It is always advisible (sic) to get someone down safely and wait for someone to takeoff.
Of course it is. How very convenient of you to neglect to mention the other a/c inconvenienced. As I said- how would you feel if YOU were the captain of the a/c on final that had to break off the approach? Do you really believe that "getting everyone out of the way" at JFK involves only one or two a/c? The delays that would ensue? All the other captains now looking at their fuel and wondering how long it will take to clean up and get an approach?
Some of the attitudes on display here really do perpetuate certain stereotypes. Disregard totally any inconvenience to ATC. It is irrelevant, and part of the job to deal with emergencies (part of providing service). Based on the info available (the tape, which is all that can be discussed here), how did it go from "we can't take the crosswind" to "get everyone out of the way, we are landing now"? Read the title of the thread. Maybe 'the guy with balls' is one who carries enough fuel, or diverts when he doesn't have enough (for whatever reason). Lets face it- that's the real issue here. Commercial pressure.