SEATTLE Seattle: a raccoon internet star, the memory of a tech giant, and World Cup records
What’s happening in Seattle today: Jimothy the raccoon with a rare spinal deformity has become a viral internet hero; the Sounders FC honored the memory of legendary tech figure and Soma co-owner S Soma Somasegar; and downtown set an attendance record over six matches of the 2026 World Cup—more than 3 million people.
Jimothy the raccoon: Seattle’s new internet hero with an unusual back
Seattle has gained a new celebrity— a raccoon named Jimothy—and his looks have had the whole internet talking....
Open article
EVENTS Seattle’s World Cup Week: What’s Happening on July 17 and Beyond
Seattle, July 17, 2026 — A quick guide to FIFA World Cup 2026 in Seattle: what’s already been played, where fan activations are still going on, and...
EVENTS Seattle in the Heat of Summer: Events July 17–24, 2026
From July 17 to 24, Seattle and its surrounding areas become a kind of stage where music, art, food, and city celebrations flow almost nonstop. Over...
EVENTS Event Calendar for July 17–September 2026: Plan Ahead
This lineup is for early planning: starting July 17, 2026, you’ll be able to get a head start on major concerts and sports events in Seattle and...
SEATTLE The unusual raccoon Jimoti has captured the internet and the hearts of Seattle residents
Seattle resident Kiana Hall was out for an evening walk in Ballard — a historic neighborhood in the northwest of the city known for its Scandinavian...
WEATHER 🌤️ 10-Day Weather Forecast for Seattle, WA
Today, July 17, 2026, in Seattle in the morning cloudy, temperature around 61°F (feels like 61°F), south-southeast wind 2 mph. Air quality is...
WORLD Venezuela increases oil output and negotiates with the United States
Venezuela’s President Delcy Rodríguez said that the country’s economy has begun to show the first concrete signs of recovery. In an interview, she...
WORLD Iran at a Crossroads: Diplomacy or Military Power in the Dispute Over the Strait?
In Iran, internal disagreements are intensifying over a recently signed memorandum of understanding with the United States and the future of the...
SEATTLE Digest: Blue Angels and Jimothy the raccoon-cryptid
The Blue Angels group will perform at Seafair, despite a viral low-flyover video. In Seattle, Jimothy the raccoon with a rare condition has become an...
WORLD Debates About Trump and the Future Role of the United States
Discussions surrounding Donald Trump and the upcoming presidential elections in the United States in today’s coverage sound like more than just talk...
Seattle
Seattle Digest: the World Cup, a murder, and hockey
The World Cup drew 3 million people, but the return on $120 million is unclear; 26 years later, the family hopes to solve the killing of Jacqueline...
Seattle sports and weather: baseball, hockey and a thunderstorm
Seattle is having a packed day: the “Mariners” have announced their starting trio of pitchers for a series against the “Giants,” the “Kraken” have...
Seattle: football, thunderstorms and roadwork
In today’s digest: the Seahawks’ offensive line could enter the NFL’s top 10, a powerful thunderstorm with lightning disrupted air travel, and in...
Seattle: Prosecutor Fired, Two Tragedies in Fires
The Trump administration fired a prosecutor appointed by judges, escalating a conflict between branches of government. In Judkins Park, a 60-year-old...
Seattle: Business, Justice and Politics
Today’s roundup: Pressed Juicery closes its only Seattle location due to changing consumer habits; an unsolved 1999 killing resurfaces for both the...
Trump Fires Court-Appointed Prosecutor, Judge Doesn’t Close Denny Blaine Nude Beach
In a digest: President Trump immediately fired a court-appointed Seattle prosecutor, escalating tensions between the executive and judicial branches....
Homelessness in Ballard and a Prosecutor Crisis in Seattle
Today’s digest covers two sharp issues: a protracted homeless crisis in the Ballard area, where the cycle of camp move-outs does not solve the...
Seattle expands utility discount program for low-income residents
The Seattle City Council unanimously approved an expansion of the utility discount program, which will take effect next year. About 31,000 new...
Record June, 4.5% Inflation and Utility Relief: Seattle Digest
Last June in Seattle turned out to be one of the warmest on record, with an unusual cool spell at the end. Inflation in the region jumped to 4.5%,...
