Dealing with Loneliness By Wm. J. Diehm

Source: http://seniors-site.com/widowm/lonely.html

The elderly population is large and growing. In 1987, 8.5 million elderly lived alone; by 2020, 13.3 million elderly will live alone. More than 6.5 million, or 77%, of all elderly living alone are women. The percentage of older women living alone exceeds that of men in each age group, but women become progressively more likely than men to live alone with age. Among those over 85, 52% of women live alone compared to 29% for men. Widowhood is by far the most common situation for older women who live alone. Between the ages of 65 and 74, 77% of women living alone are widows, as are 88% of those over 75. Men who live alone are far more likely to be divorced or never to have married. This phenomenon occurs because women tend to marry men older than themselves, and because women live longer than men.

You are not alone; feelings of loneliness strike over one-third of all Americans at least sometime.

I will never forget the time that I walked into a hospital and heard the unhappy cry of an old man, "Nurse, I'm lonely." Over and over again he expressed his need in heart-rending sobs that touched my soul in a unforgettable way. I asked the nurse on duty, "What's wrong with the old man?" She replied, "He has outlived all his relatives and no one comes to see him anymore; and I can't spend all day holding his hand."

Over the years, I have visited hundreds of retirement homes. Some are very well-run, caring organizations, handling older people effectively who are in every state of functioning. Other convalescent hospitals are snake pits from hell--the range of hospital and retirement homes extends from awesome to awful. We who are advanced in years must take the time to consider where we will live, if we live too long to take care of ourselves.

If we wisely prepare in advance, we can select a home that does have some people who can take the time to hold our hand. When my Aunt Evelyn was just 60 years old, her husband, Lee, died unexpectedly. My aunt soon sold her property and moved to an American Baptist life-care retirement home in Seattle, Washington. Our whole family was aghast that Auntie would retire so early in life.

However, the life-care facility furnished Auntie with a nice room where she could do her own cooking; or, she could eat in the cafeteria whenever she wanted to. In addition, she could travel and come and go as she desired, which she did extensively. For years, Auntie spent very little time at the home. Now, at the age of 90, she is infirm and in a wheelchair. She needs around-the-clock care--and she gets it. The family, what is left of us, are scattered all over the country; and Auntie seldom gets visitors. But whenever one of us does call, we find a happy, contented, well-cared-for senior citizen who never calls out, "Nurse, I'm lonely."

When I first started visiting retirement and full-care homes, I considered them to be awful places and one day I said to a son: "Son, before you put me in one of these homes, shoot me." Of course I was kidding; but, you can see how terrible I thought the homes were. Since that time, I have seen dozens of beautiful caring places. Recently, I toured the Alzheimer's facilities run by my cousin Tom Sharon in Tacoma, Washington. No one wants Alzheimer's, but this terrible condition has been minimized by these thoughtful, happy facilities.

Loneliness comes to people who do not prepare for a good retirement. I have met young people who said they were never going to retire; but when the time comes, almost everyone has to drop the old loads and pick up new ones. We must all carry some type of burden or occupy ourselves with something of interest. The saddest tale ever told concerns the person who never made any provision to retire or change occupations.

So, if you find a care facility that cares, you will not need to worry about the frightening conditions of loneliness. Today, social services, churches, lodges, schools, and institutions are dedicated to the proposition that many people need to be cared for. If you are one of those people, relax and let other people cure their loneliness by curing yours.

Another type of lonely person has come to my attention: people who have retired and find themselves at a loss as to what to do. Here are eight sure-fired cures for such loneliness:

1. Keep busy -- If you are lonely, do with eagerness whatever is in front of you to do: write letters, visit people, fix something that needs to be fixed, take up a hobby, start collecting something of value, become amazed and fascinated by everything around you. Keep busily involved in everything that gets your attention--every little thing and every middle-sized thing can soon grow into big significant projects. The happiest person I ever met and the busiest person I ever met are one and the same. Cure loneliness by keeping busy.

   
   

2. Involve yourself -- If you are lonely, involve yourself in community affairs. Many times when people retire they find themselves in a burned-out condition. Some folks have told me, all I want to do is just sit in a chair, pet my dog, stare out the window, or watch TV. This kind of mental attitude sets a person up to be lonely. And, if a person continues to be a hermit, there will come a time when an incurable loneliness will be the order of the day.

