A fun and informative news recap.

The Phillies won game one of the World Series. Some people might be surprised. That's baseball, folks. And, some people will do anything to get tickets.

The Michael Jackson documentary, This Is It, opened yesterday. I saw it while sitting behind two grown women wearing commemorative T-shirts, short pants with white socks, and glitter gloves (on one hand, naturally). I have since determined the movie is basically a moneymaker. However, it does offer some tender, albeit brief, MJ moments. The man was immensely talented, and Thriller is an absolute favorite. But... Well, this discussion is for another day. We'll leave it at that.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi unveiled an $894 billion – yes, billion – health care bill. (I wouldn't click on the second link; it's the bill itself. There are nearly 2,000 pages. Just saying.) Quick quote from the newsroom: "$894 billion? That just sounds silly."

Oh, and did you hear?! The economy is getting better! I wonder how many newspapers will steal the story for their front pages. 

Endoresment Day: Two for two.

What did I tell you?

The Asbury Park Press today endorsed Republican Chris Christie for governor, as did The Courier Post.

The Times of Trenton and The Record went with Gov. Jon Corzine.

I recently wrote about endorsements. It would appear the governor is favored for re-election, but - as I said - do your own research. Know who you want to vote for. No endorsement is perfect, and no governor will be, either.

Palin on Oprah?? Nov. 16, you say?!

Oh, this is gonna be good. You betcha.

Pink taxis. Men, don't be jealous.

Men say women are terrible drivers. Men say women can't hail taxicabs. Men can, in fact, be entirely inappropriate.

Nothing a few pink taxicabs can't fix, apparently. 

More newsroom layoffs; this is just sad.

The New York Times announced today it would look to lay off 100 employees if that many journalists do not seek the company's buyout option within 45 days. The staff last year took 5-percent salary cuts. The newsroom then numbered some 1,300 employees, according to the Times. Now, about 1,250 journalists (dinosaurs?) occupy the newsroom. While no other American newspaper employees more than 750 people in its news department, this cutback certainly will hurt more than it helps, in my opinion.  

Last week, The Star-Ledger said it will look to cut 50 employees from the paper's 2010 budget, also with a buyout option.

What's happening is this: Those left in the newsroom are forced (if not required) to do the work of more than one person. These writers are getting paid less than what they were paid for the work they were doing one, two, three years ago - work enough for one person then. Now, try fitting two-three-four work weeks into one. You try it, tell me how you like it.

It's disheartening; it's sad. And, I could see this second (third - fourth?) round of major cuts coming. The economy is not yet "better." In fact, newspaper advertising still is decreasing, if not barely maintaining its dropped revenue since 2008 and 2007. Investors (whether domestic or foreign) no longer want their hands in something that at least does not consistently bring money through the door.

What's most sad, perhaps, is that newspapers are starting to operate on a business model they should have been utilizing all along (and a model of basic American living now long-lost): Do not spend outside your means. If you couldn't afford 100 writers a few decades ago, the count should not have increased until the company could afford to grow. Or, if required to grow based on need and revenue, then borrow wisely, my friends. I wonder, sometimes, why people think business models always are going to work, no matter what. Education, adjustment, adaptation. 

(And, thus, the other side of my little theory, then, is that writers would truly have to possess talent and a desirable, unhealthy passion to work their way to the top. You want to work at the Times? It wouldn't be who you know or if you could maybe bang out a good story every so often - or maybe you only wrote one good story, ever. You write near-perfectly every single time. You write because it's what you love and not the only thing you know how to do. You write about news, you write columns, you blog and you write books. People respect your work for a myriad of reasons. End of story. Am I hinting at some cruel, literary kind of evolutionary theory? Yea, maybe I am. Survival of the fittest; the best writers work, or at least make a decent living. Someone once told me talent will survive this economy. Will it, or will the economy merely destroy some of the most talented writers of our time? End of rant.)

Things grew far too fast, and we're all seeing the aftermath of these effects. Unfortunately, we also grew used to having "more." More journalists. More money. More credit. More cars. More writers. More accountability. More journalists. 

Writers are being asked to write more. There only are so many hours in one day. There only is so much abuse one person can handle. After a while, it's easy to lose sight of why we do this in the first place. Less pay for more work is no fun (I know this firsthand, and - to be blunt - it sucks). 

But, I know newspapers are not dying, nor will they truly die. The Internet is a beast still to be tamed. You can't do both, in my opinion: You can't have a mega-Internet news site AND a successful print publication. One or the other must make sacrifices, suffer and/or die in agony. 

Writers always will be around, however. The need for public accountability and a reliable flow of information (and that other fun stuff) will never dissipate. And, if it does, much of society will crumble along with the demise of newspapers and other printed publications. This will not happen. Not while I'm around and convinced of my 22-year-old (23 on Thursday, EEEK) power to save the world.

