Mamdani Dismisses Assault on NYPD as Snowball Fight

Mamdani Dismisses Assault on NYPD as Snowball Fight
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
February 25, 2026

“What I saw yesterday in those videos was a snowball fight that got out of hand. I believe that our officers, just like any city workers deserve respect,“ said Socialist Zohran Mamdani, an ardent anti-law enforcement and defund the police mayor of New York City. “Just a snowball fight, kids throwing snowballs,” Mamdani reiterated with the perpetually smarmy smirk on his smug face.

But the men and women in blue are not just any city workers as Mamdani disrespectfully said. They put their lives on the line every time they put on their uniforms (as does the FDNY). NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch suggested that had any other city workers been attacked the likes of which her officers suffered, there would have been arrests, but apparently not when NYPD officers are assaulted.

Anyone with half a brain and an ounce of common sense could see in those videos from Washington Square Park, Mamdani does not know what a snowball fight is. NYPD officers underwent an assault by adults, not children, pelting the officers in the face, head, neck, just about anywhere. No officer returned fire - this was not a snowball fight, and the videos clearly proved what Mamdani chose not to see or recognize - that his officers were getting pummelled. 

A snowball fight, Mr. Mamdani, features two sides of participants agreeing to some set of rules - no ice balls, no rocks in the snowballs, etc. That did not happen. Mamdani is irresponsibly  dismissing what actually happened and in doing so, only encourages future ambushes by more miscreants. This was not harmless fun, Mr. Mamdani. Try watching the videos with your eyes open. If someone punches another person in the face 20 times without a return of blows, is that a boxing match? Of course not, that is called assault and battery.

“The mayor’s response is a complete failure of leadership. This was not just a ‘snowball fight.’ This was an assault, by adults throwing chunks of ice and rocks, that landed two police officers in the hospital with head and face injuries. By ignoring their injuries and dismissing the incident, the mayor has sent a disgraceful message to every police officer who serves the city,” said Patrick Hendry, New York City Police Benevolent Association President on Tuesday, February 24.

Tisch stood firmly with her men and women in blue, and did not take the incidents at Washington Square Park lightly, calling them “illegal. The NYPD is aware of certain videos taken earlier today [Monday] in Washington Square Park showing individuals attacking cops. I want to be very clear - the behavior depicted is disgraceful and it’s criminal. Our detectives are investigating this matter,” said Tisch on Monday, February 23.

“What we saw in Washington Square Park today was not harmless fun - it was a deliberate, outrageous, and dangerous attack on uniformed police officers,” said Scott Munro, Detectives’ Endowment Association (DEA) president. “The Detectives’ Endowment Association is calling on Mayor Mamdani and District Attorney [Alvin] Bragg to ensure every individual responsible for this illegal behavior is prosecuted. No free pass. No get out of jail free card. …They deserve to be protected. And they deserve to be respected. They earn it every single day,” said Munro on Monday.

But respect must start at the top. Mamdani must lead by example, and right now the example  by which he is leading is deplorable. Mamdani sneers in the face of law enforcement. His disdain for the officers serving under him is palpable. When Mamdani is disrespectful, the message he sends is that the criminal activity that occurred at Washington Square Park is acceptable and that there will be no accountability or consequences.

Stand up for the NYPD, Mr. Mamdani. Those brave men and women have one of the most challenging careers imaginable (along with the FDNY). Their responsibilities include protecting the likes of you, Mr. Mamdani, Alvin Bragg, the members of the City Council, and countless others of fame, of fortune, and of families. Officers don’t get to pick and choose their assignments. Mamdani’s New York City is shedding men and women in blue in droves. 

About 300 NYPD officers leave - per month - as confirmed by local media, to warmer, or safer, or smaller environs. Regardless of the where, some of the most important reasons why are respect from within their cities - leadership that has their backs, respect from those they are charged with protecting, and being appreciated, not scorned or attacked. Thank you to the men and women in blue goes a long way, and the sooner Mamdani recognizes this, the sooner he may stop hemorrhaging officers to safer and more dignified environs.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

Mamdani's Snowjob of Hypocrisy

Mamdani’s Snowjob of Hypocrisy
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
February 25, 2026

Apparently shoveling snow this winter is more important than casting a ballot on Election Day in Socialist Zohran Mamdani’s New York City. His hypocrisy runneth over.

Mamdani, who doesn’t appreciate his own irony, made a Public Service Announcement (PSA) calling for New Yorkers to step up, volunteer to help shovel the City out of its current whiteout. The so-called volunteers will be paid up to $30 an hour - how that is monitored and by whom, is anyone’s guess. The irony comes into play where Mamdani lists the requirements for city denizens to pick up a shovel, which includes photo identification, the likes of which is not required when voting in any elections held in New York City.

As first reported, five forms of ID were required in order to hit the streets and sidewalks of New York City as part of Mamdani’s snowjob team. Later in the same day, that number was reduced to two, which is still two forms of ID more than are required to vote in New York City.

According to the New York City Department of Sanitation, the eligibility requirements for the big dig (no, not that Boston construction monstrosity that took more than 30 years from conception to completion) are all persons must be at least 18 years of age, must be eligible to work in the United States, and able to perform heavy physical labor. 

So, while enterprising teenagers 13-17 (if there are any) can go house to house and earn money (tax free) shoveling out their neighbors, they can’t do likewise for the City. Of course, that’s called Capitalism, something Mamdani abhors in favor of state controlled, and heavily taxed and regulated, labor. And, with no cap on the age requirement, good luck to Mamdani’s New York City that some asthmatic 70 year old doesn’t have a heart attack and drops dead somewhere on Canal Street and the family sues the City for millions. Even the US military has age limitations.

Additionally, in order to register for these shoveling assignments, each applicant must provide the City of New York two photos “1-½ inch square,” two original forms of ID - plus copies, and a Social Security card.

This is from the Socialist mayor of New York City who virulently opposes voter identification, but demands it for shoveling snow. Kind of like the circus coming to town and then the city needs folks to shovel up the shit after the circus has left. Except in the case of New York City, the circus just arrived on January 1 of this year, and is expected to stay for four years. Imagine the amount of detritus there will be to shovel after four years of circus roustabout Mamdani and his clowns.

