Would a nice house in Rock Ridge be acceptable, or will this program be restricted to just NYC luxury co-ops and condos?

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welcome!

Resurfaced video shows NYC mayoral hopeful saying he wants to replace private homes with communal living

Zohran Mamdani's 2021 video reveals plans for communal housing with shared laundry, kitchens and bathhouses

Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist candidate for New York City mayor, has come under fire from critics who label him a "communist" – a charge he dismisses as a distraction.

However, the criticisms may not be as unfounded as Mamdani claims. Videos show the NYC mayoral candidate espousing language and theories rooted in communist revolutionary language. 

In one 2021 video, Mamdani urges fellow socialists at a conference to not compromise on goals like "seizing the means of production." In a second video, released on YouTube by progressive advocacy group The Gravel Institute that same year, Mamdani discusses the need to turn housing from a private commodity to a public one, calling for luxury condos to be replaced with communal style living that would include things like shared laundry facilities and food co-ops.

POLITIFACT DECLARES ZOHRAN MAMDANI IS NOT A COMMUNIST IN FACT-CHECK OF TRUMP

"Why do so many people end up homeless?" Mamdani asks in the video. "It's not because there aren't enough homes to go around, there are plenty of empty homes. No. It's because housing people is not a primary goal of developers or landlords. Their goal, simply put, is to make a profit."

According to Mamdani, this is a problem. He lamented in the video that housing is "a consumer product, just like clothes or cars" that private businesses sell on the market to make a profit. As a result, Mamdani complains, there is plenty of housing for "the rich" but not nearly enough opportunities for poor and working-class people.

"[It's] not efficient or beneficial for the rest of society," Mamdani says. "Housing doesn't have to be seen as a market at all."

In the video, Mamdani points to post-war communist Vienna as an example of how removing privatization from the housing market can be good for society. However, he does concede that currently in Vienna, "residents still pay part of their earnings in rent to cover operational costs and a sizable chunk of the population lives in private housing."  

After describing the so-called Vienna model, during which he puts forth a vision of communal living with shared laundry, kitchens, food co-ops, bathhouses, pharmacies, lecture halls, swimming pools and more, he suggests a way forward that includes establishing "community land trusts to gradually buy up housing on the private market and convert it to community ownership."

"If we want to end the housing crisis, the solution has to be moving toward the full de-commodification of housing," Mamdani says. "In other words, moving away from the status quo in which most people access housing by purchasing it on the market and toward a future where we guarantee high quality housing to all as a human right."

PJMedia’s Robert Spenser is not impressed:

…. The abolition of private property and the confiscation of private homes were a cornerstone of the Communist Party’s program in the Soviet Union. On Aug. 20, 1918, the Central Executive Committee of the new Soviet state issued a decree mandating the “abolition of private real estate.” It stated: “The right to own a tract of land… within a city is abolished without exception,” and “the right to own buildings located in cities with a population of ten thousand or over and having… a value… in excess of the amount fixed by local authorities is abolished.” That included private homes, which were seized wholesale and, if large enough, converted into collective residences for the new slaves of the state.

Rock Ridge’s John Cooper returns home after a busy day attacking Nazi Trump supporters and waving his “Ashamed to be an American” banner and finds a wonderful surprise awaiting. Justice at last! Oh, hooray!

Reminder: June 27th marked the one-year anniversary of the nation's escape from disaster

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Joe Biden Made Another Public Appearance, and Oh Boy

If you thought the spectacle of Biden behind a podium was a thing of the past, think again. This week, the former president emerged from his Delaware cocoon to deliver the keynote at the Society for Human Resource Management’s convention in San Diego. 

….

So what kind of wisdom did Ol’ Joe share?

Biden was asked about what he’s doing these days. His answer? He’s “working on a memoir” about his time in the Oval Office, which he claims his publisher wanted delivered in “March of this year.” March? 

Does anyone really believe that a publisher was expecting a tell-all Biden tome that quickly, or is Joe once again hopelessly confused about the timeline? Or did the publisher figure that was ample time for a manuscript written in crayon? The answer was a rambling mess, the kind of meandering that’s become his trademark.

