Recent Stories in News

In fact, Capitol Hill superheroes really drive a Kia. See CHS story below.

• 'Only in Ballard' campaign launches (My Ballard)
• North Beacon Hill Council protests closure of Neighborhood Service Center (Beacon Hill Blog)
• U-Needa Burger! (Belltown Messenger)
• BelltownPeople.com Holiday Special/ Entrepreneur Highlight! (belltownpeople)
• With police violence as backdrop, cops say superheroes at work in Seattle, patrolling Hill by Kia (Capitol Hill Seattle)
• Big rock stalls Madison Valley Stormwater project (Central District News)
• Eastlake weekly police reports: Burglars hit commercial building (Eastlake Ave)
• The New Guy In The Universe (Fremont Universe)
• City presents overview of Nickelsville in SoDo, addresses concerns (Blogging Georgetown)
• Councilmember Conlin: City Council is still working to prevent offices from moving into Green Lake Community Center (My Green Lake)
• Big crowd at meeting with FAA but few answers (Magnolia Voice)
• MORE Maple Leaf burglaries this month (cars, too) (Maple Leaf Life)
• Man confronts woman about pushing child in stroller (PhinneyWood)
• Uptown Theatre closing November 28 (Queen Anne View)
• South Seattle Cop on “Are Seattle Police Out of Control? Community Reacts to Recent Incident Caught on Tape” (Rainier Valley Post)

• 15th Avenue NE Reconstruction Open House Scheduled (Ravenna Blog)
• Neighbors get a few answers at crime prevention meeting (Roosiehood)
• Rainy Gardening (Southend Seattle)
• Local artist 'without a medium' finds calling in graphic novels (South Seattle Beacon)
• (The Southlake)
• Husky Stadium renovation plan gets green light (U District Daily)
• Help Seattle Public Schools plan 2011-2012 budget (My Wallingford)
• 7th grader at Eckstein attacked, robbed on his way to school (Wedgwood View)
• ‘The Hole’ followups: Read the ruling; see who’s tracking its safety (West Seattle Blog)

A lot of bandwidth has been given to the Culture War over the past few years. Pundits divide the country into red and blue, by state and by district, urban versus rural, argumentum ad nauseam. There is a lot of truth to the meme: the demographics of the country are changing, technology has had a profound impact on the culture with unknown results, and economic instability often leads to social conservatism.

But recently the Obama administration found a way to bridge the divide via an unexpected, but wildly successful method.

I'm speaking, of course, of the TSA. Or, more accurately, the Department of Homeland Security's directive that TSA agents will either x-ray everyone who takes a commercial flight in the U.S. or, quite literally, feel them up. Liberal or conservative, Tea-Party or tin-hat, the entire American political spectrum seems to feel that the new airport security procedures are invasive, pointless, and a violation of our civil liberties.

But reading the online chatter about the new procedures, I found myself feeling less outraged at the procedures themselves, than amused--even a little smug--at the outrage of others. I've been increasingly outraged at airport security procedures since 9/11. Personally, I don't fly anymore, if I can possibly avoid it. TSA agents invariably ask me to step aside from security for a wanding, a pat-down, and a quick peek at my panties. Not an auspicious way to begin a trip, unless preceded by candlelight and a nice dinner.

I wasn't quite sure what I thought about the current TSA kerfuffle until I saw this video from the New Jersey state legislature:... (more)

If you felt an outpouring of lovingkindness while walking past the Convention Center yesterday, it was likely because over 1,000 people were gathered inside to celebrate National Philanthropy Day, hosted by AFP Washington. I was glad to attend, because on a day when unemployment cut-offs and ballooning deficits were in the news, it was particularly good to hear about Seattle's pathbreaking philanthropic engagement. 

Enrique Cerna

Former Mayor Norm Rice

The lunch was emceed by KCTS's Enrique Cerna, and former Mayor Norm Rice spoke as well, but both men knew that the stars of the afternoon were the honorees, and said as much. In fact, the theme of the day was the "faces of philanthropy"--Seattle's populist spirit emerging even when it comes to what you'd imagine would be a wealthy-elbow-rubbing affair. 

