Good morning, it’s Wednesday and you should be forewarned that Google has a new game on its home page and you will lose a considerable number of otherwise productive working hours playing it today.
It’s an interactive swing dance game that was created to celebrate the Savoy Ballroom, which opened in New York City on March 12, 1926 in Harlem – one of the first racially integrated public spaces, having a no-discrimination policy from day one.
Many of the genre’s dances were invented at the Savoy Ballroom. Most notably, the “Lindy Hop” was developed there, with groups like Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers taking their name from the dance and performing at the venue.
The Savoy was demolished in 1958. On this day in 2002, two members of Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers dedicated a commemorative plaque where the entrance to the venue once stood. (Hence, the selective of today by Google to debut this new time suck).
Consider this a PSA. You’ve been warned.
Fittingly, it’s World Lindy Hop Day.
Lindy Hop, which is also known as Jitterbug, is an American dance style that made its first appearance in the late 1920s with the popularization of big bands. The name comes from a trend that occurred after Charles Lindbergh’s successful flight across the Atlantic in 1927. (In other words, one thing had zero to do with the other). .
If you’re one of those sky watching sorts, you probably already know that a lunar eclipse AND a so-called supermoon are occurring today.
Here on the East Coast, we won’t be able to see the eclipse, but everyone should be able to enjoy the supermoon – or so they say. Apparently, the moon is supposed to appear a shade of red, which is known as a “blood” moon.
It’s going to be hot today – back up into the high 80s, with clouds in the morning and a chance of thunderstorms, some of them potentially quite severe, in the afternoon to evening. There might be some hail, too, so be on the lookout.
In the headlines…
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met yesterday with the family of George Floyd exactly one year after he was killed by a Minneapolis police officer, sparking nationwide protests against racism and police brutality.
Floyd’s brother, Philonise Floyd, told reporters the family had a “great” meeting with the President and vice president and said: “We’re just thankful for what’s going on and we just want the George Floyd Policing Act to be passed.”
Floyd’s sister, Bridgett, boycotted the meeting with Biden, saying he “broke a promise” to enact police reform legislation by the anniversary of her brother’s death.
We have to act,” Biden said in a statement. “We face an inflection point. The battle for the soul of America has been a constant push and pull between the American ideal that we’re all created equal and the harsh reality that racism has long torn us apart.”
The crowds that gathered in Minneapolis and elsewhere reflected on what has changed, and what has not, in America since Floyd was murdered by a police officer.
GOP senators say that Biden has informed them he’d be willing to accept an infrastructure package of around $1 trillion, significantly lower than the White House’s public offer last week.
U.S. troops and their NATO allies intend to be out of Afghanistan by early to mid-July, well ahead of Biden’s Sept. 11 withdrawal deadline, military officials said, in what has turned into an accelerated ending to America’s longest war.
Biden said he underestimated how many people would believe in Donald Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 election.
The Biden administration has decided to fight a legal battle to keep secret most of a Justice Department memo related to AG William Barr’s much-disputed declaration in 2019 that cleared Trump of illegally obstructing justice in the Russia investigation.
Manhattan prosecutors have convened a special grand jury in their investigation of Trump and his company, signaling the office is seeking to bring charges in the case, according to people familiar with the matter.
The group of Manhattan residents will mull whether to criminally charge Trump and his business executives as part of DA Cy Vance Jr.’s long-running investigation into alleged financial fraud at the Trump Organization.
Trump says “absolute immunity” and the First Amendment protects him against a lawsuit charging him with inciting the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol.
A Manhattan federal judge dismissed an indictment charging Steve Bannon with defraudingTrump’s supporters, but not before pointedly noting that a presidential pardon implies guilt.
Biden briefly returned to Delaware last night to attend the wake of a longtime staff member. Norma Long, who worked on Biden’s campaigns and in his U.S. Senate office, died May 17 from complications related to leukemia.
The first face-to-face meeting between Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place next month in Switzerland, the White House confirmed, as the administration and the Kremlin finalize arrangements for the summit.
The U.S. and China staked out sharply opposing positions over how to trace the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, with Washington calling for a new round of studies to be conducted with independent, international experts.
As Memorial Day weekend approaches, the head of the CDC offered a hopeful message mixed with caution for Americans planning to celebrate the traditional beginning of summer with friends and family.
Moderna said that its COVID-19 vaccine strongly protects kids as young as 12, a step that could put the shot on track to become the second option for that age group in the U.S.
In a clinical trial of the vaccine in adolescents, there were no cases of symptomatic Covid-19 among fully vaccinated teens, the company reported in a news release.
Pediatricians worry parents will misinterpret a finding by advisers to the CDC and become scared – for no reason – to vaccinate their children against Covid-19.
At least 10,000 vaccinated people were infected with the coronavirus through the end of April. Now the CDC has stopped pursuing the mildest cases.
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. employers plan to require employers to produce proof of vaccination, according to a survey from Arizona State University with support from the Rockefeller Foundation.
The official Covid-19 figures in India grossly understate the true scale of the pandemic in the country.
Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 cases are climbing rapidly and have surpassed India’s on one critical measure, according to statistics site Our World in Data.
French counterintelligence authorities are investigating whether the Russian government was behind an attempt to pay high-profile health and science bloggers to sow public doubts about the safety of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
Of the more than 130 million people in the United States who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, there have been reports of at least 10,262 breakthrough infections, according to the CDC.
New York’s COVID rent relief program will begin accepting applications on June 1.
Mount Sinai, which is preparing to open a new laboratory that could process 100,000 tests a day, wants to take its current COVID testing program to public schools this fall.
