Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a missing child on 8th Ave. in Manhattan, a double shooting at Bedford Ave. and Empire Blvd. in Brooklyn, and a water rescue at Broadway and West 8th St. in Brooklyn.A map of the NYC subway system with a realistic portrayal of which stops are available to handicapped people and/or people with strollers who can't navigate stairs.Those rent-to-own centers that people take advantage of every year near the Super Bowl?......

The bio on Eugene Mirman's website poses the question "Who or what is Eugene Mirman?" and answers, "In 1978, at the age of four, Eugene Mirman emigrated from Russia to seek a better life in America. It fucking worked." Of course, you've probably been familiar with Mirman at least as far back as the summer of '06 when he killed at Gothamist's Laughable Hype show. For any other entertainer, that magical night would have been......

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama made a campaign swing into our neighborhood yesterday, drawing a crowd of thousands to Yanitelli Center at St. Peter's College, and as well as supporters to a fund-raiser in Midtown last night. At St. Peter's, He told the audience, "I'm not running because of long-held ambitions. I'm running because of what Dr. (Martin Luther) King called the 'fierce urgency of now.'" Obama also complained about his opponents trying to......

The LA Times invaded the Big Apple to investigate the amazing fund-raising power of Hillary Clinton in Chinatown. The leading 2008 Democratic contender was able to raise $380,000 during one April fund-raiser - and back in 2004, John Kerry was only able to raise $24,000. Of course, Chinatown is in Clinton's backyard, too. But the LA Times questioned how some donors, like dishwashers or servers, would be able to donate amounts between $500 and......

Thought Governor Eliot Spitzer and Senator Hilary Clinton appeared at a press conference to discuss health coverage of New York children, they had to answer questions about campaign donations they accepted from fugitive apparel executive Norman Hsu. Clinton received $23,000 from Hsu and announced that she would donate the money to charity after revelations that Hsu has been wanted in California for defrauding California investors since 1991. Hsu has fled to Hong Kong but......

There are lots of great stories about how couples meet. Kindergarten, the Peace Corps, a subway platform, by chance at a bar, you name it. But we love this Daily News story about how one couple met, because it appeals not only to the romantic in us, but to our respect for jury duty: Traci Nagy and Jonathan Cinkay met while serving on the same jury during a Queens murder trial. A fellow juror told......

One firefighters' group is taking their attacks on Rudy Giuliani's record to the videotape. The International Association of Fire Fighters, which worked with the Uniformed Firefighters Association (already a vocal critic of Giuliani) and Uniformed Fire Officers Association, produced a video called Rudy Giuliani: Urban Legend. It's roughly 13 minutes of explaining how Giuliani's action led to firefighters' deaths during September 11. UFA president Stephen Cassidy told the Sun, "We're just setting the record......

We don't know about where you are, but it seems like spring can't decide whether or not to happen. Some days are warm, some days are cold, and sometimes you aren't sure which. Baseball may have started up (and soccer/football winding down) but it still seems cold out there. Unless it's not. Anyways, onto the -ists. Austinist happily anticipated fall's Austin City Limits, even though they're not fully recovered from South By Southwest. In......

The Smoking Gun has decided to bookend the weekend with Rudy Giuliani tidbits. On Monday, The Smoking Gun printed parts of Giuliani's 1993 "vulnerabilities study" which, among other things, offered suggestions on how to answer questions about the former mayor's marriage to his second cousin. Today's installment is Giuliani's tour rider for speaking engagements. At $100,000 for one hour Giuliani time (45 minute speech, 15 minutes of Q&A), one also has to provide certain......

As the world holds it's breath, teetering precariously on the cusp of the Superbowl (well, at least in America), the wheels of the -ists keep on turning. Austinist was in a musical frame of mind as they listened to the new Shins album, updated the SXSW band listings and got called "punk rock" for their efforts by MTV. And an ice storm swept through the area. Bostonist said goodbye to John Kerry's plans for......

It was bound to happen: Supporters of former mayor Rudy Giuliani's presidential ambitions are in talks with various September 11 victims' families. Why? To perhaps create a 9/11 halo/force field around Giuliani when he may be attacked by opponents. The NY Post had the exclusive scoop on how some families have been contacted, including high-profile FDNY widow Marian Fontana, who was invited to a Giuliani exploratory committee dinner. Fontana says that while she appreciates Rudy's......

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan was found guilty, along with three other women, of trespassing at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. In March, Sheehan and three other women, Melissa Beattie, Susan Benjamin and Patricia Ackerman, were arrested after they tried to deliver a petition to Peggy Kerry (yes, sister of Senator John Kerry), who is the liaison for NGO's. Kerry refused to meet with them, believing their tactics, which included appearing with 100 members,......

Chartered flights: $161, 751. Photography: $51,313. Flowers: $13,169. Winning re-election: Priceless - or $29.5 million. Senator Hillary Clinton's handy 30 point reelection win two weeks ago cost a lot of money. The NY Times reports that her campaign spent about $30 million for this victory, which now puts her at the similar 2008 war chest levels as Senators John Kerry and Evan Bayh. And some Democrats and Clinton supporters are concerned about what this could......

The bottom line from the latest Quinnipiac poll? Mayor Bloomberg is enjoying some of the the highest approval numbers of his mayorship, but New Yorkers don't want him in Washington. Mayor Bloomberg has an approval rating of 70% - a far cry from his numbers in November 2003, which had two-thirds of New Yorkers saying they wanted a different mayor. But as much as they like him now, only 35% would vote for him if......

