New US Law: Israelis May Be Able to Travel to US Without Visas

Washington, DC – The Jerusalem Post is reporting that a new law has been passed by the US Congress, which would add Israel to the Visa Waiver Program. The final approval of the law, however, is pending the ratification of President Bush, and the earliest date in which it could come into effect – provided that it is ratified – is in two years. (The Visa Waiver Program is a list of countries whose citizens do not require visas to the US for a stay of less than three months.) [TheYeshivaworld.com]

Iranian Intelligence Recruiting Hebrew Speakers.

Iran – The “intelligence war” between Iran and Israel is gaining momentum, as both countries’ intelligence services are increasing efforts to recruit Hebrew and Farsi speakers to their ranks.

The Iranian regime needs Hebrew speakers to work as translators, intelligence agents and as part of its propaganda machine against Israel. The main source of Hebrew speakers is Palestinian students studying abroad or Palestinian terrorists sent for military training in Iran and Lebanon.

One of the most prominent centers for Hebrew studies is located at Iran’s embassy in Beirut, where Hizbullah members learn Hebrew at the Islamic Culture and Education Center [ynet]

Passaic gets $2.1M in housing funds

PASSAIC, NJ – The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Tuesday that the city will receive more than $2.1 million in funding.The award includes $1.2 million from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and another $929,929 from Home Investment Partnerships (HOME) funding.This funding helps breathe new life into neighborhoods,” said HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson in a press release . “By helping communities to improve their infrastructure or assisting families to purchase their first home, HUD is helping to improve neighborhoods from the ground up.”The CDBG and HOME programs financially assist governments and community groups in urban areas with significant low-to moderate-income populations.HUD estimates that federally-funded CDBG grants have awarded more than $100 billion to state and local governments for community development priorities.Since 1992, HUD says more than 600 communities have completed more than $780,000 in affordable housing units, including over $329,000 for new homebuyers purchasing their first home. [Meredith Mandell, Herald News]

Truck Smashes Hole in Passaic Apartment Building

PASSAIC, NJ — A delivery truck crashed into a first-floor apartment late Monday afternoon, leaving a gaping hole that exposed the inside of a bedroom.

People who witnessed the accident said it would have been worse if someone was in the room when the midsize truck slammed through the brick wall of the apartment at 35 Aspen Place.

No one was injured, police said.

One eyewitness, Jessy Rivera, who lives next door to the damaged apartment, explained what happened as she held a broken side-view mirror from her automobile that was struck by the truck before it hit the outside brick wall of the apartment.

“We heard a big boom just like a crash,” said Rivera, 24, describing the accident that occurred about 4:49 p.m. “I ran outside and I was in shock” at the damage.

Even with the significant damage to her apartment, Trisha Lyons, 28, said she would have the hole boarded up and remain there with her husband and two young daughters.

“I’ve got two kids, where am I supposed to go?” she said.

Bill Snyder, executive director of the Passaic Housing Authority, said Monday night that the family would be moved into a temporary apartment at Speer Village today until structural damage could be assessed and repair work completed.

PHA workers were at the Lyons’ apartment placing plywood over the approximately 4-foot-wide hole in the brick wall.

The truck was speeding and struck several parked cars before plunging into the Lyons’ apartment, eyewitnesses said.

“If my grandkids were in that bedroom they would have been killed,” said David Horne, 63, who did not live at Speer Village and is the father-in-law of Trisha Lyons.

Police would not identify the truck driver, who was not injured in the crash. (NorthJersey.com)

Police to Set up Anti-Terrorist Checkpoint.

New York, NY – They call it “Operation Highway Sniffer” — a military-style title for a series of anti-terrorist checkpoints set up by the Suffolk County police.

And it’s happening Monday on a Long Island Expressway rest stop.

The police will set up specialized equipment to detect radiation, explosives and other terror-related substances at a rest stop on the LIE, the location of which authorities asked not be disclosed, beginning at 3:30 p.m., police said.

Monday’s is the latest in a series of similar efforts Suffolk police have undertaken. This time, however, the New York Police Department work with the Suffolk Highway Patrol Bureau motor carrier section. The NYPD will bring its mobile radiation detection truck and other specialized equipment.

