Operation Epic Fury: We’re in our third day of war with Iran. On Saturday morning, in three strikes over the course of about a minute, the US and Israeli militaries killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the nation’s supreme leader of almost 37 years, and more than 40 senior leaders in his government. Another missile strike hit an Iranian girls’ elementary school, killing 160 people. Trump has called for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to lay down arms and “receive full immunity or face certain death.”
This could become a sprawling regional war in the Middle East. In retaliation, Iran has already fired a barrage of missiles and drones at Israel, and launched missile attacks on US military bases in Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain. Hezbollah then launched missiles at Israel in retaliation for the death of the Ayatollah, and as of this morning, Israel has also bombed the suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, where there’s a Hezbollah stronghold.
Friendly Fire: In all of this chaos, three US fighter jets were accidentally shot out of the sky over Kuwait. All six crew members safely ejected from the planes.
In Trump’s video address to the public, he announced the Ayatollah’s death, saying that he had the blood of thousands of Americans on his hands. “We will continue until all of our objectives are achieved,” he said, but never clarified what those objectives were. Simply: “We have very strong objectives.” He also said that three American service members died in the attacks. “Sadly, there will likely be more before it ends,” he said. “That’s the way it is.” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth acknowledged a fourth American death this morning. “America will avenge their deaths,” Trump said in the video.
Hegseth did articulate the broad strokes of the war’s objectives this morning: “Destroy Iranian offensive missiles, destroy Iranian missile production, destroy their navy and other security infrastructure, and they will never have nuclear weapons. We’re hitting them surgically, overwhelmingly, and unapologetically,” he said in a press conference. He told reporters that it wouldn’t happen “overnight,” but didn’t say how long he expected the operation to last. And in an interview with CNN, Trump said that the “big wave” is yet to come.
“They Started It”: Both Trump and Hegseth have tried to present this as unavoidable, despite reports that there was no risk of a preemptive strike from Iran. In his video message, Trump said that the US-Israeli operation is a “righteous mission,” and the “duty and burden of a free people.” He said that Iran had been “waging war against civilization itself.” In a Pentagon press conference, Hegseth said, “We didn’t start this war, but under President Trump, we are finishing it.”
Meanwhile: Congress is starting the debate of whether or not Trump has the power to launch this war about three days too late. The power to declare war does technically lie exclusively with Congress, but they’re not likely to scrounge up the two-thirds vote they’d need to overcome a presidential veto.
Stateside, a gunman in Austin, Texas, walked into a bar early on Sunday morning with a pistol and a rifle, wearing clothes with an Iranian flag design and the words “Property of Allah.” He killed two people and wounded 14. Police killed the shooter on the scene, and the FBI is investigating the shooting as a possible act of terrorism.
In Seattle, hundreds of anti-war protesters showed up at Pike Place Market on Sunday, while a caravan of about 300 cars on I-5 demonstrated in support of the attacks.
Weather: Amid all of this insanity, the universe is giving us a little taste of spring today. Highs around 58, clear skies. Get into the sunshine, if only for your mental health.
If You’re Not One for the Sun: Perhaps a total lunar eclipse instead? Early Tuesday morning, between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m., the moon will fully fall behind Earth’s shadow, turning it blood red. It won’t happen again until New Year’s Eve 2028.
Something a Little Lighter: According to Playboy, experts in the field, the Winter Olympics were especially horny this year. “Set against the operatic mountains of Italy, homeland of Romeo and Juliet and centuries of Catholic repression, the steam emitted from the 2026 Winter Olympics came early,” they wrote. There was “penisgate.” USA Hockey Captain Hilary Knight got engaged at the games. Plus, every viewer was looking for a hint of Heated Rivalry this year. “The Olympic Village distributed 10,000 condoms to athletes, a well-known protective measure as our foremost athletes collaborate with their international counterparts. Within three days, they were gone—a record-breaking feat. With nearly 3,000 athletes in attendance, that’s roughly three protected encounters per competitor.”
Speaking of Olympians: The Seattle Torrent played their first game since the Olympics on Friday at Climate Pledge. The arena sold out for the first time for a PWHL game, but two of their Olympic stars—Hilary Knight and Hannah Bilka—were both out with injuries from the games. Knight, the team’s captain and Olympic record holder, will be out for at least three weeks. The team still held their own for most of the game, but lost in the third period when the Toronto Sceptres shot two goals into an empty net from the other side of the ice. It wouldn’t be Seattle sports without a little heartbreak.
If you, like me, are still riding the high of Team USA’s impeccable women’s hockey vibes, may I recommend Saturday’s SNL monologue with Heated Rivalry’s Connor Storrie, and members of both the men’s and women’s hockey teams? Torrent Captain Hilary Knight takes a stab at Trump, saying they included the boys “to be fair,” and Storrie tells the men’s hockey players (who insist they haven’t watched the Gay Hockey Show) that Ilya only gets his teeth knocked out “metaphorically.”
Amazon Who? The tech giant isn’t Seattle’s Number One Employer anymore. They reached their peak in 2020, with 60,000 employees, but after a few rounds of huge layoffs, they now employ fewer than 50,000 Seattleites.
Big Win for the Little Guys: In a push from a group of 13 progressives, the Washington State House Finance Committee stripped a tax break that would have benefited big businesses from the latest version of the Millionaires Tax. It could claw back $550 million—more than the governor’s proposed cuts to education and child care. Don’t you care about the kids, Bob?
A Song for Your Monday: A little Discovery Zone while you try to shake all this off and start the day.
