Today is Thursday, January 1, 2026. It’s hard to believe that we are going through another year, but here we are! I hope everyone had a lovely New Year’s Eve; we had a very quiet one where we watched classic episodes of The Twilight Zone and viewed Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper do hosting duty from Times Square on CNN. Actually, I did; I went into the bedroom to wake Elliot up to toast in the New Year with a glass of Prosecco. Before tuning into the New Year’s Eve special, I watched the new Naked Gun film starring Liam Neeson. I felt that Neeson was not as good as the original Frank Drebin of Police Squad, Leslie Nielsen. He’s too associated with serious, action-type roles and not comedy, so this was an unusual choice to take over the franchise after Nielsen’s death. I just didn’t want to watch the New Year’s special that early, so I tuned in after the film ended on Amazon Prime.

When I finally did tune into the CNN show, I was quite amazed over how far Cohen went with his ad libs and enraging commentary like the time he accurately slammed the outgoing mayor, Eric Adams, for his terrible tenure as New York’s 111th mayor. This left his cohost cringing and speechless. I know in the past that Cohen would drink heavily while on camera, and this time, he was seen with a drink in his hand after the ball dropped in Times Square, when he lashed into Adams, saying, “Watching the final moments of Mayor Adams’s chaotic . . . as Cooper interrupted to say, “Oh no. I’m out.” Then Cohen started to say that Adams was pardoned by the idiot in chief and said his only good thing done in office was getting rid of the rats in the city with his push for a rat czar early into his one horrible term. Even though everything Cohen said was true about Adams, it was not expected at a New Year’s Eve special. I give him credit for saying these things about the outgoing mayor, even though it might have rattled CNN suits. Who knows? Maybe Cooper and Cohen might not return as hosts next year because of Cohen’s rancid mouth. It would be their tenth year – next year.

Now talking about the incoming mayor’s inauguration which was today, I refer you to an online article in the Independent by Brendan Rascius entitled “Adams booed, Trump ignored and a warning to his own administration: Inside Mamdani’s inauguration speech.”

Before going on, I wanted to report that I had a ticket to Mamdani’s block party today held outside City Hall for 11, but decided not to go because of two reasons: it was fucking cold outside and I had plans to see my Astoria friend “Seth” with his husband “Jerry” at 3. The event was scheduled between 11 and 3. I preferred to sleep until 9:40 or so. I did get up much earlier anyway, so I went back to bed. If I had intended to go to this event, I would have had to wake up quite early to make it by 11.

Therefore, Mamdani said during his speech that he pledged to bring forth a “new era of politics” in his address, which did not name the idiot president and was actually interrupted by boos aimed at the outgoing Mayor Eric Adams.

The oath of office was administered by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, as Mamdani placed his hand on a Quran.

There were tens of thousands in the crowd watching him take the oath of office, as Mamdani said, “I stand alongside you. The tens of thousands of you gathered here in Lower Manhattan, armed against the January chill by the resurgent flame of hope.”

Other speakers included liberal icon Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and City Comptroller Mark Levine, and the new mayor was joined on stage by former Mayors Eric Adams and Bill de Blasio (remember him?), New York Governor Kathy Hochul, as well as Mamdani’s wife and parents.

During his remarks, Mamdani briefly mentioned Adams, his immediate predecessor, who declined to run for reelection after charges of bribery damaged his reputation. He can thank the idiot in the White House for destroying his chances for getting reelected.

When Mamdani acknowledged how Adams’s mom birthed a son who rose from washing dishes to the highest position in our city, this was when boos could be heard from the crowd.

Then Mamdani quipped that he would always be touched that Adams chose him as the mayoral candidate he would most want to be trapped with on an elevator. Giggle, giggle.

The city’s 112th mayor also notably refrained from mentioning Dump, whom he frequently criticized on the campaign trail, describing him aptly as a “fascist” and “despot.” The bulk of Mamdani’s speech was focused on his ambitious plans to make New York City affordable and inclusive for all.

Mamdani went on to list the bold plans he has for the city, including delivering universal childcare, freezing rents, and creating fare-free buses. He also pledged to establish a Department of Community Safety which will allow police officers to “focus on the job they signed up for” and to raise taxes on the wealthy.

This plan to raise taxes could prove a controversial one, even within his own party, because it’s the governor who needs to get in on the policy, and Hochul is opposed to raising personal income taxes, according to The New York Times.

Being defiant, Mamdani noted, “I was elected as a democratic socialist and I will govern as a democratic socialist. I will not abandon my principles for fear of being deemed radical.”

Pledging to bring about the policies he touted during his campaign, the 34-year-old said New York would no longer be a “tale of two cities: the rich versus the poor.” He said, “For too long in our city, freedom has belonged only to those who can afford to buy it. Our City Hall will change that.”

As Mamdani concluded his fiery speech, blue and yellow confetti streamed down onto the inauguration stage and crowd.

As Zohran Mamdani takes the reins of city government, I will reserve my criticism of him as he embarks on a very ambitious agenda to reform city government as he focuses on the core principles of affordability and safety. I wish him well and he certainly does come across as quite photogenic, congenial, and articulate, a thousand times more articulate than Demented Don in the White House with his second-grade vocabulary. He comes across as almost striking a Kennedy pose in his speeches, I believe.

And so it went!