Happy Friday! Good morning.
On this day in 1961, history was made in the realm of space exploration, catapulting – quite literally – the entire race into a new era of understanding the universe and the extremely tiny role we play in it. A Soviet astronaut named Yuri Gagarin, 27, became the first human to enter into space. He did so in a vehicle called Vostok 1, which – with him in it – circled Earth at a speed of 27,400 km/hour.
The entire flight lasted 108 minutes, at the end of which Gagarin ejected from the capsule in which he sat throughout the experience and parachuted back to Earth. (This was a departure from previous U.S. human spaceflight programs).
This record-breaking moment had far reaching implications – both scientific and political, as the so-called “space race” – the period from the 1950s through the 1970s during which Russia and the U.S. were furiously trying to one-up one another by “conquering” outer space – was well underway at the time. And this was clearly a point in the U.S.S.R.’s “win” column.
Gagarin had a fascinating life that rose from humble beginnings to worldwide fame, and, unfortunately, ended in tragedy.
He was the son of a carpenter and grew up on a collective farm, before attending a trade school from which he graduated as a molder. It wasn’t until he continued his studies at an industrial college that he was introduced to flying. He then entered the Society Air Force cadet school, from which he graduated in 1957.
Gagarin joined the Soviet air force, and was one of 19 pilots chosen in a secret national selection process to eventually join an elite group of six who would go on to train to serve as the first cosmonauts of the Vostok program. He rose above his peers to be selected for the inaugural manned spaceflight mission – an event that turned him into an international celebrity.
Gagarin quickly became the face of the Soviet space program. It helped that he was reportedly handsome, had a winning smile, was well spoken (though only in Russian)), and fairly unassuming. He was decorated and celebrated by his home country, with monuments erected in his honor and streets named after him. Even a moon crater and an asteroid were named after him!
Though the Soviets tried to keep him away from subsequent flying missions, for fear of losing him in an accident, he continued to take to the air. And the worst fears of his higher ups were realized when he died at the age of 34 in a crash of a MiG-15UTI fighter in March 1968. His ashes were interned in the Kremlin Wall along with those of other Soviet heroes.
April 12 was proclaimed the International Day of Human Space Flight by the UN General Assembly in 2011, just before the 50th anniversary of Gagarin’s historic flight.
The weather outlook is, quite frankly, abysmal. Basically rain, rain, and more rain. I get the April showers thing, but this is starting to feel a little over the top. Today: showers and thundershowers are likely with temperatures topping out in the mid 60s.
Tomorrow (Saturday): Showers in the morning, and clouds in the afternoon, with temperatures hovering below 50 degrees. Sunday: More clouds, with thunderstorms developing as the day progresses, temperatures will be in the high 50s.
And there’s more where that came from in the week ahead, it looks like. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
In the headlines…
The United States dispatched its top military commander for the Middle East to Israel yesterday, after President Joe Biden stated that, despite recent friction, American support for Israel “is ironclad” in the event of an attack by Iran.
Israel is reportedly preparing for a direct attack from Iran on southern or northern Israel as soon as the next 24 to 48 hours. A person briefed by the Iranian leadership said that while plans to attack are being discussed, no final decision has been made.
“Out of an abundance of caution, US government employees and their family members are restricted from personal travel” outside the Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Beersheeva areas “until further notice”, a US embassy notice yesterday read.
Israel’s military said it is prepared to defend the country and strike back if Iran retaliates for a deadly airstrike on the Iranian Consulate in Syria.
O.J. Simpson, 76, the former NFL star and broadcaster whose athletic achievements and fame were eclipsed by his 1995 trial in the brutal killings of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman, has died of cancer, his family announced on X.
“On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer,” his family said. “He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren.” Nicknamed “The Juice,” Simpson was one of the most popular athletes of the late 1960s and 1970s.
He ran to football fame and made fortunes in movies. His trial for the murder of his former wife and her friend became an inflection point on race in America.
Trump’s reelection campaign formally asked the Commission on Presidential Debates to move up its fall schedule as soon as possible, potentially trying to pressure Biden into earlier debates in a heated election season.
Trump’s campaign said the proposed face-offs should begin as early as possible to ensure that more Americans “have a full chance” to see the candidates in action before they cast their ballot.
House Speaker Mike Johnson will promote a bill with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence aimed at preventing non-citizens from voting.
