Can parents be held accountable for their teens' crimes in Jersey?

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Bill Spadia is compensated for commercial and nonprofit appearances. The opinion of the hosts, callers, and guests on this program are not those of New Jersey 101.5, Towns Square Media, or station advertisers. [Music] Billy's back. Billy's back. Billy's back. Bill is back. Time for Jersey to call in [Music] 609 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia. I want to thank the Bed Parks online casino and sports book app for sponsoring New Jersey Chime Time every morning, every hour on the show. We got a busy day today. Um Eric, we're going to hear from uh the head of New Jersey Transit after the 630 news, Chris Kori. Um I I have to tell you, I think Chris is doing an outstanding job. uh he he uh walked into what most people in New Jersey would describe as a complete mess and somehow avoided a strike and now he's um I I like this latest um what they're calling a clawback to go and try to grab some money back from employees who should not have been compensated. But I'll let him tell the story. I know you've got this in the news or you have it in the 6:30 news. We will. We'll have the update at 6:30 and then uh we'll let Chris then Chris will join. Uh but I I want to ask you, we had talked about it yesterday. Uh I I'm having I'm having some mixed feelings on this that the parents in Gloucester City of how many teens were well teens a 19year-old. So technically an adult, two teenagers and an adult, but I mean 19 is still Is the 19year-old's parents also being charged? Uh no, because that you're both the age of consent. Yeah. The others are what? 16 and 17, correct? Yep. All right. So, those parents are being charged with Explain what that is. You said it was state law. Yeah. It's there was a little confusion yesterday because you remember in Gloucester Township, they had the Wilding teens that interrupted Gloucester Day and they had passed some local ordinances to hold parents responsible for their children's behavior. So, there was a little confusion. Was this Glouster Township or this Glouster City? This is Gloucester City. So, that ordinance doesn't apply there. But there is a statute, and we kind of dug into this yesterday. Um, there is a statute under um New Jersey's child welfare laws that will allow you to be charged basically with not supervising your kids and not keeping them safe. And that's how these parents were charged under endangering the welfare of a child law. Um it could be considered a form of neglect. It's a secondderee crime. And so it's it is I don't know that they've used this statute for this purpose before. We couldn't find another instance. Wow. Of it. Um I can't say with 100% certainty that it is the first time. Certainly not the first time anybody's been charged under this, but for this particular reason, right? And this was a wild burglary spree. If you read the police report, I mean, there were multiple homes and vehicles that were broken into. Um, the kids themselves when they were uh questioned by police and arrested, they had all kinds of stolen property, stolen credit cards. Was this like a one night thing, a one week thing? How long were they on this uh the weekend? So whether that was a 24-hour period or a 12 or an 18 hour period, you know, I mean, and recently, this happened last week. This happened last weekend. Police the um through surveillance video ultimately. Um it was in the Highland Park section of the city of Gloucester. Um so, you know, it it was and they were apparently so brazen about it that police got multiple calls. Um, so it it is it's interesting um to see what happens. Now, the 19-year-old already had active warrants. He's still being held at the Camden County Jail. The two younger teens got ankle monitors at the juvenile detention center in Camden and were and were released back to their parents. Um, but it it's I think it's a very unique way of using the statute that is already on the books, the endangering the welfare of a child statute, because not supervising your children is considered neglect under the law. But we don't know if the other two had any juvenile record. U and we won't I mean that won't be we won't know that. But uh so there's there could be more to it that uh the court will know. The court will know. We won't. The judge will know. 28 charges. I mean there's 28. Well, you get a charge for each what? Each breakin. Well, you could be charged. Well, it could be both. So, it could be charged with each item that was stolen. Um you know, but it's it's 28 charges in all. Um and you know, they're waiting for their for their first court appearance. Um but I you know I I think in the absence of the state legislature taking any action on on you know having parents have some responsibility for what their kids are doing. This was a very unique application of the law. How about that? When did this law pass? Well, this has always been part of the statute. This is this is part of the existing endangering the welfare of a child law. go back decades. Yeah. I it it's but it's of the the prosecutor and police. I don't know who said, "Hey, let's charge them under I mean, what a good idea." Like, that's I I I'm impressed. Yeah. I mean, whether it was the the Gloucester police or whether it was the the county prosecutor, we don't know because this is juvenile case. Nobody's really going to talk about it. So, that's So, we'll be the ones talking about it. And it's a good point. Um, I I want to ask you, do you think that's fair to charge the parents? I mean, I I could look at when you're at that age, 16, 17. I mean, you are legally not an adult, but how many how many parents have trouble with 16 and 17 year olds? Do you think it's fair that mom and dad are being charged as well? Um, and is this just a desperate society and prosecutors saying we got to do something to curb the crime? Are we finally seeing the tide turn? Uh, do you agree with charging parents if the kids are arrested for a crime? 1800 283101.5 615 fast traffic instant weather next. Stay connected with traffic and weather updates every 15 minutes right here on New Jersey 101.5. [Music] 6:22 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia with you. So 10:00 this morning, Talking Jersey taking your calls. 1-800 283101.5. So three teens out, two teenagers and an adult arrested for a robbery spree. 28 charges levied down on these three kids. Um 16, 17, and 19. Gloucester City happened last weekend. And the parents in what we're seeing now, maybe could be among the first times this has been used, are also being charged, at least the parents of the 16 and 17 year olds. I'm I'm a little torn on this to be honest. I I don't I I'm not having a knee-jerk reaction where I think this is something that uh should take place. Uh you know, as any mom or dad will tell you, you know, teenagers can be somewhat unruly. And the question really is at what point did the parents lose control of these kids? You know, it did didn't I'm sure it didn't happen over a week. No doubt there's some history of this, but uh what do you think? Fair to charge of parents. Let's go to Bob at Hillsboro. Hey Bob. Morning. Morning Bill. How you doing today? I'm doing great. Thanks for asking. You all right? Uh yeah. The problem unfortunately fortunately how you want to look at it. Yeah. I was that child at that age. Bad kid. And I was that bad kid. I mean, let me Wait, Bob. Bad kid. Like, were you the consequences? Were you stealing from people? Like, what do you mean bad? What level? Yeah. I stole from people, you know, we opened car doors just like they did and took change out of it. Yeah. You know, we never did anything malicious, but we always did things teenagers, kids do. Mhm. I learned my lesson by paying the consequences that were my actions, you know, was brought on myself. Why are you going to blame somebody else for somebody else's action? You think the kids's going to learn a lesson by somebody else getting blamed for their actions? No, they're not. They should be held responsible. If they got to go to juvenile hall for a week or two weeks or, you know, scared straight and bring them into a prison and show them the prison, that's what they need. They don't need coddling. They don't need to blame somebody else and blame the parents. I get it, but they need to learn. They need to pay the price for the consequences of their own actions. All right, Bob. Bob, did you did you do any jail time or did you go to juvie? What was the what were the consequences? Yeah, I did a few days of jail time. Uh, luckily I got a PTI trial and it was right on exactly when I turned 18. Wow. And that was one of my that was one of my last interactions with the police. Yeah. Good for you. On the bad side of the thing because you learn your lessons. Yeah. Yeah. You learn what's responsible and what's not. Yeah. I love it. I I think Look, I I tend to agree with you on that. I think it's a smart take. Thank you, Bob. Have a great rest of your day. Alyssa in East Windsor, good morning. Good morning. How are you? I'm great. Thanks for asking, Alyssa. Uh just real quick, my I'm one of eight children and back in the 60s I had great and I I mean they passed away. Uh great parents. Uh father worked really hard, mom stayed at home, did what she had to do. Seven of us kids were great. My eldest brother was born with blonde hair and she said when he turned a year old his hair went black and his personality went with it. Wow. 16 years old. 16 years old. They come to a point where my parents actually went to court and this is in the 60s. They had him legally emancipated because they could no longer control him and they said, "We have seven other children we have to care for." Wow. He ended up in prison at one point and then they gave him an option when he was getting out of Rawway and they said, "You either join the military or you're going to do and I forget what the option was. You join the military." And what we found out is that some children who are really encouraable need to have the thumb down on them. He ended up coming out. He went in as an enlisted. He came out as a warrant officer flying helicopters. Wow. So you can't blame the parents necessarily. Maybe he should be running for governor. Well, no. Um but what you find is that so you know, you can't always blame the parents. Parents can just do so much. And like that other gentleman said, kids are encouraable sometimes. And are you are you close to your