My co-writer Dylan already predicted this, but it’s worth repeating.

Attention so-called media professionals: The Capitol Hill shooting wasn’t the fault of the ravers, despite what the Seattle Times thinks.

It wasn’t the fault of the guns, despite what Robert Jamieson wants you to believe.

The shooting was the fault of a pathetic, lonely wretch who probably wanted a shot at the glory you’re giving him. He and he alone is responsible for his choices. Why’d he do it? We’d ask him, but he’s dead. Some things you can’t know.

Let add my voice to Samantha’s and give another plug to The Stranger, who has displayed by far the best coverage and professionalism of any of the local media about the shooting. It’s good to see them get past their occasional hipper-than-thou tendencies and do some great journalistic work.

Technorati Tags: news, seattle

Local personality and all-around fun guy Clark Humphrey is working on his next book, and he’d like your help.

Clark’s been around the Seattle scene longer than I’ve been alive. He wrote for The Stranger for a while and is the man behind Loser, The Real Seattle Music Story. When you can get him talking, he’s got some great stories.

So, right, he’s working on a new book about our town. Says Clark, “It’ll be a picture book all about fondly remembered local bygones–restaurants, stores, TV/radio personalities, buildings, landmarks, tourist attractions, and more.” He’s asking you to submit your suggestions for these topics, which you can email to him at vanish@miscmedia.com. I know that you’ve all got ideas–if there’s one thing we like to talk about in this city, it’s how much better it used to be.

Also, and this is largely unrelated, I wanted to make sure that you have all read this article from The Stranger about Saturday morning’s shooting, told by the people who were there. It’s haunting and awful and torturous to read, but essential all the same.

via KING

This year’s sophomores are the first class who won’t be allowed to graduate unless they’ve passed the infamous WASL test. That wouldn’t be so bad if the previous WASL scores weren’t so lousy. In Seattle, only 35 percent of last year’s sophomores passed all three required sections of the test.

I’ve asked a couple of working teachers about the WASL, and the general reaction is: we hate it with the fiery passion of a thousand burning suns. No, not just because their performance is also attached to the WASL. It’s because you get what you measure. If you’re measured on a test, you’ll start teaching to the test. Social studies, art, history, who cares? As long as you pass the math and reading sections on the WASL, you’re fine.

There are now some exceptions to the no-graduate rule. Governor Gregoire signed a bill that allows students who’ve failed the WASL to graduate anyway if their grades are equal or better to a group of peers who passed the test, or if they submit a portfolio of work, or complete a career training program. Students can also substitute their performance on a nationally recognized test like the SAT for the math section of the WASL.

Still. It’s expensive. Home-schoolers, who aren’t required to take the test, skew the numbers. Some kids thought it was too easy. Other kids thought it was too hard, or thought it led to rote memorizing and a lack of creative thinking.

Here’s the best suggestion I heard all week for fixing what’s broken about the WASL. I suspect it’s not original. If someone wants to claim credit in the comments, feel free.

• Have every member of the Washington State Legislature sit the 10th grade WASL exam.
• Collect all the scores.
• Figure out the midpoint (50th percentile) score achieved by our state legislators.
• Anything higher than that midpoint is a passing grade.

Yeah yeah, I know we talk about 826 Seattle a lot around here. We can’t help ourselves–it’s just so much fun, and a bunch of us are volunteers. I personally am there every Saturday afternoon, bungling the cash register and counting t-shirts. Except that I’ll be in Boston this Saturday, and you know what I’m going to miss?

I’m going to miss the 826 space hosting the second annual Edible Book Festival. Damn.

Oh, don’t look at me like that, all, “But samantha, what do you mean by ‘edible book’?” “It’s just what it sounds like. It can look like a book, pun on a title, refer to a character, or just have something to do with books– whatever the inspiration, it must be edible.” That’s right, friends, it’s books that you can eat. If you bring an entry you get in free, and if you’re just there to taste it’ll cost you $5. The viewing starts at 2:00 on April 1st, and eating will begin promptly at 3:00. If you think you’ll be making something, let them know now so that they can keep a space open for you.

We’re nearly 30 hours out from the Capitol Hill shootings, and we still don’t have any further clues about the shooter’s motive. And the problem (at least to me) is that the local media has done a piss-poor job doing what they’re supposed to do — report.

The Times does little to shed light on all of this. Neither does the P-I, though Hector Castro does a hell of a good job at spot-reporting the bloody predicament one Cesar Clemente had when he came upon the scene as it happened.

All this to say that, of all the newspaper and television media groups in this town, the Stranger’s Slog has done the best job putting the facts together, coloring in the background, and digging for details.

Memo to the writers at the Times and P-I and all you KING/KIRO/KOMO types: Start here. Read. Scroll up. Read. Learn. Because a BLOG is kicking your ass at reporting. A BLOG run by a weekly newspaper is doing Pulitzer-level work. And special note to the Times and P-I — this is how you do a news blog. Kudos to Dan Savage and his merry band of pinko liberal America-haters.

And on another subject, my watch is ticking away here waiting for somebody out there mete out blame for this unexplainable rampage. Maybe it’s just Sunday afternoon, but I haven’t seen any of the usual idiots throwing themselves in front of the camera to publicly scourge rave culture, video games (such as Shoot Up A Rave Afterparty 3 — now for XBox 360!), or teen abortions on this. I’m counting on you, Ken Hutcherson.

