Latest news with #ThePost
New York Post
an hour ago
- Business
- New York Post
Zohran Mamdani's fiscal armageddon could bring NYC back to the bad old days
Ah, it's getting easier to long for the good old days — when Gotham was dominated by machine politics, corruption and fiscal mismanagement. Yes, it led to the dreaded fiscal crisis of the mid- to late 1970s, near bankruptcy and a deep city recession that hit hard at the working class in the five boroughs and even the suburbs, including my own family in Westchester. How the city fell into this fiscal abyss, which actually lasted a few years into the next decade, and climbed out is all laid out in gruesome detail in the extremely readable prose by Rich Farley, a lawyer who works on financial transactions. He's the author of 'Drop Dead; How a Coterie of Corrupt Politicians, Bankers, Lawyers, Spinmeisters, and Mobsters Bankrupted New York, Got Bailed Out, Blamed the President and went back to Business as Usual (And it Might Be Happening Again),' released in April. The title is a mouthful and it's not 100% accurate. New York City never declared bankruptcy. There's a debate that it even technically defaulted on its debt when the trigger for the crisis — investors losing confidence in the city's financial condition — boycotted buying city bonds. But those are mere quibbles as I dive into this trenchant historical account of how Gotham — with all its wealth and commerce on Wall Street and real estate and then a lot more — was brought to the brink, a near Detroit-style fiscal meltdown. Follow The Post's coverage of the NYC mayoral race In reading Farley's work, it does dawn on me that for all the grease and grime of those years, the city was immensely savable. The financial crisis did come to an end, but not until after a surge in crime because we couldn't afford cops, arson (The Bronx was literally burning), and unemployment (people like my dad, who lost his construction job because of a halt to city infrastructure spending). It was fixed, at least for decades, after the political leadership did re-establish itself as a stabilizing force. The saviors The saviors were people like Hugh Carey, the governor, who instituted reforms that repaired the confidence of investors and businesses. And Mario Cuomo (yes, that Mario Cuomo), who would succeed Carey and keep a close eye on his hometown for three terms during what's best described as a mini renaissance. And an upstart US congressman named Ed Koch, who inspired confidence that the city must and could survive. He ran for mayor on the slogan 'How Am I Doin'?' and won three terms. Don't forget that federal prosecutor named Rudy Giuliani, who took on the mob and municipal corruption with equal zeal, set the stage for becoming mayor and ushered in a real rebirth in Gotham of low crime and a booming business community. Here's the latest on NYC mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani There was also an engaged business community — people like investment banker Felix Rohatyn — that wasn't afraid to step up and say enough of the nonsense. And here's why I would love to turn back the clock, as crazy as that might sound. None of the gumption shown by those civic and political leaders is evident anymore, as a more serious existential threat looms — worse than 'Fat Tony' Salerno of Genovese fame, Tammany's Carmine DeSapio and graft in the Parking Violations Bureau. All of their lawlessness was snuffed out as the establishment re-established order. The fiscal Armageddon I fear comes in the form of a smiling socialist named Zohran Mamdani, who just won the city's Democratic mayoral primary over the son of the great Mario Cuomo. Mamdani outhustled Andrew Cuomo at every turn. Based on what we know, Mamdani seems like an honest fellow, which is good — and very, very bad. Bad because he's a noxious breed of politician who isn't afraid to promote his weird behavior and sell it as gold to an uninformed electorate. Even worse, no one in our political class or the business elite has really stepped up to call him out. He wants to tax to death those businesses and wealth producers that remain and employ our working class. He wants to give stuff out for free like bus rides. He wants to socialize grocery stores. He wants to defund the police, a sure recipe for more business flight. He has not disavowed the phrase 'globalize the intifada,' which many New Yorkers can reasonably interpret (as it was during those vile campus protests) as a form of antisemitism. There are more than 1 million Jews living in the Big Apple, but how much did Cuomo make of Mamdani's acquiescence to this sick rhetoric? Very little. NYC is still the epicenter of finance, the nation's largest bank run by Jamie Dimon. He has his headquarters and home here. But not a word from America's banker. In this city and state led by Dems, seasoned politicians — people like Chuck Schumer, a Brooklyn assemblyman and later congressman who is now US Senate minority leader — have been quiet as a mouse, except for congratulating Mamdani on his victory. Cuomo and Schumer should ask themselves if their precious political futures are worth not calling out this nonsense and angering the AOC wing of the party. Business leaders need to ask themselves if the price of doing business here is worth allowing a lefty loon to run the epicenter of capitalism. Our budget is in better shape from the morass of the 1970s. If you look at the numbers as I do, NYC is always a recession away from trouble. Couple that with rank socialist policies like defunding the police, and you see how things can and will go sideways if Mamdani wins — and you will miss the mess of the 1970s.
