GSP history says the first toll was $.25. I have no idea if that is correct...

They do not speak the truth. This may be the 3rd toll increase, BUT they failed to tell the whole story. When the GSP was built, all exit and entry ramps were FREE. While they did not always raise the price of the tolls they added tolls at the on/off ramps thereby increasing the cost of the same trip. They also closed some FREE exit ramps. Let's give Gov. Christie a call & tell him to repeal the toll increase since he canceled the rail tunnel & the toll increase was to pay for that tunnel. Another scam by former Gov. Corzine. Wanna really protest?? Cancel your EZ Pass and let them count all those coins the increase will generate.

This was set in motion 3 years ago to help pay for all that construction going on all along the NJT. He can't veto something already decided upon.

like he would if he could huh??

he "vetoed" the tunnel didn't he?

It was signed into law. He cannot veto it.

Maybe you should tell them to get you both ways...so 60% increase vs 50% ! Yet the same government says Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increased by only 3.9% over that last 3 years ? Check the original FACTS on the GSP on your computer.This road has been paid for over and over and over again! The original "ONE-TIME TOLLS" where to expire when construction building costs were paid back by taxpayers usage in tolls. OMG...check it out...how many years excess?

Well Marty, guess you never heard the saying ..........better to remain a fool and keep quiet then to open your mouth and remove all doubt........Piece of advice for you, buy a dictionary, or use spellcheck.

Susan, the last time I checked, "spell check" was two words.

susan - i agree 100%. i am usually a nitpicker on spelling and am a pretty good speller. getting used to iphone and it has this auto-spell guesser where it corrects words to words it thinks you want to use.

Exactly why the NY & NJ governors should have vetoed the PA increases and made that agency function within their previous budget. And now this NJT increase on top of that. Citizens end up paying not just an increase for transportation, but end up payijg more for goods and services moved by the trucking industry as they pass the costs along. UPS has another increase beginning the new year as well. In this economy today, just remember Gov. Christie at this year's Republican convention each time you hear praise heaped on him by his fellow party members.

its not just NJ
md,pa,ny,are all in on the joke
class 5 tractor trailor:
Throgs Neck Br. $35.00 each way
Mahwah-Buffalo NY.....$93.00
NJ to Ohio line Pa tpk......$180.00
Del mem. bridge...25.00
Del 95 toll .9.00 each way
Md 95 Susquehanna River bridge...$36.00
Md 95 Ft Mc Henry Tunnel...$18.00 each way

Yeah, there must be about 7 toll collectors left, but the salaries and compensation of the executives and administrators of the PA and EZ-Pass go up and up and no questions are raised.

The Gov. could have vetoed the PA toll/tax hikes. Again, remember this issue when you hear all that praise heaped on him this summer at the Republican convention and elsewhere along the campaign trail this year by his fellow party members.

It wouldn't be a small increase in the state income tax. The NJT needs to generate close to a billion a year to cover debt service, maintenance, repaving and all the other expenses necessary to maintain the road even w/o the cost of collecting tolls. And why should people who do not use the road pay for it's upkeep anyway? Tolls make sure the people that use the road and only those that use the road pay for it. It is a usage fee, no different than paying to use a public garage, cross a bridge or take a ferry.

""Tolls make sure the people that use the road and only those that use the road pay for it."""" Well you might think it's a black and white case closed. But I guarantee that everybody pays since trucking and transport fees are passed along in the price that we all pay for goods and services in this region.

I don't drive on 95% of all the roads in the state. Does that mean I can get 95% of all the taxes I pay on gasoline and for all things related to the use of them back? No way. I agree that the tolls should be abolished. They stopped being a "use" fee 60-80 years ago, when the road building and land costs were paid for. Now they are a means to an end to support a system of cronies and executives that do far, far less than the state's own Highway Department and run their offices unaccountable to almost everyone.

I would love to see a break down of the revenue sources that fund the maintenance of NJ roads, bridges, tunnels, etc. Can anyone provide a good link?

