New York City Mayor, and self proclaimed “not a candidate” for President came out swinging against the recently passed economic stimulus legislation today, saying that the $600-$12oo rebate checks to be paid to American taxpayers as part of the stimulus is “like giving a drink to an alcoholic”

“Nobody wants to sit there and say, ‘Well there’s no easy solution,”‘ Bloomberg said. “They want to send out a check to everybody to stimulate the economy. I suppose it won’t hurt the economy but it’s in many senses like giving a drink to an alcoholic.”

He also noted that the US “has a balance sheet that’s starting to look more and more like a third-world country” but added that his comments were just part of an “experiment” in trying to shape the debate for this year’s election. Experiment eh?

No details are available yet, but here’s an article from the New York Times:

The actor Heath Ledger was found dead this afternoon in an apartment building at 421 Broome Street in SoHo, according to the New York City police. Mr. Ledger was 28.

At 3:31 p.m., a masseuse arrived at Apartment 5A in the building for an appointment with Mr. Ledger, the police said. The masseuse was let in to the home by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Mr. Ledger’s bedroom. When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found Mr. Ledger unconscious. They shook him, but he did not respond. They immediately called the authorities. The police said they did not suspect foul play and said they found pills near body.

Mr. Ledger, a native of Perth, Australia, won acclaim for his role as a co-star in “Brokeback Mountain”, a 2005 film. The film, based on a short story by Annie Proulx about two cowboys who fall in love, won critical acclaim. Reviewing the film in The New York Times, the critic Stephen Holden wrote, “Mr. Ledger magically and mysteriously disappears beneath the skin of his lean, sinewy character. It is a great screen performance, as good as the best of Marlon Brando and Sean Penn.”

Calls by The New York Times to Mara Buxbaum, a publicist for Mr. Ledger, and Steve Alexander, the actor’s agent, were not immediately returned this afternoon.

UPDATE: As could be ascertained by the “found pills” statement in the original NY Times story, most signs are pointing to suicide. with Ledger’s friend telling US Magazine that “we saw it coming”:

“Heath has gone though a rough road of trying to get sober,” the source tells Us.

“Things were very dark,” the source says. “His one joy was Matilda.” Matilda is his 2-year-old daughter with ex-wife Michelle Williams. They split in September.

“Everything else was misery for him,” adds the source. “Unfortunately he was too late in getting help.”

We at Synthesis like to spoil EVERYTHING for you, so in honor of all the Snakes on a Plane style hype surrounding Cloverfield, (and because there simply aren’t enough youtube videos on this page…) we’re posting a video we made revealing the identity of the mysterious monster that kicks the shit out of New York. YOUR WELCOME.

Happy Birthday to playwright/screenwriter David Mamet, who turned 60 today. Mamet is probably best known for his 1984 play, Glengary Glen Ross, a scathing tale about salesmen that was turned into a movie starring Jack Lemon and Alec Baldwin in 1992 (Mamet also adapted the screenplay). Mamet is still productive, however, and his latest play, November, is set to open at the Ethel Barrymore Theater in New York City on Jan. 17th, 2008. The play stars Nathan Lane as President Charles H.P. Smith and Laurie Metcalf as his speech writer Clarice Bernstein. The play is a contemporary comedy that follows Smith, an incumbent president, closing in on Election Day. Mamet, certainly no stranger to political satire (he co-wrote the screenplay for Wag the Dog), says that the November is inspired by the tradition of the US president pardoning a turkey on Thanksgiving. For more about November, check out articles here and here. For more about David Mamet, go to a library or book store and read something.

Today’s also author Samuel Langhorne Clemens’s birthday, better known as his pen name Mark Twain. You should probably read him too.

If you’re in NYC this weekend, don’t miss your chance to see GZA perform his classic album Liquid Swords live for the first time in the big city. And it’s you can do so while supporting a worthy cause. The Open Space Alliance is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to promote public awareness and conservation of Open Space lands, and to educate the public about the natural, historic, cultural, educational and recreational aspects of Open Space areas, including McCarren Park Pool. The concert is presented by JELLYNYC and tickets are available here.

PJ Harvey is kinda rail thin and weird looking, but when I hear her voice or see her murdering souls on stage, my palms get all sweaty. Maybe I’m a freak. In any case, I’m stoked to hear that her new album, White Chalk, will be due out on Sept. 25th. Those of you in NYC and LA should be stoked that Polly Jean will be taking the stage for two special one-off dates in October. The first at the Beacon Theatre in NYC on October 10th and the second on October 15th at the Orpheum in LA. Full press release after the jump.

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