   
   

3. Help others -- If you are lonely, look for and strive to cure the loneliness of someone else--it will cure your own. How about holding the hand of some of those people who made no provisions for old age. There are myriads of people who need help--find them and help them.

   
   

4. Avoid escapes -- If you are lonely, avoid day dreaming, sleeping too much, and watching too much TV. When you do dream dreams, make them possible, obtainable, and something you can work on. Dream magnificent goals for the future and start to bring them about. TV can be a life-saver on occasions; but to mesmerize your brain in a constant dose of radiation from the idiot box is a sure-fire way of becoming depressed and lonely. Too much sleep can be a powerful escape mechanism. We can find ourselves fleeing from guilt, responsibility, failure, and hopelessness. To run away through sleep is just like running away with alchohol--it only makes matters worse. Fight the tendency to sleep too much as if it were a demon from hell--it is.

   
   

5. Choose to be happy -- If you are lonely, you are probably depressed and unhappy. Fight unhappiness with a direct attack of the will--choose to be happy in spite of the circumstances. Ask yourself the question, "How does my unhappiness change my situation?" The answer will be, "It doesn't, it just makes it worse." So make things better for yourself by choosing to be happy. Fight depression by talking out your problems. If alcoholics can join a group and get control of their drinking, you can join a group and get control of your depression. Talk to friends, a counselor, or your pastor, and keep talking until you find yourself maintaining an attitude of optimism.

   
   

6. Collect good thoughts -- If you are lonely, collect inspirational thoughts, good jokes, meaningful poems, and literary masterpieces. Read lots of good books, if you can; if you can't, have someone read to you. Make a list of good things that you read about and then try to memorize some inspirational quotation and share it with whoever comes your way. Collect good thoughts to share with those people who come your way, and soon others will search for your companionship like the proverbial guru of the mountain.

   
   

7. Join a social group -- If you are lonely, join one of the many social groups in your community. See that you visit the Senior Center regularly and meet new people. You will find many individuals there that are involved in social gatherings of various types. Commit yourself to one or more groups that you find of interest.

   
   

8. Go to church -- If you are lonely, go to church. How do I have the nerve to tell people to go to church when I am writing a secular work? I do for the following reason: There is a lot of criticism of the church, but no substitute for it. Most churches care for their people and treat everyone who attends like family. If we cut the church out of the community there would be tens of thousands of more lonely people. I have heard some people say, I went to church and the people were unfriendly. If we are friendly, the church will be friendly. If we are unfriendly, more than 75% of the time, the church will still be friendly.

Loneliness is often caused by wanting people to do something for us. When we do things for other people, we are never lonely. Self-referenced thinking often leads to a barrenness of spirit that breeds discontent and loneliness. Think up, think out, toward people, think around, toward all the exciting things of life; and avoid thinking too much about yourself, and the problem of loneliness will disappear.

Loneliness generally occurs at specific times of the day or during specific days such as holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries. Planning ahead for these times so that you are active and busy with other things helps provide a very effective means of dealing with loneliness.

Janet’s Law Is Coming By F.R. Duplantier

Source: http://politickles.com/blog/?p=5651

December 20, 2010

You’d rather opt out?
You’d better get scanned,
Cause if you opt out
You’ll get a cold hand:
Janet’s Law is coming to town.

She’s lining you up
And checking you twice,
Couldn’t care less who’s naughty or nice:
Janet’s Law is coming to town.

She sees you when you’re naked,
She knows what’s in your slacks,
She knows that you and grandma could
Launch some terrorist attacks!

O! You’d rather opt out?
You’d better get scanned,
Cause if you opt out
You’ll get a cold hand:
Janet’s Law is coming to town,
Janet’s Law is coming to town.

Birth: GOLDMAN

Source: http://www.jewishexponent.com/article/22314/

November 18, 2010

Wendy (nee Roseman) and Jason Goldman of Maple Glen announce the birth of their second daughter, Brynn Talia, on Aug. 23.

Sharing in their joy are big sister Ayla Brielle; grandparents Sherry and Warren Lassin, Maxine and Steven Goldman, and Glenn Roseman, along with great-grandmother Toby Shafritz.

Joining in welcoming the baby are Aunt Gayle, Uncle Ross, and cousins Samantha and Scott Roseman; and Aunt Mindi, Uncle Michael, and cousin Evan Hoffman.

Brynn Talia is named in loving memory of her paternal great-grandmother Ida Goldman.

