Minority Report

Saturday, July 26, 2025

We had dinner tonight with Barbara & Bernie, cousins of cousins. We drove our great looking Supersonic Red Toyota Crown over to Maiella,   4610 Center Boulevard, Long Island City, behind the Pepsi-Cola sign on the East River waterfront. It’s a neighborhood now composed of new glassy, glitzy high-rise residential buildings where there was once a hodgepodge of small homes, factories and empty space. Between 2010 and 2017, 41 new residential apartment buildings were built in Long Island City (and many more since then).   https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Island_City

Not surprisingly, street parking was near impossible, forcing me to break one of my commandments and pull into a garage.

Maiella occupies most of the ground floor of a new tower. It is large, the shape of a skewed square, wrapped in glass on two sides, interior walls of dark red brick and a high ceiling covered with thick slabs of wood. It was busy and noisy. Prices were almost reasonable.

An excellent heirloom tomato salad was attractively arranged ($17). Bernie and I shared calamari fritti ($18), a little too chewy, as was Bernie’s chicken parmigiana ($29), which I inherited a piece of. I had cacio e pepe, spaghetti and black pepper mixed in a scooped out wheel of pecorino cheese ($29), fattening and delicious.

The women had the salad, eggplant carrozza ($18), eggplant slices stacked with mozzarella, and roasted salmon ($32). No one had room for dessert. We also passed on strolling on the waterfront, just feet away, otherwise a pleasant way to end the evening.

Sunday, July 27, 2025

This website defines luxury homes as those in the top 5% of their respective metro area based on selling price. https://www.redfin.com/news/luxury-homes-million-dollar/

Currently, only seven major urban areas have luxury homes with a median price under $1 million, six are in the Rust Belt. Less than 10 years ago, 35 areas were presumably more affordable. Personal income has not moved up that sharply.

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Tom Lehrer is gone. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/27/arts/music/tom-lehrer-dead.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

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The New York Times has three full pages today on "Inside the Rise of the Multiracial Right.” https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/07/24/opinion/minority-voters-trump-right.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

It looks at Black, Asian and Hispanic Americans who have become Republican/Trump supporters. It boils down to this: The Democrats failed to keep their promises to improve their lives. Instead, they chose Republicans who made no such promises.

Monday, July 28, 2025

Flip Wilson, the very funny comedian who died far too young in 1998, portrayed Geraldine Jones, a somewhat impetuous young woman who often proclaimed that “The Devil made me do it!” Today, we have Eligio Regalado, a pastor at the online Victorious Grace Church, who said that God told him to sell cryptocurrency to his followers and was subsequently indicted on dozens of theft- and fraud-related charges for selling a digital coin that prosecutors said had no real value.  https://ministrywatch.com/online-pastor-indicted-in-3-4m-crypto-scheme/

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There was a terrible scene in midtown Manhattan this afternoon when a gunman from Nevada parked his car in front of 345 Park Avenue, walked into the building openly carrying a rifle, killed four people, including a policeman, before shooting himself in an office on the 33rd floor. 

I worked in 345 Park Avenue from August 1980 through December 1982, moving back to the Holy Land to take the job with a major financial services firm. As I write this, nothing is known about the killer’s motive. I don’t want to be irreverent, but only an out-of-towner would park his car on Park Avenue on a weekday.

 

Tuesday, July 29, 2025

Last week, I described a phony L.L. Bean website offering great bargains on their merchandise. Well, the scam continues on the website “www.iieabnn.shop.”

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What’s wrong with this picture? “The New York City police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, has said the gunman [who killed four people at 345 Park Avenue] had a documented mental health history and legally purchased a revolver in June using a Nevada concealed carry permit.” https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/07/29/nyregion/nyc-shooting-manhattan?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

 

Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Michael Ratner lives at Fifth Avenue and East 84th Street and I live at Amsterdam Avenue and West 69th Street. Lunch at Maison Pickle, 2535 Broadway at West 84th Street was about halfway and, even though the temperature was at 96°, I walked my part.

The joint is narrow and deep. You pass a long bar when entering, backed by mirrored shelves holding at least 100 bottles of spirits. 

