Latest news with #Soviet-style
New York Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Zohran Mamdani's ‘chilling' call for ‘seizing the means of production' draws outrage from communist refugees: ‘Dangerous and scary'
Several communist refugees and New York pols expressed outrage Monday after a clip resurfaced of presumptive Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani noting that one of his goals is 'seizing the means of production.' 'After [the] Red October Socialist Revolution in 1917, Bolsheviks seized means of production, jailed or killed business owners, eliminated freedoms & took over private farms & food stores,' former Brooklyn Councilman and communist refugee Ari Kagan wrote on X. 'I would never imagine NYC would consider this failed & dangerous government model.' 3 Mamdani noted the unpopularity of 'seizing the means of production' in remarks at the 2021 Young Democratic Socialists of America conference, but said the cause should still be promoted. Stephen Yang Kagan, a Belarus native who grew up under Soviet-style communism, further told The Post that the clip of Mamdani grinning as he parrots communist godfather Karl Marx's marching orders is 'chilling.' 'It's very chilling to hear that,' the former council member said. 'It's dangerous and scary. A majority of New Yorkers have to reject this man.' 'I remember government-run stores in Minsk. There were long lines,' Kagan recalled. Mamdani is a double whammy for Kagan, who is Jewish. 'He's a Hamas sympathizer,' the ex-councilman declared. In the resurfaced clip – from a 2021 Young Democratic Socialists of America conference – Mamdani argues that the 'purpose' of 'this entire project' is 'not simply to raise class consciousness, but to win socialism' and elect leaders who are 'unapologetic about our socialism.' The mayoral candidate, a self-described Democratic Socialist, notes that certain issues socialists 'firmly believe in,' such as boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel and 'the end goal of seizing the means of production' are unpopular at the moment but should still be championed. 'It is critical to the way that we organize, the way that we set up our, you know, set up our work and our priorities that we do not leave any one issue for the other; that we do not meet a moment and only look at what people are ready for, but that we are doing both of these things in tandem, because it is critical for us to both meet people where they're at and to also organize for what is correct and for what is right, and to ensure that over time we can bring people to that issue,' Mamdani said. 3 Kagan was one of several communist refugees who slammed Mamdani over the resurfaced clip Monday. Gabriella Bass Last week, after Mamdani's stunning upset in New York's Democratic mayoral primary, President Trump described the presumptive nominee as a '100% Communist Lunatic.' Mamdani has insisted that he is not a communist. 'No, I am not,' he responded, when asked directly by NBC's Kristen Welker on 'Meet the Press' on Sunday. 'I call myself a democratic socialist, in many ways, inspired by the words of [Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.] from decades ago, who said, 'Call it democracy or call it democratic socialism: There has to be a better distribution of wealth for all of God's children in this country,'' Mamdani added. 3 Mamdani claims he is not a communist. Paul Martinka Brooklyn Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, a native of former Soviet-controlled Ukraine, argued that Mamdani was being deceptive about his true politics. 'This is exactly why Zohran's whole song-and-dance about `democratic socialism' somehow being different from communism is pure deception,' Vernikov argued, when asked about the resurfaced clip. 'Those of us who grew up under communism know this all too well. Our home countries were destroyed by ideas that came dressed in pleasant, persuasive packaging.' 'New Yorkers need to wake up before it's too late.' Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), whose mother fled the communist regime installed in Cuba by late dictator Fidel Castro, said the clip of Mamdani is the 'scariest thing' she's heard the controversial mayoral candidate mutter. 'Of all his left-wing rhetoric, this is the scariest thing Mamdani has said and it's straight out of Karl Marx's Communist playbook,' Malliotakis said. 'My mother fled a country that `seized the means of production' and now my relatives have no medicine, no property and rationed rice and beans in Cuba,' the 11th District rep added. 'Venezuela also `seized it means of production' and a quarter of its population fled and those who remain are living in poverty and misery.' 'What I really don't understand is why immigrants would come to this country if they hate our form of government and economy so much,' Malliotakis continued. 'His family could've chosen any other country in the world including Cuba or Venezuela if they love socialism and communism so much.' Queens Councilwoman Vickie Paladino similarly argued that Mamdani's comments were 'straight out of the Communist Manifesto.' 'There's no way to spin that. He's obviously a full-blown communist, and we cannot have someone like this in charge of America's largest and most important economic center,' Paladino argued. 'Between this and everything else we know about him, it's obvious that Zohran doesn't hold a single identifiable American value.' 'Clearly he lied on his immigration application, and he has no business being here. It's time for this experiment to end. It's time to review Zohran's naturalization status. And it may be time to look seriously at the Communist Control Act again,' she warned. The Post has reached out to Mamdani's campaign for comment.
