City Owned Grocery Stores

Last Friday I posted the plan from NYC mayor to open city owned grocery stores to try and help struggling people get the food they need.

This is the post to which I refer….

Those City-Owned Grocery Stores

Of course there are those among us that think this is a good idea (I am one of those people) and there are those that want to crap on the idea by saying big box stores will kill the idea or they just do not want cities trying to solve a problem that the national government helped create.

I say good for those that will try to find a solution or part of one….

First thoughts from a magazine that caters to the food industry….although it is not as condemning as I had thought it would be….

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani took to Instagram to reaffirm his commitment to opening five city-owned grocery stores, one in each borough. Intended to “take on the affordability crisis” as grocery prices soar, this campaign promise is moving closer to reality: La Marqueta in East Harlem was announced as the first site for the municipal grocery store model and is expected to open in 2029. (Other to-be-announced sites will open before La Marqueta, as soon as next year.)

What does it mean for the local government to own a grocery store, and what’s it actually like to shop at a municipal supermarket? This isn’t the first time a city has opened its own grocery store, and similar models — along with Mamdani’s proposed plans — offer a clearer sense of what to expect.

https://www.foodandwine.com/how-government-run-grocery-stores-work-11975917

Those that criticize this plan do not understand how this concept works….they are shooting from the hip because some MORON has called in socialism.

Contrary to the public outcry from critics, city-owned grocery stores are not a novel or radical idea in the United States. The United States military already operates a network of publicly owned grocery stores; rural communities in Kansas have successfully experimented with municipally owned supermarkets; and big cities are exploring their potential and charting plans.

City-owned grocery stores are a promising solution for communities who suffer from the hunger and food insecurity that comes from living in food deserts, urban or rural neighborhoods with limited access to healthy and affordable groceries.

Food deserts exist in part because of misaligned profit motives for private sector grocery companies. Large corporate retailers like Kroger and Whole Foods do not bother to invest in certain communities because, despite demand, low-income neighborhoods lack the infrastructure and purchasing power to sustain their for-profit business. Instead, retailers concentrate or relocate their grocery stores to areas where they can expect a higher rate of return, like wealthier suburban neighborhoods.

That profit incentive creates a harmful cycle that perpetuates a phenomenon known as “supermarket redlining” that leaves thousands of communities underserved.

New York City is home to more than two dozen neighborhoods that are classified as food deserts. These localities are predominantly Black and Hispanic and rely on both bodegas and dollar stores for their grocery needs, creating “food swamps” where unhealthy food options vastly outnumber nutritious ones.

How City-Owned Grocery Stores Can Tackle Food Insecurity

Personal opinion….this idea should be in place already….with the idiots in DC passing judgement on the poor and corporation slobbering over the profits being made on screwing the public….it is time for some real programs to come to the light.

I Read, I Write, You KNow

“lego ergo scribo”

A Personal TomDispatch Farewell (of Sorts)

There are many of us that are critics of the Donny bunch that read TomDispatch….op-eds written for those of us that still think for ourselves….

There is some sad news….Tom Englehardt is stepping down as editor-in-chief….

 

https://original.antiwar.com/engelhardt/2026/06/07/a-personal-tomdispatch-farewell-of-sorts/

 

I for one will miss his insights….these are big shoes to fill and I wish Nick Turse good luck with the new gig.

I Read, I Write, You KNow

“lego ergo scribo”

NYC Does It Again

I recently wrote about a policy that the new mayor of NYC will pursue…..city owned grocery store….personally I think it is a great idea and more cities should be so concerned.

The mayor has yet another plan for the city….this time it will help city employees with child care….

Tucked in New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s sprawling universal childcare plan is a little-talked-about milestone: In September, the city will open what appears to be the first free daycare for municipal workers in the country.

The center, called The Little Apple, is a pilot program that could prove to be a model for cities across the country that are childcare curious, but not ready to take the big universal swing.

Housed in a renovated space on the first floor of the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building in Manhattan, home base for more than 2,000 city workers, the Little Apple will offer free care to the kids of full-time staff. All workers in the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS), a city government support agency, can also take advantage of it regardless of their work location.

The center will be small — just 40 seats for children ages six weeks to 3 years old. To pay for it, the city budgeted about $1.5 million, or $35,000 per child.