older brother now? Um, not really. And because he lives out of the country. Okay. Um, and we're not really that close. And he was much older than me. But but he straightened his life out. And that's kind of the the lesson here. Uh, just real quick before they let you go, listen. When they emancipated him, I imagine he had to what? You kick him out of the house. What? How does that work? Yeah. Oh, no, no. He was 16 years old. They went to court and they tough love to take care of him. They gave him all the reasons. Y and uh the judge said fine and he now became responsible for his own affairs. Wow, that's amazing. You know, that that's a great story. I' I'd like to dive into that more. That is really really interesting. Well, Alyssa, I'm glad there's a happy ending there. You know, that that sounds good. But man, boy, I could do a whole show on on eight kids. God bless your parents. All right, Alyssa, have a great rest of your day. Take care. Kevin Pete, hang in there. We'll be back. 6:27. Eric Scott with the news next. [Music] 6:37 on New Jersey 101.5. Uh Kevin Pete, everybody hang in there. I'll get back to talking about the parents who are being charged after some teens got arrested for robbery over the weekend. That's another story. But first, I want to check in with our friend uh Chris Calori, who is the CEO of New Jersey Transit. Um there's a story about a couple of folks in leadership on the uh union side that looks like they owe some money back. Chris, welcome to the show. Thanks for joining me. Bill, thanks uh for having me and good to be on. So, I I'm I'm reading this news report. Eric and I were talking about it uh off the air for a moment that that uh these guys took uh leave but got paid. Help me understand, Chris, that how you'd have somebody My assumption was, hey, aren't these guys all salaried and and why would they not why would they have to give the money back? Yeah, look, I mean, I think this whole sad episode started when I think somebody from the union uh basically called a reporter and said that uh couple of these folks haven't worked in months uh but having gotten but still have got paid. Uh so look uh Tommy Hos and Don Melhorn are union leaders and they're entitled to take personal vacation just like you and I are and if they're on union business, they're entitled to charge it to the union. But what they're not allowed to do is do union business and charge the taxpayers for that. And what seems to have happened uh is there seems to have been instances uh that uh that where we paid them uh for time uh that they were not supposed to be paid for. And I got to tell you uh this isn't from us. Uh, and I a credit goes to maybe somebody from the union who thought that it's not fair for them to work and for Tommy Hos and Don Mel Horn not to work and still get paid. So, how's how does the process work now? Do you have to take them to court? Do you have to sue or just say, "Guys, give the money back. You're not owed that money because the union is getting their backup and saying, "Wait a minute. We don't owe you anything." Well, uh, that's the uh that's the beauty about a process that we've now started. Uh, I'm going to say this to you today. Uh I'm also going to bring on an integrity monitor uh effective immediately to review not just in this incident but to look at all uh particulars uh that pertain to how these payments are made uh and to make sure we have proper controls. Look, I'll be the first to say if there's something that we need to do to make sure we do uh a better job, I'll be the first one to admit it and do it. But the responsibility to make sure the time cards are submitted correctly rests singular with the employee. And if something has happened where they did not do that, I assure you we will claw back every single penny. I I mean that is exactly what fair payers and rateayers and taxpayers want to hear. Let me uh ask you this. As far as the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, um what is their response uh to this report of the unauthorized absences? Just looking at this latest report, 32 unauthorized absences on Sunday. What does that mean to riders? Um when uh when the guys take an unauthorized absence and what does that actually mean in real terms? It means that we will have canceled trains and we've had canceled trains. Let me just say this to you, Bill. I looked at some of your demographics of the people who listen to you. Uh, a majority of the people who listen to you make $50,000 or less. And these are hardworking people who work jobs whether frankly they like it or not to provide a roof over their head uh of their families and feed their families. I understand if somebody wants to take a sick day or vacation day, but what you don't get to do in any job that I know of, just decide one morning to wake up and say, "I'm not going to show up to work." Yeah. And what we have to do is run around and try to figure out who can fill that slot and pay that person time and a half. No other part of the economy that I know of where somebody wakes up in the morning and decides they don't want to work. I I don't understand why this is tolerable. Uh and I am telling you this is exactly the kind of stuff the next governor will have to focus on when we get to the next contract negotiations. And I'll just say this one last thing. Work rules that hurt our writers and taxpayers cannot be tolerated. I don't understand why we would ever tolerate this. So I will say this to you. I'm not going to be in this job come four months from now. But I assure you before I leave, I intend to leave a road map of all the work rules that should be on the bargaining table during the next negotiation. Chris, before I let you go, these are things that the governor should be able to enact through appointments and administrative rules. Uh you you would think you would not need an act of the legislature uh to uh to get the bill under control, right? Or would you? Well, there's two issues, right? If there are negotiated work rules which have been done for decades uh that has to be a subject of negotiation but there are certain administrative things and I'll just say this to you stand by uh you'll be hearing about some soon okay we will look forward to checking in with you then Chris thank you always appreciate your time good to talk to you this morning good luck thank you that is Chris Kori CEO of New Jersey Transit Eric uh I mean that was as straightforward an answer that you're ever going to get from a government department head. Um he is continues to impress. I mean look he that you you take away partisansship from the administration and you got a guy that's trying to make New Jersey Transit run right. Well and look, you know, it's not an easy thing. Um, you know, I I don't think I've said multiple times, um, that this is probably the best appointment or personnel decision that Phil Murphy has made in almost 8 years, no doubt, as governor. Um, and, you know, I think writers should um, be a little sad that he's not going to be around after January. Um I suspect I mean that that there will be some role um around government and involving transportation for uh Chris Kari. What that is I don't I don't know. Well, but you know it's he he is really a roll up your sleeves get to work kind of guy. This is where partisan politics hurts us. you know, when when you get a guy that's going to come in and make political deals and say, "Well, I owe this guy a job." Like, I would say to both candidates for governor, cuz one of you is going to be the next governor. This is the model. You need somebody that is out of the political wranglings and somebody that does not have an interest in saying, "Oo, I can use this for a step up." No, a guy that stepped away from a super lucrative career. Yeah. To say, "I want to serve the public." Um, and I I you know, I would heed I'm going to take it almost as a warning that he's saying, "Look, there the these rules, a lot of them are broken and they're being really taken advantage of. That means you're paying more to get on the bus and on the train." Well, and that's why, you know, a lot of that has to be addressed in the collective bargaining for the next contract. And you know, the the bit of news that Chris made was the integrity monitor. That's the first time that we've that we've heard that. Yeah. Um, so we're going to explore that a little bit more because if the union is to be believed, somebody at New Jersey Transit approved the hours, right? And I would suspect that they're trying to identify who that is right now. Yeah. And it could have been just a bureaucratic mistake, too. I mean, you're not entitled to it. You're not entitled to it. Well, I I think that I loved his term. We're going to claw back. claw back because that's a man fighting for the taxpayers and the fair payers because it's not just the folks paying the fair to get on the bus or the train. Eric and I I haven't used NJ Transit in quite some time, several several months at least. But my taxes are in part subsidizing their losses. I mean up to uh I think it's close to a billion dollars. Some some outrageous amount of money. So anyway, we appreciate Chris's time this morning. All right, Pete, Kevin, you guys hang in there. I'm going to get back to talking about this Gloucester City issue. Should parents be charged if their teens commit a crime? Many saying yes. 1800 283101.5646. Fast traffic in the next. Connect to the show anytime by sending us a message through our app. Just tap on chat with hosts only on New Jersey 101.5. 