Saturday, August 2, 2025
The White House has announced plans for construction of a 90,000 square foot ballroom.
. . .
I can’t escape seductive offers by the faux L.L. Bean website uncovered a few weeks ago. Canvas bags and sweaters with moose patterns at 80% off continue to be waved under my electronic nose. Rather than placing an order that would only deliver a debit to my bank account and no credit to my wardrobe, I dug a little further. Here's how to communicate with this phony business:
Email: sihaiyidin88@gmail.com
Whatspp Business: 18195094465
Address:
GALAXY EXCEED TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIMITED
DO2, Unit 10, 1st Floor, Hewlett Centre, No. 54 Hoi Yuen Road,
Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
. . .
It has been suggested that substantially increased investment in elementary education should help eliminate the racial disparity in admission to New York's specialized high schools. I would like to agree, but wonder if that would really make a difference. At the state level, “[p]er-student spending for [public] elementary and secondary education in New York is 91 percent above the national average and between 9 percent and 170 percent higher than neighboring and competitor states.”
The evidence, though, is that many parents are far from satisfied with our local public schools. The city’s public school population is 16% white while the general population is about 45% white. At the same time, Black and “Latino” students make up over 89% of local charter school enrollment.
Here is another very disturbing piece of the puzzle. "Of
the high school graduates who scored between 1400 and 1600 on the SAT
in 2024, the highest possible scores, 1 percent were African American,
and 27 percent were Asian, according to the College Board,
the private organization that administers the test. About 12 percent of
students taking the test were Black and 10 percent were Asian."
Sunday, August 3, 2025
Observations:
“What we are doing in Gaza now is a war of devastation: indiscriminate, limitless, cruel and criminal killing of civilians.” Ehud Olmert, former Israeli Prime Minister.
“Israel has shown, time and again, that it is better at winning wars than at winning what comes after.” David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker.
. . .
My friends are generally well-read and well-spoken, qualities that attracted me to them. As a result, I am not surprised to see their names in print. However, I still got a big and happy surprise to read New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd give a shoutout to Paul Bergman active CCNY alumnus and retired criminal lawyer.
If you’re a teenager who wants to avoid Blacks, going to Stuyvesant High School is an option, but that won’t shield you from other others. Adults have a better choice for ethnic purity by moving to Return to the Land, an Arkansas community that excludes Jews and non-whites. Party on.
. . .
Usually, the intersection of supply and demand determines pricing. That, apparently, is not the case in the U.S. housing market. Last month, sales of existing homes dropped by 2.7 percent from the previous month, while the median home price, at $435,300, hit a record high for the month of June, according to the National Association of Realtors. https://www.nar.
Here’s a headline that made me swallow deeply. “Ministers set to fire AG.” Upon examination, it’s the Israeli Attorney General who is under the gun, not yours truly.
I just learned that a woman taking the New York State Bar Examination last month suffered a heart attack. https://people.com/
Results are still released in November for the July examination which surprises me, because we hand wrote our answers while today computers are used. I’ve seen estimates of over 90% computer usage which should dramatically speed up grading. Maybe sadists remain in charge.
. . .
I caught up with Ittai Hershman today, which wasn’t easy because he walks miles every day up and down Manhattan Island. It was worth the pursuit, because Ittai is one of the best informed people around and a good storyteller.
We had lunch at Friend of a Farmer, 58 West 71st Street, a label that neither of us qualifies for. It is the second branch of the long-established Gramercy Park establishment. The interior has a rustic feel, though more cabin than barn. We sat in a quiet, brick-clad nook near the front. I had a stack of medium-sized lemon ricotta pancakes with a little pitcher of lemon zest on the side ($21). It was a good dish and maybe I should stop complaining how expensive everything is. Or not.
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
I’m an old guy, so pardon me if I give you an old story, although one that I just learned. If people are given Coke and Pepsi blind, they prefer Pepsi. If they know what they are drinking, they prefer Coke.
The authors, neuroscientists, point out that “behavioral preferences for food and beverages are potentially modulated by an enormous number of sensory variables, hedonic states, expectations, semantic priming, and social context.” In other words, things go better with Coke.
. . .
Eyes open or closed, the food at Tim Ho Wan, 610 Ninth Avenue, was always recognizably good. This was the second American branch of the Michelin-starred Hong Kong dim sum specialist. I am sad to report that it is closing, while its East Village location, 85 Fourth Avenue, remains open. Though much less centrally located, it deserves your patronage more than ever.
The bombing of Hiroshima was 80 years ago today. For those few of us who were alive then, it’s a long way back. Another 80 years prior and you get to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. L'dor v'dor is a Hebrew phrase that sticks with me. It means "from generation to generation."
How to give your kids a complex
A big shot doctor at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn was sentenced on Wednesday to three years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing more than $1.4 million of public money from the hospital. About $176,000 was spent on pet care and $46,000 covered tuition payments for his children. https://share.google/
. . .
Realtor.com
is the website of the very powerful National Association of Realtors.
It just published its Hottest ZIP Code rankings based on 1) market
demand, as measured by unique viewers per property on Realtor.com, and
2) the pace of the market as measured by the number of days a listing
remains active on Realtor.com.
It's
a very interesting collection, mostly in the Northeast, with New Jersey
and Massachusetts particularly well represented. People may yearn for
waterfront properties in the Sun Belt, but they settle for white picket
fences in typical suburban communities.
Friday, August 8, 2025
I have good news for me. I am now considered one of the “super-agers,” people 80 and up who have the same memory ability as someone 20 to 30 years younger.
Now, if I can only remember where I put my keys.
"In other words, things go better with Coke."
ReplyDeleteBut growing up, we only drank Pepsi.
Somehow, we turned out OK.
So 'L'dor v'dor' can relate to bad stuff too. A sad commentary!
ReplyDeleteYou mention Ittai Hershman, i consider him a reliable source on all kinds of issues and have consulted him on Hebrew phrases in the Kaplan diary where i need the source.
ReplyDelete