December 14, 2014
State lawmakers worried Cuomo won’t give them a pay raise
ALBANY — Chances for a controversial pay hike for state lawmakers dimmed over the weekend as “no progress’’ was reported in talks between Gov. Cuomo and the legislative leaders, The...
'Diversity' drive for top NY high schools is really anti-diversity
Last week, the City Council held a hearing with an eye on changing fundamentally how eight selective public high schools choose their students. Yet this drive to increase diversity at...
The great Ebola lie -- Outbreak hyped for funding & media attention
The current Ebola outbreak is “the most severe, acute health emergency seen in modern times,” Ian Smith, the World Health Organization’s executive director, announced at a mid-October press conference. Huh?...
The hideous, shockingly awful starting debut of Johnny Manziel
CLEVELAND — Johnny Freakin’ (Awful) Football. Describing Johnny Manziel’s hotly anticipated debut as an NFL starting quarterback Sunday afternoon as a massive flop doesn’t really even do it justice. Manziel...
A '99.9%' chance Tom Coughlin returns
The odds of Tom Coughlin returning to coach the 2015 Giants have skyrocketed dramatically. So dramatically, in fact, The Post has learned the Giants are leaning strongly towards bringing him...
Has there ever been a Giants rookie like Odell Beckham?
The first of the Giants owners to walk out of the locker room smiling at the mention of Odell Beckham Jr. is Steve Tisch. “Superstar. Rock star. Amazing athlete. Thrilled...
Melo scores 34, still unhappy with offense after Knicks' OT loss
The Raptors, with the best record in the East, came to the Garden Sunday to face the Knicks, near universal leaders in frustration and disappointment. With the mess and slop...
$8.3B PetSmart deal is top dog as biggest leveraged buyout of year
Private-equity firms fought like cats and dogs over PetSmart — and the result is the biggest leveraged buyout of the year. BC Partners, a London-based buyout shop, is leading a...
How the Giants have come together to save Coughlin's job
If you go back and ask players from his Jacksonville teams and from his early Giants days, you’ll never be left with the impression Tom Coughlin was a head coach...
Dishing dirt on the famous is what these magazines do best
Gossip mags and the Sony hackers have one thing in common, namely, dishing dirt on the rich and famous. These days the hackers are making the headlines, but when it...
Music streamer Rdio tunes into Indian market, plans expansion
Rdio, which is vying with Spotify and other music services for streaming supremacy, is looking to expand overseas. The San Francisco-based service is set to launch in one of the...
Charming Brit import ‘Every Brilliant Thing’ enrolls audience to catalog the best in life
Technically speaking, “Every Brilliant Thing” is a solo show. But actor Jonny Donahoe spends a lot of time chatting with various people — his character’s parents, teacher and partner. You...
Taxi rape -- Blame governments, not Uber
Last year, British supermarkets had to limit parents’ baby-formula purchases — because Chinese visitors were buying up all the Western product to take home. The Chinese tourists trusted global brands...
Nets super fan ejected from MSG is dead after two-story fall
http://instagram.com/p/wIK-sKBvGr/ The Nets super fan who was carried out of Madison Square Garden by security guards after allegedly waving his prosthetic leg around died Sunday after jumping out a second-story...
1960s musical about singing rabbi makes a wobbly comeback
Persistence, thy name is “Soul Doctor”! Every time you think this good-natured but clunky biomusical about Shlomo Carlebach, the singing rabbi, is down for the count, it pops up again....
Colbert and Ferguson signing off this week
“Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas” Tuesday at 8 p.m. on NBC Jim Parsons (“The Big Bang Theory”) voices the cheerful Buddy in this new stop-motion animated special based on the hit...
Season's eatings: New York City's tastiest holiday treats
NYC’s sweetest purveyors have dreamed up a host of whimsical confections to dazzle your holiday table. Sweet structures Jennifer Yee, 36, the pastry chef at Andrew Carmellini’s NoHo French cafe...
12 rules of Hallmark Christmas movies
It’s a magical time that comes but once a year: Hallmark Channel’s deluge of original Christmas movies featuring actors you’d either forgotten about or can’t believe have been reduced to...
Jets win, but likely lose chance to get Mariota in draft
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Jets can’t even Suck for the Duck the right way. Gang Green beat the Titans 16-11 at LP Field in an abomination of a football game...
