The end of Congo

My latest on the dog that made the news, and the law, at the Star Ledger's NJ Voices.

Prospect Garden

Princeton University campus, midday today.

Photoblogging Communiversity

My latest post is up at the Star Ledger's New Jersey Voices.

I also had the pleasure of talking to Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ) , who is a very loyal supporter of many of the non-profits who participate in Communiversity every year:

Princeton Hospital needs your blood

I just got back and found an email from TigerHawk

Do you live in the Princeton, New Jersey area? If so, please consider going by Princeton hospital and donating blood. Our HR department got a call requesting help. Apparently there is a particular need for B+ blood (about 8.5% of you), so if that is your type please make a special effort to donate tomorrow. The hours are 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m., and the details are here, or call 609-497-4366 for more information.

(No, not Princeton-Plainsboro Hospital.)

Blooms

It's a beautiful day, and the trees have exploded with blooms, so here are a few photos taken today:

On campus, in front of Prospect House

Prospect Garden:
Also in front of Prospect House,
In the Borough, Nassau Street on the side of Firestone Library:
Witherspoon Street
Corner of Nassau and Vanderventer, with the United Methodist Church in the background,
Washington Road, with one of the rear entrances to Firestone Library,




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Prof. Robert Fagles, 1933-2008

I just heard that professor Fagles died on Wednesday.
Here's the NY Times obituary, and the Daily Princetonian.

A memorial service will be held at the University in May.

He will be best remembered for his extraordinary translations and interpretations of the Illiad, the Odyssey, and the Aeneid.





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Spring BlogFest East coming soon!

Spring BlogFest East is only five weeks away: Have you made your reservations yet?

(I'll be posting soon a list of the blogs attending)
Parkway Rest Stop and Fausta's Blog cordially invite you to
SPRING BLOG FEST EAST

When: Saturday April 5, 2008
6-11PM

Where: Sky Suite,Triumph Brewing Company
138 Nassau Street
Princeton NJ 08540

Buffet Menu: Hors d'oeuvres
House salad
Organic New York Strip "Prime Rib"
Seared Salmon with Pineapple-Mango Coulis
Tortellini with Tomato Parmesan Sauce
Chocolate covered white cake with peanut butter mousse and strawberry jam

How much: $45 per person, plus CASH BAR

You can make a check payable to Fausta Wertz, PO Box 1589, Princeton NJ 08542-1589, or pay through Paypal:

Please reserve early since the Sky Suite has capacity for only 75 people.

Bloggers who stay overnight in the Princeton area can continue the Blog Fest the next day, Sunday morning April 6, at JB Winberie's Restaurant, 1 Palmer Square East, Princeton, for brunch (not included in the $45 fee for the Triumph Brewery Saturday night buffet).

Accomodations in the Princeton area:
Within walking distance of Triumph Brewery: The Nassau Inn, 10 Palmer Square, Princeton NJ
Three miles from Triumph Brewery: The Palmer Inn 609-716-9100
Courtyard Marriott Princeton 609-716-9100 .

Any questions? Email faustaw "at" yahoo "dot" com

PS, To those of you asking, it's "Spring" BlogFest because if it's a success we might have another one later in the year, and "East" because I don't know of any other in the region, but I may be wrong. If there's another BlogFest in Spring in the East, we might change the name to "Spring BlogFest NJ", or even more specific, "Spring BlogFest Princeton".

How to get to Princeton:
Princeton has its own (small) airport, but you can also fly into Philadelphia and drive into Princeton (apprx. 1 1/2 hr drive), or fly into Newark Airport and take NJ Transit to Princeton Junction and change to the train to Princeton.
NJ Transit runs trains from Philadelphia and New York City. You can also use Amtrak from locations in the East.
For driving directions, here's how to get to Triumph Brewing Co

Now with Paypal, Saturday April 5: Spring Blogfest East (a/k/a Jersey Blogmeet)

Spring BlogFest East a.k.a. Jersey Blogmeet is approaching fast.

When: Saturday April 5, 2008
6-11PM

Where: Sky Suite,Triumph Brewing Company
138 Nassau Street
Princeton NJ 08540

Buffet Menu: Hors d'oeuvres
House salad
Organic New York Strip "Prime Rib"
Seared Salmon with Pineapple-Mango Coulis
Tortellini with Tomato Parmesan Sauce
Chocolate covered white cake with peanut butter mousse and strawberry jam

How much: $45 per person, plus CASH BAR

You can pay through paypal, or you can make a $45 check payable to Fausta Wertz, PO Box 1589, Princeton NJ 08542-1589.

