Election Problems Solved? 70% of Washingtonians Say "No They're Not" and Majority says "We Want Dino!"
The newly released August Strategic Vision poll of 800 likely Washington voters shows that 70% of those surveyed don't yet believe that the problems of the last election have been solved. Forty-six percent of respondents were democrats, while just 37% identified themselves as republicans. Even those in Ron Sims' own party still aren't impressed with his Election Department's performance. (hat tip to Wednesday's King County Journal editorial for highlighting this info). The poll also notes that only 43% of Washingtonians... [read more]

Senator Joe Lieberman's 2006 Web Site
Just a few of my thoughts on the Joe Lieberman campaign. I don't necessarily agree with most of Joe's liberal voting tendencies, but he has been a stanch allied defender with George Bush against the terrorism that surrounds our country. I think he has shown a lot of courage to step into the Independent arena and keep his campaign alive. And as of today on Realclearpolitics.com, Joe holds a 5.3% advantage in the polls. Enough of an advantage that Hillary... [read more]

Soldier Brutally Beaten in Parkland: Called baby killer by attackers
Courtesy of KIRO TV National Guardsman Brutally Attacked In Pierce County PARKLAND, Wash. -- The Pierce County Sheriff's Department is searching for five people who allegedly attacked a uniformed National Guardsmen walking along 138th Street in Parkland Tuesday afternoon. The soldier was walking to a convenience store when a sport utility vehicle pulled up alongside him and the driver asked if he was in the military and if he had been in any action. The driver then got out of... [read more]

WA Democrats Reject One Of Their Own
The Washington State Democratic party Tuesday announced that it will not throw its support behind incumbent state Senator Tim Sheldon (D - 35th District), but will support his primary election opponent, Kyle Taylor Lucas. Just as the Democratic in Connecticut did with Joe Lieberman, the Washington State Democratic Party has chosen to distance itself from a well-respected, long-term, lawmaker in favor of a much more liberal Senatorial candidate. Just what is going on here? If the goal of the Democrats... [read more]

I shop at walmart........
The new "cool" thing to have in Olympia these days is a bumper sticker that proudly proclaims "I don't shop at wal-mart." For some odd reason, everytime I get behind a car proudly displaying this sticker, I can't help but want a sticker that says, "I shop at wal-mart". What bothers me is not that people don't shop at Wal-Mart, shop wherever the heck you want, I don't care, but it's the fact that people see this sticker as a... [read more]

Mainstream Media Found Dead Under Karr
Well, for all us cynics out there, let us raise our glasses of whatever poison suits us in tribute to the late mainstream media. As we cynics so inerrantly predicted, John Mark Karr is a great big non-story. His version of the JonBenet Ramsey murder- that is, his false confession- was proven to be as dubious as his masculinity. The only thing Karr is guilty of is being a really, really creepy dude. And the mainstream media has once again... [read more]

Washingtonians for Mitt Romney
For those of you who are already interested in 2008 presidential politics, there is a relatively new blogsite for Mitt Romney fans in Washington State: http://washingtoniansformitt.blogspot.com/ Even if you are unfamiliar with this blue state republican governor, please come check the site out. Thanks! Nivek... [read more]

Developers and their media mouthpieces
Today's King County Journal has as its lead editorial, Thumbs up for approval of Redmond Ridge. For anyone who has read any of my accounts of this debacle, including the wrongdoing, the whistleblower complaints, or the hearing examiner's recommendation to deny Redmond Ridge East and to rescind Quadrant's concurrency certificate, take note of which local paper has come running to Quadrant's aid to help cover up the stink left by last week's vote by the County Council to approve Redmond... [read more]

Fox news reporters released
Here is a link to the story. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,210645,00.html... [read more]

Al-Reuters Newsie Wounded by IDF
Al-Reuters, the official spokesman of Jihad, informs us that one of their own has been wounded in an airstrike by Israeli Air Force in Gaza. Dang. Well, I suppose it's the price one pays for pimping mongrel thugs who have no right to Israeli real estate and have no sense of gratitude at all for what they have managed to extort from Israel already. But then, that's the thing with radical Moslems: they don't know when to shut up and... [read more]

