AI fraud nearly derailed our next anthology. Today we’re talking about what went down, the things we missed, and publishing the report we wish we’d had when it happened. Read all about it on our new blog, and download the full report:

This point applies broadly across the arts and their relationship to business and government, and heck our current society in general. Because it’s *possible* to make a lot of short-term money on big flashy things, too much attention’s gone there to the detriment of smaller works.

It's common for survivors of intimate partner sexual assault to not report it, because the existing relationship is used to manufacture reasonable doubt. But "reasonable doubt" is the evidentiary standard for a criminal trial. The standard for "not being a senator" is allowed to be lower.

A bike lane and hundreds of affordable homes in Magnolia have both been delayed since 2008 thanks in significant part to SEPA. Getting people out of cars and building new affordable housing in the City are both good for the environment!

Today we celebrate our nation's 250th birthday. In a moment when our federal government is undermining basic American ideals - pluralism, due process, democracy - many of us struggle to articulate a patriotism that we can feel and own. 1/7

A public restroom at a transit station? That’s a crime against humanity! Someone call the state police! …wait, wrong preposition. *For*. It’s a crime for humanity. …it is a crime to have public restrooms at transit centers, right? No? Then why don’t we have them everywhere??

This thread is required reading for @tonydowler.bsky.social and really any of my fellow Thomas More classmates should they somehow happen to be following me, and you too, yes even if you have no Catholic background.

As a lapsed Catholic who attended a conservative-yet-oddly-liberal lay Catholic college, I’m very interested in what’s going on and also finding these threads by Claire and others by @rahaeli.bsky.social to be both highly informative and very amusing.

Whew, yeah, there is a lot of not-in-anger-but-in-sorrow verbiage, clear ramps for lay faithful who want to leave SSPX and come back into the fold, and I know it’s a kinder, gentler Inquisition now, but under that is a definite vibe of “In the olden days, this is where we’d burn you at the stake.”

What I want to know is how many of these save-nature assholes have full mature trees on their property, and also why they’re not campaigning for the city to require a full shade-tree canopy on every single private home yard throughout the city.

Ad Rock: you can disagree with the current All: POPE MCA: but if you push his buttons then you’re a All: DOPE Mike D: ordain yourself a bishop and you’re All: SCHISMATIC Ad Rock: excommunication is All: AUTOMATIC

We’ve got at least another 18 months of this incompetent clown Kettle on the council, right? Hopefully he’ll continue to be ineffectual and nonsense like this amendment won’t be supported and passed.

A few things that I think are important to note as we talk about SEPA. The City started scoping of environmental review for the comp plan in 2022. A Draft EIS which is over 1,000 pages was issued in 2024. A Final EIS was released in early 2025. It is over 1,300 pages.

A sleight of hand that the Seattle Times Editorial Board does in its column today: downplay the impact of SEPA appeals, and yet fail to actually articulate what if any "legitimate problems" have been sorted out by the appeals that have been successful.

"Yes, there is a housing crisis. True, there are not enough homes for everyone who needs one. But the bigger issue is that there are already enough homes to house me. Constant concern for people who don’t have homes oppresses those of us who do."

As consumer fury swirls around unfulfilled FIFA tickets, both California and DC are on the verge of banning the sale of spec tickets. They would join AZ, MD, MN, ME, VT, and OR in addressing this problem that musicians have fought against for years.

Also true in Seattle. The mayor has much more power distilled into the single executive position than any single councilmember. Ideally to see a lot of progress a bit more quickly, you need some alignment btwn the Council and the Mayor.

It's also worth noting that, in the form that it was approved by the legislature, the millionaires' tax reduces funds for transit agencies including King County Metro.

You, sir, have The’d the last The.

The Go Play NW 2026 Seattle Summer in-person event is just under a month away—July 24–26! There’s still time to purchase your attending membership or request a scholarship, volunteer to help out, submit a game or sign up to play, and plan for your COVID test. Read on for helpful links! (1/5)

The only point where I agree with FotM board member Vaughn is not wanting the Market to turn into another national-chains mall like Boston’s Faneuil Hall & Quincy Marketplace was. But pedestrianization didn’t cause that, and I believe the Market already has controls to maintain local merchants.