Neighbors
Vancouver: a port, thunderstorms and the demolition of SROs
Canada is accelerating the expansion of the Port of Vancouver to tap into Asian markets, a move that has sparked disputes with Indigenous communities. Rare thunderstorms with large hail are expected along the south coast of British Columbia. In downtown Vancouver, 161 rooms in the Regent emergency hotel will be demolished to make way for social housing.
Canada accelerates expansion of the Port of Vancouver: a new strategy to reach markets beyond the US
The Government of Canada has announced...
Vancouver: a stadium and a social crisis
The Vancouver Whitecaps FC has proposed taking over the management of BC Place Stadium, a move that could address revenue and scheduling problems. At the same time, the mayor of Vancouver criticized the province for placing new involuntary-treatment beds in other cities, leaving Vancouver with a disproportionate burden.
Vancouver Whitecaps make a bid to run BC Place: a lifeline for fans
After months of anxiety about the future of the Vancouver Whitecaps, a glimmer of hope has finally emerged....
Digest: scandal over treatment, earthquakes, and a BC ferry emergency
In today’s digest: Vancouver Mayor criticizes the government over a shortage of involuntary treatment spaces, two earthquakes with no tsunami threat, and a medical emergency on a BC Ferries ferry that caused delays.
Title: Vancouver mayor accuses B.C. government of ignoring the city’s needs for involuntary care
Over the past few days, a political dispute has erupted in the Canadian province of British Columbia over how resources are allocated for involuntary care for people with serious mental...
Nurse strike, water and fire: BCToday news digest
In British Columbia, the nurses’ strike is expanding to Vancouver Island, Metro Vancouver is easing water restrictions to Stage 2 after a key water main repair, and firefighters are investigating a suspicious fire in a multi-unit building on Broadway.
BC nurses’ strike expands to Vancouver Island
The nurses’ strike in British Columbia, which began July 2, is gaining momentum. While picketing was previously focused on the province’s largest hospitals in Vancouver and Surrey, the protest has now...
British Columbia News Digest: Strikes, Tensions and Sport
In the digest: BC nurses expand their strike on Vancouver Island; an Indigenous community criticises the lack of consultation over a new pipeline; the Whitecaps return to BC Place for a key match against LAFC.
BC nurses expand picket lines on Vancouver Island
According to information published by CTV News, members of the British Columbia Nurses’ Union (BCNU) have expanded their strike pickets on Vancouver Island. A photo taken July 7, 2026 shows protesters outside Vancouver General Hospital in...
Tragedy, Strike and Arrest: British Columbia News
In this roundup: a fishing vessel wreck off the coast leaves six dead, a nurses’ strike with mediators appointed, and the arrest in France of a Vancouver-area resident wanted in the United States over alleged links to international organized crime.
“Two boats went out together”: tragedy off Vancouver raises questions about negligence and rescue
New information is shedding light on the circumstances behind the tragic deaths of six people off British Columbia, after the small charter fishing...
Vancouver: Conflicts, Tragedies, and Questions About Transparency
An Indigenous lawsuit challenging dredging for oil tankers, the deadly loss of fishermen linked to operator negligence, and $5 million earmarked for a pedestrian area—without details on how the money will be spent—are the main themes in this roundup.
Tsleil-Waututh Nation challenges dredging for large tankers in Vancouver
The Canadian government and port authorities are trying to deepen the shipping channel in Burrard Inlet so that large oil tankers can load to full capacity rather than just...
British Columbia Hotels Named Best, Nurse Strike Backed, and Rescue
In brief: four hotels in British Columbia made Travel + Leisure’s list of Canada’s best city hotels; police patrolling the waters during the World Cup saved 11 people from an overturned canoe off West Vancouver; and well-known influencer Nurse Blake backed striking nurses in the province, who are calling for improved working conditions.
Travelers Choose British Columbia: Four Province Hotels Named the Best in Canada
Each year, Travel + Leisure publishes its prestigious World’s Best Awards, and...
Crash, picket and an island: British Columbia news digest
A fatal crash on the Sea to Sky highway tied up traffic, Vancouver nurses took to picketing, and the price of a private island dropped by $150,000.
Sea to Sky crash in British Columbia: fatal collision leaves thousands stuck in traffic
A tragedy on one of Canada’s most scenic—but also most dangerous—roads has again brought safety concerns back to the spotlight. On Sunday, on the Sea to Sky Highway connecting Vancouver to the Whistler ski resort, there were two collisions, one of which resulted...
