New York City in brief

A poll commissioned by No Kid Hungry found that 65% of Queens residents—mirroring the citywide squeeze—have recently chosen between food and essentials like rent, and nearly as many say rising grocery costs have battered their finances. Over half of New Yorkers reported going into debt for groceries, with stress and health impacts in tow. Clearly, a city famed for abundance isn’t serving up much comfort food these days.

A Boston Consulting Group study estimates that artificial intelligence will alter 50-55% of U.S. jobs within three years, not erasing them wholesale but reshaping daily tasks and skill requirements—though 10-15% may vanish altogether. Software engineers may breathe easy, call centre workers less so. Retraining is advised over knee-jerk layoffs; after all, revolutions tend to be more palatable with a little reskilling on the side.

A threatened May 16 strike by Long Island Rail Road workers—now at loggerheads with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority—could halt America’s busiest commuter trains and complicate life for hundreds of thousands from Queens to Montauk. The unions want wage increases; the M.T.A. claims empty coffers. If neither budges, New Yorkers may soon need to rediscover their fondness for traffic jams and timetables measured in hours, not minutes.

As primary races heat up in New York, several Democratic challengers accuse incumbents such as Erik Dilan, Jenifer Rajkumar, and Stefani Zinerman of shielding wealthy donors by avoiding tax hikes for the ultra-rich, even amid yawning budget gaps and federal cuts. With roughly a million city residents at risk of losing healthcare, we wonder if biting the hand that feeds might—on occasion—serve more than just the cat.

After Washington’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” slashed $187 billion from SNAP, a bipartisan hue and cry has reached Albany, with hundreds of groups urging Governor Hochul and legislative leaders to double state WIC funding and boost aid for SNAP outreach. While officials lament an impending $168 million hole in county budgets—and more red tape for millions of low-income New Yorkers—we’re advised this is but a rounding error in a $263 billion spending spree.