Authorities will randomly look for illegal substances including those that could be used by terrorists, such as explosives or radiation, police said. [newsday]

New Device Aims To Stop Deaths of Children Left in Hot Cars

Your car has a sensor that tells you when you’ve left the headlights on or the keys in the ignition. It probably has another reminding you and your passengers to buckle your seat belts, and still another that sounds when the door is ajar. Some cars even to tell you when the tires need inflating.But so far, there’s no standard equipment to tell you that you’ve left a child in the back seat of a hot car. [AP]

A company called BabyAlert aims to change this with their new product called “The Child Minder® system.” This system alerts the driver when he or she walks 10 feet away from the car with a baby still strapped in the car seat.

According to popular news blog The Yeshiva World, this product is now available at a special price of $49 for the Frum Olam, with additional discounts possibly available for Bnei Yeshiva. Please call 732-905-0654 for additional details. [PCJN Staff]

US Life Insurance Companies Deny Coverage For Those Who Visit Israel.

Washington – Life-insurance companies are systematically denying coverage to customers solely because they have visited Israel or plan to go in the future – outraging travelers who say Israel’s historic sites are as safe as any American city, officials say.

The practice has become so widespread that nine states, including New York, have tried to stop it.

But insurance companies continue to block coverage, and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) introduced legislation last week prohibiting insurers from blocking coverage and requiring them to rely on accurate information.

“It is just unfair for people to be denied life insurance because they might travel to Israel,” said Schumer.

John Hancock, and AIG are part of the insurance companies denying coverage. [nypost]

Corzine missed out on a chance to save lives

The people in charge of improving traffic safety in New Jersey were shaking their heads and wringing their hands in public Friday because too many of us don’t perform a simple task that saves lives and prevents injury.

We don’t buckle up enough.

Last year, 216 of the unbuckled met their untimely ends on Garden State roads. According to national averages, about 100 would have survived if they were belted, said Pam Fischer, director of the state Division of Highway Traffic Safety.

“Why don’t people use the obvious tools necessary to save their own lives?” Fischer asked during a Friday press event she organized to publicize the results of last spring’s Click It or Ticket blitz.

It’s a great question, and it was asked in the right place — the Cheesequake Rest Area of the Garden State Parkway. The parkway was the scene of 29 recent traffic-related fatalities, said state police Capt. Kevin Burke, and 19 of the victims weren’t wearing their seat belt.

The police response to chronic statistics like these is generally spot enforcement. Cops from 496 departments handed out 58,170 seat belt summonses during the last Click It or Ticket crusade.

That’s a record, it turns out, but even Burke seemed to question whether the campaign was doing much good. He cited a van driver who was given three seat belt tickets within four days near the same parkway location.

“Law enforcement can’t do it alone,” the obviously frustrated captain told the small group of reporters who gathered for Fischer’s event. “We need your help to get the word out.”

No, not really.

What Burke, Fischer and the other traffic officers and safety advocates who attended this annual event need is the governor.

Jon Corzine was a no-show.

In case anyone has forgotten, the governor was nearly killed when his chauffeured utility vehicle crashed on the parkway on April 12. The governor is still undergoing therapy to heal his broken body.

Still, in the hours following this near-tragedy, he became the ideal spokesman for the seat belt crusade that consumer activist Ralph Nader began in the 1960s. While still on crutches, he even recorded an effective public service announcement that encourages people to belt up.

“I should be dead,” he said on the PSA. “I have to live with my mistake. You don’t. Buckle up.”

In the ensuing months, Garden State seat belt use rose to a record 91.4 percent, according to a New Jersey Institute of Technology survey.

“Why isn’t the governor here?” Fischer was asked Friday.

“We asked him to be here, but his schedule was just too tight,” she answered.

Corzine’s office didn’t release his Friday schedule, nor did a spokeswoman return calls, but it begs this question: What’s more important than trying to save a couple of hundred lives a year?

Yeah, I know: Governors are busy, and functionaries are more than capable of handling news conferences on chronic issues that rarely draw protesters.

But I also know that when this governor appears on crutches to talk about initiatives for saving people, the kind of crippling pain and disability that he had to endure, lots of reporters show up, and people listen.