The Daily News' Ben Smith looks at a possible stumbling block for Rudy Giuliani's presidential hopes. And it would be a big one. With September 11 fire responders falling ill and memos about the Giuliani administration opening downtown earlier, in spite of EPA warnings, becoming a bigger and bigger story this year, some who hope for "Giuliani 2008" are concerned that Rudy could be vulnerable, the way John Kerry was when the Swift Boat Veterans......

Bad news for Fernando Ferrer: He's trailing Mayor Bloomberg by a whopping 31 points according to a Quinnipiac poll. And this poll, unlike earlier ones where Bloomberg enjoyed a 27 point lead, is after fears about the subway terror threat on October 7, which might mean that New Yorkers, despite their grousing, might really love Mayor Bloomberg! The Mayor introduced a new health plan to insure children, which Ferrer's campaign says is the second instance......

Paul Boocock, Actor and Writer...

There are rumors that former Massachusetts Governor William Weld is considering to run for NY State Governor on the Republican ticket, since it seems like Governor George Pataki is on his way out, with bigger political ambitions in mind and a state that really hates him. Weld is an interesting Republican, as he believes drugs like marijuana should be legalized (that stance basically killed his attempt to be Ambassador to Mexico), is pro-choice and has......

The State of the Union Address was given by President Bush last night (text here). Gothamist decided to take a pass on watching, because we were worried about hurting the TVs. As far as we know, adjusting the payroll tax is not what the President wants to do with Social Security - he wants to make sure we work longer. Or something. And our country is confident blah blah blah. And forget about the Democratic......

More proof that we live in a nation of idiots, it seems that NY state picked the wrong John Kerry in the official electoral college document. Last week, NY State filed its 31 electoral votes for John Kerry, but for John L. Kerry. Who is not John F. Kerry, the Senator and Presidental candidate this year. Humorously, the document's typo was only caught when it was posted on the National Archives website. NY State admitted......

New Yorkers were in a daze yesterday, after the long and steady stream of of election returns, electoral map math and finally news that Senator John Kerry conceded the election to President Bush. New Yorkers voted 2-to-1 in Kerry's favor, with Bush getting only 17% of the vote in Manhattan and the Bronx, though there were some who supported the President. The NY Times speaks with many people who marvel at the difference between New......

About 49% of the population is still reeling from Senator Kerry's concession. Gothamist's own Doug Gordon (also of Planet Gordon) and his wife are in Boston, and were captured for the world to see on BBC News Front Page. He tells us, "All I can say is that there is nothing quieter than the sound of 10,000 people not saying a word." And we expect the Secret Service and FBI to be investigating many......

Senator John Kerry called President Bush to concede the election. Reports say Kerry will give a speech at 1PM this afternoon.......

Yesterday's annual Halloween Parade reminded Gothamist of the protests during the Republican National Convention but just at night: Lots of people in mocking Bush costumes, men and women dressed like hookers (just not meeting clandestinely with delegates), and lots of enthusiasm. We hadn't been on the street for more than five minutes before we saw our first child throwing up from his sugar overload. The Daily News reports that other popular costumes were John......

Boo! John Kerry finds something bigger than his head in a pumpkin patch in Ohio (this photo was actually taken two weeks ago, but it's funnier than the one from today). And Dick Cheney meets the Grim Reaper. This time, unlike the heart-attack induced times he was able to bribe the Reaper with his Halliburton money, the Grim Reaper was actually his granddaughter Elizabeth Perry. Aw.......

It's the Friday before the election, which mean news organizations will be unusually busy in reporting the most minute stories from the respective campaign trails and wondering if the Bush administration will pull a "We've got Osama" rabbit out of the hat or how Kerry can get more mileage out of the missing explosives story. Some subjects of non-election stories are irked that reporters are bothering them and not covering the election (but St.......

'Tis the season for presidential endorsements. The city's paper of record, The New York Times, bestowed an endorsement of Senator John Kerry for President yesterday, describing him as a man with a "strong moral core" and "not just a modest improvement on the incumbent," closing with: We look back on the past four years with hearts nearly breaking, both for the lives unnecessarily lost and for the opportunities so casually wasted. Time and again,......

Hello, nurse: It's the Age of Fey and Poehler, as they are the first all-female Weekend Update team on Saturday Night Live. Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon had a nice chemistry - you know, sharp, caustic and riffing on how Jimmy was stupid and pretty and Tina was slutty and angry - but we were feeling Fallon Fatigue, as he couldn't really keep his shizzle together during skits, especially ones with Horatio Sanz. So......

The pundits are talking about how Senator Kerry seemed "presidential" and how President Bush only had thirty minutes of material, as the respective presidential aides are trying to spin that their candidate won the debate. Our thoughts: John Kerry was solid, strong and articulate, even if he's kind of a bore, while President Bush, though very approachable, unraveled towards the end - he was Pausey McPausepants. Not that everyone can be a smooth talker,......

With a little more than five weeks until the Presidential Elections, Gothamist would like to remind you to register to vote. In New York, there are now two weeks left until the October 8th deadline to register for the general elections on November 2nd. While New York is likely to go to John Kerry, there are many states that are still in the balance, including New Jersey. The Electoral Vote Predictor, which predicts the outcome......