newyorkpost--2020-07-24--Tourists won’t let COVID-19 stop them from visiting NYC

Broadway is dark and museums are closed , but tourists still want a bite of the Big Apple .
In 2018 , the city drew some 65 million visitors according to NYC & Company , the city ’ s tourism and marketing agency .
But now , only a few visitors are exploring what ’ s open , such as Times Square — where COVID hasn ’ t stopped creepy costumed characters from requesting hugs from passersby — the 9/11 Memorial and the High Line , which now requires guests to register on iPads at the Gansevoort Street entrance to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ smattering of sojourners — including a foursome from India , a couple from Chicago and a fashionista from Thailand — about why they visited NYC during a pandemic , where they ’ re staying and how they ’ re spending their time in a mostly shuttered city .
Despite Gov .
Andrew Cuomo ’ s mandate that many out-of-state travelers quarantine for two weeks upon arrival , most of the sightseers we spoke to weren ’ t familiar with the edict , and no one had plans to stay longer than two weeks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moot .
“ My entire family was saying , ‘ You can always go later , don ’ t go now , ’ ” said Heidi Reinhofer , a 23-year-old actor who came for an in-person meeting with a local talent agency instead of opting for one over the phone .
To be safe , she wore a mask and goggles on the flight from Chicago .
“ On the plane we were told that we ’ d have to fill out some form [ about quarantining ] , but we never got @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brought along her boyfriend , Jason Loehr , 23 , and made her business trip into a weeklong vacay .
The duo is staying at the Holiday Inn near Times Square , and said that they won ’ t let “ fear ” stop them from seeing the city .
“ We wanted to visit and climb the Statue of Liberty , ” said Reinhofer , who has been to the city twice before and plans to visit the outside of the New York Stock Exchange and the 9/11 Memorial instead since Lady @ @ @ @ @ @ @ business .
“ We ’ re kinda winging it , ” said Loehr , who was won over by Ray ’ s Pizza .
“ The pizza here is really good .
Compared to Chicago slices , they ’ re a lot flimsier , but the crust is perfect.
” “ People are more scared of the virus here than back in Thailand , ” 35-year-old Bobo Sangchooto , visiting from Bangkok , told The Post .
“ I like New York , I ’ ve been here before , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ different now .
It ’ s so empty !
” The Bangkok native is just in town for three days with her husband , who had a business trip .
They ’ re sightseeing with friends who go to ASA College in Midtown , and were planning on spending the day shopping and finding an open patio to have lunch .
“ I went to Sephora and got certain cosmetics that we don ’ t have in Thailand , like lipsticks and eye shadows , ” she said .
“ There ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to go to but they were shut down , ” said Rebecca Vaiphei , 26 , who came to New York with three girlfriends — Anisha Chetri , 23 , Vidyashree Chakraborty , 25 , and Masoom Sharma , 23 — from Delhi , India , for the week .
They were happy to find tables at Los Tacos No .
1 downtown for lunch , though they ’ ve also been settling for room service at the Hendricks Hotel on 38th Street , where they ’ re staying .
“ We ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the city , ” said Vaiphei .
The gals planned the trip about a month ago and paid a “ decent ” amount for the journey : about $ 1,000 each for the 15-hour flight .
“ It ’ s less crowded , so it can be a good time to visit New York depending on what you want to do , ” said Vaiphei .
“ We haven ’ t been disappointed.
” The group spent some time shopping at H & M .
They also planned on hitting up Victoria ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ themselves exploring Central Park .
Lisa Dismukes , 48 , flew in from Chicago , for a long weekend .
“ I heard New York was entering Phase 4 so I thought , why not ?
” She made her way around The Bronx and Brooklyn , and got as far as Canarsie .
“ We got Popeyes when we got there.
” She said her plane ticket , which she booked about a month ago , was around $ 100 , and she got a “ nice price ” on her Wyndham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have noticed that everyone is following the rules with the face masks , ” said Dismukes , who is a fashion entrepreneur .
“ And I think New Yorkers are more friendly now.
” She wanted to climb the Vessel at Hudson Yards , but settled for a photo in front of the attraction since it was closed .
“ Next time I ’ m in New York , I ’ ll climb it , ” she said .
Dismukes has been going out to eat at outdoor restaurants with friends , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I got the catfish and it was great.
” Her advice to fellow travelers : “ It ’ s cheap to get to [ the city ] , but once you get there , rates are higher for taxis and at restaurants .
They want to make up for lost business.
” “ I came on a sailing trip from Miami to New York , ” said Amanda Batts , 26 , who spent the past three weeks with her boyfriend on a boat coming up the East Coast from Miami .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back to Miami to pack up my apartment , ” added the amateur boater , who is planning on moving after losing her job in the restaurant industry .
The couple have spent the past few days living like the locals have during lockdown : “ We ’ ve been laying low , cooking at home , ” said Batts , who did manage to indulge in a New York bagel on her trip to the High Line .
“ We went to Murray ’ s , and I got lox on an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the few authentic experiences she can get .
“ Everything is closed so I can ’ t really see the real New York , ” she said .
Rising high school junior Zack Walsh , 17 , is scoping out colleges in the city .
“ We visited the NYU and Columbia campuses , ” said Zack , who drove in with his mother from their summer house in Massachusetts for a long weekend .
The family lives in San Francisco .
“ I ’ ve never been to New York before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think in normal times it might be too fast-paced for me though.
” The teen has had a chic trip despite the COVID closures : “ My dad ’ s a member of the Soho House so we went to the one in Dumbo and in Meatpacking , ” he said .
The mother-son duo are staying at the Stewart Hotel near Herald Square , and are eating meals outside , like at the vegan taco spot Jajaja Plantas Mexicana near the Manhattan Bridge .
“ I like to take pictures of people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s been exploring the city with his camera and riding Citi Bikes .
“ Some people got upset I was taking their photo , but I don ’ t blame them.
” Sophy Rindler , 45 , said she and her 16-year-old daughter Shana “ needed a change of scenery ” after the months-long lockdown at their home in Miami .
The duo arrived on July 12 on a cheap flight — $ 206 each round trip — and are staying with family on the Upper East Side .
“ I was expecting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New York is still New York , ” said Rindler , who ’ s been to New York several times before .
Despite closures , they ’ ve been able to traverse Manhattan .
“ We went to Chinatown , had brunch at Bubby ’ s and went to Central Park and walked all around , ” said the mom .
They also managed to spend some time at the 9/11 Memorial — ” This is the first time I ’ ve been here , ” she said — and have been traveling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Today the subway was packed , but we looked for the least crowded cars.
” “ We went to Times Square , we had some pizza , and did the Statue of Liberty , ” said Sarah Owems , 35 , who was joined by her sister , Jennifer Cato , 38 , and Cato ’ s daughters Aviona Overstreet , 16 , and Nemo Overstreet , 17 , on a day trip to the city from Baltimore , where they are renting an Airbnb .
The Fort Worth , Texas , natives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ graduation , and have spent the week in Baltimore so that they could easily take road trips up the coast .
They ’ ve hit up Mt .
Vernon , Washington , D.C. and Philadelphia .
Owems has been to the city before , but wished she could ’ ve stopped by the Met .
“ My sister and I are really big museum buffs , so we missed that.
” “ New York is still magical , ” said Owems .
“ I wish there were more things open , but I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the city.
” Lilia and Denis Ermakov are in town from St. Petersburg , Russia .
The couple is surprised by how many things were closed in the city — despite entering Phase 4 , the city is far from bustling — but Lilia is still happy to be back — it ’ s been 25 years since her last visit .
The duo said that customs was a breeze , and that they were not asked to quarantine despite traveling from Eastern Europe .

