Remember back to one of Governor Christie's earlier lines of nonsense about "strings being attached" to stimulus money - but only to pander as we all know that what Christie wants for everyone else and what Christie's rules are for himself are two very different things:
Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney and others blasted Christie on Friday for reportedly saying he would refuse federal Recovery Act dollars if there would be strings attached.
Fast forward to the recent news that Facebook bazillionaire Mark Zuckerberg is donating $100 million to Newark for education. Christie is all smiles on his Oprah tour, lying talking about how much he really truly cares about education or some other nonsense that his actions clearly contradict.
Barocas, Legal Director of NJ's ACLU, suggests our Governor look in the mirror, and our Senate President's words ring hollow. - promoted by Rosi
It didn't take long for my feelings of horror and sadness at the suicide of Tyler Clementi to turn into anger - anger not just at the unfeeling young students who so cruelly invaded Tyler's privacy, but at our state's leaders who, through their refusal to provide gay and lesbian citizens with full equality, have stigmatized gay and lesbian relationships and set the tone for tragedies like this to occur.
A line from my testimony to the New Jersey legislature during the 2009 marriage equality debate echoed hauntingly in my mind:
"When the state itself segregates people, it grants the rest of society permission to do the same. Through its example, the legislature excuses bigotry and emboldens bullies."
CNN is reporting (via the Breaking News banner) that a body pulled from the Hudson River has been identified as violinist, Ridgewood resident, and Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi, 18, the victim both of an apparent suicide jump off the George Washington Bridge and of two classmates who broadcast a secretly recorded private sexual encounter over the internet.
At Blue Jersey, we're subdued today, so troubled by apparent cruelty, so saddened by the loss of a talented young man getting ready for the world at our state's university. More than anything, we want to join you in any efforts toward strengthening our young people - all our young people - so that we don't miss out on what glory they can bring to us with their hopes, their dreams, and their long, long lives.
Rest in Peace, Tyler Clementi. We've got you, little brother.
As details of the Rutgers University cyber/voyeur/bullying tragedy continue to emerge, a nation comes to grips with the shocking suicide of Tyler Clementi.
#TylerClementi Twitter feed
Evidence suggests the harassment by his roommate was chronic and that Clementi possibly reached out for advice about the invasive bullying just hours before his apparent suicide. Gawker:
Though not as bothered with his roommate's actions as he likely should have been (Clementi) is clearly disturbed by the disregard for his privacy-and the bigoted disgust-shown by both his roommate and the people commenting on his roommate's Facebook page "with things like 'how did you manage to go back in there?' 'are you ok?'" He says he'll file a roommate change request form, and "see what [the school] can offer" him.
Clearly it's a ghoulish intersection of voyeurism and cyber-bullying at play here. After all, "Being brave on the internet is one thing-facing a privacy-free dorm full of bigots, day in, day out, is another thing entirely."
NJ Senator Loretta Weinberg suggests that, " this terrible tragedy demonstrates a bigger problem. Despite anti-bullying laws and efforts to teach children tolerance and acceptance, unprovoked acts of cruelty continue to take place, resulting in tragic deaths of youngsters across our country (like this.)"
Students at RU: "stunned, angry." Photo courtesy Santiago Melli-Huber
I awoke to 100+ email messages about this incident (see sampling below the fold) and the "seizure of conscience" it evoked feels reminiscent of Matthew Shepherd's murder in 1998.
It's too early for the blame game or for silver linings, I can't help but hope this incident spurns our own legislature in Trenton to renew their commitment to anti-bullying legislation to protect youngsters from the viral viciousness which led to Tyler Clementi's death.
Tyler Clementi, a violinist and student at Rutgers University, is the man police believe jumped to his death off the south walk of the George Washington Bridge last Wednesday night. His body has not been found, but a wallet was left. He was 18 years old.
Tyler: The story is still developing, but all signs point to Clementi's suicide, and tie his death to his humiliation by two fellow students, who police believe set up hidden cameras in his dorm room on the Davidson campus, recorded a sexual encounter, then broadcast it widely via the internet. The students, Dharun Ravi of Plainsboro and Molly Wei of Princeton, have been charged with invasion of privacy.
Asher: Last week, Houston 8th-grader Asher Brown shot himself in the head after what his parents say was relentless bullying. Picked on because of his size, his religion and because he didn't have the fashionable shoes. Some kids also said he was gay, and performed mock sex acts on him in gym.
Chris: This week, at the University of Michigan, the school's first openly gay student body president - Chris Armstrong - is the subject of a breathless, angry blog written by alumnus Andrew Shirvell, a Michigan Assistant Attorney General who describes himself as a "Christian-American." Chris Armstrong Watch is creepy as hell. CNN's Anderson Cooper interviewed Shirvell last night and nailed him as "obsessed with this young gay man." The video is must watch, a view of "Christianity" full of sick obsession and - my read - terrifying sexual jealousy.
