On Monday, the New York Times struggled again to strike the balance between Hurricane Sandy stories that are utterly depressing and Hurricane Sandy stories that are the fluffiest little fluffmonsters that have fallen asleep atop a cotton ball wearing bunny slippers (everyone ate candy during the hurricane; they're so bad).
The destruction caused by Sandy is estimated to be in the range of $50 billion. Thousands have been left without a place to live, utilities, and other basic necessities. Yesterday, The New York Times revealed what is probably the most damaging aftereffect of the super storm yet: tight jeans. Terming the tragic condition the "Sandy Five", the Times went out into New York in search of people who had put on weight because of overeating during the storm and its aftermath.
At a news conference today, Governor Cuomo gave the first estimate on exactly what the cost of Hurricane Sandy is going to be, stating that the storm cost the mid-Atlantic region $50 billion and New York state specifically $33 billion. Assuming this number does not go up (it likely will) Hurricane Sandy is officially the second-costliest hurricane in U.S. history.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.— On October 30, the day after Superstorm Sandy soaked thousands of homes with a two-story surge of seawater, housewares, and sludge, America's would-be first lady tried to unite a nation her husband spent the previous year helping to divide. Sporting a fire-engine red windbreaker, flanked by election banners and carefully arranged FedEx boxes marked "storm relief," Ann Romney asked a room of swing-state campaign workers to put aside partisan allegiances and perform one "very easy" task: "What I've been tweeting out is to contact [the] American Red Cross," she instructed—either donating via text message, or dropping off blankets and water that would be sent to the national organization. And she had company on that politically neutral ground. The same day, President Obama dropped by the American Red Cross' white-columned national headquarters in Washington to volunteer, in part by manning its official Twitter account. In the days after, the president continued to stress that "supporting the Red Cross is the best and fastest way" to provide aid.
Whenever something serious happens, the internet does its best to become distracted by minor characters and occurrences only tangentially related to the actual news story.
The cast members of Jersey Shore are putting aside their hair products and spray-on tan to give something back to the town that gave them everything.
Power's been restored to lower Manhattan. Almost all the subways are up and running. New York City is lurching back to work today. Most of it, at least. In some sections of the city and the surrounding area — the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens, Coney Island in Brooklyn, several locations across Staten Island — the lights are still off, supplies are scarce, and residents and local volunteers are struggling to distribute aid. Here's how you can most effectively help.
This morning was the first day back to work for many New Yorkers, and with the subways still not running 100 percent, the typical moderately aggravating commute transformed into a jam-packed nightmare for some.
On a day in which many New York City residents and visitors rallied to help areas ravaged by Hurricane Sandy, news emerged that the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center is flooded with at least five feet of water. The museum, which is still not completed, houses some of the more important artifacts from the 9/11 attacks, including the last column standing from the towers, the famous cross-shaped steel beam, and one of the tower's stairways.
This has to be an Illuminati conspiracy.
It's quite possible that New Jersey governor Chris Christie is the most self-aware politician in the United States right now. This tweet is a prime example of that.