Broadway is dark and museums are closed, but tourists still want a bite of the Big Apple.
In 2018, the city drew some 65 million visitors according to NYC & Company, the city’s tourism and marketing agency. But now, only a few visitors are exploring what’s open, such as Times Square — where COVID hasn’t stopped creepy costumed characters from requesting hugs from passersby — the 9/11 Memorial and the High Line, which now requires guests to register on iPads at the Gansevoort Street entrance to prevent overcrowding.
We spoke to a smattering of sojourners — including a foursome from India, a couple from Chicago and a fashionista from Thailand — about why they visited NYC during a pandemic, where they’re staying and how they’re spending their time in a mostly shuttered city. Despite Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s mandate that many out-of-state travelers quarantine for two weeks upon arrival, most of the sightseers we spoke to weren’t familiar with the edict, and no one had plans to stay longer than two weeks, making the governor’s request moot.
A romantic getaway
“My entire family was saying, ‘You can always go later, don’t go now,’” said Heidi Reinhofer, a 23-year-old actor who came for an in-person meeting with a local talent agency instead of opting for one over the phone. To be safe, she wore a mask and goggles on the flight from Chicago. “On the plane we were told that we’d have to fill out some form [about quarantining], but we never got it,” said Reinhofer, who brought along her boyfriend, Jason Loehr, 23, and made her business trip into a weeklong vacay.
The duo is staying at the Holiday Inn near Times Square, and said that they won’t let “fear” stop them from seeing the city. “We wanted to visit and climb the Statue of Liberty,” said Reinhofer, who has been to the city twice before and plans to visit the outside of the New York Stock Exchange and the 9/11 Memorial instead since Lady Liberty isn’t fully open for business.
“We’re kinda winging it,” said Loehr, who was won over by Ray’s Pizza. “The pizza here is really good. Compared to Chicago slices, they’re a lot flimsier, but the crust is perfect.”
The Thai fashionista
“People are more scared of the virus here than back in Thailand,” 35-year-old Bobo Sangchooto, visiting from Bangkok, told The Post.
“I like New York, I’ve been here before,” she said. “But it’s so different now. It’s so empty!”
The Bangkok native is just in town for three days with her husband, who had a business trip. They’re sightseeing with friends who go to ASA College in Midtown, and were planning on spending the day shopping and finding an open patio to have lunch. “I went to Sephora and got certain cosmetics that we don’t have in Thailand, like lipsticks and eye shadows,” she said.
The girls trip
“There’s a few rooftop bars that we wanted to go to but they were shut down,” said Rebecca Vaiphei, 26, who came to New York with three girlfriends — Anisha Chetri, 23, Vidyashree Chakraborty, 25, and Masoom Sharma, 23 — from Delhi, India, for the week. They were happy to find tables at Los Tacos No. 1 downtown for lunch, though they’ve also been settling for room service at the Hendricks Hotel on 38th Street, where they’re staying.
“We’re taking precautions and enjoying walking around the city,” said Vaiphei. The gals planned the trip about a month ago and paid a “decent” amount for the journey: about $1,000 each for the 15-hour flight.
“It’s less crowded, so it can be a good time to visit New York depending on what you want to do,” said Vaiphei. “We haven’t been disappointed.” The group spent some time shopping at H&M. They also planned on hitting up Victoria’s Secret, and snapped pics of themselves exploring Central Park.
The long weekend warrior
Lisa Dismukes, 48, flew in from Chicago, for a long weekend. “I heard New York was entering Phase 4 so I thought, why not?” She made her way around The Bronx and Brooklyn, and got as far as Canarsie. “We got Popeyes when we got there.” She said her plane ticket, which she booked about a month ago, was around $100, and she got a “nice price” on her Wyndham Hotel room in Midtown.
“I have noticed that everyone is following the rules with the face masks,” said Dismukes, who is a fashion entrepreneur. “And I think New Yorkers are more friendly now.” She wanted to climb the Vessel at Hudson Yards, but settled for a photo in front of the attraction since it was closed. “Next time I’m in New York, I’ll climb it,” she said. Dismukes has been going out to eat at outdoor restaurants with friends, including Sylvia’s in Harlem. “I got the catfish and it was great.”
Her advice to fellow travelers: “It’s cheap to get to [the city], but once you get there, rates are higher for taxis and at restaurants. They want to make up for lost business.”
The smooth sailor
“I came on a sailing trip from Miami to New York,” said Amanda Batts, 26, who spent the past three weeks with her boyfriend on a boat coming up the East Coast from Miami. “I’m leaving tomorrow and flying back to Miami to pack up my apartment,” added the amateur boater, who is planning on moving after losing her job in the restaurant industry.
The couple have spent the past few days living like the locals have during lockdown: “We’ve been laying low, cooking at home,” said Batts, who did manage to indulge in a New York bagel on her trip to the High Line. “We went to Murray’s, and I got lox on an everything bagel.”
It’s one of the few authentic experiences she can get.
“Everything is closed so I can’t really see the real New York,” she said.
The prospective student
Rising high school junior Zack Walsh, 17, is scoping out colleges in the city. “We visited the NYU and Columbia campuses,” said Zack, who drove in with his mother from their summer house in Massachusetts for a long weekend. The family lives in San Francisco. “I’ve never been to New York before, and I like it. I think in normal times it might be too fast-paced for me though.”
The teen has had a chic trip despite the COVID closures: “My dad’s a member of the Soho House so we went to the one in Dumbo and in Meatpacking,” he said. The mother-son duo are staying at the Stewart Hotel near Herald Square, and are eating meals outside, like at the vegan taco spot Jajaja Plantas Mexicana near the Manhattan Bridge.
“I like to take pictures of people,” said Zack, who’s been exploring the city with his camera and riding Citi Bikes. “Some people got upset I was taking their photo, but I don’t blame them.”
A mother-daughter escape
Sophy Rindler, 45, said she and her 16-year-old daughter Shana “needed a change of scenery” after the months-long lockdown at their home in Miami. The duo arrived on July 12 on a cheap flight — $206 each round trip — and are staying with family on the Upper East Side.
“I was expecting a ghost town, but I find New York is still New York,” said Rindler, who’s been to New York several times before. Despite closures, they’ve been able to traverse Manhattan. “We went to Chinatown, had brunch at Bubby’s and went to Central Park and walked all around,” said the mom.
They also managed to spend some time at the 9/11 Memorial — ”This is the first time I’ve been here,” she said — and have been traveling by subway, but carefully. “Today the subway was packed, but we looked for the least crowded cars.”
The East Coast jaunt
“We went to Times Square, we had some pizza, and did the Statue of Liberty,” said Sarah Owems, 35, who was joined by her sister, Jennifer Cato, 38, and Cato’s daughters Aviona Overstreet, 16, and Nemo Overstreet, 17, on a day trip to the city from Baltimore, where they are renting an Airbnb. The Fort Worth, Texas, natives are celebrating Nemo’s high school graduation, and have spent the week in Baltimore so that they could easily take road trips up the coast. They’ve hit up Mt. Vernon, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia.
Owems has been to the city before, but wished she could’ve stopped by the Met. “My sister and I are really big museum buffs, so we missed that.”
“New York is still magical,” said Owems. “I wish there were more things open, but I think my nieces still got a feel for the city.”
From Russia with love
Lilia and Denis Ermakov are in town from St. Petersburg, Russia. The couple is surprised by how many things were closed in the city — despite entering Phase 4, the city is far from bustling — but Lilia is still happy to be back — it’s been 25 years since her last visit. The duo said that customs was a breeze, and that they were not asked to quarantine despite traveling from Eastern Europe.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Notre Dame withdraws from hosting first Trump-Biden debate

The commission that holds the quadrennial presidential debates says that the first of the three scheduled showdowns this fall between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden is being moved from Indiana to Ohio after Notre Dame withdrew as a host .
The Commission on Presidential Debates ( CDP ) announced on Monday that the Sept. 29 debate will now be co-hosted by Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic and held at the Health Education Campus ( HEC ) in Cleveland , Ohio .
The move came after Notre Dame University in South Bend , Indiana withdrew as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election debate .
Notre Dame withdrew due to health concerns of holding a presidential debate and over large in-person gatherings amid coronavirus pandemic , the school said .
After conferring with public health officials , the school ’ s president , Rev .
John Jenkins , made what he called “ this difficult decision because the necessary health precautions would have greatly diminished the educational value of hosting the debate on our campus.
” The debate will be the second CPD-sponsored debate hosted by Case Western Reserve University .
In 2004 , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presidential showdown between Vice President Dick Cheney and Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. John Edwards .
The commission also pointed out that the Cleveland Clinic is serving as the CPD ’ s health security adviser for all four debates this autumn .
Last month the commission announced the second presidential debate – scheduled for Oct. 15 – would be held in Miami , Florida at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County .
The CPD made the move after the original host – the University of Michigan – withdrew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The final Biden-Trump encounter is still scheduled to be hosted by Belmont University in Nashville , Tenn. , on Oct. 22 .
The vice presidential debate is scheduled for Oct. 7 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City , Utah .
Biden ’ s campaign last month reiterated that it ’ s agreed to participate in the three planned presidential debates – and criticized the Trump reelection campaign ’ s recent push for more debates as an “ effort to change the subject ” and “ create a distracting ‘ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s political team had called for more debates , an earlier start to the showdowns than scheduled , and having a say in the choice of moderators .

The commission that holds the quadrennial presidential debates says that the first of the three scheduled showdowns this fall between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden is being moved from Indiana to Ohio after Notre Dame withdrew as a host.
The Commission on Presidential Debates (CDP) announced on Monday that the Sept. 29 debate will now be co-hosted by Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic and held at the Health Education Campus (HEC) in Cleveland, Ohio.
The move came after Notre Dame University in South Bend, Indiana withdrew as the host of the first presidential general election debate.
Notre Dame withdrew due to health concerns of holding a presidential debate and over large in-person gatherings amid coronavirus pandemic, the school said.
After conferring with public health officials, the school’s president, Rev. John Jenkins, made what he called “this difficult decision because the necessary health precautions would have greatly diminished the educational value of hosting the debate on our campus.”
The debate will be the second CPD-sponsored debate hosted by Case Western Reserve University. In 2004, the school was the site of the vice presidential showdown between Vice President Dick Cheney and Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. John Edwards.
The commission also pointed out that the Cleveland Clinic is serving as the CPD’s health security adviser for all four debates this autumn.
Last month the commission announced the second presidential debate – scheduled for Oct. 15 – would be held in Miami, Florida at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County. The CPD made the move after the original host – the University of Michigan – withdrew due to health concerns amid the pandemic.
The final Biden-Trump encounter is still scheduled to be hosted by Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 22. The vice presidential debate is scheduled for Oct. 7 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Biden’s campaign last month reiterated that it’s agreed to participate in the three planned presidential debates – and criticized the Trump reelection campaign’s recent push for more debates as an “effort to change the subject” and “create a distracting ‘debate about debates.’ ”
The president’s political team had called for more debates, an earlier start to the showdowns than scheduled, and having a say in the choice of moderators.
Fox News’ Cherie Grzech contributed to this report.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Arrest made in fatal shooting of Queens man

A man was arrested on Monday for allegedly gunning down a man in Queens last month , cops said .
@ @ @ @ @ of Queens was charged with murder , criminal use of a firearm and criminal possession @ @ @ @ @ to the June 30 slaying of 21-year-old Dante Sartillian , according to police .
Sartillian @ @ @ @ @ borough less than eight miles away from his accused killer , was shot in the @ @ @ @ @ the neighborhood of Elmhurst at around 11:40 p.m. , according to cops .
The victim @ @ @ @ @ by private means , where he was pronounced dead .
Sartillian ’ s death came @ @ @ @ @ gun violence across the city .

A man was arrested on Monday for allegedly gunning down a man in Queens last month, cops said.
Joshua Petillo, 23, of Queens was charged with murder, criminal use of a firearm and criminal possession of a weapon in connection to the June 30 slaying of 21-year-old Dante Sartillian, according to police.
Sartillian, who lived in the borough less than eight miles away from his accused killer, was shot in the chest on 40th Road in the neighborhood of Elmhurst at around 11:40 p.m., according to cops.
The victim was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital by private means, where he was pronounced dead.
Sartillian’s death came amid an ongoing surge of gun violence across the city.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Rob Manfred under scrutiny with MLB in coronavirus trouble

PHILADELPHIA — Instead of preparing for Monday night ’ s game against ...