Again, this is from the Socialist mayor of New York City, who doubled down in support of protecting illegal aliens in this so-called sanctuary city, but hypocritically won’t even hire them to shovel snow. Mamdani repeatedly calls any voter identification laws racist. If that is true, what of his snow shoveling policies - just as racist? 

Make no mistake, this is in no way an endorsement of hiring illegals in New York City, or anywhere else in the United States. This is an endorsement of law and order (bum-bum-bum-bum-bum), where there are no sanctuary jurisdictions, no protection of illegals who continue to commit crime - beyond the crime of simply crossing the border illegally - and undermine the sanctity of what it means to be an American.

How can Mamdani defend his sanctuary city politics when the very illegals he purports to protect won’t be hired by that very sanctuary city to shovel its citizens out in order for them to go to work and earn money in the capitalist system that is the United States of America? And, if this system of requiring identification is not racist to shovel snow, and does not exclude women and minorities as those who oppose voter ID laws say they do, how do they justify their opposition to voter ID laws? People need the same form(s) of ID to shovel snow as they should to vote. 

Is the shoveling of snow in New York City more sacrosanct than casting one’s ballot to determine who will represent them? Who the people will approve to govern over them? Welcome to Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s New York City circus of hypocrisy - be careful what you step in, folks.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

Easy to Vote, Hard to Cheat - SAVE America Act Does Both

Easy to Vote, Hard to Cheat - SAVE America Act Does Both
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
February 25, 2026

That this column must be written in the first place is a shame, but perhaps the 10 people outside of the Democrats in Congress and the fiction readers at CNN and MS Now can be persuaded via common sense, which, granted, is not terribly common these days.

In simple language that even the anti-American Islamo-Marxists might be able to grasp, HR 7296 the SAVE (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility) America Act will save America and American lives if enacted and adhered to. This bill requires two things of American citizens aged 18 and older who desire the franchise - the right to vote for the Islamo-Marxists. This bill does not rescind the rights of the states to administer and tabulate elections.

The SAVE America Act will save the American republic, which as Benjamin Franklin said is ours if we can keep it. Open borders and no voter identification requirements certainly puts the republic on tenuous ground. The SAVE America Act will also save American lives by helping to weed out the illegals - so many of whom are responsible for the loss of many innocent American lives. Removing the illegals will prevent them from taking any additional American lives. Lives like Laken Riley, Rachel Morin, and Lizbeth Medina, among thousands of others.

Proof of American citizenship via an American birth certificate or American passport is required in order to register to vote. Once registered, the names are recorded so that on Election Day voters need only show a photo ID and sign the registration book. As the overwhelming majority of voters are not committing fraud, their photo will match their face and their signature will match the book.

Following those simple rules will make it easy to vote and hard to cheat, to the joy of the overwhelming majority of Americans, and to the chagrin of the overwhelming majority of Democrats in Congress. HR 7269 already passed the House by a slim margin of 218-213 on Wednesday, February 11. All 217 Republicans and Democrat Henry Cuellar (TX) voted “aye,” while the remaining 213 Democrats voted “nay,” preferring a Helter Skelter system allowing for fraud with illegal aliens and the dead to cast their ballots. (Voter rolls should be scoured every other year to eliminate potential fraud and remove those who have moved or died.) 

Voter identification is supported by 84 percent of Americans, and by wide margins across the political spectrum. Republicans support voter ID at a rate of 96 percent; Independents at 84 percent; and Democrats at 70 percent. While all but one of the 214 elected Democrats do not support requiring voter identification, 70 percent of their presumed Democrat voting supporters do support the ID requirement. This wide chasm amongst elected Democrats and their rank and file voters is demonstrative of how out of touch the Democrat Party truly is.

It is fascinating how many white liberals in Congress and the media are the first to condemn the SAVE America Act in the name of minorities, especially Black and Hispanic voters making brazen assumptions that those groups would be unable to procure appropriate identification. This soft bigotry of low expectations is both harmful and insulting. For myriad times and instances where photo identification is required it is insulting to assume Blacks and Hispanics either don’t have, or can’t get state ID. Blacks and Hispanics travel via airplane? ID needed. Drive a motor vehicle? ID needed. Open a bank account? ID needed. Apply for a marriage license? ID needed. And the list goes on - quite extensively.

Apply for a mortgage or lease
Apply for a credit card in a store
Apply for a passport
Apply for a marriage license
Apply for a business license
Apply for a liquor license
Apply for a law/medical license
Apply for Medicaid
Apply for a hunting and fishing license
Adopt a child or pet
Attend college
Attend political rallies and conventions
Attend an R-rated movie
Buy/sell a house
Buy/sell a vehicle
Buy/sell alcohol
Buy tobacco
Buy travelers checks
Buy a firearm
Buy/sell real estate
Buy/contract for a cell phone
Buy lottery tickets; collect winnings
Buy/sell stock, securities, commodities, bonds
Collect signatures on a ballot petition
Collect casino/lottery winnings; enter a casino
Driver’s license
Donating blood
Donating organs
Entering government buildings
Entering the United States
Entering a foreign country
Entering a bar
Entering many non government buildings
Flying an airplane; getting a pilot’s license
Flying on an airplane
Getting copies of most court documents
Getting a death certificate
Getting employment
Getting married
Getting one’s ears pierced
Go to a doctor/hospital
Make a bank deposit or withdrawal
Open a bank account - savings, checking
Open a business
Pick up a prescription/cold medication
Pick up packages at the post office/UPS, etc.
Pick up tickets at will call - sports/entertainment
Pick up a child at school in person - non-parent
Purchase adult themed material
Receiving a copyright or patent
Register with Selective Services
Rent an apartment
Rent a vehicle
Rent a hotel room/Airbnb
Rent a post office box
Return merchandise
Register to vote
Run for public office
Receive Social Security
Receive food stamps/welfare
Sign up for cable
Sign up for organization memberships
Sign up for utilities
Sign a petition putting a candidate on a ballot
Sign up to be a designated driver for a free non-alcoholic beverage at a ball game/concert
Take the SAT/LSAT/MCAT/GRE - standardized testing
Use a credit card
Write a check
Visit the US Capitol building/watch a session of Congress
Visit some dormitories
Visit an embassy
Visit someone in jail

Here’s a good one: the Democratic National Convention required anyone entering the arena during their quadrennial event, to have photo identification - delegates, volunteers, arena employees, Democrat party leaders, yet that very political party believes it is racist to ask for identification to cast one’s ballot on Election Day. Hypocrisy much?