Looking for a Loan

I am looking for a loan of $5,000.00 to catch up and stay current on my bills. I am willing to pay up to 15% interest and pay back over a two or three year period.

I am also looking to obtain a loan of $20,000.00 to pay off all of my debts. I am willing to repay over a five year period, with interest of up to 15%.

In both cases, the interest rate is negotiable. If you can assist in either situation, e-mail at wnpjr475@yahoo.com. No scam artists, please.

Thank you for reading. Blessings on your day!

Bill

Stem-Cell Fraud

Source: http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/555015/201011261902/Stem-Cell-Fraud.aspx

11/26/2010

Science: Supporters of California's failed 2004 stem-cell law will ask strapped taxpayers to support another $3 billion bond initiative in 2014. Maybe it's time to restore fiscal sanity as well as science to its rightful place.

When it was passed in 2004, Proposition 71, with its $3 billion state fund and 10-year mandate for embryonic stem-cell research (ESCR), held out the promise of imminent miracle cures for everything from spinal disorders to Parkinson's.

One campaign ad showed actor Christopher Reeve, aka Superman, asking California voters to "stand up for those who can't."

Some six years later, with about $1.1 billion dispersed, there have been $270 million worth of impressive new labs built, research papers published, and respected scientists hired at exorbitant salaries, but no miracle cures or even marketable therapies. And none is likely for years, if not decades, to come. The promised financial payback for the financially strapped citizens of California is also far off.

Before the money runs out, Silicon Valley real estate developer and Prop 71 architect Bob Klein, who now heads the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), is laying plans to hit voters for another $3 billion in bonds in 2014. It's based largely on his personal belief that "there will be some remarkable new therapies that will save lives and mitigate suffering substantially."

There already are. But they're coming from work with adult stem cells and umbilical-cord blood, not embryonic stem cells.

As for CIRM, "spending has resulted in many academic publications, nice laboratories and buildings, as well as huge salaries for those running" the institute, according to Dr. David Prentice, a former Indiana State University biology professor who is now a fellow with the Family Research Council. "What the swindling of taxpayers hasn't produced? Viable treatments."

Proposition 71 was based on two false premises. The first was that money was the problem and by restricting federal funding on embryonic stem-cell research to existing stem-cell lines derived from previously destroyed embryos, President George W. Bush had stopped the science in its tracks.

Federal funding of stem-cell research was one of the decisions President Bush covers in his book "Decision Points."

On Page 117, he writes: "Embryonic stem cell research seemed to offer so much hope. Yet it raised troubling moral concerns. I wondered if it was possible to find a principled policy that advanced science while respecting the dignity of life."

And here's a fact you never hear: Bush was the first president to fund embryonic stem-cell research at all. He decided to continue funding on existing stem-cell lines derived from already destroyed embryos, but not fund new lines created from embryos created just for that purpose. Private ESCR research was never banned.

The second false premise was that ESCR was the only promising avenue of such stem-cell research. Because embryonic stem cells could be easily coaxed into becoming any body part, the argument went, research into adult stem cells was a waste of time.

The Obama administration recently approved only the second human clinical trial using embryonic stem-cell lines.

"We've heard so many times that adult stem cells can't treat diseases, or only treat a few blood diseases, and those who have pointed out the truth, that adult stem cells are already helping patients for over 70 diseases and injuries, have been scorned," Prentice notes.

A Japanese researcher, Kyoto University's Shinya Yamanaka, in 2007 discovered how to tinker with human skin cells so that they behave like embryonic stem cells.

According to the National Institutes of Health, this type of stem cell offers the prospect of an endless and renewable source of replacement cells and tissues to treat diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, spinal cord injury, stroke, burns, heart disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, to name a few.

Prop 71 was driven by ideology, not science. Were it otherwise, the money should have flowed to those pursuing, and producing, actual treatments and actual therapies for actual human beings.

Let's not get fooled again.

Southern N.J. Crowd Boosts 'Average Girl' To Miss America By Steven V. Cronin and Gail Wilson

Press Of Atlantic City
September 14, 1997

Anyone who wanted to learn about the new Miss America should have been in old convention hall Saturday - it seemed that anyone who has ever met her was there.

A Moorestown resident who is studying theater and sociology at Northwestern University in Illinois, Katherine Shindle had a boisterous crowd of about 300 supporters on hand to watch her capture the rhinestone tiara.

