It’s Monday, and what’s that you say? It’s almost the end of August? LALALALALA, I CAN’T HEAR YOU.
I know I wrote recently – just last week, in fact – about nuclear power, and I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I am not obsessed with nuclear plants, or nuclear holocaust, or (G-d forbid) nuclear war. But it just so happens that today is another nuclear-related day of note, and so I’m going with it.
The alternative is National Chop Suey Day, which, come to think of it, perhaps does merit some attention. We’ll get back to that in a bit – after we dispense with the serious stuff. A mental palate cleanser, if you will.
Today is the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, established as such by the UN General Assembly in December 2009 in response to a resolution initiated by Kazakhstan to celebrate the 18th anniversary of the closing of the USSR-controlled Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site.
The first-ever nuclear test was conducted by the U.S. Army in July 1945 in the New Mexico desert, which was closely followed (in August of that same year) by the dropping of atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.
Since nuclear weapons testing began, some 2,000 have taken place. Early on, little concern or attention was given to the extremely negative impacts of these tests on the environment and human life.
But we’ve learned a lot since then, which led to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), established by the UN General Assembly in 1996. The treaty was signed and ratified by 170 nations, while 15 others signed but did not ratify (including the U.S., China and Israel), and 11 countries did neither (including India, North Korea, Syria, Somalia, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan).
North Korea has been threatening of late to engage in more nuclear tests (its seventh, I believe), which is not sitting well with the U.S. and its allies. This long-awaited test, which South Korea and the U.S. have been sounding alarms over since March, has thus far failed to occur. But needless to say, the whole situation is not good.
While we are anxiously waiting for the other nuclear shoe to drop, so to speak, perhaps it’s time to turn our attention to something a little less heavy – although technically speaking, chop suey is not the lightest of dishes one might consume.
Legend has it that the dish of stir-fried meat, noodles, egg and vegetables was invented today – Aug. 29, in 1896 – in New York City, which means it’s not more Chinese in origin than, say, grilled cheese, though it is on offer on many modern-day Chinese restaurant menus.
There are, of course, alternative origin stories, including one that claims the dish was actually created on the West Coast – San Francisco, to be exact – during the Gold Rush. Chop suey does appear to have its roots in China, though it has been westernized over the years with not-fantastic results (I’m looking at you, La Choy company with your canned version of chop suey veggies; yuck).
A lot of people look down their nose at chop suey, and I have to confess it is not something I would gravitate to should I be perusing the menu at my local Chinese restaurant. There are just so many other interesting items to select from. But maybe next time I’ll give chop suey a second look.
Mother Nature is not quite ready to let go of the summer heat, despite the fact that there are already leaves changing on the trees. We’re in for a warm day with temperatures reaching into the low 90s, and mostly sunny skies. Enjoy.
In the headlines…
Republicans remain the favorites to win control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections, but Democrats, who for over a year have braced for large losses, are finishing the summer in a stronger position than where they started.
After months of gloomy predictions, Democrats are investing anew in flipping Republican seats. They are also directing more money to protect a roster of their own endangered incumbents — a list party officials said noticeably shrank since the spring.
President Joe Biden’s approval rating climbed to its highest level in a year — after sinking to a historic low a month ago — but still less than half of Americans think he’s doing a good job, a new poll shows.
Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Jaime Harrison avoided criticizing Biden for his remarks in which he referred to the Republican party’s philosophy as “semi-fascist.”
Progressive Democrats sought to shore up support for Biden’s student-debt relief plan after critics cast it as unfair, potentially inflationary and unlikely to solve the problem of soaring college-education costs.
With more than 2 million people in New York alone becoming eligible for student loan forgiveness under Biden’s plan, loan providers nationwide need to staff up to handle the influx of paperwork, says Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Hillary Clinton shared her support for Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin, who has been in the headlines for videos of her dancing, singing and partying with friends.
U.S. intelligence agencies are conducting a damage assessment of classified documents recovered from the Florida residence of former President Donald Trump, according to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.