653 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia. So, let's uh let's talk about this Gloucester City. Couple of unruly uh wouldbe criminals um accused and charged with 28 counts stealing from people. Mom and dad getting charged for losing control of their kids. What do you think? Good or bad? Let's go to Kevin in Woodbridge. What do you think, Kevin? Hey. Hey, you I don't think the parents should be charged. Okay. And you got to let the punishment fit the crime. Did you ever hear of the movie with Tracy Spencer and Mickey Rooney called Boy Town? No. It was basically for, you know, kids at Trouble. Okay. It was self. What's it called? Boys Town. Boy Town movie. It was self-governed. The kid It was supervised by the adults but ran by the by the kids. They had a president, you know, a judge, everything. And you messed up. Now, I got sent to one of those places that was court ordered two years. Now, I did a lot of things, but what got me up there was truency. And if you messed up, even if you were a tough guy, you'd have three, four, five guys lumping you up. Well, it's the self-discipline of the group, honestly, that we we experienced that in in the Marine Corps. We had a we had a lot of that going on in uh at Paris Island. I mean, you make it sound like Lord of the Flies, right? But but I I get the point. Not really. But it it was the the motto is nothing without labor. If you didn't earn it, you didn't get it. I'm talking everything from toothpaste to underwear. You And that's funny. Well, Kevin, you know what? And and we heard a call earlier say that that that you know her her older brother out of eight kids ended up, you know, jail or military. I served in the Marine Corps with guys that were given that choice that there they were either going to Paris Island or they were going to jail and they took Paris Island and I could tell you that uh they came out uh men and and there's a there's a big difference. So I look I I I think I think we need more young people to go in the military. I think that should be an option at may perhaps at a younger age. Perhaps we need to start thinking about getting these kids the discipline at 16 instead of waiting till they're 18. Anyway, I I I'm with you, Kevin. Thank you. Listen, I got to jump. Sorry to cut you off. I'm I'm running late for news. 656. Eric Scott with your news next. Get the latest traffic and weather updates with the New Jersey 101.5 app. 7:09 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spady. I want to thank the Parks Casino for sponsoring New Jersey Prime Time every morning, every hour on the show. Uh Pete, I'm going to give you the last word on this conversation about the uh these kids. Kid kids, right? 16, 17, 19. The 16 and 17 year olds arrested in Gloucester City for robbery. 28 counts. Mom and dad facing charges for uh having their kids get out of control. Pete in East Windsor, you've got a solution. Hey, Bill, how are you? I'll make it fast. Uh number one, I want to say it's nice to hear you back on the radio. Thank you, Pete. Number two, you're welcome. Number two, I think it's simple. I do not believe the answer is charging the parents. I believe the answer is lowering the age at which you're charged as an adult. And if they have to build more prisons, so be it. Yeah. I I mean, look, federally, I you can charge them lower. We had talked about that they ought to be able to lower that to I I think honestly a 14 or 15 year old should be able to be charged as an adult. I mean, you look at some of these kids and the crimes that are being committed. I mean, it's it's outrageous. I mean, it's it's so so we have a huge societal problem. No doubt about it. But I Pete, what's interesting to me is most people who called the show this morning don't think mom and dad should be charged. I I'm a little surprised. I'll be honest. I thought the majority of people would think that mom and dad should be charged, but um you know, the people have spoken. All right, man. Thank you, Pete. appreciate the well wishes, too. All right, I want to check in with our our good friend uh Melissa Alfiri Collins. She is a nurse and uh with New Jersey Healthcare Alliance for Choice. Uh her her whole mission is to stand up for patients and uh medical freedom. And she has been fighting for the better part of the past decade protecting the rights of families when it comes to choices in uh medicine and vaccine mandates. And I I wanted her to weigh in. We heard last week a little bit about some of the changes that are coming through the Department of Health and I can tell you um as an advocate for individual liberty, these are not good changes. Melissa, welcome to the show. How are you? Good. Bill, how are you? I'm doing great. Thanks for taking the time to join me. Uh you have been at this for a long, long time and things in New Jersey seem to just every time you win, you're like, "Okay, we got to win." and then they come back at you. Can you explain to everyone what is the Department of Health up to and why should we be concerned? Sure. Well, first I want to thank you for always advocating for our healthcare workers. I mean, you are front and center. So, thank you. You got it. And I also want to say that this is a marathon, right? We are always working quietly behind the scenes. It never ends. So, you know, this is the way it is in New Jersey. So, the New Jersey Department of Health, I have a good relationship with them, a good working relationship, and I, you know, these were being discussed in 2023. They were talking about some of the changes. I will say, um, they have open forum now where anybody could submit their questions, concerns, and I really encourage anyone and everyone to do that. Um, if you could put that website up and have people, you know, contact the New Jersey Department of Health right now, that's what is needed most because they did say they will have no public hearings in person. So, they they need to hear from you. So, some of the language that's concerning is, you know, there's explicit language in there that states that they are going to adapt ASIP changes. The question is will it apply to mandatory vaccination for school entry for college and for our healthcare workers? We don't have an answer to that currently. They require that NJIS disclosure to health plans. So now your health insurance plans are going to have access to your vaccination status. Why is it it's not consentbased? and we need to understand why and we need consent from the party in order to access that data. Um I asked them to commit to publishing vaccine level exemption data from prek to 12 and higher education. They need to separate Holly's law and MMR titers from the religious exemption totals. How many of these children actually took the first dose of MMR have titers and now decided hey I may have titers I don't want to take that second shot and they shouldn't have to explain what is titers Melissa explain what what is titers so tighters are antibodies that you build after you have a vaccination okay so we're not we're not typically checking this with our children right they go to the doctor's office. Hey, you need to take two shots before you enter school. But what happens if they had antibodies built up from that first shot and they may not need the secondary? So, what you're saying, Holly's law, what gives you the vaccination choice? So, Holly's law allows a parent to opt out out of out of the second dose required for school entry. So, and why is it named Holly's law? Who's Holly? because we had a beautiful young girl, Holly, die from the second vaccination of the MMR in New Jersey. And that's not something that they talk about. Let Let me ask you this. So that that that really hits home, Melissa, and that's that's what we're talking about with vaccine choice. This is not some reckless non-medical position. This is a very scientific specific important position where science and common sense marry uh individual liberty and parental choice. And that I think is very important for people to understand. Let me ask you a quick question. I only have about a minute. Um on the website at the department of health, they had the first page, the landing page, measles is preventable. The only way to prevent measles is vaccination. True or false? So it's it's a difficult conversation right and I think that we have to push this back to the doctor patient relationship. I think government needs to be removed from this conversation and I think the parent has to decide with their health care provider what is best for their child. Parent doctor child. That's it. That's my that's the takeaway here. So, we should be having these conversations uh with the Department of Health. I have the website up. It's NJ.govalth. And there is uh I'm going to look for it. There's a place on here where you can send them um contact and talk about this. Yeah. So, and the most important thing, Bill, that I do want to mention, we need to clarify the limits of the commissioner's authority and provide statuary, you know, citations for any emergency or standing powers. We saw what happened during CO and we need to make sure that we clarify what are they able to do if this happens again to us here in New Jersey. That's that's it. We we have to make sure they can never do what they did in 2020 again. Melissa, thank you. Thank you for your leadership on this and I appreciate everything that uh New Jersey Healthcare Alliance for Choice does. Thank you for continuing to be a champion. I look forward to talking to you later today. Thank you, Melissa. Thank you so much, Bill. Have a great day. You take care. That is Melissa Collins. Honestly, one of the leading voices for um parental choice and medical freedom, vaccination choice in the state. But uh you heard her. Your government is coming after you again. They're just not talking about it. 1-800 283101.5 is my number. 717 is the time. Traffic and weather. Next. Staying on top of the topics that matter to you. We are New Jersey 101.5. 