UC Alliance Appears to be DOA - Dead on Arrival

Visit http://www.ucalliance.com/ and one will find an out of date website which appears to have remained untouched since 2005. On the left of the home page is what is said to be the latest edition of the Alliance’s Newspaper, UC Directions, the problem is that it is an edition from 2004, four years ago. It looks for all intents and purposes that the site is as dead as the Alliance itself, but the newspaper keeps appearing in county resident’s mailboxes just in time to promote political agendas of Democrats throughout the county.

NOTE: Among its priorities the Alliance lists the following on its website - Continue to Publish Countywide Newspaper. The newspaper is distributed to more than 200,000 Union County homes and businesses. It serves as a keepsake tool of valuable information, which contains various service and program directories, a calendar of events, and important municipal and county news. The Alliance will continue to provide advertising opportunities from organizations in various sectors in Union County.

Reviewing the latest edition of the Directions it is clear that it has veered far from the original intent.

The first and third pages have been hijacked by State Senator Raymond J. Lesniak sharing his spiritual beliefs and how they aided him in seemingly single handedly getting the death penalty abolished in New Jersey. But what is more annoying is that for the second consecutive year Lesniak has used the newspaper to bash the Elizabeth Board of Education. Not only did he bash the Board of Ed as a whole but he singled out its officials by name which was totally tasteless.

The Union County Alliance receives approximately 80% of its funding from the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders which means that it is paid for with tax payer dollars. Though there is some advertising in the paper, it must be noted that those ads are mostly from public entities therefore these ads would be paid for with tax dollars as well. If this newspaper is to be a useful tool of information for the residents and paid for with their hard earned monies than Ray Lesniak’s opinion of the Elizabeth BOE has no place in the publication. Senator Lesniak can certainly well afford to self fund a mailing to every house in Union County as there are many county residents who would prefer to not be a part of his attacks paid for with their tax dollars.

What was once a worthy publication, years ago, has now transgressed into a publicly funded birdcage liner loaded with platitudes for the wonderful ways that the freeholders have developed to spend the taxpayers money without their approval. The front page article about the new Countywide Performing Arts High School at the Vo-Tech is proof positive that the freeholders could care less what the voters think. It would seem to be common sense that a borrowing scheme putting the county $20 million further in debt should really be subject to voter approval and not left to the total discretion of the gang of nine who are able to just quietly take what they want whenever they want passing the costs on to the taxpayers. Something is wrong with this picture especially since we learn about this additional debt by reading about how we all got screwed in this taxpayer funded political newspaper.

And where are the other members of the UC Alliance?

Conspicuously absent in this latest edition is the list of the Board of Directors as well as what companies comprise the coalition. Have they backed away and taken their funding with them preferring not to participate. And if they have good for them as it would certainly be long overdue.

http://www.ucalliance.com/index.htm

Has the Boss Tweed of UC turned murderous?

Just weeks ago it was reported that a bullet was fired at Freeholder Adrian Mapp’s car. Mapp has fallen out of favor with the Union County Democrat machine (a.k.a. Lesniak/DeFalippo) for reasons only the insiders know of as of yet and won’t be given the line in November. Just following this report a campaign mailer featuring a scull and the house of a political rival was mailed to all Hillside residents by Union County Democrat Chairwoman Charlotte DeFalippo.

Hillside School Board member Nathalie Yafet has been standing her ground against the Democrat machine in Hillside for years. She managed to have Sen. Raymond Lesniak’s law firm taken off the Hillside taxpayers’ backs. Her and fellow school board member at the time Sergio Biacho reported that the Board’s legal bills were affected dramatically by getting rid of Uncle Ray. Hillside taxpayers owe a debt of gratitude to the Yafet’s dedication. Residents can only imagine the sacrafices one takes on to stand up to the machine.

The Star-Ledger reports in the Union County section today about last week’s school board elections. Nathalie’s husband Steve ran for a seat on the Board and as usual the politics got nasty in Hillside. Last year’s county politicking in Hillside resulted in a police report being filed against a county employee who Charlotte DeFalippo was quoted as saying “He is a friend that I sent to help with an election.” (See post HERE)

Here is the Yaffet’s side of the story:

Dear Editor: It's always fascinating when political machines put their own sins on other people. In your story, Election quarrel spills into school board meeting, Friday April 27, 2007, Charlotte DeFilippo, the Union County Democratic Party chairperson and power broker, tries to take the moral high ground. That in itself is amusing and sad, too.

She gives herself credit for having the unspeakable idea of putting a picture of our home on the front cover of thousands of vicious campaign mailers and claims that it is appropriate to do so. Would she be as enthralled for her residence to have similar treatment? Ms. DeFilippo's nasty literature full of lies and misinformation is her signature style. After all, if your candidates have no merit, then the only other tactic left in dirty politics is to make personal attacks on others.

Ms. DeFilippo further asserts that, "she keeps running her husband." This statement is insulting to my husband, Steven, who made his own decision. The Union Leader endorsed him, called him "a necessity" on the school board and pointed out that he would ensure "fiscal responsibility in a town where taxes are already spiraling out of control."

Another ludicrous claim is that she is merely a simple resident of the township with, as she calls it, "a moral obligation," rather than the Boss Tweed of Union County and Hillside. Her candidates are fully funded and get hundreds of signs, expensive full-color mailers, county employees on Election Day, sound trucks and more. All they have to give up in return is their independent judgment and their votes. Sounds like politics to me.Conveniently, Ms. DeFilippo also fails to explain why she attacks me even when I am not up for re-election. Rather she says that every word in her trash mailer can be found by "Google-ing" me. Hardly. The only place you will find citations regarding my supposed plans for a "multi-million dollar" theater and other nonsense are in her twisted mind.

Nathalie Yafet
Hillside, NJ