Good morning, it’s Wednesday.
I had to dig out some light sweaters today. And jackets. I was not happy about it. Though I do have to admit, this is good running weather, and also biking, provided that you have the right gear. Working out in extreme heat/humidity might be character building, but it’s not really all that enjoyable – to me, anyway.
I’ve been watching with detached interest the goings-on in Chicago. I can’t say I’m entirely sorry that I’m not covering it live like I used to go – especially when things go as long as they did on the first night. Endless hours of live TV might seem glamorous, but it’s really draining. Putting in a 14+ hour day and then getting up after three or four hours of sleep to do it all over again gets old fast.
The protests, in particular, interest me – or, rather, the handling of them. I was at the DNC in Boston where there was a “free speech zone” designated for protests, which make the protestors all the more angry, as they felt their constitutional rights were being violated.
These days, though, you can’t be too careful – especially in the wake of an assassination attempt on one of the major party candidates, not to mention the confirmed efforts by at least one foreign government (that we know of so far) to interfere in this year’s election proceedings.
I don’t love going to big events anymore, point blank. That includes major athletic races, concerts – inside and open air – public transportation hubs, parades, festivals, and political rallies, (especially those). I hate to live my life this way, but the sad reality is that these sorts of places and gatherings tend to be targets for individuals intent on harming as many people as possible.
According to the 2024 Global Terrorism Index (GTI), terrorism continues to be a serious global threat. Deaths from terrorist attacks increased by 22 percent in 2023 to 8,352 – the highest level since 2017. And the attacks that are causing these deaths are growing more deadly, as it’s taking fewer of them – 3,350, a drop of 22 percent – to kill a higher number of people.
The terrorism epicenter has moved from the Middle East to the Central Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, which now accounts for over half of all terrorism deaths. The U.S. meanwhile, accounted for 76 percent of terrorism-related deaths in Western democracies, though the number of incidents hit a 15-year low.
I guess this should comfort me in some way, but the truth is that it doesn’t really. The purpose of terrorism is, as the word suggests, to terrorize – to strike fear in the hearts of a populace and make them change their behavior. It’s the unpredictable nature of terrorism, the fact that we never truly know when and where it will strike, that makes it so, well, terrifying – at least to me.
The definition of terrorism, according to Merriam-Webster, in case you’re wondering, is: “The unlawful use or threat of violence especially against the state or the public as a politically motivated means of attack or coercion.”
Today is the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, which was established in 2017 by the UN General Assembly with the goal of “honoring and supporting the victims and survivors of terrorism”, promoting international solidarity in the effort to combat extremism. Another goal is to support the victims and survivors of terrorism, whose lives are forever changed by the attacks, but who are often forgotten as the world moves on while they cannot.
The cooler weather continues today, as temperatures will again remain well below 70 degrees. (Don’t worry, a warming trend is right around the corner; we’re not quite done with summer just yet). Skies will be mostly cloudy.
In the headlines…
Warning of a difficult fight ahead, former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama yesterday called on the nation to embrace Kamala Harris in urgent messages to the Democratic National Convention that were at times both hopeful and ominous.
“America, hope is making a comeback,” the former first lady declared. She then tore into Republican Donald Trump, a sharp shift from the 2016 convention speech in which she told her party, “When they go low, we go high.”
The former first lady turned one of Trump’s most controversial campaign lines against him: “Who’s going to tell him that the job he’s currently seeking might just be one of those ‘Black jobs’?” she said.
As the former president admitted when he took the stage last night, “I am the only person stupid enough to speak after Michelle Obama.”
Barack Obama’s speech was more than just a partisan broadside: It was a philosophical brief in defense of liberalism, a kind of first-principles moral argument that no other major convention speaker offered.
The former president also made a double entendre joke about Trump’s obsession with event crowd sizes that took the internet by storm.
Harris’s decision to support Barack Obama in a 2008 primary race dominated by Hillary Clinton was a political risk. It paid off, and the former president never forgot it.
Democrats managed to be in two places at once last night, holding a ceremonial roll-call vote at their Chicago convention to celebrate Harris as their party’s nominee, while she herself rallied supporters roughly 80 miles north in Milwaukee.
Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman, drew on his decade-old relationship with Harris in a passionate pitch for her candidacy at the Democratic National Convention, urging Americans to follow his lead in trusting her with their families’ futures.
Emhoff shared the story of how he nervously called Harris for the first time at 8.30 am, a time he humorously noted was unusual for a first contact. He left a rambling voicemail that she saved and now re-plays annually on their anniversary.
Democrats are turning to Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi as one of their messengers on immigration and border security at the DNC by awarding him a speaking slot yesterday along with other Democratic lawmakers for a section focused on immigration.
Mayor Eric Adams told reporters he didn’t ask for a speaking slot at this week’s Democratic National Convention and that there are no sour grapes between him and party leaders over the fact that he wasn’t offered one.
Adams will be at the convention today and tomorrow. Political observers insisted that the mayor’s lack of a speaking role is indeed a snub by the Biden-Harris team.
Adams is looking to control the questions reporters ask him — an unusual declaration in response to a query about his role supporting Harris. His counsel told reporters not to ask purely political questions at his weekly briefing, and then backed down.
President Joe Biden approved in March a highly classified nuclear strategic plan for the United States that, for the first time, reorients America’s deterrent strategy to focus on China’s rapid expansion in its nuclear arsenal.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer would end the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap if he remains in control of the Senate after the November election, setting up a showdown over one of the most contentious tax provisions at stake next year.