Then came the self-pity. Biden lamented that so much of what he “did” is being undone. He trotted out the tired claim that NATO was “in shambles” when he took office, and that he single-handedly strengthened the alliance and took on the invasion of Ukraine. Reality check: Russia invaded Ukraine under Biden’s watch, emboldened by his weakness on issues like Nord Stream 2 and the catastrophic Afghanistan withdrawal. 

President Donald Trump was the one who actually got NATO members to pay up for their own defense, not just in his first term, but even more so in his second. Trump is the one who’s been working to end the war that erupted under Biden’s nose, and it’s Trump who delivered real security by taking out Iran’s nuclear capabilities and brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.

But Biden wasn’t done spinning yarns. He claimed that European leaders were calling him, pleading for him to “get engaged.”

“And I’m getting calls — I’m not going to go into them, I can’t — from a number of European leaders asking me to get engaged,” he said. 

Uh-huh.

He then added, “I’m not, because things are different.” Sure, Joe. Maybe the calls are coming from inside the house. Or maybe from one of those dead world leaders he has claimed to speak with in the past. Seriously, nobody gave a crap about Biden when he was in the White House, and he’s even less relevant now. And to make matters worse for him, many in the party still blame him for Trump winning because he didn’t drop out of the race earlier, or because he sought a second term in the first place.

He also claimed, with a straight face, that he’s been “dealing with a lot of Democrat and Republican colleagues calling me … wanting to talk and bounce things off of me.” 

…. And yet, that probably isn’t his worst lie. He also claimed that “Every single day, I contact every single one of my grandchildren.”

Really, I bet he doesn’t call Navy Roberts, the daughter of his son Hunter.

Greenwich star real estate attorney joel kaye lends a sympathetic ear

I'm not being racist here, I'm just saying guys, pro-tip for when attempting to pass phony Benjamins: pick a location where you can blend in, and dress appropriately for your surroundings

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“one of these things is not like the others”

Suspects Arrested for Passing Fraudulent $100 Bills on Greenwich Ave

An Ohio man was arrested after an incident involving fraudulent $100 Bills on Greenwich Avenue on Sunday afternoon.

Greenwich Police said that they were dispatched to a report of a Black male wearing green shorts who had passed a fraudulent $100 bill at Greenwich Pharmacy.

Units located [I’m gonna guess pretty easely — Ed.] and stopped two men matching the description. Investigation revealed that the arrestee, Kevin Miller, 25, of Youngstown, Ohio, had a bag from Lilly Pulitzer, an establishment near Greenwich Pharmacy.

This prompted officers to contact Lilly Pulitzer employees who confirmed that Mr. Miller had passed a fraudulent $100 bill there.

Bonus tip: commit your crimes in a jurisdiction where they play catch-and-release: NYC, California, Oregon, Chicago, D.C. ….

Miller was charged with Larceny 6, Conspiracy to Commit Larceny 6, 35 counts of Forgery 1 and 35 counts of Conspiracy to Commit Forgery 1.

He was processed and unable to post his $210,000 bond and remained in police custody.

He was assigned a date in Stamford Superior Court on July 14, 2025.

Also arrested in the incident was Justin Scott, 27, of Bronx NY. He was charged with Possession of Controlled Substance, Larceny 6, Conspiracy to Commit Larceny 6, 35 counts of Forgery 1 and 35 counts of Conspiracy to Commit Forgery 1.

His bond was also set at $210,000, which he was unable to post. He shares the July 14 court date [and a jail cell? — ED] with Mr. Miller.

Who are these people, and why are we letting them run the country? (Updated)

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Remember voting for him? Apparently, you did

UPDATE — two further thoughts:

Understand, 95% of the people who show up at our border are “economic refugees”, and our asylum law specifically excludes economic reasons as a grounds for admission. Biden let them all in anyway, and now this judge not only insists that they be allowed to stay, but that we must grant entrance to anyone else who shows up at the border demanding to be let in. Biden opened the border in direct violation of our laws, Trump closed it, the royal judiciary has decreed that the floodgates be opened again.

