The latest coming to us from the etiquette-abandoning bowels of New York is a photograph of this man, sitting spread eagle on a much-coveted rush hour subway seat. Our tipster tells us this was taken just after 6 p.m. yesterday evening, on the R train uptown. At least this offender took his backpack off so (once upright again) it wouldn't knock into fellow straphangers, but let's not get sidetracked here. This is a real problem, and while they do love to spread their legs wide open like the whole world's between their knees, public enemy #1 isn't just man. more ›

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie gave one of his signature "straight-shootin" performances on Thursday when he called a pesky law student an "idiot." The "idiot" in question, William Brown, served in the Navy during the Iraq War, and wasn't shocked so much by Christie's words but the fact that he was escorted out of the event by two police officers. “I served my country, I am a combat veteran and they escorted me out like I was a criminal," Brown told the Daily News. "I couldn’t believe this is America.” more ›

On Tuesday night, an 8-year-old was shot in the shoulder by a gunman on a bike in the Bronx. Armando Bigo, who is currently recovering from his wound at Jacobi Medical Center, described being hit by a stray bullet: “I was looking at the chips,” he told the Daily News. “I just wanted some chips. Someone opened the door and shot me...I don’t think I was brave. I got shot.” more ›

Henry Alford, who has written for the New York Times and Vanity Fair, has just released his book on etiquette, titled, Would It Kill You to Stop Doing That: A Modern Guide to Manners... and the New Yorker has some tips for his fellow urban dwellers. Over at Thirteen, he got in to one of the most despicable actions one often witnesses on the streets of New York: upstreaming. You know, when you are trying to hail a cab and another person, or group of people, walk just ahead of you to hail one first (teenagers probably do this a lot). more ›

Studying under God's watchful eye requires self-discovery, sacrifice, and occassionally some booty-rumbling beats that imbue you with the spirit of the Almighty. That's why Staten Island's Moore Catholic School blasts music from their football field at seemingly odd hours and high volumes, but neighbors (pagans?) have had enough. "It's like being in the front row of a metal concert with nowhere to go. It's like jet-plane level," one resident tells the Staten Island Advance. And there's absolutely nothing worse than Christian metal. more ›

Subway Etiquette signs are one thing, but what if you could actually enforce manners upon people? Well this may be the closest you'll get—Animal reports on a new endeavor that seeks to “popularize the consideration of others and shame inattention and thoughtlessness” underground. The Violation Report is a safe place to document bad behavior—all you have to do is take a photo, file a detailed report, and add it to the database (which is already filling up). For the brave, the site even provides downloadable tickets you can issue in person. more ›

Police are on the lookout for a Westchester County bank robber who was apparently raised with good manners. The man is suspected of robbing seven banks since January, according to the Post, but has always thanked the tellers and "wished them a nice day" as he was making off with the money. So nice to know that he may not be a cold-hearted killer inside; we're sure that softens the blow of having a gun pointed at your head. more ›

Once again, the Al-Qaeda-tied scientist accused of shooting at U.S. personnel in Afghanistan was thrown out of a Manhattan courtroom for disrupting legal proceedings. This time, Aafia Siddiqui — who has already been tossed from the courtroom three times — interrupted the testimony of a chief warrant officer who was speaking about being wounded in Afghanistan. According to the Post, she shouted: "I feel sorry for you ... Don't do that. It will make America look weak in international court." Two jurors were also tossed from the jury and replaced with alternates, according to 1010WINS. The judge ejected the jurors after they "interacted" with a spectator, who was arrested. "They felt they would no longer be fair," the judge told the Daily News. Before the trial began, Siddiqui requested the use of genetic tests to keep Jews off the jury. more ›

Since taking office just 12 days ago, Comptroller John Liu hasn't just established a new code of decorum forcing staffers to rise from their seats when he enters the room and call him "Mr. Comptroller" — he's also eliminated dress-down Fridays! The Post reports that Liu — dubbed "King Liuy" by the tabloid — has nixed casual Fridays and ordered that workers arrive by 8 am, not 9 am. more ›

New city comptroller John Liu takes his job seriously — so seriously in fact that he requires his staffers to rise from their chairs when he enters the room and refer to him as "Mr. Comptroller." Liu introduced the mandatory formalities in meetings last week, and they already have "veteran denizens of the Municipal Building snickering behind his back," according to the Post. more ›

Last Friday, author and journalist Lynn Harris published a "Complaint Box" post on CityRoom about how hard it is for pregnant women to find seats on the subway, based on her experience during her two pregnancies and her friends' experiences. She writes that while people are very nice to offer her seats when she's taking the subway with her now-born children, she wonders, "Where were you people when I was pregnant? Oh, right. You were sitting comfortably in your seats. While I stood. In August."

If anyone did give up a seat — which, O.K., did happen, on days when there was a partial eclipse, a unicorn sighting and alternate-side parking suspended, or when I finally started asking for one — the donors appeared in this order of likelihood: (1) older woman, (2) younger woman, (3) minority man. more ›

Details are scant on a stabbing at a Brooklyn senior center Sunday, but it merits mention as a cautionary tale for those who would confront line-cutters. According to the Post, 55-year-old Leroy Skette Sr. was displeased when 37-year-old Byron Bells cut the line at a fundraiser buffet at the Fort Greene Senior Citizens Council. But when Skette called him out, the cutter got stabby, throwing a cranberry-vodka drink in his elder's face, then allegedly slashing him with a knife. Skette needed 84 stitches on his face and neck! He tells the tabloid, "I thought he hit me. But I felt my hand, and there was blood." Other than that, the only other salient detail he remembers is "using the word 'manners.'" It's unclear whether Bells is still at large, so today might be a good day to just let civilization decline a little further. more ›