I transfered to Monmouth after graduating with an Associates Degree from Ocean County College. I've never lived in a dorm. When I began going to Monmouth I found myself in Pier Village. The place is like nothing I've ever seen. Its big, beautiful and surrounded by poverty.
From what I've seen of the place, my best guess is that the buildings were hastily put together and opened before they should have been. My first year here saw countless false alarms with the fire alarm system, the complete repaving of the entire complex and surrounding roads, the construction of about a dozen businesses downstairs and more nail pops than i thought possible. From what I hear, this beats living in a dorm by a long shot and I gotta say I wish I could take this mattress home with me.
Everyday I go downstairs and see the happy shoppers buzzing around going...I don't know where. There really isn't that much to do here. A couple of specialty shops and lots of food. The pizza's great but I'm not about to pay $90 for a Bruce Springstein t-shirt at Nirvana (which by the way is completely sacreligious to a homegrown Jersey boy). The whole point is that Pier Village is gilded and not all its cracked up to be.
Where I have to walk by one of the Mexicans cleaning the building daily, I'm filled with an overpowering guilty that only increases as I drive through the beat up streets of Long Branch. I can't help but think of Kubla Khan.
I live in a Shore town myself, in Toms River (which hugs the Barnegat Bay). I have to agree with my source that I would not want a Pier Village there. The last thing we need there is more tourist money. And as far as Long Branch goes, I seriously doubt Pier Village is going to improve the quality of life of the townspeople. The people with barred windows by the train tracks. Is Pier Village going to lower their taxes and improve their schools? Not if this becomes a resort town. Look at any resort town, you get the nice resorts where all the money comes in and stays and then there's the section where the people might as well be serfs.
Town councils lose sight of the real picture. They want what's best for their town and that is to have a place in there that everyone thinks fondly of. And of course they want their name to be associated with it so they can move on to bigger and better positions. Pier Village does not help the people in the town. Does it create jobs? Yes, for middle class people who live in Ocean and other surrounding towns. The fact remains that some people lost their homes so this place could go up and the poor stayed poor.
Monday, April 2, 2007
Pier Village: Long Branch's Salvation or the Shore's Damnation?
Pier Village is undeniably impressive. It stands alone on the shore front of Long Branch as a polished complex featuring bright colors and a scale unlike anything else in the town. Two deluxe apartment buildings, one of which houses a four-story parking garage that is unseen to the outside world, and 30 shops that give the place the feel of an ocean front Broad Street in Red Bank. However, venture too far down the road or even look across the street and it becomes more of a dystopian Xanadu than metropolitan hot spot.
Just across Ocean Ave lies a run-down, lower class neighbor that once also stood where Pier Village now rests. The road is freshly paved and features decorative masonry work at intersections, but the residents are clearly struggling to get by. Meanwhile, they must face this stately pleasure palace that rises high above any of their modest colonials. The average apartment in Pier Village rents for about $2500 dollars per month, making living there a pipe dream for much of the town.
So who lives in Pier Village? Businessmen, doctors, lawyers, airline pilots and college students. Standing in the lobby of the apartment building is to watch a parade of yuppies who seem like they would belong in New York City more than Long Branch. Students of Monmouth University are a frequent sight, as the school houses qualified students several apartments in Pier Village.
Frank Altman, a junior at Monmouth University, has been staying there since January. “It’s okay if you don’t like insulation,” says Altman. Altman says that his apartment has been having problems since winter. “The pipes froze every time the temperature dropped and the windows are so drafty it felt like a meat locker at night.”
Peter Perea, a senior at Monmouth University, stayed at Pier Village last year through the school. “Every morning at 7 am the noise started from them building a Gold’s Gym under my apartment,” says Clancy. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like there when they start those two new buildings.”
The buildings Perea refers to are the recently aannounced expansion of Pier Village, where two more retail/apartment buildings are plnned to be built on Ocean Ave, directly in front of the two existing buidlings. Pier Village developers, Applied Development Cos. have the full support of the town council to acquire more land through eminent domain if necessary according to the Alanticville.
“Everyone benefits from Pier Village, especially the rich,” adds Altman. “The little fish get eaten by the big fish, that’s life. The money this place is bringing to the town is more than worth it.”