Darcy Burner and HA's flatullence
Might as well seal the deal on this race...Reichert has solidified his base and has plenty of crossover. I cant help but enjoy the flatullence being posted by Owngoalstein though! August 24, 2006 In WA-8, Reichert Holds 13 Point Lead In Washington's 8th congressional district, a new SurveyUSA poll shows Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA) leads challenger Darcy Burner (D), 54% to 41%. Key findings: "Reichert leads by 21 points among men and by 6 points among women. Reichert gets 91%... [read more]

Washington Senate Race on Special Report
Special Report with Brit Hume will cover the Washington State Senate Race today at 3PM on Fox News.... [read more]

Amendment 3 - A Better Solution to the Pick-a-Party Problem
CITIZENS FOR A BETTER BALLOT For Immediate Release / August 22nd 2006 Contact: Ryan Griffin, Campaign Manager (253) 228-1991 - info@yesonthree.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ninth Circuit Strikes Down I-872 Pierce County Charter Amendment Three Has Better Solution to Pick-A-Party Primary In 2004, voters in Washington rejected the pick-a-party primary by approving I-872. However, I-872's "top-two" primary system failed to protect the associational rights of the political parties and, like the blanket primary, was ruled unconstitutional by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.... [read more]

Seattle Schools Racism in the Name of Diveristy
Seattle Schools ill informed attempt at "diversity" have made it onto the pages of National Review Online in an article by Peter Kirsanow. Seattle's obsession with adjusting the racial composition of schools that are diverse already fails the tests set forth in Grutter and Gratz. Indeed, it would be difficult to craft a racial-assignment policy more incongruent with the narrow tailoring requirement of strict scrutiny. He hits on everything wrong with this school policy. And is a window into why... [read more]

More on Darcy Burner
The final word from the Burner campaign regarding their deceptive campaign video is.... NOTHING Disappointing really, I would have expected at least another standard denial, but despite repeated requests, they have elected to make no further response. I have no choice but to assume it was deliberate. So today on Goldy's blog I saw a video displayed proudly that featured Ms Burner speaking at the DNC convention in Chicago. Stefan at Sound Politics called it hysterical rantings. See for yourself:... [read more]

Understanding Islam?!
Okay, before any RDDBs reading this post jump on my case let me just say that I know plenty of patriotic, kind and good Muslims so this is not directed at the religion itself. That being said, I was driving through Redmond today and saw a new yardsign. This wasn't Ross Hunter, finally posting some notice although the one's I saw may help him with his "jihad" on education. No, these stated, in "patriotic" Saudi colors (yellow and green) "Understanding... [read more]

King County Council ignores concurrency again
If anyone still believes that King County cares about supporting growth with roads, yesterday's approval of Redmond Ridge East should drive the last nail in that thinking. If anyone still thinks that this county council cares about hearing examiner recommendations to deny development, or that they might be concerned with the ongoing wrongdoing by KCDOT to cheat for developers, the decision should quickly erase that too. Yesterday's approval of Redmond Ridge East, on an 8-1 vote, is the clearest evidence... [read more]

Where Have All The Conservatives Gone?
Seriously. Can anyone reveal what has happened to conservatism in this country? Are there any REAL Conservatives left who can make a difference? Or are we all really captives on this runaway train toward socialism / totalitarianism? What is a real Conservative, anyway?... [read more]

Why John McCain Should Not Be President
From the personal blog of ERNurse: John McCain is reportedly solidifying his base for a run for the Presidency in 2008. On the face of it, McCain has everything one could need for a decent shot at it. He's got the war record that John Kerry wishes he had (and tried to convince us that he did). He's got the money and he's got the notoriety. He's surrounded himself with influential friends. He's surrounded himself with press. Yes, it seems... [read more]