A federal judge scheduled a hearing for Thursday to consider Trump’s request for a “special master” to oversee the FBI’s review of evidence seized at Mar-a-Lago.
Approximately six in 10 Republican respondents in a new poll said that Trump should be the GOP nominee in the 2024 election.
South Carolina GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham warned of “riots in the streets” if Trump is prosecuted for his handling of classified materials found when the FBI searched his Mar-a-Lago home.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren voiced concern that the Federal Reserve’s efforts to fight inflation will cause a recession.
Artillery barrages along a section of the front line near an imperiled nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine struck towns, ammunition dumps and a Russian military base in intense fighting overnight, Ukrainian officials said yesterday.
The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency said that a support and assistance mission was now on its way and expected to be at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine later this week.
The West has begun to muster the money and political support to keep decades-old nuclear reactors from shutting down, aiming to maintain a crucial source of low-carbon electricity as many economies face an energy crunch.
Wearing hazmat suits known locally as the “Big White,” the army of workers who are responsible for enforcing China’s zero-Covid policy have for a large part of this year been toiling in temperatures of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or more.
The White House is rushing ahead to roll out a new COVID-19 booster shot campaign in early September, but is facing an uphill battle to ensure it is successful.
The Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize new Covid-19 booster shots this week without a staple of its normal decision-making process: data from a study showing whether the shots were safe and worked in humans.
As a better coronavirus vaccine is expected to become available, America’s vaccination program is feeling the effects of a long period of retreat. Local programs to bring shots to the places where people gather and the institutions they trust have folded.
The federal government is ending its free at-home Covid-19 test program this week, citing a lack of funding and efforts to preserve supply ahead of an anticipated fall surge in cases, a White House official said.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has finally admitted publicly that he purposely mislead the media and public last year about his COVID-19 vaccination status.
Rodgers said podcaster Joe Rogan helped him develop a game plan ahead of his COVID-19 diagnosis last year, which ultimately revealed that he had misled the public about his vaccination status.
For the first time since COVID-19 shuttered schools in March 2020, the start of school on Long Island won’t focus on the pandemic but on more traditional things, such as new sneakers and backpacks, seeing old friends and sharing summer stories
Federal officials are “cautiously optimistic” as monkeypox cases decline, even as health officials announced the first pediatric case in New York City.
The New York City Health Department is developing a new program to bolster infection control practices in nursing homes in preparation for the next possible contagious viral outbreak.
“I will never say I’m satisfied with anything, but we did make a lot of progress in restoring people’s faith in government,” Kathy Hochul, New York’s 57th governor and the first from Buffalo in more than a century, told The Buffalo News.
Hochul endorsed nine New York Democrats running in for the U.S. House of Representatives this November after they secured the party’s nomination last Tuesday.
Hochul has made a public pitch to employers in states that have enacted laws restricting abortion: Bring your business to New York.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had to pull out of a big-bucks fundraiser for New York gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin on Long Island on Sunday because of an “unforeseen tragedy,” the candidate’s rep said.
New York’s Democratic Party leaders had criticized the event, saying both Zeldin and DeSantis hold views that the majority of New Yorkers find to be extreme.
Critics said Hochul needs to “give up her creepy obsession” with DeSantis, because her constant shots at the conservative Florida firebrand is only amping up his national profile.
Zeldin may want to bring a version of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act – also referred to as the “don’t say gay” bill – to New York.
Zeldin campaigned in the Bronx last week alongside former City Councilmember Rev. Ruben Diaz Sr., a conservative Democrat with a history of controversial comments.
Zeldin said that Hochul’s comment that Republicans like him should leave the state and move to Florida proves she is not willing to represent all the voters.
Hochul again rebuked criticism from Zeldin and Mayor Eric Adams that she hasn’t made enough changes to bail reforms passed in 2019 amid the state’s ongoing struggles with surging crime.
Hochul hosted predecessor David Paterson in Albany where New York’s first black governor was honored with a newly planted tree as a crowning achievement at the Executive Mansion alongside trees dedicated to the likes of former President and Gov. FDR.