It seems to me that an ideal system would involve a combination of tax revenue and toll revenue. On the one hand, roads are a basic infrastructure and that needs to be funded collectively. They are an economic investment. On the other hand, a great deal of traffic passes through NJ heading in and out of NYC and out of state that is of no benefit to the residents of NJ. Such traffic surely costs NJ residents a great deal in terms of roadway maintenance and pollution/quality of life reduction. It makes no sense that a state tax paid by NJ residents ought to fund roadways for those just passing through, which is undoubtedly a massive volume of traffic (trucks on particular). Tolls are a way to charge these people for the shared infrastructure endeavor that they are also a part of.

Thinking broader, there ought to be substantial Federal funding for NJ roadways given NJ's situation as a pass though to many of America's largest cities. If we are to move away from tolls, our understanding of collective responsibility needs to be extended beyond state political boundaries.

Well said Bill !!! The tolls were supposed to be a temporary thing and set to expire years ago. I know people who pay cash on those roads and were hit with tickets saying they didn't pay. Don't know if they changed the system, but when they got their tickets ($25.00 + 0.75 in the mail some paid, some "fought" the tickets (since they know they paid the toll) and here's the catch they had to pay the $0.75 to appeal the ticket !!! so they got you for a double toll anyway, and out of the goodness of their hearts (LOL) they let you go for the $25.00 but told you it was a one time thing and don't do it again. Amazing how many people you talk to from Sussex county got tickets ! Easy pass was supposed to be a revenue maker for the parkway catching all the "toll cheaters", well they found out there weren't that many "toll cheaters." Someone once asked me, " if they collect tolls it makes it a private road so why are we paying for the State Police to patrol it"? The Dingman's bridge is owned privately and maintenance is paid for with tolls, that is why they shut it down occasionally. You know the old joke NJ is the only state you have to pay to leave. People will complain but will vote the people they complain about back in office.

Why am I a "sucker" because I use E-Z Pass? To me, the suckers are the idiots who don't have them, and are waiting in long cash lines while I whiz through. With a $25 replenishment system on my account, I hardly think the interest that the agency gets to make on my account comes to more than a cent or two at today's record low interest rates. Now as for toll roads themselves, they are simply a way of life. As a regular driver of highways in the USA as well as foreign countries, I can tell you that they exist just about everywhere. European toll roads are a lot more expensive than American ones.

Personally I think anyone w/o an EZ Pass should pay tolls high enough to cover 100% of the cost of the people who take their cash. If they had to pay those 6 figure salaries out of their tolls instead of having the NJT spread that cost amongst everyone, they'd get an EZ Pass soon enough.

I love my Zpass. I go through all toll booths, not just ez pass only, but cash only lanes as well. They send a letter saying they made a deduction yada yada. It works almost everywhere on the east coast, and where it doesn't, I dont drive there so I don't care. Linked to direct deposit, they send monthly statements without any disputes. I've never had a problem.

In situations like you have described, you are only required to pay the cost of the toll when you get the letter. Anyone who has a valid EZ Pass account linked to a car which is flagged as going through a toll without paying, is simply required to pay the toll. If you paid the $25 violation charge, then you either did not have a valid EZ Pass account, or you misunderstood the letter.

I've had situations where I'd taken down the tag and put it in the glove compartment. Most readers will see it there, but Bergen North won't. I have an auto-replenish on my account and I've never gotten a letter. Presumably they just charge the toll to the account.

I suggest you take a drive sometime. They are building a ton of new road, overpasses & such on the southern section of the NJT.

Uh huh, well you too need to take a drive and go look at all the construction going on along the NJT. I can't remember the last time I saw so much highway being built.

Nobody disputes that NJT workers are grossly overpaid just like workers over at the PA, NJ Transit, the MTA & pretty much every government worker in this state. But to say the money is not going back into the road is a lie. All you have to do is take a drive along the entire length of the turnpike and you will see construction all over the southern end of the road.

BTW - we wouldn't need any of those toll collectors or their salaries if everyone just got an EZ Pass. I personally wish they all would so we could get rid of all those toll collectors. They get paid entirely too much for what really is a job that any competent cashier could do for a fraction of the cost.

I'm not sure, but is that money ARRA money or NJ money?

