By contrast, the recent shooting of 16-year-old Kimani Gray in East Flatbush led to days of scattered street violence, an Occupy influx, extended posturing on MSNBC and widespread press coverage.

The difference this time? An election, and post-Bloomberg anxiety.

For more than two decades, Gotham’s mayoral politics have been framed by racial conflicts as expressed over policing methods.

In 1989, with an election approaching, the racially motivated killing of Yusef Hawkins in Bensonhurst triggered a surge in support for challenger David Dinkins. The candidate, who had been trailing, went on to defeat three-term incumbent Ed Koch in the mayoral primary.

Mr. Hawkins’s murder has cast a long shadow over New York politics ever since.

When Rudy Giuliani, running as the law and order candidate and enjoying strong police backing, defeated David Dinkins in 1993, the outgoing mayor’s supporters threatened the city with ongoing disorder. This seemed no idle threat at the time, given the deadly Crown Heights riots of 1991.

In a city suffering from 2,000 murders a year, Mr. Giuliani refused to cave in to Al Sharpton’s “riot ideology,” the threat that if Al and his pal Charlie Rangel weren’t propitiated, the city might see a repeat of the violence that erupted during 1995’s 125th Street massacre, when protests over the eviction of a beloved black record shop boiled over into a murderous rampage. Though not charged with a crime, Mr. Sharpton was implicated for whipping up the hate.

Mr. Giuliani cut off Messrs. Sharpton and Rangel, but then he had to pay the price politically when the reverend and the congressman exploited tragedies such as the 1999 Amadou Diallo case, in which the aggressive and usually effective NYPD Street Crimes Unit mowed down an unarmed African immigrant in a hail of gunfire.

But for all the tumult, when Ruth Messinger ran against Mr. Giuliani in 1997 and tried to make race and policing an issue, the tactic fell flat in a city enjoying an unprecedented reduction in crime. Mr. Giuliani and his first police commissioner Bill Bratton had, with great success, replaced the passive policing of the Koch and Dinkins years with the activist and innovative “broken windows” approach.

Mr. Bloomberg split the difference. His police commissioner, Ray Kelly, continued broken windows policing and intensified the use of stop and frisk to further drive down the crime rate. He also defused the threat of riots by making nice with Al Sharpton. Mr. Bloomberg used cutouts such as the Carnegie Corporation to pay off Mr. Sharpton and other ministers, thus buying the relative peace of this past decade. But none of the mayoral candidates other than Republican long-shot John Catsimatidis have even a fraction of Mr. Bloomberg’s money. The upshot is that the city is entering a period of uncertainty when it comes to racial politics.

With the exception of the most radical of the mayoral candidates, Comptroller John Liu, whose one-time policy director honeymooned in North Korea, candidates have tried to take moderate positions on the Kimani Gray incident.

The Kimani Gray case, however, may turn out to be a damp squib. The facts suggest that, unlike Mr. Hawkins, Gray makes an unmarketable martyr. The story that has emerged, largely uncontested, suggests that Gray, a young wannabe gangster with ambitions to become a Blood, was approached by two police officers—neither of whom was white—who thought he was holding a gun. Police say he was, and he pulled it despite police orders to “freeze” and then was shot seven times, both in his front and his back, suggesting he was facing the police when they began shooting and was turned around by the force of the shots.

Jumaane Williams, the councilman representing the heavily Caribbean area of single-family homes and apartment buildings where the shooting took place, was already prominent as a critic of the city’s “stop, question and frisk” policing policies, and he has emerged as the chief community spokesman in the case. Mr. Williams has both revved up the rhetoric and tamped down the sometimes violent protests that followed the killing.

Sounding at times like the Al Sharpton of the Giuliani years, Mr. Williams has warned that because Police Commissioner Kelly—with whom he has frequently clashed—ignores the “root causes of the problems in East Flatbush, I fear this will be a long and bloody summer ahead.”

