Entitled Truth & Consequence, this “status report” from the New Jersey Pension and Health Benefit Study Commission opens by stating that “The public employee pension and health benefit systems of the State of New Jersey face problems that are dire and likely to worsen unless action is taken. This is a matter of pressing concern to the public employees and retirees who rely on these systems to protect their families’ health and provide for retirement.”(3) Charts and figures highlight the Commission’s findings; possible solutions are hinted at, none of them really palatable.(28) A final report detailing solutions is promised. The document ends thusly: “This problem is dire and will only become much worse if meaningful steps are not taken quickly.”(32)
Archive for September, 2014
Online Ancient History Encyclopedias
Here are a few noteworthy titles that can be considered as good starting points. The UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology is a peer-reviewed site still being constructed, but what is available is worth a look. The articles are heavily referenced with supporting bibliographies and, where applicable, images accompany the pieces. Free registration is required. The Encyclopedia of the Hellenic World focuses on Asia Minor, the Black sea, and Constantinople. While exploring a greater time range than ancient history, this work does provide a great deal of writing on the ancient past. The site also includes a massive bibliography, a very large webliogaphy, and an interactive atlas. The articles contain informative links to other sections of the site and provide a list of references as well. The Encyclopaedia Iranica is a well-established scholarly undertaking examining the total history of Iran; included within its vast structure are articles on ancient Iran ranging from the concept of water to archaeology. The articles are fact-based and have graphs/figures with them along with bibliographies. A scholarly-based venture, De Imperatoribus Romanis contains biographies of Roman emperors and listings of their families. Much of the information is from primary sources, and links lead you further into this site. The Ancient History Encyclopedia features accessible articles with embedded links. This, too, is a work in progress, but has great potential. A timeline is included as well as something unique- links to videos on ancient history topics from a variety of sources.
Additional CRS Reports on ISIS
This updates a previous entry: The Islamic State in Syria and Iraq: A Possible Threat to Jordan?, CRS Insights; Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and U.S. Response; American Foreign Fighters and the Islamic State: Broad Challenges for Federal Law Enforcement; Considerations for Possible Authorization for Use of Military Force Against the Islamic State, CRS Insights; and Proposed Train and Equip Authorities for Syria: In Brief.
A Guide to Reverse Mortgages
What you need to know about these seemingly attractive mortgages from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
College Enrollment Declines for Past Two Years
According to this September 24 press release from the Census Bureau: “College enrollment declined by close to half a million (463,000) between 2012 and 2013, marking the second year in a row that a drop of this magnitude has occurred. The cumulative two-year drop of 930,000 was larger than any college enrollment drop before the recent recession, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics from the Current Population Survey released today.” A graph shows trends from 2006 t0 2013 and after increasing substantially, the figures start a downward turn in 2012. This information is part of the report School Enrollment in the United States: 2013 that traces participation from nursery school to graduate school.
Read the WHO Ebola Report Here
The report that has been widely quoted in the news – Ebola Virus Disease in West Africa — The First 9 Months of the Epidemic and Forward Projections – is online courtesy of The New England Journal of Medicine.
New Jersey County Histories
New Jersey counties have “biographies” of their own, mostly published toward the end of the 19th century. Rutgers University provides links to these various histories; they are arranged alphabetically by county name.
UN Climate Change Summit – Live
On UN WEB TV, you can watch a live feed of this historic meeting at the UN. President Obama will make his address at 12:50pm; that will also be broadcast on C-SPAN.
Latest Federal Figures Show That New Jersey’s Median Income Has Fallen While Its Poverty Rate, Uninsured Population, and Income Inequality Have Increased
The American Community Survey, the population statistical sampling agency of the Census Bureau, has just released reports showing how New Jersey has fared in certain categories from 2012 to 2013. In Household Income: 2013, New Jersey’s median income dropped 0.4% from 2012 to 2013, one of only eight states that witnessed a decline (Table 1); this same table shows that income inequality increased in the state over the same time period, joining 18 other states with a Gini Coefficient of .0008 or higher. In Poverty: 2012 and 2013, New Jersey records among the steepest percentage increases in those living below the poverty line – 0.6%.(Table 1). Highlights of these reports are available.
Another Census publication, this one from the Current Population Report series, Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2013, shows that the number of individuals without health insurance actually increased by 0.5% from 2012 t0 2013; only three states had a higher rate, while the vast majority had lower numbers.(Table A-1).
