“My dad was a hero, and heroes never die.” That from Stephan Nemorin, son of slain NYPD Detective James J. Nemorin, during a special Mass at Our Lady of Refuge Church in Brooklyn, Sunday. The mass commemorated ten years to the day, when he and partner Detective Rodney Andrews were both murdered while conducting undercover gun buys in Staten Island. Dozens of uniformed officers lined Ocean Avenue in Brooklyn, as a bagpipe-led procession filed into the church for mass for the two officers. 
Christian Andrews recalled his dad teaching him to play chess. “He was teaching me about life. And it took me 10 years to figure that out.”  
“Thirty-six year old James J. Nemorin and thirty-four year old Rodney Andrews were fatally shot in the back of their heads, killed execution style during an undercover operation in Tompkinsville, Staten Island. The two undercover detectives were the first NYPD officers to die in the line of duty since the World Trade Center attack and the first gunned down since 1998. They were posing as gun buyers to try to arrest those who sell the guns in a dangerous effort to make us safer. For that they paid the ultimate price. They were shot dead by the two people who were supposed to sell them the guns. We do not know if their cover was blown or what happened on that fateful winter night. Most of those details probably died with the detectives when they were shot at point blank behind the head and thrown into a deserted street in Staten Island.”  h/t NYPDAngel 
Ronell Wilson was arrested in 2003 for the murders of the two police officers and was sentenced to die by lethal injection — but due to errors by the prosecution, a federal appeals court reversed the sentence. He’s waiting to be resentenced. ♦

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn launched her mayoral campaign yesterday in her family’s old neighborhood of Inwood in Manhattan, putting strong emphasis on her record of “action” and a pledge to make the city livable for the struggling middle class in NYC. Avoiding perhaps for the time being, the council speaker made no mention — this first time out glad-handing –of the history-making prospects of her candidacy, such as the potential to be the city’s first openly gay and woman mayor. She’s keeping those pair of aces up her sleeve I suspect. 
“I know I’m the best person, working with all of New York’s 8.4 million people to make this happen. Because if you look at my record, it’s not one of criticism and finger-pointing. It’s one of action, results and delivery,” Quinn said.
Quinn did have one heckler, Herbert Goldman, who accused her of  ‘playing ‘politics’, voting “yes” to abolishing term limits allowing present NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg to run for a third term in 2008. Term limits were conveniently reinstated in 2010.
Many NYers were not kool with that call Christine.
Looking to move out from under the huge shadow of Bloomberg, once the campaigning is in full swing, Quinlan says she wants the mayoral election to deal with solutions for everyday struggles in the city, not about Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s performance. After all, he ain’t running. ♦

Okay picture this if you can: a reality show based on has-been celebrities and jocks, donning expensive swimwear and participating in a high dive competition to show off their diving form or lack there of. Dumb idea? Well, lucky you’re not an ad exec…‘Splash’ is set to air on ABC, March 19th, featuring an “all-star” cast. So don’t quit your day job just yet.
The cast for the first show?: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar–Former NBA champion, Louie Anderson–Minnesota native and comedian, Drake Bell–Actor/singer, Chuy Bravo–Chelsea Handler’s assistant, Rory Bushfield–Olympic skier, Nicole Eggert–Actress, Keshia Knight Pulliam–Actress, Ndamukong Suh–NFL player, Katherine Webb–Miss Alabama USA 2012, and Kendra Wilkinson–Reality TV star and former Playboy model) set to air in March with Olympic Gold Medalist diver Greg Louganis serving as mentor and trainer to the competitors. So, that’s one professional swimmer in the whole bunch — and he’s the instructor! Hopefully the worst that will happen is somebody’s bathing suit will ‘malfunction’ after a painful belly flop. ♦

Looks as if President Obama is going to use the opportunity created by the Sequester‘s mandate to cut $46 billion, to begin arguing for deep reductions in programs for budget drainers that have long been on his ‘to-do’ list. His call for such things as closing obsolete military bases, a reduction in deployed nuclear weapons and stockpiles,and  scaling back on next-generation warplanes like the F-35, the most expensive weapons program in US history, are likely to much agita at the Pentagon. However, administration officials believe these cuts would unburden the budget considerably and even allow room for more advanced tech warfare programs such as the manufacture of the controversial  drone fighters, development of offensive and defensive cyberweapons and a focus on Special Operations forces. Out with the old, in with the new, eh?. ♦

Later pilgrims…