Roundup for the first day of 2026
(1) Mamdani is sworn in as the mayor of New York. Hard to believe, but true, with the following cast of characters and in the following setting:
The 34-year-old Queens state assemblyman was sworn in on a Quran as the city’s 112th mayor — and its second-youngest — by state Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday morning below City Hall Park in a grand, abandoned old subway stop with his wife, artist Rama Duwaji, by his side.
There will be another ceremony, too, with another setting and a slightly different cast of characters:
Mamdani’s subway station ceremony — a small event with few members of the media in attendance — will be followed later Thursday afternoon by a jubilant block-party bash, where thousands will watch outside City Hall as US Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) again swears in the new mayor.
(2) More on the Iran protests, with some deaths reported:
Deaths were reported in Lordegan, Kuhdasht, and Isfahan, though casualty figures vary between state media and rights groups.
The Revolutionary Guards said one member of its Basij paramilitary unit was killed in Kuhdasht, with 13 others wounded. Rights group Hengaw identified the man as a protester, contradicting official claims.
What ultimately happens depends on how willing the protesters are to risk being killed, how many there are, and how willing the authorities are to crack down violently.
The Iranian president has this to say – too little, too late, and missing quite a bit:
If people are dissatisfied, we are to blame—not America or anyone else.
It is our responsibility to manage resources properly, improve efficiency and productivity, and solve the people’s problems.
Our failures are the result of poor management.
(3) Trump is pausing federal child care payments to all states while fraud investigations proceed. How big will the scandal be revealed to be?
Shipwreckedcrew summarizes much of the information about the Minnesota fraud cases so far.
(4) And then there are the voting laws in Minnesota, which allow an especially generous form of address “vouching”:
A controversial Minnesota election policy that allows a single registered voter to “vouch” for up to eight people seeking same-day registration is under fire amid the state’s massive fraud scandal tied to the Somali community there.
Under Minnesota law, the registered voter must go with the person or people they are vouching for to the polling place and sign an oath verifying their address, according to the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State.
“A registered voter from your precinct can go with you to the polling place to sign an oath confirming your address. This is known as ‘vouching.’ A registered voter can vouch for up to eight voters,” the website reads.
More at the link.
(5) Many are feared dead in a New Year’s Eve fire at a Swiss report. Horrible:
The Crans-Montana resort is best known as an international ski and golf venue, and overnight, its crowded Le Constellation bar morphed from a scene of revelry into the site of potentially one of Switzerland’s worst tragedies. …
Two women told French broadcaster BFMTV they were inside when they saw a male bartender lifting a female bartender on his shoulders as she held a lit candle in a bottle. The flames spread, collapsing the wooden ceiling, they told the broadcaster.
One of the women described a crowd surge as people frantically tried to escape from a basement nightclub up a narrow flight of stairs and through a narrow door.
I would think there would be better laws in Switzerland – of all places – about egress from a basement nightclub venue.
RIP.
You’d think …
You’d think that decorations and structural elements in such a venue wouldn’t be so readily flammable. Shades of the Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in 1942.
Two of the more interesting things in the Shipwreckedcrew post are somewhat tangential to his overall point.
The Biden Administration didn’t file any charges after about March 2024 but the Trump/Bondi DOJ found 21 more people to charge in just the last 7 months of 2025.
While simply not looking for fraud is not actionable, there appears to have been no effort by the Biden DOJ to determine if any Minnesota state officials or politicians were involved in any way.
Even more chances to defraud Minnesota’s social welfare programs.
A new program, giving people up to 20 weeks of paid leave—12 weeks off with partial pay to care for a newborn or sick family member, or 12 weeks to recover from your own serious illness, with a cap of 20 weeks each year–is set to become operational today.*
No doubt the scammers are already lining up to apply.
* See https://www.foxnews.com/politics/critics-warn-minnesota-legislation-now-taking-effect-setting-up-next-billion-dollar-fraud
Minnesota Democrat attorney general Keith Ellison on the importance of Somali money, votes, and “organizing”, i.e. stealing votes, to Democrats.
