The opening of beaches offered one of the first rays of light to a region worried about a shut-in summer due to the coronavirus pandemic, but drew mixed reviews from local officials.New Jersey beaches can reopen in time for Memorial Day — with social distancing measures in place, Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday. The executive order offered one of the first rays of light to a region worried about a shut-in summer due to , but drew mixed reviews from the local officials who Murphy said will be responsible for limiting beach capacity and ensuring compliance with social distancing.Delaware, too,...…The opening of beaches offered one of the first rays of light to a region worried about a shut-in summer due to the coronavirus pandemic, but drew mixed reviews from local officials.New Jersey beaches can reopen in time for Memorial Day — with social distancing measures in place, Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday. The executive order offered one of the first rays of light to a region worried about a shut-in summer due to , but drew mixed reviews from the local officials who Murphy said will be responsible for limiting beach capacity and ensuring compliance with social distancing.Delaware, too,...WW…

The struggling resort town offers up an exclamation point to the end of the Trump presidency. For those who worked there, the dramatic end is bittersweet.ATLANTIC CITY — Bette Midler will have her say. She’s already tweeted about her “itchy demo finger” while musing about a since-canceled charity auction to be the one to start the Feb. 17 implosion of the former Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino.Many will likewise tweet and cheer and take a visceral satisfaction as Atlantic City, in its inimitable attention-seeking way, offers up an exclamation point to the end of the Trump presidency: a...…The struggling resort town offers up an exclamation point to the end of the Trump presidency. For those who worked there, the dramatic end is bittersweet.ATLANTIC CITY — Bette Midler will have her say. She’s already tweeted about her “itchy demo finger” while musing about a since-canceled charity auction to be the one to start the Feb. 17 implosion of the former Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino.Many will likewise tweet and cheer and take a visceral satisfaction as Atlantic City, in its inimitable attention-seeking way, offers up an exclamation point to the end of the Trump presidency: a...WW…

A Cape May chapter of the extremist group held meetings in the old Court House, including one in 2014 attended by a future Superior Court judge.CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE, N.J. — The question posed at the Cape May County commissioners meeting Jan. 12 over Zoom by a lone member of the public took Commissioner Gerald Thornton by surprise.Was the Jersey Shore county allowing a local chapter of the extremist group the Oath Keepers, a group whose members from Ohio and Virginia have been tied to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, to meet at its historic Court House on Route 9?“Can you say for...…A Cape May chapter of the extremist group held meetings in the old Court House, including one in 2014 attended by a future Superior Court judge.CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE, N.J. — The question posed at the Cape May County commissioners meeting Jan. 12 over Zoom by a lone member of the public took Commissioner Gerald Thornton by surprise.Was the Jersey Shore county allowing a local chapter of the extremist group the Oath Keepers, a group whose members from Ohio and Virginia have been tied to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, to meet at its historic Court House on Route 9?“Can you say for...WW…

ATLANTIC CITY — Even if it were not the former Trump Plaza, with its pending implosion a tempting symbolic echo of the end of its namesake presidency, people would be interested, Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. insisted Thursday. But interest has been off the charts, he said, from all over the globe. Officials reluctantly canceled a high-profile auction to press the button to start the implosion that had garnered a high bid of $175,000 and interest from celebrities, after the building’s current owner, billionaire Carl Icahn, objected to the spectacle. Related stories But in true...…ATLANTIC CITY — Even if it were not the former Trump Plaza, with its pending implosion a tempting symbolic echo of the end of its namesake presidency, people would be interested, Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. insisted Thursday. But interest has been off the charts, he said, from all over the globe. Officials reluctantly canceled a high-profile auction to press the button to start the implosion that had garnered a high bid of $175,000 and interest from celebrities, after the building’s current owner, billionaire Carl Icahn, objected to the spectacle. Related stories But in true...WW…

