EDITORIAL / By Dhiren Shah
Russia and Ukraine are still at war. On March 16, Biden approved another $800 million to Ukraine. Is this to calm the war or aggravate the war? The USA must act as a neutral party for a ceasefire. I do not have great knowledge of the situation like our representatives, but at the same time I am talking without any politics involved.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed Congress earlier that day. He has spoken from the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. His address was followed by way more than expected. He appealed for the Congress to help Ukraine with the weapons and peaceful process. He is a bold leader, as he has not left the battleground, but every day is managing in the best possible way to protect Ukraine. With his dedication and appeal to Ukrainians, they are fighting and making it very difficult for the Russians to take over the country, especially Kyiv. US senators and representatives are in support of helping Ukraine.
At the end of 2020 the oil prices were $48.52. Oil prices per barrel went as high as $123.70 in March. Today, it tumbled down to $94.72. Also, some of the Democratic governors, including Pennsylvania, are appealing for Biden to suspend gasoline taxes, which can reduce the price. When the wholesale prices of the barrels were going up, we all felt the increase of the price at the gas stations. However, when the price went down, you will not see the prices going down immediately at the pump. Our representatives, who get a lot of support for their elections, would not say anything.
Local elections are taking shape a little better. As usual, misinformation and negativity are becoming part of the election campaign. Newark council elections in the West Ward, South Ward and East Ward are having tough contests. Orange will have a good contest for all four wards. Irvington will have lesser competition as I’ve heard. However, in April we will have a better understanding about how the elections may unfold.
Lately, almost every week, there is a murder in Newark. The politics and the police department have a way of classifying murders and violent crimes. Unsolved murders may not be classified as a murder for the classification. Do the police have any incentives for solving murders, or do they just play with the numbers in some manner to manipulate the results? This kind of policy give less incentives for the police department to work for the people and actually catch the bad guys.
Per USA Today: “Nine people, including six students and their golf coach, were killed when a van carrying members of a New Mexico university’s golf teams collided with a pickup truck Tuesday night, law enforcement and university officials confirmed.” What a tragedy.
As far as the coronavirus is concerned, the US is number 26 in the world with a little over 26,000 cases daily, but leading in the death category, with 997 deaths on March 15. New Jersey is number 12 on the list of states with 12 deaths that day. As announced by Governor Murphy, New Jersey lifted the mask ban March 7, 2022. The schools are open, and the parents have to determine whether they want their child(ren) to have a mask or not.
Due to uncertainty of the economy and about 9% inflation projections, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced a rate hike of 0.25%. However, this rate is not enough to control inflation, so in near future we will see another rate hike.
Have a wonderful week. I’ll talk to you next week.
