Prisoner swap: The most important prisoner swap between the USA and Russia within the post-Soviet period occurred on Thursday. The deal concerned 24 individuals who the Related Press described as “a group of journalists and political dissidents, suspected spies, a pc hacker and a fraudster.” Russia launched 16 folks, together with Wall Avenue Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and others going through lengthy jail sentences. Like Gershkovich, many had been wrongly accused of espionage. In flip, the US and western allies handed over prisoners who had been “correctly charged,” equivalent to Vadim Krasikov, a convicted assassin imprisoned in Germany who allegedly dedicated his crime on orders from the Kremlin.
Dangerous/unhappy timing: The prisoner swap might have included Russian political dissident and Vladimir Putin critic Alexei Nalvany. Across the time he died in Russian custody in February, officers had been discussing a prisoner swap for his freedom.
ACLU sues Spokane: The ACLU of Washington filed a lawsuit towards the town of Spokane for ordinances towards tenting and mendacity (the physique place, not flouting the reality) due to the unconstitutional method the town criminalizes homelessness. The ordinances make tenting or sleeping on public land a misdemeanor and authorize the town to destroy the non-public property of anybody discovered to be unlawfully tenting. Additionally they make sitting or mendacity down on public property “in a chosen zone” between the hours of 6 am and 12 am a misdemeanor. The ACLU grievance believes these ordinances are merciless and subsequently unconstitutional, in accordance with a press launch.
Scorching, scorching, scorching: Summer time continues. Excessive temperatures return. Drink some water.
Job development slows: In July, the US solely added 114,000 new jobs. Comparatively, June noticed 179,000 new jobs. Unemployment, in the meantime, climbed to 4.3%. Is the financial system about to crumble? I do not know! That is above my pay grade!
Layoffs at Intel: The chipmaker is slicing its workforce by 15%. Which means over 15,000 staff up to now are out of a job. The ultimate quantity might attain nearer to 19,000.
Whale of a story: A humpback whale swimming across the San Juan Islands is doing so with out a tail. Yep, humpbacks can survive with out their majestic tails, swimming round with simply their entrance flippers. Researchers imagine this whale misplaced her tail after getting entangled in fishing gear. Whale entanglements are literally a side-effect of local weather change; when the marine warmth wave generally known as “The Blob” began again in 2013, it precipitated whales to feed nearer to shore to discover a dwindling provide of anchovies, and it spawned poisonous algae blooms that delayed the begin to crab season till the crabbers overlapped with migrating humpbacks. Local weather change is taking the tails off our whales! Put that in an election advert.
Look out for zombie deer: The persistent losing illness generally known as “zombie deer illness” reared its head in Washington. The Evergreen State is now one of many 35 states and 4 Canadian providences the place the illness is attacking the nervous techniques and brains of elk, deer, and moose.
A fast phrase from Ashley.
Recycling unhealthy concepts: Council Member Cathy Moore proposed reinstating Seattle’s prostitution loitering legal guidelines. Her plan additionally creates a Keep Out of Space Prostitution (SOAP) Zone, permitting judges to banish folks from the zone in the event that they’ve been accused or convicted of prostitution-related crimes. The zone Moore proposed runs up Aurora Avenue North beginning at North eighty fifth Avenue and persevering with as much as North 145th Avenue. The zone contains the Aurora Commons, which gives drop-in providers for folks within the intercourse commerce. A spokesperson for the Commons mentioned a number of the language seems to permit folks to entry medical care within the zone, however it’s not completely clear to them how this might have an effect on individuals who entry their providers. A spokesperson for Moore mentioned folks can entry providers within the zone as long as they’ve an appointment. The spokesperson for the Commons famous that King County has few sources for folks making an attempt to depart the intercourse commerce, and the one place with wrap-around providers and long run housing for this inhabitants is Actual Escape from the Intercourse Commerce (REST), which has simply seven beds in your complete county devoted to serving to these folks.
Okay, again to me.
Smoke: Did you suppose we might sneak out of summer season with out a sniff of wildfire smoke? Do not be silly. Do not be foolishly optimistic, both. It is not a great search for you. The primary week of August will carry “scorching, dry, windy circumstances and dry lightning,” Ed Hiatt, Pacific Northwest assistant fireplace director for operations, informed the Seattle Instances. Which means good circumstances for fires. These fires might spark as quickly as Sunday round northeast Washington. In the meantime, smoke from Oregon and California has already seeped into the air in a skinny layer—not sufficient to affect the air high quality considerably, however sufficient so that you can catch a whiff and say, “Hmm, is somebody barbecuing?” after which notice that in case you actually give it some thought somebody is barbecuing and it is us slapping our planet on the grill. It could possibly be a protracted month!
Have not we heard sufficient of this story? Ted Bundy’s cousin is trying to lastly money in on her relationship to the infamous serial killer. Edna Cowell Martin, 72, penned a memoir referred to as Darkish Tide: Rising up with Ted Bundy. No matter, Edna! Ought to’ve informed the story earlier than the biopic got here out.
The Blue Angels are again: I hate these planes. Despite the fact that the one time I really noticed their present it was form of cool, I nonetheless hate them. You possibly can like them, that is tremendous. Simply bear in mind, my not liking them will not be a private assault on you liking them, even you probably have unhealthy style and unhealthy listening to. Anyway, I might be form of okay with them if they simply did their one present and left, however they must follow a lot and so loudly. Why have they got to follow? Should not they know the routine by now?
Supersize this: McDonald’s will quickly unveil its largest burger but. Weighing in at 14 ounces, the Huge Arch beats out the chain’s present largest burger, the 8-ounce Double Quarter Pounder. McDonald’s says the purchasers need larger burgers, so McDonald’s will give them larger burgers. Up to now, the Huge Arch has debuted in three worldwide markets. An American debut for the 1,065-calorie sandwich will occur quickly.
I am going to eat any burger as long as it isn’t the bloody Burger King burger.
Sha’Carri confirmed as much as play: American Olympic sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson simply received the opening spherical of the 100-meter sprint. She completed in 10.94 seconds. Now, she’s headed to the semifinals. That is Richardson’s first Olympics since she was stripped of her spot on the 2021 Olympic crew after testing constructive for THC.
Kyle Rittenhouse will vote for Ron Paul: Rittenhouse, 21, killed two folks in 2020 in the course of the George Floyd protests. He says he is not going to be voting for Donald Trump as a result of Trump is “unhealthy” on gun safety. “In the event you can’t be utterly un-compromisable on the Second Modification, I can’t vote for you,” Rittenhouse mentioned. Rittenhouse as a substitute will write-in Libertarian Ron Paul’s title on the poll. That’ll present ’em, Kyle.
Egg-snatcher jailed: The 29-year-old British man who stole 798 Cadbury’s Creme Eggs was sentenced to eight months in jail.
A track in your Friday: With SeaFair on the horizon, I am simply fascinated with the suburbs right this moment.