Intensifying polarization, threats to voting, and the specter of violence have historians warning of the decline of America’s democracy.Anne Berg, a history professor at the University of Pennsylvania, was born and raised in Germany, and although her parents are basically hippies, she said, her grandparents were Nazis.That close connection led Berg to a vocation as a scholar of Nazi Germany, exploring the role played by people, she said, “who rocked me to sleep.” Now, Berg is among many academics and others watching what she calls a “rapid descent toward fascism,” in the United States,...…Intensifying polarization, threats to voting, and the specter of violence have historians warning of the decline of America’s democracy.Anne Berg, a history professor at the University of Pennsylvania, was born and raised in Germany, and although her parents are basically hippies, she said, her grandparents were Nazis.That close connection led Berg to a vocation as a scholar of Nazi Germany, exploring the role played by people, she said, “who rocked me to sleep.” Now, Berg is among many academics and others watching what she calls a “rapid descent toward fascism,” in the United States,...WW…

The former casino, now owned by billionaire Carl Icahn, is an immediate danger to the safety of people on the Boardwalk, city officials said. They are suing to force Icahn to tear it down.ATLANTIC CITY — One of Atlantic City’s most iconic symbols of the ruined Trump casino empire, Trump Plaza, has been shedding chunks of its tower, endangering passersby on the Boardwalk, and must be demolished, city officials said Thursday.The crumbling former casino, now owned by billionaire Carl C. Icahn, has been an eyesore — and occasional political backdrop — since it shut down in 2014.Mayor Marty...…The former casino, now owned by billionaire Carl Icahn, is an immediate danger to the safety of people on the Boardwalk, city officials said. They are suing to force Icahn to tear it down.ATLANTIC CITY — One of Atlantic City’s most iconic symbols of the ruined Trump casino empire, Trump Plaza, has been shedding chunks of its tower, endangering passersby on the Boardwalk, and must be demolished, city officials said Thursday.The crumbling former casino, now owned by billionaire Carl C. Icahn, has been an eyesore — and occasional political backdrop — since it shut down in 2014.Mayor Marty...WW…

With a population of seniors and veterans, commuters and African Americans, Willingboro's recent surge in coronavirus cases is sounding alarm bells.It is a township filled with veterans and seniors, with a predominantly African American population. Its residents go to work in New York City, leaving via a bus stop at the town center, and to nearby Philadelphia.Along the Route 130 corridor, vast distribution centers remain open.Now, that unassuming place, Willingboro, population 31,887, is seeing an alarming spike in coronavirus cases that has officials worried and searching for answers, even...…With a population of seniors and veterans, commuters and African Americans, Willingboro's recent surge in coronavirus cases is sounding alarm bells.It is a township filled with veterans and seniors, with a predominantly African American population. Its residents go to work in New York City, leaving via a bus stop at the town center, and to nearby Philadelphia.Along the Route 130 corridor, vast distribution centers remain open.Now, that unassuming place, Willingboro, population 31,887, is seeing an alarming spike in coronavirus cases that has officials worried and searching for answers, even...WW…

Timed entry on the beach in Cape May? Complimentary masks in Ocean City? Reconfigured miniature golf holes? Saving the Jersey shore from a calamitous non-summer is weighing heavily in beach towns.It’s the land of no-shower happy hour. High tides that bunch people and chairs closer and closer together as beaches narrow. Weekly rental turnovers that typically allow just two hours for cleaning.Is social distancing at the Jersey Shore even possible?Most Shore towns have already pretty much written off Memorial Day weekend and are casting visions toward mid- to late June or Fourth of July. They...…Timed entry on the beach in Cape May? Complimentary masks in Ocean City? Reconfigured miniature golf holes? Saving the Jersey shore from a calamitous non-summer is weighing heavily in beach towns.It’s the land of no-shower happy hour. High tides that bunch people and chairs closer and closer together as beaches narrow. Weekly rental turnovers that typically allow just two hours for cleaning.Is social distancing at the Jersey Shore even possible?Most Shore towns have already pretty much written off Memorial Day weekend and are casting visions toward mid- to late June or Fourth of July. They...WW…