The former ESPN writer who was fired for using the headline "chink in the armor" in reference to Knicks star Jeremy Lin has spoken out once again to give his side of the incident. Anthony Federico, who previously apologized for using the phrase to the Daily News earlier this week, apologized to Lin again over TwitLonger: "I wrote the headline in reference to the tone of the column and not to Jeremy Lin’s race. It was a lapse in judgment and not a racist pun. It was an awful editorial omission and it cost me my job." Read his whole statement below. [ more › ]

Everyone's favorite East Village art gallery/bar/venue/after hours club is turning 10 today: Happy Birthday Lit Lounge! The 2nd Avenue establishment has been the go-to spot for many over the years, especially those looking for dark corners in which to do dark deeds. You just haven't really fully experienced New York City if you haven't been in that basement at 3:30 a.m. Sadly, our memories there have escaped us, so we talked to Lit owner Max Brennan about his. [ more › ]

Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu is no stranger to being on the front lines of both Arizona's border with Mexico and GOP politicking. Babeu is running for Congress, had previously appeared with John McCain in a 2008 campaign ad, and used to be the co-chair of Mitt Romney's Arizona campaign. But the hard-line, anti-immigrant Sheriff was recently outed by his boyfriend, an immigrant, for threatening him with deportation if he didn't keep quiet about his homosexuality. Mexican Mitt Romney wants Babeu to know that he's fully in support of "Operation Gaykeeper," in which Babeu “keeps out the harmful straight illegals and keeps in the desirable and precious gayliens.” [ more › ]

Last November multiple people were shot, one fatally, inside Chelsea's now-closed Juliet Supper Club. Initially the fact that the club had a number of celebrities in it at the time (five Giants, Ryan Phillippe and more), seemed like a side note to the story—but now it appears to actually be relevant. [ more › ]

Last week, rumors ran wild that noted bikini beach frolicker Kim Kardashian was trying to arrange a date with Knicks star Jeremy Lin. While the world feared for Lin's precious untainted soul, her publicity team soon squashed those reports (which they probably planted in the first place). But it's still refreshing to know that Lin wouldn't have been into it anyway: "Stuff about me dating Kim Kardashian, I mean, I have no idea where that came from and all these rumors...I don’t think I’m that type,” he told Good Morning America about their non-union. [ more › ]

It's just about Girl Scout Cookie season, and while we already know there's a new cookie this year, and we already tested out their locator app to make sure we could find the treats once they were on the market again... it doesn't hurt to cover all your bases. You don't want to miss out on your annual Thin Mint fix, after all. So with that, we give you a handy list of Girl Scout Cookie Pop-Up Shops that will be opening all over the city on March 3rd. [ more › ]

Two Western journalists were among the more than 80 people killed during a bombardment in the city of Homs earlier today, one of which was the acclaimed combat journalist and Long Island native Marie Colvin. In one of her last dispatches to CNN anchor Anderson Cooper last night, Colvin describes the death of a baby who had died at the hands of the government forces, led by the dictator Bashir al-Assad, and the ruthlessness with which he kills his own people. "It's a complete and utter lie they’re only going after terrorists. The Syrian Army is simply shelling a city of cold, starving civilians.” [ more › ]

Thousands of area Kraftwerk fans are wondering what's the German word for ticket fail today, after tickets for the eight night stand at MoMA sold out faster than you can say shoot the glass. Just as Hitler predicted! The quick sellout says something about the high demand for a "group" that hasn't "performed" in NYC since 2005 at Hammerstein Ballroom. (HELL of a show.) MoMA used the website ShowClix to handle tickets for the sale, and many of us experienced time-outs and a debalitiating inability to even load Showclix.com for a while. After well over an hour in a queue, all Kraftwerk fans at Gothamist HQ were denied. But we weren't alone; let us collectively mourn this completely unsurprising turn of events with the soothing balm of a Twitter pity party: [ more › ]

Guess White Plains wasn't quite balLin' enough: according to the Post, Jeremy Lin will soon be renting an all-inclusive, all-furnished apartment at the W Hotel in the Financial District. And he didn't even have to win an "Urban Oasis giveaway" contest to get it! Take a video tour of the luxurious apartment building below. [ more › ]

It's National Margarita Day! And since we love any excuse to drink on a weekday, we're here to help you celebrate. Over the years our staff has tasted the best and worst this city has to offer of the tequila-based drink, and here our some of our favorites. [ more › ]

Beneath New York City lies a vast network of abandoned tunnels, caverns, nooks and crannies that the average joe will never see. But urban explorer Steve Duncan is not your average joe! As you'll see in their Undercity series, he and filmmaker Andrew Wonder really like getting dirty below grade. And sometimes, above grade. This week they go WAY UP, climbing atop the Williamsburg Bridge. [ more › ]

A Bronx teacher has been arrested and accused of repeatedly punching and sitting on top of a 12-year-old student. Evelyn Tirado, 53, has been accused of assaulting Brigitte Aznaran last Thursday at Dr. Richard Izquierdo Health and Science Charter School in Morrisania. “She grabbed me by my arms, threw me to the floor and starting hitting my arm,” the sixth grader told the Daily News. “Then she sat on top of me like I was a chair. I was crying. I don’t ever want to see her again.” [ more › ]

In his review today one of the (few) things Times critic Pete Wells actually liked about dining at Shake Shack was its exceedingly polite service—which isn't really a surprise as the chain is owned by Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group which is known for, you guessed it, its hospitality. But with restaurant margins tight and the economy still shaky, now even regular old fast-casual spots are trying to learn to better service their customers. [ more › ]

A Staten Island woman says the NYPD wrongly forced her to go to the hospital while she was waiting for the ferry after a night of drinking in Manhattan. On December 8th last year, just before midnight, Chloe Sowers was sitting on the floor of the Lower Manhattan terminal drinking a coconut water and waiting for the boat to take her home. She was sitting on the floor because no seats were available, but this caught the eye of one Officer Kevin McKeon, who was so "concerned" about Sowers that she ended up handcuffed and taken to New York Downtown Hospital, where she was bound and drugged for the night against her will. [ more › ]