Thursday, September 25, 2008
Last updated 12:50 a.m. PT
Drop much steeper than national trend
By ALEX VEIGA
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Seattle and Portland were among the top 10 metro areas in the nation with the most pronounced drop in sales of existing homes in August versus a year ago, even as other cities in the West bucked a national downward trend, according to two reports Wednesday.

About 106,000 existing homes and condos were sold last month in the 13-state region. Without adjusting for seasonal factors, that number is up about 1 percent from the same month last year and flat versus July’s figures, according to the National Association of Realtors. Read the rest of this entry »

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER EDITORIAL BOARD

A new book by a New York Times reporter shines a light on the disturbing behind-the-scenes workings of the 9/11 Commission’s report. If bulletproof, the book prompts us to add one more thing to our to-do list for the next administration: Pressure it to charge a panel of independent experts to write a real, nonpartisan report on the attacks.

Philip Shenon’s “The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Commission” focuses on the relationship between the commission’s executive director, Philip Zelikow, and the White House. To start with, Shenon writes that Zelikow sought to limit the Bush administration’s responsibility in failing to assess threats leading up to the attacks. In 2003, with George W. Bush seeking re-election, a commission investigator found materials confirming that the White House (specifically, Condoleezza Rice, with whom Zelikow had written a book) had ignored warnings of an impending al-Qaida strike. Belittling the investigator, Zelikow dismissed the evidence.

Zelikow had written a 2002 report for the administration, which seemed to provide justification for a pre-emptive war, and tried in 2004 to create a connection between Osama bin Laden and Iraq in the 9/11 Commission report. Despite saying he wouldn’t do so, he also had several conversations with Rice and Karl Rove, which explains why he’d asked his assistant to stop keeping track of his calls to and from the White House.

Someone with an apparent deference for the White House should not have been trusted with such a valued task.

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER EDITORIAL BOARDWith the clock ticking on our “commitments” in Iraq — the international mandate expires in less than a year — the Bush administration is left in an interesting position. It could create a plan for a troop withdrawal; instead, the plan being negotiated with the Iraqi government focuses on reasons to stay there, something The New York Times reports is seen by Democrats as a plan that would “bind the next president by locking in Mr. Bush’s policies and a long-term military presence.”

And we’re starting to learn about the byzantine tactic being employed to get this done. Senior administration officials will say they’re not interested in permanent bases in Iraq. They use terms like “long-term” and “enduring” (U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said as much on Thursday). It’s all a matter of slyly edited statements, woven to obscure their true meaning and aim: What’s being crafted is a treaty. Iraqi leaders seem to know this, and describe what’s being negotiated (formally named “Declaration of Principles for a Long-Term Relationship of Cooperation and Friendship Between the Republic of Iraq and the United States of America”) as a “long-term treaty.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Seattle Times/AP

PORTLAND, Ore — The largest counterterrorism exercise in U.S. history has begun with a bright flash and a loud bang meant to simulate a dirty bomb attack.

It was done shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday in Portland.

Dozens of federal, state and local agencies are staging the weeklong exercise to test the nation’s readiness for a terrorist attack. A simulated bomb was set off at a staging area near the Portland International Raceway. The exercise is well away from downtown Portland to avoid tying up the city.

Similar exercises are being staged in Arizona and Guam. The exercise wraps up on Friday.

Thanks for picking up on this Paul Joseph Watson, and thanks to all the WACS members that made it happen!

Paul Joseph Watson
Tuesday, September 11, 2007

This morning, Seattle Post-Intelligencer reporter Ron Schott posted a rant on his blog complaining about seeing 9/11 truthers littering the streets of Seattle.

Schott launched all manner of ad hominem insults, claiming truth activists were “out of there mind” (actual spelling) and encouraged his readers to give them the finger - Geraldo style - if they saw them during today’s anniversary events.

Schott recycled the usual garbage in claiming that 9/11 truth hurts the family members and the first responders.

Low and behold, about 10 minutes after I posted a response on the comments section, the Seattle-Post Intelligencer removed the blog posting altogether.

Read the rest of this entry »