5 escape after gunman with jihadist flag takes at least 15 hostage in Sydney cafe
SYDNEY — Five people escaped from a Sydney cafe where a gunman took an unknown number of hostages during Monday morning rush hour. Two people inside the cafe earlier held...
Giants report card: Odell Beckham makes every grade
Offense Here’s an assignment: Think of new superlatives for Odell Beckham Jr. (12 carries, 143 yards, 3 TDs) and report back to us. The rookie is killing it. Eli Manning...
Christie-Miss
So much for making the punishment fit the crime. As outrageous as the George Washington Bridge lane closures ordered by staff and appointees of Gov. Chris Christie were, it’s never...
Hail, hail, the cab's all here
Need more evidence that tech-based competitors like Uber, Lyft, Gett and others are having an impact on city life? Note the latest proposal from freshman City Councilmember Ben Kallos. The...
Speaker Silver's secret
Sheldon Silver has been keeping a secret from the citizens of New York. The Assembly speaker admitted for the first time that besides the hefty fees he commands as counsel...
Poet accused of assaulting cops during 'peaceful' protest
A CUNY professor whose poetry includes the line “F--k the police” was busted early Sunday for allegedly attacking two NYPD lieutenants who tried to stop him from tossing a garbage...
Newly released docs show consistency in pal's account of Brown shooting
A prosecutor released hundreds of pages of additional documents Saturday from the investigation into the police shooting of Michael Brown, including an interview transcript of a friend who initially asserted...
Puppy uncovers human bone while playing on beach
NEWBURY, Mass. — Authorities say a puppy taking a walk on a Massachusetts beach with its owner uncovered a human bone, which led to the discovery of several others. Bill...
Without tossed Obekpa, St. John's still demolishes Fordham
It was an all-too familiar sound for basketball fans at the Garden on Sunday: arena-wide groans. There was 3:48 left in the first half and Chris Obekpa of St. John’s...
Controversial call, Beckham greatness carry Giants in win
Of course he plans out what he is going to do in the end zone after scoring a touchdown, because, Odell Beckham Jr. said, “You never want to look bad...
Private remembrances mark Sandy Hook shooting anniversary
NEWTOWN, Conn. — The community of Newtown quietly marked the second anniversary of the shooting rampage that left 20 children and six educators dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School. No...
Irate Santana Moss tossed after flipping out on refs
https://twitter.com/C_Penn_/status/544216030529486850 Washington wide receiver Santana Moss was ejected for arguing a questionable call on the final play of the first half that cost the Redskins a touchdown Sunday against the...
Jeb Bush to release thousands of gubernatorial emails
TAMPA, Fla. -- Jeb Bush says he plans to release 250,000 emails from his time as Florida governor, part of an e-book that he is writing as he mulls taking...
The Bengals keep tormenting Manziel with the money sign
With a patented celebration comes a go-to counter provocation. That's the lesson Johnny Manziel is learning this season. First, it was Michael Sam sacking and ribbing him in the preseason....
Tyson Chandler blocks everything, shoes included
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD64GgN--3E Tyson Chandler drew the biggest roar of the day from a quiet Dallas crowd when he swatted Marreese Speights' errant shoe out of midair while Golden State teammate Stephen...
NHL's mumps outbreak hits league's best player
https://twitter.com/emptynetters/status/543463274415919105/photo/1 PITTSBURGH -- Add Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby to the growing list of NHL players dealing with the mumps. The Penguins announced the diagnosis Sunday after holding the two-time...
Nets rewind: The resurgence of Mason Plumlee
Here are three thoughts on the Nets’ 114-87 win over the Hornets in Charlotte on Saturday night: 1. Mason Plumlee’s sophomore season hasn’t exactly gone according to plan after an...
NYPD cops attacked during 'peaceful' protest
Video credit: Chris Nooney https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wrSMqQL0GM&feature=youtu.be NYPD officers were swarmed by protesters in a knock-down, drag-out brawl on the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday night that sent two police lieutenants to the...
Pleas for Kurt Warner's return go to the billboards
If Kurt Warner returns and gets flattened, at least he'll have some place to rest his head. The rumblings for a reunion with the Cardinals, five years after his retirement,...
Cheney: 'We stopped short of torture'
WASHINGTON -- Former Vice President Dick Cheney laced into a Senate Intelligence Committee report and said CIA interrogators “stopped short” of torture tactics – saying he would “do it again...