“I kinda felt guilty looking around seeing the homes of the people who still live down the road,” says Perea. “They all have anti-eminent domain signs on their lawns so this place must seem like one of the four horsemen to them. I wouldn’t want a Pier Village in my town”
Monday, March 12, 2007
Monkeys from Hell
The Central Park Zoo is an incredible place. While nowhere near as big as other zoos in the region, it is still incredible to be able to watch a sea lion and glance over at skyscrapers. It is only a small part of the remarkable man-made oasis located in the heart of Manhattan, but it is awe inspiring none-the-less.
My girlfriend and I stumbled across the zoo quite by accident. We were on our way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and just happened to see the zoo and chose to go there instead. Paintings are great and all but we sure do love penguins. It was really nice until we found the tamarins.
Tamarins are cute little monkeys with very fuzzy bodies and hairless black faces. I have had a previous run-in with these primates at the Cape May Zoo. At that zoo I had wanted to the little guys to come over to where I was standing so I made a squeaking noise with my mouth. It work and a few scurried over. Then I made the sound again and they began screaming at me. They wouldn't stop the high pitched screech that put me off a bit and embarrassed the hell out of my girlfriend. They then became known as the "Pat Hating Monkeys".
This encounter with tamarins wasn't an better. They were behind glass so any squeaking from me would not incur their wrath, but they found another way to disturb me. When a walked up a cute little thing ran up to the glass and sat there on the limb on a tree instead the cage. I felt bad for him because it looked as though he had a spot of mange just below his neck on his back. Another tamarin ran up behind him and looked like he was going to groom his friend. But the first monkey pulled away. The second monkey was insistent and eventually found the sore spot on the other's back. He brushed the hair away and my girlfriend remarked "Oh, look he wants to help him." Then, as if on cue, the second tamarin bit into the injured tamarin's sore spot and ripped a piece of flesh from his back which he then ate.
Tamarins are not as cute as they look.
My girlfriend and I stumbled across the zoo quite by accident. We were on our way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and just happened to see the zoo and chose to go there instead. Paintings are great and all but we sure do love penguins. It was really nice until we found the tamarins.
Tamarins are cute little monkeys with very fuzzy bodies and hairless black faces. I have had a previous run-in with these primates at the Cape May Zoo. At that zoo I had wanted to the little guys to come over to where I was standing so I made a squeaking noise with my mouth. It work and a few scurried over. Then I made the sound again and they began screaming at me. They wouldn't stop the high pitched screech that put me off a bit and embarrassed the hell out of my girlfriend. They then became known as the "Pat Hating Monkeys".
This encounter with tamarins wasn't an better. They were behind glass so any squeaking from me would not incur their wrath, but they found another way to disturb me. When a walked up a cute little thing ran up to the glass and sat there on the limb on a tree instead the cage. I felt bad for him because it looked as though he had a spot of mange just below his neck on his back. Another tamarin ran up behind him and looked like he was going to groom his friend. But the first monkey pulled away. The second monkey was insistent and eventually found the sore spot on the other's back. He brushed the hair away and my girlfriend remarked "Oh, look he wants to help him." Then, as if on cue, the second tamarin bit into the injured tamarin's sore spot and ripped a piece of flesh from his back which he then ate.
Tamarins are not as cute as they look.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Internet and Newspapers
People need news. This is a simple fact that has guided the news media and made their work possible since the dawn of journalism. For decades, sitting with the morning newspaper to get news has been a tradition in millions of homes. It was as essential to many people's morning rituals as a cup of coffee. However with the rise of the Internet came Internet journalism. This medium has evolved quickly into a well-oiled machine that makes information available for free as soon as it happens. Newspapers remain a paper based medium that is only available every morning.
Information is now available almost instantly twenty-four hours a day on the Internet. Not only this, but the information is free most of the time. When faced with the option to learn about something for free as it happens, or to wait for the next day and pay for it, which would you choose?
The declining readership is doubly deadly to newspapers. Declining readership means declining sales. Consider all of the cost that goes into printing a newspaper. Hire a staff of editors, writers, photographers, buy a printing press, ink, paper, delivery systems and you're not even there yet. No one buys the paper, there is no way to afford getting the paper to the public. Sure a lot of the cost of printing a newspaper actually comes from advertising, but as readers leave so do the advertisers. The advertisers choose to go to where there product can get more exposure, be seen by more people, for less money. That is the Internet. Even newspaper mainstays such as classified ads and auto listings have moved to sites like Monster and Cars.com. At sites like these, employers can give more job details and access resumes while those selling used cars can post pictures for potential buyers.
