Author: Reporter

The basement synagogue, which was the scene of a recent brawl between worshippers and New York City police, has a long and storied connection with a Brooklyn rabbi who led a global movement and remains revered three decades since his death. The fight broke out on January 8 when authorities moved in to seal off a secret tunnel into the Chabad-Lubavitch synagogue, which some worshippers — described by the movement as “a small group of rogue youth” — said was intended to fulfill the wishes of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Here are some details about Schneerson and his impact...

Nearly 21 million children in the U.S. and its territories are expected to receive food benefits this summer through a newly permanent federal program, the United States Department of Agriculture announced on January 10. Wisconsin is among thirty-five states, all five U.S. territories, and four tribes opted into the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer program, or Summer EBT, which the government says is meant to supplement existing programs during the summer that have had a more limited reach. “No child in this country should go hungry,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an interview with The Associated Press. “They certainly...

First-class recreation centers in low-income neighborhoods, dozens of them scattered around the nation. That was the vision of Joan Kroc, billionaire philanthropist and heiress to the McDonald’s fortune of her husband, Ray. When she died in 2003, Joan Kroc stunned the Salvation Army when she left what amounted to $1.8 billion — roughly half her fortune —with instructions to carry out her wish for the centers. In today’s dollars, that is $2.9 billion. And today, 20 years later, 26 grand, state-of-the-art Kroc centers have opened in places as varied as Ashland, Ohio; Guayama, Puerto Rico; and Quincy, Illinois. Salvation...

Tens of millions of older Americans will see a modest increase in benefits this January when a new cost-of-living adjustment is added to Social Security payments. The 3.2% raise is intended to help meet higher prices for food, fuel, and other goods and services. The average recipient will see an increase of about $54 per month, according to government estimates. That is a smaller percentage than last year, because consumer prices have eased, and the COLA is tied to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index. Still, Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and Disability Policy at the...

The flu season in the U.S. is getting worse but it is too soon to tell how much holiday gatherings contributed to a likely spike in illnesses. New government data, posted on January 5 for the holiday week between Christmas and New Year’s, showed 38 states with high or very high levels for respiratory illnesses with fever, cough, and other symptoms. That was up from 31 states the week before. The measure likely includes people with COVID-19, RSV, and other winter viruses, and not just flu. But flu seems to be increasing most dramatically, according to the Centers for...