WA: Latest Blog Roundup

At Josef's Public Journal, the battle over where to saw Washington State in half is heating up again:


Okay, I need a break from unscrambling Dean Logan and I believe somebody needs to blog about SJM 8009, namely the legal framework to initiate the divorce of Washington State.

Personally, if we can add Skagit County and potentially Snohomish County, I say, "sure. Why not?"

Let me first note the State Senate Democrat and the State Senate Republican news releases. State Senator Adam Kline (Dem.) says, “Why should the western half continue to subsidize the east? We could use that money right here for job creation, education and health care.” Well, I want the numbers because I tend to support that view. Oh and I want Skagit County in this new state.

State Senator Joyce Mulliken (Deputy Republican Whip - 13th Legislative District, Central Eastern Washington) said in hers, “The political, economic and social demographics of our state, from west to east, are become more and more diverse”



At Rosenblog, Matt finds it hard to support left-wing music, especially from my hometown of Santa Cruz:

I wanted to have something nice to say about Santa Cruz, really I did. Especially after all the OTHER things I've said about the home of the fighting Banana Slugs. (For example here, here, and here).

So when I saw this accolade to the re-formed 80s band from Santa Cruz named Camper Van Beethoven, the pump was primed.

After all, I've got about a half-dozen of their albums. Even after the debut album, with "Take The Skinheads Bowling," it was one smart-alecky, highly musical morsel after another. Oodles of stringed instruments played really well, intriguing arrangements, and attitude.

Well, it may all still be there. Sounds like it is, actually. Especially the attitude. Only some of MY attitudes have changed. I'm not sure I'm about to rush out and get their latest CD.

(By the way, Matt, we were once very proud of the Campers and I don't remember any political associations at the time. But everything is about politics in 2005.)

Timothy Goddard updates Snohomish County politics and where US Senator Maria Cantwell looks to be kicking off her 2006 re-election campaign:

Now, it may well be that Cantwell’s “Arrest Meth Act” is a good one (though I’m skeptical of anything that simply pledges to spend more money to fix things). And Snohomish County certainly has a meth problem. But doesn’t it seem just a wee bit convenient that Reardon is latching onto this legislation so quickly after being challenged by a world renown meth fighter?

There’s a press conference happening right now in Everett, with Democrats Rick Larsen (2nd District Congressman), Cantwell and Reardon. I didn’t get the press release soon enough to be able to attend, so I won’t be able to ask about this remarkably coincidental timing. I hope someone else will, but I don’t hold out much hope.

Sunbreak City discusses the latest Muslim fashions in Seattle's South End areas:

Just stepping outside my door (I live near MLK and South Graham) a number of unwritten stories occur to me. The neighborhood is incredibly dynamic: the old poor people’s housing has been knocked down to make way for light rail; some have been replaced with
attractive single family units that look like real houses (as opposed to community college annex classrooms).

Who is moving in here? How much do the units cost?

There is a huge Vietnamese grocery store on MLK on the scale of Safeway called Viet Wah which features a huge tub of dying blinking frogs and both live and dead eels among other cool things. Food writers have to get over there to see another world of ingredients - along with the isle - college kid alert - dedicated to a thousand different kinds of Top Ramen.

Moving over to the Rainier Avenue side, there are many hundreds of Muslims
who live in the neighborhood. I see women in full burkha every day going to worship at the mosque on Rainier about a mile from our place.

We have teenage foster boys and one of our boys joined the mosque last year. He came home with a prayer rug and a tape of Arabic prayers. He stopped being a Muslim but still hung out with a few young guys who ran a restaurant and a barber shop.

I visited them one evening last summer and saw that they were running a video explaining why Israel shouldn’t exist. They guys ended up getting detained by the FBI last November. There was only a short newsblip about this and no follow up. My informant tells me that two guys were released and one guy has been detained.

Finally, at Roy, WA, a legislative round-up:

On the Socialist Rainwater Collection Bill
The Dems are trying to establish regulatory power over rain and charge a fee for the collection of it. It is to be inserted in the public domain statutes, RCW title 90 water rights- environment RCW 90.03.250. This means that when some judge looks at it, it may be considered that the State has the right to control what happens to rainwater in the interest of environmental protection. It does not belong to you or God. It belongs to the state.