Newspapers are not being completely left in the dust as they have begun publishing their articles on Web Sites. It is hard to find a newspaper that does not have an Internet edition. Whether it be a large, reputable paper such as The New York Times or The Washington Post, or local newspapers such as The Asbury Park Press and The Ocean County Observer. However, Business Week reports that even these ventures are not enough to help the newspapers continue to publish their paper editions.
Rupert Murdoch, media mogul at the head of News Corporation, believes writer Philip Meyer's assertion that the law issue of a newspaper will be printed some time in 2040. The future certainly looks grim for newspapers. Print is dying and it will be buried in a computer box.
Information is now available almost instantly twenty-four hours a day on the Internet. Not only this, but the information is free most of the time. When faced with the option to learn about something for free as it happens, or to wait for the next day and pay for it, which would you choose?
The declining readership is doubly deadly to newspapers. Declining readership means declining sales. Consider all of the cost that goes into printing a newspaper. Hire a staff of editors, writers, photographers, buy a printing press, ink, paper, delivery systems and you're not even there yet. No one buys the paper, there is no way to afford getting the paper to the public. Sure a lot of the cost of printing a newspaper actually comes from advertising, but as readers leave so do the advertisers. The advertisers choose to go to where there product can get more exposure, be seen by more people, for less money. That is the Internet. Even newspaper mainstays such as classified ads and auto listings have moved to sites like Monster and Cars.com. At sites like these, employers can give more job details and access resumes while those selling used cars can post pictures for potential buyers.
Newspapers are not being completely left in the dust as they have begun publishing their articles on Web Sites. It is hard to find a newspaper that does not have an Internet edition. Whether it be a large, reputable paper such as The New York Times or The Washington Post, or local newspapers such as The Asbury Park Press and The Ocean County Observer. However, Business Week reports that even these ventures are not enough to help the newspapers continue to publish their paper editions.
Rupert Murdoch, media mogul at the head of News Corporation, believes writer Philip Meyer's assertion that the law issue of a newspaper will be printed some time in 2040. The future certainly looks grim for newspapers. Print is dying and it will be buried in a computer box.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Ryan Humphrey Hates on Ice House
Colorful discs seem to hover on the walls. Bubbles of orange and blue, black and white, red and green placed in a flowing arrangement. These objects cannot be bubbles however because no bubbles could exist with so many holes. The Ice House Gallery at Monmouth University is currently displaying 'Divine Objects of Hatred - remix version 1.0' by Ryan Humphrey.
35-year-old Ryan Humphrey is an independent artist and contestant on Bravo's Top Design. The art he has created for this exhibit is unexpected and anything but ordinary. The gallery's walls are littered with canvas discs that have been brightly colored and then shot full of holes. Yes, with a gun. In fact it would seem that Humphrey used many guns ranging from handguns to rifles to shotguns. The gallery even has a video and free postcards of Humphrey's artistic process (him at the firing range).
The concept is undeniably intriguing, but the works are so numerous and similar that they almost begin to lose whatever sliver of meaning they may have had upon first impression. On top of this they are given bizarre names such as 'Officer Wilinski NYPD', 'Yoko Ono', and 'Nigga, nigga, nigga'. With names like these, one can't help but wonder if Humphrey's rage and violence might be a tad misguided.
Monmouth University sophomore Sarah Jamieson works at the gallery. The Communication major says "I know art is supposed to express an emotion, but I don't think this is a very good emotion." Jamieson went on to say, "It's kinda weird. He just shot them. I don't really think it's art."
Peter Perea, a senior History major at Monmouth University, disagrees with Jamieson's comments. "It's pretty cool." says Perea. "To take so much time to make these discs look so nice only to shoot them all to hell is really unique and inspired."
'Divine Objects of Hatred - remix version 1.0' by Ryan Humphrey will be on display at Monmouth University's Ice House Gallery until March 16, 2007. The exhibit is open to the public and admission is free.
35-year-old Ryan Humphrey is an independent artist and contestant on Bravo's Top Design. The art he has created for this exhibit is unexpected and anything but ordinary. The gallery's walls are littered with canvas discs that have been brightly colored and then shot full of holes. Yes, with a gun. In fact it would seem that Humphrey used many guns ranging from handguns to rifles to shotguns. The gallery even has a video and free postcards of Humphrey's artistic process (him at the firing range).
The concept is undeniably intriguing, but the works are so numerous and similar that they almost begin to lose whatever sliver of meaning they may have had upon first impression. On top of this they are given bizarre names such as 'Officer Wilinski NYPD', 'Yoko Ono', and 'Nigga, nigga, nigga'. With names like these, one can't help but wonder if Humphrey's rage and violence might be a tad misguided.