Here’s a tricky one for the Islamo-Marxists: if, as they believe, it is racist to require voter identification, is it racist to expect and request that same ID to enter a bar, club, or other drinking establishment, all of which have age requirements? If no ID is needed, how do such establishments avoid serving underage patrons?

And one more to really stump the Islamo-Marxists: in order to purchase a cell phone, or sign up for a phone plan one must have identification. Is it racist to expect to see identification when signing up for a cell phone plan? In this day and age, with the exception of the Amish, roughly 99 percent of American adults have a cell phone. If they can afford a cell phone, they most certainly can afford a state identification.

Asking for identification for any of the above instances is not racist. Asking for that same identification on Election Day is also most certainly not an act of racism. Those who say it is, are the real racists, and they do not deserve the votes of those they assume are incapable of procuring identification. (And we all know what happens when one assumes.)

Now that it has been established it is not racist to require identification to vote, and that Blacks and Hispanics are just as capable as anyone else to procure identification and not be disenfranchised, let’s solve this so-called problem for women. Former Vice President Kamala Harris said married women will be disenfranchised by HR 7296. Harris said that when a woman gets married and changes her name she won’t have matching forms of ID. In order to get married both parties need to present identification. Then the hall or records, county clerk’s office, or whatever government entity, issues a marriage license or certificate with whatever names the couple will officially use. That form will have both names on it and will be useful to change the name on a driver’s license or passport and women will not be disenfranchised. Are you still with us Mrs. Harris?

The only people who will be disenfranchised, much to the Islamo-Marxists chagrin will be the illegal aliens. They broke the law crossing the border to invade the United States in the first place. They should never have any rights in the United States except the right of return to the country of their origin. By requiring legitimate photo identification of American citizens of voting age, American elections in all 50 states will be on the path to fraud-free elections. 

Requiring photo ID will protect the franchise for every American man and woman, Black, White, Hispanic - equally and fairly. One American voter with proper identification, one vote. Call your United States senators and politely demand they support HB 7296. The Senate switchboard number is 202-224-3121. Oh, and by the way, in order for every House member to vote yea or nay on this and every bill before them they are required to present their House ID. Think the Democrats see the irony there?

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

On This Holocaust Remembrance Day, Walz Sullies Memory of Anne Frank

On This Holocaust Remembrance Day, Walz Sullies Memory of Anne Frank
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
January 26, 2026

The easiest way to lose both credibility and the argument is to weaponize the Holocaust. President Donald J. Trump is not Hitler. Is President Trump responsible for the slaughter of six million Jewish men, women, and children simply because they were Jewish? Of course not. ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents are not the Gestapo. ICE is not a secret police unit rounding up legal citizens for eventual murder. ICE is responsible for apprehending criminal illegal aliens.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D), in an effort to fight the Trump administration has made those very parallels between Trump and Hitler, and between ICE and the Gestapo. On Sunday, January 25, just two days prior to International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Walz went one step farther by weaponizing and denigrating the memory of Anne Frank, a Jewish teenager in hiding with seven other people for more than two years in Amsterdam. Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, is so recognized as the liberation of Auschwitz by Soviet troops.

In his abject ignorance Walz said “we have got children in Minnesota hiding in their houses, afraid to go outside. Many of us grew up reading that story of Anne Frank. Somebody’s going to write that children’s story about Minnesota,” Walz moronically concluded during his press conference on Sunday.

Based upon his comments, one may wonder whether Walz ever read The Diary of a Young Girl. In the first place, the Anne Frank diary should not be classified as a “children’s story” when it is a mature-themed accounting of life in hiding from the Nazis who were hell-bent on rounding up every Jew to be murdered. Children hiding in Minneapolis are doing so because of the fear-mongering of Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

Are the children Walz compared to Frank on the precipice of being murdered? No, they are not. Is their plight remotely as desperate or severe as that of Frank? No, it is not. 

Anne Frank, born June 12, 1929, her sister Margot, born February 16, 1926, their parents Otto and Edith, and four others went into hiding on July 6, 1942 in an attic of an annex to Otto’s business office. Their survival, incumbent upon the goodness and bravery of a precious few willing to risk their own lives for helping Jews, included Miep and Jan Gies. Until the Franks, et al, were betrayed and turned into the Nazis on August 4, 1944 they lived, if it can be called living, knowing any sound could be their end. Upon their capture, they were sent to Auschwitz, a concentration camp where nearly 1.5 million people were slaughtered - 90 percent of them Jewish - gas chambers operating at a capacity of 12,ooo murders per day. Does anyone think Walz knows this history?

Eventually Anne and Margot Frank were transferred to Bergen-Belsen, a concentration camp established in 1943 designed to hold 10,000 prisoners/hostages. By the end of World War II Bergen-Belsen housed about 60,000 prisoners/hostages, the overwhelming majority of whom, murdered by the Nazis, died of starvation and/or typhus. British troops liberated Bergen-Belsen April 15, 1945 - too late for the Frank sisters, both of whom died of typhus. Their exact dates of death are not known, but are estimated to be in February or March of 1945, Anne at age 15, and Margot either at age 18 or 19. May their memories be for a blessing. 

It’s beyond outrageous that Walz, or anyone for that matter, could have the chutzpah to malign the memory of Anne Frank, or any of the eight hidden in the attic for more than two years. Comparing that horrific experience to that which some children in Minnesota are going through - protected by the state and local governments, is an insult to the memories of not just Anne and Margot Frank, but that of the 1.5 million children slaughtered by the Nazis.