USA
Trust, Risk, and Control: What Ties Three Very Different Stories Together
The common thread in these materials is not so much the specific events, but the collision of systemic risks with the human factor. In one case, it’s a natural disaster, where speed of response, coordination, and trust in official warnings come to the forefront. In a second, it’s domestic violence and the collapse of private security, when the law-enforcement system tries to stop a conflict from escalating. In a third, it’s the potential misuse of official access in the world of financial...
How Local Emergencies Instantly Reshape Everyday Infrastructure
Five minutes can turn a familiar route into a risk zone, and a quiet street into a scene of police roadblocks. All three reports are about more than just incidents: they show how quickly and forcefully local events interrupt the work of roads, services, and ordinary city life. One story involves a fatal crash on I-95 in Florida, another is a police standoff in Kentucky, and the third is a water main break in Pennsylvania that shut down a key bypass route. At first glance these news items seem...
Transfers, legitimacy, and a bet on trust
Almost all the materials you sent appear, at first glance, to be about different things: motocross, a media business, a political campaign, and a hockey transfer. But if you string them together into a single line, the overall story turns out to be surprisingly similar. In all three sources, the focus isn’t just yet another piece of news about a signing, an endorsement, or a move—it’s a broader struggle for institutional trust: who people believe in, who can strengthen the system, and how...
Public discourse between power, sport and emergencies
If you look at these three pieces together, they are united not by a shared plot, but by a broader theme: how news becomes a tool for managing attention. In one case, it concerns an appointment in the national security sphere, where behind dry wording lies a struggle for control over intelligence and the electoral agenda. In another, it’s an NHL hockey transfer presented as the club’s shrewd bet on a veteran player who is also “healthy.” In the third, it’s a road incident that instantly turned...
The latest monthly inflation report showed that the pace of price hikes slowed sharply in June as tensions eased in the Middle East and energy prices dropped. But with the United States and Iran now back to exchanging military attacks, that relief could prove short lived. CNN's David Goldman reports." loading="lazy">Inflation, risks and trust: three reports on system vulnerability
The common thread of these pieces is less about specific events than about the state of uncertainty in which today’s economic, social, and institutional systems live. In one story, markets are trying to work out whether inflation in the United States is truly slowing down for good; in another, state authorities and federal services are looking for the source of a кишеч infection; and in the third, a news broadcast is interrupted by a breaking message about the death of longtime American...
Crises, Safety, and the Price of Randomness
Across three, at first glance unrelated, news developments runs a single common thread: how quickly an everyday setting — a street, a sea corridor, an office skyscraper — turns into a risk zone when human error, violence, or institutional miscalculation gets involved. In Viña del Mar, Chile, a private car plowed into a crowd at a market; in the Strait of Hormuz, military and diplomatic logic makes a waterway into an instrument of pressure; in New York, a victim of last year’s high-rise shooting...
Crossroads Crisis: War, Nuclear Blackmail, and the Loss of an Ally
Amid a sharp escalation around Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, another development in American politics has further intensified a sense of instability: Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the most prominent hardliners toward Tehran and a close ally of Donald Trump, has died. Taken together, these headlines form a single picture: the Middle East is once again at a point where military strikes, threats to sea lanes, energy security, and U.S. domestic politics intertwine almost inseparably. The story is...
When News Becomes a Signal System
Taken together, these three pieces say less about death, the economy, or marine predators in isolation than about how society responds to sudden, symbolically powerful events: the loss of a legend, the possible removal of a political barrier, and the rise in visible threats along the coast. In each case, there is a moment when a private fact moves beyond a private story and begins to change how people behave, what the state talks about, and what society expects. The death of Bonnie Tyler from...
When Risk Becomes Spectacle
At first glance these three pieces seem almost unrelated: the death of an actor whose image became a symbol of emergency care on television; an annual ranking of the NFL’s best left and right tackles; and the dangerous bull run in Pamplona. But look closer and they share one theme—human confrontation with risk, discipline, and physical vulnerability. Each story is about professions and rituals where the body, courage, and split-second decisions determine the outcome: whether you’re a rescuer, a...
Reactions
Questions for the United States: Power, Security and Influence in the World
This week, the international agenda is once again placing the United States at the center of attention — but not as an “internal” matter, rather as a...
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World Reaction to the U.S. Course: From Iran to Tariffs
As the United States increases pressure in different directions, international reactions are becoming increasingly mixed: some are calling for...