This afternoon, lawyers for Trump’s two co-defendants in the classified documents case, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, will square off in court with federal prosecutors in an effort to have the charges they are facing dismissed.
Biden’s campaign launched a seven-figure ad buy in Arizona, focusing on abortion on as the state grapples with the fallout from a state Supreme Court decision earlier this week that enabled an 1864 law that bans nearly all abortions.
Brian Benjamin, New York’s former lieutenant governor, this month formally signaled for the first time that he plans to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his bribery case after a lower court reinstated charges against him just over a month ago.
Benjamin’s attorney Barry Berke filed an application asking for more time to submit a petition for a “writ of certiorari,” which, if granted, would require the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to send the case to the country’s highest court for review.
New York requires employers to offer health insurance to their workers that includes coverage for abortion services, but the state’s top court will soon decide if that regulation should be thrown out.
A new state law banning the slaughter of all equines for human or animal consumption went into effect this week and the lawmakers and advocates who pushed for the legislation are urging police agencies to enforce it.
Critics are furious about Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie’s new plan to crack down on New York’s allegedly fraud-ridden $8 billion Medicaid homecare program.
This year’s budget season has been filled with a colorful array of timelines and metaphors describing the progress that has been made.
Yesterday, the state Senate passed another budget extender and the Assembly is expected to come back today to act on it. This is now the fourth extender since the April 1 budget deadline, pushing the next state payroll deadline to Tuesday.
New York is currently taking a look at state liquor laws that many criticize as being antiquated and harmful to businesses. Some of that is up for discussion in the state budget.
Environmentalists argue Hochul is trying to take a step back in ensuring New Yorkers have access to safe, clean water, because her proposed budget slashes clean water spending from $500 million to $250 million a year for the next two years.
Hochul this week joined Mayor Eric Adams to make opening remarks at the National Action Network’s annual convention, where both leaders heaped praise on the Rev. Al Sharpton as a voice of moral clarity for New York and the nation.
New York City planning officials and Adams proposed zoning changes to tackle the housing crisis by building a little more in every neighborhood.
The third and final “City of Yes” citywide text amendment promises to add about a fifth of the mayor’s “moonshot” goal of 500,000 housing units throughout New York City over the next 10 years, according to the Department of City Planning.
Council Speaker Adrienne Adams advised fellow council members to ignore a new protocol from City Mayor Adams that encourages elected officials to fill out a detailed form to meet with leaders of his administration.
EMTs working for the FDNY must receive body armor and regular self-defense training courses thanks to a pair of bills passed by the City Council.
New documents revealed that foster children in New York City have had their Social Security benefits stripped from them despite the mayor’s new policy pledging the funds would go into savings accounts.
City Hall says it has not yet begun implementing assessments of the “extenuating circumstances” that could earn newly arrived immigrants an extended shelter stay.
A new City Council bill is seeking to ban political fundraisers and campaign consultants from lobbying their former bosses for one year after those politicians are elected.
When an illegal smoke shop called Zaza Waza opened across the street from her Upper West Side district office, Gale Brewer, a local councilwoman, vowed to close it. What happened next was “like a Fellini movie.”
New York’s legal cannabis industry hit a new high this week — with more than 100 licensed pot shops now open across the Empire State, officials said. Of the 103 marijuana sellers in business, 44 are located in New York City.
Manhattan Councilmember Shaun Abreu has proposed a rat birth control program jointly run by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Department of Sanitation — in the latest attempt to quell the rodent plague.
A $780 million, 25,000-seat soccer stadium in Willets Point, Queens, housing major league soccer team New York City Football Club, was approved by the City Council, transforming an area that had been dominated by automobile repair shops.
A Bronx woman whose twin children were smothered to death in their family’s apartment in December has been charged with their murders, the police said.
An inspector with the New York City Department of Buildings allegedly goaded homeowners into bribing him so he could make property complaints filed against them go away, according to charges announced by Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Students and faculty at Cornell University are holding a “Jewish Unity” rally on Sunday to protest rising antisemitism at the Ithaca campus.
The owner of Lily Spa on Route 9 in Queensbury has been charged with allegedly sexually abusing five of his clients, State Police said.
The Orange County Partnership, a powerful nonprofit economic development agency, will have to disclose details about its business after a state appellate court ruled it should be considered a public authority.
A backcountry search in the Adirondacks for a lost 33-year-old New York City man is a reminder that even experienced hikers should prepare for the worst.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
