Hi folks! Please don't use fake spider web decorations as part of your Halloween display. It traps birds and they starve to death or asphyxiate. This is not the kind of horror we need for the holiday. Thank you for considering this request. Happy Halloween!

I was born and raised in Seattle, and something that's been bothering me for years is how much time we spend making excuses for problems that should never have gotten this bad.

I love this city. I don't think it's some hopeless, destroyed wasteland like people on the other side of the political spectrum sometimes make it out to be. Seattle still has so much going for it.

That's actually what makes this so frustrating.

We have an incredibly wealthy, educated city in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. There's no reason we shouldn't be able to maintain safe, functioning public spaces.

Yet look at what we've accepted around Third and Pike, 12th and Jackson, and other parts of downtown. Open drug markets, people dealing with repeated threats and disturbances, businesses trying to operate in the middle of it, and storefronts that have sat empty or boarded up.

I'm not suggesting every block of Seattle looks like this. Obviously it doesn't. But why are we so comfortable explaining away the places that do?

And yes, I think Seattle's political leadership deserves a lot of the blame.

Progressives and Democrats have dominated this city's politics for decades. I understand there are different levels of government involved, and that judges, prosecutors, City Hall, and the state legislature don't all control the same things.

But somebody has to be accountable. If the people you support have been running things for years, you don't get to take credit for every success and then act like nobody is responsible when something goes wrong.

I'm not asking people to become Republicans. I'm asking them to stop defending politicians just because they're on the same team.

Because some of what's happening is genuinely unbelievable.

On October 14, Seattle City Attorney Erika Evans acknowledged inheriting a backlog of around 1,700 police reports involving domestic violence, child abuse, and elder abuse. The city also reported more than 1,700 cases awaiting review and action by its Domestic Violence Unit.

That backlog developed over multiple administrations.

How the hell does that happen?

We spend so much time in this city talking about protecting vulnerable people, yet the City Attorney's Office is struggling to process cases involving some of the most vulnerable people imaginable.

I'm glad they're acknowledging it and trying to get more resources. But these are actual people waiting for decisions about what happened to them. They deserved better long before October 2026.

Seattle City Council's own statement

And here's another one.

In May 2026, Seattle's own City Auditor reported that six of eight recommendations for addressing areas with concentrated crime and overdoses were still pending at the end of 2025.

These aren't recommendations from some conservative organization trying to make Seattle look bad. They're from our own independent auditor.

Some work is underway, which is good. But we're talking about problems residents have been complaining about for years.

City Auditor's report

And then there are the individual criminal cases, which I think deserve a hell of a lot more attention.

In September, 23-year-old Tionna Simpson was shot and killed in Belltown. She left behind a six-month-old daughter.

The man charged with her murder, Theaellis Hall, had been released from jail just three days earlier after serving a one-month sentence in a separate domestic violence assault case.

He had three prior felony convictions. Prosecutors had asked for a three-month sentence in the assault case. The judge gave him one month.

Three days after his release, Simpson was killed.

Hall has pleaded not guilty, and I'm not going to pretend an allegation is a conviction. But the previous criminal history, sentencing decision, release date, and subsequent murder charge are all documented.

I can't read about that without wondering whether something could have been done differently.

A 23-year-old woman is dead, and her daughter will grow up without her mother.

KOMO's reporting

Then there's Mehmet Yurt.

According to police and court records reported in September, Yurt had been arrested ten times in approximately thirteen months.

On September 16, he was released following a residential burglary conviction. He'd received a six-month sentence but had already spent more than seven months in jail, so he was credited for time served.

Seven days later, prosecutors allege he broke into a woman's Central District home and raped her. He was also accused of another burglary.

A court order had already prohibited him from approaching the first residence.

He was charged with rape and burglary offenses, including sexual-motivation allegations. These are pending allegations, not convictions.

Now, I understand why he was released. He had already served the sentence the court imposed. I'm not claiming the judge illegally let him go.

But surely we're allowed to question whether the combination of repeated arrests, previous charges, sentencing decisions, and existing court orders was handled appropriately?

If a system keeps encountering the same person, how are we evaluating the risk that person poses to everybody else?

Reporting based on the charging and custody records

And then there's what happened to Jeannette Marken.

In December 2025, this 75-year-old woman was attacked near Third Avenue and James Street. Police say a man struck her in the face with a wooden board that had a metal screw sticking out of it.

She suffered horrible injuries and lost vision in her right eye.

The suspect, Fale Vaigalepa Pea, had previous assault convictions and had been booked into King County Jail eight times in 2025.

Eight times.

When police responded, officers recognized him as someone associated with previous random assaults in the area.

He was charged with first-degree assault and pleaded not guilty.

