Sure, airplane passengers have been thrown off flights for joking about bombs, but being thrown off a flight for dropping the F-bomb seems like a new one: Brooklyn resident Robert Sayegh says he was thrown off an Atlantic South Airlines flight to Newark Liberty Airport after he complained, "What's taking so (expletive) long to close the overhead compartments?" Hey, the plane had been at the gate at Detroit's Metro Airport for 45 minutes without moving! more ›

Mayor Bloomberg was on Meet the Press this morning, and proposed a unique solution to the nation's ongoing immigration debate: let immigrants come...but make them live in Detroit. "If I were the federal government, assuming we could wave a magic wand and pull everybody together, you pass a law letting immigrants come in as long as they agree to go to Detroit and live there for five to 10 years, start businesses, take jobs or whatever," he said. Kill two birds with one implausible policy! more ›

The Reverend Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy at the funeral of Aiyana Jones, the 7-year-old girl killed during a Detroit police raid (they were looking for a murder suspect). The AP reports, "Sharpton questioned whether officers in the city's affluent suburbs would throw a stun grenade into a house before entering as Detroit officers did. But he said that while he could criticize Detroit police and political leaders, but... 'I'd rather tell you to start looking at the man in the mirror. We've all done something that contributed to this.'" Sharpton referred to Aiyana as "the breaking point," saying this was "a wake-up call not only for those in authority, but for those of us in the community who have allowed this violence and recklessness to go on too long." more ›

ABC News showed photographs of the underwear worn by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab while he allegedly tried to destroy a Northwest Airlines flight landing in Detroit last week. ABC News explains, "The first photo... shows the slightly charred underpants with the bomb packet still in place... The bomb packet is a six-inch long container of the high-explosive chemical PETN, less than a half cup in volume, weighing about 80 grams. A government test with 50 grams of PETN blew a hole in the side of an airliner. That was the amount in the bomb carried by the so-called shoe bomber Richard Reid over Christmas 2001. The underpants bomb would have been one and a half times as powerful." more ›

For her flight to LA on Sunday, Dianne Duncan arrived at the airport in Toronto at 9:30 a.m., but didn't reach the screening area until nearly seven hours later. "It was extremely strict," Duncan tells the Times. "There was no toilet, no water and no food for purchase. There was one man to screen the men, and one woman to screen the women. There was a full pat-down." (Her 5-year-old daughter was not exempt from the full pat-down.) Duncan's experience is emblematic of how miserable air travel has become for some in the wake of the failed Northwest Airlines flight 253 bombing, and yet others reported a relatively "normal" experience. more ›

With nerves running high after the December 25 incident of a Nigerian man allegedly trying to set off an explosive on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit, the flight crew of today's NWA Flight 253 asked for emergency help because of a disruptive Nigerian passenger, an incident the Department of Homeland Security later characterized as "nonserious." The Detroit Free-Press reports, "A law enforcement official says the man removed from a flight to Detroit today posed no security risk to the plane. The official says the passenger was taken into custody after becoming verbally disruptive on landing. Subsequent interviews by investigators determined he was a businessman who became ill during the flight." (CNN said the passenger had locked himself in the lavatory for an hour.) more ›

The U.S. government charged Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian man, with attempting to destroy a Northwest Airlines plane as it was landing in Detroit yesterday. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said, "ad this alleged plot to destroy an airplane been successful, scores of innocent people would have been killed or injured. We will continue to investigate this matter vigorously, and we will use all measures available to our government to ensure that anyone responsible for this attempted attack is brought to justice." And the Justice Department's statement notes: more ›

Sigh: Apparently a passenger aboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit tried to set off an explosive as the plane was landing. ABC News reports, "Federal officials and police are interviewing a Nigerian man, who allegedly tried to 'explode' a powdery substance...injuring himself and two other passengers." more ›

The heads of the big three automakers are in D.C., pleading their case for a bailout for a second day (earlier this morning, Rep. Barney Frank, head of the Financial Services Committee, said, "I hope we will do something"). And as Detroit hurts, so do NYC's dealerships. Crain's New York reports, "Business at dealerships here dropped nearly 50% in November compared with last year, thanks to the credit crunch and consumers’ reluctance to spend on large purchases." Dealerships have been closing in recent months, and the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association expects more to come--in fact, the GNYADA has a PSA telling people that they should buy cars now! And while all kinds of car sales are being affected, the Wall Street downturn really hurts luxury car sales: The head of a Porsche dealership said, “The Wall Street guys, it was their dream to come in and buy a Porsche 911, but not anymore." more ›

Image credit: Nature abhors a vacuum more ›

New York City faced some stiff competition in the Forbes Top 10 “Misery Measure”, but ultimately moped away with a respectable fourth place, losing only to such perennial dystopias as Detroit (#1, forever); Flint, Michigan (#3) and… Stockton, California, in the #2 slot? Apparently, the Bay Area satellite has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country and a swelling population. more ›

