Emmett O'Connell
@emmettoconnell.bsky.social
Blogger, podcaster, local government communicator, rec soccer defender
OlympiaTime.com
theolympiastandard.com
OlympiaTime.com
theolympiastandard.com
WA lawmakers will revisit a bill requiring unions be allowed to bargain over government use of AI when it affects wages or working conditions. After passing the House but stalling in the Senate, supporters say early bargaining builds trust
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
WA Legislature to consider requiring union talks over government use of AI • Washington State Standard
Washington lawmakers are set to discuss whether public sector unions can bargain over their employers’ adoption of AI.
washingtonstatestandard.com
November 21, 2025 at 3:24 PM
WA lawmakers will revisit a bill requiring unions be allowed to bargain over government use of AI when it affects wages or working conditions. After passing the House but stalling in the Senate, supporters say early bargaining builds trust
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
Kirkland voters rejected an anti-growth slate, reelecting pro-housing incumbents and adding Shilpa Prem. Despite heavy outside spending for slow-growth candidates, the city stayed its pro-density course, signaling strong support for walkable neighborhoods.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
Kirkland Voters Maintain the City’s Course, Rejecting Anti-Growth Push » The Urbanist
# Despite significant spending to steer the Kirkland City Council toward a more slow growth direction, voters elected progressives in three out of four races. In the end, the election seemed to show m...
www.theurbanist.org
November 21, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Kirkland voters rejected an anti-growth slate, reelecting pro-housing incumbents and adding Shilpa Prem. Despite heavy outside spending for slow-growth candidates, the city stayed its pro-density course, signaling strong support for walkable neighborhoods.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
Colorado-style pizza never took off because one restaurant trademarked the term and scared everyone else away from making it. A reflexive IP grab, done simply because a lawyer said they could, locked the style in place, stifling its spread
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
How Trademark Ruined Colorado-Style Pizza
You’ve heard of New York style, Chicago deep dish, Detroit square pans. But Colorado-style pizza? Probably not. And there’s a perfectly ridiculous reason why this regional style never s…
www.techdirt.com
November 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Colorado-style pizza never took off because one restaurant trademarked the term and scared everyone else away from making it. A reflexive IP grab, done simply because a lawyer said they could, locked the style in place, stifling its spread
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
SEA airport? Listen to it, she actually says ES-EE-AY
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Monday Evening Headlines
Thanksgiving travel through SEA Airport might not be as bad as you'd expect, non-profits are struggling to feed people this Thanksgiving, and Washington is not shipping wolves to Colorado. It’s our d...
www.kuow.org
November 18, 2025 at 2:27 PM
SEA airport? Listen to it, she actually says ES-EE-AY
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Deep in a critical piece of how the NYT covers youth tech bans, @mmasnick.bsky.social pulls apart the entire scheme: bans don't reduce harms, they actually make everything worse
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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www.techdirt.com
November 18, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Deep in a critical piece of how the NYT covers youth tech bans, @mmasnick.bsky.social pulls apart the entire scheme: bans don't reduce harms, they actually make everything worse
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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Do it, coward.
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
Trump threatens to move World Cup out of Seattle
President Trump warns Seattle's new mayor about World Cup issues.
mynorthwest.com
November 18, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Do it, coward.
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
A Republican said he changed his views about Arab Americans after spending 72 hours meeting with residents and visiting three mosques. “You have all been lied to with the propaganda that’s going on about Dearborn, Michigan,“ he said.
GOP candidate admits he was wrong about Muslims, calls off ‘American Crusade’ march in Dearborn - Detroit Metro Times
After two weeks of warning that Dearborn was edging closer to “Muslim infiltration” and Sharia law, Republican gubernatorial candidate Anthony Hudson walked into three mosques, met with residents, and...
www.metrotimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:07 PM
A Republican said he changed his views about Arab Americans after spending 72 hours meeting with residents and visiting three mosques. “You have all been lied to with the propaganda that’s going on about Dearborn, Michigan,“ he said.
