Tag: new jersey

Anti-lockdown gym owner to ‘petty tyrant’ NJ governor: ‘The only way you’ll ever close these doors is when you close my casket’

“We have been open against unconstitutional shut down orders since May,” Smith wrote in a now-viral Instagram post over the weekend. “Not once have we flinched, and the petty tyrant of New Jersey governor Murphy has tried everything he could possibly think of to ruin us. Over seven months later we will open our doors every single day.”

He added: “No government official will ever tell me that I am not able to provide for my family. I do not answer to public servants – no matter what threats or punishments they impose. I am a free man. I do not ask for permission. I do not ask for forgiveness. You work for us. The only way you’ll ever close these doors is when you close my casket.”

The post comes with video in which Smith is seen holding up pieces of paper — which he presents to the camera and then discards one by one, “Subterranean Homesick Blues“-style — that send the same overall message.

“We have had our business license stripped,” the messages Smith holds aloft say. “We have had our doors locked and barricaded. We have been arrested and have over 60 citations.”

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New Jersey weighs ‘social equity’ tax on marijuana

New Jersey lawmakers may include a so-called social equity tax in the legislation establishing a legal market for recreational marijuana, according to reports.

Bills in the state Senate and Assembly would give cannabis regulators the authority to impose the “social equity excise fee,” which would help fund programs aimed at reducing racial disparities caused by drug laws.

The influential Legislative Black Caucus has lobbied for programs aimed at helping Black communities, which have been hard-hit by marijuana prohibition. Black residents are likelier to be arrested on marijuana charges than white residents, for example.

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NJ State Legislature Passes Ban On Paper Bags, Foam Food-Containers, And Plastic Straws

In addition to joining New York in some type of weird social experiment to see how high taxes can get before you drive all of your state’s citizens elsewhere, New Jersey has also decided to now ban both paper and plastic bags in the state.

We guess the crippling effect of Covid 19 on local businesses wasn’t enough – but now also seems like a great time to weigh them down with further regulations and higher costs. 

The state’s assembly and Senate passed a bill Thursday that bans LDPE plastic film bags, like the kind you get at the grocery store. It also bans the alternative – paper bags – at markets that are over 2,500 sq. feet in an attempt to get shoppers to bring their own bags. The same bill also bans polystyrene clamshell food containers and makes plastic straws only available “upon request” at restaurants, according to NorthJersey.com.

We’re guessing there’s going to be a lot of “requests”. 

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AG Grewal Announces Voting Fraud Charges Against Paterson Councilman Michael Jackson, Councilman-Elect Alex Mendez, and Two Other Men

Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal today announced voting fraud charges against Paterson City Councilman Michael Jackson, Councilman-Elect Alex Mendez, and two other men in connection with the May 12, 2020 special election in the City of Paterson.

All four men are charged with criminal conduct involving mail-in ballots during the election.  The investigation by the Attorney General’s Office of Public Integrity & Accountability (OPIA) began when the U.S. Postal Inspection Service alerted the Attorney General’s Office that hundreds of mail-in ballots were found in a mailbox in Paterson.  Numerous additional ballots were found in a mailbox in nearby Haledon.  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all voting in May 12 elections in New Jersey was done by mail-in ballots.

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