Alaska throws Boeing under the (air) bus: Alaska Airlines and Boeing are each facing around four lawsuits for the January mid-flight door blowout. In court this week, Alaska claimed it wasn’t responsible for bad manufacturing or design defects and that Boeing should take all the blame for any harm caused to passengers. Yet, while Boeing did massively fuck up by not properly testing, maintaining, or inspecting the plane, Alaska still allowed it to fly despite a recent restriction barring the plane from flying over bodies of water.
You know what would be helpful in that Boeing case? If federal investigators had access to Boeing’s repair footage. As you may recall, the video evidence of what repair work was done on the door plug of the Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 is missing. Federal investigators say without the footage, “their probe is being stymied.” How very convenient.
A glorious weekend ahead: I don’t know about you all, but these last few days I’ve been photosynthesizing like crazy. A direct ray of sunlight did more for me this week than a year of therapy. Just kidding. The good news for all of us self-medicating with vitamin D is the weekend ahead will continue the blue skies trend. And, it’ll be warm. Enjoy.
Luck of the Irish?
A truly delightful St. Patty’s Day weekend is on tap!
🌿Friday: Highs near 65
🌷Saturday: Highs near 70
☘️Sunday: Highs near 70— Seattle Weather Blog (@KSeattleWeather) March 15, 2024
Sheriff doesn’t have to enforce Burien’s bad ban: A few weeks ago, Burien City Council passed an amendment to its existing camping ban. The amendment made the ordinance even more restrictive, making it illegal for people to sleep overnight within 500 feet of parks, libraries, schools, daycares, and senior centers. The King County Sheriff filed a legal complaint alleging the ban criminalized the homeless and was thus unconstitutional. Since the sheriff’s duty is to “uphold the constitutional rights of citizens,” the sheriff couldn’t actually enforce this ban, the complaint stated. A judge ruled in favor of the sheriff. So, right now, the camping ban still exists, yet it cannot be enforced.
Happy Ides of March: If you are a dictator, watch your back today!
PornHub won’t mess with Texas: Texans won’t be able to get their rocks off or choke their skin chickens while perusing PornHub anymore. Thanks to a new bill passed by the Texas State Legislature, Texans looking for a little skin flick will have to verify that they are at least 18 years old. PornHub believes this is a privacy and safety risk. In response, the company disabled access to its site for the entire state of Texas.
Michigan shooter’s parents guilty of manslaughter: On Thursday, a jury found James Crumbley guilty of involuntary manslaughter for failing to prevent his son from killing four fellow teens and wounding several others in a Nov 2021 shooting at a Michigan high school. The jury found Crumbley did not secure the gun his son used. His wife, Jennifer Crumbley, was found guilty on the same charges last month. However, the case against her focused more on how she ignored warning signs and was a negligent parent. This case marks the first time in this country where parents have been held responsible for their children’s killer actions.
Tornadoes kill three: Severe storms with tornadoes swept through the middle of the US on Thursday, leaving destruction in their wake. Tornadoes killed three people in Ohio and injured more in Kentucky, Indiana, and Arkansas.
A powerful tornado touched down in Fryburg, Ohio, last night as a deadly severe storm system made its way through the region. pic.twitter.com/WiNsdb6xF3
— AccuWeather (@accuweather) March 15, 2024
King County is the 12th most populous county: King County only grew by 0.3% between 2022 and 2023, but that tiny growth vaulted us from 13th most populous county in the nation to 12th most populous county in the nation. We now have 2.27 million people living here. How are you going to celebrate the big news?
Steven Mnuchin wants to buy TikTok: After a House bill passed that would ban the app unless Chinese owner, ByteDance, sells its stake, the former treasury secretary under Donald Trump announced he was putting a group together to buy TikTok. He hasn’t said anything else about who would be in this group. Probably a bunch of other rich bozos. Speaking of rich bozos, the other US-based interested buyers include Shark Tank‘s Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful. I don’t actually know if he’s a bozo, but he seems very sneery, so I dislike him. Currently, the fate of as-is TikTok rests with the Senate, which will hear the bill next. If the Senate passes it, Joe Biden indicated he will sign the bill into law.
West Seattle homeowners defend home with frying pan: A man broke into a West Seattle home. The homeowners fought him with a frying pan. Eventually, after multiple reentries into the house, the homeowners and a neighbor held the man down until police arrived and he was arrested.
Another attack on hungry people: Another 20 Gazans were killed as they waited for a truck delivering food and aid. The Gazan Health Ministry said Israel killed these civilians in a “targeted attack.” Israel denied its role and said Palestinian gunmen killed the Palestinian civilians. Hm. I wonder who is lying here?
Dengue fever reaches new highs: Dengue fever is exploding in “South and Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, and South America” and “spreading with unprecedented speed,” according to Vox. Multiple South American capitals issued states of emergency related to dengue this month. The mosquito-borne illness is also reaching parts of the world where it normally hadn’t before, including some cases that appeared in California, France, and Croatia last year. What’s to blame for the increased and far-reaching spread? Climate change and urbanization. Places are getting hotter, and that makes it easier for mosquitos to breed. With more urbanization in tropical places and more travel to those places, disease spreads more easily. Dengue symptoms range from asymptomatic and mild fever to severe pain and vomiting.
I owe you something fun for your Friday: What do I have to give you? Something that evokes the coming of spring. Let’s see. How about this?
Nathalie Graham
Source link
