Good Monday morning. In case you forgot, Daylight Savings Time is in effect. We set the clocks back yesterday. More on this later in the week, perhaps.
It’s a big day for overseas travelers, and also for those in the hospitality industry who rely on visits from foreign tourists to help make ends meet.
Today, the U.S. will open its borders to vaccinated international visitors for nonessential travel for the first time in two years.
Hotel bookings, vacation rentals and flight reservations have all reportedly seen a bump in recent weeks as people around the world get ready to take advantage of these new freedoms – right in time for the traditionally busy holiday season.
For those of you interested and/or impacted by this development…fully vaccinated travelers have to get tested within three days of boarding a flight to the U.S., and those who are NOT vaccinated – including U.S. citizens – must show proof of a negative test conducted within one day of boarding. Travelers’ information will be collected for contact tracing purposes. .
Children under 2 are exempt from testing and “accommodations” will be made for people who tested positive for COVID-19 within 90 days and recovered, according to the CDC.
This is a particularly big deal for New Yorkers who live near the Canadian border, as the closure has really strained WNY businesses and families who had grown used to traveling back and forth with ease prior to the pandemic. It was especially frustrating that the Canadian border opened to fully vaccinated U.S. citizens back in August, but the U.S. didn’t reciprocate until now.
However, it’s worth noting that the air travel rules as they pertain to proof of a negative COVID test do not appear to apply to those crossing a land border, and travelers will simply be asked if they’re vaccinated and not required to offer proof unless they are referred for a secondary inspection. (In short, you should be prepared with the necessary documentation, just in case).
Apparently, a lot of Canadian snowbirds will soon be making tracks across the border in search of warmer climes.
Of course, as travel begins to resume, there will likely be longer wait times at border crossings and ferry terminals, and flights may well be fuller than normal.
While I do not necessarily encourage the consumption of alcohol prior to embarking on a flight – or while in the air – (it’s really not good for you, and exacerbates jet lag in part by contributing to dehydration) – this seems like as good a time as any to mention that today is National Harvey Wallbanger Day.
This drink sounds really fancy and complicated, but it’s basically just a screwdriver (orange juice and vodka) with the addition of Galliano, an Italian liqueur, floating on top. Galliano is made with vanilla and a mix of herbs and spices, including star anise, juniper, lavender and cinnamon.
The drink was reportedly invented in the 1950s by California bartender Donato “Duke” Antone, (there’s some question as to whether this is true), but didn’t take off until the 1970s, thanks to a marketing campaign created by a guy named Bill Young.
Whatever its origin, the Harvey Wallbanger is apparently experiencing a modest resurgence in popularity. It also exists in a cake version, in case the alcoholic beverage thing isn’t for you.
Today’s Google Doodle is worth a mention – it celebrates what would have been the 104th birthday of Dr. Kamal Ranadive, an Indian cell biologist who is best known for her groundbreaking cancer research and for co-founding the Indian Women Scientists’ Association (IWSA) to support women in scientific fields in 1973.
The IWSA now has 11 chapters in India and provides scholarships and childcare options for women in science. Ranadive died in 2011.
We are in for a stretch of amazing weather, it appears, with temperatures potentially flirting with 60 degrees today and tomorrow. And sun, lots of sun. Get out and get you some Vitamin D.
In the headlines…
Congress has passed a bipartisan infrastructure bill, a political win for President Biden.
The bill focuses on investments in roads, railways, bridges and broadband internet, but it does not include investments that Biden has referred to as “human infrastructure,” including money allocated for child care and tax credits for families.
With their narrow House majority, Democrats couldn’t pass the bill themselves after six left-wing “Squad” Members voted no. Without 13 GOP votes, the bill would have failed.
“Yes” Republican votes were cast by several New York Republicans, including: Andrew Grbarino, John Katko, Nicole Malliotakis, and Tom Reed.
New Yorkers reacted with anger after Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman voted against the infrastructure bill.
Former President Trump doubled down on his criticism of Senate Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Republicans who voted in favor of passing the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi agreed to a deal proposed by the Congressional Black Caucus, mobilizing one faction of Democratic lawmakers to win over two others.
The bill will bring billions of dollars to the New York City region, funding projects like elevator upgrades to the subway system and upgrades to Amtrak for the long-stalled Gateway Project to build tunnels under the Hudson River.
After much back and forth, New York is set to get billions – more than $170 billion, to be exact – as a result of the historic $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.