“This is what Wall Street could call a good investment,” Mamdani said in a press conference announcing the new center. “We know that after housing, the cost of childcare is what is pushing working families out of this city.”

DCAS Commissioner Yume Kitasei told The 19th said the solution came about as a retention strategy, responding to the needs workers shared. In surveys, workers enthusiastically embraced the idea. One worker described access to free childcare as “life-changing.”

https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/under-mamdani-new-york-will-be-first-to-open-free-childcare-center-for-city-workers/

So far this man has done just about everything he said he wanted to do….he has my vote of mayor of the year.

Right after the first of the year the mayor first major proposal was a tax plan….

A number of new taxes have been proposed this winter and spring to address the City’s structural budget gap. They range from a surcharge on high-income Personal Income Tax filers, to a partial recapture of the federal tax benefits accruing to Pass-Through Entity Tax filers, to higher rates for the City’s business income taxes, to higher real property transaction taxes on luxury properties at time of sale. One of the most likely, and possibly only, new tax revenue to be included in the FY 2027 State budget is a tax on pied-à-terre properties in New York City.

To date, details on the proposed tax have been hard to find, but Governor Hochul announced a revenue estimate of $500 million from 13,000 “second homes” with market value of at least $5 million.  The lack of further information has spurred wide-ranging conjectures regarding which properties might be subject to the tax and how much they might pay.

In this Fiscal Note we use previous pied-à-terre tax proposals to estimate potential revenues and highlight areas of uncertainty. Based on the parameters chosen for the analysis, tax revenues are critically dependent on the share of targeted properties that are rented and on the behavioral responses to the tax. We find that, before adjusting for these factors, our choice of tax rates and brackets could raise almost exactly $500 million from a little over 11,200 properties. However, revenues could be reduced to between roughly $340 million and $380 million based on assumptions on exclusions for rented units and behavioral changes following the imposition of the tax.

The Pied-à-Terre Tax and Its Potential Revenues

Another policy that meets with my acceptance….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Real Political Power

This is a look at the real political power in American elections…..AIPAC.

A PAC that has buckets of cash to influence our elected officials in favor of everything Israel.

 

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/defending-aipac

 

This PAC should be broken down for what it is…..foreign money in our system for the influence of corrupt politicians.

I believe that AIPAC is too influential and has its tentacles in all aspects of our government…..this can no longer be acceptable.

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

If Not Greenland Then Chagos?

Another debacle from the ‘brilliant’ mind of Donny.

There was a time when Donny thought he could buy Greenland from Denmark….well that did not work out well for the idiot…..and now he is setting his beady eyes on Chagos Island.

Chagos?

Not sure where those are located…..think Diego Garcia….

The White House is considering a plan to buy the Chagos Islands, potentially sinking Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to cede the territory’s sovereignty to Mauritius.
US officials have drawn up a proposal to bypass Britain and make its own deal to take control of Diego Garcia, the strategically important UK-US military base, amid uncertainty about its future, The Telegraph understands.
It is among several options drafted by Donald Trump’s administration in a paper aimed at providing alternatives to the Prime Minister’s plan, which would hand control of the islands to Mauritius, an ally of China and Iran.
The White House has been in regular discussions with Downing Street about securing the future of Diego Garcia, one US official with knowledge of the discussions told The Telegraph.
While purchasing the islands is not the leading solution for the White House, the idea has been raised directly with Scott Bessent, the US Treasury secretary, who has brought the matter to the president’s attention, sources said.
The war in Iran and China’s rising naval power have reignited calls to maintain a global chain of strategic military bases.
There is a lot of sensitive shit going on on Diego Garcia….the US is in a panic because of so many things…..island location is perfect for conducting war in the region…..special ops has a large holdings…..espionage especially espionage.
I am sure we will hear more of this brain fart from Donny….and Little Marco…..and Pistol Pete….it ain’t over until the fat prez sings.
Whatcha think?  A good idea or just another brain fart to go wrong?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”

Rep. Massie Is The Only Hero To Tackle The USS Liberty

This is a video of a speech given on the House floor by Rep. Massie…watch the speech and learn something.

Thomas Massie: June 8, 2026 Speech in Congress Blows Up 1967 U.S.S. Liberty Crime Scandal.

It is about damn time that the US demand Israel stand up and take responsibility for killing and injuring American sailors.

Israel has gotten a free ride for over 50 years and now is time for them to be held accountable for their actions on the day.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Freedom To Worship?