I have a problem with anyone that receives a taxpayer supported pension and free or reduced tax payer funded health care contributions. I pay per month, what state government employees pay per year, in health care contributions. These two perks are two major reasons why our state governments are going broke.

We need to reduce the size of government and limit the power of collective bargaining. Once we cut back, we can then work on building an efficient working government - but first we need to cut back.

You would still need toll collectors to hand out receipts/problems etc. As for everyone getting EZ pass are you paying? EZ pass came into existence so people didn't notice the tolls were supposed to expire many years ago. The bureaucracy gets to spend money they are only "holding" until tag holders go through the tolls therefore they get to go further in debt and just raise the tolls when the bills come in. Yes, we are being led like sheep, when you don't actually take the money out of your pocket you don't think about what it costs. As for your time if the toll booths didn't exist you wouldn't need to "whiz" through them. If there are less toll takers why is it costing more money? If more banking is being done online why are the fees going up? What's next a chip under the skin? Look around you next time you are waiting in traffic on Rt 80 most of the cars are from PA ? NY and on the weekends/holiday's I've seen cars from Calif, Washington and a lot from FLA. They are not paying to use the roads we are.

So yeah, I'm right. You have no problems with the compensation the executives make but put all the blame on the people that do the work. You hate that your equals, or what you perceive as lower classes get a better deal than you can get for yourself but allow the executives to reap more and more.

Redrider, compare the amount of toll collectors you see now to what you saw 10 years ago. Have your tolls gone down because of less toll collectors?

I agree Bellair. It is because of the broader push for "austerity" that prices are going up everywhere, and not just in New Jersey, despite the trend of slashing services and salaries for everyone but those on top in the public sector. The context of these toll hikes is hardly an isolated phenomenon. More cuts will lead to further unemployment and a further depressed economy. The real money isn't being sucked out of the bottom, from hard working people who get up every day to do their part for society It is being sucked off of the top.

The very rich are getting richer more then ever, and at a rate more astonishing then ever. Shared sacrifice is a badly worn out canard.

Of course my tolls haven't gone down b/c of all those overcompensated retirees and their overly generous healthcare plans and raises that far exceed inflation. You folks seem to think it is just the managers that are overpaid. It isn't just them, it is ALL OF THEM.

Redrider, I hope you realize when they state their retirement and health care liabilities they include those of the executives, which receive the largest share of the pie. Yet you choose to only attack the toll collectors. If you know they are overly compensated with overly generous health care benefits for being nothing more than, as you state, a cashier you are very foolish for not becoming a toll collector, especially considering your abilities to bargain for your own compensation package must be poorly lacking. According to you it's a great job.

The largest share of the pie doesn't go to the executives at all. For every executive, there are dozens of workers. You people need to use a little common sense and realize that the rank & file workers who retire making six figures cost us so much more than the managers b/c there are so many more of them. And where do most of those managers get promoted from? That would be from the rank & file worker bee ranks. Get a clue already!

redrider - there is not actual construction going on along the entire length of the Turnpike. Rather, there is construction equipment along the entire length of the turnpike getting rusty and they block off a lane or two to slow down us suckers....but actual work getting done - no, not, negative. Sorry - not true. The state workers don't worker and they are overpaid - plain and simple.

Marty, you are blind. Read my post again. I specifically said "SOUTHERN END". So go take a drive to the Delaware Memorial Bridge & back and you tell me you don't see tons of construction going on. I dare you. I do that trip several times a year and I see the NJT being widened for a huge chunk of the length. I see overpasses & exit ramps going up. I see earth being moved, pavement going down & construction activity like I've never seen before.

Actually you will have to be a millionaire to LIVE in this state !!!

New Jersey has never been a value to millionaires. I could have had my house for cheaper in the Hamptons or in Connecticut. Anyway, no millionaire is going to want to live in Pennsylvania. That place is full of hillbillies, and people go to shooting ranges for amusement.

My point is that the issue effects all people, and thus ought matter to all people, across lines of wealth.

Maybe you should look again there is a lot of huge new houses going up in PA. Look at the cars whizzing past you on Route 80 most of them are from PA they live there cheaper and work and buy here to avoid taxes on goods. They tie up traffic and we pay the price.