The roughly $1 trillion infrastructure package provides a spark to efforts to build a national network of electric-vehicle charging stations.
The day after the fragile passage of Biden’s infrastructure bill, House leaders were already working on Part Deux: passing the bigger social-safety-net bill two weeks from now — the week before Thanksgiving.
A year before the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans hold a clear lead on the congressional ballot as Biden’s approval rating sinks to a new low of 38%.
The poll was conducted by USA Today and Suffolk University between Wednesday and Friday of last week, just before Democrats passed an infrastructure bill and advanced a social spending package.
The poll found that more Americans are opposed to the Democratic commander-in-chief seeking another term in 2024 than his predecessor Donald Trump running again.
The global economy’s comeback from last year’s deep contraction is approaching a delicate juncture, as policy makers and executives grapple with the bumpy transition from the post-pandemic reopening to a more normalized pace of growth.
An explosives-laden drone attacked the residence of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in Baghdad in what security officials said was an assassination attempt, marking an escalation of tensions between the government and Iran-backed militia groups.
While the number of eviction filings remained at nearly half of prepandemic averages during the first two weeks of October, according to the Eviction Lab at Princeton University, in the 31 cities and six states it tracks, the filings are also increasing.
The casualties at the Travis Scott show in Houston on Friday night are prompting the concert business to search for what went wrong and raise fresh questions about the adequacy of security at music festivals.
Rappers Travis Scott and Drake have been sued over the incident at the former’s Astroworld Festival that left eight people dead and dozens injured.
The attorney for a man who was partially paralyzed after falling during a Scott show in 2017 said Friday night’s deaths and injuries at Astroworld were just the latest instance of the rapper encouraging chaos at his performances.
The investigation into the concert will examine a host of issues, including what caused a reported crowd surge, whether the show employed adequate security, and reports that someone was injecting concertgoers with drugs.
On the day of the show, the Houston police chief said that he visited Scott in his trailer and shared his concerns about the crowd.
As U.S. health authorities expand use of the leading Covid-19 vaccines, researchers investigating heart-related risks linked to the shots are exploring several emerging theories, including one centered on the spike protein made in response to vaccination.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is dealing with the fallout after his comments on the COVID-19 vaccines during a on “The Pat McAfee Show.” Prevea Health, a Wisconsin-based health care organization, cut ties with Rodgers a day after that interview.
Multiple coaches and front-office executives have complained that their teams apparently were held to different COVID-19 protocol standards over the summer than the Green Bay Packers.
Hospital visits for reasons unrelated to COVID-19 led to thousands of people contracting the deadly virus in the United States last year, daunting new data revealed.
The Texas senator Ted Cruz led conservatives in condemnation of a prominent public figure for advocating Covid-19 vaccinations for children: Big Bird.
A federal appeals court on Saturday temporarily blocked the Biden administration’s new rules that require many employers to ensure that their workers are vaccinated or tested weekly for Covid-19.
The emergency stay from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, prevents the White House from requiring all full and part-time workers at private-sector companies with 100 or more employees to be vaccinated or get tested weekly and wear face masks.
The White House is “prepared to defend” its COVID vaccine mandate for large businesses after a federal court imposed a temporary suspension, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said.
Biden is pushing forward with a massive plan to require millions of private sector employees to get vaccinated by early next year. But first, he has to make sure workers in his own federal government get the shot.
An urgent debate is underway among medical professionals about whether the organs of people who survived Covid, and even of those who died with the illness, are really safe and healthy enough to be transplanted.
Some big U.S. employers have dropped workplace mask requirements as Covid-19 cases fall and vaccination rates rise. Staffers at other companies are wondering whether they can ditch masks, too.
New York’s overall COVID-19 spread has remained steady over the past month, with the percent of people testing positive remaining roughly between 2 and 3 percent, but a handful of upstate rural counties are experiencing high infection rates.
The WSJ editorial board: “Voters have won at least one small political victory in the wake of last week’s thumping of Democrats. To wit, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has vowed not to raise taxes.”
“I’m not interested in driving people out of this state,” Hochul said when asked about raising taxes on the rich. “I believe that we have the right balance right now.”
The sex-crime case against ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo was thrown into doubt after the Albany County DA delivered an extraordinary public denunciation of the local sheriff, saying the criminal complaint the sheriff filed last week was “potentially defective.”