In a town where you can run into a sweater-and-khaki-wearing Bill Gates catching a matinée at the Harvard Exit, it makes sense that Matt Griffin (a commercial real estate developer) and Evelyne Rozner (founder of her business consultancy, The Rozner Co.) were low-key about their Outstanding Philanthropists award, given because they "have not only contributed substantially to local and national nonprofits, they have also led efforts that raised more than $250 million for causes they support."

Rozner won applause for warning that an obsession with efficiency and short-term fiscal prudence (as measured by cents per dollar that go to administration "versus" operations) is harmful to non-profits, who need to be allowed to experiment and test out new practices.

The Whatcom Community Foundation was honored for Outstanding Philanthropy Organization (President Mauri Ingram's wry sense of humor won her a "She'll be here all week, folks" from Cerna), and the Moles family was recognized in the Outstanding Philanthropic Family category. For your family's reference, here's the contribution benchmark you should aim for: ... (more)

Dr. Arun Raha

When I arrived this afternoon to interview Remy Trupin, executive director of the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, about the nuts-and-bolts of state budget allocation, he was still shellshocked from this morning's state revenue forecast.

The short story is that the projected deficit for the 2009-2011 and 2011-13 budget cycles has grown by $1.2 billion, to $5.7 billion, since September's forecast. The Hopper (the Senate Democrats blog) live-blogged the announcement, and that's where the following quotes come from:

Revenue for the remainder of the current budget cycle is projected to fall by $385 million to $28 billion. Revenue for the next cycle is projected to fall by $809 million to $33 billion.

"I would conclude that our forecast in September was more optimistic than it needed to be," said state chief economist Arun Raha, a qualification that should be immediately registered in a collection of classic understatements. Almost $300 million of the shortfall comes from the passage of I-1107, which rolled back taxes on bottled water, soda, and candy. 

To balance the budget for the current budget cycle with cuts, the budget would need to be reduced by almost eleven percent across the board. To meet this year's shortfall, said Marty Brown, director of the state's Office of Financial Management, "We're going to be talking about Basic Health soon, Disability Lifeline soon, levy equalization. School districts are going to get nailed." ... (more)

On November 30, two federal unemployment programs are set to expire: Emergency Unemployment Compensation and Extended Benefits. HuffPo notes that while the House has a vote coming up on an extension, the Senate has nothing on its schedule, so it is likely that--across the country--hundreds of thousands will no longer get unemployment checks. 

Here in Washington State, the Employment Security Department's Jeff Robinson told me that the high-end estimate is that some 50,000 to 55,000 workers will have exhausted their emergency, longterm benefits by the end of the month. (That's a cumulative number, counting since Congress implemented Emergency Unemployment Compensation in July 2008. "More than 25,000 already had exhausted their benefits as of Oct. 31," the ESD told legislative committees yesterday.) 

There are tiers to unemployment payments these days, after the unemployed worker has exhausted the state's typical 13 to 26 weeks of unemployment insurance. Federal emergency extensions have created four tiers totaling 53 additional weeks of benefits. ESD has created an "Impending Storm Workgroup," to help deal with the thousands of people losing a weekly income and to explain to people counting on those "extra" weeks that things have changed: Anyone who files a new claim after November 27 will be limited to 46 weeks of benefits.

What has not changed is Washington's unemployment rate, which refuses to budge from nine percent (9.1 percent if you want to enjoy an imaginary granularity; a year ago, the rate was 9.2 percent). Perhaps because this month is my birthday, the Seattle Times put Sanjay Bhatt to the task of surveying the state's unemployment situation, and the result is grim--18 percent of state residents are "underemployed"--but more inclusive in context, and accurate, than the Times has been inclined to dish up previously. ... (more)

Felix Hernandez is the winner of the 2010 American League Cy Young Award, given to the league's best pitcher. And he has nerds to thank.