Passaic, NJ – Jewish Community Looking to Buy Old Hospital Site

Passic, NJ – St. Mary’s Hospital is negotiating with a developer to turn its former facility at 211 Pennington Ave. into apartments with a potential for retail shops as well, said Robert Iannaccone, the hospital’s chief operating officer.The hospital moved most of its operations from its site at 211 Pennington Ave. to the former PBI Regional Medical Center in March.
“The views are beautiful,” said Iannaccone. “Above the second floor, you can look over the Meadowlands at the New York City skyline.”

It’s unclear who would buy the hospital, though several sources suggest it is likely to be someone in, or representing, the city’s Orthodox Jewish community. St. Mary’s Hospital, sits near the heart of the Orthodox Jewish community, often loosely defined as Passaic Park.
The hospital’s asking price, according to the Request for Proposal filed with the city of Passaic, is $27 million. [northjersey]

IDF Leaves Soldier in Gaza By Mistake

After returning to Israel from an incursion into the Gaza Strip last week, it was realized that the IDF had mistakenly left behind a fellow IDF soldier. According to a preliminary investigation, the Golani Brigade soldiers from an elite Battalion were operating in the Gaza Strip. On their way back to Israel, the force stopped some a few hundred feet from the border fence, and the soldier fell asleep. IDF troops regularly count off in order to prevent soldiers from separating from the force, but it appears that during the count-off, one of the soldier’s friends answered for him, and his absence was not noted.

The soldier was finally located after he shot tracer bullets in the air, and waved a florescent “sticklight” to identify himself. (Haaretz)

Dangerous Flaw Found In Protective Playground Mats.

New York, NY – You may not realize it, but at your favorite local playground there may be an unlikely hidden danger that can send your children to the emergency room: rubber mats designed to actually protect children when they fall.

While the mats can cushion a fall, they become incredibly dangerous on hot days when the blistering sun causes the mats’ temperatures to rise to nightmarish levels.

To give you an idea as to just how much hotter these mats become, CBS 2 used today’s temperatures as an example. Outside at the playground, the temperature was 86 degrees, while the temperature of the concrete pavement read 100 degrees. Take a few steps back on the mat, however, and the temperature climbs to an astounding 134 degrees.

Any contact with the surface that’s over 120 degrees can burn the skin in a matter of minutes. Once you approach 140 degrees it can be a matter of seconds,” says Dr. Adam Vella of Mt. Sinai Hospital. “You have to be aware of the temperature of the surface.” [wcbstv]

Clifton man sentenced in beating death

What happened: A Clifton man was sentenced to 13 years in prison Thursday for beating his roommate to death during an argument over the TV remote control and cleanliness of their apartment. Steve Schiro, 45, will have to serve at least 11½ years of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. “I don’t think Mr. Schiro intended to kill the victim, but he did,” said Mike De Marco, Passaic County senior assistant prosecutor. He noted that alcohol played a part in Schiro’s fatal beating of 63-year-old Mohsin Oskoui. Superior Court Judge Randolph Subryan lamented the fact that a simple argument could lead to such violence. “No sentence I impose could ease the pain in your hearts,” he said to three of Oskoui’s relatives who sat in court. One of them, a woman, ran wailing out of the courtroom.

NYC to Receive Federal Aid for Pipe Explosion.

New York, NY – Residents and businesses affected by last week’s massive steam pipe explosion in Manhattan will receive federal disaster aid, officials said Friday.

The U.S. Small Business Administration will make low-interest disaster loans available for up to $1.5 million for business owners to repair or replace their establishments along with any damaged machinery and inventory. The SBA will also lend funds to help with the cost of making improvements that would help protect businesses from similar disasters in the future.

In addition, loans of up to $200,000 are available for homeowners to repair damaged real estate, and $40,000 to replace or repair damaged property. [ap]

Saint Mary’s Hospital trying to turn around for the better

After a tumultuous spring, St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic appears to be stabilizing, despite some lingering issues, especially related to staffing and the facility’s cardiac program, according to doctors, hospital staff and state officials. The state is reviewing the license for the cardiac program, which expires Oct. 1.

St. Mary’s took over bankrupt PBI Regional Medical Center on March 1 and moved most of its operations to the 350 Boulevard building. That move was fraught with difficulties, including inoperative equipment and too few staff, and the hospital was cited by both the state and The Joint Commission, a national accrediting organization, for safety issues, partially stemming from those early problems.

