Another N.J. Legislator Guilty of Bribery.

Maryann Spoto, "Ex-Legislator Guilty of Bribery," in The Record, May 20, 2010, at p. A-4.
Mike Kelly, "A Xanadu Savior, But Will That be Enough," in The Record, May 20, 2010, at p. L-3.
Monsy Alvarado, "7th Lawsuit Filed Against Police Chief," in The Record, May 20, 2010, at p. L-3. (More are on the way, allegedly.)
Manohla Dargis, "Filmmaker Wins Palme d'Or at Cannes," in The New York Times, May 24, 2010, at p. C1.

Any time life begins to feel dull, I can look forward to another opportunity to delight in the sterling prose of Ms. Dargis:

"UNLIKE [his] earlier films, LIKE 'Babel,' this new one [new what?] unfolds LINEARLY, [?] though it does open and close with variations on the same scenes, [linearly? that's more, like, "circular"?] a literalization of the CIRCLE of life. ["The Lion King?"] The film's money shot [porn!] is a close-up of an African woman's hand peeling the bandage off the face of a Spanish child, [you mean removing a bandage from the face of a Spanish child?] which assures us everything will turn out fine." (emphasis added)

Amazing. But there is more literary virtuosity to enlighten us:

"Mr. Almaric invited his bodacious, gorgeously gaudy stars to join him on stage."

Wow. Ms. Dargis, clearly, has no idea what she is writing nor can she define the words that she is using. This is The New York Times in 2010? ("Manohla Dargis Strikes Again!" and "What is it like to be plagiarized?")

"A jury convicted former Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt of bribery and extortion Wednesday for accepting a $10,000 cash bribe from a government informant posing as a real estate developer."

I understand that Mr. Van Pelt was an attorney asked to serve on the Garden State Bar Association's Ethics Committee. I can neither confirm nor deny this allegation, but it would not surprise me. ("Stuart Rabner and Conduct Unbecoming to the Judiciary in New Jersey" and "Neil M. Cohen, Esq. and Conduct Unbecoming to the Legislature in New Jersey.")

"Jurors rejected Van Pelt's claim that the $10,000 was a fee for his "consulting services." ("Deborah T. Poritz and Conduct Unbecoming to the Judiciary in New Jersey.")

"Van Pelt, 45, a former Republican legislator from Ocean County, did not look at the jury as the forewoman anounced the verdict. He declined to comment after court, but said earlier in the day he was ready to accept the jury's verdict. His wife, who attended a portion of the three-week trial, was not in court for the verdict but her father kept vigil throughout."

" ... The verdict kept intact the [U.S. Attorney's] unbroken string of more than 150 public corruption convictions in the past eight years."

When you add to this list peripheral players, wannabees, flunkies for the mob -- the list grows to over 250 convictions. I hope Anthony Suarez and Bob Menendez will be next to be indicted and convicted. They should be.

"U.S. District Judge Joel Pisano allowed Van Pelt to remain free on $100,000 bond [posted in one hundred dollar bills?] until his sentencing on August 24. Van Pelt, a former mayor and committeeman in Ocean Township, could face up to 30 years in prison."

Mr. Van Pelt probably did not approve of my "ethics." I don't approve of his "ethics." Terry Tuchin is worse than Van Pelt or "Solomon Dwek." ("Sybil R. Moses and Conduct Unbecoming to the Judiciary in New Jersey" and "New Jersey is the Home of the Living Dead.")

" ... Puggi [Van Pelt's shyster] said the term would more likely be between 41 months and 51 months."

That's too good for Van Pelt. He needs a good 10 years in.

"Van Pelt met at least eight times between December 2008 and May 2009 with Solomon Dwek" -- friend of good-old Terry Tuchin? -- "who posed as fictitious developer David Eisenbach."

"[The U.S. Attorney] said Van Pelt agreed during a Feb. 11, 2009, meeting with Dwek to take a bribe in exchange for helping Dwek obtain expedited environmental permits for a development project in Ocean Township. He took the cash 10 days later after a dinner meeting at Morton's Steakhouse in Atlantic City."

This is the kind of conduct expected from members of New Jersey's soiled Superior Court judiciary, not legislators. Shame on you, Mr. Van Pelt.

How was the steak, Danny?