Escalation risks in the US and Iran: tensions are mounting
Judging by today’s stream of news, a significant share of attention is focused on the hard standoff between the United States and Iran: ultimatums...
War, NATO and Iran: how the US is reshuffling the balance of power
The world increasingly looks at US foreign policy through the lens of risks and consequences: in some places it is seen as a driver of conflict, in...
World
The US expands its map of targets in Iran: from the coast to nuclear sites
The US-Iran standoff has entered a new phase: Washington is gradually widening the geography of strikes on Iranian territory. If at first the attacks were focused on the southern coast near the Strait of Hormuz, they are now increasingly hitting targets deep inside the country. At the same time, the nature of the targets is changing as well — shifting from direct US military-sea capabilities to pinpoint attacks on the logistical and economic infrastructure that supports Tehran’s military...
Cabello accuses Western media of an information war after the tragedy
Diosdado Cabello, head of Venezuela’s ruling party, said that after the June 24 tragedy, the worst representatives of Western opposition media arrived in the country. According to him, these journalists deliberately “pick at the wounds of the Venezuelan people,” violating all ethical standards and fabricating false stories. Cabello stressed that their only goal is to cause damage, and that most of them have already left Venezuela in disgrace.
The socialist leader admitted that it is personally...
US airstrikes reach Tehran: escalation in Iran
The United States has significantly expanded the scale of airstrikes on Iran, for the first time since the end of the previous conflict striking the capital Tehran and several new provinces. According to reports from the scene, the bombardment continued through the night and into the morning in two waves; experts view this as a shift toward the systematic destruction of Iran’s military and missile infrastructure. In response, Tehran said it would continue attacks on American targets and...
Response Signal and Alarm: Reaction to U.S. Pressure on Iran
Amid new steps by Washington toward Iran, international assessments are quickly taking on a warning edge: the focus is not only on possible retaliatory measures, but also on the very nature of the U.S. course in the Trump era—ranging from pressure to strategic calculations and accusations of provoking escalation. The question is how U.S. actions are perceived: as an attempt to impose decisions, as a signal for an unavoidable confrontation, or as a factor that could draw new parties into the...
Tehran Attacked U.S. Targets in Three Middle East Countries
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Wednesday that it had carried out drone strikes on U.S. military sites in the Middle East. In a statement, Iran’s armed forces said the attack targeted the Al Azraq airbase in Jordan, where F-18 fighter jets and other U.S. equipment are based. Reports say there were two waves of strikes on the base, while the Pentagon has not yet officially commented.
Alongside the attacks on Jordan, the situation worsened in Bahrain and Kuwait. In...
U.S
14 U.S. Democratic congressmen, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib, sent a letter to President Trump demanding that he remove economic sanctions against Venezuela so the country’s government can use oil revenues for rebuilding after a series of earthquakes that struck on June 24. Copies of the request were also sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. According to official figures, the disaster killed 4,561 people, injured 16,740, and left...
US and Iran: a new conflict in the Strait of Hormuz paralyzed shipping
Tensions between the United States and Iran have sharply flared up again in the area of the Strait of Hormuz after a memorandum of understanding brokered by Qatar and Pakistan quickly collapsed. While the agreement had temporarily halted hostilities and opened the way for political talks, a dispute over control of shipping through the strait has led to a new exchange of strikes. The escalation was felt immediately in the number of vessels passing through and the volume of oil being transported,...
Anxiety over the U.S. course, escalation around Iran, and the impact on the world
Against the backdrop of discussions of a tougher—and at times unpredictable—line from the United States during the Trump era, both disputes and concern are mounting: at the center of attention are moves, critics say, that could increase tension in the region and raise the risk of a conflict involving Iran. The discussion is not only about political signals, but also about potential consequences for trade and the economy—from fears linked to the situation near the Strait of Hormuz to reactions...
Trump Threatens to Destroy Iran’s Nuclear Site: Strikes and Talks
Tensions between Washington and Tehran have sharply escalated after US President Donald Trump warned that he would deliver a “cruel blow” to Iran’s nuclear site “Peakax Mountain” (Peakax Mountain), saying the attack could begin “as early as tonight.” However, in the same Oval Office address, he added that a diplomatic agreement “is still possible,” while American bombs have been heard in the region for a third night in a row, and Iranian ports are again blocked.
“Peakax Mountain” is located...