7:22 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia. I I know uh many of you are hearing it for the first time about what the Department of Health is going to do. Um what you ought to be doing is talking to both candidates for governor and asking how are they going to undo these horrible rules that are coming our way. You don't want your insurance company to have the power to drop you or push you to get a procedure you don't want because they have access to your vaccination status. I mean, this goes beyond the digital ID that people are concerned about and rightfully so. You know, I I spoke last night to a a group, a medical freedom group, and I I talked about how, you know, COVID was was bad and and now we know they lied. They lied about ivormectin. They lied about hydroxychloricquin. They tried to shame us who those of us who had common sense and saw right away January 2020, that they were lying to us. Remember the the the the wet market, the bats were somehow people were eating bats and your kids were going to die. I I mean it was insanity. They just made it up. And when they started forcing the shots, like you didn't even know about Holly's law, right? How many of you knew about Holly's Law? How many of you knew that there was a young woman, young girl who died after the second shot just so she could be qualified to go to school? Well, that's what's coming. And and you think big pharma cares? These these fat cat executives? Do you think the big insurance cares while they're writing checks to candidates running for office who will just push the same laws and and all at your expense? You're like a lab rat. They don't give a crap about you. And you know, one of the reasons that I'm so adamant that this is not partisan and why I am so tough on the Republicans is because you would think the Republican party, the party of Lincoln and Reagan would have some concept of standing up for individuals. But we can go back to Ronald Reagan, who I admire greatly, had um some great interactions both as a kid and then um as an adult after he left the White House and admired him from afar and then up close. And I can tell you it was Ronald Reagan's administration that brought in this lack of liability for big pharma, you know, and the and the again good intentions, right? Well, we don't want them to be sued every time there's a complication because uh we're all convinced that if we don't have vaccines, we can't survive. I don't buy that. Do you can't stop measles without a vaccine? What are you talking about? We have immune systems and you know, is it has have things worked for us over the past 30 40 years? Well, maybe. But we got a whole country of diabetics and fat kids and heart disease. So I don't know. It doesn't seem to be working. We are arguably one of the least healthy countries in the world. And that's comparing us to countries where the cows are pooping in the drinking water. I mean like think about that with the dyes in your food, the plastic and the the carcinogens in your water. the overprocessing. God knows what you're eating. What What is in those school lunches? No offense to the cafeteria ladies, but you think about it and then you think about the the regimen of shots and the fact that the Department of Health in New Jersey is doing opposite of what the Department of Health is doing in Florida. In Florida, they're saying, "We got to stop forcing these parents to to inject their kids with all kinds of stuff from big pharma. How about we have medical freedom? Parents will make the choice. You know, as a responsible parent, I told you this during co I was never an antiaxer. Now I don't question. Now I question and don't trust anything. And and I'm relatively normal. Ah, I know. But I'm relatively normal. And and I I don't think that I stand alone saying I am questioning everything coming out of the medical community. If you have to force it, maybe we shouldn't be doing it. It It's like this latest nonsense coming from the legislature about banning micro betting. Oh, you're going to protect me. Why? Cuz I can't control myself that I'm going to bet on whether it's a pass or a run on the next play. Guys, I'm sorry to be the one to break it to you, but until we make decisions on our own and grow up a little bit, we're never going to get out of this mess. So my question to you is should the government be protecting our freedom or forcing behavior? 1 800 283 101.5 727 air Scott with the news next [Music] 7:38 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia with you till 10:00 this morning talking Jersey taking your calls. 1-800 283101.5. So, Eric, um, who's trying to ban micro betting? Did I hear that right? It's a it's a Democratic assemblyman, uh, Hutchinson, who is trying to ban the the micro hemocrat. So, he's wor that's because Camden, I mean, you know, they've solved all the problems in Camden and now it's down to people are just microbetting and then that's and once they clean that up, I mean, it's it home free. Unbelievable. And now micro bet is like not a parlay. It's it's a bet within a live game. Yes. So it's it's live game betting and and I and I love it. I do it all do it all the time. So you could bet like 30 seconds before pass or run. Yeah. Pass or run or you know or plus or minus you know five yards. And I mean it's reminiscent of what my brother and I used to do um and still do every once in a while. We would bring um to every football game we watch. would bring a stack of $1 bills and we would sit at the bar or wherever and we would literally bet on every play. Is he going to throw? Yeah. Yeah. Run or we'd be specific. It would be like run to the right and you put your dollars down and then you know you grab the money off the and we would just we'd go back and forth like that and it was um you know this is basically the online version of that. Yes, you could bet over your head but you can do that with anything. Well, it's it's of course I mean any behavior can go too far. I mean that's you know it just seems outrageous to me that these are the way they this is what they consider regulating. There's no way it's going to pass though. I can't imagine anyone takes that seriously. Yeah. I can't actually you just this was a good commercial for online betting. Like I'm gonna go to the Bet Parks online um game now. I I think that could get me watching sports if I could bet on each pitch. Well, each run. You know, it's Yeah. I I That's fun. I love that. I It's It is You start with a certain amount of money. Yeah. That and and and if you're betting properly, you start with an amount of money that you could lose. Correct. And that's walk into a casino with the money you you expect to lose. And it's you win, good on you. And it's um you know the way that I and I love to play. I go to parks all the time. You know you'll find me either at the blackjack or the craps table. Um and you know it's what is the entertainment value of that? Put a dollar figure on it. Whatever it is 50 bucks, 100 bucks, whatever. So and then when it's gone it's gone. Yeah. But it's that's that's my value. It's and I Sandra and I talk about this all the time. It's one of the reasons why I'm never going to win big because I don't bet big. God, I I remember I I have been with friends who um the stress level because of what they're putting down on the table and it actually turned me off. I have not gambled in a while. Like I watched a guy put $10,000 on a hand of blackjack and lose and I just I'm like you don't have $10,000 like right like you that you needed that money but but but you can't solve that through legislation. You you people need to be able to overcome and start to help themselves and we don't have a lot of that in this society today. No. Well, and or impulse control or or anything else. We don't teach it. We don't teach how to overcome adversity. I mean, they they don't want kids to drink or do drugs. Yet, for every problem in society, the docs will prescribe a pill, right? Even for young kids. Oh, your kid's a little ramy. Well, he's probably got ADHD. Let's throw something in his veins. And and and it's nuts to me. There's a pill for everything. I I don't know how we have not walked so much of this back after we lived through co Yeah, it's getting worse though. It's uh it does seem to be getting worse, right? I mean, it's you look, back in the day, the nuns had it right. If you were hyper, you got the ruler. Yes. A little smack in the head. A little back of the head smack and you're fine. But guess what? You're paying attention. You uh it worked on a lot of people I know. Oh my god. I Well, we've you've I've talked about this. We were far more concerned and worried and scared of our dads than the than the police even. Right. I told you that the time I got pulled over, the the trooper followed me home and at 1 in the morning and flipped I was flying down 295. Followed me home and as I pulled into the driveway, he flipped on the lights in the siren. Oh man. Woke my dad up and drove away. And I'm like, ah. Like it was just and and let me tell you, you you learned that lesson. Local cop. Uh trooper. Oh, trooper. State trooper did that. How about that? The little Mayberry town that I grew up in, you know, we had three police officers. So, you knew them all? He knew them all. My dad's bar, you know, it's so I I got stopped one time. I had a 1980 Ford Thunderbird and I was on a stretch of the 219 Expressway, man. And I had that thing up to 110 miles. Yeah. It felt good, man. It felt great. And then all of a sudden I see officer Bolt behind me, lights come on. I pull over and he goes, "Do you know how fast you were going?" And I was like, "No, I really don't." He goes, "I clocked you doing 110 coming over the rise." And I went, "Oh my god, no kidding." Which was the There you go. Uh I ended up with a couple of busted tail lights, a busted wiper, and um you know, we're not going to discuss this with your father. Wow. How about that? Just just pay the ticket. Yep. That's fantastic. I never did it again. I bet you didn't. Ah, the good old days. All right. So, uh that's an interesting thing. Are we uh is this the start of parents taking responsibility for their kids and kids taking responsibility for their actions? Uh Gloucester City, parents being charged, teens arrested for robbery. What do you think? Is this the appropriate action? 1 800 283 101.5 74 fast traffic instant weather. From New Jersey 101.5 $1,000 a day at work payday. When would be a good time to win $1,000 right now. Right now. Listen for the at work payday cash code starting at 8 a.m. Complete contest rules and details on our New Jersey 101.5 app. $1,000 a day just for listening at work on New Jersey 101.5 powered by Nissan. Fall starts with Nissan. Route 46, Route 17, Edison Nissan, and Route 33 Nissan, where buying is always fun and easy. 752 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia. We um today, as promised, it's Tuesday, so we are now closing in on an election. And you know, most people if they think about the election, they're thinking about the top of the ticket. I I'd like you to think about your local races and the undervoting that typically happens. You know, um Jod's mom got her ballot yesterday and um you had to flip the ballot over to see that on the backside were the school board candidates. So, um, we had Tim House, my friend who's one of the, uh, top election attorneys in the state, former Somerset County Republican chair, call last week, and he said there's something like a 40 to 50% undervote because people don't turn the ballot over. So, if you got your mail-in ballot, turn it over. There are people on the other side. And if you don't know who they are, um, listen to the show or call me and ask and I'd be happy to help you if I know who they are because an informed voter is a powerful voter. And regardless of who you're going to vote for, you need to vote. But pay close attention to the local races. If this state is going to turn around, we need thoughtful, common sense, strong leaders at the local level. And to that end, 9:00 every Tuesday, we uh turn the show over to you if you're running for local board of education, mayor, council. So, I'm going to do that again today. And I want to hear from you if you're running for board of ed, if you're running for mayor, and and and just keep it brief. You know, what what are you who are you? What are you running for? Where are you running? And and why should people vote for you? And as I've said all along, you know, I still get and we are going to do the heyo meter, baby. It's back tomorrow at 9:00 and producer Thomas and news anchor Eric Scott have some really uh wow, some some of the hate this week was was next level. So, we'll have that for you tomorrow. Um, and uh, we're still looking for a psychologist, a professional who handles anger management. If you're interested, I have a a sponsorship opportunity for you. If you are a therapist who deals in anger management, just give me a call uh, while we're on the air. 1 800 283101.5. You don't have to go on the air, but you can call and producer Thomas will get your information. 