Royal screwing of Hackensack is complete

Image by joseph a via Flickr

A photo of the newly painted exterior of the Sears Roebuck and Co. store on Hackensack's Main Street has never appeared in The Record.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Hackensack and most of Teaneck -- two Democratic strongholds -- have been moved into the congressional district of a right-wing conservative, but they might as well as be on the Moon for all the attention they've gotten in The  Record.

In four days of coverage -- three days on Page 1 and today's story on the Local front -- the historic political realignment of two of Bergen County's most diverse communities is mentioned only in passing.

Thanks to the lazy assignment desk run by Editor Deirdre Sykes, there are no interviews with municipal officials or voters of either party. 

And an editorial on Wednesday didn't even mention Hackensack or Teaneck.

F.U. Hackensack

That's more really bad journalism, and Publisher Stephen A. Borg again shows how much disdain he has for Hackensack, which he abandoned physically a couple of years ago, scattering hundreds of employees to Rockaway, Woodland Park and other communities.

Now, Borg's royal screwing of Hackensack is getting a big assist from Rep. Steve Rothman of Fair Lawn and the commission that drew the state's new congressional districts.

With Hackensack, Fair Lawn and other Bergen towns now in the new 5th District of arch-conservative Rep. Scott Garret, R-Wantage, many Democrats like me won't be able to vote in the 9th District race between two Democratic rivals, Rothman and Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. of Paterson

We won't be able to punish the cowardly Rothman, who has put his ego above the need to get rid of Garret and his conservative baggage.

Wayne on A-1

Thanks to interim Editor Douglas Clancy, Rothman's controversial move dropped off the front page today to make room for a 23-year-old story from Wayne and some nonsense about an amateur soccer team in Bergen County. 

Two letters from readers slam Rothman for taking "the easy way out" and setting up a "devour-our-own primary" against Pascrell (A-20).

In his letter, reader Peter J. Peirano of Ridgewood notes Garret "will not spend [money] to help children, the needy or the elderly."

Reader Jill Cozzi of Washington Township says Congress has a 9 percent approval rating "largely due to the intransigence of right-wing extremists like Garret."

Sykes' lazy journalism disenfranchises readers, denying them a voice in the news columns on such compelling issues as the state's representation in Congress.

News hacks

In Hackensack news, for the second day in a row, a police officer who sued suspended Chief Ken Zisa was dealt a setback in the courts (L-3).

The Record also reports Hackensack has changed insurance carriers after being dropped by a company that claims the city is too much of a liability -- but it took six days to get the City Council action into the paper (L-3) .

On L-6, two local obituaries show readers once again they are surrounded by interesting neighbors, but that the editors can't be bothered until they die, and then will bury the stories.