"She loves the theater. She loves to get on stage. She also loves Slurpees," said David Bigge of Delran, a friend of the new Miss America. "She's an average girl that went on to be Miss America. I guess it's everything Miss America stands for," said Allison Baker, who attended high school French classes with Shindle.

Shindle also must have had some supporters among veteran Miss America workers. She lived in Brigantine from ages 3 to 6, and her father Gordon Shindle volunteered to park cars at the pageant for 15 years. Shindle, however, didn't catch the Miss America bug until relatively late. In a home video shown during the pageant, her father said she never mentioned competing in pageants until her senior year in high school.

Shindle graduated from Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken, Camden County. Her friends seemed to have a little trouble coming to grips with her new, lofty status. "It's like her saddle shoes went to golden slippers and her starched shirt went to an evening gown. It's just surreal," said Derek DelRossi, who sang in the school choir with Shindle.

However, Shindle does seem to be the down-to-earth sort. During the pageant telecast, she frequently communicated with the audience through a series of raised eyebrows and other facial expressions. During her inaugural press conference, Shindle was quick to inform the media she prefers the name Kate, and she has no significant other in her life.

Shindle told the press she plans on wasting no time in beginning her year talking about AIDS prevention and education. "I've been really waiting for this all my life," said Shindle, a senior at Northwestern. "I'm excited to have this opportunity and this job. This week is ideal to present my platform," she said.

Shindle said she wants to promote a program of HIV prevention at all grade levels. She wants to talk to young children about AIDS to raise their awareness of the disease while she will discuss AIDS prevention with older students.

Responding to recent news report that AIDS is no longer the top killer of Americans aged 25-44 youth, Shindle said now is not the time to let up on the fight against the deadly disease. "You can either become proactive and take charge, or (relax and) fight your way back the hard way," she said.

Shindle was crowned in a pageant that brought many changes to the annual spectacle at the old convention hall. The biggest change was the Miss America Organization's decision to allow contestants to wear two-piece bathing suits during the swimsuit competition.

The rule change was made after most of the 51 contestants were selected, and most of the contestants elected to stick with the one-piece style that helped them win their state titles. Only 13 of the 51 contestants chose to wear two-pieces, but five of those women - Miss North Carolina Michelle Warren, Miss California Rebekah Keller, Miss Hawaii Erika Kauffman, Shindle and Miss Louisiana Mette Boving - impressed the judges enough to make it into the top 10.

Some of the two-piece suits sparked complaints the pageant wasn't sticking to its promise to allow only modest suits. Moreover, Miss Vermont Jill Cummings made headlines when she announced she not only had a pierced navel, but that she intended to wear a two-piece swimsuit and show off her navel ring during the competition.

While pageant officials have in the past downplayed the swimsuit competition, this year they unapologetically focused on swimwear, first with the rule change and then in a lengthy pageant production number that had the 41 nonfinalist contestants dress and dance in swimwear popular during the nearly eight decades of Miss America competition.

Obituary - Pfister

MICHAEL PFISTER, 66, of Mount Laurel, formerly of Delran, died Sunday at home. Mr. Pfister retired two months ago from Delran High School where he was a teacher and librarian for more than 32 years. He was a member of the Delran, New Jersey and National Education Associations. He was a World War II Navy veteran, serving on the USS Wisconsin. He belonged to the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Medford and the American Legion Post in Riverside. Survivors: his wife, Joyce; two sons, Drew Calandrella and Mark Calandrella, both of Santa Rosa, Calif.; a daughter, Verna E. Nelson of St. Louis, Mo.; four grandchildren; a great-grandchild; three brothers and one sister. Services: viewing, 7 to 9 pm tomorrow, and 8 to 9 am Friday, Schetter Funeral Home; 304 W. Route 70, Cherry Hill; Mass of Christian Burial, 10 am Friday, Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Church, 99 Burnt Mill Rd., Cherry Hill; burial;

Philadelphia Inquirer - Wednesday, Jul 29, 1992

Mrs. Ruth Joyce Pfister

October 4, 1933 - September 13, 2021

Ruth Joyce Pfister, known to all as Joyce, Joy, Joycee, or Mom, 87, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri died Monday, September 13, 2021 at Chateau Girardeau.

She was born October 4, 1933 in Patchogue, New York, to Albert Boggs and Ruth Dorsey Boggs.

She and the late Michael E. Pfister were married October 1960 at Plainfield, New Jersey. He preceded her in death. Ray Sager was her companion for 24 years. He preceded her in death.

