The War Zone: Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday signed decrees that officially claim one fifth of Ukraine as Russian territory and delivered a speech posing his war as a struggle against the West he called “the enemy” while condemning US  “satanism.”   It’s the …

Catastrophic: As many as 500 people in Florida were rescued from Hurricane Ian’s floodwaters yesterday as public officials struggled for the words to describe the damage.   Sheriff Carmine Marceno of Lee County said, “When you look at Fort Myers Beach in particular, there’s …

Boarded and Battered: Hurricane Ian, which is being described as a “once in a century storm,” is approaching the west coast of Florida with winds of up to 155 mph. It’s now a Category 4.   Parts of Key West have already …

Weather Report: Hurricane Ian hit the western end of Cuba today as a Category 3 with winds of 125 mph on its way to Florida, where evacuations have already begun and people are busily filling sandbags. Governor Ron DeSantis has declared an …

Cold Blood: The world’s “blood should run cold” over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Bidenyesterday told world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.   “This war is about extinguishing Ukraine’s right to exist as a state,” Biden said, adding that the Russian …

Like a Hurricane: More than a million people are without power today in the Dominican Republic after Hurricane Fiona passed through with sustained winds up to 90 miles per hour. As much as 20 inches of rain fell on parts of …

The Long Goodbye: The grand and colorful spectacle of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral was held this morning at Westminster Abbey with 2,000 notable guests from around the world. You could see a tear in the eye of King Charles as the proceedings …

Railroaded: Negotiators last night reached a tentative deal to avert a nationwide freight rail strike. Union members will have to vote to ratify it.    Amtrak had already cancelled long distance passenger service in anticipation of a strike tomorrow by the 115,000 …

Econ 101: The financial markets took a dive yesterday on the news that inflation was higher in August than had been expected. The S&P 500 slumped 4.3 percent for the day and the Dow was down 3.9 percent, more than 1200 points. …

The War Zone: Cracks are showing in the wall of Russian support for Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine.   With the army retreating, a few television commentators and bloggers have openly questioned Putin’s so-called “special military operation.” Even some public …