All of the major candidates have called for modification to stop and frisk, but like Mr. Williams, they’re short on specifics. Their problem is that stop and frisk is unpopular with half the city’s population, but is also enormously effective. In the wake last December of the horrific Newtown killings in nearby Connecticut, there was an enormous hue and cry for better gun control, and the call often came from the very pols most opposed to stop and frisk.

Yet stop and frisk—far and away the most effective means of getting guns off the streets—has served to reduce not only crime but the state prison population well. The problem is that it’s also an affront to the dignity of ordinary people going about their business in high-crime areas.

The difficult task of reconciling the legitimate demand for respect and the need for the police to protect the population at large will, at least for a time, be in the hands of the left-wing activist United States District Court Judge Shira Scheindlin. She will no doubt rule on behalf of her allies in the ACLU, who have been fighting the most successful criminal justice reforms in the history of the country for the past 22 years.

But her verdict will certainly be appealed, and that leads back to the role of Mr. Williams. He’s been a bitter critic of Mr. Kelly, but he’s neither acknowledged the disproportionate benefit to minority communities from the city’s approach to policing nor laid out a means by which public safety can be better reconciled with the right of ordinary citizens not to be harassed by the police.

In a recent speech, former Commissioner Bill Bratton compared the use of stop and frisk to chemotherapy. He noted that too high a dose can kill a patient, but the proper amount can save lives. The courts, wrapped up as they necessarily are in abstraction, are unlikely to be able to strike that balance. It will be the task of Mr. Bloomberg’s successors to work out the new framework.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the leading mayoral candidate at the moment, says she would like to retain Ray Kelly as police commissioner but also impose a monitor to oversee stop and frisk. Rival Bill de Blasio wants to replace Mr. Kelly, possibly with Bill Bratton.

The Kimani Gray case may fade, but the intertwined issues of crime and race will remain high on the electoral agenda. If the politicians fail to thread the needle, the danger ahead is that New York could regress to a Chicago-like situation, where the well-to-do areas are reasonably well-policed while the minority areas are left to fend for themselves regarding crime. The liberal champions of equality will have once again produced greater inequality.

editorial@observer.com

In one respect, that’s not such a bad thing. As the city approaches the 20th anniversary of Rudy Giuliani’s historic election as mayor in 1993, it’s important to remember how much the city’s political dialogue has changed in the last two decades. Many people in the early 1990s seemed to believe that high crime was simply inevitable in New York, and that there was little the NYPD could do about that.

Mr. Giuliani, of course, showed that a well-trained, smartly led police force really could make a difference in every neighborhood, on every street corner, in all five boroughs. As crime continued its amazing decline during the Bloomberg years, politicians have been quick to emphasize their commitment to public safety and quality-of-life issues.

That’s great, but when the city is facing a huge deficit, even the police have to be asked to do more with less. Even the police have to be more efficient and better managed. Mr. Bloomberg has said as much to the NYPD—and he clearly believes that Commissioner Kelly will find a way to make it happen.

As might be expected in the early stages of a mayoral campaign, some politicians have been quick to criticize the pending cuts to the NYPD’s budget. Christine Quinn, the Council speaker, and Scott Stringer, the Manhattan borough president, are expected to face each other in next year’s Democratic mayoral primary, but that didn’t stop them from appearing together at a recent news conference to warn against the mayor’s spending reductions.

Ms. Quinn and Mr. Stringer cited several recent sexual assaults in city parks as evidence of the perils of budget-cutting. “Given the recent string of sexual assaults in our city’s parks,” Ms. Quinn said, “it is paramount that the budgets for the NYPD and the Parks Department remain untouched. Now is not the time to consider cutting the vital services we need to keep New Yorkers safe.”

Public safety certainly is important—indeed, it has been the key to the city’s resurgence since the early 1990s. But if now is not the time to cut, then when? When the deficit balloons to $3 billion, or $4 billion?

Weak political leaders are content to borrow money and pretend that all is well. Strong leaders put in place equally strong managers who can figure out how to become more efficient when times are tough.

The city has to figure out a way to close a $2.5 billion budget gap. So now is, in fact, the time to consider cutting services, even to the police.

