Sussex County, NJ Focus

Tod Theise for Congress:

Here is Tod Theise's statement on why he is running:

I'm running for Congress in the 5th Congressional District because I believe Scott Garrett is out of touch with the values we share. While I harbor no personal animosity toward Scott, I am often left scratching my head at the votes he casts and the priorities he pursues.

Our nation's economic collapse thoroughly exposed Scott Garrett's disconnect with the working familes he was elected to represent. Even in the face of Wall Street's unbridled fleecing of the American economy, Scott continues to serve as the apologist-in-chief for Big Finance.

He continues to push the same discredited agenda of reckless deregulation that drove our economy off a cliff. He continues to advocate for privatizing social security. He even voted against extending unemployment benefits for families suffering through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression while advocating for millionaire Wall Street execs to get lucrative bonuses because, according to Scott, they "earned" them.

If you're looking for a logical reason for Scott's servitude to Wall Street, you need only look at the sources that fund his campaign. His campaign finance reports read like a who's who of corporate lobbyists and entities that directly benefit from his lock-step votes. Moreover, Scott sits on the United States House Committee on Financial Services (or House Banking Committee), which oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries. The Committee also oversees the work of the Federal Reserve, the United States Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and other financial services regulators (see sourcewatch.org). How can anyone objectively regulate Big Finance when their political lifeblood flows from these very sources?


For Scott Garrett the golden rule is "Wall Street plays and Main Street pays."

Aside from national issues like financial reform, New Jersey faces a particular challenge that has plagued us for decades. New Jersey gets only 61 cents back on every federal tax dollar we send to Washington. For decades we have ranked dead last out of all 50 states in this regard. Given our current financial crisis and the brutal budget cuts we are enduring, we can't go on paying the freight for other states -- some of whom get back as much as twice what they pay in federal taxes. It's about time someone took the gloves off in Congress and fought for New Jersey taxpayers.

My FAIR SHARE TAX ACT will require that any state receiving less than 75 cents back on each federal tax dollar be refunded the difference between their return and the 75 cent baseline. In new Jersey's case, taxpayers would be refunded the difference between our pathetic 61 cents and the 75 cent baseline, which comes to 14 cents.

That 14 cent per tax dollar refund represents $9.8 billion that would come back to New Jersey. Can you imagine what an impact these funds would have on preserving our quality of life? I've outlined the plan in full detail (including a funding mechanism that won't cause other states to oppose the bill) in the "Tax Fairness" section. I will go to Washington and do something no on else has had the guts to do -- get back our fair share!

I look forward to meeting my friends and neighbors during the campaign and listening to your concerns.

To find out more, go to Tod's website.


Here's a local blog covering Sussex and neighboring counties:

Blog the Fifth: Covering Representative Scott Garrett and politics within the 5th District & New Jersey


You can find local events in Sussex County from the Sussex County Democratic Party Calendar and the Sussex County website.


Write a letter and let you opinion be known!

If you don't speak out, your opinion won't be heard. And believe me, right wing tea baggers LOVE to tell the media their extremist opinions. We need you to speak out to counter right wing extremism. If there is any issue you feel strongly about, please write a letter to the editor expressing your opinion.

Use these addresses to contact the newspaper of your choice!

All letters (including those sent by email) must include your full name, address and telephone number or they will not be published.

The New Jersey Herald
2 Spring Street
P.O. Box 10
Newton, NJ 07860
(973)383-1500
Email: comments@njherald.com

The Advertiser News
The Sparta Independent
The Township Journal
Straus Newspapers
33 D Wilson Drive
Sparta, NJ 07871
(973)300-0890
Submit a letter online: https://secure.townnews.com/strausnews.com/forms/letter.php
Email: Njoffice@strausnews.com

The Daily Record
Letters to the Editor
Daily Record
800 Jefferson Road
Parsippany, NJ 07054
Fax letters to: 973/428-6666
Submit a letter online: http://www.dailyrecord.com/customerservice/forms/letters.htm

The Star-Ledger
Editorial Department
The Star-Ledger
1 Star-Ledger Plaza, Newark, NJ 07102-1200.
Email: eletters@starledger.com


Northwest New Jersey for Democracy
If you are a progressive Democrat or Independent living in Northwest NJ, you know that like-minded neighbors might be hard to find. Maybe it seems that this red part of a blue state is an island of conservative thinking. But - you are not alone, there are plenty of us, and we aren't afraid to be heard.