“Not only in Minnesota but also in Ohio and Virginia. “
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DS5MjvUFOYH/
Re 5 – do you boomers remember Montreux?
It is our responsibility to manage resources properly, improve efficiency and productivity, and solve the people’s problems.
–Masoud Pezeshkian, President of Iran (quoted above)
_____________________________________
Notice that “manage resources properly” is the first item in his apology. I believe he is speaking directly to the collapse of water security in Iran.
Day Zero, when the water taps run dry, is not a clickbait scare story in Tehran. Pezeshkian has already declared that the capital of Iran must be moved to another region because of profound water mismanagement.
Tehran is about to become history as a mighty Iranian city.
“Pezeshkian has already declared that the capital of Iran must be moved to another region because of profound water mismanagement.”
I forget where I first read that… But how do you move a city of 9 million people? Or is he talking about just the central government?
Still…?
Along with Walz, I’m thinking of the examples of former New York Governor Cuomo, and Dr. Fauci.
The problem is that high level leaders, say, like Governor Walz, usually never face the punishment they should.
Thus, although Walz apparently welcomed in as many primitive, inassimilable, and many crime bent Muslim Somalis as possible–so as to form a sold voting block supporting Democrats and him–Walz, pretty obviously, looked the other way when people reported this Somali fraud situation to his Administration, and to him, and is now trying to point the finger at, of all things, “white supremacists.”
(For God’s sake, the Minnesota Lieutenant Governor was even recently pictured wearing a Hijab.
Could any more pandering, and more Dhimmi, subservient to Islam image be presented?)
Walz is at least complicit and, who knows, perhaps it will be found that he actually profited financially from this massive series of frauds.
If so, he should be removed from office, indicted, and prosecuted.
Will that actually happen? Based on past examples, probably not.
P.S. Is Walz at least offering profuse apologies, offering to resign?
No, he is trying to put the blame on other people for the situation he helped create.
The problem with a lot these politicians, and many other public figures, is that you can’t shame them, because, they apparently have no sense of shame.
“If people are dissatisfied, we are to blame—not America or anyone else.”
This is an extremely brave statement. OR the Ayatollah directed him to say this. Consider that he places blame on himself and absolves the Ayatollah. If it’s brave he will disappear shortly. If not, he will continue in his role.
I believe it was a fire at a Swiss nightclub that led to Deep Purple’s “Smoke On The Water” (Re: Nobody Atall’s comment)
#5.
And then there’s the death of TRUTH…
‘Hayek, Orwell, and “The End of Truth”’—
https://www.civitasinstitute.org/research/hayek-orwell-and-the-end-of-truth
H/T Powerline blog.
+ Bonus:
“Jack Smith Just Blew Up His Entire January 6 Case”—
https://instapundit.com/766144/
We all came out to Montreux
On the Lake Geneva shoreline
To make records with a mobile
We didn’t have much time
Frank Zappa and the Mothers
Were at the best place around
But some stupid with a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
Smoke on the water
A fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
Nobody Atall:
As immortalized in the Deep Purple song Smoke on the Water.
Something in that ski bar burned awfully hot and awfully fast.
You can’t light something that doesn’t burn and you can escape something which simply smolders.
The ceiling, if that’s what it was, went like a shingle factory. wonder if that was in accord with fire regs.
You’re right, Neo, that does sound like quite a “cast of characters”. What on earth business does a senator from Vermont have “swearing in” a mayor of a city in a different state? There are more people in a single borough of NYC than in all of Vermont, anyway. And being sworn in at an abandoned subway station?! Sounds like something out of a Batman movie.
Montreux? Never heard of that, and I am a 79 yr old Boomer
Polyurethane spray foam is particularly flammable if left exposed.
But how do you move a city [Tehran] of 9 million people? Or is he talking about just the central government?
