Category Archives: Politics

Taking Back Harm Reduction

By David Prestonfor Emmaline Many of us in recovery say “I’m so glad I’m not trying to get sober now, I’d be dead if I was out there.” –Ann, a recovered addict and addiction treatment counselor..Heroin saved my life. –Shilo … Continue reading

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The Abolitionist

By David Preston One evening last week, a police contact whom I’ll call Officer Terry messaged me to say he’d just finished a mandatory (WAC 130.11.020 (1)(r)) two-hour online “anti-bias” training course. The course, entitled “The Criminal Legal System: Structural … Continue reading

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Sawant on Trial: Deconstructing the Recall

Below is an overview of the case for and against recalling Kshama Sawant. Bear a couple things in mind as you read it. First the definitions. “Malfeasance” and “misfeasance” in this context mean, respectively, a public servant intentionally causing harm … Continue reading

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Show us your papers!

September 17, 2021 Reader: This is a COVID testing station at Seattle’s Alki Beach. It’s been there a couple months, one of several that have popped up around town during the pandemic. Yesterday the King County Health Department decreed people … Continue reading

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Slumdog Billionaires

It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it. –Sinclair Lewis This image of homeless tents against the backdrop of lavish sports stadiums near downtown Seattle reminds me of a … Continue reading

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What’s your community worth to YOU?

Community Corrections Officers and Public Safety Washington state doesn’t have either parole or probation for state prisoners returning to society. Instead, we have something called community custody, whereby a trained community corrections officer (CCO) will supervise a released offender for … Continue reading

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The Ed McKenna Affair

Dedicated to the Honorable Ed McKenna The glitter of Seattle’s economic miracle has rubbed off. There’s more money here than ever, but with money comes problems that money can’t solve. Homelessness is one. According to a recent “one night count,” … Continue reading

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Social Justice Hypocrite

By David Preston The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons. –Emerson Social Justice Warriors. SJWs. They’re everywhere these days, from the local PTA to the halls of Congress, blaming the rest of us for everything from poverty … Continue reading

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Charade: Homeless camps and the abuse of public process

September 8, 2018 ~ The biggest gripe a citizen can have is that their government doesn’t listen to them, and that gripe has never been more on-point than when it comes to transients and drug addicts camping in Seattle parks … Continue reading

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There Was a Crooked Trail

May 18, 2018 ~ The closer you look at the way bike lanes and trails are being put in around Seattle, the more disturbing the picture looks. I know what you’re thinking: Bike lanes? Disturbing? Come on, Quixotic. Lighten up.–No really. … Continue reading

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The Swindle Cycle

February 4, 2018 ~ I have a friend, “Joe,” whose mind zips along at a hundred miles an hour. He’s always analyzing city politics and connecting the dots. On a typical day, he’ll send me a dozen e-mails with various insights … Continue reading

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Recalling Mike O’Brien: The Basics

November 14, 2017  The right to recall an elected official is a constitutional right of the people set forth in our constitution. The procedure is governed by statute. A “typewritten charge” needs to be submitted and it has to allege … Continue reading

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The Ins and Outs of Recall Elections

November 12, 2017 This article is the first in a series of posts related to removing Seattle Councilmember Mike O’Brien from office. A recall election is one option we have for ridding ourselves of bad politicians. Recall elections are difficult … Continue reading

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Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 4: Where was Lorena?

October 1, 2017 ~ News of my complaint to the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission on Lorena Gonzalez made the Seattle Weekly. Good on them. One correction to their story: Weekly writer Dan Person noted correctly that I was a candidate … Continue reading

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The New Witch Hunters

September 28, 2017  In the 1950s, Senator Joe McCarthy’s “House Un-American Activities Committee” hung like a noose around the liberal establishment’s neck, ready to draw tight at a witness’s refusal to name his associates in the Communist Party. Initially McCarthy went … Continue reading

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Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 2: A complaint is filed

August 17, 2017 ~ Seattle’s new Democracy Voucher Program has a long way yet to go to fix Seattle politics. One could argue that, rather than discouraging corruption, the program is actually rewarding it. The program gives qualifying candidates access to … Continue reading