PHILADELPHIA — Major League Baseball’s era of good feelings about playing through the coronavirus lasted about as long as a pitcher’s rest between starts.
On just the fifth day of its regular season, MLB postponed a pair of contests scheduled for Monday night — Yankees-Phillies at Citizens Bank Park and Orioles-Marlins at Marlins Park in Miami — as a result of a COVID-19 outbreak that impacted 11 Marlins players and two coaches, calling into question the league’s ability to navigate a 60-game regular season and the subsequent postseason. Tuesday’s Orioles-Marlins game also was postponed, commissioner Rob Manfred said in an interview with the MLB Network.
The Marlins, who remained at their hotel here after playing the Phillies over the weekend (hence the Yankees-Phillies series getting impacted), were “doing some additional testing,” Manfred said. “Acceptable” results, the commissioner added, would lead to the Marlins resuming their season Wednesday night against the Orioles in Baltimore.
On their weekly conference call with Manfred, the team owners didn’t discuss a cancellation of the season, and the commissioner expressed bullishness on the sport’s short-term future.
“We expected we were going to have positives at some point in time,” Manfred said. “I remain optimistic that the protocols are strong enough, that it will allow us to continue to play even through an outbreak like this and complete our season.”
Manfred’s optimism proved considerably less infectious than the coronavirus. Nationals manager Dave Martinez, whose team is scheduled to visit the Marlins this weekend, described himself as “scared” to reporters on Monday and added his wish that MLB “does the right thing” and doesn’t compel his club to travel to the COVID-19 hot spot that is Miami.
Added Martinez: “My level of concern went from an eight to a 12.”
Dodgers left-hander and former Cy Young Award winner David Price, who opted out of this season, tweeted, “Now we REALLY get to see if MLB is going to put players’ health first. Remember when Manfred said players health was PARAMOUNT?! Part of the reason I’m at home right now is because players health wasn’t being put first. I can see that hasn’t changed.”
Responded Manfred: “I disagree with David’s comments. I think both for the MLBPA and for us, the health issue was the one that had to be resolved. It was the most important one to all of us. In terms of the activities that have happened in the last few days … we followed the protocols to a T. We went beyond those protocols in the sense that we canceled games, two for the Marlins so far. We’re open to having to cancel additional games if we feel it’s necessary to keep our players safe.”
The Phillies, having been exposed to the Marlins, endured another round of tests on Monday, with results expected late Monday night. The Yankees stayed in town as the Phillies hoped to hold a doubleheader, as long as they received the requisite medical clearance, Tuesday at their ballpark; the two clubs are then scheduled to play each other Wednesday and Thursday at Yankee Stadium, creating more opportunities for makeups should Plan A not come together as desired.
Manfred possesses broad powers with vague parameters when it comes to the nuclear option of canceling the season; we now know that a severe hit to one of the league’s lowest-profile teams won’t get it done. The Marlins simply must dip into their 60-man reserve and march forward.
Asked whether there would be a point of critical mass that would cause the league to halt, Manfred said, “I think that a team losing a number of players that rendered it completely noncompetitive would be an issue that we would have to address and have to think about making a change, whether that was shutting down a part of the season, the whole season — that depends on the circumstances. Same thing with respect to league-wide. You get to a certain point league-wide where it does become a health threat and we certainly would shut down at that point.”
Manfred, who took a beating during the league’s financial negotiations with the players to restart the sport, found himself receiving a new batch of scrutiny as a result of the decision by the Marlins and Phillies to play Sunday afternoon at CBP despite the knowledge that four Marlins players already had tested positive.
“I think really what happened was there was testing on Friday, one positive on Saturday, testing again on Saturday and the three additional positives on Sunday,” Manfred said. “What then happened under the protocols was, we did contact tracing on all four positives. There was I think a small number of players who met the CDC guidelines [for close contact]. They were quarantined. We ordered additional testing. We did symptom checks. We did temperature checks. And decided to proceed with the game on Sunday.”
With the Phillies’ visiting clubhouse employees quarantined as a result of the Marlins’ outbreak, the Yankees imported their own clubhouse attendants from New York in case they do play the Phillies here.
The reverberations from this episode — “I don’t put this in the nightmare category,” Manfred said — should reveal themselves sooner than later. Will more players opt out? Will more games get postponed? Will Manfred face more questions about MLB’s priorities? How many more outbreaks will occur, and which one would be the game’s breaking point? As a cherry on top of this sundae of MLB misery Monday, White Sox manager Rick Renteria was not going to manage the team’s game against the Indians in Cleveland, undergoing testing after reporting “a slight cough and nasal congestion,” as per the team. The game was rained out.
With so many doubts emerging after only five days, here in 2020, MLB already stands behind in the count.
— with Joel Sherman and George A. King III


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Rangers bringing sense of urgency to NHL playoff tuneup

Finally .
After months of speculation , weeks of planning and days ...

The NHL will get its first taste of competitive play in over four months with three consecutive days of exhibition games this week. For Rangers forward Ryan Strome — and every other player in the league, he assumes — figuring out how to play competitively without straining himself is the ultimate concern going into Wednesday’s tuneup game with the Islanders.
“It’s something that the players are kind of wondering themselves and how the games are going to go,” Strome said on a Zoom call following the Rangers first practice in Toronto on Monday. “At the end of the day, you get a one-game tuneup before the Stanley Cup playoffs, so I think the only way to really approach it is to have a game-like mentality.
“I can’t imagine that guys are going to get overused, minutes-wise and stuff like that, but I think it’s important that you try to feel the game experience as much as you can because it’s pretty hard to just jump into a playoff-like game.”
Strome, whose last playoff run was with the Islanders during the 2015-16 season, expects the coaching staff to have a pulse on managing minutes Wednesday. However, he believes his teammates know not to overdo it.
The most important aspect of the exhibition matchup, according to Strome, will be getting acclimated to the new game-day schedule, playing in front of no fans and using it to the Rangers’ advantage by making the necessary adjustments before games begin to count come Saturday.
“Definitely a different feel, but at the end of the day, I think once the puck drops the hockey is the same,” he said.
After arriving in the Toronto bubble Sunday night, coach David Quinn said it’s felt like a usual road trip, except for the fact that Wednesday will be the team’s first meaningful hockey game since March. With that, Quinn is hoping to use the exhibition game as a “barometer.”
“We think we’re making progress. We think we’re close to where we need to be but we’re going to find out,” he said. “It’s very difficult to tell right now and I would guarantee you the 23 other teams will tell you the same thing. It’s difficult to try to emulate real-game situations in your practices and scrimmages, you try to get as close to it as possible.
“There’s nothing like lining up against something that’s not on your team and seeing an unfamiliar face. We’re going to find out an awful lot of things on Wednesday.”
The one thing Quinn said he hopes to see out of his team Wednesday is a sense of urgency and an undeniable effort. Without effort, Quinn said, everything else won’t matter. He also felt as though the exhibition schedule was necessary for all teams to get used to the new fan-less environment.
It helps that each NHL player is in the same boat: about to compete in a game unlike anything anyone has likely experienced before. It’ll be a test of each team’s mindset and approach to the very start of this bizarre 24-team postseason tournament.
“I want to make sure that they understand that we’re continuing to build toward Saturday,” Quinn said. “It’s another opportunity to get better and put ourselves in a position to have success starting on Saturday.”


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Tesla engineer retools sad, old chocolate chip for max taste and melt

A man with COVID-19 spit on an officer after the ...

Silicon Valley, long obsessed with computer chips, is now disrupting chocolate ones.
Remy Labesque, a Los-Angeles based industrial engineer working for Elon Musk’s Tesla, has re-engineered the chocolate chip for the optimization-obsessed set.
Thirty bucks gets you 17.6 ounces, or about 142, of the expertly forged chocolate geodes, which are molded to “melt at the right rate,” according to Todd Masonis, co-founder of San Francisco’s Dandelion Chocolate, which makes and sells the chips.
According to Masonis, typical mass-produced chips, chunks, squares and discs can’t compete with his chocolate chip 2.0.
“The standard way that everyone makes chocolate chips is that it’s deposited off the [factory] line, but that’s not the best way to taste it,” said the startup founder turned chocolate purveyor, who has a degree in symbolic systems with a specialty in computational linguistics.
His flattened pyramid-like structures feature thick middles and thinly tapered edges. A 15-degree slope, according to blueprints for the morsel, creates a glossy finish when baked.
Masonis said it took years to realize Labesque’s original multifaceted mold. “We did 3-D renderings of different options for shapes, test prints of a few molds and, of course, baking tests,” he said. The goal? To emphasize the complex chips’ cacao bean essence, which is said to have notes of chocolate buttercream frosting and banana.
“We found that if you take a huge chunk of chocolate and put it in your mouth, that taste can be overwhelming,” said Masonis. “The flat shape helps slow down the experience.”
The single-origin chocolate is carefully tempered — a process where chocolate is heated then cooled to create a hard shell — and is designed to melt without ruining the structural integrity of its mold-cast hard edge. The perfect chip weight, according to the engineers, is 4.05 grams.
Despite being paid mostly in chocolate — “eventually we threw in some stock options,” said Masonis — Labesque is no Oompa-Loompa. In addition to his industrial design work at Tesla, he has filed about 20 patents, including ones for a “modular solar inverter,” remixes of the blender and coffee maker, and a New Age “juice extractor.”
The pair first met after the Tesla tech-bro took a “Chocolate 101” course at Dandelion seven years ago. He later designed a chocolate-chip cookie “holster” that attaches to disposable coffee cups and a “custom-shaped hot chocolate vial,” before using his expertise on the chip for the Bay-area company.
Dandelion uses the chips in its popular cookies, and Masonis controversially claims that his confections should be the standard bearer for the classic treat.
“I think the Levain cookie is more like a muffin top than a cookie,” Masonis said, referring to NYC’s lauded baker. “It’s an awesome cookie, but it’s sort of category-defying. That’s just my theory.”


