Growing season has become snowing season.
But at least the days are getting longer now.
…to look for last minute places to make year-end tax-deductible donations!Good day, NJ Highlanders. It’s that time of the year again. You know, that moment that I’ve told you all about in the past – the thought I dread every year: “How in the heck am I going to keep the New Jersey Highlands News project alive for another year while paying my mortgage and other bills?” Sadly, funding continues to be scarce for this project, so once again I’m asking you, the readers, for your direct help. In the past, the New Jersey Highlands News had received financial support from other charitable foundations, but that has not been the case the past few years. (Again this year, let me remind you of two articles – providing an interesting perspective on foundational funding in the environmental movement from two very well respected environmentalists/journalists – ‘Time for environmental funders to stop neglecting the grassroots,’ by Grist’s David Roberts and ‘Why the Environmental Movement Is Not Winning,’ by New Jersey’s own Peter Montague.) The good news, however, is that once again there is a generous grant from the Victoria Foundation to help match what you contribute! The Musconetcong Mountain Conservancy did received a $5,000 grant again this past July from the New Jersey Highlands Coalition Small Grants Program to help support the New Jersey Highlands News project. And another generous donor has made a significant contribution to the project as well. Even with that, we are still funded for less than a third of the cost needed to keep the project alive. Once again, the remainder of funding will need to come from the generosity and support of local conservation organizations, grassroots groups, planning and legal professionals, and individual activists like you. I know that like me, many of you are stretched thin by continuing tough economic conditions, so it’s by no means easy for me to ask for your assistance. A contribution of any size will be much appreciated and helpful. So are you ready to help?Great! Just follow these four easy steps: 1) Go to the New Jersey Highlands Coalitions Gift Contribution web page at http://www.njhighlandscoalition.org/HTML/join_contribute.html 2) Select an amount from the “radio buttons” under Gift Contribution: SINGLE PAYMENT, or choose “Other” by filling in an amount in the blank box. 3) Next, the most important step! In the “Memo” box under SINGLE PAYMENT options, type in “New Jersey Highlands News” so that your contribution is dedicated to New Jersey Highlands News funding for 2014. 4) Finally, click “Donate” under SINGLE PAYMENT options, and you will be directed to a secure PayPal payment page, where you will need to fill out the appropriate information and make payment by Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover or your own PayPal account. It’s that simple. And since the New Jersey Highlands Coalition is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and will acknowledge your contribution upon receipt, your donation will be tax deductible. If you prefer not to contribute via the online process, checks are also accepted. Make your check out to “NJ Highlands Coalition” and please write “NJ Highlands News” in the memo portion of the check. Checks should be mailed to: Your contribution is important.The New Jersey Highlands News project is completing its seventh year of operation – can you believe that? Born on April 12, 2007 as an unfunded discussion list with approximately 60 hard-core Highlands activists as subscribers, the list has grown to now include over 370 daily readers, folks whom I like to consider absolutely THE most informed in the region on Highlands issues. Our mission is to provide an electronic outlet for distribution of news and information to educate the public about the Highlands – its water, and its natural, culture and historic resources – and increase awareness of important Highlands issues. A simple and worthy objective, but without the necessary funding, the possibility of the New Jersey Highlands News project ending in 2014 is very real. Creating a 5-times-weekly digest of important Highlands-related material is no small undertaking – approximately 21 hours per week goes into producing the New Jersey Highlands News – a regular “part-time” job as far as time is concerned. Last year just over half of the cost of providing this service was funded, with the balance provided as in-kind work through my own volunteer time. I believe that the New Jersey Highlands News project provides a useful tool for all of us involved in protecting the NJ Highlands. If you share that sentiment, I hope that you are able to help keep the project moving forward with a generous contribution. Many thanks in advance, Scott Olson ps. While you are at it, have you also considered forwarding the subscription sign-up information (which can be found here) to others who might be interested in keeping up with NJ Highlands issues? Help spread the word! For more, read this article in the Huffington Post: Santa Checks In From Melting North Pole, Says Christmas May Be CanceledAlso read this, from The Guardian: US Navy predicts summer ice free Arctic by 2016And this, from International Business Times: New Study Says Arctic Ice Melt And Extreme Weather Conditions In US, Europe Linked
 This is what honesty, hard work, and thoughtful public policy gets you! Congrats Jimmy & Marie – so proud of you guys tonight! Onward, friends! “Look well to the characters and qualifications of those you elect and raise to office and places of trust.”— Matthias Burnett, Pastor of the First Baptist Church in Norwalk, An Election Sermon, Preached at Hartford, on the Day of the Anniversary Election, May 12, 1803Byram residents have the right and responsibility to go to the polls on November 5th and cast a vote for our mayor and a council member for the next four years. I’d like to share my thoughts on the candidates we should choose. For the council seat, there is but one choice. Marie Raffay is far and away the class of the field. Neither of the other candidates exhibits the desire, knowledge, and experience to replace her on the council. Marie has one of the most inquisitive minds of anyone I’ve ever worked with. She thoroughly and methodically researches every aspect of decisions we make that impact our community. I admire her calm, rational demeanor and fiery inner desire to make the right choices – whether popular or not. I look forward to continuing to serve Byram’s residents with such a hard working person. The race for mayor is an equally simple choice. One candidate is a current councilman who rarely contributes to proactive discussion; more often than not he’s trolling the press looking for an easy sound bite and trying to claim credit for other peoples work. He’s an ego-driven huckster with a small but vocal