Courier News endorses Christie - oh, my surprise...

Not. The Gannett publication today endorsed the Republican candidate for governor.

The paper points out, "A vote for Chris Daggett is a vote for Jon Corzine." I happen to disagree. And, the Courier News says not to blame Mr. Christie for the negative image surrounding the candidate - blame his campaign.

Read it for yourself.

All the political endorsements, and all the king's men.

No government is perfect, and no endorsement is perfect. I would say to do as much reading as possible: Develop your OWN endorsement. Develop your own opinion. Newspapers are not meant to be decision-makers. There should be two (or more) sides presented, in cases like this; one side selected. I'm young in this business, and I'm not sure how I feel about any publication endorsing a candidate running for public office - especially for governor. There is a great power within the media. I know this as fact and truth. It's difficult to switch caps, and with power comes responsibility.

On Oct. 17, The New York Times endorsed Gov. Jon Corzine for re-election in November - He's a "decent man with a laudable set of goals."

Also, The Philadelphia Inquirer this weekend endorsed New Jersey's current governor as the candidate likely to be selected (despite his "flaws") for what would be his second, four-year term.

The Independent candidate, Chris Daggett, was endorsed - then not - then re-endorsed (or so I've heard) by The Star-Ledger. (Here is the paper's complete coverage of the gubernatorial race.)

The Asbury Park Press today endorsed a Democrat for Monmouth County Freeholder, Sean Byrnes. The publication has not yet endorsed a candidate for governor. At this rate, my guess would be Republican Chris Christie.

The paper is relatively kind to Mr. Christie (as all the above-mentioned papers are kind to one candidate or another, at one point or another), who is the former United States attorney for the state of New Jersey. The candidate selected Monmouth County Sheriff Kim Guadagno as his lieutenant governor running mate. In my opinion, it was an interesting move to endorse Mr. Byrnes, then, as he is running for the Freeholder board in the same county where Ms. Guadagno has/had some rather sizable jurisdiction (perhaps more insight on that some other time).

I would be surprised if the Press endorsed anyone other than Mr. Christie. If a newspaper is going to endorse at all, it at least should be consistent. Rather, a publication should be consistent in its selection process and overall values of what constitutes a truly good, solid candidate for public office. And, it should take into account reality and present-day circumstances. (Both the Times and Inquirer have interesting things to say, particularly with regard to the current condition of the state; I would check their pieces out for yourself.)

Naturally, the media drives the media (case in point: stupid balloon kid, and it looks as if the family will face criminal charges - GOOD).

Some newspapers like to "switch it up" in order to try and prove to the public they are being "fair and balanced." These all are words publications throw around, but let's face it: Newspapers print the news, yes. But, they also print other things. (What is the news, anymore?) Candidate profile pieces or attack/issue pieces are one monster. Recommending for whom the populace should vote is another.

The Times' endorsement for Gov. Corzine threw me for a second. Naturally, after the 2008 election - where the newspaper was viewed by some as being "vital" to our now-president's election - it should have come as no surprise the paper would be involved in a New Jersey race. Thus, why not select Gov. Corzine? A bit of pressure to do so might have been involved, but who knows.

(However, the paper has written quite a bit about Mr. Christie, as well. On any given day, I'm disappointed by one media outlet's coverage of something or another. I guess it goes to show that, when a paper starts to tip the scale in one direction, it often is expected to continue doing so. Hence, the balancing act.)

President Obama is vocal in his support for Gov. Corzine (and others). Remember the rally at the PNC Bank Arts Center? And, vice versa, as Corzine openly supports the president (he traveled to D.C. for the inauguration). Some thought Obama would whisk the governor away. Turns out there are other plans in place.

As far as Daggett's endorsement is concerned... Well, it's just silly, in my opinion. The Ledger said the decision "is less a rejection of Gov. Jon Corzine and Republican Chris Christie than a repudiation of the parties they represent." Isn't that silly? Because these two political parties have been running this country for countless years. Yes, the system is flawed and relatively broken (New Jersey's corruption record is proof of that, for sure). But, the system has not entirely failed us - has it? Selecting Daggett is just a different way to take votes away from one candidate or another, therefore creating the illusion of a close election. Maybe creating a more confusing, complicated one, as well. I'm not sure what has to be done in order to change the system, but it is going to take a concentrated, concerted effort to do so. Not one endorsement.

This is not the say the election will be a landslide, because it won't. Mr. Christie has more fans than I've seen a Republican running for office in New Jersey have in a long time. (Of course, I run in rather young and some not-so-young circles, so take what I say with a grain of salt. Or don't listen to me at all. What do I know.)