Triumph Brewing Company needs to know ahead of time the number of people attending. Please reserve early since the Sky Suite has capacity for only 75 people.

Bloggers who stay overnight in the Princeton area can continue the Blog Fest the next day, Sunday morning April 6, at JB Winberie's Restaurant, 1 Palmer Square East, Princeton, for brunch (not included in the $45 fee for the Triumph Brewery Saturday night buffet).

For more information please click here.

If you are a blogger and you're attending, please also invite your readers and link here.

The view from my front door

We have 6" of snow on the ground, enough to have the schools closed for the day.

I hope the bugs froze.


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Announcing Spring Blog Fest East: Saturday April 5, Triumph Brewery

Parkway Rest Stop and Fausta's Blog cordially invite you to
SPRING BLOG FEST EAST

When: Saturday April 5, 2008
6-11PM

Where: Sky Suite,Triumph Brewing Company
138 Nassau Street
Princeton NJ 08540

Buffet Menu: Hors d'oeuvres
House salad
Organic New York Strip "Prime Rib"
Seared Salmon with Pineapple-Mango Coulis
Tortellini with Tomato Parmesan Sauce
Chocolate covered white cake with peanut butter mousse and strawberry jam

How much: $45 per person, plus CASH BAR

I'm in the process of setting up a paypall account, but in the meantime you can make a check payable to Fausta Wertz, PO Box 1589, Princeton NJ 08542-1589.

Please reserve early since the Sky Suite has capacity for only 75 people.

Bloggers who stay overnight in the Princeton area can continue the Blog Fest the next day, Sunday morning April 6, at JB Winberie's Restaurant, 1 Palmer Square East, Princeton, for brunch (not included in the $45 fee for the Triumph Brewery Saturday night buffet).

Accomodations in the Princeton area:
Within walking distance of Triumph Brewery: The Nassau Inn, 10 Palmer Square, Princeton NJ
Three miles from Triumph Brewery: The Palmer Inn 609-716-9100
Courtyard Marriott Princeton 609-716-9100 .

Any questions? Email faustaw "at" yahoo "dot" com

PS, To those of you asking, it's "Spring" BlogFest because if it's a success we might have another one later in the year, and "East" because I don't know of any other in the region, but I may be wrong. If there's another BlogFest in Spring in the East, we might change the name to "Spring BlogFest NJ", or even more specific, "Spring BlogFest Princeton".

How to get to Princeton:
Princeton has its own (small) airport, but you can also fly into Philadelphia and drive into Princeton (apprx. 1 1/2 hr drive), or fly into Newark Airport and take NJ Transit to Princeton Junction and change to the train to Princeton.
NJ Transit runs trains from Philadelphia and New York City. You can also use Amtrak from locations in the East.
For driving directions, here's how to get to Triumph Brewing Co.

UPDATE, Saturday
Paypal now active:

Bugged!

The good news is that it's 66F.

Here's the bug news:



I just got home and found these critters climbing up the wall above the garage.

They look like small roaches in better outfits. What to do?

UPDATE
Baron Bodissey identified them as Eastern Boxelder Bugs

I'll wait until tomorrow and hope they're gone by then.



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Princeton's one-party state

My latest at the Star Ledger's New Jersey Voices is ready for your reading pleasure.

Death Threats at Princeton: Hate Crime or Hoax?

My article is up at Pajamas Media.

Death threats at Princeton U and in the Township

UPDATE, Monday December 17
Student admits that he staged a hoax:
Here's my article at Pajamas Media.
Nava '09 admits to fabricating assault, threatening e-mails

Francisco Nava '09 has admitted to fabricating an alleged assault on him that he said occurred Friday evening and to sending threatening emails to himself, other members of the Anscombe Society and prominent conservative politics professor Robert George, today while being interviewed by Princeton Township Police.

"He fabricated the story," Det. Sgt. Ernie Silagyi said.

Nava was released to Public Safety and charges "have not been filed pending further investigation," according to a statement from Township Police.

Former Anscombe president Sherif Girgis '08 said he is "deeply angry and upset" at the news the incident was fabricated. "I am deeply troubled about what this must mean about Francisco and about his personal life," he said, adding that he had harbored suspicions about Nava's story before the Township confirmed the assault was faked.

Girgis, who was one of the four Anscombe officers who received threatening emails Wednesday evening along with George, added that he believed the organization — which promotes socially conservative sexual mores on campus — had handled the situation well. "We did everything right," he said. "We did not jump to any conclusion about the facts of the case."