Reichert's Challenge
::Crossposted at Red State. Is The Sheriff in Trouble? Aside from disseminating cleverly worded DCCC press releases and asking liberal Seattleites to open their checkbooks, Congressman Dave Reichert's challenger, Darcy Burner, is mainly banking on anti-Bush sentiment to secure victory for her party at the ballot box. The way local bloggers and media tell it, Reichert is as vulnerable as they come. But if you buy into the Democrats version reality, you will be disappointed come November. To arrive at... [read more]

IRV Senate poll
Here's an interesting, unscientific WA Senate poll that counts results according to Instant Runoff Voting rules ... http://demochoice.org/dcballot.php?poll=WashSenate Let everyone know ...... [read more]

Swecker, Legislature Wrong on Marriage
Senator Dan Swecker, an individual I have a lot of respect for, recently wrote an editorial to the Seattle Time defending the legislature's right to "protect marriage," and praising the State Supreme Court's recent decision that agrees this is a legislative issue. Although I agree with the Senator that the Court's decision to let the legislature legislate was the right one, this is where our agreement ends... This Republican supports marriage equality. I believe the Defense of Marriage Act does... [read more]

Soldiers caught in the crossfire of partisan politics
Some things never change. This issue took me right back to my days as an undergrad' at WWSC: On Nov. 16, 2005, Senator Dick Durbin took the Senate floor to attack Senator Ted Stevens for allegedly permitting oil company executives to lie to the Senate Commerce Committee by not putting them under oath. Stevens, outraged by this assault on his integrity, demanded an apology in keeping with Senate rules prohibiting attacks on unworthy behavior. Durbin refused and the battle had... [read more]

Gun Control Idiocy
The Seattle PI reported on the press conference of one of the survivors of the Jewish Federation shooting. PI Article. "A pregnant woman who survived last month's deadly shooting at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle said that she trusts authorities to decide whether accused gunman Naveed Haq lives or dies. "I'm really happy not to make that decision," Dayna Klein said Thursday at a press conference held in Seattle's Hotel Monaco." Not apparently wanting to appear judgmental, she did... [read more]

The P.I. champions of public scrutiny, unless it involves them.
The Seattle P.I. recently disclosed that it will not participate in a probe by the Washington News Council into their series "Conduct Unbecoming" an obviously biased attack on the King County Sheriff's Department. See Link: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/281252_newscouncil15.html When pressed for an explanation why, the management at the P.I. made vague references to conflict of interest by 4 members of the News Council. The members offered to recuse themselves from the inquiry but the P.I. still refuses to participate. What does this... [read more]

Darcy Burner's Tag line
Just got a unsolicited recorded message from Darcy Burner's campaign with her voice droning on and on over the phone. I really detest the phone spam that politicians allowed themselves. Burner's tag line, "I won't disappoint you" is rather funny. Someone leaving Microsoft after only 3 years, or quitting law school is someone that seems pretty adept at disappointing performance. The difference between Reichart and Burner is rather stark. It is a study in contrasts, one of accomplishment versus unfinished... [read more]

Voter Registration is still a mess
I just logged onto the voter registration list provided by Sound Politics and in a few short minutes found felons, people with advanced dementia, people who have not lived in the state for 20 years - and these are just my in-laws! When is the state going to finally take voter registration seriously? If I, a rank amateur sleuth can find these mistakes, then how many are really still out there? Unbelievable.... [read more]

Explosives found at Tri-State Airport in WVa.
The Transportation Security Administration reports that a passenger's water bottle screened positive for an explosive material around 9:15 this morning. A second test was confirmed at 11:25. NBC News reports that federal screeners found four containers of liquids inside a woman's carry-on bag during the screening process this morning. Larry Salyers, Tri-State Airport Director, tells WSAZ the woman is of Pakistani origin, lived in Jackson, Michigan and most recently lived in the Huntington area. She is being detained for questioning.... [read more]