The upcoming winter season in New England is on track to being a wetter and snowier one, with a little help from La Niña, according to the Farmer’s Almanac.
It released its extended winter 2024 to 2025 forecast and described that a “wet winter whirlwind” is on the way. The Almanac noted how La Niña will be present throughout the season.
The Harris-Walz campaign recently announced the largest digital ad buy in presidential campaign history, reflecting a strategic adaptation to the growing dominance of streaming and social media channels.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential team relied on a super PAC for the signatures needed to get on the ballot in Arizona, according to people with knowledge of the operation.
The IDF’s mission to retrieve the bodies of six Israeli hostages from a Hamas tunnel system 32 feet below Gaza and surrounded by terrorists was the fastest operation of its kind since the war began, officials said.
Both Israel and Hamas have poured cold water on the idea that a cease-fire deal could be imminent, saying that mediators’ efforts — and the latest US proposal aimed at bridging gaps — have failed to resolve some of the most substantive disputes in the talks.
New York’s highest court upheld a law that allows ballots to be mailed in during the early voting period ahead of an election, soundly rejecting arguments from Republicans that the statute violates the state constitution.
Hochul’s abrupt U-turn away from a plan to cut congestion by tolling motorists in the core of Manhattan has thrown a state commitment to fund environmental mitigation programs in The Bronx into question.
Hochul is a part of an effort to get Democrats elected in competitive House races in New York, including by organizing on Long Island where Republicans hold power in an otherwise blue state.
“The Late Show” host poked fun at Hochul’s mistake in her DNC speech when she referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “the first president of the United States.”
Hochul will miss the first day of the New York State Fair, which is traditionally “Governor’s Day,” because of her attendance at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Hochul has hired private counsel to defend her decision to pause congestion pricing in court — specifically, Boyd Johnson, the same lawyer representing Mayor Adams in an ongoing probe into potential campaign finance violations.
New York State officials have granted New York City permission to begin evicting many of the roughly 30,0000 migrant families living in Department of Homeless Services shelters, state officials confirmed.
Commissioner Edward Caban of the New York Police Department dismissed the disciplinary charges against a top chief who had interfered with the arrest of a retired officer who had chased three boys while armed, according to an internal document.
Adams gave legendary TV weatherman, Al Roker, a very special gift for his 70th birthday on Tuesday: A key to New York City.
Adams’ top attorney Lisa Zornberg said that neither the mayor nor anyone working in his government office have been told they are targets of a federal investigation into his 2021 campaign’s ties to Turkey’s government.
The Adams administration went to considerable lengths to support Steve Cohen’s proposed casino project near Citi Field, including the mayor’s own top attorneys helping Cohen’s team draft parkland alienation legislation.
Adams is set to sign an executive order today that would direct every city agency, from the Parks Department to the police, to see whether new homes could be built on any property it owns.
The US Open is celebrating its 17th year of its sustainability program by becoming the first sports entity in New York City to accept Adams’ challenge and join the New York City Mayor’s Office for Food Policy’s Plant-Powered Carbon Challenge.
New York City rarely leverages state laws meant to prevent potentially dangerous people from having or buying guns, state data shows.
Barron Trump, the youngest member of the Trump family, will attend a university in New York this fall. He has been rumored to be planning to enroll at NYU, but the former president neither confirmed nor denied those reports.
Columbia University hasn’t expelled students who took over Hamilton Hall as part of the pro-Palestinian protests that engulfed campus last semester — despite previous statements that the protesters would face expulsion.
East 180th Street in the Bronx and the 14th Street-Union Square station have been the most fire-prone stations in the city’s subway system over the last five years, according to new MTA data.
A man held in a city jail on Rikers Island died early yesterday at Mount Sinai Hospital Queens after being rushed there in medical distress, the Correction Department confirmed.
A chemical reaction involving emissions from cars and buildings can negate the environmental benefits of urban trees. New research shows what big cities can do about it.
The state Business Council was awarded the 2024 National Association of State Chambers (NASC) State Chamber of the Year Award for best practices and providing exceptional services and results for its members in the past year.
Naomichi Suzuki, the governor of Hokkaido prefecture, on Japan’s northernmost island, toured the Albany NanoTech complex and signed a memorandum of understanding with New York to cooperate on research and economic development programs.
A music video for country music singer Zach Bryan featuring Casey Affleck was filmed this past weekend at a decades-old city eatery: Mike’s Hot Dogs.
As part of a national trend, the Glenmont Walmart is limiting self-checkout lane use in most instances to shoppers who are buying 15 or fewer items. Those buying more items will have to go through traditional lanes where store clerks will check them out.
This fall, Franklin County authorities intend to sell the landmark mountain best known as the Big Tupper downhill skiing center.
A local woman filed a lawsuit alleging that a Columbia County sheriff’s deputy working courthouse security returned her cellphone to the wrong person, leading to sexually explicit photos and videos on the phone being published to social media.
Alice Green, the founder of the Center for Law and Justice and a steadfast champion for civil rights in the Capital Region, died yesterday at the age of 84. Charles Touhey, Green’s husband, said she experienced cardiac arrest at St. Peter’s Hospital.
Jennifer Lopez has filed to divorce Ben Affleck after two years of marriage. Lopez submitted the paperwork yesterday in Los Angeles Superior Court, according to TMZ, which reported that filed she pro per, meaning by herself and without an attorney.
The A-list couple, who married in 2022, had attempted to rekindle their romance after close to two decades.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