Johnny Podres died last night in a hospital in upstate New York at the age of 75. He'd been suffering from serious medical problems for some time. In 1955, Podres ensured himself a place in Brooklyn and baseball history as a young left-hander who pitched the Dodgers to their only World Series Championship while in Brooklyn, and he did it against the hated Yankees. more ›

Ming finished with 36 points as the Knicks once again showed their indifference to the defensive end of the floor. Both Curry and Randolph were in the starting lineup, which doesn’t help matters. The next five games are against Toronto, Detroit, Washington, New Jersey and Washington so 9-30 is a definite possibility. more ›

After Isiah Thomas said that he was still fit to coach the Knicks on Tuesday, we wondered if he was the most delusional man in the history of sports. That answer emerged yesterday as Thomas proclaimed that the Knicks will win a championship with him AND that he wants to leave a legacy. BWAHAHAHAHAHA. That's the best joke we'll be hearing all year. Seriously though, that smell of bullshit at Madison Square Garden isn't coming from those bulls, but from the head coach and President of Basketball Operations for the Knicks. more ›

The game was stopped midway through the second period after an ugly collision between Colton Orr and former Ranger Matt Cullen. Cullen took this worst of it as he was momentarily knocked unconscious and had to leave the game. While it didn’t look intentional, the referee assessed an interference penalty and a game misconduct on Orr. Orr should expect to hear from the league office in Toronto shortly. more ›

The latest in the Batman canon, The Dark Knight, is poised to be next summer's blockbuster hit, and ex-Brooklynite/current Manhattanite Heath Ledger seems to be stealing the show. A trailer recently came out with plenty of focus on Ledger's Joker character, and you can watch it below (MTV also has a shot-by-shot analysis). Does he outshine Jack Nicholson's 1989 Joker? We're excited to see this new take on the crime clown. more ›

Suns 115, Knicks 104: The Knicks need wins, yes, but they also need solid efforts against the league's elite teams. They got the latter but not the former Sunday in a loss to Phoenix at home. Eddy Curry's 21 points and an awakening from a recent slump couldn't power the Knicks, who stuck around for three quarters before disappearing in the fourth. Even Stephon Marbury enjoyed an efficient night from the floor -- he shot... more ›

Rangers 2 Tampa 1: New York got back on track quickly, coming out in the first period with intensity and jumping to a 1-0 lead thanks to Fedor Tyutin. Henrik Lundqvist wss his usually brilliant self, making 32 saves including several huge ones while the Rangers clung to a one-goal lead. It wasn’t until Colton Orr hit a knuckleball off the stick of a Lightning defenseman at 2:05 of the third period, that the... more ›

Another gloomy day today. A bit of fog this morning may delay flights out of town. You may also have weather-caused delays if you're going to northern New England (ice and snow), Chicago-Detroit-Milwaukee (rain) and the front range of the Rockies from Denver northward (snow). If you're staying in town you can expect cloudy skies and mild temperatures with a high in the mid-50s. It won't cool off much tonight, making for a comfortable... more ›

It started with the fans booing Stephon Marbury and Isiah Thomas and ended with the fans booing all of the Knicks. The Knicks commited an amazing 27 turnovers in their 108-82 loss Tuesday. Baron Davis had 31 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds as he showed the fans the type of play by a point guard they can only dream about. And, expect it to get worse. After the game Isiah Thomas conducted a bizarre... more ›

In news that isn't coming as a surprise to anyone, Alex Rodriguez, the former and probably future Yankees 3rd baseman, was named the American League Most Valuable Player today. It was the third time Rodriguez was named the MVP, winning previously in 2003 with the Rangers and in 2005 with the Yankees. This past season, A-Rod set career high marks in runs scored (143) and RBI (156). He also led baseball with 54 home runs... more ›

It was a big win. It was a lucky win. It was a costly win. And while Jon Kitna may not think the Giants are better than Detroit, in the end they were good enough to beat them 16-10. New York appeared to have the game in control when they got the ball back with a 16-3 lead and only ten minutes to go in the game. But, the Giants’ offense stalled and Detroit needed... more ›

Have the Giants shaken off last week’s debacle? That’s the question as they head to Detroit to face the 6-3 Lions. The Lions are one of the surprises of the season as Jon Kitna has revitalized his career and leads a very good passing attack with four receivers who are capable of getting into the end zone. Teams that throw the ball well have given the Giants fits this year and New York may be... more ›

The Critical Mass Halloween Ride is tonight! If you go, get some good pictures! more ›

Last week demolition was underway at the former CBGB. At the time Racked put their money on a Duane Reade taking over the space, but today The Post reports that John Varvados will be opening a chic boutique in the old punk rock palace. With his eye on a Spring opening, it's unclear how much of the 13,000 square feet will be taken over by the designer. more ›