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Kanye West submits petition for Missouri ballot, eyes New York State

Kanye West on Monday submitted paperwork to appear on the Missouri ballot in November — and he ’ s also making a last ditch effort to run for president in delegate-rich New York , The Post has learned .
According to the Kansas City Star , West ’ s independent presidential campaign delivered signatures to the Missouri Secretary of State just ahead of a 5 p.m. deadline .
Officials now need to verify that the signatures came from at least 10,000 registered voters in order for West to make it on the ballot .
The 43-year-old rapper would need 30,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the Empire State ballot — and he ’ s been working to make that happen , according to a congressional candidate .
Josh Eisen , who is seeking to run on an independence line for the 17th congressional district in Hudson Valley , said West is paying his team of canvassers to help him out .
Eisen said he ’ s not personally taking money from West for the petitioning , though his backers are .
“ They were very generous , ” Eisen said of West ’ s team .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an extroverted preacher .
And more .
My canvassers should do well.
” An independent party nominating petition for West shows him attempting to run on his newly-fledged “ Birthday Party ” line , with Michelle Tidball , a Cody , Wyoming-based “ biblical life coach , ” as his Vice President .
“ I never thought I ’ d be helping facilitate ballot access for Kanye West , ” Eisen quipped .
The Chicago-born sneaker mogul suddenly announced on July 4 that he intended to throw his hat in the ring against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 2020 presidential election .
Despite his late entry into the race — and a rambling first campaign speech in South Carolina that sparked concern over his mental health — West seems serious about his White House bid .
Earlier this month , he filed the $ 35,000 fee to appear on the Nov. 3 ballot in Oklahoma and Statement of Organization paperwork with the Federal Election Commission .
West ’ s troubled mental state has been on full view over the last weeks , with a series of concerning tweets , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bipolarism , according to his wife , Kim Kardashian .
The 21-Grammy winning rapper reportedly visited a Wyoming hospital for anxiety over the weekend after publicly apologizing to Kardashian for spiraling on Twitter .

Kanye West on Monday submitted paperwork to appear on the Missouri ballot in November — and he’s also making a last ditch effort to run for president in voter-rich New York, The Post has learned.
According to the Kansas City Star, West’s independent presidential campaign delivered signatures to the Missouri Secretary of State just ahead of a 5 p.m. deadline.
Officials now need to verify that the signatures came from at least 10,000 registered voters in order for West to make it on the ballot.
The 43-year-old rapper would need 30,000 valid signatures by Thursday to make it on the Empire State ballot — and he’s been working to make that happen, according to a congressional candidate.
Josh Eisen, who is seeking to run on an independence line for the 17th congressional district in Hudson Valley, said West is paying his team of canvassers to help him out.
Eisen said he’s not personally taking money from West for the petitioning, though his backers are.
“They were very generous,” Eisen said of West’s team. “As good as one should expect from an extroverted preacher. And more. My canvassers should do well.”
An independent party nominating petition for West shows him attempting to run on his newly-fledged “Birthday Party” line, with Michelle Tidball, a Cody, Wyoming-based “biblical life coach,” as his Vice President.
“I never thought I’d be helping facilitate ballot access for Kanye West,” Eisen quipped.
The Chicago-born sneaker mogul suddenly announced on July 4 that he intended to throw his hat in the ring against both President Trump and Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
Despite his late entry into the race — and a rambling first campaign speech in South Carolina that sparked concern over his mental health — West seems serious about his White House bid.
Earlier this month, he filed the $35,000 fee to appear on the Nov. 3 ballot in Oklahoma and Statement of Organization paperwork with the Federal Election Commission.
West’s troubled mental state has been on full view over the last weeks, with a series of concerning tweets, that have likely been the result of his bipolarism, according to his wife, Kim Kardashian.
The 21-Grammy winning rapper reportedly visited a Wyoming hospital for anxiety over the weekend after publicly apologizing to Kardashian for spiraling on Twitter.
Additional reporting by Bernadette Hogan


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--The total ‘woke’ conquest of the pro-sports world

Sam Coonrod shouldn ’ t be waiting for a call from Nike .
Unlike former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick , the pitcher for that city ’ s baseball Giants isn ’ t going to be rewarded for taking a lonely , principled stand .
Kaepernick received a multimillion-dollar endorsement contract from the sports-gear company for starting the trend of NFL players kneeling rather than standing at attention during the national anthem .
He landed more big bucks when the league settled a lawsuit with him because no team wanted him .
He was a backup when he began @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overwhelmingly positive coverage of his gesture — which he said was a protest against racism — he managed the kind of financial reward only a few stars get after they stop playing .
Nike ’ s “ Believe in something ” marketing campaign transformed him into a cultural hero .
Meanwhile , Coonrod — the sole player on any team who didn ’ t kneel during a tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement before the playing of the anthem on Opening Day — also believes in something .
But as far as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he doesn ’ t believe in the right things .
He was mocked for having spoken of his Christian faith , his opposition to kneeling to anything but God and questioning BLM ’ s radical ideology .
Coonrod was right .
While BLM has an innocuous name , its agenda would tear down US history as well as the rule of law .
But for voicing out loud what many daren ’ t say , he was pilloried as a “ false Christian , ” who is “ swimming against the tide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and who stands “ out like a sore thumb ” ( Sports Illustrated ) .
But wait , wasn ’ t Kaepernick lionized for standing on principle and conscience ?
It appears freedom of conscience is only praiseworthy when it is employed on behalf of fashionable leftist causes , not traditional faith and patriotism .
The hypocrisy here is astounding .
But this story also illustrates the way the sports industry has been intimidated into bending the knee to a movement whose purpose goes far beyond concerns about police misconduct .
What a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2016 , when Kaepernick started kneeling and other players joined in .
The blowback from fans led to lower TV ratings for NFL games that made it clear that his gesture was deeply unpopular .
But the ability of the BLM movement to use the George Floyd killing to mainstream its beliefs has now made people like Coonrod the outliers .
In the upcoming NFL season , it isn ’ t clear if anyone in the league will stand for the anthem , especially after New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was beaten @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to defend our national emblems .
The NBA is positively encouraging such ideological posturing , allowing players to wear slogans like “ Black Lives Matter ” on their uniforms , which are also an option for Major League Baseball players .
Meanwhile , as Sen. Josh Hawley ( R-Mo . )
has pointed out , patriotic slogans , let alone ones critical of rights abuses in China — the NBA ’ s oppressive business partner — are not options .
MLB has tried its best to allow space for kneeling outside of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two Yankees — Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks — say they ’ ll kneel for the anthem throughout the season .
Will this result in another backlash from disgruntled fans , many of whom want sports to be a refuge from toxic politics rather than an extension of the same divisive debates that are making everyone miserable ?
Most are too desperate for a diversion from pandemic lockdowns to change the channel from their favorite pastimes .
And league owners may also be betting that the conquest of pop culture by BLM ideology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , like many of the players , are convinced it is necessary and normal to protest the rituals of American patriotism .
If so , that makes Coonrod ’ s refusal to kneel even more courageous , and a lot lonelier , than Kaepernick ’ s profitable political grandstanding .
Jonathan S. Tobin is editor in chief of JNS.org .
Twitter : @ JonathanS_Tobin

Sam Coonrod shouldn’t be waiting for a call from Nike. Unlike former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, the pitcher for that city’s baseball Giants isn’t going to be rewarded for taking a lonely, principled stand.
Kaepernick received a multimillion-dollar endorsement contract from the sports-gear company for starting the trend of NFL players kneeling rather than standing at attention during the national anthem.
He landed more big bucks when the league settled a lawsuit with him because no team wanted him. He was a backup when he began his campaign, but due to the overwhelmingly positive coverage of his gesture — which he said was a protest against racism — he managed the kind of financial reward only a few stars get after they stop playing. Nike’s “Believe in something” marketing campaign transformed him into a cultural hero.
Meanwhile, Coonrod — the sole player on any team who didn’t kneel during a tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement before the playing of the anthem on Opening Day — also believes in something. But as far as many sports scribes and pundits are concerned, he doesn’t believe in the right things. He was mocked for having spoken of his Christian faith, his opposition to kneeling to anything but God and questioning BLM’s radical ideology.
Coonrod was right. While BLM has an innocuous name, its agenda would tear down US history as well as the rule of law. But for voicing out loud what many daren’t say, he was pilloried as a “false Christian,” who is “swimming against the tide of history” (NBC Sports) and who stands “out like a sore thumb” (Sports Illustrated).
But wait, wasn’t Kaepernick lionized for standing on principle and conscience? It appears freedom of conscience is only praiseworthy when it is employed on behalf of fashionable leftist causes, not traditional faith and patriotism.
The hypocrisy here is astounding. But this story also illustrates the way the sports industry has been intimidated into bending the knee to a movement whose purpose goes far beyond concerns about police misconduct.
What a dramatic change from where we were in 2016, when Kaepernick started kneeling and other players joined in. The blowback from fans led to lower TV ratings for NFL games that made it clear that his gesture was deeply unpopular. But the ability of the BLM movement to use the George Floyd killing to mainstream its beliefs has now made people like Coonrod the outliers.
That’s how fast radicalism can shift corporate culture.
In the upcoming NFL season, it isn’t clear if anyone in the league will stand for the anthem, especially after New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was beaten like a piñata for having the temerity to defend our national emblems.
The NBA is positively encouraging such ideological posturing, allowing players to wear slogans like “Black Lives Matter” on their uniforms, which are also an option for Major League Baseball players. Meanwhile, as Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) has pointed out, patriotic slogans, let alone ones critical of rights abuses in China — the NBA’s oppressive business partner — are not options.
MLB has tried its best to allow space for kneeling outside of the anthem. Yet some players, including two Yankees — Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks — say they’ll kneel for the anthem throughout the season.
Will this result in another backlash from disgruntled fans, many of whom want sports to be a refuge from toxic politics rather than an extension of the same divisive debates that are making everyone miserable?
Most are too desperate for a diversion from pandemic lockdowns to change the channel from their favorite pastimes. And league owners may also be betting that the conquest of pop culture by BLM ideology is now so pervasive that young viewers, like many of the players, are convinced it is necessary and normal to protest the rituals of American patriotism.
If so, that makes Coonrod’s refusal to kneel even more courageous, and a lot lonelier, than Kaepernick’s profitable political grandstanding.
Jonathan S. Tobin is editor in chief of JNS.org. Twitter: @JonathanS_Tobin


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Mets doing everything to avoid Marlins-like coronavirus outbreak

After spending the past three-plus weeks in their own New ...