Not according to Pistol Pete.

I do not normally post on religion for to me it is a personal decision and should stay that way….because I do not care how you choose to worship because it is a personal thing and should stay that way.

We have the freedom to worship as we see fit….well that is not exactly true you must be part of the ‘qualified’ religions…..

The Department of Defense announced on Friday a significant reduction in the number of religious affiliations it officially recognizes. The new list of 31 is down from more than 200 previously recognized traditions that troops could choose from. The list no longer includes atheists, Unitarian Universalists, pagans, or Wiccans, the AP reports. “This decrease in religious affiliation codes is not designed to make any claims on the legitimacy of any faith or religious belief, nor is it intended to provide a list of ‘officially approved’ religions,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement. The move is intended to help chaplains quickly assess the religious composition of their units to allocate resources, he added.

The list creates broad categories of some Christian traditions—Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist—without specifying denominations within those traditions, which can span the theological and ideological spectrum. Service members can choose to identify as “no religion,””other religions” or agnostic. Also included are Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, the Baha’i faith, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Unitarian Universalist Association, which was cut from the list, said in a statement, “This may make it more difficult for our uniformed UUs to access the spiritual care that they need.” The denomination said it is working on a strategic response to support its adherents in the service.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the impending changes in December, saying the number of faith codes had become unmanageable. “Secretary Hegseth is not ‘streamlining’ anything. He is elevating one narrow religious worldview from the top of the chain of command,” said the Rev. Paul Raushenbush, a Baptist minister and head of the progressive Interfaith Alliance. “The First Amendment does not allow the government to create a hierarchy of faiths, and it certainly does not allow the Pentagon to decide which beliefs are worthy of recognition.” Nearly 70% of troops identify as Christian, a 2019 congressional report said. Almost a quarter of troops were listed as other, unclassified, or unknown. “As a member of a minority religion, I think it’s really important that we be counted,” said Irene Glasse, a pagan religious professional and Marine veteran. “It erases us, and so many of us have served so proudly, so well, and so honorably.”

This is such BS….just more of Pistol Pete’s religious crap.

Here is a list of what Pete says are not recognized religions….

Complete List off Faiths That Just Got Dropped From the Pentagon’s Recognized Religions List

This should go to SCOTUS….they may side with Pistol Pete but at least make an effort to right this damn wrong.

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“leho ergo scribo”

Remembering The USS Liberty–2026

As per my tradition I post on the dastardly attack by Israel on a an American ship, the USS Liberty, the attack killed and injured American sailors….

There is a lot of information in this re-post but if you did not know of this murderous attack by the bastards in Israel then read and learn.

 

USS Liberty–2020

I am also glad to see that I am not alone in remembering this attack…..thank you Counterpunch for keeping the memory alive.

https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/06/05/israels-uprovoked-and-unanswered-attack-on-the-uss-liberty/

There is NO excuse for this and Israel has yet to be penalized for this unwarranted attack….Donny has threatened anyone that kills an American then why is he ignoring this violation by those pricks in Israel?

Please take some time to learn of this attack on an American naval vessel.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

News From The Middle East

We have heard all the lies about a ceasefire and apparently Israel does not want any progress on that front for they just keep attacking Lebanon trying to turn it in Gaza…..

Israel said Monday that Iran had launched missiles targeting it, hours after Israel launched airstrikes targeting central and western Iran in response to missile fire from Tehran. The exchange of strikes threatened to drag the wider Middle East back into a regional war, the AP reports. Sirens sounded in central Israel, and the government urged the public to seek shelter. Explosions could be heard in central Israel as Israeli air defenses sought to intercept the incoming Iranian fire. Iran did not immediately acknowledge the attack. Meanwhile, the White House did not respond to messages about Israel’s strikes and whether they were done in coordination with the US.

Iranian state television reported the sound of explosions being heard in Isfahan, Karaj, Tabriz, and Tehran, without immediately elaborating. A witness in Tehran described hearing at least one large blast somewhere to the west of the country’s capital city. Iran closed the airspace around Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, the country’s main airfield, after the Israeli attack. Sirens sounded across Israel on Monday after its military said a missile launched from Yemen targeted the country, without elaborating. Israel’s rescue services said there were no reports of casualties or impacts from the launch from Yemen.

Israel is using Lebanon as an excuse for Iran and their unwarranted attacks….typical bullshit from these cowards.