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Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 1: “Honest” Elections

July 4, 2017 ~ I-122, the “Honest Elections” initiative (aka the Democracy Voucher Program) was supposed to get money and corporate influence out of Seattle politics. It looked great on paper. The PROBLEM: “Wealthy special interests have too much power in … Continue reading

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Democracy Vouchers: A Candidate’s View

May 14, 2017 ~ In 2015, Seattle voters passed an initiative to create a public-finance pool for candidates in city elections. It’s called the Democracy Voucher Program, and it’s funded by a special property tax. Registered voters receive four $25 coupons … Continue reading

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Call Me Reverend

April 11, 2017 Call Me Reverend:The Bill Kirlin-Hackett Story Mr. Mild The first impression one gets of the Reverend Bill Kirlin-Hackett is of someone we’d expect to find singing kum-ba-ya around the campfire or handing out coffee and hugs at a 12-step … Continue reading

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The Margin Dwellers

April 4, 2017 A word of advice to aspiring reporters: Don’t ever volunteer for the poverty beat. It’ll tear the heart out of you. Meet Jennifer Allison (on the left). She’s the manager at the Georgian Motel on Aurora Ave N. … Continue reading

Posted in General, Homelessness, Nickelsville, Politics, Stories | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

ACLU vs. the People

*** TBQ Readers, your help is needed. Please read to the end to find out how you can help make us all safer. *** We were cautiously optimistic when we learned that the Mayor was moving ahead to clear dangerous … Continue reading

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Politics and privilege in the Emerald City

January 20, 2017 What do Sally Bagshaw and Donald Trump have in common? More than you might think. I’m not talking money here; I’m talking attitude. See, when you’re rich, you can’t help having one. An attitude, that is. A … Continue reading

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The Hidden Persuaders

Dedicated to Larry Kaminsky December 27, 2016 Even as Seattle voters enact a flurry of laws designed to “get money out of politics,” the insinuation of paid political advocates into local government continues apace. This article looks at how that works … Continue reading

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C is for Vengeance: A blogger and politician team up to punish critics

December 21, 2016 Have you ever written an angry letter or e-mail to a government official? Most of us have at one time or other. God knows I have. But did you ever think, when you dropped that letter in … Continue reading

Posted in Crime, General, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Kshama Town

November 25, 2016 Photos of anti-Trump protests in Chicago and Seattle tell two very different stories about political culture. The Chicago crowd (above) is large, varied, and rowdy. The placards there are hand-made, and each one bears a different message, … Continue reading

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Sex, Lies, and the Seattle City Council

November 21, 2016 The presence of transient sex offenders in Seattle points up why the city’s current approach to illegal encampments is so dangerous. In 1998, the man pictured below was convicted of sexual assault on a child. (Reference RCW … Continue reading

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Anatomy of a Failure: Why Seattle isn’t solving its homeless crisis

November 18, 2016 Seattle’s disastrous homeless policy has resulted from a combination of three things: -Ideology -Paid advocacy -Lack of accountability

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Homeless Policy Questions for the WA Gubernatorial Candidates

November 3, 2016 Below is a list of ten questions that I and my friend Harley Lever of  Safe Seattle devised for Washington gubernatorial race candidates Bill Bryant and Jay Inslee. The document format is QUESTION followed by ANSWER from … Continue reading

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Tell the whole story please, Mr. B

September 5, 2016 On August 24, the Seattle Times ran a piece by columnist Daniel Beekman about the struggle between Mayor Murray and the city council over homeless folks collecting in hot spots around the city. In this post, I look at one … Continue reading

Posted in General, Homelessness, Media, Photos (Stuff), Politics, Squatters, Tent City | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Why I’m voting ‘no’ on the Housing Levy

July 29, 2016 Seattle Proposition 1 is a tax levy on the August 2016 primary ballot for Seattle voters. The levy would double the total amount currently levied for “affordable housing.” See the King County Voter’s Guide description on this … Continue reading

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