Update. Further thoughts.

Remember “remain in place”? Would-be immigrants were told to stay on the other side of the border, file their asylum claim, and if successful, they’d be allowed in. Biden reversed that process, saying, “come on in, make yourself comfortable for a few years, and we’ll get to your case when we get to it”. He did that using his executive powers; Trump used that same power to reverse the policy, and a judge says he can’t do that? BS.

Another thought: In a move I hadn’t noticed last night, but one that was predicted in conservative legal circles after last week’s Supreme Court decision limiting the power of judges to issue nationwide injunctions based on a single individual’s plea for relief, the plaintiffs here moved to convert the individual claims to class-actions, and the judge has granted them that status. Will that tactic be sufficient to evade the Supreme Court’s ruling? Stay tuned.

Here’s the Politico article he’s referring to — notice that the judge has ruled that anyone claiming asylum, even those who have snuck across the border outside approved ports of entry, so no screening, no identification, false or otherwise, must be allowed to remain in the country while they have their individual case adjudicated and, doubtless, appealed over the ensuing decades. Some call that treason.

Judge blocks ‘sweeping’ asylum crackdown after Trump declared ‘invasion’ at southern border

U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss said Trump’s proclamation declaring an “invasion” at the border cannot be used to justify the unilateral restrictions he sought to impose on asylum seekers.

President Donald Trump’s effort to crack down on asylum claims by immigrants crossing the southern border vastly exceeded his legal authority and must be halted, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss said Trump’s Jan. 20 proclamation declaring an “invasion” of southern border-crossers cannot be used to justify the “sweeping” unilateral restrictions he sought to impose, including severe limits to asylum applications and the ability to seek protection from torture.

Under Trump’s proclamation, people who crossed the southern border between “ports of entry” are barred from seeking asylum or invoking other legal protections that would allow them to temporarily remain in the U.S. while their claims are processed.

And the proclamation further says that immigrants who do arrive at ports of entry — designated locations where people can enter the country legally — are severely restricted from invoking those protections. To do so, they must provide far more detailed personal information than is required under federal immigration law, such as extensive medical and criminal histories.

By imposing the severe restrictions, the proclamation allows immigration authorities to quickly deport people who say they are fleeing violence, persecution or humanitarian strife, rather than processing their claims. Trump and his allies say this was a necessary step to regain control of an overrun border.

But Moss said those limitations go far beyond what the law allows. Existing procedures in the Immigration and Nationality Act, the judge said, provide the “sole and exclusive” means for the federal government to deport people who cross the border illegally — no matter how cumbersome or inadequate the administration views the process. Trump’s proclamation established “an alternative immigration system” that has no basis in law, the judge ruled.

….

Moss, an Obama appointee in Washington, said his ruling will apply to all people “who are currently present or who will be present in the United States” and might face the restrictions being challenged in the case. He said a separate ruling would address similar claims by those already deported under the procedures he has found to be illegal.

“The Court recognizes that the Executive Branch faces enormous challenges in preventing and deterring unlawful entry into the United States and in adjudicating the overwhelming backlog of asylum claims of those who have entered the country,” Moss wrote. “But the INA, by its terms, provides the sole and exclusive means for removing people already present in the country.”

Moss agreed to pause his ruling for two weeks to give Trump a chance to appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

….

Moss acknowledged the Supreme Court’s ruling on nationwide injunctions but noted that the decision left room for judges to act under a federal law that allows them to “set aside” efforts by government agencies to implement new policies the courts deem unlawful. Moss’ ruling effectively blocks federal agencies from implementing Trump’s proclamation and requires that immigrants covered by the decision continue to have the ability to seek asylum or relief under the international Convention Against Torture.

A White House spokesperson called the ruling “an attack on our Constitution, the laws Congress enacted, and our national sovereignty” and said the administration would appeal.

“A local district court judge has no authority to stop President Trump and the United States from securing our border from the flood of aliens trying to enter illegally. The judge’s decision — which contradicts the Supreme Court’s ruling against granting universal relief — would allow entry into the United States of all aliens who may ever try to come to in illegally,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said. 