Republicans in the state Assembly announced legislation meant to protect shooting sports offered by schools in New York over concerns the programs conflict with recent gun laws.
It’s been five years since the opening of the first half of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge — a crossing still referred to by many who use it as the new Tappan Zee Bridge.
Adams has rankled senior officials with 32BJ SEIU, the nation’s largest property service workers’ union and an influential supporter of his campaign, with a proposal to limit the hours buildings can put trash out for pickup.
A new Queens school was named Friday for legendary Mets player Tommie Agee – a “childhood hero” of Adams.
New York City’s lifeguard shortage isn’t only because of a lack of applicants. Another problem, participants said, was how difficult the city made it for people to qualify to work at pools and beaches.
Uber — whose vehicles were shown in a study to have significantly increased traffic in parts of New York City — is putting itself near the head of the line of those asking for a break from Manhattan congestion tolls.
Gunfire erupted paces away from St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Midtown yesterday when a game of three-card monte went awry, sending tourists scattering, police and witnesses said. None were injured.
A New York City-owned golf course managed by Trump’s family business is expected to host a Saudi Arabia-backed tournament in October, a city official confirmed.
The city’s green light for the Bronx golf tournament sponsored by the Saudi Arabian government has infuriated relatives of 9/11 victims already fuming over a similar event held at a Trump course in neighboring New Jersey last month.
The 9/11 Justice Group is calling for Adams to denounce his support of the Aramco Series, which is set to hold an event at a Trump Organization golf course in New York.
A federal magistrate judge has recommended rejecting the effort by relatives of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to seize $3.5 billion in frozen Afghan central bank funds to pay off judgment debts owed by the Taliban.
Fifteen people have died in e-bike and scooter crashes in New York so far this year, police data shows — even as the NYPD reports it has stepped up efforts to issue summonses to reckless riders.
People with hopes and dreams died on New York streets at a quicker pace in July than any month since the 2014 start of the city’s Vision Zero effort to eliminate traffic fatalities.
Althea Gibson was the first Black player to win Wimbledon. Soon, the block in Harlem where she grew up will bear her name.
New York City immigrant rights groups say they’re scrambling to help the influx of newly arrived asylum seekers bused in from Texas – and now they’re demanding more government support.
Overwhelmed city officials are struggling to provide a promised intake center and hotel rooms to migrants being shipped by the busload from Texas to the Big Apple.
With New York City’s homeless population on the rise, the Adams administration may turn to summer camps to house recently arrived immigrants who would otherwise enter the strained shelter system.
A liberal Democratic activist group is being accused of anti-Semitism for mocking the names of two Jewish politicians — House candidate Dan Goldman and state Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz.
Six people were shot early yesterday in Albany’s Pine Hills neighborhood, two critically, in a violent incident that happened near a massive street party that continues to disrupt other residents as college classes return.
The second truck in two days has smashed into the notorious Glenridge Road bridge.
One person was stabbed outside a bar in Saratoga Springs overnight on Saturday, in an incident of violence that came as thousands converged in the city for the Travers at Saratoga Race Course.
Winchell Thoroughghbreds’ Epicenter and his jockey, Joel Rosario, waited patiently for the right time to make their move in the $1.25 million, Grade I Travers Stakes at Saratoga Saturday with a paid crowd of 49,672 looking on.
In the face of a major public backlash and internal questions over awarding Matt Araiza the punting job, the Buffalo Bills reversed course by cutting him, two days after a lawsuit was filed alleging he and two college teammates gang-raped a teenager last fall.
Though talks are progressing, the deadline to finalize plans to build the Buffalo Bills’ new $1.4 billion stadium has been pushed back by 45 days, negotiators announced.
NASA today will make its first attempt at launching Artemis I – a massive rocket – into orbit, this time with no astronauts aboard the Orion capsule it will send to space.
The new mega-rocket’s scheduled test launch will give Boeing another chance to prove it can pull off big national projects following past missteps.
A mint condition Mickey Mantle baseball card became the most valuable piece of sports memorabilia to be sold at auction, notching $12.6 million early yesterday morning.