What do women want? According to the Seattle P-I’s annoying puff piece on the Northwest Women’s Show (happening at Qwest Field this weekend), women want to deck themselves out in bling and fake hair, learn how to do a striptease, get Brazilian waxes, and feel up Alaskan bachelors in the hopes of snagging a husband.

OK then.

Seven dead, three wounded, according to the Seattle Times, including the shooter. No word yet on who or why. The paper reports that the shooting happened around 7 AM at an after-party of some kind.

Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and friends. We’re so very sorry.

Technorati Tags: news, seattle

This past week, TLC’s What Not To Wear show came out with a little twist: What Not To Underwear. Judging from a small sampling of audition tapes they showed at the beginning of the episode, quite a lot of women (including one who had given up and was simply not wearing any) need help with their unmentionables. Perhaps the biggest surprise was when they chose three Seattle schoolteachers to help out; seems like Seattle would have quite the reputation for not really caring what it wears, as long as it can double as hiking/skiing/canoeing gear of some sort. These must be the only three women in town who care about VPL and the Uniboob Syndrome.

Half of me is applauding the bravery of Gina, Erin, and Yachiyo for stepping forward and prancing around in their undies (at-hem! I mean, “lingerie”) in front of the world. The other half just wonders how much grief they’re going to get from the kids — if any — hopefully, the knowledge of what Teach is wearing underneath her clothes will be so much TMI that it’ll scare ‘em into being quiet for the rest of the year.

Marcus Hahnemann [bbc news]

Most of this city’s sporting attention tonight will be focused on whether the Huskies will be able to beat the Huskies… or is that vice versa? Anyway, UDub basketball has a chance this evening to break through to the men’s Elite Eight for the first time in their history.

Meanwhile, a few in town will be focusing on an event in a completely different sport happening in the wee hours of Saturday morning. Reading FC is one win away from clinching their first ever promotion to the top division of English football. It’s only taken 135 years. And a certain MB author is, um, chuffed about the Royals finally, finally earning their right to be thrashed senseless by Man U and Chelsea every week.

The Seattle connection in all of this? Seattle-born goalie Marcus Hahnemann. He got his start with the Sounders back in the mid-90s (minding the nets of the 1995 A-League champ team) before eventually moving to the MLS and on to Europe. He’ll also be backing up another Puget Sound native (Kasey Keller) on the US World Cup team that will be thrashed senseless by Italy.

Reading has been winning and winning often with an American goalkeeper and an American star midfielder in Bobby Convey. Perhaps, just maybe, American soccer is finally starting to reach a world class level of play. But, at least for me, my English football team does not suck for once.

In preparation for tonight’s battle of the Husky Dogs, I bring you four reasons why there’s hope the correct Huskies will win:

1) UW plays better when they’re not expected to win.

Throughout the season, UW has been up and down. Often playing well, but just as often losing inexplicable games. Games where they clearly should have trounced the other team. For example, they lost twice against Washington State. Washington State went 4-14 this year earning them a solid last place finish in the Pac-10. UW also fell hard to a losing record Oregon team early in the Pac-10 conference. On the other hand, they beat Arizona on senior night, swept UCLA and beat the until last night national darlings, Gonzaga, way back on December 4th. Not to mention their stunning win over Dee Brown and the Illini this past weekend. No one expected them to be in the Sweet Sixteen and yet here they are.

That said, Washington is going into tonight’s game clearly the underdogs as Connecticut is expected by many to win it all this year. Vegas odds? At noon today it’s Connecticut, with a 6.5 point spread. [wiki] No one is expecting Washington to be in the Elite Eight. I think that’s good news.

2) No team is safe, no matter how hyped.

LSU brought down one of this season’s Titans last night. If Duke can go out in a flame of no-shot-making glory, JJ “High Scorer” Reddick only making 3-of-18, anything can happen. Sure UConn had battled Duke for #1 ranking all year, but what does that national ranking mean really? In this tournament? Nothing. No one picked George Mason to be playing Wichita State in the Sweet Sixteen, did they? Plus, Connecticut lost to the Orangemen in the Big East championship and they were pretty shaky in their tournament opener against ALBANY. They are clearly not invincible. UW can take them.

3) UW wins the mascot fight.

UW’s Huskies are cooler and more fierce looking then UConn’s. Seriously, while UConn’s dog looks friendly, almost pet-like, UW’s is more of a sled-dog, I can win the Iditarod specimen.

vs.

Mascots aren’t supposed to be cuddly!

4) I have pre-jinxed UConn.

That’s right, about 5 years ago I visited Storrs and walked around UConn’s home basketball court. I touched their dog statue outside the gym and I have pictures to prove it (except I was too lazy to scan it in)! No one can recover from that! Okay, so they won in 2004, but I didn’t care who won between them and Georgia Tech. Today I care. Today I’m implementing my dog-statue touching jinx. It’s all very scientific, I assure you.

There you have it. All reasons to ignore the so-called experts and to believe UW can prevail. Tip-off is at 6:57 p.m. (PST). Watch it and I promise the officiating tonight will be better than pro-football’s.

Go Huskies!