SEATTLE «Тax on millionaires» didn’t become a political liability for Democrats
For decades in Washington state politics, there has been no more toxic subject than an income tax. The state still has no tax on personal income: back in 1933 the state Supreme Court, in Culliton v. Chase, ruled a progressive income tax unconstitutional, and the constitution requires a single tax rate, making a differentiated scale almost impossible. Later, taxpayers locked in an additional constraint through initiatives: any new taxes or increases in rates must receive a two-thirds vote in the...
Open article
USA Coalitions, Institutions, and Competition for Trust
If you look at these three pieces together, one big theme comes into view: in today’s politics and sports, it’s no longer enough to simply “win the...
NEIGHBORS Wildfire smoke blankets Vancouver and cities across British Columbia
Wildfires in British Columbia have led to heavy smoke across Vancouver and other cities. The air quality index has reached dangerous levels, and...
SEATTLE Battle for Washington’s 3rd District: Gluesenkamp Perez and Brown Face Off in November
In the top two primaries for Washington state’s 3rd Congressional District, two main contenders have emerged: incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie...
EVENTS Seattle shakes up summer: events calendar for August 4–30, 2026
The start of August in Seattle promises to be packed: from free evening strolls and outdoor cinema to major city festivals, baseball games, and shows...
EVENTS August 2026 in Seattle: packed weekends from August 3
Starting August 3, Seattle begins to sound a little different: the schedule features both standout concerts and free city performances, plus entire...
EVENTS August 2026 in Seattle: a week of big reveals and summer festivals (August 2–9)
From August 2 to 9, Seattle and the surrounding area seem to switch into a “no-pause celebration” mode: free theatrical productions move through the...
USA Fragmented news and what they have in common
If you look at these three pieces together, they seem unrelated: a tragic incident involving Perez Hilton, a high-stakes fight over control of the...
REACTIONS How countries around the world are reacting to the United States: Trump’s tariffs, distrust of...
In recent weeks in Brazil, India and Australia, discussion of the United States has surprisingly converged on the same theme: with Donald Trump in...
SEATTLE Washington state Supreme Court primaries: a decisive November ahead
Tuesday’s primaries saw incumbent judges pull ahead in three of the four races for seats on the Washington State Supreme Court. A major campaign is...
Seattle
Washington 2026 primaries: the fight for a supermajority
After early vote counts in Tuesday’s Washington state primaries, a new political map is coming into focus: in November, voters will decide whether...
Seattle: baseball trades and wildfire smoke
In the roundup: the Seattle Mariners made a move at the deadline—trading for Taylor Ward and Serántoni Domínguez, releasing veterans, and bringing...
Spokane-area wildfires: thousands evacuated, hundreds of buildings damaged
Three wildfires burn on the outskirts of Spokane — the second-largest city in Washington state — after they surged over the weekend. Hundreds of...
Primaries in Washington: How to Vote and What to Know
Today is primary election day in the state of Washington. Voters will determine who advances to the general election on November 3, as well as decide...
Trump Approves Federal Aid for Fire Damage in Spokane
President Donald Trump signed a declaration of a state of emergency for Washington state, allowing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to...
Seattle event organizers ask mayor to turn on police cameras
Eleven organizers and operators of Seattle’s biggest public events sent a letter to Mayor Kathy Wilson on Monday urging her to turn police...
Smoke from wildfires nears Seattle: how to protect yourself
This weekend, major wildfires erupted across Eastern and Central Washington amid strong winds and hot weather. The fires have destroyed more than 700...
Seattle deadline: targeted reinforcement—and the loss of Raley
The Mariners limited themselves to acquiring Taylor Ward and didn’t take risks at the deadline, while division rivals kept their rosters intact....
Free shuttles launched in downtown Bellevue for light-rail riders
On Monday, Bellevue began rolling out two free shuttle vans that ferry riders from the Bellevue Downtown light-rail station throughout the downtown...
Weather
🌤️ 10-Day Weather Forecast: Seattle, WA
Today, August 5, very warm and mostly sunny weather is expected in Seattle, with a haze due to smoke from nearby wildfires that may worsen air quality. The daytime temperature will rise to 84°F, and at night it will drop to 61°F. In the morning around 59°F, by 5:00 PM the air will warm to 84°F. Winds will be from the north, around 7 mph, with gusts possible in the first half of the day up to 3 mph. The UV index is 7 — high. Humidity, atmospheric pressure, and visibility are not provided in the...
