In the Best Interest of Township Residents

From the township's lack of notifications one wouldn't know that the residents of Little Falls just went through an eight day heat wave with temperatures in the 90's and high humidity levels.

On Sunday, July 24th The Gadfly posted a blog entitled "Heat Advisory Information Needed."

The blog noted that "In light of the current heat wave and the forecast for temperatures in the 90's through Thursday, the township, as a public service should immediately post on its web site and send an email blast information about "heat illness prevention tips" as well as the location of cooling centers."

In addition a copy of the blog was sent to all of our elected officials and to the township administrator. 

To date there has been silence.

Clearly in the interest of public safety and health concerns our township government should have posted and sent via an email blast a heat advisory and information about cooling centers.

Makes one wonder whether any of our elected officials are acting in the best interest of township residents?

Coffee with a Cop - August 3rd

A July 15, 2016 press release announced that the Little Falls Police Department will host "Coffee with a Cop" on Wednesday, August 3, 2016.  The event will take place at the Falls Kitchen (90 Main Street) on Wednesday, August 3rd beginning at 10:00 AM.  All community members are invited to attend.  You can contact Chief Steven Post with questions about this event at: 973.890.4513 or via email at:  spost@littlefallspd.org.

The "Coffee with a Cop" program provides an opportunity for Little Falls Police Officers and community members to come together in an informal, neutral space to discuss community issues, build relationships, and drink coffee. 

The concept goes back to the old fashioned way of doing policing; getting out of the car and actually conversing with people and not waiting for them to call in an emergency situation.   In essence, it is away to build  trust with the community one cup at a time.

It's Chief Post's “...hope that community members will feel comfortable to ask questions, bring concerns, or simply get to know our officers."

Police Chief Post is to be commended for implementing the national initiative, "Coffee with a Cop" program, as a way of enhancing relationship between Little Falls residents and members of the Little Falls Police Department.

However, it is disheartening that information about the "Coffee with a Cop" event has not, as of this date, been posted on the town's web site nor has it been included in the weekly township's email blast.

Therefore, it's incumbent upon Little Falls residents to share information about the August 3rd "Coffee with a Cop" event with their neighbors in order to maximize community participation.

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Update (1): It took awhile, since the original press release announcing the event was dated July 15th, but the township sent out an e-mail blast announcement about the Coffee with a Cop event on Friday, July 29th at 9:04 AM and posted it on the web site both as a news item and as a calendar item.  

Update (2):  Little Falls Police and residents say first 'Coffee with a Cop' talk was a success (Passaic Valley Today - 8/5/16)

Little Falls Municipal Election

In 103 days, on Tuesday, November 8th, Little Falls residents will have an opportunity to vote for candidates for Mayor and Town Council.

In deciding which candidates to vote for it should not be just a matter of what the candidates' say they will do for Little Falls.  It should be based on an examination of the track record of each political party that the candidates represent and an evaluation of what they have done for Little Falls during the past four years.

The upcoming Little Falls' municipal election should not be popularity contest.

Little Falls needs to elect officials who will do what is best for Little Falls without concern about how it will affect their chances for re-election in four years and who will act independently from the influences of state and county elected officials.

Little Falls needs to elect candidates who will keep the public informed and who will tackle township issues head on.

It's up to Little Falls' voters to get informed and to vote on November 8th  for the candidates who have the vision and agenda that will move the township forward.

Heat Advisory Information Needed

Yesterday the National Weather Service issued a warning for the elderly and those with health conditions to stay out of the heat.

 

In light of the current heat wave and the forecast for temperatures in the 90's through Thursday, the township, as a public service should immediately post on its web site and send an email blast information about "heat illness prevention tips" as well as the location of cooling centers. 

 

Our township government should be providing information and alerts for the safety and well-being of its residents 24/7.

 

 

 

 

 

Why the need for "The Gadfly?"

One might ask why is there a need for a blog called "The Gadfly?"

A gadfly is an individual who might upset the status quo by presenting facts and posing novel questions.  Socrates pointed out that a gadfly was easy to swat, but the cost to society of silencing individuals who were irritating could be very high.

Basically "The Gadfly" was created because The Record, Herald News and the Passaic Valley Today do not provide Little Falls residents with timely news and information about political and civic issues in the township.

Just ask yourself: when was the last time any of those three newspapers provided in-depth or investigative reporting about township matters?

One might attribute this lack of coverage, as noted by A. J. Liebling, to the fact that "freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."

This reality can be overcome with the creation of a blog, a site where an individual, without ties to corporate media, can report news and express opinions about issues and activities that may not be covered by the mainstream media.

The "The Gadfly," which maintains an eye on issues confronting the residents of Little Falls was started under the auspices of the northjersey.com's "community blogging" program and is now completely independent of corporate media sponsorship, existing under the auspices of blogspot.com.

June 7th Primary Election Results

The primary election on June 7th offered little excitement with respect to Little Falls candidates for municipal office.  Since both the Little Falls' Democratic Organization and Little Falls' Republic Organization ran candidates who were unopposed.

So for the upcoming November 8th election the Democrats will run James Damiano for Mayor and Maria Cordonnier and Anthony Sgobba for Town Council; and the Republicans will run Pamela Porter for Mayor and Louis Fontana and Chris Stacy for Town Council.

With respect to the presidential primary in Little Falls here are the statistics:

On the Democratic side Hillary Clinton received 631 votes (56.5%) and Bernie Sanders received 482 votes (43.5%);

On the Republican side there were three candidates: Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and John Kasich.  Cruz and Kasich had withdrawn their candidacy after the deadline to withdraw their names from the New Jersey primary ballot. 

Trump received 680 votes (88.7%), Cruz 25 (3.3%) votes and Kasich 62 votes (8.0%).

Thus, as of this writing, pending the outcome of the two presidential conventions, the presumptive presidential candidates on the November 8th presidential election ballot will be Hillary Clinton for the Democratic party and Donald Trump for the Republican party.

The Gadfly has a new home

For over six years, from December 6, 2009 through April 28, 2016, The Gadfly was published under the auspices of NorthJersey.com's "Community Blogging" program. 

 

Recently The Gadfly was informed that NorthJersey.com  was discontinuing its "Community Blogging" program.  Since then, The Gadfly has been searching for a new home.

 

This blog is the first posting from The Gadfly's new blog site

 

Readers can contact The Gadfly by posting a comment in response to a specific blog.

 

The Gadfly looks forward to its continued coverage of news of interest to residents of Little Falls, New Jersey.