Knowledge
Vegetable garden under a lamp: how Vietnamese families rebuilt their kitchen in rainy Seattle
Imagine that one day you had to leave very far away — so far that your mom or grandma’s favorite food simply stopped existing. Not because it was banned, but because the grass used to make it doesn’t grow in the new country. That’s what happened to thousands of Vietnamese families who arrived in Seattle after the war — and they found a solution worthy of true engineers.
When the favorite soup stayed on the other side of the ocean
After the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, many families were...
The mother who wouldn’t let go: the story of an orca and the people who loved her
Imagine you’re swimming in a cold ocean, carrying something extremely precious on your nose—seventeen days straight, without stopping. That’s what an orca named Tahlequah did in the summer of 2018. She had lost her newborn calf and refused to let it go. Scientists watching her cried right in their boats. And once the rest of the world learned about it, it finally understood: something is seriously wrong with the orcas of Puget Sound.
An orca with a name and a personality
Tahlequah has an...
Street Learns to Be Quiet: How Seattle Turned Ordinary Alleys into a Bike Paradise
Imagine riding your bike along an ordinary neighborhood street. Cars are still there, but there are far fewer of them now, and they drive slowly—as if they understand this isn’t their place. Bright green bike symbols are painted on the asphalt, special signs stand at intersections, and short posts in the middle of the road make it harder for cars to cut through. You feel safe. This is exactly what “Neighborhood Greenways” look like in Seattle, a city on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. And the...
Tracks Under Asphalt: How Seattle Lost Its Most Honest Transport — and Still Searches for It
Imagine that one morning you step outside and see, right there on the street, a red railcar rolling along—jingling and catching the light. It stops at every corner, the doors open, and everyone gets on: fishermen after a night shift, schoolgirls with backpacks, grandmothers with baskets, workers in grimy jackets. The fare is almost nothing—just a few cents. Nobody is left on the street. The tram carries everyone. That’s what Seattle looked like a hundred years ago. And then the tram...
After the Battle: Girls, a Garden, and the Chief’s Daughter
When people talk about the Battle of Seattle, they usually remember cannons, a ship, and soldiers. But the morning after the fighting—when the smoke lifted over the bay—something else happened instead. Something quiet, almost unnoticed, yet very important. Women and children went out to the shore. They brought buckets, shovels, and seedlings. And they began cleaning up.
What happened in January 1856
On a January night in 1856, the small settlement of Seattle found itself at the center of a real...
A house in a package: how whole homes were ordered by catalog in Seattle — and why the idea is...
Imagine opening a thick paper catalog—like an online store website, only without a screen—and picking out… an entire real house. Not a dollhouse, but one where people actually live. That’s exactly what many families in Seattle did a hundred years ago. And these homes still stand today on the city’s quiet streets—with wide verandas, wooden beams under the roof, and cozy front porches. These aren’t just pretty old houses. They’re an engineering marvel of their time. And most surprising of all:...
Bike Lanes That Were Hidden Under Asphalt
Imagine you’ve drawn a beautiful picture, and someone simply covers it with gray paint. Disappointing, right? But here’s what’s surprising: if the paint ever starts to peel, your drawing will show up again. That’s exactly what happened in the American city of Seattle. Only instead of a picture, there were bike lanes—and instead of paint, it was real asphalt.
How Seattle Fell in Love With Biking — and Then Forgot
Long ago, in the 1970s—about the time your grandparents were young—people in...
A burger with a story: how injustice taught one city to cook with kindness
Imagine that in your city there’s one special little cafe. There’s always a line—not because it’s expensive or trendy, but because it’s delicious, fast, and every worker genuinely smiles. That’s exactly what Dick's Drive-In became in Seattle. But few people know that the secret of its kindness is tied to a very sad story—and to people who, despite injustice, didn’t lose faith in the good.
A small restaurant with a big personality
Dick's Drive-In opened in Seattle in 1954. It was the idea of...
A Duck in a Tower Crane: How Nature Came Back to Where the Amazon Built
Imagine a duck. It wobbles from foot to foot, pauses, looks around—and then freezes right next to a massive construction crane. Around it, machines roar, workers in hard hats carry pipes, and it just stands there. Stares. As if checking: is it possible to live here?
That’s the kind of scene you could see in the South Lake Union area of Seattle, when Amazon arrived and began building its huge urban campus. Most people know this story as one about money, offices, and glass spheres. But there’s...