Posted Fri, Oct 7, 12:48 p.m.

Dr. Locke -- Thank you for your article. It might be most instructive to separate products and services into two categories: Those things that are improved by the profit motive and those that are degraded by it. A good example is police and fire services. We wouldn't think of privatizing ...

Posted Thu, Aug 11, 10:08 a.m.

Great piece Judy. It's good information. I have always said that if you feel bad for not contributing on the street, that is not the problem of the person asking. Protecting free speech is more important than your own guilt. However, I have been blocked by these canvassers far more ...

Posted Mon, May 9, 1:50 p.m.

I just found out that the Rimrock will be closing. Darn it!

Posted Mon, May 9, 11:24 a.m.

How about the bar at the Wedgwood Broiler or the Rimrock Steakhouse on Lake City Way. Both places have great steaks and dark lighting.

Posted Wed, May 4, 8:42 a.m.

Roger -- the same advice was given when the state had to do major work on I-5. They did it during the summer and a lot of people decided to take vacations during that timeframe. That DOESN'T mean it's a smart move for the economy to intentionally restrict capacity. Or, ...

Posted Wed, Apr 27, 3:40 p.m.

Sarah90 -- I used to live in Cedar Park and we had to put in speed bumps because we couldn't get sidewalks. Just walking the block to the park was a scary experience for our daughters. Sidewalks are a basic amenity of a city. I totally agree with ddmiller. And ...

Posted Wed, Apr 27, 12:26 p.m.

Doug -- Very interesting piece. I think everyone would agree that having better information is always a benefit when making decisions. The framing of the problem seems to fall victim to human nature. It's harder to get people to do something about long term chronic issues than it is a ...

Posted Tue, Apr 26, 4:38 p.m.

Having French ancestry, I'm more than willing to spend some time in the Old Country. But another example that often goes unspoken is the ability of Germany to be a manufacturing power while paying workers well and providing for universal healthcare. They weathered the recession without the draconian cuts of ...

Posted Thu, Jan 27, 9:47 a.m.

I totally agree with you. Thanks for pointing that out. We need to re-think counties as well. Our county limits are based on a days horseride to the county courthouse. Times have changed. Thanks for the comment.

Posted Tue, Jan 25, 8:56 a.m.

My wife and I are planning to attend the screening at Roosevelt High School in Seattle on Monday, January 31st. I must say that scheduling kids is really in the control of parents. Our daughters are not over scheduled -- sometimes I feel a little guilty that they have too ...

Posted Wed, Dec 15, 4:39 p.m.

Ted -- Thank you for this piece. I have always thought that Holbrooke was a bit arrogant but very effective at the same time. Your article helped explain that a bit more and I appreciate it. We definitely need people like him right now given all the "difficult" leaders we ...

Posted Thu, Dec 2, 9:01 a.m.

Sarah -- Thanks for your comment. I should have more fully explained my perspective on the homeless issue -- it really needs a lot more discussion. The problem I was describing is that so long as we go it alone we will commit ever more resources and the problem will ...

Posted Tue, Jun 8, 8:41 a.m.

OhBrother -- You are correct. Government agencies should not sell the product they regulate. In the case of WSLCB, it is very difficult to get them to act on a bad licensees because they have an interest in promoting sales. The Minerals Management Service is an extreme example of this ...

Posted Wed, Jun 2, 9:46 a.m.

Knute -- This is a very interesting topic. However, I do think Seattle is in a slightly different spot than some other Puget Sound cities. Tacoma's public institutions and local government are much more pragmatic and focused on economics and jobs -- that may be because they have had a ...

Posted Mon, May 3, 9:04 a.m.

Cameron -- I completely agree that we need a system of immigration that allows us to control our borders and provide a clear path to citizenship. I just think it should be done by the federal government. Unfortunately, I can give you lots of examples of the Congress shirking its ...

Posted Wed, Mar 24, 9:10 a.m.

I was part of a protest following the Rodney King verdict in Simi Valley at the UW. I remember how our protest veered to nearly violent as students started picking up rocks and bricks to throw through windows. Cooler heads prevailed and we shut down I-5 and marched downtown. I ...

Posted Fri, Feb 12, 11:35 a.m.

Thanks all for the discussion. The citizens of North Highline will ultimately decide this issue. One thing is clear: The county cannot continue to provide municipal services to unincorporated areas. There has been discussion about property taxes and costs to those in unincorporated King County and what happens if they ...

Posted Wed, Feb 10, 12:07 p.m.

I agree that this will be a challenging time for Democrats. I worked for a Senator in California during the 1994 Republican landslide. In my view, the biggest difference between then and now is that the Republicans at that time had a unifying plan -- Contract with America. I don't ...

Posted Tue, Feb 2, 2:40 p.m.

Andy -- Thanks for your comment. You are correct that most of the freight coming through the terminals is moved by trucks directly to the BNSF Sig Yard. Some of those trucks also take cargo to the Kent Valley and over I-90. Seventy to eighty percent of the cargo coming ...

Posted Mon, Dec 21, 9:58 a.m.

Knute -- Thanks for this. There have been many revitalization efforts over the years in Pioneer Square. I was part of an early effort to combine the 3 organizations (the BIA, the community development association, and the community council) into the PS Community Association. It made sense at the time ...

Posted Wed, Apr 2, 8:57 a.m.

Hit the nail on the head: My wife and I grew up in Seattle and we both have talked about this. Even things like bowling and shooting pool have been taken over by people who seem to have more cash than they know what to do with. With the closure ...