Free Republic

The judge in the John A. (Junior) Gotti case expressed concern yesterday that the mob scion's fate could be decided by a panel of dimwits. Asked to name the three people they admire most, several potential jurors irked federal Judge Shira Scheindlin by neglecting to fill in the blank on their questionnaire. "In the whole history of the world, nobody comes to mind?" the judge asked one potential juror. Pressed, one juror finally offered "myself."

WHEN word spread that the last Howard Johnson's restaurant in New York City, in Times Square, would probably close, there was something of an uproar. Though plans are uncertain, brokers say it is likely that a big retail chain will replace it. The idea that this icon of American dining will disappear from the city landscape made me particularly sad, since it was at Howard Johnson's that I completed my most valuable apprenticeship. I had been in America only eight months when I started working at Howard Johnson's. I moved there from Le Pavillon, a temple of French haute cuisine,...

What?" says Los Angeles Angels equipment manager Ken Higdon. "There's always enough of those." Correction: There always was enough of those. This summer, producers are squeezing together all of their resources -- and still plan to ration what they have to make it through the season. There is a chance some players and coaches actually will be forced to play the game this summer with no seeds at all in their mouths. "It's a possibility," says John Sandbakken, director of international marketing at the National Sunflower Assn. in Bismarck, N.D. "Our farmers didn't have a very good crop last year,...

New York high school legend and Trail Blazers rookie Sebastian Telfair returned to the city last night for the premiere of the documentary "Through the Fire." The film, chronicling Telfair's final season at Lincoln through last June's NBA draft, was shown at the Tribeca Film Festival. "It's a little different," Telfair said of walking the red carpet. "But I could get used to it."

A "freak wave" more than 70 feet high slammed a luxury cruise ship steaming for New York yesterday, flooding cabins, injuring passengers and forcing the liner to stop for emergency repairs. The Norwegian Dawn, an opulent ocean liner almost 1,000 feet long, limped into Charleston, S.C., yesterday afternoon after it hit vicious seas in an overnight storm off Florida - then was creamed by the rogue wave after dawn. "[My room] was destroyed by stuff getting thrown all over the place," passenger James Fraley, of Keansburg, N.J., told NBC News before embarking on the 12-hour drive home because he didn't...

By yesterday afternoon, Joe Torre was safely ensconced in Camden Yards, about 400 miles south of the crime scene. The gravest transgression at Fenway on Thursday had not been the inadvertent collision between a Boston fan's arm and Gary Sheffield's face in right field. The real misdemeanor was gross exaggeration, arguably downright fabrication, by Torre himself. The Yankee manager was guiltier than anyone in this matter of distorting the facts, creating a furor and possibly inciting worse incidents in the future. By now, we have become sadly accustomed to the notion that a baseball manager will say practically anything to...

In one chapter of How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization, Franklin Foer evokes this alleged effetism by using soccer to help explain America’s culture wars. Foer distinguishes two camps that emerged in the U.S. after 9/11. One is cosmopolitan, shares values with Europe, opposes war in Iraq, and, presumably, is amenable to soccer; the other believes in American exceptionalism, views Europeans as lax and degraded, and regards soccer as “a symbol of the U.S. junking its tradition to ‘get with the rest of the world’s program.’”

The confrontation between Dale Jarrett and Shane Hmiel during a Busch Series race has left some veteran drivers wondering: Does Hmiel's disrespect toward the former series champion during and after the race reflect a trend? Advertisement Hmiel had caused an accident that knocked Jarrett out of the short-track race at Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend. An angry Jarrett confronted him, and Hmiel replied with an obscene gesture. He later intimated that Jarrett's opportunities to exact revenge were growing shorter. The 24-year-old Hmiel apologized Friday and said he has the utmost respect for the veterans like Jarrett who have helped turn...

Burger King's new Enormous Omelet may be too hefty for its own good - and yours - said New Yorkers weighing in yesterday on the latest fast-food belly buster. "I'm a big dude. I eat a lot. But that looks like a Whopper with bacon and sausage thrown on," said Brooklynite John Butler, 31, at a Fulton St. Burger King. "It's mad big. You're gonna have a coronary on the first bite."