And then there’s this, from Legal Insurrection:

Pro-Trump Legal Group Launches Website Tracking the Hundreds of Lawsuits Blocking Trump’s Agenda

A pro-Trump group launched an online website Tuesday detailing the more than 250 legal cases against President Trump’s agenda and tracking the crucial nationwide injunctions that were issued by lower court judges before the Supreme Court halted the practice last week.

In all, the Article III Foundation listed 266 lawsuits at JudicialSabotage.org. But there are plenty more of them against the administration, brought by individual plaintiffs such as illegal immigrants looking to stay in the country.

“The primary purpose [of the online database] is so that people can understand the enormous scope of judicial lawfare against the Trump administration. It is not just a few lawsuits. It is overwhelming all over the country,” said Will Chamberlain, senior counsel for the Article III Foundation. “What stuck out was the sheer number of injunctions that have been issued against the administration in such a short amount of time.”

About a third of the 266 lawsuits involve matters related to immigration policy. Other areas include transgender policies, spending and firing freezes, and efforts related to the budget-cutting Department of Government Efficiency.

Here’s what the judge is reversing, precisely because it’s worked — can’t have that, can we?:

THE TRUMP EFFECT – Total Border Patrol encounters for the entire month of June 2025 was 6,070. That is less than a single day under Biden. As a matter of fact, the total number of encounters is less than half of a single day under Biden
on many days. Also, none of the 6,070 were released into the U.S. ZERO. President Trump has created the most secure border in the history of the nation and the data proves it. We have never seen numbers this low. Never. God bless the men and women of the US Border Patrol and God bless the men and women of ICE. The interior arrests and consequences help to drive down illegal immigration. The TRUMP EFFECT keeps America winning.
~ Thomas D. Homan
U.S. Border Czar

From The New York Post:

The total released by Homan marks a 93.1% drop in nationwide Border Patrol encounters from June 2024, when 87,606 migrants were nabbed trying to enter the country illegally.

It’s also a 94% and 97% decline from June 2023 and June 2022, when, respectively, 100,606 and 193,027 migrants were encountered by Border Patrol.

In June 2022, the average daily total of migrant encounters was about 6,434 per day.

People in $5 Million Dollar Rock Ridge homes shouldn't throw truffles

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John Cooper has always been a bit of a turd; he was one of those dweebs at GHS who ran for various orifices in the student government and actually believed they were important positions that could effect — I don’t know, the price of his ice cream bar(s) in the Student Center vending machines? — and crushed when he lost, every time.

But over the past decade or so, Cooper’s hysteria has developed into frothing, incontinent incoherence, as his Letter to the Editor, published today, clearly shows. It’s a beauty, declaiming words that must be said, speaking truth to power from a position of smug, moral superiority, and really, quite moving.

Cooper: The oligarchs are at the gate and the lock has just been sprung!

Submitted by John Cooper, Greenwich

To the Editor

Hey folks, get ready for a big 4th of July weekend, because it could be our last as free Americans! If this congress can agree to the reconciliation bill just passed by the Senate, the one that claws back almost every penny of assistance given the less fortunate and indigent poor, [So, $5, $6 trillion dollars then; wow! — Ed] our Republic is in peril. The oligarchs are at the gate and the lock has just been sprung!

There are currently 902 billionaires ($1,000,000,000.00) in the United States, 13 in Connecticut. From them, I have not heard nor read a single interview, article, LTE or op-ed offering to forego the tax cuts that are the raison d’être for the entire exercise. Nether has there been pushback against the bill from the same quarter. This callout of self-interested, uncaring one percenters should include centi-millionaires ($100,000,000.00) as well, of which there are over 10,500 in the US, a statistic that has doubled since 2003.

When the real damage contained in this huge, bloated, ugly bill comes to fore, everyday people will suffer and die. DJT and the creators of Project 2025 insist that this will not happen. When it does, will the 20,000 (by then) centi-millionaires and billionaires’ cash in some chips and lend a helping hand to the poor, the sick and the dying?, not likely… [As unlikely as fat folk living in Greenwich mansions will sell up, donate the proceeds to the poor, and go live on a sidewalk amongst them in a soggy cardboard box — just sayin’ —Ed.]