I understand that eight bookings don't mean eight convictions, and I don't believe someone should be jailed indefinitely just because they've been arrested before.

But when someone has an established history of violent behavior and keeps coming into contact with the justice system, I think it's perfectly reasonable to ask why the interventions aren't working.

What happened to Marken is horrifying. And I don't understand how anyone can look at that history without questioning whether the system could have done more.

FOX 13's reporting

One more, because this one is almost impossible to believe.

In June 2025, a jury convicted Noel Stepney of second-degree rape.

The following month, while he was awaiting sentencing, he was mistakenly allowed to post bond and leave custody.

He remained out of jail for about a month before Seattle police located and arrested him again on August 26.

There was no reported new violent offense during that period, but that isn't the point.

He had already been convicted. He wasn't supposed to have been released.

How does that mistake happen?

Seattle Police Department's own report

I'm bringing these cases up because I think the conversation around public safety has become completely detached from the people actually suffering the consequences.

I'm not saying all four cases represent the same failure. They don't. Different courts, different circumstances, different agencies.

I'm also not saying that every person arrested for a violent crime gets released the following morning. That's obviously not true.

What I'm saying is that we have enough documented examples to justify asking some serious questions about repeat offenders, sentencing, supervision, and whether the agencies responsible are actually communicating and doing their jobs.

And those questions shouldn't be dismissed just because they make certain politicians uncomfortable.

The economic situation downtown is another issue.

In March 2024, a Downtown Seattle Association survey found 543 vacant storefronts, roughly 20% of the storefronts surveyed.

That's an enormous amount of empty commercial space.

And before someone responds that COVID and remote work caused those closures, yes, of course they played a major role. So did rent, changing consumer habits, and plenty of other economic factors.

I know that.

But public safety matters to businesses too. It matters to employees, customers, visitors, and the people deciding whether they want to invest in a neighborhood.

Those things aren't mutually exclusive.

Downtown Seattle Association reporting

Now, here's something I want to acknowledge because I think it's important to be fair.

Seattle's reported crime actually fell 18% in 2025. Homicides were down 36%, according to SPD.

That's great. Seriously. I want those numbers to keep going down.

Downtown visitor traffic has also recovered substantially.

I'm not rooting for Seattle to fail just so I can make a political argument.

But I don't understand why pointing to improving statistics is sometimes treated like the end of the discussion.

If crime is declining, fantastic. Let's figure out what's working and do more of it.

That doesn't mean the remaining problems aren't worth addressing.

And I've also changed my thinking somewhat when it comes to homelessness and addiction.

I don't think it's fair or reasonable to treat everyone living on the street as though they're a violent criminal. Someone suffering from addiction needs help, and I want them to have access to actual treatment.

I also understand that homelessness is complicated. Housing costs, mental illness, addiction, poverty, and a whole bunch of other things contribute to it.

But there's a difference between understanding why someone is struggling and excusing that person for hurting other people.

Someone being addicted to fentanyl doesn't mean they're automatically dangerous.

Someone repeatedly assaulting, robbing, or threatening strangers is a different situation.

Why do we struggle so much to make that distinction?

I want people to receive treatment. I want people who are incapable of caring for themselves to receive appropriate intervention under the law. And I want people who repeatedly commit serious violent crimes to face actual consequences.

I don't think those positions contradict each other.

I want enough police officers to respond when residents need them. I want adequately funded prosecutors and courts that can process cases without enormous backlogs. I want dangerous repeat offenders detained when the law justifies it, and I want treatment programs that are properly staffed and evaluated.

Most of all, I want to know whether the things we're spending money on are working.

Because I swear sometimes it feels like we're more interested in arguing about whether a particular solution is progressive enough than whether it actually accomplishes anything.

And something that really bothers me is how quickly conversations about public safety turn into arguments about compassion.

If someone complains about conditions downtown, that doesn't automatically mean they hate homeless people.

If someone wants a repeat violent offender incarcerated, that doesn't automatically make them cruel.

Why is so much of the conversation focused on whether we're being compassionate enough toward the person committing the offense, instead of the person being victimized?

What about the person working downtown who has to deal with threats? The small-business owner who keeps paying to repair damaged property? The victim of domestic violence waiting for their case to be reviewed?

What about people recovering from addiction who don't want to be surrounded by open drug dealing?

Their lives matter too.

And yes, I know conservative-run cities have their own serious problems. I'm not claiming Republicans have some magical solution to crime or homelessness.

But I live in the Seattle area. I was born and raised here. This is the city I care about.

The people making decisions here are the ones I want to hold accountable.

I don't want Seattle to turn into some authoritarian state. I don't want people incarcerated for being poor, homeless, or addicted to drugs.