New York Post
2 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
NYC bodega owners worry Zohran Mamdani will put them out of business with his city-run grocery store plan: ‘I don't want to lose my job'
Bodega owners and workers on Monday sounded the alarm over Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's plan to launch city-owned grocery stores — claiming it'll put them out of business. 'Competing with the city having business is not going to be something that we can support,' Radhames Rodriguez, president of United Bodegas of America, said during a press conference outside a Gristedes supermarket in Midtown. Rodriguez, 62, who owns four bodegas in the Bronx, said his stores and others won't be able to compete with prices at the city-run stores — which would be exempt from paying rent or property taxes under Mamdani's plan. 7 Gristedes owner John Catsimatidis and New York City bodega owners held a press conference to raise concerns about Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's plan for city-run grocery stores on June 30, 2025. Matthew McDermott 7 Radhames Rodriguez, president of United Bodegas of America, said bodegas won't be able to compete with the prices at the city-run grocery stores. Matthew McDermott 'Let's say they sell a dozen eggs for $1 and the cost to us is $4 … that is going to destroy our business,' he said. Miguel Valerio, 51, who owns two bodegas in the Bronx, said he worried for the welfare of his dozen employees — and pointed out government workers may not be suited to running a business like his. 'I don't want to lose my job,' Valerio, a dad of two, told The Post. 'The government doesn't want to do the same thing I do everyday. I wake up at 5:00, I go to sleep by 11:00 every day,' he added. 'What is going to happen to people running their business?' Valerio asked. 'I have 12 people working for me, that's what I care about.' 7 Bronx bodega owner Miguel Valerio said he is worried about his employees if Mamdani is elected. Matthew McDermott The pilot program is part of Mamdani's 'affordability' platform, aiming to provide New Yorkers with cheaper prices for food and other necessities to customers. But merchants complained the government-run stores could undercut the prices of privately-run bodegas that are required to pay tax and rent or mortgages, siphoning off customers. During a podcast interview Monday, Mamdani emphasized the program is a $60 million experiment — one city-owned grocer in each borough, or five total. 'If it isn't effective at a pilot level it doesn't deserve to be scaled up,' the Democratic Socialists of America candidate said on the 'Plain English' podcast with Derek Thompson. 7 Mamdani said he only is planning on creating one city-owned store per borough to start. Stephen Yang But bodega and grocery store owners and workers called it a rotten egg, Soviet-style plan that pits the government against small private sector merchants. 'It's going to be a huge problem. You can't force us to pay taxes and then be our adversary,' Rafael Garcia, owner of La Economica Meat Choice store on University Avenue in The Bronx, told The Post. In some bodegas, about two-thirds of the business is from customers with government-financed food stamps and Garcia said there was no doubt those shoppers would flock to the lower-cost, city-run grocery stores. Francisco Marte, the president of the Bodega and Business Association, said at Monday's press conference: 'Socialism hasn't been successful anywhere in the world. Even China has turned to capitalism. Come on, this is stupid.' 7 Rafael Garcia, owner of La Economica Meats Choice in The Bronx, predicted Mamdani's plan would be a 'huge problem' for his store. Stephen Yang Gristedes owner John Catsimatidis, who also spoke at the event at Second Avenue and East 40th Street said, 'City-owned supermarkets don't work. Cities do not know how to run a business.' Progressive Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson had considered launching a municipal grocery store in the Windy City after a study concluded it was 'not only feasible but necessary.' But Johnson said he put the plan on hold after companies reached out and asked to join the venture, suggesting a public-private partnership to improve access in so-called food desserts or a public market instead. Government-owned grocery stores have been tried in smaller towns in rural America that lost their last grocers — with mixed results at best. A town-owned grocery store in 1,400-resident Baldwin, Fla. opened in 2019. The store operated at a loss and closed in March. A city-owned store set up in Erie, Kan., didn't attract enough customers and sales to break even and was forced to change its approach. To lower costs, it leased out the building to a private operator to be the grocer, while the city retained ownership, Governing Magazine reported. Not every municipal grocery has gone belly up. Another Kansas town, 600-person St. Paul, bought its own store in 2013 after the last supermarket closed and nearest grocer was 17 miles away. The government-owned grocer is still operating there, a success story cited by Mamdani. 7 Fernando Mateo, the spokesman for the United Bodegas of America, speaking at the press conference. Matthew McDermott The Queens assemblyman, during the lengthy podcast interview, defended his own plan, noting that prices have skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic. 'There is a sticker shock that New Yorkers tell me about all the time,' he said. 'And the most obvious examples here are eggs and milk and bread that have been cited again and again.' Every morning, the NY POSTcast offers a deep dive into the headlines with the Post's signature mix of politics, business, pop culture, true crime and everything in between. Subscribe here! Mamdani — who will face off against Mayor Eric Adams and other candidates in the November general election — said poorer residents of color suffer from living in 'food deserts' that lack access to affordable produce. 'This is a proposal of reasonable policy experimentation,' he said. The estimated price tag for the program is less than the $140 million the city spends on supermarkets for participation in the city's Food Retail Expansion to Support Health Program or FRESH to sell food in underserved areas. Mamdani, the frontrunner for the mayoralty, also claimed the city's response to the pandemic, including quickly setting up testing and vaccination sites, showed that the government could run a few grocery stores efficiently. 7 Catsimatidis said the plan won't work because the city can't successfully run the businesses. Matthew McDermott 'Food is non-negotiable. It's not a luxury item,' he said. Mamdani also took a shot at Catsimatidis. 'It's funny even to hear some of the critiques – especially from John Catsimatidis, the owner of Gristedes – is to completely miss the fact that many New Yorkers can't even afford to go into those types of stores today,' he said.