Otto Frank, the lone survivor of the eight hidden in the attic/annex, lived to see age 90 - from May 12, 1889 to August 19, 1980. Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, honored Miep Gies and her husband Jan on March 8, 1972 as Righteous Among the Nations. Jan lived from August 18, 1905 to January 26, 1993, while Miep reached 100 - living February 15, 1909 to January 11, 2010. May their memories be for a blessing.

Less than 24 hours after Walz’s insolent and ignorant statements, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum fired off a response. “Anne Frank was targeted and murdered solely because she was Jewish. Leaders making false equivalencies to her experience for political purposes is never acceptable. Despite tensions in Minneapolis, exploiting the Holocaust is deeply offensive, especially as antisemitism surges.”

Walz and Frey are still lead instigators against ICE being in Minnesota doing their job of capturing criminal illegals. Don’t forget, by their mere presence in the United States illegally, they have committed a crime. People in this country without permission have no legal right to be here, nor should they be given anything to encourage them to stay or encourage others to follow suit in crossing the border illegally. A country without borders and an immigration policy can no longer be a sovereign nation. 

Walz and Frey have used terribly incendiary language, turning up the heat to prompt the thousands of protesters in Minneapolis and St. Paul to engage with ICE both verbally and physically. The protesters, many of whom are breaking laws via their non-peaceful protests, are foolishly defending and attempting to protect murderers, rapists, child abusers and traffickers illegally in the United States, mostly because Trump sent ICE there, and thus, they, the protesters, believe they are on the side of right as a juxtaposition to Trump. They are not.

The non-peaceful protesters, such as those who invaded Cities Church in St. Paul on Sunday January 18 (see separate column), and the illegal aliens are all subject to local, state, and federal laws. That Frey and Walz continue to grant them safe harbor, as well as the more than $9 billion in fraud under investigation by the federal government, should be cause enough for both so-called leaders to demonstrate their leadership by resigning from office forthwith. 

Walz and Frey are a major part of the problem that requires ICE to be in Minnesota in the first place. Honest, law abiding citizens of Minnesota, and all 50 of the United States have the right to live freely and safely, in fraud free communities, with the ability to attend church and synagogue unimpeded by atheist, Marxist mobs who believe their rights supersede everyone else's. How wrong those mobs are.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He is also a charter member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum located in Washington, DC.

Slim Pickings for Hall Class of '26

Slim Pickings for Hall Class of ‘26
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
January 13, 2026

While frigid temperatures are engulfing the majority of these United States, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) is staying warm determining who will be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. This year, the announcement from Cooperstown to determine the Class of 2026 will be made on Tuesday, January 20. And the Hot Stove season has been in full bloom as the ballparks enjoy the winter slumber and solitude.

Still at issue, those ballplayers tainted by substance allegations. The only way steroid/HGH-addled balloteers should be admitted to the Hall of Fame is with a paid ticket for admission to the museum.

“We hope the day never comes when known steroid users are voted into the Hall of Fame. They cheated. Steroid users don’t belong here,” wrote late Hall of Famer Joe Morgan in a November 2017 letter to the BBWAA, hoping to influence their Hall votes in 2018. Hopefully Morgan’s letter continues to resonate in 2026 as cheaters such as Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez (A-Roid) may inch closer to the magic 75 percent - the required minimum to grant one admission to the Hall.

The cloud of controversy has been dark and heavy, while initially eliminating some from Hall of Fame contention. In the cases of Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Sammy Sosa, the BBWAA voters rejected those candidacies, and after 10 years, their eligibility expired. To further slam the lid on Bonds and Clemens, the Contemporary Era Committee also denied them Hall admission in December 2025. Needing at least 12 of 16 votes, Bonds and Clemens each received fewer than five, thus making them ineligible for the next CEC vote in three years.

The Contemporary Era Committee did vote to admit Jeff Kent to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, thus vindicating Dan Shaughnessy with The Boston Globe. For three years in a row, Shaughnessy cast his lone vote for Jeff Kent, explaining that his vote was a protest against the steroid players. BBWAA members may vote for up to 10 eligible candidates. In my annual Hall of Fame column I have never supported 10 candidates in any given year.

Perhaps Shaughnessy is on to something regarding Jeff Kent. A friend asked me to revisit Kent, heretofore not on any of my “ballots” in the previous nine years. He’s no fan of Kent, so it seemed worth the time. Kent played for six teams throughout his 17 year MLB career, was five times an all star, earned votes for the MVP seven times, including winning that award in 2000. He hit 377 career home runs, 351 as a second baseman - the most in history at that position. He hit at least 20 homers and drove in at least 100 runs eight times - also most for a second baseman. In total Kent had 2,461 hits, 560 doubles, drove in 1,515 runs, while scoring 1,320, and batted .290. Solid numbers for a  middle infielder and one who played cleanly. Kent appeared on 32.7 percent of the BBWAA ballots in 2022, thus it is unlikely he will more than double that number and qualify for the Hall in his final year of eligibility. (This paragraph is “borrowed” from my 2023 Hall of Fame column.)

Votes for Ramirez, in his ninth, and penultimate, year on the ballot inched up slightly to 34 percent in 2025 from 32.5 percent in 2024, while Rodriguez checked in with 37.1 percent of the vote in 2025, his fifth year on the ballot, up from 34.8 percent of the vote in 2024. Perhaps the mediocre vote totals for Ramirez and Rodriguez is a good sign the BBWAA voters understand how wrong it is to reward a player for cheating, and that the use of such substances is cheating. 

I remain a consistent and virulent opponent of the steroid players and will continue to do so for the next six years as Alex Rodriguez is on the ballot for the fifth year. The last thing to be said about A-Roid speaks volumes as to why he should never earn a plaque in Cooperstown. Admitting his use of steroids/banned substances, Rodriguez found himself suspended for 211 games from August 2013 through the entire 2014 season - a suspension well merited.

