Veteran columnist clears out mental cobwebs

On Friday afternoon, Ridgefield Park police closed one lane of Route 46, delaying hundreds of drivers and passengers aboard NJ Transit's No. 165 bus to Hackensack and Oradell.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
Editor

A first paragraph filled with short, punchy sentences on the front of The Record's Opinion section today.

Strong, clearly expressed opinions about Governor Christie's latest "act" (O-1)

And this warning: "If he doesn't restore his credibility, he can forget any chance of running for president."

Can this be the same Mike Kelly who has spent so much time merely pushing around words to little effect?

Is this the veteran columnist who always has subjects "gazing" at this or that?

Or who wastes his and readers' time by trying to wring meaning out of a funeral for a small-town firefighter and the annual 9/11 ceremony in lower Manhattan?

Even this hard-hitting column isn't perfect.

Referring to shore communities, Kelly says "Christie is playing the political equivalent of the Catskills right now." Huh?

Where is the editing? 

Road Warrior John Cichowski has reduced his output to two columns a week, though that hasn't improved his work, as readers can see from today's statistically heavy column on pedestrian deaths (L-1).

For a critique of Cichowski's previous error-filled column -- on potholes -- see the Facebook page for Road Warrior Bloopers:

More black holes filled with error

What Cichowski and Kelly need more than anything else is editing. And the Road Warrior's work is filled with numerous errors, because fact-checking appears to be non-existent at The Record.

Another bad head

A letter to the editor today complains about lines of 250 commuters at the midtown Port Authority Bus Terminal "waiting more than an hour" during the afternoon rush hour for NJ Transit buses to Bergen County (O-3).

But the headline over the letter from Michael Phelan of Leonia is incorrect:

Bus commute to NYC

'beyond ridiculous'

It's the bus commute from the city that is "beyond ridiculous," Phelan says.

Too little too late

Have you noticed how visible Democratic Senate President Stephen Sweeney has been since Christie's credibility has taken big hits over the George Washington Bridge lane closures and secret toll-hike deliberations (A-1)?

Where was this cowardly clown when Democrats needed a strong candidate to oppose Christie's bid for a second term in November?