The stakes: These are the stakes in all equality questions. It's why life and death are tied by advocates to such docile domestic issues as "marriage" and "kids." We look at people and decide they're allowed only so much of what we think is ours to dole out as we please. If you don't see people as equals, it's easy to depersonalize them, reduce them to losers, or to jokes. Not for you - you're not worth it. Stealing from people's humanity, you may not know how much you take. High price. Tyler Clementi may have paid that for us. And Asher Brown, 13. That crazypants in Michigan wants Chris Armstrong to pay it, or he wants something else entirely. But this shit isn't funny. It never was.
I love what you've done for daytime TV (not that I get a chance to watch very often); I love the role model you are for female executives and entrepreneurs; and I love the national spotlight you put on our Newark schools and the huge monetary gift they've just received!
But I couldn't help but wince just a little when you gave that big hug to our New Jersey Governor! find out more below the fold
The timing of Mark Zuckerberg's mega-gift to the City of Newark is interestingly timed for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the opening Friday of the documentary Waiting for Superman, which strongly advocates charter schools as educational saviors and specifically makes a star of Washington, D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. Rhee may indeed have a key role in the reform Mayor Cory Booker will seek to transact with Zuckerberg's gift, and the mayor is a strong supporter of charters. So, here are two clips from this morning's Meet the Press as they broadcast from New York City and the 2-day Education Nation Summit. Guests, along with Rhee, included Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, Robert Bobb, Robert Emergency Financial Manager of the Detroit Public Schools, and Arne Duncan, US Secretary of Education. Waiting for Superman and Zuckerberg's gift were part of the discussion.
Well, 26-year-old facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million gift to Newark now has a name: "Start Up Education Foundation". The Oprah Winfrey program that airs live in Chicago at 10am their time has now just ended, though New Jerseyans won't see the broadcast until 4pm today, on ABC.
We do know - because Star-Ledger sent reporters to Chicago to watch in real time - that there was a standing O in Oprah's audience (they are given to standing ovations, and tears, for what it's worth). And that US Education Commission Arne Duncan (last read about as the recipient of messages in NJ's bungled Race to the Top application) called in and said, "I'm really proud of these guys," and that he was talking about both Cory Booker and Chris Christie. Though, it's hard to grasp what, outside of political opportunism, put Christie on Oprah's stage, on her air, and in Commissioner Duncan's good wishes. This gift is so obviously Zuckerberg's statement of faith in Booker, and Booker's Newark, that I'm not sure how Christie deserves the spotlight. But then, I haven't seen the show yet.
Zuckerberg distanced himself from any talk that his timing was set to misdirect attention from The Social Network, a feature film opening next week about how he stole facebook from his Harvard classmates. I think the timing is more likely related to the release (today) of the pro-charter Waiting for Superman, which positions charter schools as the savior of urban minority kids. And of course, the political troubles both Booker and Christie leave behind at home this week.
The Oprah Show, which flashes on Garden State screens in just a few hours, features the Oprah-adulation of Booker you expect (she's given millions herself to Booker's Newark), but also features a warm hug from herself to the Governor. Makes me wonder if her people prepped her to understand that while we're talking $100 million, he just pulled a $400 million dollar rug out from the rest of New Jersey's kids.
Mayor Booker doesn't use twitter to replace anything, he uses it to supplement the work he would be doing anyway and amplify the reach of the message in the process.
The Chris Christie transition team yesterday flipped the switch and unveiled their new transition website, launched a new facebook page and went live with the @govchristie twitter account for the Governor-elect yesterday. Here's a screenshot:
They have bios about the new Governor/Lieutenant Governor, news from the new administration, the ability for people to give feedback and comments, a chance to apply for employment and the chance to send a greeting to the new Governor. The website also has a blog and rss feed. I like seeing the new administration continue to embrace social media. You can see the Transition 2010 page here.
Court users can sign up for breaking news alerts via short message service (SMS) text alerts on their cell phones. Users sign up for the service through a link on the Judiciary home page, njcourts.com. The text messages will announce unscheduled court closings and other high priority information so that users who are not in the office or at home in front of their computers will receive the information in real time on their cell phones. The Judiciary also has begun using Twitter to send short "tweets" about breaking court news. To sign up for either of these options, users can click on the SMS or Twitter links on the Judiciary home page. Those links will take them to the appropriate Web sites to sign up for those services.
Facebook users can join the group "New Jersey Courts" to see press releases, court information and photos of court events. The Judiciary's Facebook page is updated daily and the links can be shared with others who are not currently members of the group.
