And you are caring how?, Friends in politics so you have to put the gloves on. I suggest you take the rosy glasses off and see the crisis Fair Lawn is in.

@BellairBerdan I'm happy to see the you are willing to help fund this, please stop advocating that everyone else be coerced to do so as well. If its that important to you that Fair Lawn have a competing display to Macy's, you should really spend more then 55 cents of your own money. Presuming ofcourse you actually live here.

Fair Lawn is filled with the self-centered and selfish who would rather trample upon the neighbors, lie and do whatever else to get their political jollies out - even to the loss of the value of the parent's basements that most of these commenters live in. If you have a dim view of history, a remote pride in community, or a half-wit's command of the origin of this country - fireworks are an essential part of the celebration of freedoms. Not on June 28th or July 6th, but on the Fourth of July, the nation's birthdate. If you treat it as a minor joke to support the expression of patriotic love for the country, please go elsewhere. I helped raise funds in this community before, along with a lot of others, and I am apalled that it has come to depending upon corporate generocity over citizen indifference to even celebrating something as important as our independence. Since when is being a skinflint and begrudging public libraries and services something to be so proud of? Never.

More personal attacks which lack any basis in fact and a continuing display of ignorance. Fireworks are a wonderful tradition, one the world's most famous displays is a short drive from here and simply blows away anything this town has ever done. It's privately funded, just like the first celebrations in 1777 and even Washington inauguration.

I'm sorry that you are frustrated, but the American ideal is not to send people away, the fly flies in the face of liberty. I agree the celebrations should be on July 4th, but I have no issues with expanding them either, my only problem is coercing people for your entertainment.

There is no generosity in using the force of law to give away someone else's wealth. When Ben Franklin started Libraries, the had membership fees and were not funded by government. I regularly donate to many causes of both my time and money, however, I do not consider the money taking from me under threat of force a donation.

The very first fireworks celebration of Independence Day was in 1777, they were paid for by private individuals not government in each of the 13 states. In 1789, George Washington's inauguration was accompanied by a beautiful display of fireworks, also privately funded. So how exactly does it make me "unAmerican" to follow those traditions?

The fact remains you advocate coercing others to pay for something you want, where is the morality in that?

It's amazing how much of what you know simply isn't so.

Why is it so hard to admit there is coercion required to have government fund your entertainment desire of fireworks? While our police force is under staffed you want tax money to goto this? Really?

TP the Patch Patriot, since you believe that the govt takes your money with the threat of violence you should be happy there are less police officers to threaten you. Why don't you be a real Libertarian and hire your own security force? Oh yeah, you want to pick and choose what you decide is for the good of all.

You and the other stooges, if you really live in Fair Lawn, all moved here knowing all the amenities in town. Most of them have been here over 50 years. Since you never have anything good to say about anything, the pool, the fireworks, the sr center, the post office, library, the community center, etc etc etc, anyone who reads any of your posts will believe you hate Fair Lawn. No one forced you to move here. No one is forcing you to stay. That's your free will.

Now your advocating I start an insurrection or leave, when does it end?

I am not opposed to the pool, I'm just opposed to forcing seniors on a fixed budget, the unemployed or any one else who doesn't want to pay for (over 90% of the town) from being forced to pay for it. I even have educated many on this site and else where on how they do it in Dumont without tax dollars.

I question spending TAX money on fireworks, not a fireworks show. I'd probably even donate a few buck for one.

I questions running a "senior center" that looses money entertaining people who don't even live in town.

These things don't mean I hate my town, just the way it plunders the money of its property owners. If I hated it, I could easily move to another town. Instead I highlight areas of improvement and have in part inspired a few to stand in front of the mayor and council show. I am Republican, just like the majority of our council, but when they are wrong, I will stand. I refuse to be a party hack, nor marginalized by being a third party member. We had one of those run for council last time out, and he didn't even get 1% of the vote.

TP no one is advocating you start an insurrection except maybe the Paranoid Patriot voices in your head. When will it end? When you realize the people of Fair Lawn are stronger together than they are alone. You choose to take a single undocumented comment about guests in the senior center and make it fact. It must drive you insane when your neighbors have out of town guests and they have a glass of water that you feel you've paid for or walk in your park.