Neighbors
Smoke and Fire: British Columbia Encircled by Wildfires
Wildfires in British Columbia have turned deadly and destructive: near Vernon, the fire has destroyed hundreds of homes, and thousands of people have been evacuated. Smoke has reached Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, where air quality warnings have been issued. Meteorologists expect conditions to improve along the coast starting Wednesday, but eastern areas will remain under smoky skies for longer.
Smoke over Vancouver: Where the haze came from and when it will lift
In these days, residents of...
Summer in British Columbia: wildfire smoke and roadside wonders
British Columbia’s fire season is still under way: smoke from wildfires is again blanketing the south of Vancouver Island, and the head of the evacuated First Nation is warning that the situation has not eased—“the emergency isn’t over.” Against this backdrop, CBC is launching a tournament to crown the province’s best roadside attraction—from giant capes to the “Zero Mile” marker—reminding people of the small wonders along the sides of the road.
Searching for the best roadside attraction in...
Fires, Traffic, and Pride: Weekends in British Columbia
In British Columbia, the long weekend is being overshadowed by wildfires and evacuations, chaos in the air, on ferries, and at the border. Meanwhile, the Vancouver Whitecaps are announcing a Pride match with a touching story about a young fan named Jack.
Storm front in British Columbia: Lightning sparked new wildfires and expanded the evacuation area
The situation with wildfires in the Canadian province of British Columbia continues to intensify — both literally and figuratively. Another round...
Vancouver: skyscraper, compensation and the port
Canada news digest: a record 315-metre skyscraper has been approved, a court has approved compensation for victims of violence at Catholic schools, and the prime minister backed port expansion for trade independence.
Vancouver approves construction of the tallest skyscraper in Western Canada
Vancouver City Council has made a major planning decision that will significantly reshape the downtown core. On the morning of Monday, July 27, city officials approved a zoning change for an ambitious...
Co-housing, ports and a stadium: Canadian lessons in community
In Brief: 30 years of Canada’s first co-housing, Mark Carney’s plan to expand ports in British Columbia for independence, and a union pushing back against a sale of B.C. Place.
Canada’s co-housing turns 30: how one community in British Columbia changed the way we think about neighbours
In Langley, a suburb of Vancouver, the community of Windsong recently celebrated its 30th anniversary—Canada’s first co-housing project, which helped lay the groundwork for an entirely different approach to...
Vancouver: unsold condos, flight cancellations and a floating spa
In today’s digest: Vancouver’s housing market is being weighed down by an overhang of unsold condominiums, leading to a 35% drop in new builds; WestJet is suspending five winter routes out of Vancouver due to low demand; and city council has approved the placement of a floating spa facility in Kitsilano Marina, despite residents’ protests over its size.
Unsold condos are weighing on Vancouver’s housing market: analysts warn of further decline
The accumulation of unsold units in Vancouver is...
FIFA in court, BC Place, a record skyscraper
A Canadian fan has filed a class-action lawsuit against FIFA over deception in World Cup ticket sales. The Government of British Columbia has dismissed rumours about the sale of BC Place. Vancouver has approved the construction of the tallest skyscraper in Western Canada — a 79-storey tower standing 315 metres tall.
A British Columbia resident files a class-action lawsuit against FIFA over deception in World Cup ticket sales
A Canadian fan from Delta, British Columbia, named Rajwinder Rai,...
BC News: Rent, Evacuation, Test Drive
In Metro Vancouver, the cheapest neighbourhoods for renting have been named for July 2026. Heavy rain has made the West Coast Trail impassable — tourists are being evacuated. Police stopped a test drive at 172 km/h, and the vehicle was impounded.
The Cheapest Neighbourhoods to Rent in Metro Vancouver in July 2026
Renting in Metro Vancouver remains an expensive proposition, but even amid record prices there are still affordable options. According to a Vancouver Is Awesome article, in July 2026...
Vancouver Digest: Skyscrapers, a Diver’s Death, and Drought
Vancouver City Council has approved the construction of three of the tallest skyscrapers in Western Canada, despite criticism of the developer Holborn. Meanwhile, in West Vancouver, a diver over 60 died while underwater. And meteorologists are warning of a possible “super El Niño,” which could bring British Columbia a new drought.
Vancouver approves three of the city’s tallest skyscrapers
Vancouver City Council made a controversial but historic decision, approving rezoning for the central...