I am beyond ashamed to be an American today and fear for the lives of so many people I know and care about. Therefore, I cannot think of closing this with “have a Happy 4th of July”, without feeling sick to my stomach.

Well, don’t throw up, John; whatever you do, don’t do that!

Remember what happened the last time you over-ate at the Moms for Gums banquet!

Because there are no illegal aliens, only sex perverts we've hidden in Minnesota’s school system (where else, unless it’s California’s or New York’s?).

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Convicted sex offender from Kenya avoids deportation, lands state job

A Kenyan national convicted of sexually assaulting a sleeping woman in Minnesota wasn’t deported after his prison sentence — he was promoted.

Wilson Tindi holds a director position at the Minnesota Department of Education, where he audits taxpayer spending and oversees internal accountability.

Court records show Tindi was convicted in 2016 of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct after breaking into a woman’s home and assaulting her in bed where she slept. He pleaded guilty to the sex assault charge in exchange for prosecutors dropping a first-degree burglary charge.

Tindi was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to register as a predatory offender. His sentence was stayed for five years, but he was also sentenced to 210 days in the workhouse, records show.

However, despite the felony conviction and offender status, Tindi serves as Director of Internal Audit and Advisory Services at MDE, according to public records and his LinkedIn profile.

After Alpha News reached out to MDE for comment, Tindi’s bio was removed from the agency’s website.

Former prosecutor calls Tindi ‘dangerous’

A former prosecutor with direct knowledge of Tindi’s case told Alpha News they were disturbed to learn he now holds a leadership role in state government.

“I don’t know how he would have passed a background check,” the attorney said. “He’s a felon and a registered sex offender—how is he employed?”

The attorney said that in addition to the 2016 conviction, Tindi was also accused of a similar crime in 2012, as court documents state. Although the case was never charged, prosecutors filed a Spreigl notice—a legal move to introduce evidence of prior misconduct—citing the 2012 allegation as evidence of a disturbing pattern.

“He is dangerous,” the attorney said. “He has no business being paid out of our taxpayer dollars and should be back with ICE.”

Tindi’s ICE detention and federal court challenge

Records show Tindi was taken into ICE custody in August 2016 as the U.S. government sought to deport him to his native Kenya.

In 2016, an immigration judge ordered his removal based on the felony sex crime conviction. The decision was later upheld by the Board of Immigration Appeals but stayed by an appeals court.

Tindi filed a federal habeas corpus petition, arguing that his detention had become unconstitutional because it dragged on too long without actual deportation.

A federal judge agreed, writing that Tindi’s continued detention no longer “serve[d] the purpose of preventing deportable criminal aliens from fleeing prior to or during their removal proceedings.”

After 18 months in ICE custody, Tindi was ordered released in February 2018.

Tindi tries to vacate plea over immigration fallout

In May, Tindi filed a petition for post-conviction relief, asking a Hennepin County judge to vacate his guilty plea. He claims his defense attorney failed to properly warn him that the conviction would have devastating consequences for his immigration status. He says he is a lawful permanent resident.

In the petition, Tindi says he would never have pleaded guilty if he had known it would make him permanently inadmissible under federal law—effectively banning him from ever reentering the U.S. if he left.

But then in June, Tindi filed a second motion, this time asking the court to withdraw his request to overturn the conviction, admitting the odds of success were slim under current state law. He reserved the right to try again in the future.

Adding to the list of legal troubles is Tindi’s recent DWI arrest. [Ed.: 06/07/2025]

Neither MDE nor Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty’s returned requests for comment.

Mr. Tindi’s lengthy vacation in federal custody occurred during the Trump 1 administration; this time, with Trump’s newfound attention to deportations, my guess is that “Wilson’s” next job will be a a baggae-handler at the soon-to-be-Chinese-owned Jomo Airport in his native Kenya. Not to worry, though: Minnesota’s Department of Education is certain to have a lengthy list of Somalian replacements, all carefully vetted and vouched for by Rep. IIhan Omar.