Join the group.

Join the discussion at our Yahoo! Group.

Other local resources:
Warren County Democratic Committee
Morris County Democratic Committee
Sussex County Democratic Committee


The Vernon Township Democratic Municipal Committee

The Vernon Township Democratic Municipal Committee is the Vernon branch of the Sussex County Democratic Committee. Our mission is to promote the Democratic cause and develop the local Democratic organization to help elect Democrats at all levels of government. While we are naturally particularly interested in local Vernon government, we are also concerned with county, state, and national affairs.

Although voting membership is by election or appointment, meetings are open to all, and you don't have to be a voting member to be active in the Committee's work. There are committee openings in some districts, so if you are interested in serving as a committee member let us know.

The VTDMC meets the third Tuesday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the Nordic House (formerly the Internat Cafe) 233 Route 94, Vernon, NJ 07462. except as noted. In addition, events of interest coming up in the next few months are listed below.


Sussex County Food Co-op
30 Moran Street
Newton, New Jersey 07860
Phone: (973) 579-1882
scfc@beithe.com
http://www.sussexcountyfoods.org/

(email doesn't work?)

We at the Sussex County Food Co-op believe in the positive association between good food and good health. We are dedicated to providing our members and customers with high quality products -- with emphasis on organic, Biodynamic and locally-produced food suitable for a wide range of dietary needs. We welcome special orders for goods not usually found in conventional food stores. We strive for first-rate customer service, and truth in advertising. Another goal is to educate our members and the public. The Sussex County Food Co-op pledges to provide our patrons with good-for-you food at good-to-you prices!

Foodshed Alliance of the Ridge and Valley

Do you yearn to...
* find local sources of cheese, free-range eggs, grass-fed meat, and certified organic produce?
* know where your food comes from, and how it is raised?
* support family farms?
* keep gardens in the Garden State?
* preserve farmland and open space?
* protect our rivers and streams?
* encourage and support sustainable agricultural?
* taste an heirloom tomato?

Join like-minded groups and individuals
as a member of the
Foodshed Alliance of the Ridge and Valley
P.O. Box 713
16 Main Street
Blairstown, NJ 07825
Tel. (908) 362-7967
E-mail: info@FoodshedAlliance.org
http://www.FoodshedAlliance.org/


Farms and Markets in Sussex County, NJ:

List of Farms in Sussex, Warren and nearby counties
Courtesy of the Foodshed Alliance of the Ridge and Valley, Blairstown, NJ
http://www.FoodshedAlliance.org/localfoodsource.html

Jersey Grown Organics - CSA info from Catalpa Ridge Farm
http://members.aol.com/njgrownorganics/index_m.htm


Local Sustainability Resources

Ridge and Valley Conservancy
P.O. Box 146
16 Main Street
Blairstown, NJ 07825
Tel: 908-362-7967
E-mail: rvc@goes.com
http://www.rvclandtrust.org/
"A non-profit land trust dedicated to preserving the unique and wonderful natural and cultural heritage of the Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region of New Jersey."

Genesis Farm
41A Silver Lake Road
Blairstown, NJ 07825
Tel: 908-362-6735
http://www.caldwellop.org/genesis.htm
http://www.njpcgreens.org/genesisfarm.html
http://www.ic.org/resources/cdir1995/GenesisFarm.html
Education programs & Community Supported Garden

The Foodshed Alliance of the Ridge and Valley
P.O. Box 713
16 Main Street
Blairstown, NJ 07825
Tel: 908-362-7967
E-mail: info@FoodshedAlliance.org
http://www.FoodshedAlliance.org/
"A grassroots effort to sustain the farmers, agricultural lands, and rural way of life in the ridge and valley area of Warren and Sussex counties in northwestern New Jersey."

The Mountain Preservation Society
http://www.saveourmountain.com/
Dedicated to protecting the natural integrity of Hamburg Mountain and the New Jersey Highlands