She was an office worker for Mamco Property Management, a teacher aid for several years in the Delran School district and a Girl Scout leader. She volunteered at Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, New Jersey as well as a special committee member for pre-sentencing in the Juvenile court systems. She was a Majorette at Riverside High School Drum and Bugle Corps, and a member of the 69ers club.

She was of the Lutheran faith and a beloved mother to all she knew.

Survivors include a daughter, Verna (Tom) Nelson of Cape Girardeau; two sons, Drew (Aziza) Calandrella of Laguna Beach, California, and Mark (Bernadette Lombardi) Calandrella of Loyalton, California; a first cousin, Ann Dorsey of Bethesda, Maryland; six grandchildren, Sean (Susie) Calandrella, Brett Calandrella, Jasara Calandrella, Gianni Calandrella, Brieanna Calandrella, Michael Nelson; six great-grandchildren, Siena Calandrella, Lucca Calandrella, Bima Calandrella, Rai Calandrella, Cody Hayes and Izabella Hayes.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, and companion.

The Memorial of Our Mother will be as follows:
A Touch of Class, 3001 US-130, Delran, NJ 08075, 856-461-8660
Sunday, October 24, 2021 from 4:30 – 7:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers donations may be given to Humane Society of Southeast Missouri, 2536 Boutin Dr, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701; website semopets.org and choose from the drop-down menu to the Donate site Or to the Deborah Heart and Lung Center, 200 Trenton Road, Browns Mills, NJ 08015; website demanddeborah.org and choose from the drop-down menu to the Donate site.

Online condolences may be made at www.fordandsonsfuneralhome.com.

Ford & Sons Funeral Home - Mt. Auburn is in charge of arrangements.

Source: https://www.fordandsonsfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Ruth-Pfister/#!/Obituary

Obituary - Stone

MELINDA R. STONE, 12, of Delran, died Thursday after being struck by a car while crossing Route 130 in Delran. Melinda was a seventh grade student at Delran Middle School. She was a member of the Marcia Hyland Dance Studio in Mount Laurel and the Play Crafters Theatrical Group in Cherry Hill. Survivors: her mother, Rose A. of Delran; her father, Thomas of Tampa, Fla.; a sister, Melissa R., at home; and her paternal grandparents, Thomas of Tampa, Fla., and Joan of Deer Park, NY, and her maternal grandparents, Sebastian and Rose Garcia of Puerto Rico. Services: Mass of Christian Burial, 9:30 am today, St. Casimir's Roman Catholic Church, 502 New Jersey Ave., Riverside. Perinchief Chapels, Mount Holly.


Philadelphia Inquirer - Monday, Nov 2, 1992

Bittersweet Sale Helps Students Remember The Friend They Lost Delran Middle Schoolers Are Raising Money For A Memorial To A Classmate Killed In An Accident In October.

Source: http://web.archive.org/web/20130326053048/http://articles.philly.com/1993-02-21/news/25955658_1_candy-sale-pedestrian-crosswalk-accident

By Josh Zimmer, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT

Posted: February 21, 1993

DELRAN — Sweets in memory of a sweet girl.

The friends of Melinda Stone were selling them Wednesday at Delran Middle School just one day after what would have been her 13th birthday. They were hoping to raise enough money to commemorate the name of the bubbly 12-year- old, whose life was tragically ended last fall on Route 130 South.

Late in the afternoon on Oct. 29, Melinda tried to cross the busy road near the entrance of Holy Cross High School. In what Delran police have ruled an accident, she was killed after running in front of a car.

Her numerous friends at the school have yet to completely shake the shock.

The next school day after the accident, they skipped classes to express their pain in group discussions run by middle school nurse Joan Lewis and a high school counselor. That's where the idea of a fund-raising event, which became Wednesday's candy sale, came up.

Then they collected signatures on a petition demanding that a pedestrian overpass be constructed over the crosswalk where Melinda was killed. They presented the petitions to the Township Council on a night when they could have been watching television or playing games.

When the council voted to request a traffic study by the Department of Transportation, they were there again, pleading with the council for action, hugging Melinda's sorrowful mother, Rose Stone, afterward.

Melinda's kindness and good humor have remained positive forces in their lives. They didn't express any angry sentiments Wednesday, not even toward the driver of the car that struck their friend.

Colleen Maher, 13, called it an accident at "a very dangerous crossing."

It was just that the candy sale, held in the school cafeteria during periods five, six and seven, helped rekindled her spirit even more.

