’s highest wooden roller coaster plus the new stand up coaster Green Lantern, built in 2011 and Superman: Ultimate Flight.  Cannon’s mother joined them for the visit, and even took on a few coasters herself.

Although the pair’s one-year-old twins Monroe and Moroccan were not present, Carey took a moment during their whirlwind visit to greet a park guest with twins, while Cannon took the photo with the woman’s phone.

After the visit, Carey Tweeted, “Just left Six Flags, we had a mother’s day extravaganza, it was a+mazing..pictures+clip on the way!”

On Tuesday, the Jags will be playing Brick Memorial again at First Energy Park in Lakewood at 7pm for the Ocean County Tournament final.  Admission and parking is free.

Today’s game will also determine seeding for the 2012 Shore Conference Tournament, where Jackson can also be the top seed with a win this afternoon.  First pitch tonight is at 4:30pm at Brick Memorial.

Also, on Tuesday, Memorial’s boys lacrosse team will travel to Holmdel High School for the 2012 Shore Conference Tournament final against Rumson Fair Haven at 7pm as they try to become the first team from Ocean County to ever win that title.

Photo by Spot On Photography

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 conducts slingload operations with Airmen from the 621st Contingency Response Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., May 10. Both units were preparing for a Marine airpower demonstration at the 2012 JB MDL Open House and & Air Show, scheduled for May 12 and 13.

Photo by Rich D. Spot On Photography

by Ryan Throneberry

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst opened its doors to the public for the first day of a two-day open house and air show here May 12.

Approximately 120,000 people crowded onto the base’s airfield to witness aerial stunts and ground displays including demonstrations by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 Fighting Falcons and the U.S. Army Golden Knight parachute team.

Attendees put hand to heart at the start of the show as a Golden Knight parachutist floated to the ground with the American flag streaming behind him to the tune of the nation’s anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

“My favorite part was the golden knight demonstration.” said Patrick Brown, a junior ROTC member who traveled from Coatesville, Pa., for the first open house since the merger of McGuire Air Force Base, Fort Dix and Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst in October 2009. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

The myriad static displays and aerial displays reflected the now-joint base missions, representing each of the Department of Defense’s branches of service as well as numerous civilian aircraft.

The show included displays such as the U.S. Coast Guard strike team, the historic DAV B-25B, FedEx Airbus, U.S. Marine CH-53D Sea Stallion helicopter, U.S. Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, U.S. Navy C-9 and many more.

“We were so glad to come out to see all the different displays,” said Sandra Kraft, wife of retired Chief Master Sgt. Andrew Kraft. “My husband spent 30 years in the Air Force and this air show was a great way for us to maintain a connection to the service.”

Vendors touted their wares to the multitudes selling an array of food items and memorabilia amid a fair-like atmosphere designed to entertain both children and adults alike. Joint-base personnel joined in the festivities alongside visitors, turning their heads and pointing skyward in unison as each new demonstration flew past.

“I have to admit, the Thunderbirds did scare me because they are so loud and fast,” said Daria Sbraccia, 12, from Roeling, N.J. “This was my first air show and I can’t believe all the cool things I’ve seen here.”

The crowd began to thin as the afternoon came to a close; base personnel and vendors began preparing for a pause in operations until the following and final day of JB MDL’s inaugural Open House and Air Show.

“I hope it’s not another four years until the next air show at JB MDL,” said Dave Barrett, CBS News correspondent from New York City. “This was terrific. I heard stories all day from service members about why they joined. I think it’s important for people to hear those stories.”

Visit Spot On Photography on facebook for more photos of the 2012 airshow.

Matt Thaiss hits league leading 6th home run of season.

Alex Daniele pitched 5 innings up shutout baseball against the Toms River North Mariners, just one day after the Mariners eliminated Jackson Liberty and exactly one year after the death of teammate James Volpe one year ago.

Memorial scored 4 runs in the bottom of the first inning on three walks and a hit batter by Mariner starter Karl Blum.   In the second inning, after walking Joe Ogren, the wild Blum was relieved and replaced by Steve Slagmolen.   In hindsight, another walk might have been preferable as catcher, Matt Thais drilled a pitch by Slagmolen deep over the right field fence for a two-run home run, his sixth of the year, including one at First Energy Park earlier in the season against Jackson Liberty.

The Mariners put up two runs in the top of the 7th, but the Jaguars won the game 8-2 as pitching mistakes all day long spoiled North’s chances to advance.

The Jaguars will face off against Brick Memorial  in the Ocean County Tournament at First Energy Park on Tuesday, after Brick Memorial upset Toms River South and John Leiter, nephew of former New York Yankees brothers Mark and Al Leiter.

The Jaguars and Indians are in a dead heat race for the Class A South title which will be settled once and for all on Monday night.

Check out more photos from this game on the JTOWN Magazine Facebook page.

John Holland pitched valiantly in defeat, going 6.2 innings, striking out 4, scattering 8 hits and walking only 1.

Toms River North with strike first in the top of the 3rd inning when the Mariners touched up Holland for back-to-back doubles.

The Lions answered in the bottom of the 3rd by loading the bases with two outs. Holland would hit a 2-out ground ball to third base for what was sure to be the 3rd out of the inning. Vin Sica, hustling from 2nd, beat the 3rd baseman to the base, thus allowing Angel Garced to score from third.

The big blow for the Mariners came in the top of the 6th inning when Karl Blum hit a 1-out 2-run homerun that just snuck inside the right field foul pole.

The Mariners took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 7th. Vin Sica led off the inning with a base on balls followed by an Ariel Rivera fly out, a John Holland single and a Tyler Pallante walk. With the bases loaded and only one out, Brendan Benecke beat out an infield single to cut the deficit to 1. However, James Sofield would follow with a game-ending double play on a hard hit ball to second base. The Mariner 2nd baseman made an outstanding play on a ball that took a wicked hop up near his shoulders.

The Lions now focus their attention to the Shore Conference tournament, which is set to begin Wednesday, May 16th.

That’s because McCoy brought a lot of new visitors to Jackson, Major League Baseball scouts from several different teams.  They all came to see McCoy pitch as they have all season.  Scouts from the Reds, Yankees, Phillies and others with their radar guns in one hand, stop watches and notepads in the other.   The 17 year old pitcher from Barnegat is committed to Wake Forest, but he’s on the radar of several major league clubs in this June’s MLB draft.  They all came to see his 90 mile per hour fastball.

They saw it on Sunday, but they also saw the pitching performance of Brandon Holup who shutout McCoy’s Bengals and handed him his second loss of the season and an elimination from the tournament.   Holup pitched a complete game and struck out 7 compared to McCoy’s 4 strikeouts.

In the sixth inning, the Jaguars got runners on base by playing good, hard baseball.  Nick Petrizzo led off with a single up the middle and was moved over to second base on a bunt by Ed Guippone.   While the scouts fastened their eyes on McCoy as Joe Ogren went up to bat, few of them probably expected what happened next.   He ripped an 0-1 fastball McCoy left hanging down the left field line, driving in Petrizzo to take a 1-0 lead.   It was only the second earned run against McCoy this season.

The Jaguars advanced to the semifinal round of the Ocean County Tournament.