John+Guilfoyle:
Aye, there’s the rub!
Many Tehranians suspect, with good reason, that only those in the government will be moved and the rest will have to fend for themselves.
Which means moving somewhere else and that’s a problem. Northern Iran is a decent choice and it has rain, but it can’t take in millions of Tehranians. After that, it’s going south or leaving the country which are difficult too.
Iran has other problems as well. The demonstrations are real and large. Things may change in Iran in the near future.
re. bar fire: I’m older than Shirehome and I don’t know Montreux.
But along that line I do recall a significant bar or restaurant fire in Utah back in the early 70 or late 60s, although I could be off on the dates. It had several deaths. I would link it to the Swiss one in that the UT event was in a place that was decorated to resemble a cave and the material to make the walls, etc, was a foam material, maybe spray on to sculpt as rocks. Evidently once ignited the stuff went up like napalm. This place (UT) was ignited, they claim, bu pyrotechnics associated with a band performing that night. Does anyone recall something like that.
Some or all of the above could be wrong, as I said, I’m old.
“Never heard of that” and I am a 73 year old Boomer.
The internet has some uses.
https://americansongwriter.com/on-this-day-in-1971-a-fan-fired-flare-gun-ended-a-frank-zappa-concert-early-and-inspired-this-classic-rock-hit/
Interesting posts about Mamdani’s second swearing in ceremony cite the lack of amenities, although NYC should be able to handle an event such as this without much difficulty.
Harbinger of Socialism to come?
But fans demonstrate why people keep voting for Socialists.
https://nypost.com/2026/01/01/us-news/mamdani-fans-disappointed-by-disastrous-block-party-inauguration-with-no-food-bathrooms/
They don’t have sprinklers in Switzerland?
Another Mike: There was a devastating event that resembles the one you are talking about, but it took place in Rhode Island in 2003, sadly with 100 fatalities.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire
When I went to bed last night the government’s theory was that sparklers were inserted into bottles of champaign, and that somehow caused it all.
Doesn’t seem likely.
Could this possibly have been a terrorist attack?
Apparently back in 2020 comedian Ryan Long just happened to talk to Mamdani in one of his man-on-the-street bits.
https://youtube.com/shorts/-a30Snx6lSU?si=9P1Oe3RPu11APAxV
Apparently the citizens of New York city are about to experience “..the warmth of collectivism.”*
This to be fun to watch.
* See https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/01/this-line-zohran-mamdanis-inauguration-speech-should-terrify/
If this “collectivism” operates as it usually does, that “warmth of collectivism” will actually mean a lot of people huddling together for warmth as they wait in line to get their rations of basic food items, or because they do not have the electricity or energy sources to heat their apartments or houses in the winter months.
Or, perhaps they are huddling together for “collective” defense, as all sorts of violent criminals and/or nut jobs not–as they should be–incarcerated by the city authorities, roam the city, looking for their next victim who might be discovered, outside of the protection of the “collective” herd.
Mamdani took his oath of office on the Qur’an.
Here are Alabama’s Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville and Robert Spencer on Islam and the Qur’an, and the significance of this event.
* See https://pjmedia.com/robert-spencer/2026/01/01/just-a-meaningless-ritual-tuberville-slams-mamdani-for-taking-oath-on-quran-n4947794
Amazingly enough, there’s an article this morning on MSNOW somewhat critical of Mamdani writtten by a Democrat. He points out the obvious problems,and the slant, of course, is that Mamdani could have ill effects on the larger D effort in the midterms nationwide. Still, an interesting, and unexpected piece:
https://www.ms.now/news/zohran-mamdani-new-york-mayor-democrats-promises
NYC’s future under Mamdani looks to me like a Shakespearean tragedy. He apparently is going to try to implement all the promises he made, possibly destroying the city in the process. South Africa is his model. European-Americans should probably flee now, if they can, and other ethnicities will surely suffer greatly.