Hindustan Times
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Joey Chestnut is prepping for Nathan's Hot Dog contest. Here's how much prize money he can win
Joey Chestnut, the 16-time champion of the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, is set to compete in the 2025 event next month at Coney Island, New York. Days ahead of the contest, the 41-year-old told The New York Post that he's hungry and is staying that way 'no matter what'. He is coming off a 2024 ban due to a sponsorship conflict with Impossible Foods. Joey Chestnut is returning to Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest this year(X) 'I'm hungry. That's all it is. I'm staying hungry no matter what. I'm expecting to eat uncomfortable and bloated and I'm ignoring whatever feelings it takes to get there,' Chestnut told The Post. When asked if he feels the pressure, the 41-year-old added: "I wouldn't say pressure, it's more of support. Every once in a while you get a little bit of pressure from people who are betting. Like, 'Oh, you need to get this Over.' I'm like, 'Oh my god, the Over's really high this year (laugh).' Joey Chestnut will be fighting (rather eating) for a massive prize money on July 4. Here are details about how much he can win. Prize money for Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2025 Total Purse: The contest offers a $40,000 purse, split evenly between the men's and women's divisions, with $20,000 allocated to each. Payout structure: 1st Place (Winner): $10,000 for both the men's and women's champions. 2nd Place: $5,000, awarded to the runner-up in each division. 3rd Place: $2,500, for third-place finishers. 4th Place: $1,500, for fourth-place competitors. 5th Place: $1,000, for fifth-place finishers. Historically, Nathan's has offered non-cash prizes, such as a 2004 travel package from Orbitz, but no such awards are confirmed for 2025. How is Joey Chestnut preparing? Chestnut began training in April 2025, as he typically does, with practice contests simulating the 10-minute event. His regimen involves overcoming the psychological barrier of feeling full, a skill honed since his 2007 debut. With a record of 76 hot dogs and buns (HDB) in 2021 and 83 HDB in a 2024 Netflix special against Takeru Kobayashi, Chestnut is projected to exceed 71.5 HDB in 2025.
New York Post
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Brad Pitt-led Formula 1 drama ‘F1: The Movie' speeds into No. 1
Brad's in the pole position. 'F1: The Movie' sped to No. 1 on Friday, its opener, raking in $25 million, according to The Numbers. The Post praised the sports drama, starring Brad Pitt as a Formula One driver who comes out of retirement, as 'a high-octane driving movie that's actually fast and furious.' The flick, which is slated to bring in up to $60 million this weekend, already made Apple Studios history as its biggest opening weekend ever, dethroning 'Killers of the Flower Moon,' according to Variety. 'How to Train Your Dragon' remained in the second spot, with $5.74 million in sales. 3 In 'F1,' Brad Pitt plays a racecar driver who makes a comeback after a 30-year retirement. AP The live-action remake is projected to earn $19 million this weekend, its third in theaters. In third was 'M3GAN 2.0,' with earnings of $4.53 million on its first day at the box office. The Post called the sequel to the 2022 original, which centers around a creepy child-sized robot doll that runs on AI, 'an annoying, forgettable and hard-to-follow action-comedy.' 3 The live-action remake of 'How to Train Your Dragon' was in second place on its third Friday in theaters. AP 3 The Post called 'M3GAN 2.0″ 'an annoying, forgettable and hard-to-follow action-comedy.' AP Disney and Pixar's 'Elio' landed in fourth, with a $3.2 million take on its second Friday in theaters. In fifth was zombie thriller '28 Years Later' — a swift downfall from its No. 1 spot last Friday, its opener — which took in $3 million.