Felix's candidacy for the Cy Young award turned into a referendum on statistical analysis. Traditionally, the Cy Young Award has gone to the pitcher with the gaudiest record, like Randy Johnson's 18-2 mark in 1995. Hernandez's record was just 13-12, but he led the league in ERA and fewest hits per nine innings. The stats community, growing in influence in baseball circles, championed Hernandez's candidacy as a break from the hegemony of wins, which naturally are dependent on how good your team is. (The Mariners aren't good).

By any measure, Hernandez, who is still just 24 years old, had an incredible season. My favorite memory will be his September 17 start against Texas, when he came within six outs of no-hitting the eventual AL champion Texas Rangers. For a few brief innings, Hernandez reminded us what it means to care about a baseball game--the tension and release of every pitch, the brief moment of hope (or terror) when the ball is hit and you aren't sure yet how hard or where, and the ongoing, pit-of-the-stomach nervousness. (Trust us, non-sports-fans, it's worth it.)

Congrats to King Felix. Recognition well-deserved. And thanks for caring, when the Mariners' record gave you every reason not to.

Disney's Mickey Mouse (the real one) made a guest appearance at Bishop Blanchet HS this morning, according to a tipster with a camera phone. Trying to figure out what the occasion is. Details to come. 

UPDATE: Heartwarming story alert! Grab your tissues. It turns out that Mickey Mouse and runDisney officials were honoring 16-year-old Sarah White, a Blanchet student, for her sportsmanship. Sarah gave her Mickey Medal from the 2010 Disneyland Half Marathon to a 76-year-old fellow runner who was injured in a fall "just a half mile from the finish line," and couldn't finish. Full story after the jump.... (more)

Tim Eyman filing I-1053 (Photo: Office of the Washington Secretary of State)

All our big road projects--the 520 bridge replacement, the deep-bore tunnel for SR 99--now routinely use tolls to fill in funding gaps. But yesterday, PublicCola reports, Tim Eyman was testifying in front of the Washington Transportation Commission that his I-1053 would require the legislature to drum up a supermajority to toll 520.

This would be news to WSDOT, who promise tolling will begin in spring 2011, with tolls ranging from $3.50 to $5 each way. Eyman also argued that the state can't even raise ferry fares (a planned 2.5 percent) without legislative approval. 

I-1053 co-sponsor Sen. Pam Roach has asked Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna to weigh in on how broadly the initiative can be interpreted. While many people may have thought I-1053 applied mainly to taxes, it also said that "new or increased fees require majority legislative approval." Certainly the intent of the initiative backers was that it apply to precisely this sort of thing. That broad application was one of the reasons Sightline opposed the I-1053: Now even tax loopholes can't be closed without a supermajority.

If McKenna supports Eyman's view, it throws all the funding plans for our major transportation projects out the window. After all, tolling is supposed to pay for some $400 million of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement project, a project that did not have supermajority support in the House.... (more)

We mourned Dave Niehaus last week because we'll miss the joy his considerable professional talents granted to a generation of Seattleites. But what if Niehaus had suffered some injury early in his career, rendering him unable to announce. Wouldn't that have been just as tragic?

Seattle native and NBA star Brandon Roy, who starred at Garfield High and then at the University of Washington, is facing just such a tragedy. Roy's knees, balky at the best of times, are plotting a complete work stoppage.

Roy has complained of pain all season. Blazer trainers thought Roy's meniscus, the knee cartilage that absorbs friction between the upper and lower leg bones, might be the problem. They asked a specialist whether surgery might be a good idea. Not necessary, doc said. Roy doesn't have any meniscus left to operate on.

"(It's) bone-on-bone there," Roy told The Oregonian. "It's something I'm going to have to deal with for the rest of my career."

Roy's menisci have been a chronic issue. He had surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee 2001, as a junior at Garfield High. He tore the meniscus in his right knee in 2004, surgery to repair it cost Roy most of his junior season with Washington. Roy's left knee meniscus got another repair in 2008, just before his third season with Portland. Then, during last season's playoffs, it was his right knee's turn for a second surgery.