USA
From Anti-U.S. Protests to Financial Oversight
Taken together, these three pieces are linked not by plot, but by a systemic theme: how power- and control-focused institutions—military, sports, and financial—respond to risk, conflict, and breaches of rules. In one case, it’s a direct clash with the American military presence in South Korea. In another, it’s a deal in professional baseball where delicate managerial calculations and a player’s value matter. In the third, it’s a far more serious and institutionally significant question: how...
Consolidation and specialization: how news markets weather mergers
If you look at these three pieces together, what comes to the fore isn’t their thematic variety, but a single general principle that now shapes how the information environment operates: concentrating resources where it delivers speed, reliability, and economies of scale. In one case, it’s an urgent closure of a highway due to an accident, where information must be transmitted to drivers instantly. In another, it’s a baseball trade, where a sports newsroom tries to quickly assess a player’s...
The state tightens filters: citizenship, war and money
At first glance, we’re dealing with three very different stories: the US Department of Justice is stripping naturalized people of citizenship at scale, Russia is hitting Ukraine with a record number of missile strikes, and US financial regulators have imposed a record fine on UBS. But when you put these reports into a single picture, the main common direction becomes clear: in the United States, government institutions and their partners are responding more harshly to systemic risks—whether...
Deadline logic and the price of names
Below is an overview of three very different pieces of news at once, but they share one important theme: in conditions of limited time and high uncertainty, decisions are made under pressure from the circumstances. In one case, it’s the baseball trade market—teams rushing to strengthen themselves before the deadline and forced to pay ever-higher prices for a scarce resource. In another, it’s a brief transportation emergency, where information is updated quickly and within a few hours the...
Power of the Strongest: How Crisis Decisions Reshape the Balance of Power
Across all three pieces — about a record-setting MLB deal, about an actor being pulled from a Broadway production, and about the pause in U.S. strikes on Iran — there is one common storyline: when the outcome depends on just a few powerful players, their decisions instantly rewire the entire system. In baseball, it’s the trade of Tarik Skubal to the Dodgers; on Broadway, it’s the decision to back out of Geno Segers after public backlash; in international politics, it’s Donald Trump’s statement...
Three pieces on power, risk and responsibility
Taken together, these three reports form a single story about how modern politics and public life increasingly revolve around extreme situations: war and nuclear deterrence, mass violence in a peaceful city, and attempts to find and punish those responsible years after a crisis. At first glance, they are very different stories — about Iran and the United States, a shooting in Idaho, and an investigation involving Anthony Fauci. But they share one important theme: the question of responsibility...
Three news stories about system fragility: people, safety and climate
If you look at these three pieces together, one unexpected common theme comes into focus: the resilience of institutions and the environment we live in is being tested on multiple levels at once. Somewhere it’s a university forced to cut spending and change leadership; somewhere it’s a city center where a sudden blast shatters the familiar sense of safety; somewhere it’s the western United States, facing extreme heat and a growing risk of wildfires. The three stories are different in their...
From Control to Conflict: How Decisions Split Systems
In all three pieces, at first glance, they’re about completely different events — a dispute over FIFA and private capital, a knife attack in Florida, and the possible removal of Sid Wilson from Slipknot. But if you look closer, they share the same underlying motive: the moment when a system tries to protect itself from internal strain, only to meet a split, a crisis of trust, or outright violence in return. These are stories about how organizations, communities, and groups respond to conflict —...
Trust as the Main Risk: From a TV Network to Kidnappings
Across all three pieces—seemingly very different on the surface—there’s one shared theme: the cost of trust and how quickly it collapses when a public image, security, or reputation doesn’t match real behavior. In the Tony Romo story, the focus is on a media corporation’s trust in its star—and how a personal incident can endanger a multi-million-dollar contract and a broadcaster’s strategy. In the ABC News and WLKY pieces, the consequences are far more severe, either when trust is used as a...
Reactions
Europe and Ukraine increasingly view the US through Trump, Iran and NATO
In July–August 2026, in French, German and Ukrainian media, the United States is being discussed not as an abstract ally, but as a source of...
The United States as a source of anxiety and calculation: how Israel, Brazil and South Korea read...
In recent days, discussion of the United States in Israel, Brazil and South Korea has been revolving not around some abstract “American policy,” but...
The US through the eyes of Kyiv, Ankara and Pretoria: Trump, tariffs and a new price of...
In the past few weeks, discussion of the United States in Ukraine, Turkey and South Africa has been less about some abstract “American might” and...
How debates about America are playing out right now in Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Israel: from the...
Right now in these three countries, talk about the United States is not focused on abstract “American politics,” but on very specific issues: in...