I would imagine that the only way that you could get anyone to do what they do is to pay them enough. I know that I wouldn't like to be doing it, and if I really thought it was so great I would be doing it.

$60K is not far above the median household income in the US, which is $50,173. It is rather near the middle for the New York metro area, which is $55,233. COnsidering the cost of living in New Jersey, working toll booths is a very modest income for a very unpleasant experience.

http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/36/3651000.html

What you will find in the private sector is a wider spread of incomes, with many people earning less then the standard wage and a small few earning extraordinarily higher sums than anything that you will find anywhere in the public sector. The fact that there are more equitable standards in the public sector is no logical reason to impose the feudalism of the private sector upon it.

You summed up your attitude perfectly, PeoplePlease. It's all about "calling a spade a spade". How dare the lower classes ever think they should be allowed to earn a living wage, have health benefits and retire in dignity. It's all black and white. You're better than them and you are unable to negotiate those benefits for yourself anymore since you have weakened unions and let the oligarchs take your money for themselves. You alone are too weak to get it back from them so you try and make sure your peers, or those you determine are lower than you, lose it as well.

It is not the purpose of government to create useless jobs where we grossly overpay people just so some people who can't get a job on their own in the private sector can earn a good living. Sorry, that is what I call wasting money.

Funny, 'cause when the private sector overpays people to do a job, not one conservative whines out a complaint, but when the government does it, a penny an hour is too much. And ironic that most of the whining comes from people that do not have a clue that the lower level workers are their own neighbors who do jobs that most people would not want to do. Toll takers are not "over paid cashiers" either - they have to both be security, since they are part of the system most likely to be aware of incidents, accurate at a fast pace that most people could not handle, and work in conditions 99% of the public would not accept on their own worksites. They do that without access to a restroom for hours at a time, on their feet, and repetitiously having to be the face of the toll road to the public. But continue to buy into the myth that they are the problem and not the guys making twice what they do with little to do all day but sit in an air conditioned office, and collect a paycheck for showing up and knowing the right people.

Go get an EZ Pass and we can get rid of the overpaid cashiers forever. It is a no skill job that doesn't need to exist just like the guys who run the gas pumps. Waste of money.

Thank you for injecting a little common sense into this surprisingly bitter and fact-free discussion. Who started this myth that public sector employees and unions are to blame for high taxes and corrupt government? Are we really against collective bargaining? I won't begin to correct the misstatements (they DO contribute to their health care, God knows they don't make 100 grand a year, etc, etc), but I am eternally stunned at how so many have swallowed the lies that shift all the blame onto teachers, firefighters and -- can you believe it -- toll takers and others.

Martin - go read a paper. The $100K figure is courtesy of the state of NJ and has been widely reported in the press. That figure includes salary, OT & benefits. Nobody cares that they contribute to their health plan. The point is they get $100K in pay and benefits to do a job a high school dropout can do for minimum wage. It is a waste of money.

Here Martin - read this - http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/5274

Took me all of 30 seconds to find what you were unwilling to even look for before posting. I posted this one b/c it best shows why toll collectors are a complete waste of money and grossly inefficient. Best for everyone to get an EZ Pass and let those jobs disappear forever.

There are obviously some amazing jobs out there. I wonder why these complainers don't take them? According to them autoworkers make $120K, teachers, firefighters and policemen are lazy and greedy and make more than the governor, toll collectors earn over 100K. They think they're better than all those people, why don't they get the same job? Surely they would be happy then!

Oh, and Redrider, if you haven't realized, NJ has the lowest gas prices in the nation AND we have people to pump the gas for us. All those other states do not have those people and they charge more for gas. Your argument to get rid of them makes no sense, even less than your idea to fire the toll collectors after you admitted that 10 years after more than half are gone we are still paying more for tolls.

We have lower gas b/c we have lower gas taxes here and the refineries our gas comes from are located in NJ. We can afford to have lower gas taxes b/c major roads like the NJT are supported by tolls and not gas taxes like they are in other states. If the NJT when toll free and was supported w/ gas taxes instead of w/ tolls, we would definitely be paying far more in gas taxes.