Then in an interview on Sunday Donny made one of his BS pronouncements….’never promised no new wars’….

President Trump now says a central theme of his assurances to voters was never actually a promise. In a Meet the Press interview that aired Sunday, Trump rejected the idea that he ever pledged “no new wars,” telling NBC‘s Kristen Welker, “I didn’t promise anything.” He argued that his push to build what he called the “strongest military in the world” undercuts the notion that he guaranteed he’d avoid fighting. Trump insisted he dislikes “endless wars” but cast the current confrontation with Iran as short term, saying, “We’re there for a few months and the threat is largely over.”

Of course that interview did not go well for Donny had to slip back into his accusation mode….and walk out.

On a side note…..

It’s the strange world of international espionage: The US has long understood that Israel is going to do a little spying on America, and it’s acceptable as long as they don’t overdo it. Now, multiple reports suggest they’re overdoing it. The Pentagon has ramped up the counterintelligence threat posed by ally Israel to “critical,” the highest level, reports the New York Times and NBC News. A big factor is the Iran war: Intelligence assessments warn that Israeli agencies have significantly stepped up efforts to monitor top US negotiator Steve Witkoff, Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, and other American authorities. One senior US official describes Israel’s aggressive moves as “unhinged,” per the Times.

Defense Intelligence Agency report cited by both outlets says Israel’s threat level was recently raised from “high” to the top tier, citing attempts to plant listening devices at DIA headquarters and in a Secret Service vehicle, and spyware found on US defense personnel phones in Israel. It wasn’t clear if a specific incident prompted the upgraded threat level, or if it was a culmination of all of the above. The warnings arrive with US-Israeli military cooperation at unprecedented levels, given the extensive intelligence-sharing and joint war planning against Iran. For the record, the Pentagon declined comment, a White House official called the account false, and Israel’s embassy denied spying on US officials.

It is not bad enough that Israel owns our election process  now they are engaged in massive spying on their ‘ally’ (I use the word loosely for the US is a tool not an ally).

Things are pretty normal in the Middle East….normal for a Donny government that is…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Last Week At The Sh*t Show–07Jun26

More disgusting stuff from the mind of an idiot.

There is a wealth of silly shit coming from Donny and his merry band of morons…..so it is hard to decide where to begin….

First let us not forget all the waste of time and money Donny is proposing….

Trump has pursued in his second term to reshape the capital’s landscape and the White House itself. He has coated the Oval Office in gold tones, paved over the Rose Garden lawn, proposed a 250-foot “Triumphal Arch,” and advanced a “National Garden of American Heroes” with 250 statues. The most sweeping move so far: last fall’s abrupt razing of the White House East Wing to clear room for a planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom.

The one that made me gag last week was the announcement that the UFC cage might become a permanent fixture….

President Donald Trump said the Ultimate Fighting Championship arena recently installed on the White House South Lawn could remain a permanent fixture after the night of June 14 fights is over.

Trump, in a June 2 video posted on TikTok, compared the soaring UFC arena, known as “The Claw,” to France’s Eiffel Tower, which he said was supposed to be taken down after the 1889 World’s Fair.

“Well, they never took it down, and you know, we’re building something in front of the White House that’s quite attractive to a lot of people,” Trump said in the video. “It’s going to have the big UFC fight on June 14. And I’m looking at it, and maybe we’ll never, ever take it down.”

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/06/03/trump-ufc-arena-white-house-claw-permanent/90387950007/

Only a small mind would think this is acceptable.

This story tells it all….remember all those twats that stormed the Capitol and then after their sentences Donny pardons most of them….just how has that worked out?

On the first day of his second term last year, President Donald Trump delivered a mass pardon to more than 1,500 people who were charged with crimes related to the violent riot at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

An analysis published Thursday by Lawfare associate editor Katherine Pompilio finds that at least 97 of these pardoned Trump supporters have been charged with other crimes, including serious alleged offenses such as grand larceny, fraud, and plots to assassinate law enforcement officials and politicians.

The analysis also documents 14 instances of pardoned Capitol rioters being “charged with sex crimes or crimes related to child sexual abuse material (CSAM),” while “at least six” have been charged with domestic violence.

Some of the pardoned rioters have been charged with more minor offenses, including public intoxication, possession of drug paraphernalia, and property damage.