Atlantic City casino turning into a college dorm
A New Jersey college said on Saturday it has completed its $18 million purchase of the shuttered Showboat Atlantic City casino resort from Caesars Entertainment Corp, a deal that would...
Floyd Mayweather wants Pacquiao, even has date set
Floyd Mayweather Jr. says he's ready to fight Manny Pacquiao next May in a long anticipated bout that would be the richest ever in boxing. Mayweather called for negotiations for...
Nutty airline exec forced flight attendant to 'kneel in shame'
SEOUL, South Korea — A Korean Air flight attendant described being insulted and shamed by the airline's executive who ordered him removed and the plane returned over macadamia nuts, and...
UK wants to know Britain's role in torture of suspected terrorists
LONDON — A U.K. parliamentary panel wants access to information not made public in a U.S. Senate report that may pertain to Britain's role in the interrogation and rendition of...
Gun club hosts photo op with Santa
Taking aim at some holiday fun, a special event at a Georgia gun club Saturday featured assault weapon photo ops with a red-suited Jolly Old Saint Nick. Gun enthusiasts who...
Arrest made in fatal shooting of Auburn player
AUBURN, Alabama -- Police say they’ve arrested a 22-year-old man in the fatal shooting of Auburn football player Jakell Lenard Mitchell. Auburn Police Capt. Will Matthews issued an agency statement...
Groupies of famed astrologer Susan Miller can't cope without her
On the morning of Dec. 1, as the rest of the world pounced on Cyber Monday deals, Dawn Del Russo logged on for her spiritual manna — monthly horoscopes by...
Timothy Spall on his new gig and beating leukemia
Two weeks ago, Timothy Spall tried to hide his excitement while sitting in an office in Midtown, but his mile-wide grin gave him away. Three minutes prior, the New York...
Meet the rescue dog playing Sandy in 'Annie'
Arriving at her film premiere in a chauffeur-driven Mercedes, walking the red carpet with producers Will Smith and Jay Z — it’s a dog’s life for Marti, the golden retriever-chow...
New Christmas special delivers a classic holiday feel
It's a given that NBC’s “Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas,” a stop-motion-animated version of the hit film and Broadway musical that airs Tuesday on NBC, will recall those earlier gems. But...
Avoid these 5 holiday dating landmines
At first glance, dating someone during the holidays seems ideal. But factor in different faiths, family issues and wildly different expectations, and it may be hard for a new romance...
New Tavern on the Green chef unruffled by rough reviews
If Jeremiah Tower is worried, he’s not showing it. The 72-year-old chef projects an air of calm when asked if he’s anxious about his new job at Tavern on the...
This week's couple: Food for thought
Even if two people seem to be a good fit, a great setting can help bring them even closer. This was the case for Joseph, 30, and Claire, 27, when...
Tinashe finally getting the respect she's earned
At the age of just 21, Tinashe has already built the kind of career that entertainers three times her age would envy. She had a recurring role on “Two and...
In My Library: Alan Alda
There’s a reason why there’s an Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University: The “M*A*S*H” star is obsessed with finding ways we can better understand the natural...
Watch Miss Piggy and the 'Peanuts' gang this week
1. Brooklyn Nine-Nine Sunday, 8:30 p.m., Fox Jake (Andy Samberg) and Charles’ (Joe Lo Truglio) bromance starts to crack when they volunteer for an eight-day stakeout in very close quarters....
'Boy next door' seeks a girl to move to his grooves
Matt, 30, is an operations manager who enjoys playing music and taking photos in his spare time, and his picture-perfect girl would enjoy the same things. Spin Cycle: Whenever he’s...
The kitty stars of New York's Meow Parlour
Attention, felinephiles! Your dream of total kitty immersion has come true. On Monday, Dec. 15, Meow Parlour (46 Hester St.), the city’s first-ever permanent cat cafe — where customers pay...
‘Annie’ star is taking over Hollywood at just 11-years-old
It hasn't been much of a hard knock life for Quvenzhané Wallis, who, at 11 years old, has already conquered Hollywood. A Louisiana native, she became the youngest actress ever...
Marriage proposal stunt with crane goes awry
Leave the romance to the French, pal. A Dutchman fell head-over-wheels when the crane he rented for a dramatic marriage proposal toppled over and crashed through a neighbor’s roof. He...
Church sues former rector to recover money that vanished
His cup runneth over — maybe too much. A Brooklyn church is suing its former rector to recover tens of thousands of dollars that vanished from an escrow account to...