Finally, the Judiciary has begun posting videos on YouTube for court users to learn more about the courts. Topics covered by the videos include the Judiciary's mortgage foreclosure mediation program and the Veteran's Assistance Project. Future videos will address help available for self-represented litigants and volunteer opportunities. To find video clips about the New Jersey courts, go to youtube.com/njcourts.
If you've been enjoying the Republican Primary campaign for Governor via traditional media, you're in for a treat. The food fight has spilled over to the intertubes. First, it's facebook surrogates gone wild between. Here we have an exchange between Lonegan Consultant Rick Shafton and Christie brother Todd Christie:
On April 6, Todd Christie sent Shaftan a private message on Facebook.com, writing "Can't wait to dance on your political grave."
Three days later, Shaftan responded, "Lighten up dude. This is nothing compared to what's coming up. It just gets better!"
Todd Christie wrote back with what Shaftan took as an ominous message: "This is fun for you messing with peoples lives. Payback comes in many forms,,,,at any time. Enjoy."
Ah family. Montclair State University political science professor Brigid Harrison talked about the difference when it's family involved in a situation:
"Typically what a candidate can do in this situation is fire that staff member and distance themselves from that person's name and therefore abdicate any responsibility," she said. "It's really tricky to fire your brother."
Even though the apparent timeline shows Todd Christie making first contact, the Christie campaign is of course placing blame:
"This is ridiculous - a paid campaign staffer initiating and then purposefully provoking an opponent's family member in an online chat, and then forwarding the exchange to the media. This is nothing more than a distraction from the real issues of the campaign," he said.
So by real issues they mean talking about the monitor contracts? Anyway, they didn't stop at facebook because we now have Lonegan needling Christie on Twitter. After their teabagging together in Morristown, Lonegan sent out this tweet:
Chris Christie booed in his own backyard at the Morristown Tea Party
- Steve Lonegan (@lonegan)
I don't think Christie will care that he was booed if he wins the primary, but it's still providing some good entertainment as they learn to incorporate technology into their campaigns.
In your face. Seeking to establish an ongoing dialogue with tech-savvy constituents, U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo now has a Facebook page.
LoBiondo has asked all South Jersey residents to add him as a "friend" on the social-networking Web site.
The goal, he said, is to update these people as to important issues.
"As different technologies and methods evolve, it is pertinent that I examine and employ what would work effectively and efficiently to be as accessible as possible in as many ways as possible," said LoBiondo, R-2nd Dist., of Ventnor.
Be sure to "poke" him next time you're on Facebook.
Did you buy a newspaper today? And if you didn't, what would get you to buy one?
A 24-year-old reporter for the print daily Fairbanks News Daily-Miner in Alaska started a massive, national facebook event: National Buy a Newspaper Day. And it's today. It's a hopeful effort, which now has its own website and thousands of people signed on to hit the news stands.
These days, facebook cuts across all demographic and age groups. But it's clear that reporter Chris Freiberg was targeting mainly people his own age, given that the social networking site was started by college students to connect first Harvard students, then Ivy Leaguers, then the rest of us, to each other.
But Huffington Post today has a great piece today in which Freiberg nails newspapers for doing almost nothing to engage people his age:
"It makes no sense, but newspapers aren't targeting Generation Y," Chris Freiberg told Huffington Post. "They aren't really trying to understand the lifestyle of young people today, or how integral websites like Facebook and MySpace are to their daily lives. I believe the younger generation would learn to love newspapers, if newspapers would talk directly to them."
Today, my Star-Ledger landed with a very minor thud on my front steps, just as it does every day. And a quick look at its ever-shrinking news hole showed no coverage of Freiberg's day celebrating print journalism. They missed an opportunity.
Here are some other things facebook users said about all this, quoted by HuffPo's Diane Tucker:
Can I engage with a newspaper? Can I filter it to send me only what I find useful? Can I easily add my reviews and discuss articles with fellow readers? Times are a changing. Newspapers should change, too. -- Nick Wolf
With everyone trying to "go green" these days, why should we encourage newspapers? Besides, my local paper posts their news stories online -- free, environmentally friendly, and convenient.
-- Rosemarie Hudak
Buy a newspaper every day. Buy a couple! Get some different perspectives, and maybe we'll all be better informed.
-- Mark Rosen
I worked as a graphic artist for a newspaper for 13 years. Then they sent my job (and 90 others) to India. Maybe newspapers should reach out to India for new subscribers.
-- Lana Hornyak
Did National Buy a Newspaper Day get covered in any of New Jersey's newspapers? Anybody see any coverage? I'm not in Freiberg's demographic anymore, but for those of you who are, a question:
What can NJ's newspapers do to get you to buy them and to read them? Drop your thoughts in Comments ... good or bad.