Hollywood Elites take out an ad in L.A. Times condeming terrorism.
It specifically targets "terrorist organisations" such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine. A who's who of Hollywood heavyweights joined Kidman on the ad. The actors listed included: Michael Douglas, Dennis Hopper, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Danny De Vito, Don Johnson, James Woods, Kelly Preston, Patricia Heaton and William Hurt. Directors Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Michael Mann, Dick Donner and Sam Raimi also signed their names. Other Hollywood powerplayers supporting the ad included Sumner Redstone, the chairman and majority... [read more]

BP is Irresponsible
The incompetent company that is known as British Petroleum just made another bump in the road on the oil drilling in the Artic National Wildlife Refuge debate. Due the the accident in Prudhoe Bay, Maria Cant-do-anything-well has most likely gained some political points due to her stance on the issue. Lets recap on some of BP's previous accidents. In July 2005 some of you may remember the refinery explosion that took the lives of 15 people and injuring 170 others.... [read more]

Islamist Win Again
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060816/wl_nm/somalia_dc_3 After a brilliant victory over the Israeli army, the Islamist follow this is a key port capture in Somalia. Bush comments: None. Republican comments: None.... [read more]

Seattlelites Hang on to Your Wallets
Seattle is looking to dip farther into your wallets with a new tax package. This package features: a 34% increase in property taxes, $25 dollar a head worker tax, and 10% commercial parking "surcharge." They claim it is for 20 years, we all know how once a revenue stream is tapped getting government weaned off that source is near to impossible. There is no sunset clause in the package, so let's be honest; call it permanent. Only have vague "infrastructure"... [read more]

Haditha Blow Back
Kline (R) apologizes to the Marines for pre-judging them! Which is not enough by the way. 90%+ odds are boys are out by the before election day as the Republicans start to walk the Green Mile for the lack of support of our troops.... [read more]

NPI brags as Cantwell blinks
NPI (Northwest Progressive Institute) has a piece up applauding Cantwell for her newly formed position on Iraq. Maria, like Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman have long been criticized for their support of the war and the troops. Many northwest Liberals have been increasingly calling for hr head, politically speaking. After seeing the treatment by Lieberman by the DNC, it seems Maria has suddenly realized that she is playing a big game of chicken with the party over her position, a... [read more]

Darcy Burner's assistants
I regularly read the letters to the editor in the King County Journal. They have a tendancy to at least be a bit more balanced in their choice of letters. Today there was a letter from Dennis Higgins. He finishes up his letter by saying that, "For security's sake, we must elect Democrats like Darcy Burner to Congress this fall." I can't think of a worse idea. Darcy Burner has burnished her resume, she left Microsoft after only 3 years,... [read more]

KC GOP Executive antagonism
I would be interested in knowing if there was any higher attendance number for the 2006 King County GOP Picnic. What has past attendance been, in earlier years? This year seemed well publicized on radio, so what happened? The Reagan Wing has pics, and cites about 27 people attended the County wide Picnic - Reagan Wing article, pics This is a sad turnout. Does it indicate the KC GOP base is not enthused, this year; and why? And the unfriendly... [read more]

Darcy Burner Campaign Video- post mortum
In what has generated the most comments, emails and page hits my blog has seen, I posted my assessment of the Darcy Burner (Candidate for US House, WA Dist 8 ) campaign video, and how I felt it was deceptive in that it allowed a false impression. When I emailed her campaign, her campaign manager, Zach Silk denied this was intentional, and even denied it was a realistic impression. The blog readers, for the most part, disagreed. I will post... [read more]

Cantwell Wants to "Change Course," But How?
Chad Shue, who writes "The Left Shue" and with whom I disagree on, well, pretty much everything, reports on Maria Cantwell's appearance at the Snohomish County Democrats annual picnic. The money quote is: "(Cantwell) seemed very comfortable (to point of passionate) about the call to "change course" and pulling the troops out of Iraq. I can't say that I was expecting any particulars on how we "stand up the Iraqis" but that is not necessarily for her to say." I... [read more]