Ramirez, while expressing some sense of contrition during a 2019 interview with Boston 25 News, still should not be admitted to the Hall. On getting caught using steroids Ramirez said, “it was a good thing for me because it made me grow up. Maybe a lot of people didn’t get caught and they were doing maybe some crazy stuff and they’re not learning from it. So I think everything happens for a reason and everything is working for the good. I’m in a better place than I’ve ever been, even when I was playing, so I don’t regret it because it made me grow up.”

Players like Bonds, Clemens, Ramirez, Rodriguez, and Sosa, almost certainly would have been enshrined in Cooperstown sans steroids.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame has a so-called character clause. “Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character and contribution to the team(s) on which the player played.” So-called because it has existed since 1945 and more than a fair share of miscreants have found their way to Cooperstown. (https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/bbwaa-rules-for-election)

“...integrity, sportsmanship, character…” Those three words are the basis for not supporting the candidacy of Carlos Beltran, who on his third ballot garnered 70.3 percent of the BBWAA vote - the highest non-inductee in 2025. More than likely Beltran will reach the baseball Promised Land, as will be announced on January 20. Beltran not only participated in, but orchestrated, the 2017 trash can-sign stealing scandal that aided the Houston Astros in winning the World Series. This impacted Beltran so much as to cost him the job managing the New York Mets, a team for which he played seven years. He began his career winning the American League Rookie of the Year in 1999 and played his first seven years with the Kansas City Royals. For the remainder of his 20 year career Beltran suited up for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardinals, Astros, Texas Rangers, and San Francisco Giants.

Tom Verducci penned a column for Sports Illustrated performing his best balancing act. He condemned Beltran for being the ringleader of the sign stealing scandal, while simultaneously excusing it, saying “using PEDs is a more egregious form of cheating than what Beltran did.” Verducci acknowledges Beltran’s cheating, but then declares his vote for Beltran to enter the Hall. I don’t walk that moral tightrope - cheating is cheating. It’s a shame, because I agree with Verducci on this point, Beltran statistically compares favorably to Hall of Famer Andre “Hawk” Dawson.

OPS+ AVG Hits       HR       RBI SB TB

Beltran 119         .279         2,725     435      1,597 312 4,751

Dawson 119        .279         2,774     438      1,591 314 4,787

Beltran’s career included 12 seasons hitting 20 or more home runs, eight times driving in 100 or more runs, seven times scoring 100 or more runs, batting .300 or better four times, reaching nine All Star teams, and winning three Gold Gloves. In 65 postseason games, over 15 series, Beltran batted .307, belting 16 homers, scoring 45 runs, and driving in 42 runs. Solid numbers for a drug-free player, but tainted by scandal nonetheless, and should not reach Cooperstown.

With voting in mind, were I a privileged member of the BBWAA charged with the task of electing the Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2026, a lone former major leaguer would earn my vote - a holdover. Twelve retirees are on the ballot for the first time with another 15 holdovers. Candidates who do not attain 75 percent of the vote must receive at least five percent of the vote or will be eliminated from future consideration.

Omar Vizquel, the quintessential shortstop of a generation, won 11 Gold Glove awards during his 24 year career, second most at that position all time. Vizquel, also the oldest shortstop to win a Gold Glove, did so at age 39 in 2006. After five years with the Seattle Mariners, Vizquel took his talents to Cleveland continuing to be the defensive gem that will vault him into Cooperstown.

Vizquel was three times an All Star, overshadowed by Derek Jeter elected to Cooperstown in a near-unanimous vote in 2020. On the field, Vizquel led the league in Fielding Percentage six times as a shortstop and is the all time leader in Fielding Percentage at .985. Vizquel shares the season record with Cal Ripken, Jr. for committing the fewest errors by a shortstop playing in at least 150 games with a paltry three. Additionally, Vizquel is first all time in double plays turned by a shortstop, third all time in assists at shortstop, and 11th all time in putouts made by a shortstop.

At bat, Vizquel compares rather favorably to Hall of Fame shortstops Ozzie Smith, Luis Aparicio, and Luke Appling. Vizquel hit more home runs than Smith and Appling, trailing Aparicio by only three. Vizquel drove in more runs than Smith and Aparicio, stole more bases than Appling, hit for a higher batting average than Smith and Aparicio, while collecting more hits than all three. This is the ninth year on the ballot for Vizquel, having risen a tick to 17.8 percent of the vote in 2025 from 17.7 percent in 2024. Vizquel’s numbers may dip even again in 2026 due to allegations from the last decade of a rather serious nature. Until they are adjudicated, I will not traffic in rumors and/or innuendo. Should Vizquel be found guilty, I will withdraw my support of his entry into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

While it is important to not sully the Baseball Hall of Fame with the likes of Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez, the focus must be on the greats who may be enshrined this July 26 and how they will continue to be the true ambassadors to the game of baseball as so many before them have been. Sadly, this is an ever shrinking community as two Hall of Famers passed away during 2025.

Dave Parker (06/09/1951 - 06/28/2025) gained admission into the Hall of Fame via the Classic Baseball Era Committee in 2025, dying one month before his induction. Known as the “Cobra,” Parker played the bulk of his 19 year Major League Baseball career (1973-1991) with the Pittsburgh Pirates, including as a member of the 1979 “We Are Family” World Series champions. As a member of the then Oakland A’s in 1989, Parker won another World Series. He batted .342 in the postseason. Parker won the National League MVP in 1978 hitting 30 home runs, driving in 117 runs, and leading the majors batting .334. This followed a 1977 season where Parker led the NL with 215 hits, 44 doubles, batting .338. For his career, Parker batted .290, had 2,712 hits, 526 doubles, 339 home runs, and 1,493 RBI.