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Opinion: We needed to get rid of the dairy cartel, not sanctify it in law
By Lawrence L. Herman It never ends. On June 5, Yves-François Blanchet, the Bloc leader in Parliament, tabled Bill C-202, a private member's bill that's yet another regrettable effort to enshrine Canada's Soviet-style supply management system in the statute books. It legislates against any increased imports of dairy products, eggs and poultry — sectors the system protects from foreign competition — under Canada's current or future trade agreements. The Senate fast-tracked the bill, passing it on June 17 after it sailed through the House with virtually unanimous support. It's an unprecedented piece of protectionist legislation that favours this one group of farmers. C-202 is virtually identical to Bill C-282, which a Bloc member tabled in 2021 during the past Parliament. It was passed by the Commons in June 2023 and was still being examined in the Senate last November when Donald Trump was elected. It had been stalled there for almost two years and — mercifully — died on the order paper when this spring's election was called. As well as preventing imports, supply management is a quintessential barrier to internal trade, designed to protect local producers against out-of-province competition, whether in dairy, eggs or poultry. Under the influence of the well-financed dairy lobby, the Trudeau government and all the other parties supported Bill C-282 as it made its way through the House. This time round, however, it's hard to see how the Liberals could have voted in favour of a blatantly protectionist bill completely at odds with the Carney government's core policy of dismantling interprovincial trade barriers — and doing so before July 1, no less. While Blanchet and his Bloc colleagues have remained focused on currying favour with Quebec dairy farmers, there has been a sea change in the geopolitical context, most notably a dramatic deterioration in the Canada-U.S. relationship, with Trump targeting dairy import restrictions among the many trade assaults he's been directing at Canada. For Parliament to raise this protectionist fence higher is downright foolish — as was emphasized by experts over and over again during the debate on C-282 — and would seriously jeopardize our relations with the U.S. at this very sensitive juncture. That alone should have consigned C-202 to the Parliamentary dustbin. But some other factors that are not always fully aired should outrage Canadians when the facts are better understood. Consider the dairy sector as an illustration. First, to make supply management work, over the past 50 years governments at both federal and provincial levels have layered complexities onto the system, creating a mind-numbing process run by vast bureaucracies from coast to coast. This newspaper explained it all in a report compiled by staff about a year ago. At the top of the structure is the Canadian Dairy Commission (CDC) and its Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee (CMSMC). Each year, the CMSMC sets the allowable production volume for Canada as whole and the Commission then divides this up among the provinces, who parcel out the quota to their own producers, distributors, processors and consumers. The CDC then sets the farm-gate price for milk under what's called the National Pricing Formula. While consumers may think of milk as milk, under supply management milk is divided into five different classes and many sub-classes, based on what the milk is used for, whether as a consumer good or for further processing. The CDC applies the National Pricing Formula to set the annual farm-gate price in each class, with the price being different for each milk component — butter fat, proteins and solids. Provincial marketing boards then take all of this and, after even more consultations with industry players, determine who in their province is allowed to produce what, as well as where and to whom it can be sold, in what volume and at what price in that particular province. This goes on, year after year, involving scads of officials. Other industries, meanwhile, manage to decide prices and quantities without regulators' help. The point here isn't to go through all of these bureaucratic intricacies — details can be found in the FP report already referred to and on the CDC website — but to illustrate that in diary alone, the system is inordinately complex, difficult to penetrate, and run by large bureaucracies across the country. All this for the benefit of a few more than 9,000 dairy farms, compared, say, with Canada's 71,000 beef farms and 7,400 pig farms, which operate on the open market and receive no such guarantees. These numbers alone illustrate the inequities of this complex, over-staffed and costly system that exists to protect a small but highly favoured fraction of Canada's agricultural producers. When it comes to who runs the system, there's another set of issues that should outrage Canadians. It's run by insiders, persons with direct connections to the dairy industry, the same industry the system is supposed to regulate. For example, the CDC board is made up of persons with dairy industry connections, the chair being a dairy farmer himself. The Supply Management Committee is also weighted with industry players. At the provincial level, there's the same problem. All members of the Ontario Milk Marketing Board, for example, are dairy farmers, a pattern replicated in the other provinces. It's hard to see where the public interest comes in. Jack Mintz: Don't expect big economic gains from lower interprovincial barriers Bjorn Lomborg: Freer trade isn't dead yet, which is a good thing for all of us All of this should have led to a derailment of Bill C-202 and for the Carney government to start to phase out supply management as an outdated, discriminatory, protectionist system, contrary to the public interest. Though C-202 has passed, the government could hold up the proclamation needed to bring it into force pending further developments in our trading relations. In the meantime, Canadians should be concerned both about supply management itself and about the outsized influence its lobbyists have in Ottawa. Lawrence L. Herman, international counsel at Herman & Associates, is a senior fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute. Sign in to access your portfolio