I suspect that a lot of the lefties who voted for Mamdani have enough resources so that, when things really start to go bad, they will be able to flee NYC, leaving everyone else–including all of those immigrants and poor people they profess to care so much about–left holding the bag.
Surely everyone over the age of say 55 has heard the song Smoke On The Water. I tend not to grasp the lyrics of many or most rock songs without looking them up in print. (I’m constantly amazed at the how many people in the age range of 18 to 35 really know many classic rock songs.)
From Wiki:
The song’s lyrics are based on true events, chronicling the 1971 fire at Montreux Casino in Montreux, Switzerland. It is considered the band’s signature song and its guitar riff [by Richie Blackmore] is considered to be one of the most iconic in rock history.
Give it a listen (fun animation):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2FzZSBD5LE&list=RDQ2FzZSBD5LE&start_radio=1
@Snow on Pine: Mamdani took his oath of office on the Qur’an.
So, when Cthulhu finally wins, the Many-Tentacled One will be sworn in on the Necronomicon.
Progress!
Kate– My question centers on “what will the people who plunked down millions for an apartment in Central Park West do?” They paid more than any sane person would pay elsewhere… do they think they will find a buyer for that place in Mamdani’s Manhattan, even if they settle for break-even? I doubt they will just walk, leaving the keys at the bank on their way out of town….
om wrt the fire in Switzerland; the quick views of the place seem as if they’re trying from some Swiss version of rustic. It would be odd to have such foam on the ceiling unsealed or otherwise covered up. Ruin the vibe.
Another Mikel; If somebody can pay the hypothetical $5mill for a place in NYC, he’s likely to have the resources to get by someplace else if he only gets out with a mill in hand.
Last Jan, talked to deputy north of Houston, marveling at maybe thirty miles of unbroken commercial terrain on both sides of the expressway. He said he used to hunt there wen he was a kid. People came from CA and MA.
The cost of living is a big factor and you get richer by leaving NYC. As somebody said, you lose half your money simply by getting off the boat onto Martha’s Vineyard.
Been in and traveled through the mid-South both summer and winter. Pleasant and not extreme. With altitude, you get milder summers. I live in Michigan, and Banner Elk, NC frequently is cooler on a summer day. It’s 24 here, and 44 there. Many areas were retreats for the monied before, and sometimes still, air conditioning. Getting away from the heat and yellow fever season.
You don’t get Florida’s summers. And if you’re from NYC, you can stand a month of so ten or twenty degrees warmer than back home in the winter.
Richard Aubrey:
A report on the radio (Fox) mentioned candles igniting acoustic ceiling tiles. The question remains what they (ceiling surfaces) were made of. I’m not familiar with European construction materials or their building code requirements. Until we know more about the inside of the building/scene of the fire it is all wild ass guessing.
Here’s video of the ceiling of this nightclub being ignited by sparks from what look like large long sparklers.*
Well, from the video–instead of heading for the exits and getting the hell out of there–apparently a lot of these patrons thought that this fire on the ceiling was “cool,” and were still dancing to music, and jumping up and down in excitement while using their cell phones to record the fire spreading.
* See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6hT5djTLeY
Reports say that the U.S. has struck Military targets in Venezuela’s capitol, and that Maduro and his wife have been captured, and have already been flown out of the country.*
* See https://www.newsmax.com/us/venezuela-donald-trump-nicolas-maduro/2026/01/03/id/1240603/
There was only one exit in that night club: up the stairs.
The fire at The Station in Rhode Island in 2003 was caused by a band’s pyrotechnics igniting acoustic foam which had been applied to surfaces in response to complaints from neighbors. The building also had code violations. The Beverly Hills Supper Club fire in Kentucky was even more deadly. The building had been expanded haphazardly over a period of 50 years and for some reason the code violations were never properly addressed by the owners or local authorities.
Looks like egg crate open cell polyurethane foam (aka anechoic foam panels) (used for sound control).
https://search.brave.com/images?q=anechoic+foam+panels