Ryne Sandberg (09/18/1959 - 07/28/2025) stood for induction to the Hall of Fame in 2005. “Ryno” played the first 13 games of his illustrious career with the Philadelphia Phillies and the remaining 2,151 games with the Chicago Cubs. An excellent fielder at second base, Sandberg won nine Gold Glove awards. The 10 time All Star won the National League MVP in 1984, the year the Cubs won the Eastern Division. Sandberg stroked 200 hits that year, led the NL with 114 runs scored, and led the majors with 19 triples. In two playoff series, 1984 and 1989 Sandberg batted .385, and in 1990 he led the league with 40 home runs. For his career, spanning 1981 through 1997, Sandberg batted .285, with 2,386 hits, 282 home runs, and 1,061 RBI.

May their memories be for a Blessing. May 2026 be a better, healthier year for one and all, and may the baseball season continue to excite its fans while gaining new fans to discover the greatness of America’s national pastime.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He has been a Patron-level member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame since 2007. 

Muslims Slaughter 15 Jews at Aussie Chanukah

Muslims Slaughter 15 Jews at Aussie Chanukah
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
December 16, 2025

On Sunday afternoon in Indianapolis it had been suggested by a friend, in light of the horrific massacre of 15 Jewish people at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia celebrating the first night of Chanukah, that the menorah lighting here be canceled. Doing so, I objected, would simply give the terrorists the victory they wanted - plunging the global Jewish community into a panic and retreat from thousands of years of tradition.

Instead, not only did the many thousands of menorah lightings around the world take place, attendance outpaced expectations by wide margins, as Jews internationally refused to cower, flinch, or hide. In the darkness of death and despair, the lighting of the menorah offers hope, faith, and history.

Last year around Chanukah Rabbi Eli Schlanger said, “in the face of rising antisemitism, Jews don’t hide - they increase in spreading light. Be more Jewish, act more Jewish, and appear more Jewish.” The 41 year old rabbi, and father of five children, the youngest, a two month old son, lost his life in the Islamist terrorist rampage at Bondi Beach. 

All but one of the 15 murdered Jewish Bondi Beach revelers have been identified:

Matilda Britvan, 10, the youngest

Edith Brutman

Dan Elkayam, 27

Boris Gurman, 69 and wife

Sofia Gurman, 61

Alexander Kleytman, 87, the oldest and a Holocaust survivor

Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, 39

Peter Meagher, 61

Reuven Morrison, 62

Marika Pogany, 82

Rabbi Eli Schlanger, 41

Adam Smyth, 50

Boris Tetleroyd

Tibor Weitzen, 78

May their memories be for a blessing.

In addition to the 15 murdered, more than 40 people suffered wounds, many life threatening, at the hands of a pair of father-son radical Islamic terrorists. Although police killed the 50 year old suspect and subdued his 24 year old son, the duo fired from multiple guns for 10 solid minutes at the Jewish celebrants running for their lives at Bondi Beach in the worst antisemitic incident in Australian history. (The Jewish population of Australia is about 118,000, out of a total national population of 27,690,000.) As of this date the surviving terrorist faces 59 charges - first degree murder and acts of terrorism.

Acts of antisemitism on the island continent have risen by 316 percent from 2023 through 2024, and the Hamas slaughter of 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023 has, no doubt, been the impetus of the rise in antisemitism. The Muslim extremist terrorists murder of those 1,200 Israelis totaled the largest single day slaughter of Jewish people since the Holocaust. Calls to globalize the intifada have resulted in just that - the globalization of the intifada - far and wide - Western Europe, Israel, throughout the United States, and, of course Australia, as the precipitous rise in antisemitism has become more and more reminiscent of 1930s Germany.

But what is perhaps equally as disturbing is the warning signs that have been flashing like a blue light special at the now defunct K-Mart - and ignored. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu placed blame squarely on the narrow shoulders of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese citing two main reasons. Albanese, as well as the so-called leaders of Canada, France, and Great Britain, in a weak-kneed, conciliatory manner, endorsed the creation of a Palestinian state. This most certainly opened the floodgates even farther for increased antisemitism. This, plus the increased signals that have been ignored, gave a wide berth to the terrorists who acted with reckless abandon in their slaughter of 15 innocent Jewish observers on the first night of Chanukah.

“Instead, Prime Minister, you replaced weakness with weakness and appeasement with more appeasement. Your government did nothing to stop the spread of antisemitism in Australia. You did nothing to curb the cancer cells that were growing inside your country. You took no action - you let the disease spread and the result is the horrific attacks on Jews we saw today,” said Netanyahu in response to the antisemitic terror attacks at Bondi Beach.

“We have repeatedly warned the Australian government of the urgent need to uproot the spreading antisemitism in Australia,” said Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, also on Sunday.

Rabbi Yaakov Menken from the Coalition for Jewish Values said the Australian prime minister has blood on his hands. 

In light of Netanyahu communicating intelligence to Australia about antisemitism and warning that something like the Chanukah attack could happen, The Times of Israel reported on Monday, December 15 the “Australian PM rejects Netanyahu’s linking of Palestine recognition to Bondi attack.” To which the same paper quoted Albanese saying, “overwhelmingly, most of the world recognizes a two-state solution as being the way forward in the Middle East.” Sadly, Albanese is part of the problem both with his naivete on the potential success of a two state solution, as well as his failure to mention Jews or antisemitism during his initial remarks following the antisemitic murders at Bondi Beach.

A timeline of Australian antisemitism since the Hamas Islamist terror attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023:

        October 9, 2023: more than 1,000 pro-Palestinians chanting “gas the Jews” and “F the Jews,” outside the famed Sydney Opera House;

        October 13, 2024: a Jewish bakery marred with graffiti and vandalism in Sydney;

        December 6, 2024: a Melbourne synagogue firebombed;

        December 11, 2024: a car set on fire and antisemitic graffiti on homes in Sydney;

        January 10, 2025: Allawah synagogue in southern Sydney vandalized with swastikas and other graffiti condemning Jews and praising Hitler;

        January 21, 2025: Sydney childcare center set ablaze and had antisemitic graffiti - “F the Jews;”

        February 12, 2025: two hospital nurses in Sydney suspended for making antisemitic remarks - also threatened to kill Jewish/Israeli patients;

        July 4, 2025: Arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue with 20 worshippers inside;

        December 14, 2025: Bondi Beach Chanukah massacre, 15 murdered, 40-plus wounded.

