by Paul Riegler

Wednesday’s crash of an American Airlines jet on final approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was the deadliest U.S. air disaster in decades. Here are some of the people we lost in the crash plus the latest information on what might have caused the crash.
The Washington, D.C. area’s jam-packed airspace has led to warnings for years and air-traffic controllers are among the federal employees that the Trump administration has …

What’s Open and What’s Closed on Lincoln’s Birthday in 2025

by Paul Riegler

This coming Wednesday, February 12, is Lincoln’s Birthday, a holiday that is observed on the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. The 12th president of the United States was born on February 12, 1809 in Hodgenville, Kentucky.
The holiday is a legal public holiday in multiple states and is observed in California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Texas.  It is an official state holiday in four of those states, …

Wolfgang Zwiener, Luger Waiter Who Built His Own Steakhouse Empire, Dies at 85

by Anna Breuer

Wolfgang Zwiener, who came to the United States from Germany in 1960 and spent almost four decades working as a waiter at Peter Luger in Brooklyn before founding what became an empire of 35 steakhouses, died on January 23 at his home in Honolulu. He was 85.
Mr. Luger’s son Peter said the cause of death was lung cancer.
Wolfgang’s Steakhouse opened its doors to diners in 2004 in what was formerly …

Civil Servants Ask, But ‘What If We Don’t Wish to Go Back to the Office’

by Jonathan Spira

Many federal employees are unhappy with President Trump’s demand that they return to the office five days a week. The Trump administration’s mandate stated that Americans “deserve the highest-quality service from people who love our country.” Federal workers say that comment suggests they aren’t hardworking or loyal. Last week, administration officials released more details on return-to-office plans, a document that demanded agencies terminate  termination all remote-work arrangements. The document said …

Friday Update – News That Matters: Flu Cases Peak Again, Honeywell to Break Into 3 Companies, How to Cook the Perfect Boiled Egg, Canada Fires SpaceX, Santorini Quakes, Racists Get Out of DOGE

by Paul Riegler

Part of our “News That Matters“ Series, “Friday Update” is a weekly feature that offers brief overviews of important news that you might might have overlooked in the course of a busy week. Here’s what you may have missed in the period February 3 through February 7, 2025.
@DEADLINE
IT’S NOT A NORMAL RESPIRATORY VIRUS SEASON, BUT WHAT IS?
The flu is peaking twice in the current flu season. It already peaked once …

Weekend Update – News That Matters: Five Years of Covid, Chinese New Year, Effect of Trump’s Brutal Tariffs, Rising Egg Prices, Apple Watch Lawsuit, Mapmakers, and Civil Servants

by Anna Breuer

Part of our “News That Matters“ Series, “Weekend Update” is a weekly feature that offers brief overviews of important news that might have been overlooked in the course of a busy weekend. Here’s what you may have missed in the period January  31 through February 3, 2025.
@PASSINGS
Wolfgang Zwiener, Luger Waiter Who Built His Own Steakhouse Empire, Dies at 85
Wolfgang Zwiener, who came to the United States from Germany in 1960 …

Groundhog Day 2025: Punxsutawney Phil Predicts 6 More Weeks of Winter But, Once Again, Staten Island Chuck Begs to Differ

by Kurt Stolz

Punxsutawney Phil, the prodigious forecaster of Pennsylvania, saw his shadow early Sunday morning on Groundhog Day 2025. He therefore predicted that there will be six more weeks of a long cold and icy winter.
This year is Phil’s 139th year as a marmot meteorologist.
This year’s crowd was one of the largest ever, Inner Circle President Tom Dunkel said, and thousands more watched a streamed broadcast online.
After members of the Inner Circle …

18 U.S. Figure Skaters Dead Among 73 in Fateful 1961 Sabena Jet Crash

by Jonathan Spira

On February 15, 1961, Sabena Flight 548, a Boeing 707, crashed on approach to Brussels’ Zaventem Airport on its way from New York City.
All 72 passengers, as well as one person on the ground, perished in the crash.
Among the dead was the entirety of the United States Figure Skating Team, which was on its way to the 1961 World Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because both prominent …