The US from a local angle: how Brazil, Saudi Arabia and South Africa are arguing about the United States...
Today, international attention on the United States in these three countries is clustering around three key fault lines: American protectionism and...
Troubling signals from Washington: how Israel, Japan and South Africa read the US’s new line
In recent weeks, in three very different countries—Israel, Japan and South Africa—attention to the United States has shifted away from abstract...
World
Delcy Rodríguez: We haven’t left—we continue helping those affected
After the earthquakes that struck on July 24, Venezuela’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, said that the government has not halted its work and remains with the people. She stressed that the authorities are providing comprehensive support to affected families—especially those who have lost loved ones and their homes. Rodríguez noted that many international journalists turned off their cameras and left, but unlike them, the country’s leadership continues to help the most vulnerable citizens. The...
IMF: Syria’s economic growth will accelerate to double digits in 2026
The International Monetary Fund expects that growth in Syria’s economy will accelerate to double-digit figures as early as 2026 and remain high in 2027. The IMF links this to the recovery of agriculture, increased oil and gas production, improved electricity supply, as well as the expansion of trade and services. At the same time, the fund warns that the recovery remains uneven across regions, inflation is accelerating this year, and the banking sector is still “highly imbalanced” and cannot...
Villegas: Venezuela’s fate in the hands of Delcy Rodríguez and dialogue
Journalist and political analyst Vladimir Villegas said on Monday that the near future of Venezuela’s political stability largely depends on decisions by the national executive leadership and personally on Delcy Rodríguez, noting that the country’s next course depends on these actions. In an interview with the Globovisión channel, he called the dialogue that began on August 1 the starting point on the path toward elections and stressed that its success is possible only with the participation of...
Syrian Helicopter in Iraq Turned Out to Be a Fake: Video From 2016
A video has been circulating on social media showing a helicopter flying low over the ground under heavy fire. The authors claimed that a Syrian military aircraft had entered Iraq’s airspace, attacked the “Hashd ash-Shaabi” bases, and was forced to retreat. However, the video itself only shows shots fired toward a distant aircraft—there is no evidence of an air battle or of the helicopter’s state affiliation.
The clip sparked a heated reaction among Iraqis: some mocked the weak response by the...
Trump, Iran and the dispute over diplomacy—or escalation
While Washington tries to shape its line on Iran, international attention is focused not so much on individual events as on the very design of the policy itself: how pressure and negotiation rhetoric fit together, and why each new phrasing becomes a pretext for diametrically opposed interpretations. In headlines, the theme of “inconsistencies” is appearing more and more often—either Trump and Tehran are getting closer to an agreement, or the sides are merely laying the groundwork for the next...
A craftsman from Aleppo passes his ancient art of wood carving to his son
In the labyrinths of Aleppo’s old markets, the Syrian artisan Ayman Said leans over wooden panels, creating Eastern patterns and Arabic calligraphy. In this way, he is trying to preserve an art form that is around 1,400 years old and protect it from disappearing. The 42-year-old master has been practicing the craft for three decades—not only keeping the tradition alive, but also passing it on to his son. He believes the art can survive only if it moves into the hands of the new generation,...
Analysis
Key points:
- On July 29, SUNAVAL met with investment funds at the Bolívarian Stock Exchange of Caracas to discuss the rebuilding of La Guaira after an earthquake.
- SUNAVAL head Carlos Herrera said that traditional financing is not enough; innovative capital-raising mechanisms are needed.
- Tibisay Marcano highlighted the problems faced by small businesses: premises, warehouses, and equipment were lost; a bank loan does not solve the issue.
- The exchange president is seeking support from...
From the Underground to the Presidential Palace: Ahmad ash-Sharaa’s Confession
The second episode of the program “Interview” on Al Jazeera, in which the host Ali ad-Dafiri spoke with Syria’s President Ahmad ash-Sharaa, sparked a strong response on social media. The discussion touched on key turning points in his biography—from childhood and his trip to Iraq to the fight against “Islamic State” and a rethinking of his earlier ideological positions. Viewers and analysts were split in their opinions, but almost everyone noted the unusual nature of the life of a man who made...
Damascus Reassembles Arab Poets: the International Festival Opens
The Syrian capital has kicked off the first International Festival of Arabic Poetry in Damascus. The ceremonial opening took place at the Damascus Opera House and brought together 55 poets, writers, and lecturers from 16 Arab countries. Organizers describe the forum not merely as a literary event, but as a comprehensive cultural project intended to redraw and document the region’s literary map. Here, words become a bridge for human and aesthetic exchange between participants and the public.