The folks in Washington have managed to avoid these kinds of tough decisions. And how are they doing?

editorial@observer.com

“When I heard about Bloomberg’s plan, on the national news, to make large sodas illegal, my mind immediately went to ‘Are people going to jail for this?’” the artist, Owen Smith, told the magazine's Cover Stories blog.

The New Yorker has never been one to shy away from Hizzoner's more colorful aspects. Last year, the Mayor's ban on smoking in parks prompted this Bruce McCall cover, which shows New Yorkers in the stocks for indulging in salt or a smoke. And who could forget last year's Valentines Day cover? That one, drawn by Barry Blitt, had the Mayor mooning at himself in the mirror over chocolates and Champagne. (His birthday is February 14.)

Not that he needs take it personally. Mayor Bloomberg's predecessor Rudy Giuliani also made the cover three times, according to the New York Times.

Evelyn Lauder.

The sad passing of Evelyn Lauder this week has us wearing our pink ribbons proudly (and also buying up half of Estée Lauder’s cosmetic counter at Bloomingdale’s). The cancer survivor, advocate and entrepreneur was one hell of a lady. You’d have to be to have Estée Lauder as a mother-in-law (we imagine her as the perfume magnate version of Anna Wintour’s surrogate in The Devil Wears Prada). But even a real Mommy Dearest couldn’t hold a candle this week to Patti Labelle. Page Six painted the Lady Marmalade crooner as a terror-inducing psychopath, who scared her 18-month-old so badly that young Genevieve Monk suffered “personality changes.” While we don’t doubt the righteous ire of Ms. Labelle, we also wonder how anyone can tell when a toddler has a mood shift. Does that involve more crying and rending of garments, or less?

Speaking of scary mommies, Piper Laurie—well-known for, among other things, playing the religious lunatic who pushed Sissy Spacek’s wide-eyed Carrie into murdering her entire high school with her mind—has a new memoir out. It’s called Learning to Live Out Loud, which in Ms. Laurie’s case means dishing about losing her virginity to Ronald Reagan at 18. Even creepier, it was on the set of Louisa, where the  future president played the role of her daddy. (We’re just going to go thumb through our tattered copy of Freud ... )

Of course, kids today don’t have to pull a Carrie at the prom to sufficiently alienate their parents and the rest of society; they can simply snag a spot on one of our million reality TV shows. (That said, it’d probably make for better viewing if a Snooki or Kendra Wilkinson-type developed telekinesis—think of the ratings!) And for the aspiring dead-eyed starlets and socialites among you, American Media Inc. is developing a brand new magazine catering to your fantasies of sub-prime time stardom. Reality Weekly will feature a dating column from Victoria Gotti—which we assume will tackle everyday relationship dilemmas (i.e., What to Do When Your Father Puts a Hit Out on Your Boyfriend)—as well as tips and cheat sheets for devotees of America’s guiltiest pleasure.

Which is only a bit guiltier than our other great American guilty pleasure: developing wishy washy conspiracy theories and floating them to see who’ll bite. Which is what The New York Times’s Nicholas Kristof did Tuesday when he theorized that Mayor Michael Bloomberg was secretly pro Occupy Wall Street. After all, Mr. Kristof argued, why else would he raid Zuccotti Park in the middle of the night unless he wanted more public sympathy and attention drawn to the OWS movement? We’re pretty sure he had a cheek full of tongue at the time, but one thing’s for certain: if Rudy Giuliani were still mayor, he would have been at the park on day one with the batons out, ready to bend some protesters over his knee for a personal spanking. Next to his predecessor, Mayor Bloomberg’s reticent behavior toward the seemingly unending Occupation is more June Cleaver than Father Knows Best.

But if your eyes glaze over and you start feeling feverish every time you read about protests (which may be a sign you’re getting Zuccotti Lung, the super-flu going around the tent city, so please see your doctor), the antidote could be found Friday night at Avenue in the meatpacking district, when Leonardo DiCaprio’s 37th birthday bash raised $1.3 million for his disaster relief and wildlife preservation charities. (As Estée Lauder once said, “If I believe in something I sell it, and sell it hard.”) Robert De Niro, Naomi Campbell, Bradley Cooper and Edward Norton celebrated with the J. Edgar actor, and an auctioned 15-liter bottle of Veuve Clicquot painted by artist Peter Tunney went for $50,000. We can’t help but think it would have been a little more exciting with a few Patti Labelle-inflicted “personality changes” or Carrie-at-the-prom moments—but then we’ve probably been watching too much reality TV.

