Safe
• Crime is drastically down so far this year, with the city on track to set a record in 2007: the fewest murders since the police began keeping track in the sixties. An NYU prof credits an NYPD program that sends crowds of rookie cops to bad neighborhoods — and those rookie cops would be the ones they’re now paying $25k. [NYDN]
• Is Joe Bruno the Alan Hevesi of the sky? The state’s top Republican is under investigation for allegedly steering state contracts to associates; now Spitzer is threatening to look into Bruno’s use of state aircraft — and police escorts — to fly to fund-raisers in New York City. [NYP]
• Those new New York City condoms hit 100 of New York’s 325 senior centers last week. The remaining 225 centers — save for seven apparently run by prudes — will get their rubbers this week, along with pamphlets on HIV prevention. [NYP]
• Bloomberg’s new noise code went into effect yesterday. See, isn’t the city nice and quiet now? [NYT]
• And A-Rod’s wife wore a tank top to yesterday’s game bearing the words “Fuck You” on the back. Perhaps it would have been better to convey this message at home? [NYP]
the morning line
It’s Goya For Gioia
• Queens Councilman Eric Gioia is living his own version of Supersize Me: as an awareness-raising stunt, he will spend one week on a $28 food budget (the average food-stamp allotment). His strategy: lots of peanut butter and beans. [NYDN]
• So, what do we know about the Fort Dix Six? Three of them belonged to an Albanian family (more of a clan, we suppose, with 200 members in the U.S. alone) that owns roofing businesses in New York and New Jersey. The other two, a Palestinian and a Turk, lived in Philly; the sixth man, a self-described Kosovar sniper, remains a mystery. [NYT]
• Just as Murdoch’s Dow Jones–related news presence was waning, the mogul comes up with a doozy of an announcement: He will take News Corp. carbon-neutral. For instance, 24 will use biodiesel generators to film its deranged right-wing torture fantasies. No, seriously. [NYP]
• Rudy Giuliani won’t comment on Pope Benedict XVI’s statement that all politicians who support abortion rights should be excommunicated from the Catholic Church. Which is probably a good idea: Given Rudy’s recent record, not much good comes from his commenting on, well, anything. [amNY]
• And, the city’s about to stop its insanely popular subway-themed condom and lubricant giveaway because “it is unclear whether the condoms are reaching target groups.” The Health Department hasn’t ruled out launching a different brand. We suggest the “Old Times Square” theme. [Kaiser Network]
the morning line
It’s Tough to Love a Steamroller
• Must be all that screaming, cursing, and Medicaid- cutting: Governor Spitzer’s approval ratings plunged 13 percent in the latest Quinnipiac poll, with only 48 percent happy with his performance. [NYP]
• A Bronx martial-arts instructor has confessed to a plan to train Al Qaeda terrorists. Tarik Shah, a jazz musician by day, was going to provide instruction in hand-to-hand combat. Does Osama’s new plan involve simply beating us up? [MetroNY]
• We may not have farms in skyscrapers quite yet, but here’s one on a barge: Sun Works, a group of local scientists, is growing tomatoes, lettuce, and peppers in a floating garden just off the West Side Highway. [WNYC]
• Think the city’s taking too much interest in what’s on your plate? You’ll be happy to know its attention is shifting south: The Department of Health is about to start a campaign promoting circumcision. [NYT]
• And in a related item, the City Hall’s inexplicably subway-themed condom giveaway has been a huge success, with five million snatched up in 30 days. The city does not provide statistics on the items’ actual use. Yet. [NYDN]