You're really quite full of yourself thinking you're an inspiration to people when you are actually trying to coerce them to do the things you are too cowardly to do on your own. You yourself have said you would never stand before a council meeting for fear of retribution, yet you want others to do it.

Fair Lawn has always been a community of the middle class. None of the people could afford the amenities offered to all by themselves. Just as you chose to live in Radburn and pay your dues to a "governmental entity", as the head of the local Republicans calls it, you have also chosen to live in Fair Lawn. Use what FL has to offer or don't. If you don't want to pay for it you should move to a happier place. By your own words over 99% of the people think differently than you.

Not sure what you meant by that comment "you should be happy there are less police officers to threaten you". Sounds like resisting police. Armed resistance to government, if that's not an insurrection, what is?

I doesn't bother me when guest in our town drink the water that property owners buy from the borough. It doesn't bother me that people use the parks either. I don't know why you find it so hard to distinguish between essential services such as police and non-essential luxuries such as a town pool, "community center", etc.

Visit Maps.Google.com, turn on the satellite view, its easy to see there are dozens and dozens of private pools. Visit http://www.dumontswimclub.com/Membership_Info.html the idea not to have the tax payer fund a "government" pool is not unique. All the Democrats on the council work for organizations with private pools that are open to the public for much less than the $1,000+ per person we spend on memorial pool.

The town publishes the minutes, people who sound a lot like me on specific issues have stood up and challenged the alarm registration, the Metzler water tax, etc. Its no secret I helped Sue Mayers find much of the information she presented to the council which prevented that tax increase.

Radburn is a PRIVATE organization just as much as a condo association. How we run our PUD is none of your business (unless you own here).

Now will you finally admit that you advocate coercing people to pay for your entertainment?

You are ad nauseum saying how the govt takes your money in the form of taxes under threat of violence, how the police will come and shoot you if you don't pay your taxes. There are now less officers to threaten you. Happy?

I do hope you had Sue Mayers' permission to plaster her name on the internet when you yourself are too concerned to use yours, or be seen, or even be heard in public.That's so inapropriate, like when you posted links to pictures of a child's party or when you try and find out where I live and work. (BTW LOVE the comment about me being a "teacher" on the other thread. What a sleuth!)

Luckily you will never get to decide what is deemed essential to a healthy community. What is essential to you may not be to someone else. But why don't you just admit, you're selfish.Living in Radburn you got yours and you don't care about anyone else. You want Fair Lawn's taxes to benefit you but don't want any of yours to benefit the rest of the town. If you feel so strongly that fireworks are good but should be funded privately, donate the money to the town. I'm sure they'd take it. Form a committe to raise the money privately if you're such a patriot. But you won't. You only tell others what to do on the internet. You're a Patch Patriot.

I don't need anyone's permission to reference comments publicly posted on the Internet. I don't know Sue aside from her comments here and her comments at the Fair Law Council Show. http://fairlawn.patch.com/articles/home-security-alarm-ordinance-proposed

A government is not the only way communities are formed, we have several religious communities, none of which take money from their members under threat of force.

I don't use my full name here, so you have no idea how I volunteer my time. I don't do what I do so for your approval or edification. Personally, I will be watching the Macy's fireworks, they are far more entertaining, the backdrop of the Manhattan skyline will beat trees any time. The scale of the show is like comparing a the tallest building in Manhattan to that of Fair Lawn, its not even close. Besides we are talking about celebration the nation, not the birth of Fairlawn.

You keep talking about community, but won't address the funding mechanism. You don't want to accept the immorality of coercion, that's your right. There are many people in this town that have pools, I even know of one family that paid the membership fee for the pool. I am not against Memorial Pool, just its funding. That's not selfish. I would donate to a firework display, I would rather give $20 or $50 then have $.55 as you put taken from me.

Donating money to a town that wastes as wildly as Fair Lawn would be a waste, there are much better uses for that charity.