Online Primary Sources for American History: New York State
Although we are on the west side of the Hudson, that’s no reason to ignore the city to the east. (Besides which, we were born there, went to school there, worked there….) There are some really great sites to explore. The Patchogue-Medford Library has done an impressive job in providing detailed links to New York State online primary sources; we especially commend them for their compilation Classic NYS Histories & Document Collections, including the multi-volume Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New-York; Procured in Holland, England and France. Cornell University sponsors the New York State Historical Literature Collection featuring hundreds of titles. The New York Heritage Digital Collections is a portal to thousands of documents from dozens of institutions. The New-York Historical Society’s growing digital collections are a goldmine of primary sources, containing thousands of pages of significant importance while the New York State Library also provides digital collections of interest to a researcher arranged by topic. NYS Historic Newspapers presents 212 newspapers ranging from 1803-2013. Other sources can be found at HathiTrust.
Results of the Scottish Independence Vote
In an historic vote, the people of Scotland are deciding whether to become a separate nation from the United Kingdom. The polls close at 10pm (5pm here) after which preliminary results will be made public. Go to the BBC site Scotland Decides for live updates starting late this afternoon. An FAQ provides information and background on this vote; here is an informative article from Foreign Affairs. Do you know how many people claim Scottish ancestry in Jersey City? Come here to find out.
2014 Best High Schools in New Jersey and in the Nation
According to Newsweek, New Jersey has 76 best high schools; other state rankings are also available. Charter schools, magnet schools, and STEM schools have their own listings. See if any Jersey City schools made the grade.
Recent CRS Reports on ISIS
These current, topical reports should be consulted: U.S. Military Action Against the Islamic State: Answers to Frequently Asked Legal Questions, September 9, 2014; Considerations for Possible Authorization for Use of Military Force Against the Islamic State, CRS Insights, September 9, 2014; and The “Islamic State” Crisis and U.S. Policy, September 10, 2014.
Public Holidays Around the World
In a fairly comprehensive review of which countries provide what number of holidays, the United States comes in on the low end. Technically there are no national holidays in this country, only federal ones. As this CRS report explains: “Although these patriotic celebrations are frequently referred to as “national holidays,” legally they are only applicable to federal employees and the District of Columbia. Neither Congress nor the President has asserted the authority to declare a “national holiday” that would be binding on the 50 states. Each state individually decides what its legal holidays will be. Creating a holiday for federal employees does, however, affect each state in a variety of ways, including the delivery of mail, bank transactions, and business conducted with federal agencies.”(1) India and Colombia provide the largest number of holidays – 18, while Mexico allows 7. The United States list 10 holidays. A bit of trivia – did you know there is an eleventh federal holiday that falls every four years? It is Inauguration Day for which federal employees in Washington, D.C. and surrounding counties get the day off.
American Dunkirk, September 11, 2001
In 1940, the shattered British and French armies, fleeing the German onslaught, found themselves with their backs to the sea with no hope of rescue. However, over the next nine days more than 300,000 troops were evacuated from Dunkirk. At that time, that was the largest sea rescue in history. Until 9/11. On that day, 500,000 people were evacuated from Manhattan in under one day; this video captures that effort.
Live 2014 9/11 Ceremonies From New York City and Washington, D.C.
The ceremony in New York begins at 8:30; the Pentagon remembrance starts at 9:30. Unfortunately, we could not find a link to the ceremony at Shanksville, Pa., the site of Flight 93; maybe Pennlive or Flight 93 National Memorial will broadcast today’s events.
President Obama’s Address on the Islamic State
A video of his speech is available courtesy of C-SPAN; a transcript of the prepared speech is found at The White House. (What is so important about C-SPAN is this video and tens of thousands of others are always available and will be indefinitely.) Reactions to the speech are at The Washington Post, The Telegraph, and The Wall Street Journal.
Recent Major Reports on Universal Health Care
Access to health care has become a topic of ever greater concern as costs just escalate out of reach. The International Labour Organization has just released Universal Health Protection: Progress to date and the way forward while the World Health Organization has issued Research for universal health coverage: World health report 2013.
The Benefits of a Music Program
All you band parents (and we were one of them for a decade) were right! Music does improve the brain’s functions! This article in the recent issue of The Journal of Neuroscience – Music Enrichment Programs Improve the Neural Encoding of Speech in At-Risk Children – shows that: “Our findings support efforts to reintegrate music into public schooling as an important complement to science, technology, math, and reading instruction….In addition to providing children with a personally satisfying afterschool activity, community music programs offer the potential to engender biological changes in neural processes important for everyday communication.”(11917) This research is generated from Northwestern University’s Auditory Neuroscience Lab; go to its Music and the Brain with slide shows and links to many scientific articles supporting the above statement.
Congressman Frank J. Guarini Library Blog 