Tony Carbonetti

For decades, Dorrian's has stood sentry on the Upper East Side, the quintessential prepster hangout and high schoolers' mecca. Carol Dorrian Carbonetti, daughter of the bar's proprietor Jack Dorrian, has lived not so very far away with her politico husband, Tony Carbonetti. But unlike the bar that has watched over many a debauched youth, the Carbonettis are on the move. The couple has sold their uptown digs at 52 East 72nd Street.

While Ms. Carbonetti's family has made their fortune promoting vice, Mr. Carbonetti spent years cracking down on it as Mayor Rudy Giuliani's longtime chief of staff. Mr. Carbonetti later followed his fearless leader, taking a top post at Giuliani Partners and helping engineer his failed bid for the White House in 2008.

Although they didn’t quite get the asking price, the Carbonettis did well for themselves. City records show they bought the property as two separate units, paying $1.9 million for 3A in 2006, and $695,000 for 3B in 2007. They came out on top, selling both apartments for $3.85 million, slightly less than the $3.99 million ask but still a handy $1.25 million profit. The Carbonettis must be glad the place sold, as it sat on the market for over a year before entering contract.

Claremont House.

The 18-story condo building, known as Claremont House, was built in 1986 in fine faux prewar style. Contrary to what one might expect, a listing from Douglas Elliman broker Dolly Lenz notes that the Carbonettis never combined the spread. “Currently configured as two separate apartments, they can be combined to create a full floor home with approximately 2,300 sqft,” her listing states. Currently the spread therefore includes both a kitchen and a kitchenette, in addition to two living rooms.

The combined space is marketed as a four-bedroom, 4.5-bath apartment, which comes complete with a 302-square-foot living room (the main one), a library (ideal for late night Republican strategizing)  and a small balcony off the master bedroom, from which to watch the kids stumble home.

eknutsen@observer.com

They've come... for your condo!

Colson Whitehead’s new book, Zone One comes out tomorrow. The world has been overtaken by that cultural virus of the moment, zombies , and the zone in question is Lower Manhattan. It is the job of the protagonist to clear the area of the dead and undead, and many metaphors are obviously implicit: 9/11, the financial crisis, Occupy Wall Street.

But it turns out that Mr. Whitehead’s biggest concern appears to be gentrification, as the native New Yorker revealed in an interview on NPR’s Morning Edition today.

New York is always destroyed. Giuliani, Bloomberg—they got rid of the old New York. I think each time you destroy a tenement and put up a luxury tower, you're ruining New York and making some sort of a new version of the city.

I'm walking around with my idea of what New York was 30 years ago, 20 years ago. So is everybody else. And we superimpose that ruined city over what's here now. So it's cleaned up, but we're still seeing that old shoe store, dry cleaners, that old apartment where we used to live. So, any street you walk down in New York is a heap of rubble because that's sort of how we see it if we've been here a while.

So artistically, it was about time for me to take a stab at my hometown.

Who knew the answer to our affordable housing dilemma was a simple zombie plague?

mchaban [at] observer.com | @MC_NYC

Rudy Giuliani Leads AMC's "Mob Week"

Former mayor and also-ran presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani made a name for himself as a District Attorney tough on the Mob. When it comes to fiction, however, he's apparently a fan of organized crime.

Mr. Giuliani will host “Mob Week” on classic movie channel AMC. “Mob Week” will feature such classics as The Godfather (Part I and II), Goodfellas, Scarface and Pulp Fiction and runs from August 1- August 7 (or as we hope Mr. Giuliani says, “Monday Tuesday Thursday Wednesday Friday Sunday Saturday “).

