An unusual incident occurred in Williamsburg yesterday when a man was surrounded and detained by a group of two dozen Hasidics after causing a disruption in a local store and knocking the hat off a 13-year-old boy. In an article in today's NY Post (titled "Vigilante Oyz in the 'Hood"), the paper reports that the man allegedly came into Division Mini Mart on Clymer Street, threw two watermelons to the ground and began cursing at......

Part intro to Yiddish slang, part feature on some new NYPD cadets, the Post reveals that there are ten "NYPD CHOSEN GUNS"--as in Orthodox Jewish cadets-- in this year's class. While many of the cadets say their parents were verklempt, many explain it's just been a dream (and that they'll wear their yarmulkes under the police hat). However, one cadet, Shmuel Tenenbaum said would like to work in an non-Orthodox neighborhood to avoid anyone thinking......

In his first visit to a synagogue since taking control of the state, Governor Paterson told a crowd of around 1,000 in Westhampton that he supported the Orthodox community's struggle to erect an eruv, a symbolic fence around the synagogue. He then revealed that he felt a special connection with Jewish community not only because of his longtime friendship with Rabbi Marc Schneier, but also because he shares some lineage with them. Paterson told the......

A family is mourning the death of a 7-month-old boy who died during an electrical fire on East 3rd Street yesterday morning. The Fire Department believes that the fire was caused by a "faulty timer that was rigged to an air conditioner in the baby's third-floor room." The Daily News explains that the family, the Goldmans, are Orthodox Jews who were observing Succoth. They had recently purchased a an electrical timer for the baby's AC......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a homicide on Melrose Ave. in the Bronx, a lightning strike at 82nd Ave. and 249th St. in Queens, and a hate crime on the walkway of the Williamsburg Bridge. 25-year-old former model and current vice president of the Trump Organization Ivanka Trump was appointed to the board of directors of Trump Entertainment Resorts, Inc. A recent New York Times column noted that investors in Trump's casinos would have......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a bank robbery on Broadway in Manhattan, a water search between 19th and 26th Aves. in Queens, and an injured officer on Albany and Clarkson Aves. in Brooklyn. One would think that Albany pols were immune from shame, but Gov. Spitzer wants to make a tour of it, in an attempt to embarrass Joseph Bruno. The latest group to organize against a Wal-Mart invasion in their community: Orthodox Jews.......

It looks like some advances in technology are causing some problems at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village. The $5.4 billion complex of buildings is replacing all its regular old keys with fancy electronic key-cards - in the case of Peter Cooper Village, the cards are already being used. The Post reports that Stuy Town residents could be using the new key system as early as next week. This is somewhat of an issue for......

So that's how they spend their bonuses! The Post this morning gives details on the bust last week of a brothel on Greenwich St. that catered to Wall Streeters. Mary Jane Winkler was arrested for running an art gallery that police allege "doubled as a one-stop sex shop for lunch-hour lotharios" after undercover cops were offered sex for money. The police conducted a sting operation after a complaint from another building resident. Winkler, an......

Valentine's Day is only a few days away, and we here across the Gothamist network wanted to express would like to tell you, in the spirit of the holiday, just how much we love you, our readers. Don't let it get to your heads, though. There are plenty of things we love, you included. Just be glad you're not amongst the things we hate. SFist saw their beloved mayor enter rehab, and they loved......

Oh, yes, we did it! New York City broke another peak electricity demand record, with 13,141 megawatts served yesterday, breaking Monday's record. Still, a bunch of areas in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens and upper Manhattan experienced blackouts - and there have been many manhole fires as well. It was around 112 on the heat index in some parts, yet it was still not hot enough to fry an egg on a Brooklyn manhole. This......

The Post blew its wad too early with yesterday's cover story, "NYPD JEW," ab out the city's first Hasid joining the Police Academy. Why? It turns out that Joel Witriol didn't have enough academic credits to be accepted. Naturally, the Daily News loves pointing that out, as well as the fact the NYPD has hired Orthodox Jews in the past (but were they Hasidic?). Anyway, the Post notes the credit snafu and has a quote......

When you have millions and millions to spend on your mayoral election campaign, apparently the thing to do is to have people at the direct mail company assign ethnicities to New Yorkers' last names. Because a journalist, Rafael Martinez-Alequin, received two hyper-targeted Bloomberg for Mayor mailings: One aimed at Hispanics and the other at Jews. Martinez-Alequin received the Jewish mailing (it's the mayor with a yarmulke with other Orthodox Jews - almost as Jewish......

Last night, Gothamist threw our mail on the table and ignored it while we made some Very Important Calls (to discuss the impending panda pregnancy - twins! - in San Diego, the newborn panda in DC, and tiger cubs nursing on sows). And the next thing we realized was that we had been staring at Mayor Bloomberg's face for five minutes - AUGH! It was his reelection flyer, and let's talk about a Photoshop......

Micole Taggart, Sweet Action Mag...