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June 8, 2010

Well I’m back from vacation.  After spending a week in California, it’s great to be back in the Armpit of America.    Now that I’m back, you can expect me to post more regularly.  And you can expect a couple entries comparing New Jersey to that state on the west coast in the near future.  Who needs California and its beautiful scenery, laid back atmosphere, and readily available medical marijuana anyway?

Now onto some other stuff.  About two weeks ago, I got an e-mail from someone at a PR company.  She told me that her company is launching a new website and a campaign aimed at defending New Jersey from all the bullying it falls victim to.  The name of the campaign?  “Jersey Doesn’t Stink.”  Naturally, I assumed this was all a joke.  Who in their right mind would spend the time to create  a website defending the Armpit of America (aside from me, of course).

Well, I was just notified that the site has launched and it is indeed real.  It contains a petition to stand up for our little state.  There’s also a hilarious video in which this guy walks around New York City asking people how they feel about New Jersey.  So if you love New Jersey as much as I do, then go check out Jersey Doesn’t Stink and join their fight.

Categories: Personal, Random
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Comments: 1 Comment

Jersey City Pimpin’

May 23, 2010

Photo by Margaret Schmidt/The Jersey Journal

My goal in writing this blog has always been to show New Jersey in a more positive light, compared to its dreadful reputation. By showing how New Jersey is better than other states, highlighting places of interest, and even finding the humor in the train wreck known as “Jersey Shore,” I hope that I have helped make people’s views of the state a little better. Sometimes, however, my mission is made much more difficult. No matter how great New Jersey can be, there are certain instances that ensure the state holds onto its status as the Armpit of America.

Take this story about a Jersey City pimp, running his business out of an apartment in Society Hill. As I know two people who live in that development, this story really hits close to home. Well, I guess it hits a lot closer to their home than mine.

Anyway, the pimp, who goes by the name “Prince,” was recently sentenced to 18 years in jail. His charges include kidnapping women, some as young as 17, and forcing them into prostitution. And what if one of those young ladies didn’t want to be a prostitute? Mr. Prince would tie her up to a bed and force her to take heroin until she became addicted. And the only way she could feed that addiction would be to sell herself and get the drug in return.

As if this story wasn’t crazy enough, Prince even had his mother in on the business. And his sister tried to defend him by claiming that he wasn’t a pimp at all. According to her, he ran a prostitution rehabilitation center, helping those girls get back into society. She also said how he bought one girl a computer, and now that former prostitute is working at a hospital in south Jersey. Remind me never to get sick in New Jersey’s nether region. (more…)

Categories: Random
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Comments: 8 Comments

What’s Worse Than Flying to Afghanistan?

April 25, 2010

The other day, CNN.com posted a fascinating story about a guy who traveled the world using the most dangerous methods of transportation possible.  Carl Hoffman went out of his way to fly on airlines with questionable safety records, like Cubana and Ariana (the national airlines of Cuba and Afghanistan, respectively).  He also went on crowded ferries in Asia, where the complimentary meal was a fish tail, and sat in crowded buses speeding around cliffs in South America.

Though Hoffman may sound like a daredevil, his reason for going on these death-defying journeys wasn’t for the thrill or the adrenaline rush.  His mission was to experience how people all over the world get from place to place.  Though we may wonder why anyone would want to ride on a crowded bus for 28 hours, for some people, that’s their only way to get around.

As interesting as this may be, you’re probably wondering why I would include such a story on a blog about New Jersey.   Well, that’s because of one of the answers Hoffman gave to CNN in his interview.  When asked how he felt flying with an airline with poor safety records, Hoffman responded as such:

“Even on really bad — statistically bad — airlines, the death rate is really much lower than, say, driving on the New Jersey Turnpike.”

Someone who made it his mission to travel the world in the most dangerous ways possible still had something bad to say about the Turnpike.  I would think that after experiencing the transportation methods of the third world, one would have a much better appreciation for the Turnpike.   Apparently, the opposite is true.  The national airline of Afghanistan is safer than the highways of the Armpit of America.

Categories: Driving in New Jersey, Random
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Comments: 1 Comment

The Soon-To-Be-Former New Jersey Nets

March 17, 2010

So you call yourselves The Nets but have Saturn on your logo?

For those who haven’t heard, or heard but don’t care, New Jersey’s basketball team, The Nets, is moving to Brooklyn. Admittedly, I’m not much of a basketball fan. Hell, I’ll make a full confession – I’m not really a fan of any sport. But even I couldn’t ignore this event.

The Armpit of America doesn’t contribute much to the world of professional sports. Once the soon-to-be-former New Jersey Nets leave, we’ll only have The Devils to carry the banner of our sad state. While the Devils may have a better record than the Nets, I’m sure there are even fewer people following the NHL than the dismal number who watch the NBA. But I digress.

While some people may be sad, I think the majority of New Jerseyans don’t give a shit. Many, such as myself, probably forgot that we even have a professional basketball team. I think that’s mainly because our team has such a stupid name. Think about it: “The Nets.” They’re named after a piece of equipment used to play basketball. Could they be any less creative? You don’t see any football teams named “The Goalposts” do you?

Granted, the aforementioned Devils got the best name for a Jersey sports team, named after our local legend. But there are plenty of other Jersey-centric things to name a team after. Like The New Jersey Overweight Governors…or The New Jersey Guidos…or The New Jersey Turnpikes… I guarantee if our basketball team had any of these names, they would have a much larger following and wouldn’t be in such a rush to leave the state.

I kind of feel bad for the Nets though. They obviously don’t get the attention and love that most other sports teams get from their home states. In fact, people in New Jersey are more passionate about the teams of New York and Philadelphia than our own.

But the move does make some sense. Millions of people grow up feeling unloved, worthless, and neglected in this indifferent state. So what do they do? They move out and hope to hit it big somewhere else. Maybe that’s just what the Nets are doing. Since the New York Knicks are more popular in Jersey than the Nets ever were, moving to that state might just do them some good. And, once they become the Brooklyn Nets, the team will probably have more Jersey fans than they did when they were playing at the Meadowlands.

Categories: Random
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Comments: 1 Comment

The Olympics Opening Ceremony

February 14, 2010

This past Friday, the world watched the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver Winter Olympics. You may be wondering why I would be talking about the Olympics on a blog about New Jersey. Well, not many people know this, but Jersey City actually made a bid to host the 1987 Summer Olympics. (Yes, I know there wasn’t an Olympics in 1987…but the good people of Jersey City didn’t know that.)

Anyway, I think the team in charge of the Vancouver opening ceremony did a great job of showcasing exactly what Canada is all about. Let’s face it, Canada is pretty much just an extra with no lines on the world stage. But the opening ceremony gave this perennial understudy the chance to shine.

Just like Australia did at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and the U.S. did at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Canada paid tribute to its indigenous people at the opening ceremony. Although all three nations claim to take pride in honoring their native inhabitants, let’s get real. I don’t think these native Australians, Americans, and Canadians can forgive hundreds of years of oppression and neglect for the chance to dance around in feather headdresses in front of the world.

That being said, the native Canadian display was tasteful and entertaining. At least compared to other performances throughout the night. We watched several famous Canadian singers, like Sarah McLaughlin, Nelly Furtado, Bryan Adams, and some opera singer with a glittery afro. We also saw a rather odd performance by Mr. KD Lang. Although he has a soothing baritone and was wearing a stylish suit, they didn’t give him any close-ups. He must’ve forgotten to shave or something. (more…)

Categories: Random, Reviews
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Comments: 5 Comments

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