Monmouth University sophomore Sarah Jamieson works at the gallery. The Communication major says "I know art is supposed to express an emotion, but I don't think this is a very good emotion." Jamieson went on to say, "It's kinda weird. He just shot them. I don't really think it's art."
Peter Perea, a senior History major at Monmouth University, disagrees with Jamieson's comments. "It's pretty cool." says Perea. "To take so much time to make these discs look so nice only to shoot them all to hell is really unique and inspired."
'Divine Objects of Hatred - remix version 1.0' by Ryan Humphrey will be on display at Monmouth University's Ice House Gallery until March 16, 2007. The exhibit is open to the public and admission is free.
Monday, February 5, 2007
Fact Wins - 9/11
The World Trade Center did not collapse from the planes that were flown into them, they were set up with explosives for demolition. The Pentagon was never even hit by an airplane, it was a cruise missile. United Airlines flight 97 was actually shot down by military jet fighters. The men responsible for the worst terror attacks in United States history and the murder of nearly 3,000 Americans were not terrorists, they were agents of the American government.
According to Time magazine, a Scripps-Howard poll has found that 36% of American adults think it’s possible that the federal government had something to do with the 9/11 terror attacks. That means that over one-third of adults in this country think that a controlled demolition and cruise missile are completely logical explanations for one of the worst days in the nation’s history.
The Internet has been a huge source of these conspiracy theories. The Internet has helped Dylan Avery and Korey Rowe spread their theories in the documentary Loose Change. The movie explores such burning questions as “How did burning jet fuel bring down the WTC when jet fuel doesn’t burn hot enough to melt structural steel?” The fact is that the theorists ask a lot of valid questions and do their homework, just not very well.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology, an independent government-funded research agency, has conducted extensive research into the 9/11 terror attacks and has scientific evidence to dispute almost every claim. According to the NIST, the steel in the WTC didn’t need to melt to cause the building to collapse. The steel was softened by a 1800 degrees Fahrenheit inferno (structural steel melts at 2700 degrees Fahrenheit) to the point where it could no longer hold the floors above the blaze. This is just one example of how an organization of scientists and engineers have disproved the accusations of two twenty-something kids who initially were developing Loose Change as a work of fiction. Sounds like The Blair Witch Project with terrorists.
In his book 9/11: The Big Lie, French author Thierry Meyssan claims that a cruise missile was responsible for the attack on the Pentagon. According to the US State Department, the book has been published in 19 languages and is being translated into four more. The problem with this theory is that the remains of passengers from American Airlines flight 77 were found at the site. Add that to the fact that hundreds of people saw a plane hit the building. Mr. Meyssan also did all of his speculation from Europe and never saw the site or talked to a witness.
So on one hand we have a couple of kids who really wanted to make a fictional film and a French journalist who ignores facts and speculates from thousands of miles away. On the other we have the people we’ve chosen to lead our nation and a group of scientists and engineers. Who seems more qualified?
If you’re one of the 36% percent of Americans who believe the government is involved in this overly elaborate ruse, stop letting other people give you your opinion. Don’t just listen to the conspiracy theorists and for that matter don’t just listen to the government. Listen to the science. Listen to the undeniable logic. If you read everything that’s out there and not just the paranoid ranting the facts become clear as day.
On September 11, 2001 the United States was attacked by foreign aggressors. On September 12, 2001 the United States was attacked by foreign and domestic conspiracy fanatics.
According to Time magazine, a Scripps-Howard poll has found that 36% of American adults think it’s possible that the federal government had something to do with the 9/11 terror attacks. That means that over one-third of adults in this country think that a controlled demolition and cruise missile are completely logical explanations for one of the worst days in the nation’s history.
The Internet has been a huge source of these conspiracy theories. The Internet has helped Dylan Avery and Korey Rowe spread their theories in the documentary Loose Change. The movie explores such burning questions as “How did burning jet fuel bring down the WTC when jet fuel doesn’t burn hot enough to melt structural steel?” The fact is that the theorists ask a lot of valid questions and do their homework, just not very well.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology, an independent government-funded research agency, has conducted extensive research into the 9/11 terror attacks and has scientific evidence to dispute almost every claim. According to the NIST, the steel in the WTC didn’t need to melt to cause the building to collapse. The steel was softened by a 1800 degrees Fahrenheit inferno (structural steel melts at 2700 degrees Fahrenheit) to the point where it could no longer hold the floors above the blaze. This is just one example of how an organization of scientists and engineers have disproved the accusations of two twenty-something kids who initially were developing Loose Change as a work of fiction. Sounds like The Blair Witch Project with terrorists.