BOSTON — Brandon Nimmo saw reports Monday about the Marlins’ coronavirus outbreak and said his first thoughts were concern about the players and whether the Mets’ scheduled game at Fenway Park might be postponed or canceled.
Assured his team was playing, Nimmo said his mind wandered to whether the Marlins’ outbreak was from a random exposure or if MLB protocol had been breached.
“We know this spreads through contact, mainly coughing and sneezing so it makes you wonder what might have happened there — that is human nature to be curious about what happened,” Nimmo said. “But the biggest thing is it could be any number of things we can’t control, we are not going to tell players they just can’t do anything outside of playing baseball. Even though we are trying to do the most that we can right now, you never know what is going on off the field.”
With 11 players from the Marlins’ 30-man roster, and two coaches, having tested positive for the coronavirus, the abbreviated MLB season has reached an early critical juncture. The Braves were exposed to the Marlins last week in exhibition games before they came to Citi Field for their season-opening series. So the Mets, by extension, have potentially been exposed to the outbreak.
But after receiving their regularly scheduled tests on Friday and Sunday (without indication of positive tests), Nimmo says there is a level of confidence in the clubhouse the Mets will escape unscathed. Much of Nimmo’s faith about preventing a future infection within the team stems from the steps the Mets have taken, from spreading out over six busses (with five players and five staff members aboard each) on their trip here from New York in the early hours of Monday morning, to holding team meetings in spacious hotel conference rooms as opposed to cramped quarters at Fenway Park.
“The hotel, we are staying in two levels where the whole team is, the traffic is just us, it’s like a bubble,” Nimmo said. “We were 10 people to a bus coming here and make sure we maintain distance and wearing our masks, so we are strict. We are still going to call each other out that we need to be consistent and we keep on learning, as we go to each field and learn our ways in and around.
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“I’m still optimistic about it. It’s real unfortunate that happened [with the Marlins], I wish them all the best and I hope this is a hiccup and not something that lingers, but as far as we’re concerned we are still doing everything we can and I still think we have a real good thing going here.”
The Mets emphasized social distancing during camp — to the point general manager Brodie Van Wagenen requested that players stretch the 6-foot rule to 10 feet — but once the regular season started Friday it was difficult for players to avoid the temptation of a celebratory high five. After the Mets beat the Braves in the opener, the team congregated on the field and went through the line with high fives.
It’s clear the Mets can improve in enforcing that particular protocol.
“We have constant talks about staying with the protocol and being consistent and I feel we did a great job in camp,” manager Luis Rojas said. “This weekend as the season started and emotions were high and we got some fist-bumps, high fives and all that and we reinforced about hand sanitizing, still keeping the distance and doing everything we can do and also outside the facility just the behavior as well, just being solid, knowing we have to be healthy — that is the No. 1 priority. We keep reminding each other.”
Rojas said the team is becoming more strict about wearing masks when players are together, other than on the field.
“There’s a lot of things happening in the world right now,” Rojas said. “But at the same time we’re optimistic about the protocols that MLB put out there and we felt prepared coming to camp and we keep learning each day.”


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--On the battle lines in Portland, the ‘uprising’ looks almost like a ritual

At the end of May , rioting and looting broke out ...

PORTLAND, ORE. — The two cops standing guard outside the Portland Police Bureau look tired. It’s the 54th consecutive night of the city’s Black Lives Matter protests, and the street-festival-cum-revolution in the small park outside the Oregon federal courthouse has gone largely unmolested by local law enforcement. “The courthouse is basically theirs for most of the day,” one officer admits. “We don’t really move in until they start setting fires.”
The fires don’t start until later in the night. The tone of the daytime occupation is cheerful: The air is thick with the stench of marijuana, and well-dressed college students mingle with septuagenarian ex-hippies sporting tie-dye Bernie shirts, suburban moms, grungy teens, wild-eyed bums and professional activists from the city’s many protest outfits.
An entrepreneurial duo has set up a stand in the middle of the street selling Black Lives Matter shirts and face masks, and another vendor down the way is marketing vegan kebabs. A woman weaves through the crowd handing out water bottles, earplugs and other protest essentials, singing along to the rhythmic bass line of a hip-hop song emanating from a set of speakers on the park’s southeast end (the lyrics are unambiguous: “Cop shot, cop shot, cop shot, cop shot, / Keep shooting my people, / We will shoot back”).
Cops, for their part, are nowhere to be seen; an organizer helping to block off car access to the four-block protest zone tells me that they usually don’t move in until around midnight.
As the demonstrations near their third month, officers and activists have become locked in a nightly choreographed pattern with no visible resolution. For all the revolutionary fervor, the spectacle feels routine.
When the first flash-bang goes off around 11:30, the protesters’ main concern is that the cops’ unusually early arrival is a violation of the unwritten police-protest contract: “What the hell, guys?” yells an indignant demonstrator. “You’re not supposed to be here for another 30 minutes!”
The police’s task is thankless. Officers have few allies in the city’s infamously left-wing local government, but their lackluster response to destructive violence from radical anarchist groups like antifa has also invited criticism from the right. The police navigate between appeasing Portland’s influential activist class and answering to national conservative pundits.
This unannounced arrival of federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security has made the p.r. dance more challenging still. The feds have been much more aggressive than their local counterparts, making at least 43 arrests in Portland since July 4 — and provoking progressive outrage.
A series of viral videos, allegedly showing DHS personnel in unmarked cars arresting people at random, drew rebukes from Democrats at all levels of government. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler called it “abhorrent,” while Oregon Gov. Kate Brown decried it as “a blatant abuse of power by the federal government”; both of the state’s senators introduced legislation to block federal agents from operating in the city.
The DHS has stood its ground, defending the use of unmarked vehicles and uniforms as routine law-enforcement practice and citing recent instances of “doxxing” of officers. Agents were “only targeting those who have been identified as committing criminal acts,” DHS maintains.
The media have played down the main reason for federal agents being in Portland: a neutered police department has ceded a portion of the city to violent anarchists, who have staged an ongoing riot — firebombing the police station, physically assaulting officers and causing tens of thousands of dollars of property damage. “Any form of resistance is a good way to push our goals forward,” a spokeswoman for the Portland Black Youth Movement told me.
For all that, however, the protests feel more performative than substantive. Activists pump their fists in the air and stare defiantly into the row of 15 or 20 police officers on the other side of the street as photographers snap pictures from a safe distance; well-to-do middle-aged women wax poetic on the importance of social justice as a background narration to their iPhone videography; undergrads pose with handmade signs for their friends’ Instagram postings; a teenager on a skateboard flashes the middle finger to a line of cops in riot gear.
And suddenly, as soon as it’s started, it’s over. After less than half an hour of battling, the police and federal agents decide that they’ve had enough, disappearing into a nearby building for the night. The mob lets out a roar of victory. They’ve “won,” again. In cities like Portland, they’ve been winning for years.
Nate Hochman is a rising senior at Colorado College. Adapted from City Journal. Twitter: @NJHochman


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Yankees in lockdown as coronavirus threatens more games

PHILADELPHIA — Instead of preparing for Monday night ’ s game against the Phillies by undergoing saliva tests for COVID-19 , attending meetings and watching video of their at-bats at the team hotel , the Yankees spent the day locked down waiting to see how the same tests taken by the Phillies earlier in the day turned out .
The Phillies expected the results later in the evening .
It wasn ’ t clear when the Yankees would get their tests back .
MLB announced Monday morning the Yankees-Phillies game at Citizens Bank Park , and the Orioles-Marlins game in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conducted additional COVID-19 testing after 11 Marlins players and two coaches tested positive over the weekend when they were in Philly for three games .
MLB didn ’ t offer information on the status of the Yankees ’ Tuesday night game against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park .
It wasn ’ t clear if the clubs would play a doubleheader or one game or no games .
Obviously , the plan would be tied to the Phillies ’ test results .
The Yankees were still at the team hotel at 5:30 p.m. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ travel plans were contingent on the Phillies ’ test results .
With the Phillies scheduled to play the Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday and Thursday , those games also could be in jeopardy depending on the Phillies ’ test results .
With Phillies staffers who work in the visiting clubhouse sent to quarantine and unable to unpack the Yankees ’ equipment truck Sunday night , the Yankees sent several clubhouse employees from Yankee Stadium to Philly on Monday .
However , due to an ultra-cleaning process the equipment wasn ’ t inside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
According to NBC Sports Philadelphia , the Yankees called the Phillies on Sunday looking to shift Monday ’ s game to Yankee Stadium but the discussion didn ’ t result in a move .
Before the game was postponed , the Yankees had Zoom calls set up with Aaron Boone , Masahiro Tanaka and Geritt Cole .
Those were canceled and the team didn ’ t allow anyone to talk about how it felt to follow the Marlins into a clubhouse or their feelings on playing Tuesday evening in the same park @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
J.A .
Happ was slated to make his season debut Monday night and Cole ’ s start Tuesday evening would be his second of the year .
If a game is played Tuesday , Happ could start it and that would move Cole to Wednesday night ’ s game against the Phillies in the Yankees ’ home opener .
Jordan Montgomery , the original home-opener starter , could then pitch his first game of the year on Thursday in The Bronx or Boone could start James Paxton on normal four days ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t make it out of the second inning against the Nationals on Saturday night in Washington where the Yankees were battered , 9-2 .
Of course , since the Yankees and Phillies are playing two games in The Bronx on Wednesday and Thursday already , they could stage a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium to make up for Monday ’ s postponement .
If Tuesday night ’ s game isn ’ t played , it wouldn ’ t be likely to play back-to-back doubleheaders at the Stadium .