"It's just like she was here," 13-year-old Nicole Kowalewski said. ''Sometimes you can close your eyes and she's right here talking to you."

Nicole had opened the one-day sale by announcing to youngsters over an intercom, "Our goal is $75, so please spend your money."

At a table set up between a fruit-juice machine and a slush machine, she and others handled a steady stream of sweet-toothed schoolmates, who paid 25 cents apiece for fruit snacks and Tootsie pops, 10 cents apiece for Twizzlers and five cents each for Sweet Tarts.

Toward the end of the lunch period, they had collected $38.14, which was held in a tightly guarded cigar box.

They talked of purchasing a plaque "so that people will remember her," said Jenna Lipson, 13.

"She was real nice," sixth grader Justin Brooks said. "She was there if you had a problem."

The construction of a pedestrian crosswalk isn't a lost issue in their minds, though it would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to the Department of Transportation.

Lewis said the youngsters were encouraged when area politicians, who received copies of the petition, wrote them letters describing the efforts they were making to arrange a transportation study.

But the purchase of a plaque is a more attainable goal, and the student council has agreed to donate some of the profits from school dances toward it.

The candy sale was just one more piece in a cathartic puzzle that is

helping the youngsters deal with their loss.

For instance, they spoke excitedly of the forthcoming yearbooks. All three will include special sections with pictures of Melinda.

"It's important that they don't forget," Lewis said. "I think it's made their lives more valuable."

Officials Are Asked For Safe Crossing Of Rt. 130 In Delran A Man Who Was Struck While Crossing The Street Spoke. So Did Friends Of A Girl Who Died Crossing It.

Source: http://web.archive.org/web/20151222225646/http://articles.philly.com/1993-03-26/news/25951146_1_panel-executive-assistant-route

By Josh Zimmer, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT

Posted: March 26, 1993

DELRAN — Home from working the Alaska oilfields, Delran resident Tom McConaghy was crossing Route 130 on Sept. 1, 1990.

Two weeks later, he would wake up from a coma to the realization his life would never be the same.

Yesterday, speaking in a deliberate, slightly slurred voice, McConaghy, 29, told a panel of state officials that ways must be found to make it safe for pedestrians to cross the busy highway. He went into the coma after he was hit by a pickup truck while crossing near Hartford Road - at least, that's what his mother told him later, he said.

"I'm not here to talk about what happened," McConaghy said. "I have to say, what's more important, money or a human life? . . . The stuff I have to go through is really bad because of this accident."

While McConaghy is alive, 12-year-old Melinda Stone is not. She was run over and killed last year while trying to cross Route 130 South near the entrance to Holy Cross High School.

Delran police ruled it an accident.

The death of the bubbly, likeable girl mobilized her friends into action. They raised money for a memorial and attended township meetings. They gathered nearly 300 signatures on a petition calling for an overpass and presented it to the township council and to State Sen. Brad Smith and Assemblymen Priscilla Anderson and Jose Sosa, all Republicans.

Those efforts were the impetus for yesterday's panel, which listened and answered questions, but made no promises, though officials did pledge to expedite a Department of Transportation study.

"I think it is very, very evident that we would like to act as soon as possible," said State Sen. C. William Haines, the chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. "We will help in the legislature to do what we have to do."

"I feel we have a very good chance," said Rose Stone, Melinda's mother, after the hearing.

In addition to Haines, the panel consisted of Sosa, Anderson, Smith, P. Norman Deitch, manager of the DOT's Bureau of Traffic Engineering and Safety Programs, Denise Coyle, executive assistant to DOT Commissioner Tom Downs, and Peter Mangoosian, from the Office of Legislative Services.

Deitch said the Department of Transportation had begun studying traffic on Route 130 and hoped to have a study concluded in several months.

Afterward, about 60 students who attended walked back to the Delran Middle School. They had been given permission to attend partly as a civics lesson, but also to continue their efforts in favor of a safe crossing.

As they walked back, there was sobbing and tears, as groups of twos and threes consoled each other.

"I thought it was good," said Lena Farally, one of Stone's best friends, of the hearing. "We have to get a crosswalk."

Deitch rejected the possibility of building an underpass because it could provide a haven for criminals and could not be easily policed. An overpass could cost as much as $1 million, he said.

At the existing crosswalk near where Stone was killed, there is a pedestrian traffic light can be activated from the side of the road.