But since the early post-merger weeks, according to administrators, doctors, nurses and union leaders, the scramble of combining two hospitals is giving way to the steadier rhythm of day-to-day operations.

“We knew we had a lot of work to do, and we knew we had to roll up our sleeves,” said Robert Iannaccone, the chief operating officer at the hospital. “We did that.”

He cited the reopening of the maternal/child unit, which had 13 newborns on a recent day, along with a core of committed doctors and the initiation of patient-satisfaction surveys as evidence of a hospital moving forward.

Some earlier issues are being resolved. A preliminary denial of accreditation in April from The Joint Commission — owing to fire safety equipment problems at St. Mary’s former facility on Pennington Avenue — has been taken care of, said Iannaccone, as have other cited problems, including keeping prescriptions past their expiration date and the lack of a hospital-wide infection control program.

Charlene Hill, a commission spokeswoman, said the hospital now has conditional accreditation and must pass a follow-up survey, likely this fall, to be considered fully accredited. The hospital submitted a plan of correction earlier this month.

Passaic and Paterson police units get federal aid

PATERSON — The police departments of Paterson and Passaic will get $400,000 in federal money to purchase equipment, Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-Paterson, announced Friday.

Paterson will receive $250,000 to buy protective equipment and communications devices, according to a release issued by Pascrell’s office. The money will also fund drug deterrent measures and better security assessments, the release said.

Passaic will use its $150,000 to buy a command-and-communications vehicle, which they will use for surveillance and outreach in high crime areas and emergencies.

Police chase suspects face suspected murder charge

PATERSON — Police intend to charge two suspects who led police on an interstate chase with attempted murder, authorities said Saturday.

Mark Harkins, 25, and James Jones, 28, both of Chester, N.Y., were arrested at 8:34 Friday night at Rockland Lake State Park in Clarkstown, N.Y., said Bill Maer, spokesman for the Passaic County Sheriff’s Department.On Friday the two led police on an hour-long pursuit, which started in Paterson about 7:30 p.m. when a detective with the Passaic County Sheriff’s Department saw someone in a Ford F-150 driven by Harkins conduct a drug transaction at 30th Street and 21st Avenue, Maer said. The men allegedly pulled a woman into the truck, choked her and dragged her before throwing her onto the street, Maer said.

Officers followed the truck, which had New York plates, onto Route 80, where someone in the vehicle tossed drugs and a weapon out the window, Maer said. The truck crossed the George Washington Bridge and headed north on the Henry Hudson Parkway before crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge into Rockland County, Maer said.

Both men will be charged with attempted murder for dragging and choking the woman.

“Law enforcement cannot walk away from someone who is trying to cause the death of another,” said Passaic County Sheriff Jerry Speziale.

Six Passaic County Sheriff cruisers kept on the chase to the end, but nobody was injured, Maer said.

Police said Harkins was shot in the left arm at the park and was taken to Nyack Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Jones was also taken to Nyack Hospital with “symptoms consistent with some form of a drug overdose,” Maer said.

The two apparently were in Paterson to conduct a drug transaction, Speziale said.

Police from Paterson, Passaic County, Bergen County, and New York State joined in the chase, he said.

Staff writer William Lamb contributed to this report.

Reach Alexander MacInnes at 973-569-7166 or macinnes@northjersey.com.

Candle lighting time this week Parshas V’eschanan

Candle lighting time tonight is at 7:59. Shabbos ends at 9:16 if you hold 60 minutes after shkiya, or at 9:28 if you hold Rabbeinu Tam (72 minutes after shkiya). Have A Wonderful Shabbos!

Trenton, NJ – Changes Made in Governor’s Protection Unit in Wake of Corzine Crash.

Trenton, NJ – Troopers in the elite state police unit that drives and protects the governor will have more restrictions on when they can speed and use sirens, The Attorney General’s Office convened the review panel after Gov. Jon S. Corzine was nearly killed in an April 12 car wreck

There must now be a specific threat before troopers have the authority to far exceed the posted speed limit or use emergency lights and sirens. [ap]

Bike theft suspects caught pink-handed

CLIFTON — If you’re buying a bike and you worry it may one day be stolen, try purchasing it in pink.