IN several stories of the Arabian Nights, the caliph is left with egg on his face thanks to remarks by the court jester. It was, perhaps, in this spirit that Col. Moammar Khadafy, Libya's maverick ruler, played court jester during last week's Arab Summit. At the closing session of the gathering in Algiers, Khadafy, in his favorite dramatic posture, unleashed one of his trademark lectures on a stunned assembly.

A thorough analysis of the Koran reveals that the US will cease to exist in the year 2007, according to research published by Palestinian scholar Ziad Silwadi. The study, which has caught the attention of millions of Muslims worldwide, is based on in-depth interpretations of various verses in the Koran. It predicts that the US will be hit by a tsunami larger than that which recently struck southeast Asia.

A fellow I know has an interesting way of thinking. I wouldn't call him a conspiracy theorist, but he has held an intriguing theory for years. He has said many times over that he suspects that Michael Jordan's first retirement was not a retirement at all but an agreement with N.B.A. Commissioner David Stern. Jordan would sit out a year or two, my friend theorized, rather than having Stern suspend him for gambling. With that agreement, Jordan would pay a penalty, but neither he nor the National Basketball Association would be embarrassed. No such scenario has ever been proved, and...

Steroids? So what. Congressional outrage? Who cares? Baseball superstars living a lie? No big deal. These are the messages corporate America is sending to fans, and those in the media, who believe Bud (Nutty Professor) Selig's empire is crumbling. The message is not symbolic. It's presented in a simple manner. Something everyone can understand. One word, to be exact. Money.

When will FOX stop their never-ending, obsessive coverage of these Court cases? It has gone way beyond the normal--it is totally obsessive. Is there anything viewers can do to call an end to this? Every FOX host must be obligated to spend at least 30-45 minutes per hour on Court cases. There are other news events ocurring. There are other news topics that provide interesting discusssion. Must FOX fill 60% of their news time with the same obsessive coberage of Cort cases? Help !!!!!!!!

"I believe it's just the beginning," Denise Garibaldi said. "I really think Congress heard us about this being a national health issue. I believe they're absolutely correct looking for accountability from baseball." Hooton, who called players "cowards" during his testimony, is hoping to hear from Major League Baseball or one of the players pledging support to his foundation named for his son, the Taylor Hooton Foundation for Fighting Steroids Abuse. Many of the players expressed their condolences during their statements, but none has contacted the parents since Thursday. Curt Schilling and Rafael Palmeiro both spoke to the families in the...

Why do adults who broadcast sporting events behave and speak like immature teenagers? Hardly a game can go by without ritualistic laughter following a comment that is clearly between and among the announcers. The laugh-provoking comments do not seem to be directed toward the TV viewers. What ever happened to professionalism? The viewers seem to exist only to be teased and prompted for the next commercial announcement.

Does anyone have a link to the NASCAR rules regarding pit stops and how it affects a race cars' position during a race? It seems like some guys pick up places during a pit stop and others lose spots. Why would some drivers elect to pit by themselves? Why would some drivers elect to pit during a caution? I need a research link.

House residents Nekita Joyner and her sons Perry (center) and Gary made it out safely. A handicapped Brooklyn great-grandma almost fell out of her house yesterday when the back wall collapsed, exposing two floors and the basement like a cutaway dollhouse. "I was sleeping and I heard a big boom," said Nekita Joyner, 34, who lives in the house with six other relatives on Grafton Street in East New York. "A neighbor called and said, 'I can see the boiler in the basement.' The next thing I know, I heard the house cracking."

Arnold Schwarzenegger says he's not sorry for pumping up with steroids during his heyday as a champion bodybuilder. "I have no regrets about it, because at that time, it was something new that came on the market, and we went to the doctor and did it under doctors' supervision," the action hero turned Governator told ABC's George Stephanopoulos.

Can you hear me now? Unsuspecting cellphone users may find themselves saying that more often now that cellphone jammers — illegal gizmos that interfere with signals and cut off reception — are selling like hotcakes on the streets of New York. "I bought one online, and I love it," said one jammer owner fed up with the din of dumb conversations and rock-and-roll ringtones. "I use it on the bus all the time. I always zap the idiots who discuss what they want from the Chinese restaurant so that everyone can hear them. Why is that necessary?" He added, "I...