Delran police said Stone didn't use the signal. According to Dietch, the current setup could not be made safer.

Some students who spoke before the panel found it difficult emotionally.

"I know I'm only a kid, and my opinion doesn't mean much," said Nicole Kowalewski, 13, while Lena Farally put a sensitive arm around her shoulder. ''We loved Melinda Stone very much."

Said Sosa: "I just want to tell you your opinion does count."

A return to the norm By Charles Krauthammer

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/04/AR2010110406581.html

November 5, 2010

For all the turmoil, the spectacle, the churning - for all the old bulls slain and fuzzy-cheeked freshmen born - the great Republican wave of 2010 is simply a return to the norm. The tide had gone out; the tide came back. A center-right country restores the normal congressional map: a sea of interior red, bordered by blue coasts and dotted by blue islands of ethnic/urban density.

Or to put it numerically, the Republican wave of 2010 did little more than undo the two-stage Democratic wave of 2006-2008 in which the Democrats gained 54 House seats combined (precisely the size of the anti-Democratic wave of 1994). In 2010 the Democrats gave it all back, plus about an extra 10 seats or so for good - chastening - measure.

The conventional wisdom is that these sweeps represent something novel, exotic and very modern - the new media, faster news cycles, Internet frenzy and a public with a short attention span and even less patience with government. Or alternatively, that these violent swings reflect reduced party loyalty and more independent voters.

Nonsense. In 1946, for example, when party loyalty was much stronger and even television was largely unknown, the Republicans gained 56 seats and then lost 75 in the very next election. Waves come. Waves go. The republic endures.

Our two most recent swing cycles were triggered by unusually jarring historical events. The 2006 Republican "thumpin'" (to quote George W. Bush) was largely a reflection of the disillusionment and near-despair of a wearying war that appeared to be lost. And 2008 occurred just weeks after the worst financial collapse in eight decades.

Similarly, the massive Republican swing of 2010 was a reaction to another rather unprecedented development - a ruling party spectacularly misjudging its mandate and taking an unwilling country through a two-year experiment in hyper-liberalism.

A massive government restructuring of the health-care system. An $800 billion-plus stimulus that did not halt the rise in unemployment. And a cap-and-trade regime reviled outside the bicoastal liberal enclaves that luxuriate in environmental righteousness - so reviled that the Democratic senatorial candidate in West Virginia literally put a bullet through the bill in his own TV ad. He won. Handily.

Opposition to the policies was compounded by the breathtaking arrogance with which they were imposed. Ignored was the unmistakable message from the 2009-10 off-year elections culminating in Scott Brown's anti-Obamacare victory in bluer-than-blue Massachusetts. Moreover, Obamacare and the stimulus were passed on near-total party-line votes - legal, of course, but deeply offensive to the people's sense of democratic legitimacy. Never before had anything of this size and scope been passed on a purely partisan basis. (Social Security commanded 81 House Republicans; the 1964 Civil Rights Act, 136; Medicare, 70.)

Tuesday was the electorate's first opportunity to render a national verdict on this manner of governance. The rejection was stunning. As a result, President Obama's agenda is dead. And not just now. No future Democratic president will try to revive it - and if he does, no Congress will follow him, in view of the carnage visited upon Democrats on Tuesday.

This is not, however, a rejection of Democrats as a party. The center-left party as represented by Bill Clinton remains competitive in every cycle. (Which is why he was the most popular, sought-after Democrat in the current cycle.) The lesson of Tuesday is that the American game is played between the 40-yard lines. So long as Democrats don't repeat Obama's drive for the red zone, Democrats will cyclically prevail, just as Republicans do.

Nor should Republicans overinterpret their Tuesday mandate. They received none. They were merely rewarded for acting as the people's proxy in saying no to Obama's overreaching liberalism. As one wag put it, this wasn't an election so much as a restraining order.

The Republicans won by default. And their prize is nothing more than a two-year lease on the House. The building was available because the previous occupant had been evicted for arrogant misbehavior and, by rule, alas, the House cannot be left vacant.

The president, however, remains clueless. In his next-day news conference, he had the right demeanor - subdued, his closest approximation of humility - but was uncomprehending about what just happened. The "folks" are apparently just "frustrated" that "progress" is just too slow. Asked three times whether popular rejection of his policy agenda might have had something to do with the shellacking he took, he looked as if he'd been asked whether the sun had risen in the West. Why, no, he said.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com