Rescued kayaker sues FDNY for injuries during rescue
A teenager who flipped his kayak in Jamaica Bay says he was seriously hurt by responding firefighters. Frank Marino Jr., 17, was kayaking May 30 about 1,000 yards west of...
Pizza King wins 75-cent slice war with 2 Bros. Pizza
Say good bye to the rock-bottom slice price. One of the city’s most storied pizza wars — a vicious battle of attrition where both sides slashed the price of their...
Auctioneer sues stamp-loving sheik who died before paying $7.5M bid
He’s a stamp scamp. A Swiss auctioneer who specializes in selling rare stamps says a well-known sheik failed to pay on a $7.5 million winning bid before he died in November,...
No public tours at Gracie Mansion since de Blasio moved in
Gracie Mansion might be dubbed the “People’s House” — but the only folks enjoying the taxpayer-owned landmark these days are the de Blasios. No public tours have been allowed at...
Judge recommends firing firefighter who tested positive for weed
A black firefighter — who argued his positive test for marijuana was rigged because of racism — ought to be fired, a city administrative judge has recommended. In September 2013,...
Former city design head blasts mayor’s plan to remove portraits
Mayor de Blasio’s off-the-wall plan to take down the City Hall portraits of white historical figures is not only dumb, it’s also “condescending’’ to minorities, a former city official said...
High school student scores $72M playing the stock market
Mohammed Islam has since admitted he lied to New York Magazine and did not make any money on the stock market, an Observer interview reveals. New York magazine has retracted the...
Why the new world of college basketball isn't all that bad
Look, we all want what we can’t have anymore. If you are a college basketball fan, you are forever longing for the time when we could develop feelings for certain...
He hopes John has forgiven him: Lennon killer's wife
He killed John Lennon just for the fame of it — but he remains a Beatles fan, and he hopes to meet his victim in heaven. He also gets one...
Rangers' Vigneault: World Juniors like a 'Christmas' gift to Duclair
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Sleigh bells rang and Alain Vigneault was listening. For it was the Rangers’ coach who made reference to the holiday season in explaining the organization’s decision...
Why it's not time for Mara & Co. to give Coughlin the boot
The Pride of the Giants way back when was a man named Steve Owen, who became their head coach in 1930 during a sterling seven-year playing career, and appeared in...
Current NHL teams need to prep for expansion cap woes
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The next two NHL teams, wherever they are and whenever they come — for argument’s sake, say Las Vegas and Quebec in 2017-18 — will start...
Saudi Arabia's oil war against Iran and Russia
This week, oil fell through the price floor of $60 a barrel and gas at my local filling station was $2.26 a gallon. That’s great news for commuters and almost...
Why Dan Snyder is the root of the problem for Redskins
Google the words “Redskins’’ and “dysfunction’’ and what you will find are more entries on your computer than you can fit inside of team’s 79,000-seat FedEx Field home stadium. Add...
Rangers' Stepan among league worst in one stat — but says it's not an 'overriding issue'
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Derek Stepan knows the numbers. Well, no; that’s not correct. He doesn’t know his faceoff percentage is among the NHL’s worst at 43.5. He is told...
We’re all ‘losing’ it amid Apple’s home-team hell
This is the winter of our discontent, and it isn’t even winter yet. We pay exorbitant, mostly obscene prices for our sports addiction, to forget about the daily stresses of...
Knicks' rare win was one-day reprieve for frustrated Carmelo
Carmelo Anthony is frustrated, and his recent vents to friends haven’t been pretty. But perhaps Friday night in Boston was the first day of the rest of his Knicks’ career....
NY teams producing one of the worst years ever
Today is the Toilet Bowl, when the worst team in football, the Jets, face off against the other worst team in football, the Tennessee Titans. Jet fans are rooting for...
Hispanic 9/11 workers say law firm ignores them
Dozens of Hispanic laborers who cleaned up after 9/11 and got sick say they have been shafted by the imploding law firm Napoli Bern. Workers claim their settlement checks have...
Vandal causes car owners to Bimmer careful where they park
A quirky vandal is pulling a fast one on luxury-car owners by scrubbing the paint off of BMW hood emblems — possibly to protest the rise of affluence in Brooklyn,...
New Republic's new owner pushed for mag to be biz-friendly
New Republic owner Chris Hughes pushed the magazine to be more business-friendly, according to a New Yorker account of the spectacular implosion of the liberal institution. Just after he bought...
