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ALL MEMBERS »The numbers on this image from the National Weather Service, which forecasts wind gusts for 10 a.m. Pacific time, are in knots. Quick conversion: Oregon and Washington coast: 71, 78, and 82 mphBellingham: 54 mphSeattle: 50 mphPortland: 44 mph Current weather warnings for: Western Washington, Oregon. Metro Puget Sound Regional Public Information Network with government-issued warnings and other news.
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Seattle's city attorney raises the stakes in a war with the media, and his fight could become an unwelcome political problem for Gov. Chris Gregoire.
READ MORE | 9 COMMENTSThe University of Washington Huskies football offense looked formidable the first time it was shown this season, and such was the case on the final occasion. Unfortunately, first appearances, as many divorcees and used-car buyers know, can be deceiving. Yes, the "O" looked pretty promising that first time out: last spring at the annual intra-squad game. The last time, Saturday night, Dec. 1, in Honolulu, the Dawgs hustled up a 21-0 lead against unbeaten Hawaii, mainly on turnovers and an impressive running game. But the now 12-0 Hawaii Warriors prevailed as an intoxicatingly hot Saturday night in paradise became a cold-sober Sunday morning in Seattle. The Huskies failed to score during the second half, losing 35-28 and finishing another bad-Dawg season 4-9.
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Ted Van Dyk's memoir of a career in national politics is the view of a principled idealist working, paradoxically, in proximity to power.
READ MORE | 2 COMMENTSRegionalists are trying to put Humpty Dumpty back together again, after the defeat of Proposition 1, which was a blow to the effort to think regionally, act boldly. One key figure is Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg, who heads the Sound Transit board and other regional committees. In an interview last week, Ladenburg noted one consequence of the defeat of Prop. 1 may be the creation of a rival regional grouping, combining Pierce, Thurston, and Kitsap Counties. That would be a new kind of Hanseatic League, yoking the booming cities of Tacoma, Bremerton, and Olympia. If it happens, it might be a needed shock to get Seattle's attention.
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWWell, sort of. For those of you who plan to do a little boating on the Pacific Ocean this weekend, you might want to know about this hurricane-force wind warning for Sunday night and Monday. A mere gale warning is in effect as of this writing.
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWIn announcing the big salary increase for University of Washington President Mark Emmert, making him the top-paid president of public universities, UW Regents pointed out that Emmert could make a lot more as a CEO of a private company. Doubtless true, but a fascinating story in Businessweek points to a bigger threat to retaining Emmert and keeping the UW's research edge. The story's title explains it well: "The Dangerous Wealth of the Ivy League."
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He's the latest of a long line of characters who have run for office. Turk lost up in Snohomish County. But some of the Northwest's clown princes have actually gotten elected. And some of them have served the people very well. No joke.
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Papers like The Seattle Times are in a tough spot: Online advertising revenue is a long way from covering expenses. Meanwhile, print advertising is vanishing. So why not ditch the presses and trucks and go electronic? It just might pencil out.
READ MORE | 11 COMMENTSDoes Washington state count for much in the presidential campaigns? It's taken itself out of the primary contests, though the state is a good grazing pasture for contributions. But come November might it be a contest and therefore worth campaigning in? Even for a Republican? Liz Mair, a conservative columnist writing for the Post-Intelligencer, cites October and November SurveyUSA polls that indicate that John McCain could run a good race in the Evergreen state against Hillary Clinton, beating her by one point in October but sliding to 43-52 in November. Rudy Giuliani matches up 43-50 against Clinton, with Hillary in the lead. The weak candidate is Mitt Romney, trailing Clinton by 37-57 in the November survey.
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A veteran political insider writes a discerning book about being witness to an eventful history. His return to Seattle and his native state brings a shock at discovering how a once-exceptional political climate had soured into something depressingly like that of the rest of the nation, where the people's real needs are not addressed with forthright leadership.
READ MORE | 22 COMMENTSI have my own website! I'm very streamlined and clean and good-looking! I am full of enthusiasm! Everywhere!! Is Mike! running for governor again?
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWNot all Democrats are pleased about today's special session of the Washington Legislature. Gov. Chris Gregoire, a Democrat, called the one-day gathering to reinstate Initiative 747, the 1 percent cap on non-voter-approved property tax increases. Earlier this month, the Washington state Supreme Court threw out the cap on a technicality. "I do think we've panicked on it," observes state Sen. Ken Jacobsen, a Seattle Democrat. Jacobsen says it's pretty obvious the governor and Democratic leaders in the Legislature called the special session - at least in part – because next year is an election year. "I assume they wanted to take an issue away" from Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi and initiative promoter Tim Eyman, says Jacobsen.
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWA longstanding feud between initiative king Tim Eyman and Democratic state Sen. Adam Kline of Seattle boiled over this morning at the Capitol. Lawmakers are back for a one-day special session to reinstate Eyman's Initiative 747, a 1 percent cap on annual property tax hikes, which was thrown out earlier this month by the Washington state Supreme Court. At the end of an Eyman news conference outside the Senate chambers, Kline held up a copy of the state budget and challenged Eyman to suggest specific cuts in programs and services. What erupted next was a good old fashioned shouting match. By the end, Kline's voice was breaking and the two men were shouting over each other. Here's an audio file [940 KB]. This a good, but not perfect, transcription:
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWThe conceit has been that if you're rich you must be smart. This even applies to those who actually happen to look kind of stupid. Think of Ebenezer Scrooge, Scrooge McDuck, or their modern equivalent, Clay Bennett. The latter, undeniably wealthy and stupid-looking, in fact may be a brilliant lead owner of the Seattle SuperSonics. Just look at what he accomplished merely by having his management guys free the team of unneeded shooting guard Ray Allen and expendable forward Rashard Lewis, the two Sonics marquee mainstays of the past few seasons. Not only did he help make Allen's new club, the 11-2 Boston Celtics, better than it's been since the Larry Bird years. He also raised the Lewis-led Orlando Magic to perhaps the best team in the National Basketball Association.
READ MORE | COMMENT NOWThe latest from news outlets and blogs around the Northwest and beyond, chosen by Crosscut editors.
Washington state's unemployment rate dropped to 7 percent in April, adding en estimated 3,800 jobs to the state.
Dr. Joy Yu died Saturday after being hit by an avalanche near Snoqualmie Pass. Mitch Hungate, 61, is still missing after a separate avalanche on Granite Mountain. Rescue efforts have been suspended due to dangerous conditions.
Twenty-seven year old Alec Zimmerman, a seasoned traveler from Whidbey Island who was crisscrossing South America, has gone missing in Argentina after accepting a ride from a "grandfatherly" Chilean truck driver.
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