Early January 2026 News.

 

One of the most important news now is how Trump has launched an aerial strike in Venezuela. This action has been confirmed by the CIA. Trump did this not only because he wants regime change against Maduro. He also wants to compete against Chinese interests in the region. China, in the recent years, has increased its power of trade and financial influence in Pakistan, in Africa, in the Caribbean, and in South America. Russia is not more powerful than China, but Russia still has nuclear warheads and intercontinental missiles. China has nuclear weapons, intercontinental missiles, submarines, international trade power structures, and technological development nearing the power of America. That is why this new silent Cold War in the 21st century for geopolitical hegemony is between China and America. America has an alliance with the EU and NATO. China is allied with Russia and North Korea.

Now, Zohran Mamdani is now Mayor of New York City as he was inaugurated in a New York City abandoned subway location on January 1, 2026. He faces many challenges in New York City from the housing affordability crisis to the issue of economics, crime, civil liberties, civil rights, education, and other important issues. New York Attorney General Letitia James administered Mayor Mamdani the oath of office. He is the first Muslim Mayor of New York City taking the oath of office on the Quran. He took the oath on two Qurans, one being his grandfather's and other belonging to Arturo Alfonso Schomburg. Arturo Schomburg was an Afro-Latino scholar and activist who created a black museum in Harlem to document the history and culture of us black Americans. A public inauguration was held in the afternoon of January 1, 2026, and he was sworn in by Bernie Sanders. Many people in his transition team are Elana Leopold, Linda Khan, Melanie Hartzog, and Grace Bonilla. Mayor Mamdani has to get local NYC City council members and the New York City state legislature to get many of his proposals achieved. His agenda of universal Pre-K will definitely get passed in my opinion. Many of his economic views will have more difficult to be passed and must be supported by the New York state legislature. Yet, he will not give up as we live in a new era of New York City in 2026. Hopefully, we will see revolutionary change in New York City indeed.

A lot of things have changed, and it important to recognize the good news in the world. The reason for this is that we all have gifts in the world. We all have purpose, and when a person does something legitimate to help humanity, that act should be praised wholeheartedly. In our time, Colorado funded free meals for children in public schools by closing the tax loopholes given to the super wealthy, many cities have stopped AI data centers (that can harm the environment), New Mexico is the first state in America to fund universal child care that will save tons of money for families, New York state passed a law to ban landlords from colluding together to increase the prices of rent, Oregon signed a law to ban equity firms from controlling medical clinics and practices, and consumer protection laws (they are found in Virginia, Nevada, Connecticut, Colorado, Massachusetts, etc. ending hidden junk feeds) have grown all over the United States of America. Starbucks workers and other workers have protested for adequate labor rights. In private, religious groups, private organizations, and other charities have used their time to give suffering people food, shelter, and other resources to survive without ego or fanfare. To this day, there are tons of unsung heroes who made a positive difference in the lives of humanity, because they have a sincere love of almsgiving and treating their neighbors with dignity and with respect. We will continue to do our duty to improve our land and help people globally.

It is important to show the good news going on in the world too. Dr. Alexandra Bastiany became Canada's first black woman interventional cardiologist. He broke down barriers in heart care and has inspired future medical leaders. She has worked in Ontario to show that diversity and excellence go hand in hand. The music icon Candi Staton has received her first Grammy nomination in the album category for "Back to My Roots." She is 85 years old now. The civil rights activist of Tennessee Mrs. Rosetta Miller-Perry opened her own newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee called The Tennessee Tribune in 1992. She wanted to show African Americans about the positive things going on in the black American community. She is a U.S. Navy Veteran, being married, and is a mother of three children. She graduated from the University of Memphis in 1956. She created the Anthony J. Cebrun Journalism Center with support from Dell Computer. She received the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. She is in her 90s fighting for justice for our community. Michelle Alexander was a civil rights attorney (being Stanford educated) who exposed the incarceration state and continues to advocate for freedom. Clemson gymnast Brie Clark is the first NCAA athlete to successfully land a skill named after Simone Biles. This move is called The Biles. Janice Pettyjohn is the first woman hired for a full-time football position at Howard University, serving as assistant director of football operations and director of on campus recruiting at just 22 years old. She earned a degree in sports medicine and a minor in sociology.

One valuable thing to remember is to always reject cynicism. There are those on the wrong path of history who desire to harm our democracy, rig our economy, pollute our planet, and promote hatred for the sake of hatred. Yet, we have to continue to keep moving forward to defend truth. We should never give up as our ancestors never gave up on us when they were enslaved, brutally harmed, and families separated during the time of the Maafa and slavery. Those events didn't exist a long time ago. My 2nd great grandparents and my 4th great grandparents were slaves in America. That was less than 200 years ago. Today, there has been over five decades of the explosion of wealth inequality and many people not trusting American institutions because of corruption and infiltration of those institutions by corporate interests. The oligarchy is outnumbered by us, and we can fight back (in using constructive, peaceful means) to improve our society too. Always, we will defend a living wage, guaranteed health care, the right to join a union, the right to vote, the right to have the choice to start a family on our own terms, the right to live without gun violence, and the right to improve our environment. There is that light at the end of the tunnel in life. Our expectations should not exist in the realm in the appeasement of folks who hate us. Our validation only comes from within from the Creator God who gave us the privilege of living life on this Earth.

By Timothy