Far Rockaway, Queens has the lowest percentage of vaccinated people in New York City.
Schenectady County is celebrating a big milestone in its vaccination effort. County leaders say right now, they have the highest rate of adult vaccination of any county in New York state.
Summer camp in New York state will look a lot like 2019 this year. A shift in state guidance regarding Covid-19 safety procedures loosened rules around face coverings, making the use of masks encouraged but not required for campers.
CNN President Jeff Zucker said that anchor Chris Cuomo made a mistake when he advised his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, on handling accusations of sexual harassment.
The governor defended having his CNN anchor brother take part in high-level strategy sessions about his sex scandal, and claimed that he gets guidance from other journalists “all the time.”
State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt demanded an apology from Cuomo after he called on the public to honor COVID-19 frontline workers on Memorial Day, the federal holiday traditionally reserved to commemorate fallen military servicemembers.
In a rebuke of Cuomo, state lawmakers are seeking to give New York City more control over his Penn Station expansion and new development in the surrounding area.
Cuomo nominated Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas and New York City Judge Anthony “Tony” Cannataro to fill two vacant seats on the state Court of Appeals.
Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro won’t run again for governor next year, but did not rule out the possibility of running for higher office before the end of his term.
Some New York lawmakers, businesses and labor unions have put their support behind the Clean Slate Act, a bill to automatically expunge the records of people convicted of crimes.
New York’s top insurance regulator is beefing up rules that require health insurers to cover mental health and substance use disorders at the same level they cover physical health conditions.
New York could become one of the first states to give loved ones a controversial burial option: Composting.
A fossil fuel divestment group took aim at the teachers retirement system, urging the organization to divest of the coal stocks they say continue to make up a substantial part of their portfolio. It may be easier said than done, however.
Two polls this week show a shifting lead in the race to be the next mayor of New York City, with former Sanitation Department Commissioner Kathryn Garcia and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams gaining support.
A considerable number of voters remain undecided, with the primary just weeks away.
Garcia scored an endorsement from the New York League of Conservation Voters, as the statewide group sprinkled a dose of environmentalist support on her surging campaign.
Garcia wants Albany to expand the number of New York City charter schools, she said.
Mayoral hopeful Shaun Donovan was detained at a lower Manhattan police station for about an hour yesterday morning after he joined about a half-dozen protesters to block traffic in remembrance of the killing of George Floyd.
The two Republicans running for mayor of New York City used to be friends. They are both first-time candidates, long shots for the job and tabloid fixtures who perk up when they see a news camera. And now they are at war.
Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa announced that he had collected enough signatures for the new Animal Welfare party line to appear on the ballot in the November election in New York City.
The city’s new system of ranked-choice voting, along with a crowded field of Democrats, has complicated efforts to do comprehensive voter surveys.
New Yorkers hoping to select candidates for mayor and a range of other offices must first make sure they can vote. The deadline to register is this Friday, May 28.
Andrew Yang has brought political star power and a dose of optimism to the New York City mayor’s race. But his gaps in knowledge about how the city functions have led to the perception among critics that he is out of his depth.
Yang called a press conference to complain about a satirical Daily News cartoon depicting him as a tourist.
Yang’s wife broke down in tears over the cartoon, which she said was “toxic,” “racist” and “not funny.”
Mets owner Steven Cohen is going for a double in the mayor’s race — donating $1 million split evenly between two groups that back frontrunners Adams and Yang.
Thanks to lower retail rents in New York City as a result of the pandemic, vacancies often are filled with fresh new businesses launched by locals – everything from a breakfast-taco joint to a tattoo-removal parlor – rather than the usual chain stores.
Inmates who suffered through frigid temperatures and a lockdown following a blackout at Brooklyn’s federal jail in 2019 can move forward as a group in a lawsuit against the troubled lockup, a judge ruled.
The MTA will purchase 60 fully electric buses in 2021, 15 more than previously anticipated, transit officials announced.
MTA officials skeptical of the NYPD’s show of force in the subways surveyed the system over the last week and found cops were mostly nowhere to be found.
Mayor Bill de Blasio defended his administration’s move to convert 8,550 parking spots into outdoor seating for restaurants amid COVID-19, insisting the “open restaurants” program has saved businesses and jobs.
Eight men targeted Asian homeowners for theft as part of an intricate multistate burglary ring that preyed mainly on restaurant owners in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware, federal prosecutors said.
City lawmakers are backing a dramatic expansion of the Big Apple’s rental voucher program, in a new effort to get thousands of families out of shelters — and plan to move legislation this week, they said.
Employees at yet another of New York City’s major museums – the Brooklyn Museum – have taken steps to form a union.
A 15-year-old high school student became the City of Albany’s ninth homicide victim of 2021 after men opened fire Monday night on the car she and three others were sitting in on Wilbur Street.
Cuomo says at the request of Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan, he is directing the New York State Police to assist the Albany Police Department with any available resources, including increased patrols.
The Downtown Albany BID has revived its Downtown Albany Gift Card promotion, which launched in February to help boost sales at more than 45 participating locations.
With just a few weeks left before votes will be cast, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren is trailing her Democratic primary challenger, City Councilman Malik Evans, according to a new poll.
The Associated Press has started a review of its social media policy after more than 150 staff members publicly condemned the firing of a young journalist for violating that policy.
Amazon was hit with an antitrust suit by the District of Columbia, which alleges that the company blocks sellers on its marketplace from offering better deals elsewhere, leading to higher prices for consumers.
