(I cross-posted this from my own blog but I wanted to share it still)
Maybe its due to the fact that I am a New Jersey resident but there are times that I have to scratch my head and admire the blatant disdain my state’s Democratic Party has for each other. With the possible exception of Louisiana (well from the Long family to the reign of Edwin Edwards) and Illinois, it’s harder to find a state that is riddled with more party infighting and “color” than New Jersey.
Describing the infighting in New Jersey in a succinct manner is something that I am grossly incapable of. I’m not talented nor intelligent enough to give an apt summary and it might be just as hard to simply scratch the surface. However, I will do my absolute best to introduce you to some of the movers & shakers in New Jersey politics as well as some of the major bankrollers.
First things first, I will try to explain the state geographically using the biggest cliches I can possibly incorporate. If you ask any New Jersey resident where they are from, they will likely say “North Jersey” or “South Jersey”; which represent two different worlds.
I’m a “South Jersey” resident for example. The line usually is somewhere around Trenton and the more northern you go, the more “industrial” it gets to speak. South Jersey is, surprisingly to those people whose only exposure to the state is Jersey Shore, more rural once you get past the area surrounding Trenton, Camden and Burlington. Most of us are Philadelphia sports fans who love Wawa and Acme.
When you climb through Central Jersey (basically Hunterdon and Monmouth Counties), that’s where you see some of your “Jersey Boy/Girl” stereotypes and also the “rich” people of the state. If there had to be a section of New Jersey that would quantify as “elitist” its Central Jersey and its home to Princeton, Lawrenceville, Toms River, Yankee fans and plenty of White Castles.
But then after the brief foray into Central Jersey, you head off into North Jersey which is the “industrial” section of New Jersey (though it has its own fair share of rurality in the Northwest tip of the state) where you see the home of the true population centers of the state. Cities, actual cities, such as Newark, Jersey City, Hoboken and Hackensack are up there too.
There are also stereotypes amongst the people between the state as North Jersey is considered “dirty” while South Jersey is considered “redneck”, both of which are of course gross myths but they have stuck for awhile.
Read More