1-800 283101.5. All right. On the other side, I want to ask you about something that Chris Calori said, the CEO of New Jersey Transit. He looked into our audience and you know, most of the people who listen to the show are earning in the 50,000 range uh but but less than 75,000 as an individual earner. And it's tough to make ends meet in New Jersey at 50 $60,000 a year. So, I want to ask you this question. Um, are you do you feel that government has been fair to you, have the folks in Trenton that we've trusted over the past 30 years, have they done right by your vote? And what was your biggest disappointment of someone that you thought, "Ah, they're going to fix it, but then they let you down 1800 283101.5." And and the sidebar to that or the followup to that is, are you digging in or do you have an exit plan? 1 800 283 101.5756. Eric Scott with the news 4 minutes where you can stay connected to everything happening in Jersey. This is New Jersey 101.5 809 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spania. Hey, I want to thank the Vet Parks online casino and sports book app for sponsoring New Jersey Chime Time every morning, every hour in the show. So, here's what you didn't hear as we were coming back. I asked Eric, Eric, did we talk about the pork chop on air or off air? I literally the show on air and off air blends. So I for we did we talked about it. I'm just going to say it again. Via Sposito. Via Sposito. I think I'm saying that correctly. Italian place in Colts. Now they've got three restaurants and I let me see where it is. One I think it's Colts Neck. There's one in uh Redbank and one in Oldbridge. Now, I don't know about Red Bank and Old Bridge, but Colt's Neck has a liquor license. Oh. So, there's a bar and when I tell you I never order the pork chop, but I I I felt like, you know what, we we were I had a I had a Zoom meeting with the Medical Freedom folks uh after I left the restaurant, so I had to get that set in the car. I got there a little late because I was doing the the pizza wars with Chef Roberto. So, we just went to the mains and it just I don't know, it hit me, Eric. I I ordered it medium rare and I well I asked the waitress. I said, "Well, how does the chef do it?" She's like, "Well, the chef likes it medium rare." I'm like, "Well, then that's how I want it." Y it was rare. It was the best pork chop I've ever had. I two bones. You Oh my god. If it's a bonein pork chop, I will usually order it. I If it's just a pork chop on the menu, Yeah. because I know how I make them and you know it's and we'll see it on the menu and Sandra will be like, "You make it better." Um, so but you have I have been thinking since we talked about this about nothing other than pork chops and have them in the freezer from the butcher box. I have them from the butcher box and I'm thinking because I also chops you get they're the Birkshshire chops and they're 2 in thick. Now are they bone in? They're not bone in. They're not bone in, but they have the really thick fat rind on the one side. Um and you going to do them? I think I think I'm going to do them stuffed tonight. What will you stuff it with? So I'll stuff them with a It'll be an apple cornbread stuffing. Nice. And then I'll make a white wine sauce to go over it. Um, and I'll probably brine them. I'll I'll I'll brine them for probably an hour or two with chunks of apples. What do you use? Like Granny Smith. I have to I think I have I think I have Gayla apples maybe in the in the fridge. We got apples in the farm box. Okay. So, I'll dice up the apples. I'll mix them up into um a little bit of uh of cornbread um as just the binder to it. And then some sauteed shallots. And uh I'll add a little sage into that as well. I love it. You know where else they do a I mean an outstanding pork chop is Cherros in Monroe. I have been there. I haven't had the pork chop there, but I've been to Cherros. The pork chop. So Jody had it. She's like, "This is the best pork chop I've ever had out to eat." I came home last night and I'm like, "I just had the best pork chop I've ever had out to eat." And and I'm like, why am I not ordering pork chops more? Because for the longest time, if you would order them, they would be dry and they're not inexpensive and then it's just kind of like a waste. So, it's it and this is part of the problem. You know, I cook so much that it discourages us from going out to dinner because the things that we like to eat, if we see them on the menu, Sandra will be like, "I just know I'm going to like yours better." Or, "I just know that it's there's certain things that you make." We uh we do that with drinks. I make a fantastic gin gimlet. Did I have that when we did the You may have Jod's go-to in the summer. We're about to come out of gimlet season. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So gimlet season will end today because tomorrow is uh it's basically fall weather tomorrow. But so she doesn't order it out because they it's either too boozy or like I like something that's lime. I you know you want to want to have a little bit of the punch of the lime and not too boozy. But any So I I Yes, I get there are certain things too. I don't order pasta out often. Yeah, we don't eat a lot of pasta so I don't order pasta out. Um, you know, there's a lot of time I will order a lot of seafood out. The only seafood that I won't order out is lobster because it's ridiculously expensive. That's stupid. And if if you aren't watching it literally second by second, it can go from the chef may make it perfect. Yeah. But if it's if it sits under that hot light for a couple of minutes, it's rubber and then you just spent 60 bucks not eating a rubber band. Not worth it. If you are going to have pasta, uh, Beravino in Red Bank, great pasta out. They make their own. And Grana in Kate May. I I I'm still thinking about the sausage and scallop pasta that this chef made. Over the top. I There is I can't wait to go back. I may drive two and a half hours for dinner. Amalfi has really good pasta in Lawrenville. I always have the pizza there. I never get to the pasta. Yeah, it's it they they it's four ingredient pasta and it's the Italian simolina, you know, all that stuff, right? Um but they do a simple dish every once they're closed on Mondays and every once in a while Chiro, who's one of the owners, he will call and say, "Hey, we're having lunch today. Do you want to come for lunch?" Um and either he or one of the uncles or somebody will will make a pasta dish. And they do um pasta and peas. H I love that. It is. I've I love that. It is one of my favorite very simple and u I missed it the I think the last time they did rabbit and I missed it and I was so mad because I w I was traveling on that day. I'm going to make that. Well, Jody's going to make it cuz I don't think I'm skilled enough to to deal with the rabbit. Uh but you they sell the rabbits at the Amish market. Yes. So, we're thinking of buying it this week and making it this weekend. Uh you know, it's I Nobody else in the house will eat it. My son won't eat it. Sandra won't even think about eating it. I It's Let me know. I'll be over. I'll bring the I'll bring the bourbon. We We'll eat the rabbit. All right. 8:15. Hey, other side. I got to tell you a test my daughter had to take in the UK for her visa. I'm thinking this is the kind of thing we ought to have before you get registered to vote in New Jersey. I'll let you know. Other side. 8:15. Fast traffic instant weather. where news, talk, weather, and traffic come together to keep you informed and connected to everything Jersey. This is New Jersey 101.5. [Music] Take 23 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia with you till 10:00 this morning. Talking Jersey, taking your calls. 1-800 283101.5. So my daughter has to take a test um for her the final step in her visa process and she's been in London now 10 years and it's called an indefinite leave to remain and they require a test. Now the test is on British life and some of the questions are just so ridiculous. Like one of the questions on the test, she passed by the way was what time do pubs open on Sundays? And I thought like funny, they really got to the heart of life in in England. And you know, other questions are, you know, what uh what films are the British Isles known for? Anyway, it, you know, it got me thinking that the purpose of these tests is to make sure that people are integrating into British culture. This is totally opposite of what we're seeing now. Yeah, they have their own migrant problem and and you've got a problem of uh radical um Islamists coming from countries like Somalia and others which are uh totally disrupting London life. But we're seeing it here, Patterson, Dearbornne, Michigan disruption and in large part due to illegal migrants that have made their way here due to liberal policies of of government. But it got me thinking, you know, uh, forget about the history of where certain people were kept out, you know, because of the color of their skin, etc. Not obviously talking that, but where why have we lost the ability to say, "Let's defend American culture. Let's come together as Americans. Let's go back to the melting pot." Why is there not some basic skills test in order to register to vote or uh you know there's a basic step you have to take for everything. I get it. Right to vote versus privilege of driving. I I get it. But you've got to go