by WorldTribune Staff, January 2, 2026 Real World News
“The New York of memory, the neon city once emblematic of human aspiration, is long gone and with it has gone those who are able to leave,” Thomas Geraghty noted in a Facebook post as the era of communist Mayor Zohran Mamdani began on Jan. 1.
For those who stayed, Mamdani said he was “elected as a democratic socialist” and plans to “govern as a democratic socialist.”
“We will replace the frigidity of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism. If our campaign demonstrated that the people of New York yearn for solidarity, then let this government foster it,” Mamdani said.
The Mamdani manifesto includes shifting the tax burden to the “richer and whiter” residents who remain in the Big Apple.
City government will expand: “To those who insist that the era of big government is over, hear me when I say this: No longer will City Hall hesitate to use its power to improve New Yorker’s lives,” Mamdani proclaimed.
Hizzoner promised free childcare, free public transportation, and freezing the rent in housing:
“The cost of childcare will no longer discourage young adults from starting a family, because we will deliver universal childcare for the many by taxing the wealthiest few. Those in rent stabilized homes will no longer dread the latest rent hike, because we will freeze the rent. Getting on a bus without worrying about a fare hike or whether you’ll be able to get to your destination on time, will no longer be deemed a small miracle, because we will make those busses fast and free.”
Vermont socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke at Mamdani’s inauguration, saying that programs and policies based on socialist principles are “not radical,” and called for “the wealthy and large corporations” to pay “their fair share of taxes.” The top 1 percent of New York City’s earners pay about 41 percent of all city taxes.
Meanwhile, New York City-based Saks Global announced it is preparing shortly to file for bankruptcy after missing a debt payment related to its Neiman Marcus acquisition, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal noted that the high-end department store Saks Fifth Avenue did not make an interest payment of over $100 million on its bonds and is talking to creditors to secure financing for the bankruptcy process.
Geraghty wrote on Facebook: “SAKS Fifth Avenue Going Under. SAKS 5th Avenue, the NY retailer that has for a century been an icon of upscale purchasing, is in trouble. Even the very rich have their limits and Saks’ red ink has to mean their sales are sagging.
“Is that a surprise? As we transition to communism in NYC, more and more of the wealthy among us are seeking refuge in other states.”
A stroll along 5th Avenue at Rockefeller Center “is not what it used to be, and the new mayor’s promise to allow sidewalk camping is signaling the way things will be after his takeover,” Geraghty continued.
“The Covid crises closed restaurants and many never reopened. Boutique shops on Madison at streets in the 70s and 80s closed due to the absence of clientele. They too did not return. The mentally ill street denizens are always on-hand to panhandle. They also offer the occasional, spontaneous and unprovoked assault on passersby, after which they may relieve themselves by defecting on the sidewalk without worry of being harassed by police.
“The communist / Democrats will explain and lecture you saying: ‘They have rights, don’t they?’ and they will say this is what Capitalism does to people! So, you should know that the discomfort in all of this is YOUR fault.”
The Mamdani regime also plans to narrow traffic lanes to allow more bicycles. Some throughfares will close to traffic entirely.
” ‘The rich’ dive in cars, while the proletariat ride bicycles,” Geraghty noted. “So, if you think you will avoid all of the above by driving in Manhattan, plan for the worst traffic of your life. .
“What will replace the old New York will be a dystopian husk of it’s former grandeur, a hollow, soulless egalitarian dream devoid of human charm. Thanks for that.”
🚨 NOW – NYC MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI: “I was ELECTED as a Democratic Socialist, and I will GOVERN as a Democratic Socialist!”
*Bernie Sanders, AOC grin ear to ear*
CROWD: “DSA! DSA! DSA!”
An Islamic Socialist rules what’s supposed to be our best city.
Absolutely freaking doomed pic.twitter.com/ODVLfiE66W
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 1, 2026
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So long, ‘New York, New York’: ‘Warmth of collectivism’ to replace can-do spirit added by Editor Two on
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