The most notable finding is that at least five of the repeat offenders committed crimes after being freed from prison as a result of Trump’s actions, suggesting that his pardon “may have actively facilitated criminal conduct.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/january-6-rioter-pardons

Just proves the point…once a criminal always a criminal.

Recently Donny authorized the release of UFO files to the public and because it is so popular the release is being used in a disturbing way….

When the Trump administration registered the domains Aliens.gov and Alien.gov in March, UFO conspiracy theorists wondered whether they might finally get answers they’d long awaited.

But coming on the heels of the Pentagon’s anticlimactic release of files related to UFOs and extraterrestrial life, the debut of Aliens.gov last week proved even more disappointing: The website was no “Disclosure Day,” but a parody, serving no apparent purpose but to disparage undocumented immigrants.

“THEY WALK AMONG US,” the site declares in large, neon green text. Crawling type then starts to fill the screen: “For 60 years, the U.S. government has kept a closely guarded secret. Aliens have been walking among us, living in our neighborhoods, and interacting with us in our daily lives.”

Along with fake “declassified” labels and a clunky reference to “The X-Files,” the website also features an interactive map tracking “alien encounters,” or purported arrests of immigrants, and asks users to report “suspicious aliens.”

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/03/us/word-of-week-aliens-immigrants-trump-cec

I am surprised that Donny has not tried to link Dems to these so-called ‘aliens’.

Donny’s release of these files has brought about a bunch of conspiracies and rumors…..this one is about the CIA….

Philosopher and author Jason Reza Jorjani recently appeared on the podcast “American Alchemy,” where he laid out a series of allegations tying U.S. intelligence agencies to a covert search for individuals carrying what some believe to be nonhuman genetic markers.

At the center of the story is a claim that platforms like 23andMe and Ancestry.com may have been used to flag a specific genetic variance that certain parties believe points to origins beyond humanity. Jorjani did not mince words about what he says the government’s intentions were. “The CIA wants to hunt them down,” he said, according to the New York Post.

Jorjani traces the information to Lyn Buchanan, a former U.S. Army veteran with documented ties to CIA remote viewing programs during the Cold War, government-backed experiments that explored whether extrasensory perception could be harnessed for intelligence work. Buchanan is said to have connected the initiative to former CIA analyst and UAP researcher Christopher “Kit” Green, although Green reportedly departed government service well before DNA testing companies became household names.

https://eurweb.com/cia-used-dna-data-in-search-for-aliens/

I still say they should be testing the MAGA faithful for this elusive DNA.

Finally judges have said that Donny can destroy the Statue of Liberty if he so desires…

A Trump administration lawyer told a federal appeals court on Friday that, in the Justice Department’s legal view, even a rapid government decision to level the Statue of Liberty would be effectively beyond the reach of the courts. The hypothetical came from Judge Patricia Millett of the DC Circuit as she pressed DOJ attorney Yaakov Roth on the limits of presidential power in a case over President Trump’s controversial White House ballroom project, which has already led to the demolition of the East Wing, per Politico.

“When did it become a fait accompli?” Millett asked of the ballroom. “If this were complete lawlessness by the government … it couldn’t be stopped?” “On these theories, I think that’s right,” Roth replied, adding, per the AP: “I think it would have been improper to enjoin it even on Day 1.” He agreed that not even the Supreme Court could prevent the ballroom from being built, per ABC News. That’s when Millett brought up the beloved structure in New York Harbor.

“If the government decides, very quickly, to bulldoze the Statue of Liberty … nothing can be done?” she queried, per Politico. Roth’s answer: “I think that’s right, yes.” The National Trust for Historic Preservation is suing, arguing that the White House grounds are a national park that can’t be significantly altered without Congress’ OK.

Roth countered that the courts have no business stopping the project at this stage, even if it were later deemed illegal, saying any remedy would have to come from lawmakers and that national security needs outweigh “aesthetic” complaints. Millett and Judge Bradley Garcia (Obama and Biden appointees, respectively) sounded doubtful; Judge Neomi Rao, a Trump appointee, questioned whether the trust had standing to sue in the first place. A lower-court judge briefly froze construction in March, but the DC Circuit quickly allowed work to resume as the legal fight continues.

How will this sit with the ‘Sunshine Patriots’ in the MAGA movement?

Enough for this Sunday…..as always …..Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You KNow

“lego ergo scribo”