Results tagged “agencefrance”

Fernando Ferrer's overstatement about his NYC public education (a master's at Baruch, after years of Catholic schooling) has lead to Mayor Bloomberg's campaign to issue press releases and certain tabloids, as Gawker points out, to enjoy creating insane covers and some serious questioning about blogging as candidates. It turns out that Mayor Mike doesn't write his own posts either! Shocking! Ferrer was asked about the offending post while with Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean, who said, "What is this obsession with blogs? Does anybody care about education in this city?" Then someone (NY State Senator Schneiderman, according to the Politicker) said to Dean, "You started it!" Gothamist would like Dean to tell us how Ferrer will win Murray Hill (YAY!!!) and Richmond Hill and the Rockaways and...

After being told to keep working through their impasse, the jury for the trial of John Gotti Jr. told the judge they reached a deadlock, and Judge Shira Scheindlin declared a mistrial. Gotti, son of the infamous John Gotti, was acquitted of racketerring charges but jurors didn't know what to make of kidnapping charges - the kidnapping in question being of Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa (when jurors heard testimony of the kidnapping, they were laughing); Gotti and his lawyer were stunned and cried - who says mob men don't show their emotions? Sliwa, who testified against Gotti, says, "I am a dead man walking." Probably, but Gothamist imagines the feds will try to half-heartedly protect him. And Gotti can't be so stupid as to try to put out another hit on him...can he?

Yesterday, a commuter train in western Japan derailed and crashed into an apartment building, injuring 340 and killing 73. Investigators suspect that the train's speed was a cause, because the conductor was trying to make up for a delay, since the train was running 90 seconds late. The 23 year old conductor had missed an earlier stop, had to go back, and then proceed again; the driver has not been found yet. West Japan Railway sources say that its president will resign over the accident.

Even though it happened across the pond, Gothamist was a little obssessed with Prince Charles and Camilla's marriage yesterday because when we were wee, we remembered watching Prince Charles's first marriage. Mainly, Gothamist was watching for the fashion. We absolutely loved Philip Treacy's awesome hat and headdress - they beautiful and whimsical and the headdress especially was just a shade short of loony and somehow worked for this post-menopausal (we assume) princess.

Today, the President goes to the U.N. amidst Secretary General Kofi Annan's claim that the war in Iraq is illegal. The Washington Post says the President is looking for a bounce; a former Reagan official says it's a "great visual" for Bush, as the other world delegates will applaud (not boo) "because they're well-mannered folks." And Senator Kerry was at Late Show with David Letterman last night; check here for a clip and the top ten list. And Kerry was walking around Midtown because his car was stuck in traffic (traffic he and the President probably caused); Gothamist liked this photo of him in front of "The Phantom of Broadway" sign.

The New York Times reports that France is taking dramatic steps to increase French wine sales, most notably by attempting to re-categorize wine as food. This would enable French wine makers to avoid advertising restrictions currently placed on alcohol, including a prohibition on television and radio advertising.

most French people it polled already consider wine a food, if it is defined as "a substance with nutritive components absorbed by the digestive tube."

American Lance Armstrong has won two of the last three daily stages to move into the lead of the Tour De France as the three week long bike race nears the proverbial homestretch. Armstrong will now wear the yellow jersey, which symbolizes the race's leader, during today's grueling L'Alpe d'Huez time trial in the Alps.

An Agence France-Presse report about inept Finnish bank robbers was already funny itself: Drunken 50-something Finns (unmasked and easily identifiable) came into a bank intending to rob it, but were talked into a bank loan by the bank manager, left without a fuss, and ultimately were arrested at home. But then AFP paired it with a photograph of a Finn bringing his savings to a bank - plastic baggies of coins and hippo banks from the Hungry Hungry Hippos collection!