Did you know that in 2011, the state collected $540mm in motor fuel taxes? And did you know that the NJ Turnpike Authority collects over $1.1bn in tolls. Even if you got rid of all the toll booths & most of the NJT employees and made those roads operate like a regular highway, it would still cost close to well more than $540mm to run the NJT and Garden State Parkways and also cover costs like debt services for these 2 roads, maintenance & repaving, etc.... Debt service alone last year was over $400mm last year and that figure will only go up w/ the bonds the that were issued to pay for all the construction going on right now. That means gas taxes would need to more than double to cover the elimination of the tolls. And if that happened, we'd automatically go from having some of the cheapest gas in the country to some of the most expensive. But hey, go ahead and pretend our cheap gas isn't b/c we pay for roads partly through tolls instead of gas taxes like other states if you wish to stay misinformed like that.

Redrider why can't you just tell me how firing the people that pump gas will save me money on the price of gas instead of just going for more profit to the oil industry.

Get rid of the guy pumping gas and the service station owner can shave a bit off of what he has to charge for gas. And he'll do it b/c if he doesn't, the gas station down the block will and take all his customers. It works in 49 other states just fine, it will work here as well.

Spoken like a person that has never had to work on a holiday.

You are being distracted by focusing on the little guy.

If it is true that, as Redrider765 stated above, "NJ Turnpike Authority collects over $1.1bn" we should note that that there are multiple persons living in New Jersey, each of whom have more than $1.1bn. We are talking about individuals (at least a few of them) who have more then the cost of all of these workers combined.

At least two of the five richest in NJ never do not have a college degree.

There are a lot of sisters and brothers toiling away to build other people's castles, and they only seem to notice that their siblings got a slightly bigger cookie then they did.

HobokenOwl, if you are being compensated more than others for working holidays "without overtime pay or unused vacation time payout etc", then you ARE being paid for them, aren't you? You should have learned that in college and graduate school. if you were so smart you'd find a way to make more than those you feel are inferior or be able to negotiate a better contract for yourself.

HobokenOwl, by your standards if I pay more for my car than you do, you should get out of my way on the road. That's the price you should pay for having a cheap car, right?

I may also teach you that if you are on salary you give up the rights to overtime. That's your choice.

Well said, we are behind some third world countries in the way workers are treated. Wasn't that why the unions came about in the first place, to protect the workers? Workers now live in fear of losing their jobs (for any reason) and being replaced by a relative or friend of their "boss" Workers basically have no rights so what's next replace the toll takers with teenagers? Why not? Let's start up the sweat shops again...... cheap labor, relatively healthy, and easily replaceable. Of course the bureaucracy will stay the same.

Yeah, and they are protesting, on strike or rioting half the time in those countries and their governments are grappling w/ a debt crisis that is about to push most of Europe into recession b/c of all those overly generous social programs and pay packages for government workers & retirees.

Did you ever think that some people just don't like government worker unions b/c we don't like having to pay obscenely high taxes to pay for all that dead weight?

Redrider765 is a classic republican tea-bagger. Listen, they are protesting in other countries but they are protesting totalitarian regimes and lack of opportunity not unions you idiot. I think Redrider765 read ATLAS SHRUGGED in college and still can't get over his little crush on Ayn Rand. People like Christie in NJ and Walker in WI are using the current economic conditions to attack unions--- there is no causal link. But, they are trying (and to some success) to pit each of us against each other while the 1% reap compensation similar to a banana republic. Save it Redrider765--and I'm glad more people are beginning to see the Zimmer administration as what they are--- Republicans with an anti-union agenda.

Propuss, since when was Europe full of totalitarian regimes? I think you need to go back to high school and take some remedial geography classes b/c the last time I checked, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, the UK, France, Greece, & their neighbors were all democracies. Surprised you even know about Atlas Shrugged considering your lack of formal education. And no, I didn't care for the book. Too slow. And no, I am not a Republican. I have been a registered Democrat since I was 18. You just can't grasp that I as a taxpayer can't stand paying for waste.