through hoops to get married. You've got to go through hoops to legally uh settle in this country, work in this country. But there's no requirement at all on voting. And I wonder if that's part of the problem that we have that it's completely taken for granted. Now, she won't be able to vote in the UK um and will have the option of becoming a dual citizen, which which at this point she's not interested in doing because I'm our hope is that uh they'll be coming back to the states at some point. But my question for you is, should there be some hurdle before you register to vote? Should you um have to have graduated high school, have certain uh certain credentials, take a test? Is there some way that we can get to a point where we have a much more informed populace weighing in on our elections, or is that something that you think would never fly here? 1-800 2831011.5. And by the way, I'm going to post tomorrow the sample test in the UK. And uh I'll do a New Jersey version of that. And let me ask you that question. What question, like if you've got pub questions in the UK, what should you have to answer to be able to call yourself a Jerseyian? What question? What would you have to know about New Jersey that you can credibly say, "Ah, all right. All right. You're a Jersey guy. 1 800283101.5 827. Eric Scott with the news and 838 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia. Uh Chef Ombberto's on the line. Chef, before I get to you, Eric, I was I was saying Elizabeth had to take her what they call um it's a leave to remain, which is the British I know it doesn't make sense, right? But um it's it's the UK final step in her visa so that she can essentially live there indefinitely, right, without becoming a citizen. Although uh she'll be qualified this year, I think she's been 10 years to apply, but has no interest in doing that at this point. But anyway, I was it was funny because the test that they make you take, you have to score 75%. And it's questions like, what time in the weekends do the pub open? Do the pubs? And I'm like, this is right up our alley. So, I love that. Right. So, I thought what I'm going to do is create the Jersey version of the leave to remain test. If you want to call yourself a Jersey guy or a Jersey girl, what things do you have to know? What time does the Irish pub in Atlantic City close? That's a good question. I don't know. Two. Never. Never. Never. That's a trick question. I love it. Uh oh, I'm out. I got one wrong. Damn it. Uh oh. Wait a minute. Hold on a minute. But I think it would have to do with pizza, pork roll, Irish Irish public. It never closes really. Yeah, that's fantastic. It's there. You know what? Sometimes there are times that has been really good. There are times that's been really bad. That could go either way. But I will be working on that. So, all suggestions are welcome. Well, I'm going to add that one. I love that. What uh what questions would be on the official jersey test? If you can't answer, at least get a 70%, a passing score. Yeah, you're not real Jersey. So, we'll have that test. I'm working on it this week. So, let us know your thoughts. 1800 283101.5. All right, let's go to Chef Ombberto in Tom's River. What is going on, Chef? Great to see you yesterday. Congratulations on the now uh second annual Jersey Pizza Wars. Um in the books. Yeah, it's in the books. Finally over. Uh we're a bit exhausted, but it turned out better than the last one. Uh we we we uh we did the four regions like we we both talk about. North, Central, South Jersey Shore. Love that. And we have 16 of the best. Yes. Well, you know, when you're right, you're right. you know, 16 of the best pizzeras in New Jersey. They were all winners on in my book. Uh I got them there, but the four excellent judges that we had uh um took over the show along with Bobby Frazz um you know uh opening it up and hosting it for us. Bobby Frazz did such a good job. He is a natural at the mic. Yep. Well, that's why I'm glad he's part of part of us now. I think it's fantastic. So, all right. So, first of all, you had four finalists. Uh, let's see. We had uh Luchi Pizza in Clifton, Amichi in Atlantic Highland, uh, Caprice's in Howell, and and, uh, Traumant. Is it Traumanttos? Yeah. Traumantos in Wanamasa. Wanamasa. Was that ocean? It's ocean, right? Yeah, it's it's ocean. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So, who won? Okay. First place was Tremontos of Wanamasa. Great great location. They took first place. So the Jersey Shore represents the best. I love it. Number one pizza. Then number two was Amichi from uh the Highlands. Another great pizzeria that I went to go go visit and they took second place. Third place was Capri Cheese from Howell. And we are going to take a trip to North Jersey, Bill, at your leisure because the Bill Spady Award is going to Luchi's Pizza in Clifton. Fantastic pizza. It was so close that we decided this year that's going to be the Bill Spady Award cuz the pizzeras were and we know you love pizza. Uh they were they were decimal points away from each other. It I love it. Look, if the Bill Spady Award is the consolation prize, I'm liking it. I'm like, not not good enough to win, but good enough to be in the game. I'm loving that. It's almost perfect. All right, Chef, let's let's plan that. If um if you would put us in touch maybe in a text thread with the owner, you and I could talk about I'm going to see what the Columbus Day parade. Why don't you and I talk um offline later today or tomorrow and plan that because I would like to present that award to him. I love it. It's It's a It's a pizza. What do you call that with the board, right? The the pizza peel. It's a pizza peel. And uh pizza peel. Is that what it's called? Yeah, it's a pizza peel. I didn't know that. We had one more one more winner. Yeah, we had the taste of the town that we did. All the food that was being served. Yeah. Once again, Dela Coutino won with her meatballs. Oh, their meatballs are fantastic. I When is the uh when's the meatball event? Coming up on the 19th. It's on the 19th. Yeah. So, I think that could be chef. One of the questions in my are you a real Jersey guy or girl uh qualifying test. Another question. What? And is it sauce or gravy? Bingo. I love There's no there's no wrong answer there. It depends. I love it. All right, Chef. When is uh so you and I will plan a trip to Luchi's Pizza in Clifton? I'd love to do to record that, do a whole thing, get it on the website, congratulate them for the award and the honor and uh and then of course sit and have some pizza because it was so hard not to eat. Like I know the judges went through so many pizzas yesterday. They were probably sick of pizza by the end. But I'm watching it and I'm starving. I had dinner to go to watching them eat. Every pizza looked great. What were they rating the pizza on? Okay. It was uh visual, you know, of the presentation. Y it was on the cook, you know, uh the cook of the pie. It was the balance. Balance, which was uh sauce to cheese ratio. Then we had the crunch factor, which was, you know, the pizza crust itself. And you know, and basically that's the criteria. And they had they had the guidelines, all four judges, which actually chef Gregorio Fiero, who's it was an honor to have him. I was an honor to have all four uh you know Frank Zapski from Connecticut uh school of school of pizza faliano from chop and chef Jeff Johnson but Gregorio Fiero that this is all he does in order to get a judge like him you have to have a certain criteria of a competition and I'm so honored that we met it. Where where are we going to be next year for the third annual Jersey Pizza Wars? We're going to be on the boardwalk in Seaside. We partnered up with these guys. We we got two other shows coming up. We've got the VIP party after the after the Columbus Day parade which there's a limited amount of tickets for that. Uh and then we have the oh what a night November 16th which we got you know uh and and I'll give you more information. Get me those flyers. I will post them to our website. I got to jump for traffic and weather chef. Congratulations my friend. I'll talk to you later. And congratulations to uh Toronto's Pizza in Ocean. Uh what a uh what what let me tell you to win out of those 16 pies that we saw yesterday. Very very impressive. We'll uh we'll be talking soon. Thank you my friend. That is Chef Bberto formerly of Zaries. He sold his restaurant. Now he is out there promoting yours and will be more uh on the Jersey Pizza Wars as uh this big part of our culture continues. 8:46 fast instant weather next. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and X. Or visit NJ1015.com for the latest Jersey news and updates. New Jersey101.5. [Music] It's 853 on New Jersey 101.5. I am Bill Spadia. Hey, do me a favor. Uh, I have figured out how, thanks to, uh, producer Thomas, access the app chat. Don't get all excited that I'm going to be responding to you because I haven't figured that out yet. But I can at least see it. So, I need your questions on the app chat. Jimmy, thank you. Pork roll or Taylor ham? Um, both can be right, but let me remind you guys, pork roll is the product. Taylor Ham and case are the brands. So, it's a leading and misleading question. But, um, and Shane, thank you. The name Del Rand. Oh, I love it. Boo. What's a Benny? All right. All right. We got it. There are some good ones. Uh, another one. What's a shoe? So, lot of questions. I need your Jersey questions. We're going to do the uh, are you real Jersey questionnaire? Let's see how many of our candidates for the legislature and governor can answer and get a passing score. So, give me your questions. We'll get this thing uploaded hopefully tomorrow in time for the uh, the HO meter. But on the other side of the news, it's 8:55 now. Eric Scott's coming back in about four and a half minutes and uh we're going to take your calls. If you are running for local office, mayor, commissioner, uh if you're running for state legislature, uh board of education, people need to know that you're on the ballot. 