I ordered from the three-course $30 Restaurant Week lunch menu, offering a good discount from  à la carte prices. I started with D’Olived Eggs (sic), four hard boiled egg halves, made with extra virgin olive oil, chives and too much Maldon salt, flaky sea salt produced in the village of Maldon, England. I then had Pickle’s signature dish, Classic French Dip, “Roasted Sirloin of Beef, House Baked French Bread, Horseradish Aioli, Big Dill Pickles, Maldon Sea Salt, Mustard.” Actually, I didn’t eat the pickles, else the sandwich was excellent.

The waiter kindly wrapped the Oreo Icebox Pie for me to take home, which was my main course for dinner. In all, there was enough food to provide a satisfying lunch for two normal human beings.

 

Friday, August 1, 2025

The New York City Police Department has 34,000 uniformed officers. Nearly 12 percent of them are Asian. Thirty-three percent of uniformed officers are Hispanic and 17 percent are Black. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/01/nyregion/nypd-didarul-islam-bangladesh.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

 

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, 15.6% of New Yorkers are of Asian origin, 28.3% Hispanic origin, and 20.2% Black. 

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Thanks to Governor Ron DeSantis, today is “Hulk Hogan Day in Florida.”   https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/flags-half-staff-honor-hulk-hogan

In case those of you in the other 49 states feel left out, sleep with your friend’s wife and sue for invasion of privacy when the sex tape is released. Gawker Media, LLC v. Bollea, 170 So.3d 125 (2015). In these progressive times, that celebration is available to both men and women.

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The New York City Department of Education announced the composition of the next entering class of the city’s competitive high schools. At Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan, the most selective of the specialized schools, eight of the 781 offers this spring went to Black students while 27 went to Hispanic pupils. Asian students were offered 509 spots, and white students were offered 142. 95 students had either multiracial or unknown backgrounds. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/nyregion/specialized-high-schools-black-students-stuyvesant.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

In the public school system, 42 percent of students are Hispanic, 20 percent are Black, 19 percent are Asian and 16 percent are white. As glaring as the problem is, it eludes solution.

False Flag

Sunday, July 20, 2025

Back home in the early afternoon from our quick wonderful trip to Toronto, I caught up with e-mail and messages. I received an announcement for a book talk by an author who “focuses on theater, music, architecture, crime, Black-Jewish cultural interactions, restaurants, real estate, and journalism to tell the history of New York’s Yiddish popular culture from 1880 to the present.” I think that we have lost the meaning of focus here.

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A few days ago, I was wasting time and brain cells playing a card game on my smartyphone when an advertisement for L.L. Bean popped up offering a variety of their goods at steep discount. 

 

Recognizing a bargain, I ordered five polo shirts in an assortment of colors for about 80% off. As I unpacked from our trip today, I wondered about the shirts and the absence of an order confirmation or tracking information.

My credit card company told me that there was a charge to Miscellaneous Merchant, not further identified, for $48.26 on July 14, but no transaction with L.L. Bean. A call to Mr. Bean confirmed the scam. We had not done business for a long time. I then called back my credit card company to unwind the fraudulent (non)purchase. So, watch out kiddies.

Monday, July 21, 2025

Shopping list update 

I have maintained that the whitefish salad at Zucker’s Bagels & Smoked Fish, 273 Columbus Avenue and six other locations, is superior to other versions. Now, I have to add Zabar’s chunky whitefish salad ($18.99/lb.) as an alternative, very little filler, a dab of mayonnaise. If you’re already there, 2245 Broadway, shopping for one of three gazpachos, cold fruit soup, crumb cake, blintzes, one of a hundred cheeses, chopped herring, and several strudels with or without cheese, get some chunky whitefish salad.

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

In a display of cordiality that may serve as a lesson both domestically and internationally, Gentleman Jerry accompanied me to the Mets game against the Los Angeles Angels even though he is a Yankees fan. Being a good sport, he showed some enjoyment in the Mets victory, although not at my level of adolescent hysteria.

The subway gods tried to spoil the evening by having the train ahead of us break down on the way back to Manhattan, doubling the time to get home, but the thrill of victory kept the packed crowd almost patient.