group of ill-informed followers. A less educated, younger version of another candidate, the good ol’ boy with the sense of entitlement, continuing to cost county taxpayers untold sums in frivolous lawsuits. A man who has twice in the last four years been soundly rejected by Byram voters, yet doesn’t seem to hear their voices at the ballot box. Both of these men are wrong for our community. That leaves us with a very clear choice for mayor in Byram. Jim Oscovitch. Jim is the most sincere, honest and hard-working man I’ve ever known. I have seen him agonize over difficult decisions, weighing the impact to both taxes and services for our residents. His dedication to his family, friends and his community is second to none, and I am proud to have Jim representing our town to county, state and federal officials as a man of integrity. I am even more proud to call him my friend, and my mayor. Frank Lloyd Wright said it best: “I know the price of success: dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen.” No candidates for office in Byram better exemplify Wright’s belief than Jim Oscovitch and Marie Raffay. I say that as a man who has had the honor and privilege to work with Jim and Marie in various capacities for the last seven years. Byram deserves the devotion and character these two possess. I strongly urge Byram residents to vote for Jim Oscovitch for mayor and Marie Raffay for council on November 5th. I will be doing so. Scott Olson  Oscovitch & Raffay for Byram Township Home page There’s an important election coming up here in my home town, and I’m proudly, strongly supporting my two friends, incumbent Mayor Jim Oscovitch and incumbent Deputy Mayor Marie Raffay. While they each have two competitors, there is no other candidate who even comes close to the honesty, integrity, knowledge or experience that Jim and Marie both possess. I received the ‘other team’s’ campaign mailing today. Besides their names and the election date, it consists of 35 (thirty-five) words. That’s it. 35 words. Seriously. Oh, and a picture of their families. Simple, buzzword-filled bullet statements, lacking any ideas or details to back them up and show any thought towards solutions. Running on empty for ideas. And a link to their website in tiny type, almost as an after thought, because they know there’s nothing there for you to see. Obviously, this is a team who has not done their homework, and has no plans or objectives to back up their claims. And it shows. It’s crunch time in Byram Township, and Jim and Marie need your help. This weekend it is very important for all of us to spread the word – to every friend, neighbor or relative we know – that there are two people on Tuesday’s ballot who have done their homework. Two people who have filled their campaign literature with facts on what they’ve done, and ideas on where they want to take Byram for the future. Besides the mailer, Jim and Marie also provide details on themselves – and more information on their goals and objectives for Byram – on their web site, ByramStrong.com. Jim & Marie’s web site, by the way, is not filled with big red ‘DONATE’ buttons like their competitor’s. Those are only needed when the bills come due after you’ve hired high-priced, out-of-town consultants. You know, the people who take your money and advise you to say as little as possible to avoid letting the voters know you have no plan. Hired-gun advisors to think for you because you can’t think for yourselves. Instead, ByramStrong.com is powered by something more valuable than money – this community. The task for all of us this weekend is to get others to compare and contrast all of the candidates, and there is no better way than to have them compare campaign literature and web sites. You wouldn’t buy a new car from a postcard picture, would you? Well then why would you vote for a mayor and council member from a picture of their family? If you are buying a car, you’d want to see all the specs on what’s under the hood, as well as reviews and recommendations from people you know and trust, right? The same is true when voting for the people who will run your town the next four years. You’ll only find that kind of information on two candidates in this election, because none of the others have any facts or plans to put out to the public. Just fluff and puff. Take some time today to post the ByramStrong.com link to your Facebook wall, Tweet it out on Twitter, email it to all your friends, neighbors and relatives, and for the next three days, spread the word. Tell people to look beyond the empty-promise fluff – and ego-building puff – of the ‘other guys’ and get all the facts before they vote. Once they’ve done that, the choice should become clear. Jim Oscovitch and Marie Raffay. Byram Strong. Byram Proud.  DiMeo voting record, a PUBLIC document Giovanni DiMeo is running for the Byram Township Council. Yet since moving to Byram in October of 2009, he has never voted in a Township Municipal election, or Board of Education Election. NEVER. In fact looking at his voter profile (a public document obtained in September 2013 from the Sussex County Board of Elections), he’s only voted twice in 11 elections while living in Byram, and 3 out of 29 elections while living in Morris County! That’s an embarrassing FIVE out of FORTY elections in the last 13 years. A 12.5% voting percentage. He didn’t even vote for his own running mate when Luaces ran for council in 2011 – because he didn’t vote at all in that election! With that lackluster voting record, how can he honestly stand behind any of the ridiculous claims he is making about the current mayor and council? Maybe the first thing he should do is explain this pathetic voting history? On top of that, he makes claims to have been actively involved and attended Township Council meetings regularly. That. Is. A. Lie! Here are the facts. Giovanni, like his running mate Carlos ‘Tilcon’ Luaces (who hand picked him after a door-to-door search through Byram), is not letting the facts get in the way of what he is telling the public. Giovanni has attended perhaps two council meetings that I know of – one being just last week – and NEVER addressed the council about any of the ‘concerns’ he’s now claiming the council has failed to address. How do I know this? I’ve not missed a single council meeting since I was elected in May of 2007, that’s how! Byram residents deserve better than this campaign of misinformation and non-involvement from elected officials like Luaces, and wannabe elected officials like DiMeo. Don’t even get me started on their hiring hack political consultants – for over $10,000 from rumors I’ve heard – in their attempt to mislead the voting public in Byram. I’ll have more to say about in my next blog post, coming soon. Watch this space. “It is important that we find the polluters and that they pay for the cleanup.”
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