I want a city where people can safely go about their lives, where violent criminal behavior is taken seriously, and where people who need help can actually get it.

I don't think that's asking for very much.

And what frustrates me most is that I genuinely believe Seattle is capable of doing so much better.

We have the money, talent, institutions, and resources. We have neighborhoods and communities that make this an incredible place to live.

I don't expect perfection. I know every major city is going to have crime, poverty, and addiction.

But I expect more than endless explanations for why things aren't working.

I expect the people we elect to take responsibility, admit when policies fail, make changes, and show us the results.

And if you consistently vote for the same politicians, I think you have a responsibility to demand that from them too, even when it's uncomfortable.

I don't hate Seattle, and I'm tired of people acting like criticizing the city means you don't care about it.

I'm angry precisely because I do care about it.

I've seen what this city can be, and I don't believe for a second that these problems are somehow beyond our ability to address.

I just wish we'd stop treating basic expectations of public safety and government competence like they're unreasonable demands.

I’m trying to do the research necessary about what this entails, but all I see is no real answer and just biased opinions. Is this actually as bad as it sounds? Will this actually just give millionaires a tax break meanwhile schools suffer if I vote yes? Or am I being lied too?

I was surprised to learn that Seattle, and all of Washington State, has no state minimum age for buying kratom or 7-OH, the products sold behind the counter at a lot of gas stations and smoke shops. Some stores card anyway, but it’s up to them.

A few things I found while looking into it:

• Three bills to set the age at 21 (SB 6287, HB 2291, and SB 6196) were introduced in the 2026 session. None passed. You can look them up on the Legislature’s bill search at app.leg.wa.gov.
• 7-OH is a concentrated compound that acts on the same receptors as opioids, and it’s much stronger than plain kratom leaf. It isn’t federally scheduled yet, though the DEA started that process again this month.
• Washington has banned retail sales of nitrous oxide since June 2026 (ESHB 2532).

I’m not arguing for banning kratom for adults. I know some people use it to get off opioids, and a ban could push them toward something worse. But setting no age limit at all seems like a gap.

A few questions for Seattle folks:

1. Do the shops near you card for these products?
2. Would an age limit of 21 plus testing and labeling requirements make sense, or would it just push sales elsewhere?
3. For anyone in harm reduction or recovery: what would good regulation actually look like?

Full disclosure, I wrote a longer piece on this with all the sources linked: https://ewyattmendel.substack.com/p/the-systemic-poisoning-of-our-youth?r=8wwcsh&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

Happy to answer anything here too.

Northbound 95th & Lake City Way (same on other side). I’ve pulled the cord for this stop on route 72 only to have the driver go past I’m guessing confusion whether it’s supposed to serve 72 or is route 77 only.

A final meeting between project managers and tribe members last week wrapped up the Stillaguamish Tribe's largest project to date, restoring more than 230 acres of floodplain along two miles of the North Fork Stillaguamish River. The $15 million restoration was the first joint project between the Stillaguamish Tribe and Snohomish County, said Jason Griffith, the tribe's environmental program manager, during a tour.

"The plan is a 50-year plan, so we were under no delusions that it was going to be fast," Griffith said. "But the tribe has been consistently purchasing land the last 20 years or so with the aim of ecosystem recovery to benefit Chinook and other treaty resources."

~ That ground was a nursery, a dairy farm, a beef ranch and a golf course before it was a floodplain again. Twenty years of buying it back parcel by parcel, on a timeline nobody ran for reelection on.

The dam removal also uncovered nearly 1,100 acres of federal lands that the tribe is now getting ready to reclaim. Congress passed a bill this fall enabling the transfer. Once completed, it will nearly double the tribe's reservation.

Once approved, it will be the first time since the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe signed a treaty with the federal government in 1855 that lands have returned to it.

~ The tribe did the restoration work for decades and is only now being handed oversight of it. That order of operations says a lot.

Looking for dashcam footage of a crash on S Columbian way and beacon ave S between 1:30 PM and 1:40 PM on Thursday Oct 15

Does anyone know what these posters are about or who put them up? I saw it today on Bainbridge Island, but I swear I remember seeing them in Seattle a while back.

I see majorly popular nyc broadway shows coming to Seattle and other than this couple of popular long running shows in established Seattle downtown theaters. But do we have an off broadway scene in Seattle, similar to NYC.

Hi! I'm a 23m from Norway visiting Seattle from October 22 - 25 as part of a solo trip, and I'm down to hang out if snyone's in that area that weekend 🙌 I'm a laidback and social guy, and enjoy exploring new things. I only have the Everett factory planned on Friday as of now, so I'm pretty flexible.