1 800 283101.5 is the number. Your calls coming up after the news next. Live and local radio with personalities who care about what you think. We are New Jersey 101.5 [Music] 908 on New Jersey 101.5. I am Bill Spadia with you till 10:00 this morning talking Jersey taking your calls 1800 283101.5. I want to thank the Parks Casino for sponsoring Chime Time every morning every hour on the show. Um Eric, so in in uh national news finally our now Secretary of War. I love the change. I I love it. Secretary of War Pete Hegsath changing the standards, saying we're going to have one standard. If you know, if we're going to have women in combat, they're going to have to meet the same standards as the men. I I think this is such a great uh turn in our country where it's like, hey, we have a standard. You got to get to this point or you can't do it. And it got me thinking, um, imagine trying to get that passed here in New Jersey with the legislature, right? like for police officers and state troopers. Like come on. But but then I thought the government hopefully is going to shut down tomorrow. None of us are going to notice. What are you what what what will be impacted? I'm sure your your uh your team back there is furiously looking into how we'll be impacted, but we probably won't notice much. Um not for a couple days, maybe even typically they close the parks longer. will be closed, federal buildings will be closed. Um, you know, non-classified workers will be furoughed, air traffic controllers will still report, you know, police, fire, the military is still there protecting us, right? Um, so I, you know, it it usually takes a matter of days before people really see it. Um, now federal workers are going to be sent home without pay. Um, ongoing benefits like Social Security, Medicare, all of that stuff. If you're in it, you stay in it. Um, new applications probably won't be processed. Um, national parks, monuments, all that kind of stuff, that's done. Um, non-essential operations at federal agencies, they'll shut down. Um and then you know you you will you will gradually notice if this goes on longer and longer and I look if it happens I don't know that there's a solution right around the corner. Um you'll see well no Schumer and the Democrats are holding out for what amounts to in my opinion a giveaway to illegals healthcare etc. But that aside, it always occurs to me every time I and I've heard you and I I mean over the years this has happened before. And I love hearing the words non-essential employees won't report to work. And I'm like, well, if they're non-essential, why don't we make that layoff permanent? Right. I mean, right. Imagine non I'll give I'll give our company some credit. I don't think there's any non-essential here. I think we could use a few more essentials actually if I'm if I'm speaking for the group here. Not a not a major statement, not a policy statement, but I'm just saying. Um, but the government just runs it opposite that. Imagine how many non-essentials work in state government, the largest employer in the state. Uh, yeah. Well, those would be your patronage positions, right? Um, and and that's I'm glad you said that, Eric. That's something you and I will have to talk about as we get closer to the election. I've talked to a few folks. So, I want to bring some people in as we get closer to what it really means. But you're right, and that has been my concern um you know, about the Republican candidate for sure because let me tell you, the promises made, the people that are now lined up ready to get that fat job with a pension. Um it's a long long list. Well, look, I mean, that is one of the things that u really doomed Jim McGrevy when he was governor. I mean, obviously we know about Americ, you know, I mean, he this is one of the reasons why I've said, you know, he's your last middle class governor. I don't know that there will be another after Jim McGrevy because he didn't come from wealth. He hadn't amassed wealth. He needed certain people Yeah. to help him raise the money to run a campaign and therefore they were expecting something and you know and the first year at least of his administration was just packed with patronage hires you know it's we look I I I thought of that I've referenced that and Jim is has really come full circle and really kind of made a lot of amends for things mistakes in the past and I think he's going to be an excellent mayor in Jersey city. Um that said, um he's going to throw a lecture first, but but that said, you know, I made no promises going in and I can tell you very proud of with the match raising nearly $5 million and doing that um low dollar and real people and and but but look at the contrast, right? Look at the two winners. You got two people worth millions and millions of dollars. both of them in the doubledigit millions. Oh yeah, we did the uh analysis and if you want to see it, it's at nj1015.com. Mikey Cheryl's got a net worth of around $10 million. Uh Cheddarelli has can can easily boast um nearly 15 million that he's made since uh I think what was it 2012. Yeah. You know, I mean there's there is a pays to be a professional candidate for governor. Well, I when you're when you got all the lobbyists in your pocket. Absolutely. cannot imagine uh and I think most of the people you know and and I there is a disconnect in government and there always has been between the halves and the have nots and the people that are in government generally are halves. If you look at the legislature and the way it is made up it's a quote unquote part-time job. So everybody has another full-time job that benefits from access to government as a legislator. Why else would somebody spend a million dollars or $3 million on a job that pays less than $100,000 a year? But but even and the Democrats have kind of forced out their own middle class. You look at Steve Sweeney, you know, love the guy, hate the guy. I mean, Steve and I have been on the opposite sides of a lot of issues, but I can tell you he's one of the guys I got along with the most on the campaign trail because he's about as normal as anybody. It's not a gazillionaire guy. It's a guy that works for a living. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, you know, it's he's an iron worker. Now, he's done well for himself. He's not worrying about paying his table. He's not skipping meals. But he didn't come from that wealth the you know, it's there there and I think that's a difference. And and when you when you look at somebody like take a look at our current governor. You look at Phil Murphy. Yeah. You know, there's a guy that hasn't had to worry about a mortgage or a car payment or making his property tax payment for a long long time. And to claim when he claims he's made New Jersey fairer and more affordable for who? For who? Yeah. For right the the the rich fat cats who already who whose money is making money. Yeah. for the rest of us. I can tell you from a middle class perspective, taking uh a leave and not having an income, let me tell you guys, that was a battle. I I understand why you don't get a bunch of normals running out to run for office, but that's a huge problem because if we leave it to the people of the likes of the Republican candidate who knows nothing but but wealth off of other people's hard work and the Democrat candidate Mikey Cheryl who made $7 million while she was in Congress, what are we doing? What are we doing here? We're the ones that get left out. So, I I fought the fight for you over the past year. I will continue to fight for you now back on the air. Uh, and I will have a couple other announcements of some projects I'm working on that are all in line with giving you the voice that you deserve. Now, other side of traffic and weather. I'm going to go through the list. You got about 45 seconds. Tell me what you're running for, where you're running, why voters ought to consider you. 9:16 Fast Traffic Instant Weather Next. Stay connected with traffic and weather updates every 15 minutes right here on New Jersey 101.5. 9:23. I am Bill Spadia. So, we're giving local candidates a chance. What are you running for? Where are you running? And why should voters elect you? We'll start with Deanna Nye who's running for board of education in Bridgewater. Good morning, Deanna. Morning Bill. How are you? I'm doing great. Thanks for asking. So tell me, why are you running for board of ed and why should people vote for you? Okay. Well, I am a proud education advocate, as you know, and I've seen firsthand the challenges families face in our schools. Um, can we talk about something so important right now? Sure. is that there are people calling Lucy Lee and Kra Maxwell and I every name in the book, Bill. But Bridgewater families deserve truth, respect, real conversations about how we educate our kids and not a smear campaign. So, we are focused on education. They are focused on smear. Voters can see through the name calling and they know slander is the last refuge of those afraid of accountability. Bill, I've been on the wrong side of that one. I can tell you firsthand. You're not wrong, Deanna. Um, you and I mean the Lee Maxwell Nye ticket. What would you say is the number one goal when you win this election? Transparency. Yeah, transparency and accountability. And that's our slogan, right? It's T transparency, excellence, and accountability. I love it. I love what what do you Let me ask you this. What do you think um what is your greatest challenge now? Because they're they're not they're coming at you on a personal level. They are right. So they are. And it's, you know, we brush it off and we move on, right? We are out there door knocking. We are out there talking to the taxpayers. Yeah. And the parents and the families, you know, saying we are here for you. We hope to change everything that we can, but we can only do it if you vote all three on column D. And then of course, Bill, it's reminding them if they are mailin voters that they have to flip over that ballot. That's right. Notice and and Deanna, you know, you've got an incredible team. I mean, Dr. Karen Maxwell. I mean, here is a licensed counselor, uh, educator, former member of the state licensing board. Dr. Lucy Lee is on the board now doing incredible work. Uh, she's a PhD, a scientist, an educator. You are talking about people that have incredible strength and and and bring a balance and a perspective to the board, which is so needed. So, uh, vote all three in column B. Turn that ballot over. Somerset County in Bridgewater, Dr. Lucy Lee, Dr. Karen Maxwell, and Deanna Nye. Thanks, Diana. Appreciate your call. Um, thanks for joining us. Let's go to Guy. Guy Citron is running for assembly. All right, Guy, you got about 45 seconds. Go. Hey, Bill. How you doing? Good. So, uh, the issues that my running mate, Mr. Tyler Powell and I are running to work on are number one stopping the overdevelopment of warehouses which has become a major problem in all of South Warren County and even right there in Bridgewater to the to the to the gentle woman who just called in. That's where she's at. Um we'd also like to make sure that the trades and occupational skills get back into our public education system in a big way. And I would love to see the cutting of red tape holding back our small businesses, young professionals, and entrepreneurs. And Bill, you and I have met. When did we meet? Guy, so I was volunteering for Rolling Thunder Chapter 3, and you were one of our guest speakers over there in I remember, guy. I remember. Yes, guy. Look, uh, you you've got an uphill battle. you're a Democrat running in a very very red district, but uh uh you're a decent guy and I appreciate the work you do for Rolling Thunder and thanks for standing up for our vets. So, Guy Citron running in the 23rd district. Thank you, Guy. All right, guys. It is 9:27. Eric Scott with your news in 3 minutes. 