Wednesday, July 23, 2025

Bret Stephens, a New York Times columnist, usually spends his time defending non-Trump Republican policies, a niche role. He also proudly supports Jewish positions and causes. Today, in a column headlined “No, Israel Is Not Committing Genocide in Gaza,” he makes a shameful statement. “In short, the first question the anti-Israel genocide chorus needs to answer is: Why isn’t the death count higher?” In other words, until or unless the Israeli military is more efficient we will spare them the appellation. That’s not my Judaism, that’s not my Zionism.

Rabbi Shaul Magid explains why some Jews remain unmoved by Israeli cruelty in Gaza. They believe that “Israel, like the Jews, is always the victim, never the perpetrator.” 

https://shaulmagid.substack.com/p/the-nero-effect-are-we-jews-distracted?utm_source=post-banner&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true

We generally consider ourselves a generous people. The names on the buildings in major urban medical centers often reads like roll call at a synagogue’s annual meeting. And, it’s not just the Tribe’s top tier that demonstrates this spirit. Mother Ruth Gotthelf was still writing checks (in her own hand) to charities in her 103rd year.

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Small World Department

So, the guy that I had coffee with this afternoon has a son who went to the Bronx High School of  Science with Zohran Momdani who was one of his best friends and used to visit regularly.

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Terrific Tom and I had lunch at Jasmine’s Caribbean Cuisine, 371 West 46th Street, a new restaurant on the Theater District’s Restaurant Row. It’s not a very big joint, but it packs in a lot. There is a long bar in the front and a room with 20 small two-tops in various combinations. Befitting the island theme, there are bright colors everywhere. It was just about empty at lunchtime and the one waiter was very attentive and turned the music down as requested.

We shared three appetizers, four big coconut shrimp ($18), two small crab cakes ($21), six jerk chicken wings ($17). We differed only on the jerk chicken, Tom C-, me B. The other two dishes we agreed were excellent. Check it out and save airfare to the islands.

Friday, July 25, 2025

Ghislaine Maxwell was interviewed by Department of Justice personnel at the federal penitentiary in Tallahassee, Florida yesterday about Jeffrey Epstein’s affairs. Informed sources say that she claimed that Donald Trump frequently and vigorously chided Epstein on his behavior with young women and eventually cut off all relations with him, because of Epstein’s failure to reform. Maxwell was disappointed that Trump’s forceful admonitions were not ultimately effective. 

This morning, the White House announced that Maxwell received a full pardon of her sex trafficking conviction and was appointed ambassador to Finland.

Northern Lights

Currency conversion rate $1 Can = $.73 USD

Thursday, July 17, 2025

Our flight to Toronto departed 45 minutes late on its way to close a gap of 61 years. My graduate school years have had a never ending impact on my life. Some of the subject matter stayed with me and even now informs some of my opinions, but it was my fellow students who made the biggest difference. 

When I left for Cornell University, my social network was almost entirely Jewish. Through high school, there were some Italians mixed in and literally a couple of Blacks. Now, I had friendships with guys (only) from England, Iowa, Utah and Westchester County (as exotic as Iowa), none Jewish. Some are gone, Adrian, Dean, John, Larry. Still active and vital is Bernie Frolic, one of Canada’s leading political scientists for many decades. While we have recently Zoomed, we were last together in 1964 when he left to study local governments in the Soviet Union. Today, we started to fill the chasm of names, places and events that occupy the missing time.

Reconnecting with Bernie was only one element of this trip. Irene Frolic, his wife, has become a world renowned sculptor and has a major exhibit at the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery in Waterloo, Ontario. We came to see her work as well, which has been described as “infuse[d] . . . with knowledge, feelings, history and heritage.”

Bernie and Irene live in a 51-story building which is almost a city in itself in downtown Toronto. They are on the 36th floor with a great view of the city and sunsets. A Whole Foods is in the basement along with a variety of other retailers. Additionally, a section of hotel rooms are incorporated where we are staying for the weekend.

For dinner, we went to Scaccia, a small, charming Italian restaurant in the basement. Madam and I shared a Caesar salad with such a good dressing that I didn’t notice the absence of anchovies ($16 Can). From the dozen and a half pasta dishes, I chose Siciliana, penne, sweet peppers and sausage in a spicy tomato sauce ($25 Can) and I chose well.