Egypt and Iran have requested that Pride events in Seattle during their World Cup match be canceled and… no. Welcome to Seattle. This might be the most patriotic I’ve felt in my life. Pride isn’t happening during your game; you’re here during Pride. Suck a rainbow. apnews.com/article/worl...

Fund science, not ballrooms

“We know from empirical research… that people living in walkable areas are 24-47% more likely to have a strong sense of community compared with those in car-dependent areas.” Seattle demonstrates this by the inverse: decades of suburban zoning has entrenched anti-people sentiment.

Opening my iPad the first time today since last night… 18 notifications? What the hell did I do? (Obviously that would be of no notice for many people, but for me, it’s a lot!)

Aren’t we all just so tired of the imposition of stupidity by cowardly control freaks? This works, universal basic income works, both are less costly than alternatives. But no, we can’t get past those who’d rather be cruel and punishing—and incidentally use that to hoard wealth and power.

This is an important point that we see in municipal budgets too. However, I'll note that if money is allocated for one purpose, that's a choice not to allocate it elsewhere so we will continue to see consequences of defunding other programs even if ICE continues to struggle to spend their windfall.

It occurs to me, if this is the only Level 1 trauma center serving states as far away as Alaska and Montana, shouldn’t they contribute some funding too? Not to mention our own state. Why is this all on the county?

This is so interesting because in the face of AI I feel *more* useful. My emotions and personal experience of being human make my fiction invaluable in comparison. I think local news is also more useful and relatable from a human perspective, as well as having a trustworthiness AI cannot offer.

Socialist Mayor Reigns of Terror Continue with Yet Another Sports Championship Victory: tinyurl.com/3f39hzcb

So, they have 10 people in a space that would easily fit 100.

Seattle taxpayers should not be subsidizing roads in wealthy suburbs like Yarrow Point and Medina!

I agree with this. There are many other and better options rather than allowing and even encouraging a right-wing framing.

3. SEPA appeals cause real harm in terms of our ability to plan, make decisions and make progress in terms of both housing and our climate goals, 4. The benefits of SEPA appeals are minimal if any, and 5. SEPA appeals are often weaponized for the benefit of the few to the detriment of everyone else

Also, the reason the State Legislature has raised SEPA threshold exemptions and limited appeals of SEPA reviews of infill housing is because 1. We know that urban infill housing is good for the environment, 2. We have codes already in place to address impacts, …

Okay, need to acknowledge that I was mistaken in my skepticism about whether any companies were seeking to build datacenters IN Seattle rather than in the nearby area where property should be cheaper. Now it makes more sense to me that the city would be considering a moratorium.

Make a Doctor Who title less scary

In December I released my latest album, Heliosphere. Now, exactly six months later, the “weightless” edition: the same musical suite but more ambient, without beats, allowing the listener to drift weightlessly through the solar system… ampwall.com/a/silencaeon...

In 2020, most of Seattle agreed they wanted civilian crisis response, but bringing that vision into reality has been a rocky ride. Here's the latest on the CARE team along with some possible paths forward that might allow them to answer more calls.

Attn @tonydowler.bsky.social

This was my contribution to a certain meme going around in March 2020, as you may recall. But does this particular instance count as a meme if it never spread, though?

no, you dipshit, before you get on you ask SAY, WHERE IS THIS ROCKETSHIP HEADED

Watching all the lit nerds go through what Rolling Stone subjects rock nerds to once or twice a month.

Tony is one of the best to ever do it! Throw him a follow if you love awesome dungeon maps.

“We are the publication that has spent a decade arguing that this region can house its people, protect its land, move its workers and students, and preserve what makes it worth loving, all at the same time, and only if we are honest about the tradeoffs.”—and that is why I’m a subscriber.

ORDINANCE PASSES UNANIMOUSLY SHARED STREETS ARE LEGAL IN THE CITY OF SEATTLE THIS HAS BEEN MY DREAM FOR YEARS AND NOW IT IS HAPPENING IF YOU COME HOME FROM EUROPE WISHING WE COULD HAVE WHAT THEY HAVE THEN WHY NOT DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT SOMETIMES YOU WILL SUCCEED

If FBI Director Patel wants to pass out branded bourbon or pop bottles in a locker room, he should stick to podcasting. This is a serious job & I don't believe the American people can count on him. Patel should never have been confirmed. He should resign or be fired.

Now that is a promising statement for candidacy.