University communications director Lauren Robinson-Brown said the University is looking into the incident and "the investigation is ongoing," adding that "as the investigation continues, we will continue to provide all necessary support to everyone involved."

"As standard procedure, discipline isn't considered until an investigation is concluded," Robinson-Brown said. Nevertheless, the fabricated threats and assault are likely to result in disciplinary procedures against Nava.

-------------------------------------------------
UPDATE:
Monday December 17: Former hoax and injury details complicate picture of assault

Instapundit found it in the Daily Prince:

Four officers of the Anscombe Society and a prominent conservative politics professor received threatening emails Wednesday evening from off-campus email addresses.

The five individuals received identical messages telling them they would "suffer," ordering them to "shut the fuck up" and declaring that "you are not welcome here." "We will destroy you," the message said.

Though the message did not explicitly mention the Anscombe Society, the four students who received emails were Anscombe vice president Jonathan Hwang '09, president Kevin Staley-Joyce '09, former president Sherif Girgis '08 and administrative committee chair Francisco Nava '09. Politics professor Robert George — who has publicly supported conservative causes, including the Anscombe Society's goal of promoting chastity — also received the message.

Threats through email and typed letters.

This is not a new experience for Professor George:

George, on the other hand, said he has received plenty of hate mail in his 23 years of teaching and discussing controversial issues. He forwarded this most recent email to Public Safety.

"If it's a death threat or a threat of violence, I [alert authorities]," he said. "But if someone's saying, 'I've got influence with President Tilghman and I'm going to see that you're fired,' or something, then I don't report it. That's just standard hate mail."

George added that he had received "less than 10, probably more than two" messages that threatened physical harm in his career.

And one student member of Anscombe was attacked in the Township,

Francisco Nava '09 was physically attacked by two men in Princeton Township Friday evening, sustaining a concussion but no other serious injuries. The assault comes on the heels of several threatening messages recently sent to Nava, apparently in connection with his involvement with the socially conservative Anscombe Society.

Nava said he was walking from a borrowed car to the house of a boy he is mentoring when he was stopped by a man dressed in black and wearing a ski cap. According to Nava, the man said that someone was hurt and asked for his help. A second assailant, who was waiting around the corner, grabbed Nava from behind. Together, the two men checked him against a wall and repeatedly hit his head against the bricks.

The Princeton Packet has absolutely nothing on the incidents.

As I mentioned in this podcast, Princeton is not a conservative-friendly place at all. However, these incidents are way beyond the pale.

Every so often you find a friendly bumper sticker around town, even if the trolls hive on the 'net.


Update
TigerHawk, Red State and Instapundit have more.
Princeton Tory:

The attack also comes only a day after a columnist for the Daily Princetonian criticized Princeton's administration for signaling that there was an "Open Season" on conservative students. "By permitting a double standard to exist, the University has — inadvertently, I am sure — signaled to those who would use intimidation tactics to silence the voices of morally conservative students that their misconduct will not be investigated, much less punished or even denounced," said the article written by Brandon McGinley, also a Tory staffer.

Worth knowing: it's OK to beat up conservative students at Princeton



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More Congo, Kos quotes, murder on the border, speeding, and tonight's podcast

My article on the latest in the Congo the Dog Saga is now up at The Star Ledger's NJ Voices
---------------------------------------------------------------
John Hawkins came up with The 2nd Annual Worst Quotes From The Daily Kos (2007 Edition). Number 10:

10) "I wrote a diary a short time ago about how the Bush administration helped ruin my marriage. It wasn't because my husband was a Bush supporter or anything...it was because of all the stresses from job loses, living without health insurance and getting sick, to my husband being forced to take a job where he wasn't home much that helped ruin my marriage." -- angrybird

Trust me, they go down from there.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Like something out of a Robert Rodriguez movie:
Singer shot to death after surgery in Matamoros ER

Apart from the police and narco-gangsters, few groups of people have suffered more in Mexico's brutal drug wars than the singers whose music often chronicles the carnage.

The latest casualty appears to be Zayda Peña, 28, a singer who was shot dead Saturday in a hospital emergency room in the city of Matamoros, across the Rio Grande from Brownsville.

Prairie Pundit:

Whatever the reason, the persons responsible were determined to not let her survive her hospital visit caused by the first attempt.

---------------------------------------------------------------
Gerard always has a great post. Take a look at Night Road to Mesa: 219 MPH in a Lamborghini. And Busted by the Web.
---------------------------------------------------------------
More blogging later, but remember tonight's podcast at 9PM Eastern. My guests will be Joyce Vennis, author of Postpartum Depression Demystified, and ShrinkWrapped, a psychoanalyst.