Friday, July 18, 2025

Bernie drove us to Waterloo to see Irene’s exhibition. 

Having the artist explain her works in detail was a very special experience. Irene was candid in describing the feelings that inspired her efforts. I valued this, because my aesthetic sense never made it out of Brooklyn.

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Before leaving Waterloo, we had lunch at Quick Sandwiches, 95 King Street South. I had an excellent “New York Steak” sandwich with mozzarella, tomato, mushrooms and aioli on a grilled roll ($17.99 Can). The only thing it wasn’t was quick, since the owner/cook was deliberate about assembling and preparing the ingredients.

The good food for the others, a smoked turkey sandwich ($13.99 Can) and a portobello grilled veggie sandwich ($12.99 Can), helped us endure somewhat the 3-1/2 hour drive back to Toronto, 1-1/2 hour longer than the ride out.

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We got back just in time to go out to dinner at Petit Potato, 1033 Bay Street. Naturally, it is a Pan Asian restaurant with a very large menu, lacking only potatoes small and large. We sat outside to enjoy the balmy weather and avoid the noise level inside.

We ate a lot. I started with a delicious Taiwanese green apple slush ($7.99 Can). Bernie and I shared a Taiwanese beef wrap, essentially a Chinese burrito ($12.99 Can), and the ox tongue stew ($13.75 Can). Beef tongue on rye with mustard is better.

By then, I managed to finish only 3/4 of my plate of teppan (narrow fettuccine) with slices of duck breast ($17.99 Can) and could not even consider dessert.

Saturday, July 19, 2025

After the Wall Street Journal reported that Donald Trump sent Jeffrey Epstein a lewd birthday card, Trump filed suit for $10 billion alleging “overwhelming financial and reputational harm.” Rupert Murdoch, of all people, will now be our leading defender of truth in media. 

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We went to a major exhibition at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) “Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away.” You don’t have to think twice about the relevance of the title. One wall placard read:

In 1933, the German legal system quickly aligned with Nazi goals. The courts permitted the purge of the Social Democrats and Jews and did not protest when the new government gave the police broad powers-independent of judicial review— to arrest and incarcerate real or perceived state enemies in concentration camps.

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Aiming for my sweet spot, we four went to dinner at Pearl Yorkville Chinese Cuisine, 730 Yonge Street, a very attractive, large restaurant on a very busy corner. I did much of the ordering. Not only are there different lunch and dinner menus, some familiar items, such as scallion pancakes, are reserved for the daytime. We were not left without abundant alternatives, however.

While madam filled up on vegetable chow mein ($24 Can), the three of us had “Hockey Pucks”, pan fried shrimp and chive patties ($18 Can for 6 pieces). We continued with orange beef, very successfully differing from the typical New York version, because the beef was lightly sautéed not deep fried and chunks of orange were in the dish not tangerine skin ($33 Can). Our other main dishes, lamb with cumin ($38 Can) and Singapore vermicelli ($28 Can) were nicely prepared, but lacked bite. While Ontario Province is predominantly English speaking, the fortune cookies were bilingual.

To be clear, while I have a little cred when it comes to Chinese restaurants, Bernie is the real deal. He is the Executive Director of the Asian Business and Management Program at York University. He has written “China and Canada: A Fifty-Year Journey,” “Mao’s People: Sixteen Portraits of Life in Revolutionary China” and other books and many articles about China and other Communist regimes. He first went to China in 1965 and has taught in China and about China over many years since.

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Fortunately, dessert was only a few feet (meters) away from dinner at Nani’s Gelato, 6 Charles Street East, easily identified by the line outside. In a rare display of moderation, I had only a small cup of mango chocolate chip, an obvious combination not previously encountered ($6.49 Can).

Sunday, July 20, 2025

Except for departing our hotel at the ungodly hour of 7 A.M., we left Toronto in fine spirits and had an uneventful trip home.

California and Back

Thursday, July 10, 2025

The Upper West Side’s Power Couple took to the air this morning. We flew to the Bay Area for a weekend with the second generation in lieu of time together in Israel, leaving from JFK Terminal 4. Given my low expectations for traversing airline terminals, I was almost a bit disappointed that gate B33 was only about 2/3 of the way to Staten Island.