DA David Soares wrote that the complaint was “potentially defective” due to the fact it did not include a sworn statement by the victim, Brittany Commisso, allowing the prosecution to proceed.
The DA’s office was granted a 60-day adjournment for Cuomo to make his first scheduled court appearance on a misdemeanor forcible touching charge.
Cuomo’s youngest daughter, Michaela Kennedy-Cuomo, has shared an article dismissing her father’s sexual-assault scandal, which led to his resignation, as a “manufactured #MeToo-style PR offensive.
The piece, self-published by independent journalist Michael Tracey on Substack, accused AG Letitia James of “seedy machinations” to oust Cuomo, who “almost certainly would never have been defeated in a New York Democratic gubernatorial primary.”
Cuomo had something to celebrate yesterday even as his criminal sexual assault charge looms over him — his dog Captain’s fourth birthday.
An unshaven, smiling Cuomo took a big pooch smooch to the face from his large Siberian Husky while driving a boat in a photo he tweeted.
Three days after winning the New York City mayor’s race, Eric Adams arrived in Puerto Rico, a conquering hero basking in his element. Everyone wanted a piece of him, and while there, he played the bongo drums.
Most elected official attendees at Somos used campaign or personal funds to pay their way — with the notable exceptions of Mayor Bill de Blasio and Hochul, who both spent government dollars to get themselves and entourage members to San Juan.
Hochul and her top 2022 primary opponent, AG Tish James, crossed paths at Somos.
Democratic losses across Long Island and beyond could make waves in Albany as lawmakers prepare for the upcoming legislative session and mull the direction of the party.
A new law will prohibit used car dealers in New York from selling vehicles that don’t have working airbags.
Adams took to the airwaves yesterday and declared he wants to nix mask mandates in the classroom and called himself “conservative” on public safety.
“Not being able to see the smiles of our children, I believe that has a major impact,” Adams said on CNN.
Adams also said that his plan to receive his first several paychecks in bitcoin is intended to encourage New York to become a “center of innovation.”
In a CNN commentary, Adams listed the “five priorities that can boost our cities and help get America moving again.”
The de Blasio administration is stiffing dozens of nonprofits that help struggling New Yorkers out of about $120 million, says United Neighborhood Houses, which represents the organizations.
The renovation project at the outgoing mayor’s Park Slope rowhouse, which began in early October, has already racked up five complaints to the city Department of Buildings.
Elected officials and good-government advocates are demanding expanded probes into de Blasio’s NYPD security detail and wondering why top players who serve as checks on the mayor have thus far remained silent about the scandal.
School mental health professionals say the pandemic is taking a toll on students and they’re seeing more verbal and physical conflicts, more kids in acute mental health crisis, and more young people who simply need someone to talk to.
Manhattan District Attorney-elect Alvin Bragg announced a diverse transition team Friday he said would help him with the changes he plans to implement in his new job.
Ed Mullins, the combative former president of a powerful New York City police union retired on Friday, the same day officials announced that he had been found guilty of two disciplinary charges and fined about $32,000 for violating social media rules.
Rodents are among New York’s permanent features. But across the city, one hears the same thing: They are running amok like never before.
Fear of violence that has plagued New York City streets during the pandemic has seeped into public schools, with frightened students grabbing guns, Tasers and pepper spray to protect themselves.
Legal experts said New York and several other states may have to rewrite their gun laws if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the measure sharply limiting carry rules outside the home, and officials expressed concern about the ramifications for public safety.
The New York City marathon returned as a smaller event after it was canceled last year because of the pandemic, bringing a feeling of collective hope to the five boroughs.
Albert Korir won the men’s division in 2:08:22, while Peres Jepchirchir won the women’s division in 2:22:39 after also winning at the Tokyo Games.
Recent census data shows how over the last decade disrepair and disinvestment exacerbated vacancy rates in some Albany neighborhoods, while other areas boomed with rehabilitation.
Greenlight Networks, a broadband service provider, is working with the Town of Clifton Park to provide locals another internet provider and install speedy fiber optics come the summer.
World champion cyclist Emma White of Duanesburg has announced her retirement three months after earning an Olympic bronze in a team cycling event in Tokyo.
Ivy League schools Cornell, Columbia, and Brown Universities said they received bomb threats yesterday that prompted evacuations of some facilities. There weren’t any reports of explosions or damage as of yesterday afternoon.
This happened.
