In other neighborhoods, yesterday's 65° weather was an exciting taste of spring. For us >Lower-East-Siders, it was an omen of the out-of-control nightlife violence that summer brings. Two fights broke out outside of the Hotel on Rivington on the Lower East Side Monday night. One was an old-fashioned broken bottle duel, the other a violent attack of a female by a male. The Hotel's own security guards didn't even intervene--guards from across the street did! And it goes without saying in this neighborhood, the cops didn't show up until everything died down. Yet further examples of how >Lower-East-Siders are being run roughshod by bar operators in collusion with a corrupt Community Board 3 and NYPD Precinct 7, threatening the fragile economic progress made in the previous decade.

Fine, bring on Phil Jackson. Here's hoping he still has some magic left in him, even though it didn't shine through for the >detroit-pistons.

>Lower-East-Siders applaud the persistent efforts of Ms. Boyd and the LES Dwellers to awaken and galvanize our community. We sense a turning-of-the-corner in LES quality of life thanks to their efforts, and look forward to further progress in 2014!

Putin's aggression against >Ukrainians continues to undermine his oft-repeated claim that >Russians play by the international rules. Which just validates our own sidestepping of treaty and protocol. All of which concerns us because it may be setting the region up for a destructive confrontation. Hopefully Ukrainians can find a middle ground between Western and Russian alignment.

We must not ignore the >North-Koreans. Nothing on Earth compares to the horrifying scale of inhumanity there, and the extent of oppression and despair that render them incapable of revolution. We must not mistake their inaction for satisfaction with their condition. As free people in the most powerful country on Earth, it is *our* duty to come to their aid. Michael Kirby of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in DPRK, summed up the imperative: "At the end of the second world war, so many people said, 'If only we had known. If only we had known the wrongs that were done...' Well now, the international community does know. There will be no excusing a failure of action." For starters, let's pressure our government to hold the >Chinese accountable for abetting this regime. Let's support NGOs, such as LibertyInNorthKorea.org, that help refugees. Let's talk with friends about this, and about our responsibility for the weakest and most abused of our fellow human beings. But let's not ignore the North Korean people.

It was an impressively beautiful opening ceremony, projecting the high culture and artistry of Russia more than their international power (risked life of 11-year-old notwithstanding). On a stage like this, it's understandable that they presented Soviet-era brutality in very abstract terms. But even in those terms, some of the scenes were very utilitarian, cold and almost unhuman, making them some of the darkest in recent Olympics opening ceremony performances. Overall, fine job, >Russians.