Our flight was incident-free and allowed me to see several episodes of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” that I missed originally. The couple to the left of my aisle seat never got up while I was seated, leaving me undisturbed. All the paperwork for our rental car was done in advance, so we were out of the airport fairly quickly. If you know the geography, however, getting across the Bay to the Oakland-Berkeley area requires going through downtown San Francisco for an elapsed time of about an hour. Still, we were comfortably settled in our hotel with ample time to get ready for dinner with our brood.

Allison and Will, the locals, made reservations at Acre Kitchen & Bar, 5655 College Avenue, Oakland. I was wrong to guess that it was named for the Israeli seaport on the Mediterranean a/k/a Akko. Israeli-born Irit thought the same. Instead, Acre calls itself California Rustic for which there is no independent definition. The food deserved a better label, in fact, superlatives might apply.

I had some of the two shared Summer Watermelon Salads on the table, with cucumber, feta, mint oil, Marcona almonds ($17), very refreshing. Then, I had one of the eight 12” pizzas on the menu, lamb merguez (sausage), Fresno chile, walnuts, pistachio  muhammara (nut and red pepper dip), feta ($27). I asked for it spicy and I got it spicy. It was excellent, but far more than even one glutton could handle. Bring a friend who’ll eat treyf.

I managed to squeeze in affogato for dessert ($11). They used soft serve ice cream instead of gelato and it went very well with the espresso poured over it.

Friday, July 11, 2025

Madam and I strolled around and went to lunch at the Public Market, 5959 Shellmound* Street, Emeryville, a food court with a dozen active vendors and about a half dozen empty stalls in a formerly industrial space. I got my food at Nabi Q, Korean BBQ Grilled Chicken, a bento box of chicken with short rib, including rice, chapchae (glass noodles), broccoli, carrots, kimchi and three pot stickers ($25.50), a lot to eat. 

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Someone identified as “social media influencer and former gymnast Olivia Dunne” made news of a sort by being rejected by a co-op board from purchasing a New York apartment once owned by Babe Ruth. “I was gonna pay with cash, like I wanted this apartment bad. Like it got to the point where the realtor was so confident,” she said. I cannot confirm that several board members were adults.

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The six of us were back together for dinner in a very interesting venue. The Saap Avenue (sic), 4395 Piedmont Avenue, Oaland, is a Laotian restaurant, probably the first that I have ever visited. Generally, I found it a combination of Vietnamese and Thai cuisines with a little extra spice. A large bar is at the center of the room and tables are arrayed in a U-shape against three walls, decorated with bright murals.

The table shared two orders of crispy roti (South Asian pancakes) with yellow curry ($12). The Oakland Heartthrob and I split an order of six Spicy Basil Wings in a spicy, sweet basil sauce ($14). I then had Panang Crispy Duck Curry, strips of crispy duck breast in panang curry sauce (curry paste, peanuts and coconut milk) with red bell peppers, carrots, broccoli and fried Thai "Holy Basil" (a plant from the mint family alleged to have medicinal properties) ($30). 

Other folks had Vegetarian Crispy Egg Rolls ($12 for four pieces); yellow curry with chicken ($26); yellow curry with vegetables ($22); Kamoo, slow-braised pork leg with broccoli, mustard greens, spiced garlic lime sauce ($24). While the National Geographic says that Laos is one of the poorest countries on Earth, you wouldn't know it from these prices.

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* The Oakland Heartthrob informed me that the Emeryville Shellmound was once a massive archeological site, a sacred burial ground of the Ohlone people (Native Americans dwelling along the Northern California coast), combining human remains and food waste, including shellfish. 

Saturday, July 12, 2025

In downtown Berkeley this afternoon, I stopped in the Gadani Waffle Cafe, 139 Berkeley Square, noted for its ice cream. It's a very small place, hard to linger inside with five stools, three high, two low and a small bench. Additionally, there were a couple of tables outside. I had two very large scoops for $7.95, cookies and cream and cardamom pistachio, loaded with whole pistachios. This served for lunch. 