PHILADELPHIA — Instead of preparing for Monday night’s game against the Phillies by undergoing saliva tests for COVID-19, attending meetings and watching video of their at-bats at the team hotel, the Yankees spent the day locked down waiting to see how the same tests taken by the Phillies earlier in the day turned out.
The Phillies expected the results later in the evening. It wasn’t clear when the Yankees would get their tests back.
MLB announced Monday morning the Yankees-Phillies game at Citizens Bank Park, and the Orioles-Marlins game in Miami, were postponed while the league conducted additional COVID-19 testing after 11 Marlins players and two coaches tested positive over the weekend when they were in Philly for three games.
MLB didn’t offer information on the status of the Yankees’ Tuesday night game against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. It wasn’t clear if the clubs would play a doubleheader or one game or no games. Obviously, the plan would be tied to the Phillies’ test results.
The Yankees were still at the team hotel at 5:30 p.m., so it was highly likely their travel plans were contingent on the Phillies’ test results.
With the Phillies scheduled to play the Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday and Thursday, those games also could be in jeopardy depending on the Phillies’ test results.
With Phillies staffers who work in the visiting clubhouse sent to quarantine and unable to unpack the Yankees’ equipment truck Sunday night, the Yankees sent several clubhouse employees from Yankee Stadium to Philly on Monday. However, due to an ultra-cleaning process the equipment wasn’t inside the clubhouse as of late Monday afternoon.
According to NBC Sports Philadelphia, the Yankees called the Phillies on Sunday looking to shift Monday’s game to Yankee Stadium but the discussion didn’t result in a move.
Before the game was postponed, the Yankees had Zoom calls set up with Aaron Boone, Masahiro Tanaka and Geritt Cole. Those were canceled and the team didn’t allow anyone to talk about how it felt to follow the Marlins into a clubhouse or their feelings on playing Tuesday evening in the same park where Monday’s game was postponed.
J.A. Happ was slated to make his season debut Monday night and Cole’s start Tuesday evening would be his second of the year. If a game is played Tuesday, Happ could start it and that would move Cole to Wednesday night’s game against the Phillies in the Yankees’ home opener. Jordan Montgomery, the original home-opener starter, could then pitch his first game of the year on Thursday in The Bronx or Boone could start James Paxton on normal four days’ rest and bump Montgomery. Paxton didn’t make it out of the second inning against the Nationals on Saturday night in Washington where the Yankees were battered, 9-2.
Of course, since the Yankees and Phillies are playing two games in The Bronx on Wednesday and Thursday already, they could stage a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium to make up for Monday’s postponement. If Tuesday night’s game isn’t played, it wouldn’t be likely to play back-to-back doubleheaders at the Stadium.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--The Lincoln Project is just another way for hacks to milk (liberal) donors

A couple of erstwhile Republican operatives who notably failed to elect GOP presidents are now trying to elect a Democratic one .
They call their super PAC , self-importantly , the Lincoln Project .
The operation is devoted to churning out harsh , often ridiculously over-the-top ads attacking President Trump .
The media and progressives on Twitter — the Lincoln Project ’ s real political base — inevitably praise the ads .
The project ’ s operatives tend to this constituency with a slavish devotion , catering to its longstanding hatreds and its momentary passions .
They know that without @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Lincoln Project — which doesn ’ t spend much on actually broadcasting its much-vaunted ads — would be a complete irrelevance .
So far they have proved more adept at this game than they did at electing John McCain or Mitt Romney .
It is certainly understandable to be a Republican who ’ s appalled at Trump and refuses to vote for him .
But it ’ s another thing entirely to go raise millions from Democratic donors and run ads not just against Trump , but against run-of-the-mill GOP senators whose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” next to their names .
The Lincoln Project launched with its founders — including politicos John Weaver , Rick Wilson and Steve Schmidt — jointly writing a high-minded New York Times op-ed promising to reach persuadable voters and to heal the nation ’ s wounds .
This was all self-serving tripe , as a glance at the insult-filled Twitter feeds , op-eds and cable appearances of the principals instantly demonstrates .
These people aren ’ t resisting the coarsened political culture to which Trump has contributed more than his share .
No @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apparently believing that their spittle-flecked rage passes for wit .
The ads aren ’ t any better .
The Lincoln Project churns them out at the pace of the Twitter news-cycle , and they are clearly meant to garner retweets rather than to speak to on-the-fence voters .
A subgenre of ads is solely meant to get a rise out of Trump .
With his usual self-discipline , the president has obliged by attacking the project — to the delight of its Twitter following and media cheerleaders .
The idea of Republican political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Lincoln Project ’ s progressive fans .
But it ’ s not really true .
John Weaver , for example , hasn ’ t been a GOP stalwart in about 20 years .
He left to go work for the Democratic House campaign committee after John McCain ’ s 2000 primary campaign flamed out .
He returned as the strategist to the 2016 presidential campaign of John Kasich , who will be speaking at the Democratic convention this year .
Steve Schmidt repaid John McCain for the opportunity of a lifetime running @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the wreckage and making a new career among the people who hated the McCain campaign .
Just last year , he was the chief strategist to prospective independent presidential candidate Howard Schultz , the CEO of Starbucks — showing he wasn ’ t going to let a self-evident absurdity get in the way of a good payday .
It ’ s hard to maintain the fiction of the Lincoln Project as a Republican group when Weaver gave a defensive-sounding interview to The Washington Post promising to support the agenda of a prospective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him .
If the media didn ’ t share the Lincoln Project ’ s political goals , they might cast a more jaundiced eye on the group and simply see political consultants doing what they do best — namely , separate gullible people from their money , in this case Democratic donors .
Most of the project ’ s ad buys are for show and , regardless , they are a pittance compared to all of the other advertising out there genuinely designed to persuade voters .
The group got a dubious write-up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this year , pointing out its unusual spending practices .
But , hey , it ’ s good work if you can get it — and lack the self-respect to turn it down .

A couple of erstwhile Republican operatives who notably failed to elect GOP presidents are now trying to elect a Democratic one.
They call their super PAC, self-importantly, the Lincoln Project. The operation is devoted to churning out harsh, often ridiculously over-the-top ads attacking President Trump. The media and progressives on Twitter — the Lincoln Project’s real political base — inevitably praise the ads.
The project’s operatives tend to this constituency with a slavish devotion, catering to its longstanding hatreds and its momentary passions.
They know that without cable- TV mentions and Twitter buzz, the Lincoln Project — which doesn’t spend much on actually broadcasting its much-vaunted ads — would be a complete irrelevance. So far they have proved more adept at this game than they did at electing John McCain or Mitt Romney.
It is certainly understandable to be a Republican who’s appalled at Trump and refuses to vote for him. But it’s another thing entirely to go raise millions from Democratic donors and run ads not just against Trump, but against run-of-the-mill GOP senators whose only offense is having an “R” next to their names.
The Lincoln Project launched with its founders — including politicos John Weaver, Rick Wilson and Steve Schmidt — jointly writing a high-minded New York Times op-ed promising to reach persuadable voters and to heal the nation’s wounds.
This was all self-serving tripe, as a glance at the insult-filled Twitter feeds, op-eds and cable appearances of the principals instantly demonstrates. These people aren’t resisting the coarsened political culture to which Trump has contributed more than his share. No, they are happily embracing it, apparently believing that their spittle-flecked rage passes for wit.
The ads aren’t any better. The Lincoln Project churns them out at the pace of the Twitter news-cycle, and they are clearly meant to garner retweets rather than to speak to on-the-fence voters. A subgenre of ads is solely meant to get a rise out of Trump. With his usual self-discipline, the president has obliged by attacking the project — to the delight of its Twitter following and media cheerleaders.
The idea of Republican political pros working against Trump is irresistible to the Lincoln Project’s progressive fans. But it’s not really true. John Weaver, for example, hasn’t been a GOP stalwart in about 20 years. He left to go work for the Democratic House campaign committee after John McCain’s 2000 primary campaign flamed out. He returned as the strategist to the 2016 presidential campaign of John Kasich, who will be speaking at the Democratic convention this year.
Steve Schmidt repaid John McCain for the opportunity of a lifetime running his 2008 presidential campaign by self-servingly dishing on the wreckage and making a new career among the people who hated the McCain campaign. Just last year, he was the chief strategist to prospective independent presidential candidate Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks — showing he wasn’t going to let a self-evident absurdity get in the way of a good payday.
It’s hard to maintain the fiction of the Lincoln Project as a Republican group when Weaver gave a defensive-sounding interview to The Washington Post promising to support the agenda of a prospective President Biden and attack Republicans for opposing him.
If the media didn’t share the Lincoln Project’s political goals, they might cast a more jaundiced eye on the group and simply see political consultants doing what they do best — namely, separate gullible people from their money, in this case Democratic donors.
Most of the project’s ad buys are for show and, regardless, they are a pittance compared to all of the other advertising out there genuinely designed to persuade voters. The group got a dubious write-up from the Center for Responsive Politics earlier this year, pointing out its unusual spending practices. But, hey, it’s good work if you can get it — and lack the self-respect to turn it down.
Twitter: @RichLowry


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Davell Gardner’s horrific fate should have all NY’s leaders hanging heads in shame

A second teen died Monday after being hit by gunfire ...