Christopher Petronzio, who works in the Shade Tree and Parks Commission and volunteers as a firefighter, says the comments posted on the popular Internet networking site were taken out of context and had nothing to do with his job. Rather, he said, the borough is retaliating against him because he is an active member of a union that is suing the borough for unfair labor practices.
"What they did was they suspended me for something that was done on my time, not on theirs," he said.
Petronzio, who has more than 200 Facebook friends - including borough employees, a councilman and a former councilman - posted a greeting yesterday, saying, "Chris would like to wish everyone a happy James Earl Ray day."
James Earl Ray is the man who assassinated King.
Petronzio's Facebook page also included an advertisement for Kentucky Fried Chicken superimposed on a picture of the White House. He also posted a racist slur referring to President Obama, Iacono said.
This will be a legal case for sure and the township admits they're dealing with an issue that isn't very clear:
"This is obviously a gray area," Iacono said. "This is his personal Web page, and it?s not really any of our business until it's brought to our attention. Our concern is that it was brought to our attention."
The worker says he wants to look into his first amendment rights being violated. The County Prosecutor is looking into whether it's a bias crime.
Separate from the legal issues of whether it can be used against you, I just make it a general rule not to put something out there that could blow back in my face. We are certainly going to see more instances of information posted by people in public forums possibly being used against them.
I was told social networking sites are a gold mine for information when recently talking to a company that does background checks. When I managed campaigns, I used to tell my candidates, if you don't' want to defend it, don't say it. I guess you can modify that for technology and say don't post it either now.
The Assembly Democrats use video, Facebook and direct email through their website.
The Assembly GOP has video, email signups and rss feeds to keep people informed.
The Senate GOP lists Twitter, Youtube, Digg and Facebook as platforms they use to communicate and also provide for RSS feed sign ups.
The Senate Democrats allow for email updates, but they seem to have the furthest distance to go toward embracing new media efforts.
This recap says nothing about the efforts of individual members to embrace new media platforms. Now the debate about the effectiveness of the medium can ensue.
UPDATE: At 6:30 this morning we are up to 229 members, another 16. In the last week we've now added 50! Be sure to invite all your NJ Facebook Friends to become fans of Blue Jersey.
OK, folks. We've increased our Facebook "fans" by 35 people in the past week (now at 213), but we're looking for more. Many of you are already with us (if you are not, hurry up and do it!) and have the ability to invite others to join.
To really push Blue Jersey to the next level we need to have more diarists, more commenters, more front page writers. One of the ways to do that is through social networking sites.
So please go to the Blue Jersey Facebook Page and look on the right hand side for a link that says, "Invite People To Join."
Click on it and invite like-minded friends from NJ to become a fan of Blue Jersey, and to become a diarist or commenter. The more people who are active and involved with their different opinions, interests and activities the more effective our little blog will be out in the real world.
So invite people to join the Facebook page. And while you're at it, invite them to get a screen name here on the true home of Blue Jersey and get posting!
I'm a big fan of campaigns embracing new technologies to help perform traditional campaign functions. In today's campaign world, it's about more than just putting up a website. A contest for an ad is nothing new, but getting notified of a blogad contest by email through the Adler campaign's facebook group is certainly a concept that can be successfully replicated...
Do you ever see ads on websites, and think that you would do a better job at designing them? If so, enter the contest to design the first BlogAd for the Adler for Congress team!
To me, this is a great idea. As a campaign, you engage your supporters, support the netroots and encourage people to focus on how they can better elect the candidate to office without making the reader suffer through a press release to do it. It doesn't just have to be this idea with this platform. Campaigns can capitalize on other social networking platforms to reinforce the general campaign message in front of a different potential audience.
It's important to note that while technology will not replace traditional campaign tactics such as door knocking and phone calls, it certainly can assist and enhance those efforts. Technology can amplify the campaigns message across many mediums before numerous audiences. It's another tool at your disposal to help get the job done.
In the recent diaries, you can see a video blog diary by candidate Tom Wyka utilizing the youtube platform so that people who are lazy like me and don't want to read a complete message all of the time can click play to watch a video of him giving a clear explanation of money in politics.
The Andrews for senate campaign has capitalized on the skills of Jay Lassiter and a handy dandy youtube account to incorporate videoblogging giving us a behind the scenes look at a campaign for Senate along with having a facebook group. I've gotten emails about their latest videos and last week I got a message through the facebook group inviting supporters to the filming of a TV commercial. The Lautenberg re-election campaign also utilizes a facebook page allowing people to join and show their support.
Many candidates have attempted to engage the netroots through posts here on BlueJersey and other national blogs. We thank them for that and encourage them to come back frequently to continue the conversation. BlueJersey is also engaging people with technology, so feel free to follow us on Twittter and join our myspace or facebook groups.
I hope more campaigns will follow the lead of these candidates and Blue Jersey by continuing to engage technology as a tool to help enhance the great work they are already doing.
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