All season, Roy's had swelling in the knee. If you've watched Roy since his UW days, you can tell something's wrong. He doesn't have the same explosive first step that's always helped him get by defenders. He isn't elevating on his jump shot, in fact hardly elevating at all. He's mostly sitting back and attempting jumpers. He calls it "his ground game."... (more)

You may have heard that last month Seattle City Council voted to create an "opt-out" law for phone books. This is the first law of its type in the nation and if Yellow Page publishers Dex One Corp., SuperMedia, and the Yellow Pages Association get their way, it will be the last.

The trio has filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington on the grounds that the law violates the companies' Constitutional right to freedom of speech, as well as the interstate commerce clause. They also maintain that an opt-out registry will confuse Washington State consumers.

The City Council has estimated that the law will save the city $350,000 per year in recycling costs. [Ed.: Defending itself from inane lawsuits will of course cut into that.]

"More than 150,000 homes in Western Washington are without power this morning," reports KOMO News, and provides a chart of last night's windstorm's peak gusts, ranging from 40 to 60 miles per hour. Sea-Tac registered a 49-mph blow. Constance, our literary editor and White Center weather correspondent, tells us that 5,000 people down there lost power for eight hours overnight, including Constance, who's sick at home with the flu. 

The next storm arrives this Wednesday, says Paul Deanno. He and Cliff Mass agree--the mountains are going to get pounded with snow this weekend, but us lowlanders will get rained on. If you're planning on crossing the passes, be ready for a wild time. Models (so far) show most of the really cold air holing up in Canada for the weekend, with some sneaking over the border into northwestern Washington. Bellingham might get snow. 

Mass is hesitant to speculate on snowfall in the Sound on Monday and Tuesday, though some models show just that. The convergence zone is a wily beast, and you never know quite where it's going to appear until you're almost on top of it. Stay tuned!

Sunday, during the Seahawks' key win at Arizona, wide receiver Mike Williams made one of the most amazing one-handed catches this football fan has ever seen. And what makes it even more amazing? That Williams used his right hand. Thursday, he broke the pinky on that hand so badly, the bone was showing through the skin. Now, I'm not a medical doctor, but if I were, I would not be trying to catch footballs if my pinky was broke! Incredible. In case you missed the catch, we're gonna break it down SunBreak-style.

The route Williams runs is as simple as there is in football: A skinny post. Run straight for 10 yards, then slightly diagonally toward the middle of the field. Above, you see Williams, tightly shadowed by Arizona linebacker Paris Lenon, about to make his diagonal cut.

Here comes the ball! As you can see, Williams' left hand is tangled in Arizona safety Adrian Wilson's body. His only shot? Stick his right hand out toward the ball, backhanded...... (more)

Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith

Last week, the 100 to 150 inhabitants of the roving homeless camp Nickelsville were grumbling that the good news about a semi-permanent SoDo site, at the former Sunny Jim factory, was not great news, as there was still a winter to get through before the SoDo site would be ready for campers. 

Today, Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith had an answer. For four to six months, Nickelsville can shelter at the site of the former Fire Station 39 (northwest corner of Northeast 127th Street and 30th Avenue Northeast) in Lake City.

"With snow forecast for this weekend and warnings of a long winter ahead, we moved fast to get the tent city residents into a secure and warm spot," Smith said. "During this time of economic hardship and limited resources, it is incumbent upon the city to make use of resources, such as the former fire station, with creativity and compassion. It is our hope that the temporary use by Nickelsville will be met with understanding."

Or not: "This is another example of the mayor just thrusting something on Lake City without consultation," Peter Lukevich, president of the Lake City Chamber of Commerce, told Seattlepi.com. Chuck Dickey, head of the Lake City Lions Club, seconded that motion: "We have enough homeless people in Lake City."

The city’s Department of Finance and Administrative Services, which owns and manages the old fire station and the new Fire Station 39 next door, will continue to manage the site. When and if approval is granted for the Sunny Jim relocation--that site still needs to be cleared and graded--a nonprofit or other organization will manage the encampment, providing services to residents and information for the city. 

A hearty slap on the back is due your Wazzu grad co-workers on Monday, for their poor football team finally won a Pac-10 game Saturday.

The Cougars had just one league win in the preceding 1,085 days, and that over the comically terrible 2008 Huskies. They had lost their past 16 Pac-10 games.

This win, led by dual-threat QB Jeff Tuel's efficient passing and quick feet, was a convincing 31-14 thumping over an Oregon State team fighting to remain eligible for a bowl. In other words, no fluke.

Joy in CougVille was unbridled. A post on the Wazzu fan blog CougCenter featured this subtle headline: "WE WON! WE WON! WE WON!" Author Craig Powers expressed his thoughts succinctly: "GO COUGS! JEFF TUEL FOR EMPEROR OF EARTH!"

The emergence of Tuel, who's only a sophomore, lends credibility to Wazzu Coach Paul Wulff at a time when he desperately needed it. Wulff's impeding dismissal into the cold dark night of the Obamaconomy seemed inevitable after the Cougars struggled early in the season. But his quarterback and his defense have shown marked improvement, and Wulff, despite a 5-31 record as head coach, may get another year in the job.

The Cougs now enjoy 14 days off before the December 4th Apple Cup in Pullman. The extra rest and preparation will give the Cougars an edge in what's likely to be the "bowl game" for both teams. And a key final exam for Wulff and his coaching staff. Beat the Huskies, and Wulff probably comes back for another year. Lose by a lot, and he'll likely be spending some time at this web site.

You can buy that Cougars button for $8 at Gasoline Alley Antiques.

"Admiral Junction" (Photo courtesy Flickr pool member smohundro)

Neighborhood Headline News

• Seattle grapples with redefining graffiti (My Ballard)
• Past and present: Chickens in the basement (Beacon Hill Blog)
• Visiting Belltown's Last Dive Bar with Igor Keller (Belltown Messenger)
• Belltown Wildlife Sightings (belltownpeople)
• Secret Service: Credit card fraud wave tied to 'one Capitol Hill restaurant' (Capitol Hill Seattle)
• Public weighs in on Metro task force recommendations (Central District News)
• TOPS@Seward School in news: District ranking, draft geographic zone are released (Eastlake Ave)
• Warning about rash of car break-ins (Fremont Universe)
• McGinn's End Run on Nickelsville: Confusing (Blogging Georgetown)
• No charge for collection of extra leaves during month of November (My Green Lake)
• Meeting with FAA next Thursday (Magnolia Voice)
• What IS this mysterious street work? (Maple Leaf Life)
• Manhunt at Woodland Park Zoo Friday night (PhinneyWood)
• It’s official: QA gym will remain open (Queen Anne View)
• Color-Coded Map Illustrates Striking Disparity Between North & South Seattle Schools (Rainier Valley Post)
• Beauty Biz & Hair Culture in the Southend (Southend Seattle)
• The thin line between graffiti and art (South Seattle Beacon)
• Nickelsville keeping its next move under wraps (U District Daily)
• Farmers market site discussion under way (My Wallingford)
• Grocery workers’ contract talks to resume next week (West Seattle Blog)

Governor Gregoire

A few days ago, the Seattlepi.com's Joel Connelly was scolding Mayor McGinn for his "gratuitous personal insult directed at Gov. Chris Gregoire." At a press conference, McGinn said, "I don't believe we can trust the governor" to protect Seattle against cost overruns from the deep-bore tunnel project. The governor's spokesman Cory Curtis said that Gregoire simply doesn't believe overruns are a threat to Seattle. 

That would be news to anyone who's spoken with the state legislature. The latest lawmaker to go on record vowing to make Seattle pay for any excess costs is Rep. Larry Seaquist, a Democrat from Gig Harbor. Seaquist told the Seattlepi.com, "I will be among those who make damn sure that deal stands in place. We bought our own bridge, you can buy your own tunnel" (a reference to funding of the second Tacoma Narrows Bridge). 

Gov. Gregoire has mounted lawyerly arguments against the possibility of cost overruns, saying things that sound like there's little possibility of such a thing ever happening, and heaping scorn on McGinn as a foot-dragger. "What could cause a cost overrun? Delay," said the governor, despite the fact that, when it suits WSDOT, a year's extension to the project's timeline is spun as bringing costs down.

Gregoire has also called the specific provision "unenforceable," which may be technically true. But it's also disingenuous. The Legislature is perfectly capable of writing an enforceable provision, and Sen. Jim Kastama (another Democrat) went on record over a year ago to say, if costs exceed the budgeted amount, Seattle will pay. Note that these are both Democrats, and that recent Republican wins have cut into the Democratic majority in both House and Senate.... (more)

Contributor David Swidler with a larger-than-life Niehaus

Most every remembrance about Dave Niehaus made mention of his most memorable call: His description of Edgar Martinez's game-winning double that beat the Yankees in the 1995 ALDS (now helpfully removed from YouTube by Major League Baseball lawyers.)

The funny thing about that call: Few Mariner fans actually heard it live.

If you were a hardcore Mariner fan, you were at the game, or watching it on the nationally-televised ABC broadcast, called by Brent Musburger. But, being a hardcore Mariner fan, one of your first thoughts after your euphoria wore away was "I wonder how Niehaus called it."

The call was played over and over again that night on local television, even national television, which is how I was able to hear it from my NYU dorm room.

Even though we didn't hear it live, Niehaus' call became ingrained in that memory to the point that I'd forgotten it wasn't really part of my experience. Just more evidence of what Niehaus meant to Mariner fans. He was bigger than reality.

Photo courtesy Flickr pool superstar Slightlynorth

The City Council is going along with Mayor McGinn's plan to raise parking meter rates in Seattle, to as much as $4 an hour, but won't increase the parking tax rate paid by private lots and garages. They're also calling for two parking studies: one to determine the best rates for neighborhoods, and one to follow up on Tim Burgess's interest in dynamic parking pricing. (Here's his parking op-ed with Mike O'Brien.)

Nothing about the budget process is likely to be uncontroversial, but so far only PubliCola has paid much attention to the Council's tentative approval of City Attorney Pete Holmes' try at belt-tightening. Holmes wants the city to halt "a longstanding contract with private law firm Stafford Frey, which defends the police department in tort cases." He claims that many cases can be handled by city attorneys for about one-third the cost of Stafford Frey's billings, though the city will open more complicated cases for bid. 

The savings could amount to $1 million. But as Dominic Holden reports in the Stranger, Rich O'Neill, president of the Seattle Police Officers' Guild, has threatened to sue the city if the union doesn't get the more pricy representation.

"Over the last six or seven years, this was a real hot potato," the Council's Nick Licata told Holden. It still is. But a $67 million deficit may have the last say. 

Our correspondent Mindy Jones is a Seattleite living in Paris for two years. When she's not busy trying to figure out what the French are saying, she's busy trying to figure out what to say to the French. She posts frequently at An American Mom in Paris.

Seattle has a fine aquarium. We’ve spent many hours of family fun on Pier 59 and we were happy to hear we wouldn't have to give up the fish when we moved to Paris; Paris has an aquarium, too. It wasn't long before we jumped on the metro to go visit, joking that the Paris aquarium was probably full of deformed creatures snagged out of the Seine.

Of course that's not true. They have nice fish. But there are other issues.

It was a strange visit from the get-go. We saw a large "Tickets!" sign in the entry. Under the sign were several touchscreen machines. We assumed, I don’t think irrationally, that we were supposed to buy our tickets at the machines.

Alex put a credit card in the card reader but no menu appeared.  Instead, we got either pictures of fish or trivia questions about fish, which we dutifully answered assuming we had to prove some knowledge of fish in order to be worthy of admission. After answering a few questions and watching some fish swim by, we eyed each other and suspected we were doing something wrong.... (more)

The Defense Video and Imagery Distribution System (DVIDS) alerted us that they've got some holiday greetings from Washington residents on duty for the Army and the Marines in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait. Two soldiers are from Yelm, one from Richland, one from Moses Lake, and one from Fort Lewis.

They've taped tiny little videos saying hello to the home front; if you're from the area, you can send an E-card back by visiting the video page. 

It's also Veterans Day, and while some things are open and some are closed, some businesses are giving back. Veterans can enjoy free meals, free car washes, free music, and free museums and parks. Veterans who get hungry on the go can pull into a Dick's Drive-In, flash their military ID, and order a free hamburger.

"I can't imagine not doing it. I can imagine not doing it, but you might as well dig a hole and put me in it." -- Dave Niehaus, 2008.

I heard the old-fashioned way, from the disbelieving exclamation of a downtown bartender. "Didja hear? Dave Niehaus died." See, I had my pupils dilated this afternoon, and I hadn't been able to read the several text messages from longtime friends telling me that Hall-of-Famer Niehaus, the Mariners' radio and TV voice since the franchise's first pitch 34 summers ago, was gone.

Niehaus in 1982

Tens of thousands of us grew up with Niehaus' voice, an annual feature of Seattle life as steady and predictable as October rain. Niehaus' baritone resonated though my childhood--under my blanket, as I defied my parents' orders to go to bed. His voice was part of my teenage years--in beater cars, as my friends and I drove around town. It filled my young adulthood--through Manhattan pay phone receivers, when I'd call 1-800-MY-MARINERS to hear game highlights. And the sound was still there my early 30s--I'd pull a radio out onto my porch, turn on Niehaus, and listen to that voice for what I knew, at his age, might be the last time. I made a point to do so during this season's last game. Macabre, I know. Glad I did.

Seemed appropriate to hear about Niehaus' death at a bar, since when he started his career, that's how sports news spread. Born in Depression-era Indiana, Niehaus lived through four media revolutions, from radio to television to cable to the Internet. And because of those revolutions, no sports media figure in this town will ever have Niehaus' influence.

For most of Niehaus' career, Mariner fans saw our team through his eyes--literally, as so few games were televised. The Mariners' first season, 1977, only 17 of 162 games were on TV. As late as 1994, only 71 games were scheduled for TV broadcasts. Now, we watch the games on TV at the gym with the sound down, or spy the internet gamecast, or follow the score on our phones. Then, Niehaus was often our only live link to the team.... (more)

The Boeing Company has called a halt to test flights of its 787 Dreamliner, after an electrical fire "affected the cockpit controls and the jet lost its primary flight displays and its auto-throttle," reports the Seattle Times. The plane made an emergency landing in Laredo, Texas, with 42 people on board.

A lot depends on the cause of the fire, and whether it was a simple equipment malfunction or was the result of a more serious design flaw.

Either way, says the New York Times, "[s]everal analysts said they doubted that Boeing, which is counting on the jet to vault past Airbus in total sales, would meet its deadline to deliver the first 787 by next March."

Every story in the media takes the opportunity to mention that the Dreamliner is almost three years behind schedule at this point, thanks to Boeing management's attempt to outsource the company's supply line. Multiple issues with Italian manufacturers and even a problem with the work of the venerable Rolls Royce engine-makers have thrown the 787's ship date drastically off schedule.... (more)

Photo: Flickr pool member nate.gowdy

From arts and advocacy groups, to homeless encampments, the pressure is on to find a secure niche in the new economy. Earlier this week, Mayor McGinn wrote on his blog that the fire department was putting new restrictions on the use of Building 30 at Magnuson Park, reducing the number of events that can be held there to four from over 30.