The one thing you did get right is people are downright upset about the lack of opportunity over in Europe. But when you are running massive deficits, spending is out of control, tax revenues are declining,your economy is so regulated that it can't be competitive globally, the economy is shrinking and nobody will loan you the money you need to roll your debt or fund your deficits, then you must make painful cuts and that will create widespread discontent. That is what is going on in Europe and you know it.

Nice to see Mason's pet blogger is back at it. Say hi to the blue suits for me. Ask them to speed up their investigation and make a few more arrests already.

Redrider765 True enough- the protests in Europe are different. I agree deficits are a major issue in both Europe and in the USA. However, at this point in time, we will not be able to work out a solution by austerity alone or by the mistaken belief in trickle down economics. You and I both know what awaits America are very difficult choices about revenue and services. My view is that we are in this hole (nationally) because we are taxed by the fed far less than at anytime since the mid 1950's--at the same time, we have decreased revenue from the 2002 tax cuts and unpaid expenditures like 2 wars and Prescription B. We are passed the point where a solution is EITHER reduction of spending or revenue generation. We will ned to do both to remain competitive internationally. Also, get used to the "new normal"---its here to stay.

Redrider765 maybe you should look at the compensation your mayor and council get via health benefits etc. Fact is we allowed the banks to become too big to fail, make risky investments and bet against themselves. We bailed them out they borrowed money from the government to stay afloat at zero interest then were allowed to raise credit card rates and lower interest on bank accounts for the same people who bailed them out in the first place. The banks are not going to lend money to start businesses when they can make more money running over the "little people." Apparently you think that's OK as long as the people benefiting are not in a union.

The "little people" in City Hall get the same benefits.

The benefits are so good that part time Councilwoman Beth Mason refused them when she was running for office and then asked for back when she lost. Considering he husband reportedly makes reportedly a few million dollars a year they must be that good,

In fact the former mayor and convicted felon Anthony Russo and his wife Michele Russo thought those benefits were so good they stayed on them for years even after they were no longer entitled. :-)

I wonder if Mrs. Russo's benefits in her new job in Brian Stack's Union City are as good as the ones the taxpayers of Hoboken gave her for so many years ?

don't lose sight of the FACT that NJ has underfunded its pensions systems for the past 20 years. THAT is the problem. Toll collectors, police, firemen, teachers, municipal workers have ALL been contributing to their pensions for the past generation. However, starting with Gov. Whitman and going forward (Dems and Reps) most years have seen the state underfund or not fund at all their contributions to the state pension program. THAT is the problem---not the economy. The chickens are coming home to roost and the toll workers are the scapegoats.

Toll collectors are the buggy whips of the public sector. Technology has rendered them completely obsolete.

The DPW garbage collectors offered to give back over $200,00 it didn't save them and the council refused to pay into their benefits.

It is a job that doesn't need to exist just like toll collectors. That is the point!

MAC is life fair for everyone?? - NOOOOOOO

Mac a more likely scenario would be that the employer would lay off the older employee closer to retirement to deny them their benefits or the long time experienced employee because they make more money. They'd love to replace them with those new hires that make so much less. Surely if that newest person is so valuable the employer would lay no one off or cut their own salaries in order to keep them. HA, like that will ever happen. If you think that in the private sector the best worker always wins, you're delusional. Like any job, a union member can be fired for poor performance. The only difference is that the union employer needs to document a reason for doing so.

They are bad in general in the public sector where they buy off the very politicians who end up negotiating contracts with them. Pay to play laws should apply to the unions just like they apply to everyone else seeking to do business w/ the government.

I'm sorry but the cry that "unions protect workers that don't deserve it" is becoming strikingly similar to the "welfare mother driving a Cadillac" from the Reagan years. Strong image, plays of people's stereotypes-- but not much truth to it. Unions do far more good for workers (work conditions, benefits, compensation, a formal means of addressing a grievance) and benefit the economy (productivity) than anyone wants to admit. Many right wingers are using the current economic conditions as an excuse for saving money but it really is simply an excuse for anti-union sentiment.

If the State of NJ paid into the pension plans of state workers like they were suppose to for the past 20+ years, this would be a non-issue.

I just have one word for you propuss - Andriani. That man is the poster child for all that is wrong w/ public sector unions.

