crosscut.com : Law / Justice

57 states — and the Soviet of Washington?

Crosscut — Sun, 11 May 2008 08:43:01 PDT

Sen. Barack Obama must be drinking some of the same Seattle water as secessionist Mayor Greg Nickels. In Beaverton, Ore., he told the crowd that he'd visited "57 states" with "one left to go." He goes on to say that the only states he hasn't been to during his presidential bid are Alaska and Hawaii, which means Obama thinks the U.S. has 58 states, though by his own count there should be 59.

A plea bargain douses the scandal of the Thirtymile Fire

Crosscut — Thu, 08 May 2008 05:00:01 PDT

The darkest moment in U.S. Forest Service history won't be told — not to a jury, anyway.

Annals of Northwest secession

Crosscut — Tue, 06 May 2008 00:00:01 PDT

A primer of regional separatist movements, real and imagined.

From butts to beakers: Washington's tobacco settlement money gets to work

Crosscut — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:39:01 PDT

When Washington lined up with 45 other states to receive its share of the $206 billion Master Tobacco Settlement Agreement in 1998, it received an extra $500 million. This "tobacco settlement bonus" is now being doled out to a few fortunate scientists in the state.

The high legal cost of practicing journalism

Crosscut — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 12:00:01 PDT

The demise of newspapers is a very bad thing, and anyone who thinks the Internet will quickly step up to fill the void is delusional. It's hard, for example, to envision even an influential national blog mustering the resources to uncover what The New York Times reports today about retired generals who serve as expert commentators on TV:

Hidden behind that appearance of objectivity, though, is a Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration's wartime performance, an examination by The New York Times has found.

Power to the people! It's in the constitution

Crosscut — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 05:00:01 PDT

A legal dispute about tinkering with Initiative 601's spending limits takes us back to the founding principles of the nation and the Washington constitution. Did you know Tim Eyman is a radical Whig?

Go fish: The government's answer to depleted stocks

Crosscut — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:00:01 PDT

While officials are calling for a moratorium on commercial salmon fishing along much of the West Coast, they're opting for a different tactic in Puget Sound: continued fishing.

Like millions of others, the Clintons can't get their taxes done on time

Crosscut — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 05:00:01 PDT

More proof that the system is maddeningly complex, confusing, and just painful. Let's do something about it.

Jim McDermott's wake-up call

Crosscut — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 17:00:01 PDT

A court says he owes more than $1 million in a phone-eavesdropping case, and it turns out an agent of Saddam Hussein paid for his infamous 2002 trip to Baghdad. The Seattle congressman-for-life has lost his way and should be chastened by those recent events. But it's not too late for a talented politician to right himself.

Booth Gardner's campaign is selfless, not self-centered

Crosscut — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 00:00:01 PDT

The former governor's death-with-dignity initiative has been described as the last ego trip of a control freak. But it's really a selfless act that helps restore a basic right.

Tacoma: Dam if we do

Crosscut — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 05:00:01 PDT

Tacoma's Cushman dam reduced parts of the Skokomish to a trickle years ago, and the time to repair the damage — to salmon habitat and to the Skokomish people — is now.

This just in: Boomers ruined America

Crosscut — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:00:01 PDT

On Monday night I went to see Brett Morgen's Chicago 10, an animated/snatches-of-newsreel documentary on the 1968 Democratic National Convention riots and subsequent Chicago Seven conspiracy trial (the filmmaker rounded the seven up to ten to include attorneys Bill Kunstler and Leonard Weinglass as well as Black Panther leader Bobby Seale).

A friend goes off to war — for a second time

Crosscut — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PDT

It's hard when a friend goes off to war, especially when the president is envious.

Seattle's historic contradictions

Crosscut — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PDT

A budding property rights rebellion fizzled at a City Hall showdown over the city's historic landmark system. But a lawsuit looms, and even defenders agree that improvements can be made, especially in a city that sends mixed messages to preservationists and developers.

Big Brother is us

Crosscut — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PDT

There's a clerk at the local grocery who has a bar code tattooed on his wrist, which I took as a sly commentary from a guy who spends much of his day sliding food items over a scanner to a mind-numbing "beep beep." I finally had to ask him: Is it real? Nope, he said. But I think I can be forgiven having a moment's hesitation about it because young people today seem to have a different sense of privacy. Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, iPhones, MacBooks...your entire life can be tracked, recorded, photographed and broadcast — and soon, scanned. What does privacy even mean in a world like that?

At City Hall, a showdown over historic preservation

Crosscut — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 22:00:01 PDT

Trouble is brewing as critics and defenders of Seattle's landmarks process prepare to face off at a public meeting. Meanwhile, a lawsuit over the recent designation of a Ballard diner hangs over the debate.

It's Sunshine Week: Do you know what your government is doing?

Crosscut — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:00:01 PDT

This is "Sunshine Week," a nationwide effort to focus on open government — or the lack of it. The perfect emblem for the issue was posted by Seattle Times political reporter David Postman: a heavily redacted document from Gary Locke's office in 2004. Reminds me of the stuff I used to see in Rick Anderson's in-box at Seattle Weekly.

Benaroya files suit over the landmark Denny's

Crosscut — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 17:00:01 PDT

The Benaroya Company is contesting the legality of a city of Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board decision to designate the former Manning's/Denny's diner in Ballard as an historic landmark. According to a press release sent this afternoon, they have filed suit in King County Superior Court to reverse the decision. The board voted in favor of the diner 6-3 on Feb. 20.

Crosscut exclusive! A conversation with Eliot Spitzer's Kristen!

Crosscut — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 13:00:01 PDT

Flip Side: An "interview" with the former New York guv's call girl reveals a penchant for Steamroller.

Do you know who your lieutenant governor is?

Crosscut — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:00:01 PDT

A resignation in Albany, N.Y., has people in all 50 states wondering. In Washington, where the job is not terribly demanding, he's a rock 'n' roller.