Something interesting to think about
From the usually conservative King County Journal Time for third political party? When is a Democrat not a Democrat? When he's Sen. Joe Lieberman, or at least that's how Ned Lamont characterized him during Lamont's campaign to become the Democrats' senatorial candidate. And it worked -- Lamont defeated Lieberman in Connecticut's primary last week by branding him a hawk for his support of the war in Iraq. Never mind that Lieberman, a moderate, was once considered Democrat enough to be... [read more]

Audit of King County Concurrency System backs critics' allegations
On July 10, the King County Committee of the Whole was presented the results of the 2-year audit of the King County Department of Transportation Road Services Division, and specifically its concurrency program designed to support new development with the necessary road infrastructure. The conclusions align with more than a decade of allegations and charges made by critics of King County DOT and its actions on behalf of certain developers. Among the findings made by Tom Noguchi of Mirai Transportation... [read more]

User Guidelines For SP Public Blog: Come Blog With Us!
We're very excited about the new Sound Politics Public Blog, which gives our readers and commenters a chance to share their own blog posts with the public. As you can see in the right-hand column on our SP main page, we have a running list of links to the most recent posts at our Public Blog site. To encourage more people to contribute more often to the SP Public Blog, here are some user guidelines in the form of Frequently... [read more]

A Soldier's Poem
I just attnded the funeral service of my nephew (22 yrs old) who served our country. He was a proud soldier. His service ended in December 2005. He was killed in an auto-crash on Tuesday of last week. In the "program" that is given to each in attendance, there on the inner fold was a poem he wrote, and it reads: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Poem-by Aaron George Nichols ~ 2002 As time fades away I can see myself getting older, my... [read more]

Orwell's Dark Vision Looms
There's only one thing more disturbing than the roughly one-half of the American population afflicted by Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS) - the other half which seems robotically blinded by Neo-conservatism (which isn't Conservatism at all). Can anyone explain how the transformation of our nation's airports into gleaming monuments to coercion, administered by the government's new Ministry of Safety, is not completely Orwellian - if not completely insane? Let's get this straight - every time a terrorist plot by Young Islamic... [read more]

Rural Ombudsman just another defender of status quo
I recently filed an ethics complaint against King County DOT and DDES for their decision to allow Quadrant's attorney to testify on their behalf in the recent Redmond Ridge East appeal hearing. DOT and DDES allowed both a perceived and clear conflict of interest to occur in allowing Quadrant's Richard Wilson to represent the views of not only his employer, but to also imply the full agreement of these two agencies in arguments such as the unfairness to Quadrant in... [read more]

Northgate Peace March
I work in the Northgate area, so when 2:00 rolled around, I walked over to the local mosque to take a look at the Peace March. They were, of course, running late. In fact, the Muslim contingent was still quietly filing out of the mosque. Overall, the march seemed quite innocuous, full of naive idealists (and Muslims supporting their "sisters" and "brothers" in Lebanon). No Israel=Nazi signs like you get at similar protests in California and wherever. Seattle is just... [read more]

Why you should oppose Sybil Bailey's appointment to the SHA Board of Commissioners
If you live in the City of Seattle, you probably think that if Sybil L. (for Louise?) Bailey, the mayor's 65 year old, wheelchair bound, crusty nominee as the tenant representative on the Seattle Housing Authority's Board of Commissioners gets appointed, it won't have an effect on you. You may be mistaken. At the Seattle City Council Housing Committee meeting on August 1st which I attended, nearly a dozen SHA tenants said they didn't want Bailey, speaking for them on... [read more]

UnopposedDemocrats?
There was an interesting article in the Everett Herald newspaper this morning about unopposed Democrats in the September Primary election. Being a resident of Everett I was quickly drawn to the fact that there is nobody on the Republican primary for Washington State Senate or House seat #2 in the 38th District. I truly wonder why this is. Are these incumbent Democrats considered unbeatable by the Republican party? I have decided to explore the possibility of paying the filing fee... [read more]