The irony of Chris Rufo complaining about misinformation spreading in the right makes me think it's less about information quality than it is about his own control of the message.
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
The Rise of American Schizo-Politics
The far-Left generates violence; the far-Right fulminates conspiracy.
www.city-journal.org
November 15, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The irony of Chris Rufo complaining about misinformation spreading in the right makes me think it's less about information quality than it is about his own control of the message.
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
You wouldn't think actual government officials in Seattle would play the "just asking questions" election denier game after all this time, but they do.
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
There Was Nothing Unusual About Seattle’s Election, or the Results
There was nothing odd, wrong, or suspicious about Seattle’s election results. They sure felt slow, but they weren’t. Someone tell that to outgoing Mayor Bruce Harrell and Seattle Police Officer’s Guil...
www.thestranger.com
November 15, 2025 at 1:19 PM
You wouldn't think actual government officials in Seattle would play the "just asking questions" election denier game after all this time, but they do.
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
Olympia loosens single-family zoning, allowing duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, cottages, courtyard apts, and ADUs citywide. But strict parking and large minimum lot sizes limit impact, adding only ~1k–1.9k homes over 20 years. Still a major step forward
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
Olympia Moves to Further Loosen the Stranglehold of Single-Family Zoning Laws | Sightline Institute
The city’s new rules to spur missing-middle housing are a good first step, but still retain too many restrictions.
www.sightline.org
November 15, 2025 at 1:12 PM
Olympia loosens single-family zoning, allowing duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, cottages, courtyard apts, and ADUs citywide. But strict parking and large minimum lot sizes limit impact, adding only ~1k–1.9k homes over 20 years. Still a major step forward
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
What hasn't been considered, and I'm totally serious about this, is the statue of Marcus Whitman, which was created because of a racist myth to perpetuate white supremacy, not exist. We should cut it apart and destroy it.
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
4-ton Marcus Whitman statue at WA Capitol still in need of new home • Washington State Standard
Officials seek a new home for the Marcus Whitman statue in the Washington state Capitol that is politically acceptable and physically doable.
washingtonstatestandard.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:02 PM
What hasn't been considered, and I'm totally serious about this, is the statue of Marcus Whitman, which was created because of a racist myth to perpetuate white supremacy, not exist. We should cut it apart and destroy it.
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
Spokane may adopt a 12% tax on surface parking lots and 6% on garages to fund road and sidewalk repairs. The plan aims to push redevelopment of downtown lots into housing and businesses, reducing blight and car dependence while boosting vibrancy and tax revenue.
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
Spokane City Council considers taxing commercial parking lots – RANGE Media
The tax would add about $0.50 to a $3.85 parking fee and fund street repair. But it’s not just about revenue, it’s about increasing vibrancy downtown.
rangemedia.co
November 13, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Spokane may adopt a 12% tax on surface parking lots and 6% on garages to fund road and sidewalk repairs. The plan aims to push redevelopment of downtown lots into housing and businesses, reducing blight and car dependence while boosting vibrancy and tax revenue.
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
Marion County, KS will pay over $3M and issue an apology for the 2023 police raid on the Marion County Record, which led to the paper’s co-owner dying the next day.
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
A Kansas county agrees to pay $3 million and apologize over a raid on a small-town newspaper
A rural Kansas county has agreed to pay more than $3 million and apologize over a law enforcement raid on a small-town weekly newspaper in 2023.
apnews.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Marion County, KS will pay over $3M and issue an apology for the 2023 police raid on the Marion County Record, which led to the paper’s co-owner dying the next day.
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
POLITICO’s poll finding that 24% think political violence is sometimes justified is probably BS because they didn't ask what they meant by political violence. Most likely misunderstood the question and refer to the American Revolution, not today’s politics.