In his book 9/11: The Big Lie, French author Thierry Meyssan claims that a cruise missile was responsible for the attack on the Pentagon. According to the US State Department, the book has been published in 19 languages and is being translated into four more. The problem with this theory is that the remains of passengers from American Airlines flight 77 were found at the site. Add that to the fact that hundreds of people saw a plane hit the building. Mr. Meyssan also did all of his speculation from Europe and never saw the site or talked to a witness.
So on one hand we have a couple of kids who really wanted to make a fictional film and a French journalist who ignores facts and speculates from thousands of miles away. On the other we have the people we’ve chosen to lead our nation and a group of scientists and engineers. Who seems more qualified?
If you’re one of the 36% percent of Americans who believe the government is involved in this overly elaborate ruse, stop letting other people give you your opinion. Don’t just listen to the conspiracy theorists and for that matter don’t just listen to the government. Listen to the science. Listen to the undeniable logic. If you read everything that’s out there and not just the paranoid ranting the facts become clear as day.
On September 11, 2001 the United States was attacked by foreign aggressors. On September 12, 2001 the United States was attacked by foreign and domestic conspiracy fanatics.
Monday, January 29, 2007
"So You Call This Your Free Country..."
Imagine being able to take a trip to space. You wouldn't have to go throw the rigors of become an astronaut. A bit of training and then you'd be on your way. Companies like Oracle at making this dream a reality for the ridiculously wealthy. In 2005, Oracle held a contest where an average Joe could win a spot on one of these trips. Brian Emmett wound up winning the $138,000 prize and was ecstatic until he learned that he would have to claim the prize on his taxes. Emmett had to give up his dream of seeing space because he didn't have a spare $25,000 to fork over to the IRS.
A dream crushed by the federal government. It's reminiscent of when Oprah gave away a car to everyone in her audience in 2004. Those poor souls' good fortune left them $7,000 in tax debt. The government seems intent on ruining fun where ever they smell it. And if they can make a profit in the meantime, all the better in their eyes. Tax laws turn Uncle Sam from a symbol of freedom and democracy to a mob boss breaking legs until he gets his cut.
For example, take this bit of ridiculousness. A car company buys parts to get build a car, and they have to pay taxes on those parts. The car is then sold to a customer and that person must now pay taxes on the purchase. In a couple of years the buyer decides that he should really get his wife that minivan she's been nagging him for so he sells the car. Whoever buys the car from him must now pay taxes on it again. The new owner drives the car for a few years and then sells it again and taxes are paid again. The next owner drives the car until it does not work and then sells the car to a junkyard which must pay taxes on it. The car is gradually stripped for parts and each time a part is purchased, the customer must pay sales taxes. The point is that even just one car is taxed so many times that it can make your head spin. With the government sucking money out of us at every turn, how is there a multi-trillion dollar deficient?
Even with the government taxing pretty much everything in existence as many times as they can get away with, they still manage to spend more than they will ever have. If you do not have a throbbing headache right now, or are not outraged by this then you are part of the problem.
A dream crushed by the federal government. It's reminiscent of when Oprah gave away a car to everyone in her audience in 2004. Those poor souls' good fortune left them $7,000 in tax debt. The government seems intent on ruining fun where ever they smell it. And if they can make a profit in the meantime, all the better in their eyes. Tax laws turn Uncle Sam from a symbol of freedom and democracy to a mob boss breaking legs until he gets his cut.
For example, take this bit of ridiculousness. A car company buys parts to get build a car, and they have to pay taxes on those parts. The car is then sold to a customer and that person must now pay taxes on the purchase. In a couple of years the buyer decides that he should really get his wife that minivan she's been nagging him for so he sells the car. Whoever buys the car from him must now pay taxes on it again. The new owner drives the car for a few years and then sells it again and taxes are paid again. The next owner drives the car until it does not work and then sells the car to a junkyard which must pay taxes on it. The car is gradually stripped for parts and each time a part is purchased, the customer must pay sales taxes. The point is that even just one car is taxed so many times that it can make your head spin. With the government sucking money out of us at every turn, how is there a multi-trillion dollar deficient?
Even with the government taxing pretty much everything in existence as many times as they can get away with, they still manage to spend more than they will ever have. If you do not have a throbbing headache right now, or are not outraged by this then you are part of the problem.
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