As a Manhattan D.A., Mr. Giuliani relied on an informant known as “Donnie Brasco” to put organized criminals behind bars. Donnie Brasco, the 1997 movie based on the case and starring Johnny Depp, will be shown as part of “Mob Week.” Full circle!

Somebody has to fill the Mad Men void. And who better than the tough-on-crime, light-on-marriage, irascible former mayor?

This seems to show that despite Mr. Giuliani’s recent trip to New Hampshire, he is not serious about a 2012 presidential run. But as the enduring popularity of The Godfather demonstrates, everybody loves a good Pacino impression. And we sure hope Mr. Giuliani delivers.

Ms. Giuliani is not the first former mayor to transition from governing to movie commentary. Former three-term mayor Ed Koch has an ever-amusing movie review column that is reliably emailed to our inbox on a weekly basis. Mr. Giuliani, as ever, has large shoes to fill.

As for that fire-in-the-belly whose absence has caused many 2012 Republican contenders to drop out, Mr. Giuliani said he's interested in running--"I've always had the desire! Who wouldn't have the desire!"--and claimed to see his own mayoral governance strategies brought back to life in the policies of Governors like New Jersey's Chris Christie, Wisconsin's Scott Walker, and Ohio's John Kasich. Does he consider himself a Tea Partier? "Sure! The lead principle of the Tea Party is frustration with big government," said the man whose zealous police force famously cleaned up Times Square.

Whether Mr. Giuliani will run for President or not is a guessing game the former mayor clearly enjoys indulging-before introducing former Massachusetts Governor Paul Cellucci at the ALS benefit, Mr. Giuliani told the crowd he planned "to go to New Hampshire--just to hang out." But he's already talking tough. On Rep. Anthony Weiner's purported Twitter hack, leading to the release of intimate photographs on Mr. Weiner's Twitter, Mr. Giuliani has no sympathy: "I don't know why you wouldn't want the FBI to investigate this! If you were a private person, you might say it wasn't significant. I am a lawyer, I was a prosecutor, and if a client came to me, I'd say 'call the FBI!' Who knows how many more times they could hack him-and it's not just personal information! It could be sensitive information!"

Barack Obama laid a reef wreath at Ground Zero a moment ago. In visits to a fire house and police station, the president was accompanied by former mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Obama took a moment to chat with Mayor Bloomberg, NY Governor Cuomo and NJ Governor Christie, at Ground Zero.

Fox 5's Greg Kelly [fixed], live at Ground Zero, said it was "remarkable to see the president here." His colleague, Dick Brennan, at one point said there has been "very little criticism of the president" for coming to the site today.

There's great live-streaming happening over here, and comprehensive live-blogging here and here.

Burying Osama: "Obama administration officials decided to bury bin Laden at sea because they felt finding a country willing to accept his remains on short notice would prove difficult. The location of the burial has not been released." [NY1]

2012: A weak economy can undo Obama's political gains. [Steve Kornacki]

NY26: No endorsement yet from Cuomo. [Mike Whittemore]

Rudy Giuliani: Extends praise to Obama and Bush. [Maggie Haberman]

Chuck Schumer: Puts it all in context. [Morning Joe]

Protecting NY: "The threat of Al Qaeda did not die yesterday," said Cuomo. [Casey Seiler]

Michael Bloomberg: Bin Laden is dead,NYC is not. [Mirela Iverac]

Bloomberg's Immigration Plan: Some New Yorkers are angry. [Erik Ortiz]

Bloomberg's Assessment: "No Immediate Threats" against the city. [Ben Fractenberg and Jim Scott]

Bloomberg's Last Days: Less than 1,000 to go; Deputy Mayor Steel speaks. [Brian Lehrer]

T-Shirt Message: "I'm Muslim Don't Panic!"  worn by a college student. [NYU News]

Tabloid War: " 'ROT IN HELL!' is obviously more in the spirit of the day. But is it the work of the newspaper to rally like that? The Post thinks not, and I tend to agree." [Tom McGeveran]

Tax Cap: Cuomo is shocked! at the opposition in the legislature. [Celeste Katz]