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The Buzz Catching up with Koch: Ed Koch was in the hospital on Monday but it wasn’t anything serious, just a routine hernia operation. He went into Columbia-Presbyterian early that morning, had the surgery and was asked to stay overnight as a precaution in case of bleeding, because he’s been on a blood thinner since a mild stroke in 1987. He was expected to be back at his office the following day. Speaking by the phone from his hospital bed, Hizzoner sounded chipper. “It’s a minor operation,” he dismissed. “So how was my article received?” he eagerly asked of his talking point in Chelsea Now last week. The reaction so far hasn’t been much either pro or con…well, zero, actually. We were a bit surprised, ourselves, since Koch’s columns typically spark furious rebukes from liberal readers. “F—k ’em. You’ve got all those left-wingers, they hate Israel, and they’re not going to respond unless it’s a column saying Israel has no right to exist,” Koch said. Moving right along, asked about the political landscape, Koch predicted the 2008 Democratic presidential ticket will be Hillary Clinton for president and Barack Obama for vice president versus Republicans John McCain and running mate Rudy Giuliani. “Whichever one wins, we’ll be well off,” Koch assured, though adding he’s backing Hillary all the way. Yet he’s still a big President Bush booster. Koch claimed history will judge W. to be among the “second tier” of presidents, among the likes of Harry Truman, who, like Bush, was on the ropes at the end of his term in his office. The “first tier” (which mercifully, according to Koch, is apparently safe from W.) includes Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and F.D.R., he said. Yes, but Bush’s popularity is at an all-time low of 30 percent and sinking fast. “Who cares?” Koch said. “Superb leaders don’t care about popularity — they care about leading the public and keeping them safe and allowing historians to make the ultimate decision.” Bad girls: At Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s recent Greenwich Village town hall meeting, a hot issue was the entrenched prostitution problem in the West Village. Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who attended the town hall, said she’s well aware of the situation, calling it “dire.” In fact, she said, her own father was recently propositioned by a transgender hooker while he was driving through the West Village one night. Who’s afraid of Tribeca gyms? We thought we noticed famed playwright Edward Albee chilling on a stool outside the sauna at the McBurney Y on Sunday afternoon, and we were right. Asked if he’s been working on a new play, he said, as a matter of fact, he’ll be wrapping up his latest one this week. He’s not looking for any publicity yet, though. (But The Buzz just couldn’t resist.) Albee lives in Tribeca but said he likes to come up to the Y on W. 14th St. because the gyms down there just aren’t as good. Frayed fabric: Fashion Institute of Technology still hasn’t settled a contract with its teachers and support staff union. Last Thursday, charging the administration has refused to bargain in good faith, F.I.T.’s United College Employees union held a candlelight vigil to demonstrate their discontent. Diesel power: Word on the street among the clothing boutiques is that Diesel is moving its headquarters onto 19th St. between Seventh and Eighth Aves. Let ’em walk: In the wake of Eric Ng’s being killed on Dec. 1 by a drunk driver on the Hudson River Park bike path, one reader e-mailed us the following suggestion on how to prevent such tragedies in the future: “Here’s a simple way to limit it: No parking at commercial uses on the waterfront. The drunks can walk it off a bit.” Not a bad idea.
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