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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POLITICO Poll: Americans are bracing for political violence to get worse
POLITICO Poll: Americans think it’s likely a political candidate will be assassinated in the next five years.
www.politico.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:17 PM
POLITICO’s poll finding that 24% think political violence is sometimes justified is probably BS because they didn't ask what they meant by political violence. Most likely misunderstood the question and refer to the American Revolution, not today’s politics.
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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Starbucks baristas voted 92% to authorize an open-ended nationwide strike after talks for a first union contract collapsed. The company’s offer: no raise the first year, 1.5% after. Workers United represents 12k baristas at 650 stores with zero contracts since 2021.
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
All-out Starbucks strike brewing
With no contract after three years, Starbucks workers vote to strike, demanding fair pay and real bargaining progress.
nwlaborpress.org
November 10, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Starbucks baristas voted 92% to authorize an open-ended nationwide strike after talks for a first union contract collapsed. The company’s offer: no raise the first year, 1.5% after. Workers United represents 12k baristas at 650 stores with zero contracts since 2021.
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
Activists pounding pavement today in Olympia handing these out: whistles to alert unauthorized immigrants of ICE patrols in the area.
Sign of the times.
Sign of the times.
November 9, 2025 at 2:15 AM
Activists pounding pavement today in Olympia handing these out: whistles to alert unauthorized immigrants of ICE patrols in the area.
Sign of the times.
Sign of the times.
It’s like he never really cared. Black lung is spreading among younger miners forced to dig through deadly silica. A rule to cut dust limits in half is stalled by Trump-era cuts, leaving sick miners fighting for their lives and for the protections they were promised.
apnews.com/article/blac...
apnews.com/article/blac...
Deep in Trump country, coal miners with black lung say government is suffocating the 'working man'
Lisa Emery, a respiratory therapist, is deeply concerned about West Virginia coal miners suffering from black lung disease.
apnews.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:49 PM
It’s like he never really cared. Black lung is spreading among younger miners forced to dig through deadly silica. A rule to cut dust limits in half is stalled by Trump-era cuts, leaving sick miners fighting for their lives and for the protections they were promised.
apnews.com/article/blac...
apnews.com/article/blac...
Free speech absolutists: NC GOP staffer threatened ProPublica to drop a story on Chief Justice Paul Newby or they'd “call Trump to punish” them.
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/05/n...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/05/n...
NC GOP Threatens ProPublica: Drop This Story Or We’ll Call Trump To Punish You
The faux “party of free speech” strikes again. For years, the MAGA GOP has insisted that it is the true “party of free” speech even as all evidence suggests this administration is the most censoria…
www.techdirt.com
November 6, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Free speech absolutists: NC GOP staffer threatened ProPublica to drop a story on Chief Justice Paul Newby or they'd “call Trump to punish” them.
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/05/n...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/05/n...
🧵
I don’t mean to get drawn into the NYC centric discussion, but NYC has always been a city of immigrants. That’s what makes it so electric and why it keeps producing political “firsts” that challenge who we think belongs in power.
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I don’t mean to get drawn into the NYC centric discussion, but NYC has always been a city of immigrants. That’s what makes it so electric and why it keeps producing political “firsts” that challenge who we think belongs in power.
/1
November 5, 2025 at 2:49 PM
🧵
I don’t mean to get drawn into the NYC centric discussion, but NYC has always been a city of immigrants. That’s what makes it so electric and why it keeps producing political “firsts” that challenge who we think belongs in power.
/1
I don’t mean to get drawn into the NYC centric discussion, but NYC has always been a city of immigrants. That’s what makes it so electric and why it keeps producing political “firsts” that challenge who we think belongs in power.
/1
🧵 Morning after, a meditation on economic issues v woke
I keep seeing analysis that we should focus on “bread and butter” issues (jobs, wages, healthcare) not “wokeness.”
But when politics talks only about the money and never about justice, something ugly fills the gap.
/1
I keep seeing analysis that we should focus on “bread and butter” issues (jobs, wages, healthcare) not “wokeness.”