What I do know is that both the Democratic and Republican parties are deeply entrenched in New Jersey - a unique and kind of fun aspect of our lovely state. Most of our elected officials have become lazy, self-serving sons of guns (IMO). This is a shame, because there are many municipal officials who do amazing things at the local levels and are shining examples of good government. Heck, there have been some pretty rad things done on all levels of government, here, despite the terrible setbacks in advancement. (Image: Fields of kidneys and money-ridden cereal boxes flood my mind. Ah, floods! Stupid pun; I'm regressing...)

No government is perfect, and no endorsement is perfect. I would say to do as much reading as possible: Develop your OWN endorsement. Develop your own opinion. Newspapers are not meant to be decision-makers. There should be two (or more) sides presented, in cases like this; one side selected. I'm young in this business, and I'm not sure how I feel about any publication endorsing a candidate running for public office - especially for governor. There is a great power within the media. I know this as fact and truth. It's difficult to switch caps, and with power comes responsibility.

TODAY is the last day to register to vote!

If you're of age and have not already done so, I highly suggest hopping on the crazy bandwagon of exercising your rights. 

Register to vote. It's rather easy. Really.

Burger Bytes: Bobby's Burger Palace

I did not expect the neo-modern décor, family-style dining area or lime green-cushioned seats. Then again, I hit up Bobby's Burger Palace, chef Bobby Flay's "casual burger concept" — what else would I expect? I did, however, expect the greasy, delicious experience that would ensue after I placed my order.

The Eatontown eatery (in the Monmouth Mall parking lot) opened last year and has since been a popular spot where fast food meets assumably gourmet preparation and high-quality ingredients. I finally got around to checking the place out last week. Through some friends, I heard the burgers were just OK, that the prices speak more than the actual food did. (I paid about $11 for a burger and fries, but more on that.)

Immediately upon entering through the glass doors, customers are ushered to the right, where a line forms to order from the somewhat mute cashier. (At least the one I experienced was. He definitely could have used some selling skills; I wasn’t even offered to order a drink with my food.) The menu is plastered on the wall, but it’s inconveniently located behind the line. There are smaller, paper versions of the menu that are easily accessed, so I grabbed one of those instead.

Bobby’s offers beef, ground turkey or chicken breast burgers. This is great, because many people don’t actually want to eat beef these days. After reading some of the news headlines, I wouldn't necessarily either, but I had to: I was at the "burger" palace. There are 10 burger varieties, and Bobby says, "any burger can be crunchified." Yea, I didn't go for the whole potato-chip-covered burger thing.

Rather, I went for the L.A. Burger ($7.50), medium (at left). It came with avocado relish, watercress, cheddar cheese and tomato (one tomato slice, to be exact). My watercress was forgotten, but that's OK. The avocado relish was delightful and really balanced out the insanely greasy cheddar cheese. And, my burger was perfectly cooked. This was impressive, especially considering the number of burgers that come out of the kitchen at any given point. (Customers are able to see into the kitchen via a rectangular window that sits at the far end of the dining room.) The burger was juicy. The bun was a bit disappointing and did not hold up to the burger and avocado combo. I like my buns slightly more toasted and substantial. And, as I said, one thin piece of tomato? We're in Jersey, Bobby, I want a real tomato.

I also ordered sweet potato fries ($3.00). They were pretty rad and varied, some exceptionally crisp while others actually had some substance to them. The fries are served with a honey Dijon sauce.

Other sides offered are regular French fries ($3.00) with BBP fry sauce and beer-battered onion rings ($3.00). And, Bobby has sandwiches and salads ($5.50 - $8.50). Not that you'd go to a burger place for a salad...

What I didn't get to sample were the milkshakes and malteds ($5.00 each). The several flavors (vanilla bean, dark chocolate, black and white, strawberry, blueberry-pomegranate, coffee, pistachio, mango, coconut and cola) sound amazing. Next time :)

In the dining room, service was excellent. There are a handful of waitresses who walk around, greet customers, bring cutlery and napkins, and serve the food. They make customers feel as if they're in an actual restaurant. Which, in the end, I guess I was. (The swanky lighting is dimmer than most industrial, fluorescent lighting in fast-food joints. And, on the wall, microscopic views of tomatoes and onions. Fancy schmancy.)

Overall, a very pleasant experience. Definitely worth another trip for a different burger (maybe turkey?), and a milkshake, for sure.

74-year-old Fl. woman mauled by raccoons

We really can't make this stuff up, huh?

The old lady was trying to "shoo" the five animals from her front yard; The New York Post has more details.

I really would have thought this to happen in Jersey. Maybe the killer squirrels will come out this fall. Or the Jersey Devil, if he's still out there.