Washington Post
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
The Creator Lens with YouTube's Colin Rosenblum & Samir Chaudry
Today's creators are rewriting the rules, reshaping culture and setting the stage for the future of media. YouTube creators and podcasters Colin Rosenblum and Samir Chaudry join The Post's Dave Jorgenson from Cannes to break down the evolution of the creator economy, balancing business with authenticity, the rise of personalized AI-driven content and why 'YouTube is the new TV.' Click here for transcript Colin Rosenblum Host, 'The Colin and Samir Show' Samir Chaudry Host, 'The Colin and Samir Show'
New York Post
8 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Zohran Mamdani's rise should teach NYC's non-radicals to invest in the long game
Now that tossing $25 million into last-minute spending to promote Andrew Cuomo failed utterly to stop pro-Intifada, anti-cop socialist Zohran Mamdani from winning the Democratic mayoral primary, perhaps New York business leaders will finally realize that political 'investment' requires an eye on the long game, and fostering an entire infrastructure that can produce credible centrists candidates. 'Crying over Mamdani is, as they say, a bit rich when it comes from the rich,' snarked The Post's Charles Gasparino, since the 'city's business class sat idly by' as the local left grew ever more powerful. New York magazine's Errol Louis was even more on-point: 'The same people dumping millions into last-minute attack ads should have been investing time and money to recruit, educate, and encourage young leaders.' Advertisement Dumping a ton of cash in at the last minute can work when it comes to passing or defeating a single bill, or influencing any particular government decision — but altering the political climate requires steady attention and investment. 'The city's business community,' writes Gasparino, 'is the most politically neutered class of people I have ever met.' Partly that's just fear of sticking your neck out; partly that so many think of themselves as 'liberal' or 'progressive' without ever noticing how drastically the meaning of those labels has shifted; partly the knowledge deep down that they just don't understand how politics works. Advertisement And a 'go along to get along' mindset in a Democratic Party-dominated city and state has resulted in very little pushback as the hard left came to dominate that party. The political-talent pipeline in this town is no longer about community-based clubhouses; it's about social-service nonprofits and public-sector unions that feed off the taxpayers on a scale that dwarfs Tammany Hall's wildest dreams. Each in his own way, Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg were political unicorns — Rudy rising to prominence as a federal prosecutor; Mike popping in with a huge fortune that still wouldn't have won him office except for the crisis atmosphere in the immediate wake of 9/11. And all through the 20 years of their mayoralties, the left has been creeping up from the bottom of city government, gaining City Council seats once held by moderates, with every successive borough president, comptroller and so on steadily more progressive than the last. Advertisement Meanwhile, supposedly 'nonpartisan' reforms — taxpayer funding of campaigns; the 'ranked choice' voting rules — further added to insiders' advantages, making it that much harder for fresh faces and voices to break in unless, like Mamdani, they had the support of a political machine like the Working Families 'Party' or the Democratic Socialist apparat. Building such infrastructure takes years; interests that feed off the public put in the time, talent, care and effort to do it. Hiring an expensive consultant for a single campaign can't match those results. Advertisement Even if the city and the business community somehow dodge the Mamdani bullet this fall, the left will keep coming back, ever stronger, unless and until the folks that get fed off of start doing 'political investing' for the long term. That means finding and fostering young political moderates, supporting institutions (even, yes, the city's near-extinct Republican Party) that will oppose the left on a million minor battles that never make a single headline — and not thinking you can fix things by paying attention at the last minute.