But when politics talks only about the money and never about justice, something ugly fills the gap.
/1
November 5, 2025 at 1:18 PM
🧵 Morning after, a meditation on economic issues v woke
I keep seeing analysis that we should focus on “bread and butter” issues (jobs, wages, healthcare) not “wokeness.”
But when politics talks only about the money and never about justice, something ugly fills the gap.
/1
I keep seeing analysis that we should focus on “bread and butter” issues (jobs, wages, healthcare) not “wokeness.”
But when politics talks only about the money and never about justice, something ugly fills the gap.
/1
Say what you want about snow response in the PNW, but the City of Olympia is using a bulldozer and a snow plow to remove wet leaves from a major bike path
November 4, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Say what you want about snow response in the PNW, but the City of Olympia is using a bulldozer and a snow plow to remove wet leaves from a major bike path
A Tennessee man was jailed for over a month after reposting a Trump meme that a sheriff falsely claimed was a school threat. Bodycam footage later showed police knew it wasn’t. Charges were dropped after public outcry
arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
Man finally released a month after absurd arrest for reposting Trump meme
Bodycam footage undermined sheriff’s “true threat” justification for the arrest.
arstechnica.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:15 PM
A Tennessee man was jailed for over a month after reposting a Trump meme that a sheriff falsely claimed was a school threat. Bodycam footage later showed police knew it wasn’t. Charges were dropped after public outcry
arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
The edgelord explained: a new study points out believing obvious falsehoods isn’t about facts but symbolic strength. Endorsing misinformation shows defiance and independence, fact-checks only prove opponents are weak, making lies a display of power
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/03/s...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/03/s...
Symbolic Strength More Important Than Facts When It Comes To Misinformation
Why do some people endorse claims that can easily be disproved? It’s one thing to believe false information, but another to actively stick with something that’s obviously wrong. Our new research, p…
www.techdirt.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:09 PM
The edgelord explained: a new study points out believing obvious falsehoods isn’t about facts but symbolic strength. Endorsing misinformation shows defiance and independence, fact-checks only prove opponents are weak, making lies a display of power
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/03/s...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/03/s...
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
I think of this graphic every day.
My semi-regular reminder of a really important reality about cities, density, services and taxes.
Original graphic cleaned up by @kathrynmathias.bsky.social. #CityMakingMath
Original graphic cleaned up by @kathrynmathias.bsky.social. #CityMakingMath
September 28, 2025 at 10:27 PM
I think of this graphic every day.
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
In 2024, the largest dam removal in U.S. history restored the Klamath River.
Join Grist's Anita Hofschneider and Amy Bowers Cordalis for The Water Remembers, a conversation on Indigenous environmental justice.
Register here: luma.com/6sqqd2mt
#Dams #Indigenous #Nature #Environment #Water #Dams
Join Grist's Anita Hofschneider and Amy Bowers Cordalis for The Water Remembers, a conversation on Indigenous environmental justice.
Register here: luma.com/6sqqd2mt
#Dams #Indigenous #Nature #Environment #Water #Dams
The Water Remembers: A conversation with Amy Bowers Cordalis · Zoom · Luma
In 2024, the largest dam removal project in U.S. history was completed on the Klamath River—a moment decades in the making, led by Indigenous communities…
luma.com
November 2, 2025 at 5:02 PM
In 2024, the largest dam removal in U.S. history restored the Klamath River.
Join Grist's Anita Hofschneider and Amy Bowers Cordalis for The Water Remembers, a conversation on Indigenous environmental justice.
Register here: luma.com/6sqqd2mt
#Dams #Indigenous #Nature #Environment #Water #Dams
Join Grist's Anita Hofschneider and Amy Bowers Cordalis for The Water Remembers, a conversation on Indigenous environmental justice.
Register here: luma.com/6sqqd2mt
#Dams #Indigenous #Nature #Environment #Water #Dams