Does Partisan Politics Get ANY Sleazier Than This?
The recent lawsuit filed against Senate Candidate Mike McGavick, stinks worse than Liberty Bay after one of its infamous sewer line breaks. A Safeco Insurance shareholder, 27-year old Emma Schwartzman, a distant relative of Safeco's founders who inherited a small number of shares of the insurance company, has filed a lawsuit accusing McGavick of malfeasence and "looting" the company. Never mind the company was on the verge of bankruptcy when McGavick took over and he turned it around. Schwartzman and... [read more]

5th Legislative District Republican Representatives Will Run Unopposed
Republican WA House of Representatives members Glenn Anderson and Jay Rodne of the 5th legislative district apparently will not have democrat challengers when they stand for re-election this fall, the King County Journal reported earlier this week. The 5th District has largely been a republican stronghold and includes Sammamish and Issaquah and spans out to east to Snoqualmie Pass and south as far as Black Diamond and Maple Valley. Dino Rossi represented the 5th as State Senator for about 7... [read more]

Far Left Walmart-Basher/U.S. Senate Candidate Ned Lamont OWNS Walmart Stock
Wealthy far-left Democrat senatorial candidate Ned Lamont---challenger to U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman in Connecticut's upcoming primary, and outspoken critic of Wal-Mart---owns Wal-Mart stock, reports the Washington Times. Despite being sharply critical of Wal-Mart's employment practices and policies, it turns out that between Lamont, his wife and a child of theirs that the family owns up to $31,000 of the retailer's stock and enjoy a healthy annual dividend from the shares. Lamont has been engaged with Lieberman in at times what... [read more]

Hannity Freedom Concert - West Coast
I just got back last night from San Diego where I attended the Hannity Freedom Concert and I must tell you that it was a tremendous experience. I think I can speak for everyone who went to the concert from the KVI contest when I say that we all would like to give Kirby WIlbur a special thanks for having the contest and being a gracious host and to his Promotions Assistant, Katie Grimes, for all the coordinating she did... [read more]

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Trash
While taking a stroll through the Arboretum this morning I came across some folks digging in the dirt. Curious, I approached them and asked if they were conducting an archeological dig? They were and I followed up asking if they'd found anything of interest. Nope, but the area they were digging at used to be a landfill during the early part of the last century. I figured they must be from the UW just honing their archeological skills by searching... [read more]

Progressive; Hypocrisy is thy middle name
I don't understand the hatred of CEOs that has become popular in today's culture. If a CEO has drastically increased the value of a company, why shouldn't they be well compensated? And if they are smart and savvy and able to demand an upfront contract at the beginning of their employment which gives them a sweet deal upon termination, well that's just their market value and good negotiating. The leadership which McGavick provided increased shareholder value of SAFECO by orders... [read more]

Sound Questions
What is it exactly about Fidel Castro that leftists so admire? Is it because there's a real-life 'working' socialist utopian state so close to our shores? And what is it with the love affair some people have with 'maverick' presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain? Excuse me, but isn't McCain a most obviously dangerous clown? Besides his loose-cannon politics, whenever I watch him pander in public or engage in his trademark demagogic gesticulation, why do see vivid images of Uncle Fester... [read more]

Conservative Bloggers Unveil Rightroots
Rightroots: The Republican Answer To The Lefty Blogosphere's Netroots Endorsed Candidates As you all probably know, the left-side of the blogosphere has endorsed a slate of Democratic candidates and as of last night about 11:59 PM, the "netroots" had managed to already raise $386,968.31 for them. Time and time again, Republicans have asked, "Gee, why can't someone on our side do the same thing for us?" In fact, I was asking myself that question a little less than 3 weeks... [read more]

King County Journal slaps Sims
Time for Sims to re-read election report It's been one year this week since a blue-ribbon committee appointed by County Executive Ron Sims issued a report on King County's elections office. One of the committee's recommendations: that the county elections chief be elected, not appointed. On Tuesday, two county council members -- Republican Reagan Dunn of Bellevue and Democrat Bob Ferguson of Shoreline -- proposed an ordinance that would do just that. With Ferguson on board, the four Republican council... [read more]