In...
Knowledge
A Building Over the Road: How a Bridge-Like Structure Became a Place Where Thousands Said “No”
In the very heart of Seattle there’s a building that does something truly unbelievable. It stands directly over the highway. Not beside it, not near it—right above it. Beneath the floor of this massive building, thousands of cars stream by every day, while above them people drink coffee, hold meetings, and carry out important negotiations. This is where, in 1999, an event took place that people around the world still talk about today. And it all began when one engineer decided: if you can’t...
Right to Play: How Kids Without a Yard Changed American Cities
Imagine a city with not a single patch of green. No parks, no backyards, no trees—only cobblestone streets, smoke from factory chimneys, and the clatter of horse-drawn carriages. That was the world millions of children lived in in American cities in the late 19th century. And it was these children—more precisely, the adults who took up their cause—who launched a movement that ultimately gave Seattle one of the most beautiful park systems in the world.
A City That Forgot About Children
In the...
The Sunday Market That Wouldn’t Die: How One Flea Saved an Entire Neighborhood
Imagine it: early Sunday morning, a typical Seattle drizzle hanging in the air, and the street already smells of hot coffee and old books. People spread out vinyl records, handmade earrings, worn-out jackets, and porcelain little cats on their tables. Someone is selling, someone is bargaining, someone just wanders around and looks. This is the Fremont Sunday Market—and it has been running every weekend for more than thirty years. Even when it pours. Even when everything around it changes. Even...
The killer in the rain: how Seattle scientists cracked a mystery no one could solve for...
Imagine that every autumn, salmon appear in Seattle’s rivers. They swim in from the ocean, make their way into city streams — and then suddenly start acting strangely: circling in place, losing their balance, and dying a few hours later. It happened again and again. And no one — not fishermen, not scientists, not city officials — could figure out why for a long time.
Fish that died after the rain
Seattle is one of the few major cities in the world where wild salmon still enter directly into...
Fish Ladder: How People Built a Wall—and Then Figured Out How to Get Around It
Imagine you’re swimming across the whole ocean. Weeks of travel, thousands of kilometers of salt water. You’re tired, but you know where you’re going—home, to a quiet, cool lake where you were born. And then—there’s a wall. Enormous, made of concrete, impossible to overcome. That’s exactly what happened to Seattle’s salmon more than a hundred years ago. But the story didn’t end sadly. Because some people noticed—and came up with something astonishing.
Who Built This Wall—and Why
At the...
The House That Swings: How Floating-Home Residents Saved the Lake — and What They Lost
Imagine waking up in the morning—and instead of asphalt outside your window, you see water. Ducks swim right past your kitchen. When a big ferry goes by, your house gently rocks, as if it’s saying, “Good morning.” That’s pretty much what every day begins like for a few hundred families in Seattle—living not on land, but right on Lake Union. This isn’t a fairy tale and it’s not a movie. It’s a real floating neighborhood, with an amazing—and a bit sad—story.
Who Thought of Living on the...
Troll under the bridge: how one giant saved an entire neighborhood
You’ve probably heard fairy tales about trolls that live under bridges and scare travelers. But in the American city of Seattle, there’s a real troll under a real bridge — and instead of frightening people, it attracts them from all over the world. The story of how it ended up there sounds like a fairy tale, but every word of it is true.
A place everyone feared
In Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood, right in the heart of the city, there’s a large bridge — the Aurora Bridge. Under it, as often...
On stilts: how Seattle residents said goodbye to their beloved—and dangerous—freeway
Imagine a huge road standing right over the sea—like a giant shelf on legs. Cars drive along it, and below, the bay’s waves splash. Sounds like something out of a fairy tale, doesn’t it? But that’s exactly what the real Alaskan Way Viaduct in the American city of Seattle looked like. And when city officials decided to demolish it, residents kicked up such a fuss that people still remember it with a smile.
A road on legs above the water
The Alaskan Way Viaduct was built in the 1950s—back when...
Bookstore vs. a Giant: How Small Shops Won in the City Where Amazon Was Born
Picture this: in one city lives the biggest book seller in the world. He’s huge, like a dragon—he has millions of books, fast delivery, and entire office towers right in the heart of town. Surely, the little bookstores next door to such a giant could never survive. But in this very city—Seattle—something surprising happened. Small bookstores didn’t just survive; they flourished. Like flowers pushing through asphalt.
A Giant Was Born in a Garage
It all started in 1994. A young man named Jeff...