Lazy editors praise lowly cold cuts, hide their real harm

An NJ Transit train passing Euclid Avenue in Hackensack on Tuesday. Today, The Record's front page carries more official jawboning on building new Hudson River rail tunnels to expand service to the city, but there is no telling how many months or years commuters will have to wait for an actual agreement on its financing by the two states and the federal government.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

You'll find the biggest laugh line in today's paper on the front page of The Record's Better Living section, where some desperate reporter compares lowly cold cuts at a supermarket deli counter to "Starbucks, and its myriad coffees and lattes."

Not even close.

Nearly all of the cold cuts sold at deli counters come from animals raised on harmful antibiotics, growth hormones and animal by-products, though you won't find even a mention of that in Staff Writer John Petrick's long story (BL-1).

If you're not buying Applegate Farms cold cuts -- which are antibiotic- as well as preservative-free -- you're a lazy consumer who has been feeding your family crap (BL-8).

Petrick apparently was under orders not to alienate all of the supermarkets who rake in big profits from selling cheap lunch meat, because revenue from their advertising fliers props up North Jersey Media Group.

Consumer Reports

In recent years, Consumer Reports has linked the widespread use of human antibiotics to raise chickens and other animals on factory farms to a growing antibiotic resistance among humans.

In fact, the magazine launched a campaign to get Trader Joe's to pledge that the national chain wouldn't sell any meat or poultry raised on antibiotics.

Of course, you haven't seen that reported in The Record, where the chief restaurant critic, Elisa Ung, once referred to Consumer Reports "as the magazine many of us use to buy a washing machine."

More Page 1 B.S.

Today, Editor Martin Gottlieb publishes another long, tedious piece from opinion Columnist Mike Kelly that is completely devoid of any opinions (A-1).

As with so many Kelly columns, readers will find this one on U.S. Sen Robert Menendez indistinguishable from a news story -- except for the outdated, unflattering thumbnail photo of the veteran reporter flashing a shit-eating grin.

The "dual life" of Menendez as "statesman" and "defendant" is just more media bullshit.

The nuclear deal with Iran and the corruption charges against the senior U.S. senator from New Jersey have absolutely nothing to do with each other.

And the federal jury that may be asked to decide his guilt or innocence will do so based on the evidence and the law, not Menendez's record in the Senate.

In fact, President Obama has vowed to veto any bill that tries to kill the Iran deal, so why waste so much valuable space on the front page reporting congressional objections? 

GOP bully

Governor Christie has lost more ground as a Republican presidential candidate -- he's now in 11th place -- so why is the story on the front page today in place of more legitimate state news (A-1)? 

Another Page 1 story carries this headline:

"First step
on path
to a new 
rail tunnel" 

Of course, the "first step" comes nearly five years after Christie killed the last project to build new rail tunnels under the Hudson River and expand service to and from the city.

But it is only in the last 18 months or so that the editors, their so-called commuting columnist and other transportation reporters have paid any real attention to North Jersey's long-standing mass transit crisis.

Local news?

A meeting of the Hackensack City Council was scheduled for Tuesday night, but I don't see anything in Local today (L-1 to L-6).

On L-3 today, a story reports a non-fatal fire Monday night on Polify Road in Hackensack displaced six people and that five first-responders were treated.

Today's story describes "a garden apartment complex;" on Tuesday, a brief about the same fire said they were "town houses."

On L-2, businesses are offering discounts during Senior Citizen Appreciation Week in Passaic County.

There is no explanation of why the Allwood Diner, IHOP, Triangle Diner, McDonald's and Amor Cucina are offering free dessert or ice cream to seniors, many of whom are diabetic or simply watching their weight and cholesterol.