Pictures just came back from the James Webb Space Telescope and, boy, they're gorgeous: You're looking at the deepest picture of our universe ever taken, a glimpse billions of years into the cosmic past. "The slice of the vast universe covers a patch of sky approximately the size of a grain of sand held at arm's length by someone on the ground," NASA wrote in a press release. The image above dropped yesterday as the preview of the first images sent back by the telescope. The rest are being released as Slog AM goes live. I'm glad we can all collectively still experience awe and wonder, even in this nadir of human experience. Matter persists in some form or another. I can't wait to be a trillionth of a pixel on a photo billions of years in the future.

Man arrested after being accused of threatening to murder Pramila Jayapal outside her home: Brett Allen Forsell is being held in jail after Rep. Jayapal called the police on Saturday night to report a man yelling that he'd kill her outside her home, reports KOMO. The judge denied her anti-harassment order but said probable cause existed for a hate crime. More from KOMO: 

Seattle police arrested the man outside Jayapal’s house at 11:25 p.m. Saturday after she called 911 and reported an unknown person or people were in a vehicle using obscene language, a probable cause statement said. She told a dispatcher her husband thought someone may have fired a pellet gun, the statement says.

Officers arrested a man who was standing in the middle of the street with his hands in the air and a .40-caliber handgun holstered on his waist, the probable cause statement says.

Big day for bigots on the campaign trail: Earlier that Saturday up in Mill Creek, a white homeowner “threw down his bike” and glasses, walked toward a Black canvasser named Julian Jackson, and said, “Get out of my fucking neighborhood! I don’t want you here,” according to a video Jackson took of the incident. The man later added, “I’m representing all of my neighbors. None of them want to hear from you.” Jackson, who was canvassing for Democratic Rep. April Berg, who is also Black, nicely diffused the situation while also making fun of this fragile little bucket-hatted man. Berg’s campaign tagged the video #canvassingwhileblack to help raise awareness about the perils of trying to do anything in the cold light of day while Black.



Damn, NO ONE from the 2020 presidential election is popular: Following yesterday's news that Democrats don't want another Biden term, a recent New York Times/Siena College poll found that Republicans have been left cold by Trump. Close to half of GOP primary voters would choose someone else for president in 2024. Many respondents said they'd abandon Trump if he did end up with the nomination. But, uh, the second-most popular Republican politician in the poll was noted cretin Ron DeSantis—the GOP are still fucked!

Speaking of Trump: All his former minions are singing like birds. Rep Jamie Raskin told NBC that Trump White House Counsel Pat Cipollone "corroborated virtually all of the revelations from previous witnesses"— including aide Cassidy Hutchinson's explosive testimony—in a closed interview with the Jan. 6 panel last week. His testimony is airing today at a committee hearing, which you can watch at 9:30 am. They will cover Trump's ties with extremists as well. I love drama!

Heads up for all your ferry-riders out there: All Washington State Ferries are running on alternate schedules this summer "due to crew shortages," reports KING 5. Tell me something new. WSF has hired "dozens of new crewmembers," but it takes a while to train them. 

A quick abortion update: The Biden administration has directed health care providers to "provide stabilizing care to pregnant patients and perform an abortion if the mother's life is at risk" regardless of state law, reports USA Today. I'm sure this will all get real litigious real quick. 

Bad news for Oregonian ash trees: Forestry officials recently spotted an iridescent green emerald ash borer west of Portland, reports AP via the Seattle Times. Although these beetles look really cool, they are invasive and known to "have killed up to 99% of the ash trees in some North American locations." Ash trees are vital to providing shade, preventing erosion, and serving as a snack for animals, birds, and insects. Experts recommend that cities in Oregon remove ash trees in poor health and remove it from approved street tree lists. 

Population data dump: According to a new report from the United Nations, India is expected to surpass China as the world's most populous country next year. And taking a step back, the world's total population is predicted to hit 8 billion by November 15, reports Axios. 8 billion! While that's a huge number, it represents the slowest growth since 1950 thanks to declining fertility rates. 

Did you see some movement around Capitol Hill's Black Lives Matter street mural this weekend? Not to worry—it just got a touch up! Seattle Department of Transportation and some of the original artists gave the mural a fresh coat of paint on Saturday, reports CHS Blawg. The transportation agency said "it expects the mural will require periodic refreshes over the years."

LimeWire is back: In probably the worst way possible.

Othello could be getting an expanded grocery store: Compared to places like Capitol Hill and Queen Anne, the south Seattle neighborhood has seen very little investment in its local Safeway, reports the Seattle Times. Now, Othello could get a "large state-of-the-art store," says Safeway—but residents are dubious. "It's just really clear that different parts of the city gets different levels of service," CM Tammy Morales told the Times. Everyone deserves fresh and accessible groceries. 

Are you looking for a beagle? Citing atrocious conditions, a federal judge in Virginia ruled that 4,000 beagles must be rescued from the Envigo breeding and research facility in Cumberland, Virginia, reports the New York Times. The catch—they only have 60 days to find homes for these pups. If you're seriously interested, you can contact this Virginia state senator, whose nickname is Senator Beagle, to get on the list. 

Lofi Girl is down but not out: The popular "lofi hip hop radio — beats to relax/study to" YouTube stream was falsely hit with a DMCA takedown notice and taken off the platform. The copyright claims were ultimately shown to be false, but YouTube said it might take a minute before Lofi Girl's videos were properly reinstated. According to TechCrunch, fraudulent copyright claims are not at all rare for YouTube creators. 

Nothing in life is certain except death and taxes...and the price of a Costco hot dog. CEO Craig Jelinek told CNBC a simple "No" when asked if the iconic food court staple would be subject to an inflation price hike. Love a recession-proof processed meat. 

For your listening pleasure: Arctic Monkeys' "Star Treatment," off their best album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino: