6:50am

Fri January 21, 2011
Boeing

Senator Cantwell demanding answers in tanker competition after latest Air Force blunder

Credit Photo by Bellamy Pailthorp / KPLU
U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., (right) talks with Boeing 767 employees Anna Karsky (left) and Maeghan Smith Hudon below the wing of a 767 at Boeing's plant in Everett.

US Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) says the US Air Force contract for the next generation of refueling tankers should not be awarded until questions are answered about the military's latest snafu. 

A decision on who wins the $35-billion contract is expected as early as next month. 

In November, the Air Force admitted that it had inadvertently mixed up two packages of information.  It sent details of Boeing's bid to Airbus-parent EADS and of EADS's bid to Boeing. 

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6:02am

Fri January 21, 2011
News Roundup

Friday morning's headlines

Credit Courtesy Ray Garrido / WSDoE
A view of Olympiad Drive in Southworth on the Kitsap Peninsula during a January "king tide" from the state Dept. of Ecology's Flickr photo page.

Making headlines this morning:

  • Inquest of Woodcarver's Shooting Raises More Questions
  • Everett to WSU: Shall We Dance?
  • Here Come the High Tides
  • Huskies Zap Arizona for Pac 10 Lead

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4:48am

Fri January 21, 2011
Sports with Art Thiel

Seahawks start offseason with big changes and challenges

Credit Ted S. Warren / AP Photo
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck talks to head coach Pete Carroll on the sideline during an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Sept. 12, 2010, in Seattle. Will coach and player be on the same sideline next season?


There's no rest for the weary at Seattle Seahawks headquarters. Less than a week after the end of the season, head coach Pete Carroll fired offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates and hired Darrell Bevell from the Minnesota Vikings to replace him.


Carroll also has hired the newly-fired head coach of the Oakland Raiders, Tom Cable, to be his assistant head coach and the man in charge of the Hawks' offensive line. How does all of this impact the effort to re-sign quarterback Matt Hasselbeck?

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4:15pm

Thu January 20, 2011
John T. Williams shooting

Inquest jury split over questions about Seattle police shooting

Four of eight jurors in a coroner's inquest say woodcarver John T. Williams didn't have enough time to put down his knife before he was shot and killed by Seattle police Officer Ian Birk.

Only one juror found Williams had time to put down the knife. The other three answered "unknown." Thursday's conclusions are only findings of fact by the jury, which did not have to be unanimous. 

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4:07pm

Thu January 20, 2011
Medicine

Hospital courtship: UW Medicine proposes to Valley Medical Center

King County's major medical centers continue jockeying for position in the emerging new health-care world. 

U.W. Medicine and Valley Medical Center proposed this week what they call a "strategic alliance." Valley wants to retain its name, although the news release says Valley would become "part of U.W. Medicine."

Earlier this year, U.W. Medicine took over running Northwest Hospital (in north Seattle), without actually owning the hospital. 

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12:41pm

Thu January 20, 2011
KPLU Studio Session

Jacky Terrasson Trio's masterful live performance at KPLU

Credit Justin Steyer / KPLU
In a stunning three-song set on Jan. 18, Jacky Terrasson left no doubt that his group is one of the most exciting piano trios in jazz today.

This studio session marks the first visit from pianist, Jacky Terrasson, to the KPLU/Jazz24 studios.  We hope it’s the first of many.

In a stunning three-song set, Jacky left no doubt that his group is one of the most exciting piano trios in jazz today.

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11:06am

Thu January 20, 2011
Elections

Washington could become all vote-by-mail state

Credit Elaine Thompson / AP Photo
A voter drops an absentee ballot into a collection box

Washington would become an all vote-by-mail state under a bill being considered by a State Senate committee.

Pierce County is the last in the state that still allows polling places and some of the county’s voters want to keep it that way.

Lakewood resident Erika Cranmer testified that she has not missed an election since she became an American citizen in 1951. The German native told lawmakers she does not trust vote-by-mail:

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8:23am

Thu January 20, 2011
highways

Seattle area traffic tied for 10th worst in U.S.

Credit Oran Viriyincy / Flickr
Traffic on Highway 520 in Seattle's Montlake area

Traffic congestion in the Seattle area is tied (with Atlanta) for tenth worst in the nation. 

A decade ago, traffic here made headlines for being second worst, in annual rankings by the Texas Transportation Institute.  But, researchers found more accurate ways of measuring congestion, and Seattle’s dubious ranking dropped, as Mike Lindstrom writes in The Seattle Times:

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7:34am

Thu January 20, 2011
diversion from jails and hospitals

Crisis center for mentally unstable opposed by neighbors

A diversion program intended to keep drug abusers and troubled mentally ill people out of hospitals and jails has run into opposition.  Neighbors of a proposed new facility in Seattle don’t want it.  They say the "Jackson Park" area between Rainier Valley and the Central District already has enough challenges and has become a dumping ground. 

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7:27am

Thu January 20, 2011
Puget Sound Pollution

Stormwater runoff: A flood of crud

We’re still dealing with landslides and flooding from the heavy rains brought by last week’s Pineapple Express storms. But the downpour also washed a flood of gunk and junk off of the region’s streets, sidewalks and parking lots, into more than 4,500 storm drains and right into Puget Sound.

Storm drains usually empty underwater, so nobody sees the flood of crud that pours into rivers and bays across the region.

Well, almost no one ...

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7:18am

Thu January 20, 2011
News Roundup

Thursday morning's headlines

Credit Courtesy Laura James
Video captured at an underwater storm drain in Elliott Bay earlier this week, showing mud and contaminants billowing into the Sound. The images were captured by divers, including Laura James.

Making headlines this morning:

  • Puget Sound Murky From Stormwater Runoff
  • More Heavy Rains Coming, with Potential Flooding
  • Tacoma Considers Closing a High School

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7:13am

Thu January 20, 2011
Lewis County

Explosion at Chehalis power plant; no injuries reported

A blast and fire at a natural-gas fired power plant in Chehalis was caused by a transformer explosion. No one was injured, according to a plant spokeswoman.

Jan Mitchell says the PacifiCorp-owned facility’s damage is limited to a large transformer on the edge of the property. 

The fire did not involve the plant itself or natural gas.

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5:10am

Thu January 20, 2011
K-12 Education

Many Washington kids not ready for Kindergarten

Casey Doyle's class at Oakville Elementary School is participating in the state's pilot kindergarten assessment

5:03am

Thu January 20, 2011
Record Bin Roulette

Top TV theme songs, aka 'Boob Tube Pop'

Credit Soulrocket / YouTube.com
Johnny Rivers sang one of the mid-1960's top TV themes, nearly taking it to Number #1 on the pop charts. Take the Record Bin Roulette quiz, and tell us what theme song was so popular.

You can name a few, we're sure: TV theme songs that topped the pop charts. 

Here's a little quiz, based on this week's Record Bin Roulette. Name the show (and theme song) from the clue provided (answers at bottom of the post!):

  1. Johnny Rivers sang it all the way to #3
  2. Don Diego de la Vega was the lead character's name
  3. Theme song with one word, repeated over and over...
  4. The Sweathogs had him
  5. Unofficial University of Hawaii fight song
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2:54pm

Wed January 19, 2011
Metro Transit

Lawsuit over Metro bus ad

Credit ACLU Legal Exhibit
This is the ad the Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign was set to place on Metro buses in December, 2010. King County decided not to allow the ad and is now the target of a lawsuit.

King County is being sued over its refusal to allow a controversial ad on Metro buses. The advertisement, sponsored by the Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign, reads:  “Israeli War Crimes.Your Tax Dollars at Work.”

County officials originally agreed to the ad in December, but changed their mind when news of the campaign sparked international criticism and concerns about violence.

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