This is yet another reason not to reward terrorist organizations such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and ISIS, who have written into their charters the destruction of Israel and the death of the Jewish people, with a state existing side by side with Israel, or anywhere else, for that matter. In fact homemade ISIS flags were found amongst the father-son terrorist’s belongings, indicating the influence the terror organization had on the duo.

This is also another reason not to castigate Israel for not accepting so-called Palestinian refugees. Where is the outcry over the 50-plus Arab/Muslim nations, all of whom have issued the same rejection of their ethnic brethren. They know full well that welcoming these so-called refugees will in no way improve those countries. These are radical Islamist terrorists hell bent on destruction of life and land. 

A modicum of proof comes from the 2005 vacating of Gaza by an entire Jewish community. They not only dug up graves for reinternment outside of Gaza, but left infrastructure in place, including greenhouses. Under Hamas’ authoritarian rule - the Gazans elected Hamas and there has not been another election since - the infrastructure was razed, including the greenhouses. In its place, Hamas constructed several hundred miles of tunnels through which they could carry out their terrorist atrocities - including holding 250 Israelis and others hostage for more than two years. Hiding behind women and children, placing bombs and other munitions in elementary schools, hospitals, and even their mosques, these radical Islamist terrorists “live” a culture of death. They reward mothers who strap bombs on their own children to detonate within Jewish communities.

Whether Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Qaeda, Haqqani network, Houthis, Ansar Bait al-Maqqis, ISIS, and/or the Islamic Republic of Iran these jihadists are already infiltrating the United States. This is just the tip of the iceberg of a more exhaustive list. They are not here to assimilate and help make America great again. At more than two billion people globally, the Muslim population is the fastest growing in the United States, and they are seeking to impose Sharia to supplant the United States Constitution. They have already created several Sharia courts in a few states - Alabama and Texas, for example. They’re here and have committed a greater number of terrorist attacks than any other group. There have been over 65,000 Muslim terror attacks in 70-plus countries since 2001. All anyone needs to do is look at the results of unfettered Muslim migration in Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, and for the past three to four decades in towns and cities near you. Other faiths such as Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, and Jews account for less than two percent of terror attacks combined. None, from any religious group or otherwise, are acceptable. 

When people tell you they are coming for you, believe them. First it’s the Saturday people - the Jewish people - the canary in the coal mine, then it’s the Sunday people - Christians. Witness the Muslim slaughter of Christians in Nigeria, where more than 56,000 Christians have been murdered in the last four years. These are not a peaceful people. We, the patriotic Americans who abide by Judeo-Christian beliefs and values as well as the Constitution must do all we can to protect the United States of America in order for it to continue to be a beacon unto the world - a safe haven for those who may be oppressed, wish to immigrate to America to make this a better country. We want givers, not takers - people who will contribute to, and not be a drain on society. Those who come from countries who live under a culture of death, countries where their people march in the streets shouting “death to America,” and “death to Israel,” should never be welcome to enter the United States of America. This is not racist or bigoted. This is a matter of self-preservation. May G-d comfort the mourners and families of the slain Australians, and may G-d continue to Bless the United States of America.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

From 9/11 to Zohran Mamdani - How Far NYC Has Fallen

From 9/11 to Zohran Mamdani - How Far NYC Has Fallen
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
October 28, 2025

The latest salvo from Zohran Mamdani hit the public’s eyes and ears just days ago. An oldie, but a goodie, from the archives of September 5, 2023, when headlining as the keynote speaker at the Democratic Socialists of America national convention, Mamdani said “when the boot of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been laced by the IDF.” (Israel Defense Forces) Wow - two slurs for the price of one from the Socialist-Marxist-Islamist candidate for mayor of New York City.

One of Mamdani’s State Assembly (36-Queens) colleagues, Democrat Kalman Yeger (41-Brooklyn) said, upon hearing Mamdani’s antisemitic and anti-police diatribe, “sometimes it’s hard to tell if Zorhan hates Jews more than he hates cops, or if he hates cops more than he hates Jews.” Sadly for the voters of New York City, there has been more than enough putrid rhetoric to go around from the Democrat-Socialist candidate for mayor of the Big Apple. Should Mamdani get elected on Tuesday, November 4, he will be the worm that infests the Big Apple.

This is just one of myriad thoughts, slogans, professions from the catalog of Mamdani’s Greatest Hits. While flying under the radar as a backbencher in the New York State Assembly, Mamdani’s espousal of virulent antisemitic, anti-Zionist, anti-Israel, anti-police, anti-capitalist, anti-democracy screeds continue to rise to the forefront. Videos of his own words, and not just rhetoric, but a hard core belief system that is dangerous not just for New York City, not just for the United States of America, but for all of Western Civilization. Just about anytime Mamdani opens his mouth, it’s a fair bet something cringeworthy will emerge from his gaping maw.

Sadly, far too many New Yorkers have fallen for the facade of Mamdani’s smarmy grin reminding folks of the supervillain Joker from the Batman franchise. How is it possible for a Marxist to be the frontrunner in this election in the economic epicenter of the United States, if not the world? How is it that a socialist/communist can be on the verge of victory in the first capital of these United States - where General George Washington took the oath of office as the first president of the United States on April 30, 1789 - at Federal Hill overlooking Wall Street?

How can the citizens of New York City elect a sharia-supporting, Muslim extremist to be mayor of the city that will forever be the face of September 11, 2001? Imagine next September 11 - the 25th memorial of 9/11 - with “Mayor Mamdani” present with the thousands of victims’ families and friends that are sure to attend for the reading of the 2,977 names of those murdered by Mamdani’s fellow travelers. And don’t forget the additional 8,200 men and women who have subsequently died from 9/11 related diseases and illnesses, according to legalunitedstates.com. The hypocrisy of Mamdani showing his face will stain the somber ceremony and trample the memories of those murdered that fateful Tuesday morning in New York City, at the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, and in a field in Shanksville, PA. 