This single, telling detail helped police nab a pair of juveniles on Wednesday who allegedly robbed a 15-year-old boy at knifepoint of his pink BMX bicycle.

At 5:01 p.m., police received a report of a large altercation on Third Street and Hadley Avenue. A 15-year-old Clifton boy told several officers who responded to the scene that he and his friend, a 14-year-old city boy, were attacked by a pack of 15 to 20 teenagers, Lt. Richard Berdnik said. The boy said the teens had chased him and stolen his bike. A witness told police that one of his attackers brandished a knife, Berdnik said.

In responding to the scene, Clifton police Officer Randy Colondres spotted two boys riding a pink BMX bike that fit the description of the one allegedly stolen, police said. He stopped the two boys and arrested them for robbery.

The boys, who were 12 and 14 years old and both from Passaic, were being held Thursday at the Passaic County Juvenile Detention Center in Paterson, Berdnik said. Police were investigating the possibility that the boys were members of a street gang, he said.

— Ed Beeson

New York – FBI, CIA Considers Bloggers To Be Real Journalists.

New York – Are bloggers part of the news media? The U.S. government — led by two of its most secretive agencies — is increasingly saying, “Yes, they are.”

the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the National Security Agency (NSA) have altered policies to indicate they’re taking blogs seriously, and a growing number of public offices are actively reaching out to the blogosphere.

The CIA recently updated its policies on Freedom of Information Act requests to allow bloggers to qualify for special treatment once reserved for old-school reporters. And last August, the NSA issued a directive to its employees to report leaks of classified information to the media — “including blogs,” the order said.

Experts say it’s part of a trend. Earlier this year, the criminal trial of former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby was the first time a federal court had issued press credentials to bloggers. A rotating pool of five to 10 bloggers sat alongside dozens of traditional media reporters to hear the government try and convict one-time aide to Vice President Dick Cheney on perjury and obstruction of justice charges stemming from the leak of an undercover CIA operatives identity. [abcnews]

Israel – 6-Month-Old Infant Dies when Left Alone in Hot Parked Car

Israel – A 6-month-old infant died today near Haifa in Kibbutz Sha’ar Ha’amakim after being left alone in a parked car in the sweltering heat.Magen David Adom emergency medical service medics tried repeatedly to resuscitate the infant at the scene, but all attempts failed.
The girl’s arms and stomach were covered in third degree burns when she was found.

A preliminary investigation into the incident revealed that the infant’s father had arrived at a garage in the Haifa area kibbutz in order to have an all-terrain vehicle repaired. The man apparently left his daughter in the car that was parked outside the garage. It is not yet clear how long the child remained in the car before she was found. [haaretz] Be Careful!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Passaic Residents — Dont Get Your Car towed!

Attention all Passaic residents. Please be aware if your cars registration has expired, the Passaic Police will tow your car. They will even tow your car in middle of the night while its parked. Please save yourself the pain of getting your car towed and make sure all your car’s paper work is current.

Passaic Police Check I.D.

Three Passaic police officers, as well as a sgt. paid a surprise visit to a bar at 35 Broadway in order to do a spot check for underage patrons. The police officers asked everyone inside the bar to show ID, in order to verify that everyone in the bar was at least 21 years of age. A job well done by the Passaic Police Dept.

Walking around with a kitchen knife

Police apprehended a man by gun point after they got calls of a suspicious male walking down the street with a large kitchen knife in his back pocket. Police arrested the suspect and brought him in for questioning.

Pedestrian Struck

Yesterday a 16 year old was biking down Van Houten Ave. As he was crossing Pennington Ave. the light turned green for the traffic crossing Van Houten Ave, and a car coming down Pennington Ave. struck the boy. The boy flew up in the air and struck and shattered the windshield of the car. Baruch Hashem the boy was not hurt terribly. Hatzolah E.M.S. of Passaic raced to the scene, as well as the Passaic Police. The Passaic E.M.S. and Fire Dept also arrived but both left right away. The patient was transported to Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Paterson by Hatzolah E.M.S. MONOC Mobile ICU’s staff rode along with Hatzolah to provide mobile ICU care.

Welcome to our new site.

Today is our first day. Welcome. This site will have up to the minute news of importance to the Passaic and Clifton Jewish Community.