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The fabulous mother-daughter team that I have attached myself to both had major birthdays in June, the basis for our elaborately planned and historically thwarted trip to Israel. Tonight, America's Loveliest Nephrologist held her own party, attended by her local friends and her visiting relatives. The food and drink were first-rate. My only complaint was that in spite of the abundant presence of physicians, there were no neurologists or orthopedists.

Sunday, July 13, 2025

The natural order has reasserted itself. Our departing flight from San Francisco was delayed one hour and the boarding gate was the next to last one terminal over. We were back home just after midnight.

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Memo to Left Coasters: This was a very short trip. Prepare yourselves for a two-week stay early next year.

Monday, July 14, 2025

Last week, I expressed my opposition to the phrase Globalize the Intifada, at base a slogan for violence and mayhem. There is an alternative: Localize the Intifada. Direct energy and passion to improving first what’s accessible and then have your successes fuel your expansion. Broad based revolutions have classically eaten their children, rarely leaving most people better off. Clean up your block, your neighborhood, your city before throwing yourself at the nation-state. In spite of the punishing restrictions Israel often placed on Gaza, there was ample time and resources to elevate the population rather than dig tunnels for their militants.

On the other hand, Trump has been eager to unleash our military against destructive forces, real or imaginary while a campaign of terror and violence is being conducted in plain sight by crazed Jewish settlers on the West Bank. Arab fields, homes and lives are attacked even as the forces of law and order stand back. If the IDF cannot stop the anarchy, send in the Marines.

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We know that rents locally always go up and we usually think at the neighborhood level, Flatbush, Upper West Side, Astoria. A new study, however, adds another reference point -- subway stop. https://share.google/tgTnHx02URooYeP9G

Even among car owners, mass transit is the wisest option for getting around and about much of the city. Going to work most often means a subway ride. Situating yourself near a subway station is good strategy, but usually at a price. As gentrification marches on, subway lines replace Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett in pointing new directions.

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

A group of German computer scientists, thankfully writing in English, studied vocabulary changes in more than 15 million biomedical abstracts published from 2010 to 2024, a period when large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT emerged. 

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adt3813

Based on the increasing prevalence of certain words, they concluded that “at least 13.5% of 2024 abstracts were processed with LLMs,” an effect “on scientific writing [that] is truly unprecedented.” Among the hundreds of telltale words were delves, crucial, potential, necessity, pinpoints, versatility and harness. LLMs supposedly use them more frequently than “human” writers. Not found on the list were Ivanka, huge, Melania and bigly.

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Stony Brook Steve and I went out to lunch at Shanghai Dumplings Fusion, 158 West 72nd Street, the new joint which still has a sign in front announcing a Soft Opening. That seems to be keeping most people away. We soldiered on, however. I had thin, cigar-shaped Tiger Prawn Rolls ($8.95 for 3), a paltry serving, and popcorn chicken ($8.95), an ample portion, lacking crispness. On the other hand, it was 87° and humid outside.

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We have a new theme song.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uSiHqxgE2d0

The Upper West Side’s Power Couple takes off tomorrow for another long weekend, this time to Toronto. You’ll hear about it next time.

B.C. [Before California]

Saturday, July 5, 2025

This is an erudite article on the origins of pizza.  

https://www.gethistories.com/p/a-history-of-pizza?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

This advertisement from May 9, 1903 provides evidence that the pioneer of New York pizza was Filippo Milone, forgotten by history. 

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Bad news, good news. Shakespeare & Company, a small local chain of bookstores, named after the iconic enterprise on Paris’s Left Bank, closed its last location, 2020 Broadway, barely one  block from Palazzo di Gotthelf. It was a neat operation with a too comfortable cafe. People never left. On the other hand, it has quickly been replaced by a branch of Strand Bookstore, the Everest of bookstores. 

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I don’t support Zohran Mamdani, but how he identified himself on a college application is the worst reason to oppose his candidacy for New York mayor. I would not want some assertions that I made as a 17-year old to emerge now. “Of course, I’ll respect you in the morning.” 

By the way, he is the son of a Columbia University professor and a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science (one of the best in the country), yet he couldn’t get into Columbia in spite of possibly exaggerating his minority status. Unaffirmative action?