Int'l Business Times
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
'No Kings' Protests and Downpours Rain on Trump's Birthday Military Parade
Thunderstorms and a wave of nationwide protests disrupted Donald Trump's lavish military parade in Washington, D.C., as critics slammed the event's cost and symbolism on the Army's 250th birthday and the president's 79th. The June 14 celebration was designed as both a tribute to the U.S. Army, founded in 1775, and a patriotic birthday spectacle for President Trump, who has long admired large-scale military displays. Leading up to the event, Trump promoted the parade as a tribute to American victories in war, with preparations including tank deliveries, flight rehearsals, and heavy security infrastructure around the National Mall, CBS reported. Saturday's festivities are set to feature thousands of troops, vintage and modern military equipment, and aerial flyovers, culminating in a parade down Constitution Avenue. Despite the pomp, storm clouds gathered, bringing downpours that soaked attendees and disrupted schedules. "We're going to have a great time; we are going to have a great celebration," Trump said earlier this week. While the event pressed on, a larger story unfolded across the country: "No Kings" rallies sprang up in dozens of cities, organized by labor groups and progressive coalitions to protest what they called Trump's authoritarian leanings. These protests intentionally bypassed D.C., aiming instead to decentralize resistance and shift focus away from what organizers labeled a "strongman showcase." Democrats blasted the estimated $25–$45 million price tag as wasteful and self-serving, while some Republicans said the military display resembled those of authoritarian regimes. Sen. Tammy Duckworth called it a "$30 million ego trip," and Sen. Rand Paul said the visuals were reminiscent of Soviet-style shows of force. Trump's warning earlier in the week that protesters would be "met with very big force" only added fuel, with Democratic lawmakers accusing him of using intimidation tactics. The White House attempted damage control, stating Trump supported peaceful dissent, but the message was muddled. Originally published on Latin Times
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
MSNBC Host Cracks Up Over Trump Email About Parade: 'Sorry, That's A Funny Sentence'
MSNBC host Chris Hayes couldn't contain his laughter on air Friday while reading a fundraising email from President Donald Trump. The email asked for donations for his Saturday military parade, which, as it turns out, most Americans aren't that eager to fund. 'Donald Trump is holding a North Korean-style military parade, Soviet-style military parade through the nation's capital, something that we just don't do as a country,' said Hayes. 'The last one we did was after the first Persian Gulf War, which was celebrating the end of a war.' He continued, 'We don't have that here. It just so happens to fall on his 79th birthday. He's even fundraising from it, if you could believe it — well, you can, of course — sending out this email with the subject line, quote, 'Please help me before my military parade!'' Hayes broke into laughter reading that last line aloud, as a screenshot of the email was displayed onscreen. He quickly composed himself and continued his coverage on the impending Washington, D.C., event. 'I'm sorry, that's a funny sentence,' said Hayes. ''My military parade.'' Trump has never served in the armed forces and reportedly avoided the Vietnam War draft with a diagnosis of bone spurs in his feet. The daughter of the doctor who provided the diagnosis later said he had done so as a favor to his landlord — Trump's father, Fred Trump. The parade and surrounding festivities are meant to celebrate the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary, though the event notably also falls on Trump's 79th birthday. It is set to feature nearly 7,000 troops, various ground vehicles and fighter jet flyovers in a display that could cost up to $45 million. It will coincide with expected protests across the country, which retired military officials believe could be a dangerous combination. 'Donald Trump has already promised, quote, 'very heavy force' against anyone who would choose to protest his special day,' Hayes said Friday. 'He didn't direct this at rioters or looters or people that broke the law, you know. He said protesters would be met with very heavy force.' The president issued that warning Tuesday from the Oval Office. Former U.S. Military Officials Fear 'Tiananmen Square Moment' At Trump Parade: Report 'Daily Show' Audience Erupts Over Desi Lydic's Trump Parade Realization New Poll Reveals How Most Americans — Including MAGA — Really Feel About Trump's Military Parade