A teddy bear atop a tiny casket adorned with cartoons: It doesn’t get more heartbreaking — soul-wrenching — than the funeral of tiny Davell Gardner, the youngest victim of New York City’s crime spike.
Davell was killed by someone shooting at people gathered for a barbecue. Monday, his father fought tears as he told the church, “It just hurts. . . . I don’t have somebody to call me ‘daddy, daddy, daddy.’ ”
It hasn’t gotten any more peaceful in the two weeks since that horrific shooting. Another mother lost a 16-year-old son this past Sunday, cut down on a Brooklyn hoops court — one of seven gun killings on the day.
Last week saw 47 shootings, triple the 17 in the same period last year, and 17 homicides vs. five a year ago. And all right on track with what the city’s suffered for two months now.
In answer, Mayor Bill de Blasio offers nothing but the same “violence prevention” babble he’s been burbling for a month now.
The mayor keeps telling everyone that counseling will turn things around. On Monday, he was still insisting “the best way to address” the soaring violence is “community members stepping forward,” including clergy and people from the Cure Violence movement and Crisis Management System, “a whole host of people and organizations occupying the corners . . . making clear that violence won’t be acceptable.”
No, sir: With all due respect to those working hard to counsel peace, it’s the men and women in blue who have to make it clear that the violence will be stopped.
As NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea bluntly warns, it won’t stop soon: “It’s going to take some time to address the significant uptick in violence that we see.” He says that cops are making more gun arrests and closing more homicide cases, but that’s only a start.
Especially since the state’s criminal-justice “reforms” and the pandemic’s impact on the courts mean that unprecedented numbers of the violence-prone simply aren’t getting locked up.
De Blasio’s big new idea is to huddle with the city’s DAs and state Chief Judge Janet DiFiore to get more bad guys locked up. But Shea notes that the reforms leave perps with little reason to take any deal that prosecutors offer.
Brutes like the one who shot 1-year-old Davell have closed hearts; no minister or counselor will make them change their ways. And they now believe — alas, with good reason — that the police and the rest of the law-enforcement system are helpless to stop them.
Until de Blasio — and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson — start standing firmly with the NYPD, bring back anti-gun units and stop trying to let every criminal out of Rikers, all the social workers in the world won’t stop New York from having to cry over yet another tiny coffin all too soon.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Is ‘After We Collided’ Coming Out on Netflix or Hulu?

Following months of waiting patiently for a sequel , After fans were finally treated to a first look at After We Collided , the follow-up film to the steamy 2019 romantic drama .
After We Collided picks up where After left us hanging : Tessa ( Josephine Langford ) and Hardin ( Hero Fiennes Tiffin ) have left their rocky romance in the past…or have they ?
The tumultuous couple can ’ t seem to stay away from each other , despite all of the drama and fights that plague their relationship .
And adding in some new potential love @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and a new coworker , Trevor ( Dylan Sprouse ) , for Tessa — certainly doesn ’ t help calm the situation , by the looks of today ’ s trailer .
With a sneak peek at After We Collided , fans are eager to know everything about the release , from when it comes out to where to watch it .
Will it be on Netflix or Hulu ?
We ’ ve got the answers .
While the sequel is still a few months away , we ’ ve rounded up everything @ @ @ @ @ @ @ watch After We Collided .
When Does After We Collided Premiere ?
After We Collided comes to theaters and VOD this fall , on Oct. 2 .
Is After We Collided Coming to Netflix ?
Unfortunately , there are no current plans for After We Collided to be released on Netflix .
Since it ’ s getting a joint theatrical and VOD release , it won ’ t be immediately available , but that doesn ’ t mean it will never land on the streaming service .
It ’ s not all bad @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re waiting to see After We Collided , you can currently stream After on Netflix .
If After We Collided follows the same timeline as After , it just may premiere on Netflix a few months after its initial release .
Is After We Collided Coming to Hulu ?
Like the Netflix situation , there ’ s also no current plan for After We Collided to land on Hulu .
Your best streaming bet is likely Netflix , since the first After film debuted there shortly after it was released in theaters , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Where Can I Watch After We Collided ?
After We Collided is getting a joint VOD and theatrical release , so if you ’ re in an area where theaters are open this fall , you can catch it on the big screen .
But if you prefer to watch it at home , you ’ ll have options .
After We Collided will be available to rent across digital platforms starting Oct. 12 .
Where to watch After

Following months of waiting patiently for a sequel, After fans were finally treated to a first look at After We Collided, the follow-up film to the steamy 2019 romantic drama. After We Collided picks up where After left us hanging: Tessa (Josephine Langford) and Hardin (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) have left their rocky romance in the past…or have they?
The tumultuous couple can’t seem to stay away from each other, despite all of the drama and fights that plague their relationship. And adding in some new potential love interests — a mystery brunette for Hardin and a new coworker, Trevor (Dylan Sprouse), for Tessa — certainly doesn’t help calm the situation, by the looks of today’s trailer.
With a sneak peek at After We Collided, fans are eager to know everything about the release, from when it comes out to where to watch it. Will it be on Netflix or Hulu? We’ve got the answers. While the sequel is still a few months away, we’ve rounded up everything you need to know about how to watch After We Collided.
When Does After We Collided Premiere?
After We Collided comes to theaters and VOD in the United States this fall, on Oct. 23.
Is After We Collided Coming to Netflix?
Unfortunately, there are no current plans for After We Collided to be released on Netflix. Since it’s getting a joint theatrical and VOD release, it won’t be immediately available, but that doesn’t mean it will never land on the streaming service. It’s not all bad news, though — while you’re waiting to see After We Collided, you can currently stream After on Netflix. If After We Collided follows the same timeline as After, it just may premiere on Netflix a few months after its initial release.
Is After We Collided Coming to Hulu?
Like the Netflix situation, there’s also no current plan for After We Collided to land on Hulu. Your best streaming bet is likely Netflix, since the first After film debuted there shortly after it was released in theaters, but it never debuted on Hulu.
Where Can I Watch After We Collided?
After We Collided is getting a joint VOD and theatrical release, so if you’re in an area where theaters are open this fall, you can catch it on the big screen. But if you prefer to watch it at home, you’ll have options. After We Collided will be available to rent across digital platforms starting Oct. 23. Right now, you can pre-order the film for $12.99 on Vudu, or spring the extra $2 for a $14.99 HD pre-order. You can also save After We Collided to your Google Play wishlist, or pre-order the film on iTunes, but it will cost you $24.99.
UPDATED 10/21/2020 1:48 P.M. ET: This article has been updated to include pre-order information for After We Collided.
Where to watch After


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Portland’s disease is spreading – can any liberal city resist?

A federal officer in Portland kneeled on the back of ...

Portland, Ore., has seen 60 straight nights of violent unrest, and now it’s starting to spread: Saturday was a national night of “solidarity,” with demonstrations in multiple cities in support of the Portland goons.
Yes, goons: Shooting off mortar-style fireworks, hurling rocks and bottles, shining lasers in officers’ eyes, taking power tools to the fence around the courthouse area: All of it belies any claim of “peaceful protests.”
The arrival of federal agents in Portland hasn’t stopped the nightly attacks on the Mark O. Hatfield federal courthouse. Saturday evening, police responded to a shooting in the vicinity and found nearby a bag packed with Molotov cocktails and loaded rifle magazines.
The city finally declared the scene a riot — and Seattle followed suit after a violent demonstration near the former “occupied protest zone.” There, protesters breached a construction site for a youth detention center and destroyed windows at a court facility. This was after the county executive bowed to the mob and said he’d work to eliminate youth detention centers by 2025.
The thugs’ Gotham brethren also showed their support, with hundreds of demonstrators marching from the Lower East Side to police headquarters on Saturday night. Some set fires in garbage cans while others vandalized NYPD vehicles, tagging them with graffiti, slashing their tires and trying to smash in their windows. At one point, a few protesters jumped atop a police SUV, with one holding an inverted American flag scrawled with “F - - k NYPD.” But the cops are under orders to show restraint.
Lefty pols prefer to simply deny the menace. Rep. Jerry Nadler insisted on-camera that the idea of violence in Portland is merely a “myth that’s being spread only in Washington, DC.” (We asked his office for an explanation, but it declined to respond.)
Meanwhile, what’s going on in the City of Roses is inspiring more mayhem.
“Across the country people are committing violence, supposedly in support of Portland,” the city’s police chief, Chuck Lovell, said Saturday. “If you want to support Portland then stop the violence, work for peace,” he pleaded. “We want to get back to the critical issues that have been hijacked by people committing crimes under the cover of the crowds.”
But that won’t happen as long as the mob besieging the courthouse gets to keep on committing crimes — indeed, the lack of response across the country only encourages more rabble-rousing. If mayors don’t want the feds coming in to clean up their cities, they better start doing it themselves.


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Hotel Lucerne on Upper West Side converts to ‘temporary’ homeless shelter

