Step right up: Want to join the Seattle City Council and fill outgoing council member Tammy Morale's District 2 seat? Applications opened on Thursday for anyone—well, U.S. citizens who are registered to vote in Washington and live in District 2—who wants to join the council. The remaining council has 20 days after Morale's last day on Jan. 6 to fill the seat. Apply! Be the change you want to see and all of that. As a reminder, Morales peaced out of her role because the current council was allegedly terrible toward her. All prospective candidates should have that knowledge. Send a resume, cover letter, and a completed financial interest statement form via email to councilvacancy@seattle.gov. 

New president for Seattle schools: The Seattle School Board picked West Seattle lawyer Gina Topp as the new president of the body ahead of a year where Seattle Public Schools faces an estimated $94 million budget deficit. 

The weather: It'll be wet with temperatures hovering in the high 40s. That's downright balmy in comparison to the rest of the country.

Baby, it's cold outside: Starting this week, places east of the Rockies will experience three weeks of bitter, arctic-like cold. With the frigid temperatures comes travel disruption as well as strains on power grids and higher natural gas prices. 

Amazon is back at the office: Seattle's favorite local start up required its workers to return to five days of in-person office work starting in the new year. So far, nothing in South Lake Union seems super different or notable in the wake of the mandate. Maybe the hustle and bustle will return. Maybe all of the work-from-home Amazonians will fix all their potassium deficits once they start eating free bananas again. This is the extent I know about working at Amazon. 

Inching closer: In the wake of the New Orleans attack, the calls to ban cars from Pike Place Market are back. Good. Cars don't belong there. If we had a city council that wasn't full of people who only drive to Whole Foods for their groceries (I'm making this up, but it seems right?) then maybe something like this could happen. (Psst: Maybe you could make it happen? Apply to be on the council. Only if you don't suck, though.)

Even people with worms for brains agree: 

While we're at it: Let's go even further. 

You want to pedestrianize Pike Place, I want to pedestrianize the entirety of Western Avenue from Yesler Way to Bell Street.

— Ryan Packer (@typewriteralley.bsky.social) January 2, 2025 at 1:28 PM

Car-less futures would be easier with a functional transit system: The light rail will be hell for two months as Sound Transit executes planned service disruptions and slowdowns. These are necessary to keep expanding the line, but it still sucks and makes it hard to develop a dedicated ridership when the service isn't reliable. Don't even read the news about the new high-speed train from Paris to Berlin that recently opened. It will only make you upset.

Updates on the horrors: Officials now believe the driver in the New Orleans terrorist attack that killed 14 people acted alone. The man, killed after a shootout with police, was identified as eight-year Army veteran Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, 42, from Texas. Authorities reported that he was inspired by ISIS to carry out the attack. Switching over to the Las Vegas cybertruck explosion, police identified the driver as an Army master sergeant from Colorado on leave from active duty. He reportedly shot himself in the head before the explosion. 

Oopsy: Apple agreed to pay $95 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the tech company's voice assistant, Siri, of recording private conversations and selling them to third parties for targeted advertising. After five years of litigation for a proposed class action lawsuit, Apple paid up, but admitted no fault. Instead, Apple said Siri recorded people "unintentionally." 

Biden blocks Nippon Steel acquisition: Japan's Nippon Steel wanted to buy Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel for a cool $15 billion. President Joe Biden—a title we can use for only a smattering of days—blocked the deal to ensure homemade steel remains the majority of the US's steelmaking capacity. Additionally, as of last month, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) couldn't reach a consensus on the security risks of the acquisition. 

No net neutrality: Despite a 2021 Biden executive order for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reinstate open internet rules, a US appeals court ruled the FCC did not have that authority. The ruling was based on a Supreme Court case this past summer known as Loper Bright where the Court overturned a 1984 precedent "deference to government agencies in interpreting laws they administer." The Supreme Court continues to whittle away the power of government agencies. So, now internet service providers don't have to treat all users equally. They can slow speeds or block content. 

Big wave alert: 

Guess what? Tonsil regrowth occurs in approximately 1% to 6% of people who have had their tonsils removed.

Congress to vote on Speaker of the House: Later today, we'll get to see how the new Republican majority in both houses of Congress flexes its power. With a narrow 219-215 majority, House Republicans should be able to secure Speaker Mike Johnson's return to the role, but those Republicans are squirrely. Trump endorsed Johnson on Monday, writing online that Johnson "is a good, hard working, religious man. He will do the right thing, and we will continue to WIN." I'm hoping for drama. 

Alcohol causes cancer: This should not be surprising. Alcohol is not only bad for you, it's one of the leading preventable causes of cancer. U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, said "alcohol directly contributes to 100,000 cancer cases and 20,000 related deaths each year," according to the New York Times. He wants alcohol labels updated to detail the "heightened risk of breast cancer, colon cancer, and at least five other malignancies" that come from consuming alcohol. However, only Congress can make those changes to warning labels. And, just so we're clear, these effects come from moderate drinking, not just excessive drinking. Maybe you should consider extending your Dry January.