9:38 on New Jersey 101.5. Good morning. I am Bill Spadia with you till 10:00 this morning. Eric, our um our list of questions is growing. Joe Myra had some great suggestions on the jersey. Are what should we call it? Are you real Jersey? What are you thinking? The question I've modeled it after the UK. What would it take? It's called remain indefinite re indefinite leave to remain. So I think what they mean by that of that I I can't play off that. I don't know what that is. How about if you want to earn your It's like you have you have indefinite opportunity to leave the country but you are remaining as a full-time resident. That's what it says. So she can now travel as if she had a British passport. That's the that's what it means. Okay. Extended visa or it it basically is a permanent resident. Right. So how that means so this would be the test to earn your Jersey. So, I'm thinking in Jersey, like on a serious note, I don't know why we don't have a test before you vote or anything else, but that aside, um I think there should be a test if you're going to call yourself Jersey. Mhm. There's certain things you just ought to know. Like, you don't know. If you're driving from Trenton, Trenton, there's there's no second Trenton I and you're headed to Kate May, where are you going? There you go to card. If you live in Philadelphia and you're headed to the same location, what are you called? Oh, like if you're going to the coastline. Yeah. If you're going to the coast, where sand are you going to? Right. So, you going to the beach, you going to the shore? You going to the boardwalk? You going to the ocean? Yeah. And is it up the shore, down the shore? Right. Like there are just certain things that are uniquely us. I am going to spend the rest of my career getting people to stop with this silliness between pork roll and Taylor ham. It's neither. It's neither. It's pork roll is the product and it's made by two very good companies. Taylor ham and case and case pork roll never gets into the debate. You're Yeah, right. You're arguing over the same thing and it's not even Yeah. And it's neither. It's It's neither like And why have the people at Casease not put up billboards and spent some money on that? Yeah, that's a Trenton. Well, probably because it's so divisive. They don't even want to get into They don't want to get Yeah. They're like, "We'll just keep selling to the Trenton Thunder and be done with it." Yeah, it's a Trenton thing. It's a Trenton thing. And I agree. It's It's Trenton. Trenton. Like, and I think um Forkid River, I mean, that right there, no one understands that. All of a sudden, we tried to be so fancy with, "Oh, it's a forkit river." Is that what it was? Was it fancy? But then you've got Green Witch instead of Greenwich. Yeah. And Buuna. Buuna makes no sense. Is it Buuna? It's worse. It's Buuna Vista. It should be Buena. It should be Buista. Yeah, it's Buuna. Buuna Vista. What is that? That's sour. It's like That's like near Hamilton, right? So then that answers the question, right? It's kind of Well, Kate May proper is like this oasis. Well, you compared it. What did you compare it to? The Hampton's the other day. No. Uh um Martha's Vineyard. Oh, Martha's Vineyard. Yeah. No, I agree. I It is. Do you know that long before I've been in Jersey 40 plus years, but long before I got here, I knew of Cape May, New Jersey, because I grew up very close to Canada. Buffalo is right across the the Peace Bridge from from Canada. And so many of my Canadian friends and colleagues um that I knew went and vacationed in Cape May, New Jersey. And it so I knew two things about New Jersey before I came here. I knew New York cuz I flew into New York to go to New York and I knew Cape May. That was it. I didn't know anything in between. A lot of people. How about that? I Why are the Are there that many Canadians now? This last two visits, I have not seen a ton. I see more Canadian plates in Wildwood. That was always a Wildwood thing. You'd see their little tiny bikini bottom. The men would wear those European style bathing suits. Oh boy. Uh just now all of a sudden it went off the rails. All of a sudden I'm talking about the Wildwood. Now we have this visual of the half naked Canadians invading Wildwood. Well, if that is Those aren't the Toronto Canadians, those are Quebec Canadians. Those are the French Canadians. Those are not Toronto. They're wearing like board shorts, right? I mean, that's not Those are those are your French kids. They're not Jersey people. They're not They're not Jersey people. That is for sure. That is it. But things like, you know, when was the first like what beaches can you bring a beer? Ah, that's a good one. Like you go to Spring Lake, everybody's got coolers, coolers tied to the boardwalk. Yeah. You know, like change. You can't bring anything on. Yeah. Right. But there are some you can know. I believe. Yeah, but I mean like not even any food at all. See, I'm failing my own test. This is the I don't I I That's a good question. That might be a topic some beach can I thought there was one during the season during the summer. I don't I don't during the offse any beach where you're technically allowed to bring food and and drink has always aggravated me. Me too. It's one of the reasons that's why I have such a lovehate relationship with the Jersey Shore. I love the boardwalks. I love the restaurants. I love the downtowns. I love all of that stuff. Can't drink on the beach. I hate the beach. I hate the Jersey beaches. See, and I I love the beach, but I don't understand why I can't have a beer. Yeah. Like, they should have they should be walking up and down the boardwalk or on the beach. So, you could buy the cocktail and bring it to the beach and something that is disposable. There are trash cans there. I can throw it away because you're allowed on the boardwalk with it. The Yeah. Not everywhere. Not everywhere. Atlantic City, that was a big deal, right? Walk around with your open in Atlantic City, it's you can have an open container. Most most boardwalks, I don't think that's the case. No matter where you are, the beach rules read like uh like the uh parking New York City. Yes, exactly. It's like you're reading a lengthy disclaimer on who you can and can't endorse on the airwaves. Um, that's that's how I view the the the beach experience. But I love it. I mean, I went swimming on on Sunday. It was 72 degrees. It was there was an undertoe and but there there were no lifeguards, which I typically don't like to swim without lifeguards. I feel like that's that's a good part of the beach. But I am also one of the very few people who publicly say I support beach tags. Oh, I support it for the reasons that they're there. I just don't support the the the restrictions on what you can and cannot right, you know, but it's I'll pay 10 bucks to go to the beach. Let me have a beer. Let me have let me sit there and have a beer and watch the waves. But there's been enough issues surrounding it that, you know, you got a bunch of lunkheads from, you know, Philly or New York or Staten Island for everybody. Yeah, that's that's the challenge. But I remember um you know, going to North Carolina. I mean, I you could have a drink and a cigar on the beach. Camp. We'd have like fires at sea. Bonfires, right? Everything. Absolutely. God, maybe it's time. It's time. You think about the Caribbean beaches that Sandra and I go to all the time. I mean, they bring you food. They bring you drink. You can have a cigar there. You can have music. You doesn't happen. People don't go crazy, right? And start acting out. I mean, think about it, right? That's it's it's like that's the the thing they do this with. I said this when they started stop serving beer in the third quarter at Eagles games. I don't miss any of that. So, what happens? Everyone's drunk in the parking lot before they walk in or they're drinking as much as they possibly can, you know, before halftime. Yes. It's unbelievable. Anyway, we've got it backward, but your jersey test is coming and we're going to send it out to all the campaigns for legislative offices and the governor's office, and we'll see who uh who can actually pass it. Not that you tie your vote to that, but maybe. 9:45 against the weather next. Connect to the show anytime by sending us a message through our app. Just tap on chat with hosts only on New Jersey 101.5. 952 in New Jersey 101.5. I am Bill Spadyy. I got to get out of here. I want to thank Lex in Bayville for adding a question to our You Real Jersey. Which exits smell the worst on the turnpike? I like that. I like that. you drive through Elizabeth and you're like, "Whoa, hold on." Um, anyway, so keep them coming. We're going to We need to have I think we want to match the UK. We need 24 questions. So, keep them coming on the app. Producer Thomas will be uh taking them and then I will have the Are You Jersey test available at nj1015.com/billspadia. We'll try to get it up tomorrow, but we're going to have a little fun with the uh hate omter tomorrow. So stay tuned for that after the 9:00 um news on Wednesday. And uh let's let's see what uh the world brings us today. It's going to be a long one. I'll give you an update tomorrow on the uh Gloucester City charges against parents of weward teens. Pretty wild. and the the ongoing saga that has become the dominant issue in the 2025 gubinatorial race over um the Naval Academy time that the Democratic candidate Mikey Cheryl spent. So, uh we'll have all that and a lot more. Don't forget your $1,000 at work payday 20 minutes after every hour. Have a great rest of your day. I'll see