A wide range of groups rent the hangar for larger public events--Friends of the Library Book Sale, the Arboretum Foundation Plant Sale, Best of the Northwest Craft Show--so the Mayor is suggesting that the city use $8.5 million in "MOHAI money" for a renovation of the space:

Parks estimates that, for $8.5 million, they can renovate building 30 to keep the hangar open for community events and can renovate the west wing for artist work space. This will bring in almost half a million dollars in annual revenue to Parks that they would not otherwise have. It will protect the $121,000 in event space rentals and will generate an additional $350,000 from work space rentals in the west wing.

The groups in question certainly agree. The vast majority of the post's 150 comments cheer the idea, which I think makes it the single most popular idea the Mayor has had since taking office. Now the public opinion screws will be turned on the City Council, who may find themselves forced to agree with the Mayor on something--or not.

The McGinn administration's other big idea, to find a "permanent" place for the city's roving homeless camps to stay, is not nearly as crowd-pleasing, but McGinn has at least left tonier Seattle neighborhoods relieved with his selection of SoDo's former Sunny Jim factory as a possible camp site. (Ballard is having trouble getting its mind around a homeless hygiene station because it will attract homeless people.)

Currently, the homeless of these tent cities face regular eviction, and it's one of the great shames of Seattle that the situation has continued for so long--the moral poverty of those who despise the homeless on a variety of grounds, or simply refuse to spend the time considering hard realities, far outdoing the physical poverty of the homeless.... (more)

Author Arne Christensen standing beside (not underneath) the Viaduct

As the 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake came along last year, I realized there wasn’t much being done online to remember the Nisqually earthquake, and I started a blog with the goal of collecting stories from people who went through it.

As the months went by and I looked at books and websites like the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, I was surprised to read about the persistent wave of strong earthquakes that’s been hitting Washington and Oregon, from the infamous 1700 Cascadia subduction zone quake on up to today. So I took a broader approach to my project by assembling stories and pictures about the earthquakes, mostly from Seattle-area newspapers.

Here are some of those stories and pictures, presented chronologically, from 1700 to spring 1996. If the Nisqually quake and the numerous deadly quakes of 2010 haven’t awakened you to the Northwest’s considerable earthquake danger, perhaps this will.

1700: A 2005 article by Ruth S. Ludwin and others called “Serpent Spirit-Power Stories along the Seattle Fault” quoted one account in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer of Sunday, March 20, 1904:

When Seattle was first settled by the white people the Indians told of a great earthquake that had occurred some fifty years before. They related that the shocks were so severe that the earth opened up in great cracks and that their little mat and slab huts were shaken to the ground and there were great landslides.

The largest slide near Seattle was immediately south of West Point lighthouse. It is about a mile in extent and can be clearly seen at the present day. The lower bench of Kinnear Park slid at that time from the cliffshore, carrying giant fir trees that still stand on the slide. The Indians said that the mountains “momoked poh” (shot at each other), and roaring of the tidal waves was frightful.... (more)

Isaiah Thomas

A Husky basketball exhibition game Saturday afternoon drew a near sellout crowd to Hec Edmundson Pavilion. I ambled up to the ticket line 30 minutes before the game, expecting a long friendly chat with a bored ticket seller. Instead, the line was seven people deep.

By gametime, they'd opened up the will call windows for ticket sales, trying to winnow down an unexpectedly massive turnout. Announced attendance was 8,909. Actual attendance was probably closer to 7,000, but still--consider that a sold-out Paramount show seats just 2,807.

The message was clear: People are excited about the Huskies, named preseason favorites to win the Pac-10 for the first time in school history.

The Huskies showed why, drowning Division II Saint Martin's in a cascade of three-pointers for a 97-76 win. The Dawgs hit 10 of 17 threes. If the Huskies can shoot like this all year, they'll go to the Final Four.

Star guard Isaiah Thomas showed a willingness to defer to his teammates--Thomas didn't take a shot in the first half, unheard of for a player normally thought of as a ballhog. Thomas instead used himself as a decoy, amassing 11 assists in just 26 minutes. Thomas also led the Dawgs with 5 defensive rebounds.... (more)