I think that Mamdani’s inexperience impresses/depresses me more than his foreign policy views. However, I am appalled by his refusal to distance himself from the evil slogan “Globalize the Intifada”. It’s not merely a call to struggle for justice. It has been wrapped around such incidents as:

• On March 11, 2004, 193 people are killed and nearly 2,000 are injured when 10 bombs explode on four trains in three Madrid-area train stations during a busy morning rush hour.
• A series of coordinated suicide bombings in London that targeted public transport during the morning rush hour, on July 7, 2005, resulting in 52 deaths and over 770 injuries. 
• Attacks by ten gunmen from November 26 to 29, 2008, across multiple locations in Mumbai, including hotels, a train station, and a Jewish center, resulting in at least 174 deaths and over 300 injuries. 
• Attacks in Paris on November 13, 2015 by gunmen and suicide bombers against a concert hall, a major stadium, restaurants and bars, almost simultaneously, leaving 130 people dead and hundreds wounded.

Chanting it on the green lawns of college campuses does not sanitize it.

Sunday, July 6, 2025

“As Floods Hit, Key Roles Were Vacant at Weather Service Offices in Texas.” New York Times headline. But look how much money we saved.

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While New York City home prices appreciated 49% in the period 2014-2024, the median sale prices of 24 neighborhoods recorded gains as high as 288%.

https://www.propertyshark.com/Real-Estate-Reports/2025/06/03/double-in-a-decade-nyc-neighborhood-price-growth/

Leading the pack was Two Bridges, a new name for a carved out section of the Lower East Side. One Manhattan Square, an 800-foot luxury condominium tower, drove this dramatic increase. It sits across from the East River, at the bottom end of Pike Slip, an extension of First Avenue. A Pathmark supermarket perched there until Hurricane Sandy in 2012 flooded the entire premises, destroying its usefulness. 

When I was single, I lived on East 46th Street between First and Second Avenues, an area weak on grocery stores. Periodically, I would take the M15 bus downtown to the Pathmark carrying two empty shopping bags. When they were full, I checked out and took the bus back uptown. On weekends, I would often go to Zabar’s on my bicycle, filling only one medium-sized bag. 

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I was faced with a bit of a dilemma at dinner tonight. We were joined by the lovely couple David and Julie, who, among other outstanding character traits, read this blog thoroughly. David, one of about a dozen Davids of my acquaintanceship, lamented the lack of a distinguishing nickname, such as Gentleman Jerry or Stony Brook Steve. I therefore anoint the accordion-playing, Hebrew-chanting, technology master David as Delightful David. 

Dinner at Dagon, 2454 Broadway, was easily labeled a success. We did our usual at Dagon, concentrate on mezze and bread. We shared everything: Japanese eggplant confit, roasted garlic, tomato jam, buttermilk, shabazi (blend of cilantro leaves, green chili, garlic, and lemon) breadcrumbs; spicy feta; tzatziki; marinated beets; tomato & pepper matbucha (North African condiment) dip; green tahina; flatbread ($51 for the platter). Plus Kubaneh, Yemeni pull-apart bread with za'atar and feta ($16); Israeli salad, cucumber, tomato, red onion, parsley, mint, tahini, green schug (spicy  herb garlic pepper sauce) ($18) and chicken liver mousse with date syrup ($12). Special mention of a delicious dessert: Silan -- shredded halva, caramel rice crisps, pistachio, almonds, tahini mousse, vanilla sponge, date syrup, vanilla ice cream ($14). 

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Even while the increasingly futile hunt for victims of the Texas floods continues, interest has shifted to identifying the few existing Democratic politicians in Texas who might be blamed for the tragedy.

.  .  .

You may or may not be a reader of the New York Times. In either case, you can measure your own taste in movies against the general readership.  

Readers Choose Their Top Movies of the 21st Century - The New York Times

Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Somebody somewhere is apparently using artificial intelligence to create a Marco Rubio clone.
https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/08/politics/marco-rubio-artificial-intelligence-impersonation 

This construct has communicated with public officials domestic and foreign. I don't understand why the person behind this caper took the trouble to duplicate Marco Rubio when the original is so inconsequential as to be mistaken for wallpaper at public gatherings.

ALERT

Normally, I would ramble on through the rest of the week, but we flew to California Thursday morning and I decided to break here and continue later.