Mamdani recently had the unmitigated audacity to compare the slaughter of 2,977 innocents on 9/11 to an alleged experience he said his aunt had. Mamdani said his aunt no longer felt comfortable riding the subways wearing her hijab. Turns out that story has been debunked, that he didn’t even have an aunt living in New York City at the time of 9/11.  Mamdani even campaigned with a jihadi, Hasan Piker, an extreme leftist who, in 2019 said “America deserved 9/11.” 

How, in good conscience, can a single Jewish New Yorker cast a ballot for Mamdani, an antisemite who does not even support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish sovereign nation? Mamdani has attempted to equate the hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, 2023 with Palestinian criminals legitimately locked away in Israeli prisons. In September Mamdani appeared on Qatari television declaring the United States is underwriting the genocide in the Middle East, that he supports jihad, and that terrorism is a western invention not one from the Middle East. Mamdani has links to the Qatari royal family - the family who harbored Khalil Sheik Mohammad, the mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Mamdani consistently refuses to condemn “globalize the indifada,” both the concept and the language. In fact, he has never actually condemned the Holocaust. Additionally, Mamdani is a keen supporter of the BDS movement (boycott, divest, and sanction) against Israel, calling it “a righteous movement for liberation.” He supports a one state solution, and that state is not Israel, as Mamdani endorses “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and said he would never set foot in Israel. Mamdani also said he would have Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested should he set foot in New York City.

“The most frightening thing about him is his antisemitism,” said Emily Compagno, co-host of Outnumbered on the Fox News Channel.

Mamdani, 34, and born in Uganda, has lived a life of privilege and hypocrisy. Hypocritical because he supports the abolition of private property, just so long as it is not his family’s properties being commandeered by the government. One of his advisors, Cea Weaver, posted in 2019 that “private property,” and “especially home ownership, is a weapon of white supremacy masquerading as wealth building public policy.” On March 25, 2020 Mamdani said “the oligarchs who want to return to work to goose the stock market, are the same ones with thousands of luxury condos as investment properties, sitting empty while New Yorkers die on the streets and in shelters. Seize those properties. House the homeless. Enact a houses guarantee.” Part of his platform calls for a rent freeze, which he cannot institute unilaterally, and for the construction of 200,000 affordable housing units. Mamdani lives in a $3 million condo in Chelsea.

Hypocritical for calling to defund the NYPD, yet has a personal security team. Not only to defund the police, but replace them with social workers, and has called for a ban on all guns. Naturally, throughout his campaign Mamdani has refuted those defund statements. Of course he can’t deny them as social media is forever. He also calls for the abolition of prisons. On October 18, 2021 Mamdani said “we must decarcerate and we must do it now.” Do the 33,000 men and women in blue really believe Mamdani will have their backs while desecrating Gracie Mansion? Perhaps Mamdani’s security team should be social workers.

Mamdani comes by his belief system honestly, as the antisemitic, anti-capitalist, anti-democracy, anti-Western Civilization candidate did not fall far from the tree of the same hatreds. His father Mahmood, a one time professor at Columbia University, called the suicide bombers “worthy of sympathy, not scorn.” One of his mentors, Linda Sarsour, the co-chair of the Women’s March, a Palestinian-American, is also a virulent antisemite who objected to, and attempted to, bar Jewish and LGBTQ women from participating in the march in 2019. 

There is a video of Mamdani flipping the middle finger at a statue of Christopher Columbus in New York City, and shouting, “take it down!”

Some of Mamdani’s other platform planks include decriminalizing drug possession, providing safe injection sites, legalizing prostitution and sex work, raising the minimum wage to $30 an hour, seizing the means of production, and a $10 billion tax hike on businesses. When businesses begin to flee New York City, as many already have, how will Mamdani pay for his socialist/communist agenda? On the backs of the remaining people, too poor to afford to move away from The City? 

More of the Mamdani agenda includes providing free child care, free city buses, and the creation and operation of city-owned grocery stores, all of which are unsustainable. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said government-owned grocery stores have worked, yet failed to name one locality where it has. These pie in the sky promises to gullible voters goes beyond socialism. Mamdani said capitalism is “theft. When we tax the rich, we’re reclaiming the wealth bosses and corporations steal,” he said. While on the topic of the rich, “I don’t think we should have billionaires because quite frankly it is so much money in a moment of such inequality,” said Mamdani on Meet the Press on June 29, 2025, just five days after winning the Democrat primary.

So in addition to overtaxing the wealthy, opening the prisons, legalizing drugs and prostitution, Mamdani also wants to protect illegal aliens and the homosexual community calling for making New York City an LGBTQ sanctuary city, akin to the sanctuary city for the illegals regardless of their sexual orientation. (Not that there’s anything wrong with protecting appropriate gay rights.) Mamdani wants a $65 billion commitment for transgender surgery for children, but did not say from whom the commitment should come. He also called for free abortion and contraception on demand.

Mamdani not only wants to end cooperation with I.C.E., but he wants to abolish the entire department of Immigration and Custom Enforcement. “He’ll ensure our immigrant New Yorkers are protected by strengthening our sanctuary city apparatus, getting I.C.E. out of all city facilities, and ending any cooperation, increasing legal support, and protecting all personal data,” it said on Mamdani’s “Zohran for NYC” site.

This is who the citizens of New York City are going to entrust as their leader?

Even the liberal Washington Post condemned Mamdani as wrong for New York City and wrong for the Democrats. “...New Yorkers should be worried that he would lead Gotham back to the bad old days of civic dysfunction, and Democrats should fear that he will discredit their next generation of party leaders, almost all of whom are better than this democratic socialist,” wrote the Post in a June 26, 2025 editorial, two days after Mamdani took the primary.

When the shouting's all over, voters in New York City may have to paraphrase Hyman Roth from The G-dfather Part II and say, “this is the government we’ve chosen.” Do the voting citizens of New York City deserve better? Or do they deserve the government they’ve chosen? May G-d continue to Bless the good people of New York City - there’s still a few out there; and may G-d continue to Bless these United States of America.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He grew up in northern New Jersey, a short distance from New York City.