We will be discussing relationships. It'll be a fun podcast, indeed. The call in number is (646) 652-2639, and there will also be live chat, too. Join us!

Animal Farm

My latest article is up at The Star Ledger's New Jersey Voices.

Borders tries to catch up with the Princeton Public Library

Borders Adds TV Watching to Its Bookstores' Entertainment

Borders bookstores - with their cafes, toys and games and large displays of movies and music — have never exactly been confused with, say, university libraries.

A new strategy at Borders will reinforce the message that its stores are not just about books: the company has been installing 37-inch flat-screen televisions to show original programming, advertisements, news and weather.

George L. Jones, the chief executive of the Borders Group, said each store would have two screens.

Try as they may, Borders Group still lags behind the Princeton Public Library - that place where

people shop, talk and fall in love

but maybe don't bother reading, which has three screens.


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Free Congo!

My latest article's up at the Star Ledger's NJ Voices.

MS-13 gang members arrested in Princeton

Last August I posted about the MS-13 gang's connection to the Newark murders of three young college students in Newark.

In yesterday's Princeton Packet (I'm including the full article since the Packet tends to not keep their articles up permanently):
Night of burglaries in Princeton nets arrests
Three gang members are charged

Princeton Borough Police followed silently for more than two hours the night of Oct. 19 as three individuals allegedly cased several homes before being arrested and charged in connection with at least 10 burglaries in the borough, the township and on the campus of Princeton University.

All three suspects are undocumented illegal aliens, and evidence has linked all three with the MS-13 street gang, police said, in announcing the arrests this week.

Saul Eduardo Palma-Chajon, 22, whose last known address was in Princeton, and Byron Diaz, 18, of Princeton, and a 16-year-old male Princeton resident were charged with numerous counts of burglary, theft and criminal mischief as well as conspiracy to commit burglary, receiving stolen property and being armed while committing a burglary.

Mr. Palma-Chajon and Mr. Diaz were also charged with employing a juvenile in a crime, and the juvenile was also charged with juvenile delinquency.

Police said the series of residential burglaries over the last several weeks involved homes being entered with the use of force during the late afternoon or evening hours.
Once inside, the suspects stole merchandise, including jewelry, laptop computers, cameras, iPods and credit cards.

Princeton Borough Chief Anthony Federico said two burglaries in the borough occurred on Gordon Way, and two occurred on Hamilton and Vandeventer avenues, respectively.

At least one of the two burglaries in the township occurred on Deer Path, and at least three more occurred on the university campus, he said.

Although much of the stolen items have been recovered and claimed by the victims, a substantial amount of stolen merchandise has not yet been linked to any victim, and police are still determining how many burglaries occurred, Chief Federico said.

As part of the investigation, a team of officers engaged in a burglary surveillance detail on the east end of the borough on Oct. 19, a Friday night.

At 8:30 p.m., officers began to observe the group of three males acting suspiciously near Hamilton Avenue, before they entered yards on a number of properties and walked around to allegedly “case” the homes, police said.

For the next two hours, the surveillance unit followed the group while they continued to enter yards in the northeast and southeast sections of town and occasionally split up, police said.

Although they did not attempt to break into a house, the group was stopped by police at 10:30 p.m.

Two of the three individuals gave police fake names and identification, police said.

Further investigation revealed that all three individuals possessed property that had been reported stolen from recent burglaries, police said.

Subsequent residential searches in the borough yielded stolen items from at least eight different recently reported burglaries and thefts in the borough, the township and on the university campus.

Borough police have notified Immigration Customs Enforcement to advise the agency of the arrests of the individuals, all of whom are from Guatemala.

Charges are also pending within Princeton Township and within the Princeton University Campus.

Mr. Palma-Chajon's bail has been set at $1,000,000 cash, and Mr. Diaz' bail has been set at $500,000 cash.

The juvenile is being held at the Mercer County Youth Detention Center.
Chief Federico said it was unusual that most of the stolen property was recovered.

"Most burglars will get rid of the stuff really quickly," he said. "It's unusual when we get back this amount of property."

Any victim of a recent burglary or theft in the Princeton area should call the Princeton Borough Police Detective Bureau at 609-924-4141 to view the recovered property to see if it belongs to them.

More posts and links here. Background: Nationwide crackdown on vicious gang nets 10 in N.J.



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A death in the neighborhood

My latest article is up at the Star Ledger's New Jersey Voices section.