Two words for you....Paula Ohaus. The way the Zimmer backed Kids First Board of Education acted in her case is why you need unions.

Redrider765 you should look at super PACs they have more money and more influence than all the unions combined. They buy (literally) Government officials and the Supreme court says it's all right. So who's really running the country? If they don't play along then they run negative ads against them, and by the time the public finds out it's all lies it's too late. Most of the big corporations making billions don't pay any taxes. Warren Buffet admitted he pays less taxes than his secretary and congress still refuses to tax the rich (after all they may stop contributing to their campaigns). Let's have the laws apply to congress the same way they apply to us. Give them the same healthcare we have, stop them from voting on their own raises and pensions. Force them to put their raises etc. on the ballot after all isn't it a conflict of interest to vote on your own raise? Go after the government first (on all levels) they set the bad example.

You are grossly misinformed. I could list the ways you are misinformed but that would be a waste of time. But I'll start w/ this, name me one company that made billions in profits that didn't have offsetting NOL's carry forwards. Bet you can't name one. And please don't say something stupid like GE b/c while they might have made billions last fiscal year, they lost billions in previous years before so it is a wash.

Here is a thought for you. Stop getting your facts from the TV news b/c your entire rant was based on misinformation and half truths. If you knew anything about campaign finance, you'd know that the public service unions outspend everyone. The NEA alone outspends most groups and actually spends more money on political activities and lobbying than it spends on representational activites. BTW, in 2010 the NEA spent $50mm on political activities and lobbying, only spent $49mm on representational activities. They also spent another $89mm in gifts, grants & contributions and much of this went to groups that spend the money on political activities. Bet you had no clue about that. And they are far from the only union that buys off the very people who give them their raises.

Redrider765 you seem to have your own agenda I am not interested in profits or offsetting losses for previous years I said taxes. It wasn't a "rant" and I was not talking about "political activities and lobbying" They may influence congress , but they don't vote their own raises or pensions (like congress does) therefore there is no conflict of interest. PAC's are allowed to raise and spend as much money as they choose. Individual and group contributions on the other hand are limited, and subject to scrutiny. If it weren't for the unions we would still have sweat shops and you would probably be working in one instead of ranting and raving about tolls. Rant about the mayor and council who get outrageous benefits at the expense of the taxpayers, oh wait, never mind, they're not in a union. You're OK with the tolls good for you be a sheep with your EZ pass, but respect the fact that there are those of use who choose to exercise free will by not bowing down and allowing the government to suck every last penny out of us without the 1% being included in the equation. Warren Buffet is willing to own up to it. Guess you'll be the first in line when the government decides to put a chip under your skin for identification purposes as long as it isn't a union worker and they tell you it will save you a dollar. Have a happy New Year.

If you are going to rant and rave about corporations not paying taxes then you should know what the hell you are talking about. You are clueless.

And I am all for idiots like you not getting an EZ Pass but how about you idiots who insist on going through a toll both pay 100% of the cost of paying those dead weight workers who get fat salaries any HS dropout working at WalMart could do for minimum wage.

Tom, Tom here. Maybe we need to come up with a way to differentiate ourselves. How about "Beer-swilling Tom" vs. "Wino Tom"? Or "Tom who posted before any other Tom" vs. "Tom.2", "Tom.3", etc. (There could be additional Toms out there.) What can I do to improve your enjoyment of beer? There are so many varieties! Stouts, Porters, Lagers, Ales .... Thank God I do not suffer from diabetes. I suppose it's the carbs that are the problem.

Sally, Tom the Beer Drinker here. You might be surprised to know that there are quite a few very fine breweries in NJ, and perhaps one that qualifies as local to you. As for the "non-local-Patch" article comments, it certainly confuses me sometimes. Someone explained it just a short while ago, saying it was currently not possible to have it otherwise.

I would suggest talking to the editor of you local version of patch. Hoboken.Patch has local news.

Tom is correct
River Horse Brewery produced a fine "Belgian Freeze" this year

All patches have local news, but when they cross post something like this, sites that have less traffic have all of their local posts bumped off the front page. Hoboken has enough other posts to keep some of them on the front page.