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Normally live-and-let-live Upper West Siders are freaked out that the city’s Department of Homeless Services converted a third large neighborhood hotel into a “temporary” homeless shelter – without even warning them first.
The Hotel Lucerne at 201 W. 79th St. on Monday began welcoming the first of nearly 300 homeless men, many of them methadone users and “recovering” alcoholics. School buses dropped off the men and their makeshift bags at the hotel, whose website recently touted the inn as a “sophisticated” venue “imbued with European-inspired architectural charm and modern amenities.”
Dorota Brosen, who lives across the street from the previously converted Belleclaire on West 77th Street, watched the Lucerne move-in and warned, “I see what goes on from my window. There’s drinking, smoking and sleeping on the sidewalk. People are afraid to walk past.”
The Lucerne is one of 140 hotels citywide that DHS tapped since the pandemic broke out to take in the homeless, who are considered at greater risk for COVID-19 infection if they remain in city-run shelters. Some 13,500 single adults are now being put up in hotels.
It’s a boon to beleaguered hotel owners who had struggled even before the pandemic due to a glut of rooms. But although FEMA is supposedly paying the city 75 percent of the cost to house homeless in hotels during the pandemic, the program’s economics are mostly a mystery.
The Department of Homeless Services, which launched the program, won’t even provide a list of all the converted hotels, citing “privacy” issues.
Previous 1 of 6 Next Advertisement Hotel and program staff help to carry clothes and items belonging to homeless residents who were staying at The Hotel Lucerne as part of a deal with the city. Stephen Yang Stephen Yang Advertisement Stephen Yang Stephen Yang Advertisement
Pre-pandemic estimates were that the average nightly cost of housing the homeless in city-run shelters was $150 for each person. On Monday, DHS spokesman Isaac McGinn told The Post that the city’s average nightly cost for a hotel unit used for homeless people was $237 including for the room itself plus “social services.”
But he didn’t respond to questions about how much the city pays to specific hotel owners or to Project Renewal, the nonprofit that manages the homeless hotels under the program.
Unlike many other converted hotels that are in fringe or largely commercial neighborhoods, the Lucerne, the Belleclaire and the Belnord stand in the heart of the residential Upper West Side.
The Lucerne news stunned residents of the West 70s and 80s, who only learned of the move last week from Council Member Helen Rosenthal.
Furious local residents berated Rosenthal on the sidewalk in front of the Lucerne on Monday over the failure to warn them in advance. She bridled that they were being “nasty” and said, to the disbelief of many, that she didn’t know about the Lucerne either until only a few days ago.
CB7 chair Mark Diller said the community was “denied the opportunity” to discuss the situation with DHS in advance and to “share with them the issues that the community is concerned about and rightfully so.”
“We’re back to where we were fifty years ago,” longtime area resident Michael D’Onofrio told The Post – referring to the area’s decrepit and dangerous conditions in the 1970s.
Don Evans, a restaurant operator and consultant who lives one block away, fumed, “This f—ing mayor. He wants to piss people off.”
Evans, chairman of the Taste of the Upper West Side food festivals, said, “A lot of people on the Upper West Side are away now. They’re going to be shocked when they get back to the city.”
Jane Hershcopf Shreck, a film continuity supervisor and arts administrator who is returning with her husband from a stay on the East End, said, “I’m now terrified to go home.” She’s lived across the street from the Lucerne since 1976 and worries that the homeless influx will revive conditions when “there were places where you couldn’t walk.”
Comments posted on the web site of the Upper West Side Rag, which first reported the Lucerne takeover, included, “As a parent with a young child who owns an apartment close to the Lucerne, I am literally terrified of what this could mean to the safety of our neighborhood and our family.”
According to Project Renewal, the Lucerne’s 283 “guests” are being relocated from Kenton Hall Men’s Shelter on the Bowery, which is supposed to help rehabilitate methadone users but has been described by skeptics as a “drug den,” and from the Third Street Men’s Shelter. Project Renewal promised to provide ample security inside the Lucerne and on the street.
But at least some other arrivals are said to be coming from the Washington Jefferson Hotel on West 51st Street, where occupants have been seen shooting heroin and harassing passersby.
Caught in the Lucerne crosshairs is Nice Matin, a popular restaurant on the hotel’s ground floor. A neighborhood institution since 2003, its 50 outdoor seats have been packed on both its Broadway and West 79th Street sides.
But customers on West 79th will now sit just feet from the Lucerne entrance.
Nice Matin owner Simon Oren issued a diplomatic statement: “While we are very concerned about the impact on the neighborhood and ultimately our business, we are also very aware that everyone deserves a safe place to live. We truly hope that the shelter is well run and that adequate support services are available for all of the residents and the community.”
Oren needs to speak cautiously as Nice Matin pays rent to the building owner, the Domb family’s Empire Hotel Group. But an employee who declined to be named said, “Of course I’m worried,” and another said she was afraid to return to work.
Evans, the restaurateur who isn’t involved at Nice Matin said, “Once word gets out it’s going to kill their business.”
With additional reporting by Sam Raskin


newyorkpost--2020-07-27--Joe Douglas levels Jamal Adams’ loaded Jets claims

Jets general manager Joe Douglas explained Monday how safety Jamal Adams went from “ Jet for life ” to jettisoned to Seattle .
“ It certainly wasn ’ t the plan when I first arrived , ” the GM told reporters in his first comments since the trade on Saturday .
“ It was just the circumstances of how it happened , how it played out .
It really was our plan to keep Jamal here , but when our conversations started with [ Seahawks GM John Schneider ] and Seattle several weeks ago , the focus became clear that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the franchise moving forward.
” The Jets shipped the All-Pro safety to the Seahawks for a bounty of two first-round picks , a third-round pick and safety Bradley McDougald .
The Jets also sent a fourth-round pick to Seattle in the trade .
Douglas made it clear that he never promised Adams a contract offer despite Adams saying he did .
He also backed coach Adam Gase after Adams ’ attack on the way out of town and said he believes in the 2020 team .
Things grew contentious between Adams and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ safety seeking a contract extension despite having two years remaining on his rookie deal .
Adams sought to become the highest paid player on the Jets , according to sources .
Douglas explained the Jets were reluctant to do a deal with Adams because of how rare it was to extend a defensive player after his third season ( only three since the collective bargaining agreement went into effect in 2011 ) and because of the economic uncertainty surrounding the sport with COVID-19 looming .
Adams said Douglas promised him a contract offer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Douglas emphatically denied that .
“ I want to make it clear : I never promised an offer to Jamal or his agent , ” Douglas said .
“ Nor was I ever dishonest with any communications with their camp.
” In that same report , Adams slammed Gase , saying he did not believe he was the right coach to bring the Jets a title and questioning his leadership .
Douglas praised the second-year Jets coach .
“ I ’ ve seen Adam this year go through a 1-7 start and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Douglas said , “ who never wavered in his beliefs and a guy would get up and have the tough conversations if he had to with the players and get up and have great communication with the team in team meetings .
Everything I ’ ve seen , I ’ ve witnessed in my year here with Adam I ’ ve been impressed by.
” It was noticeable that Douglas did not extend any good luck wishes to Adams or speak highly of him .
Adams has been vocal on social media about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a shot at owner Woody Johnson on Twitter last week and then ripped Gase and Douglas .
“ This is a business and you don ’ t take things personally , ” Douglas said .
“ Obviously , there was a reason why those things were said .
I don ’ t take those things personally .
I don ’ t think anyone takes those things personally .
You kind of understand why those things were said .
I can promise you that didn ’ t affect us with any of our decision-making @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Jets and Seahawks had been talking for weeks and the framework of the trade was agreed to before Adams ’ incendiary interview was published on Friday .
The teams were waiting for the salary cap for 2020 and 2021 to be ironed out , which happened Friday afternoon .
On Saturday , they finalized the blockbuster deal with Adams agreeing to play for the Seahawks without the extension he demanded from the Jets .
Douglas said several teams were interested in Adams but the Seahawks ’ offer was the best deal , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pursuing the trade .
“ As I ’ ve repeatedly said , my responsibility is to always take the call and assess its value to the Jets , ” Douglas said .
“ Ultimately , this was a deal that made sense for us to make.
” A reporter suggested the Jets were “ punting ” on the 2020 season with this trade .
Douglas disagreed and said he expects big things from this year ’ s Jets .
“ I think when you guys see this team practice and get around this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you ’ re going to see a team that ’ s very hungry and has a lot of desire to prove a 6-2 finish was not a fluke against a quote-unquote soft schedule .
I think you ’ re going to see a team that has a lot of fire and a lot of motivation .
I would disagree that we ’ re punting on 2020 .
”

Jets general manager Joe Douglas explained Monday how safety Jamal Adams went from “Jet for life” to jettisoned to Seattle.
“It certainly wasn’t the plan when I first arrived,” the GM told reporters in his first comments since the trade on Saturday. “It was just the circumstances of how it happened, how it played out. It really was our plan to keep Jamal here, but when our conversations started with [Seahawks GM John Schneider] and Seattle several weeks ago, the focus became clear that this is a great opportunity for us and the franchise moving forward.”
The Jets shipped the All-Pro safety to the Seahawks for a bounty of two first-round picks, a third-round pick and safety Bradley McDougald. The Jets also sent a fourth-round pick to Seattle in the trade.
Douglas made it clear that he never promised Adams a contract offer despite Adams saying he did. He also backed coach Adam Gase after Adams’ attack on the way out of town and said he believes in the 2020 team.
Things grew contentious between Adams and the Jets this offseason with the star safety seeking a contract extension despite having two years remaining on his rookie deal. Adams sought to become the highest paid player on the Jets, according to sources. Douglas explained the Jets were reluctant to do a deal with Adams because of how rare it was to extend a defensive player after his third season (only three since the collective bargaining agreement went into effect in 2011) and because of the economic uncertainty surrounding the sport with COVID-19 looming.
Adams said Douglas promised him a contract offer in a published report last week. Douglas emphatically denied that.
“I want to make it clear: I never promised an offer to Jamal or his agent,” Douglas said. “Nor was I ever dishonest with any communications with their camp.”
In that same report, Adams slammed Gase, saying he did not believe he was the right coach to bring the Jets a title and questioning his leadership. Douglas praised the second-year Jets coach.
“I’ve seen Adam this year go through a 1-7 start and a coach who never lost patience,” Douglas said, “who never wavered in his beliefs and a guy would get up and have the tough conversations if he had to with the players and get up and have great communication with the team in team meetings. Everything I’ve seen, I’ve witnessed in my year here with Adam I’ve been impressed by.”
It was noticeable that Douglas did not extend any good luck wishes to Adams or speak highly of him. Adams has been vocal on social media about wanting to leave the Jets and took a shot at owner Woody Johnson on Twitter last week and then ripped Gase and Douglas.
“This is a business and you don’t take things personally,” Douglas said. “Obviously, there was a reason why those things were said. I don’t take those things personally. I don’t think anyone takes those things personally. You kind of understand why those things were said. I can promise you that didn’t affect us with any of our decision-making that happened over the last week.”
The Jets and Seahawks had been talking for weeks and the framework of the trade was agreed to before Adams’ incendiary interview was published on Friday. The teams were waiting for the salary cap for 2020 and 2021 to be ironed out, which happened Friday afternoon. On Saturday, they finalized the blockbuster deal with Adams agreeing to play for the Seahawks without the extension he demanded from the Jets. Douglas said several teams were interested in Adams but the Seahawks’ offer was the best deal, saying they were “aggressive” in pursuing the trade.
“As I’ve repeatedly said, my responsibility is to always take the call and assess its value to the Jets,” Douglas said. “Ultimately, this was a deal that made sense for us to make.”
A reporter suggested the Jets were “punting” on the 2020 season with this trade. Douglas disagreed and said he expects big things from this year’s Jets.
“I think when you guys see this team practice and get around this team,” he said, “you’re going to see a team that’s very hungry and has a lot of desire to prove a 6-2 finish was not a fluke against a quote-unquote soft schedule. I think you’re going to see a team that has a lot of fire and a lot of motivation. I would disagree that we’re punting on 2020.”