THE WORLD ACCORDING TO THE GOP!
Refried Republican Rhetoric is rejected by NA residents who just know better.
NORTH ARLINGTON – The online scribes for the local Republican Party seem to work in a detached reality that makes little sense to North Arlington residents unless of course you are a fanatic follower of these people.
Democrats John Balwierczak and John Yampaglia are finding that out with every door they knock.
For this door-to-door canvassing has revealed in many ways that the GOP emperors have no clothes, and that this contrived perception of invincibility is purely manufactured for those currently asking voters to continue to award them with total domination of our local democracy and the continued elimination of two-party government.
It’s worth repeating.
Local Republicans like embedded incumbents Brian Fitzhenry & Allison Sheedy believe there is no place for competition, that they should run unopposed and have another coronation to another term of office since it has been nearly a decade that they had to actually work to be reelected.
For in this year’s contest, they might have to present a case for reelection.
More importantly, what have they done to deserve another three years in office?
We know they rewarded council pay raises for themselves and Allison Sheedy is now a political double-dipper with two public jobs.
But what have they done?
Regardless of political party or persuasion, most reasonable individuals understand the necessity of elections that are competitive, and the fact this year we have a competitive race for council is a good thing for the community.
In fact, it must annoy the local GOP that one of the Democratic hopefuls is a former Republican who saw upfront and without any buffer just how this embedded political machine actually operates.
For is that the reason why they cannot stop the incessant and mindless attacks of a candidate who just lost his father and is committed to running a full-time effort for public office?
Or is it because he is incredibly hard-working, and has been campaigning for months while both Fitzhenry & Sheedy take elections and the electorate for granted and won’t knock on a single door?
They dismiss Mr. Balwierczak, a graduate of North Arlington High School and longtime local, but voters see him differently.
For how did the Democrats garner over 300 signatures for their nominating petitions, six times more than required?
That figure is more than any local council ticket in all of Bergen County.
To put this into perspective, Bloomfield Democrats of Essex County collected some 700 signatures, but Bloomfield has a population of nearly 60,000 people. In contrast, Balwierczak & Yampaglia filed 303 signatures in a community with just under 17,000 citizens.
For North Arlington is changing, and new residents have greeted these insurgents because reliable information about the community is lacking, as the print weekly community newspaper becomes irrelevant, the local GOP has tried to replace that void with online and in-print propaganda for the most part in which taxpayers are flipping the bill!
For does anyone believe that latest joke of a newsletter that cost you close to $10,000 was nothing more than a commercial for partisan goals and objectives and hardly public policy narrative that explains why we have this explosion of apartment dwellings along Ridge Road with more to come?
For when were North Arlington residents ever asked their opinion on these rapid changes?
Why didn’t they include in the newsletter these policy proposals?
And as for a “ghost town” when was the last time these incumbents strolled Ridge Road or can they explain that dilapidated Republican storefront?
For if what they are proposing is so popular, why are these Democratic candidates getting an opposite reaction, and as for property taxes, why are they still climbing on the Fitzhenry/Sheedy watch?
For there hatred of this site and our ability to offer residents an alternative view and opinion is something they cannot control, so they attack and attack and attack.
And if one needs a definition of the word “puppet,” doesn’t that fit the description of the time served by both Mr. Fitzhenry and Mrs. Sheedy?
Can they name once, just once, a question or roll call vote in which they put the public before their political party?
For when did Mr. Fitzhenry or Mrs. Sheedy ever betray their partisan ways and vote “no” just once?
Can either of them cite an idea or proposal they can call their own?
And the failed assertion that Democrats oppose all forms of redevelopment are in fact, false.
For it was Democrats who brought TD Bank to Ridge Road as well as 7/11, two examples of positive retail additions to North Arlington to say nothing of a series of residential condominiums on Schuyler Avenue that were conforming to the mass, scale and character of the community.
This notion North Arlington was founded by this crew of Republicans that are subsidized in political contributions from developers, consultants, builders, and other real estate interests borders on the absurd.
We urge any interested resident to review the contributors to the local Republicans and maybe, just maybe that explains what just is happening in the community today.
“You are what you eat,” and political machines are what they raise in terms of donors and contributions!
If North Arlington has such a “well-written, well explained” redevelopment plan, when was it ever shared with the public at-large that paid for it?
Why isn’t that document readily available to every resident and how much did that report cost taxpayers?
For how many residents even know this document exists?
But most of all, where was the GOP when the controversial developer known as EnCap was prepared to construct some 1,600 units of housing no one in North Arlington supported?
Where was Fitzhenry or Sheedy?
To this day, with the exception of the late Mayor Joe Bianchi, not a single Republican will admit the destructive and colossal political miscalculation they made supporting such a fiscal debacle that would have prevented the Federal Express facility if not for Democrats opposing even individuals in their own party that supported this ill-fated housing scheme that collapsed under its own weight!
And for the record, both former Mayors Bianchi and Peter Massa, life-long residents and friends despite being in different political parties were part of the process that made way for the adoption and construction of that project that was bipartisan in support, something that is held in contempt by this gang that just doesn’t get it.
For they are a big fish in a very small bowl, with no political or governmental support at the county, state or federal levels.
And most of all, Fitzhenry & Sheedy continue to support the antics of an ex-President (Donald Trump) that tried to stuff EnCap down the throats of every resident. Don’t take our word for it, GOOGLE EnCap and see for yourself who stopped it and who supported it!
For if hiring political contributors to advise on the future of North Arlington makes sense, who really believes that to be a wise decision?
Yes, this “renaissance” they speak of is a fake, a phony and a fraud to most reasonable voters who just want some clear and reliable data and information versus the political rhetoric we hear today.
This “everything is just fine,” happy talk, and we don’t need to have political discussion, or competitive elections is the kind of thinking in places like Cuba, North Korea, China and Russia, where a second voice or second pair of eyes is not legal, much less allowable.
Anyone who respects democracy would praise competitive elections, not fear them.
For local Republicans seem just plain stupid when they even criticize when Democrats request public information as is a right as candidates and citizens under The Open Public Meetings Act, a landmark piece of legislation that ensures such public data paid for by taxpayers can be referenced and easily accessible!
For how can any legitimate political organization question such rights and privileges as a resident and American citizen?
So despite the attacks on competitive two-party government, this reality North Arlington is a monologue versus a discussion in which Democrats, Independents have no stake in the community and should have a seat at the table, the 2024 Democratic hopefuls are just getting an initial taste of what lengths they will go to silence legitimate political discourse.
Remember, even if the Democrats prevail, what’s the fear?
There will still be a rock solid, 4-2 majority with a Republican Mayor.
For what are they afraid of?
Who demands 100% local control?
The sky will not fall, but the sky will become blue and sunny as this local democracy will be open once again as the drapes to municipal government will be unveiled for all to see.
For those who fear or will go to great lengths to destroy competition and eliminate grass roots democracy here in North Arlington, do they really have your best interests at heart?
For who are they accountable if elections are no longer competitive?
Questions to think about as this election and campaign takes shape in 2024.
For if they can’t run on their collective records, why are they seeking reelection?
And what person in North Arlington opposes the notion of keeping the community small, safe and suburban except Fitzhenry & Sheedy?
Yes, help is on the way North Arlington.