How Eric Holder spun the 'Fast and Furious' scandal to a lapdog media
The general news media met the recent release of 42,000 pages of government documents, withheld for more than two years under President Obama’s one and only invocation of executive privilege,...
Lady Gaga's loophole
Remember Ralphie’s secret decoder ring in “A Christmas Story”? In the Christmas classic, Ralphie was disappointed when the secret message he decoded turned out to be “Be sure to drink...
9/11 health center not testing for prostate cancer despite concern
Health authorities pushed for prostate cancer to be included on the list of 9/11 cancers in 2013, but Mount Sinai Hospital — which treats and studies them at its World...
Rapid fall in oil prices may portend global recession
Cratering crude-oil prices may be a blessing to cash-strapped American consumers, but it’s a double-edged sword when it comes to the overall economy. The problem for the overall economy is...
Banks fear mass branch closings, layoffs over Fed's proposal
It’s hot money. The Federal Reserve Bank, led by Janet Yellen, is preparing to rip up the balance sheets of US banks, causing capital flight and widespread branch closings, and...
Spielberg's DreamWorks Studios may dream up a new name
Time to call the branding firms? Folks at Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studios are noodling the idea of changing its name. On the Money’s snoops tell us that they’re sick of...
Treasury Department preps its workers for surviving disasters
What does Treasury know? The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) — part of the Treasury Department — put out a request for bids for survival kits for...
The most requested gift of the holidays that fits in your hand
“Is there a gift card for me under the tree?” That’s what many consumers could find themselves asking this holiday season — one in which about 20 percent of holiday...
Credit card debt surges as the year comes to a close
Americans are ending 2014 with a binge — on credit-card debt. The year that began with a flood of red ink is now seeing credit-card and other debt spiking higher...
Jack to school: Nets guard gets his degree from Georgia Tech
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As Jarrett Jack walked across the stage at Georgia Tech on Saturday morning to accept his degree in business management, only one thing was on his mind....
ESPN leads charge in giving NFL's most repulsive a mic
To the spoilers go the spoils. Friday morning, I had a football question, and my first, habit-formed move was to call Dave Jennings for the answer. Then it struck me...
Elizabeth Warren poses a challenge to Hillary in 2016
It’s enough to make you feel sorry for Hillary Clinton. Well, almost. Her presidential campaign of celebrity and inevitability got off to a rocky start, mostly through her own mistakes,...
Rested Rangers use quick start to demolish Canucks
VANCOUVER, British Columbia— The Capitals have been winning, the Panthers have been winning, the Maple Leafs have been winning and the Rangers, well, they have not been winning with any...
How the NFL leaves players broken -- and broke
In 2002, George Koonce, a nine-year linebacker in the NFL who had last played during the 2000 season, was confronted with a harsh reality. After holding out hope for almost...
$100 million wilding
Is the cost of a brutal rape in Central Park 25 years ago heading toward $100 million? Word broke last week that the Central Park Five, who have already won...
After devising his own Rangers end, Brad Richards not 'bitter'
Things could hardly have worked out any better for Brad Richards, so why would he be bitter toward the Rangers? “I was in the lockout trying to get it solved,”...
Mets scouting, mulling bid for Korean stud shortstop
Another shortstop could soon be available and it’s one who might interest the Mets. Jung-ho Kang, who is 27 and coming off a career year with the Nexen Heroes of the...
City cremated wrong body, lost corpse for a year
It’s the city’s most shocking body bungle yet. The Medical Examiner’s Office recently found an elderly woman’s corpse rotting in a cooler in its Manhattan morgue for nearly a year....
Injury news takes turn for worse for Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith
So much for the shooting-guard glut and Phil Jackson’s chance of alleviating it with a trade. The twin MRI exams performed Saturday on Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith indicated both...
Game plan for the Jets: Get annihilated
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — These are the Jets, and so what’s best for the future may not be what’s best for today. There is 99.943 percent certitude that there will be...
'Battlestar' babe Tricia Helfer gets back to being dangerous
Viondra Denninger, the spaceship captain’s wife in Syfy’s new futuristic miniseries, “Ascension,” is a handful — scheming, icy-blond and prone to bodacious butt cleavage. Clearly, this called for a special...
Daily Blotter
Manhattan An Upper East Side crook failed in his bid to steal a bag out of a woman’s hands — so he took her phone, cops said. The 22-year-old victim...