Without these whats the point!?! - Florida, probably
"Without these, what's the point!?!" —Florida, probably Daisy-Daisy/Getty Images

Washington senate votes to strengthen consumer data-privacy: It seems the one thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that big tech has way too much of our data and they use it way too liberally. They have your facial recognition data, your cell phone metadata, your genetics, and they know that you secretly love the Shrek musical even though you told all your friends it was trash. But this new law, modeled after European data privacy, would allow consumers to know all the data that companies have about them and give them the power to correct any false information. Hey, Spotify, how many times have I listened to “Satisfied” from Hamilton? More than 8,000? Yeah, that seems about right.

Good morning, everyone, it is snowing again: I didn’t want to believe my eyes as I wrote this, so I went outside and sure enough, it’s snowing again. Don’t expect anything like the February we had, but it’s already sticking here in the city. Don’t call into work quite yet, it’s going to stop. Reports differ, but we can expect up to one inch of snow that will turn into rain later in the day. I feel like this is punishment for the amount of people I heard say, “Spring is here!” when we had three days of sun this weekend. Oh yeah? You want to retract that statement now?


The elk in Oregon aren’t too pleased with the snow, either: At least we can go to a grocery store. They have to dig through thick, heavy snow to eat frozen grass. It’s a hard living.


Port of Seattle is pushing to switch to sustainable fuels: Airline travel is one of the most carbon-producing means of travel, maybe second only to a rocketship. So engineers and administrators at Sea-Tac Airport and the Port of Seattle are seriously looking into how to switch their fleet over to biofuels made from ingredients like used cooking oil and algae. Taken to the ideal maximum, these fuels could reduce an airplanes emissions by up to 80 percent, but that might be far away. Port Commissioner Fred Felleman told GeekWire: “It’s always cart and horse. We can’t guarantee use if we can’t guarantee price, and we can’t guarantee price unless somebody produces it.” If only we knew a local billionaire who could fund such a project.

Birth rates are dropping around the county: But the largest reductions are with Hispanic American women, many of whom are the daughters of immigrants. Demographers say this speaks to the generational differences between immigrant mothers and grandmothers and their American-born daughters who delay having children to finish school or chase down career opportunities. Two years ago, in 2016, was the first year that women over 30 were having the majority of the babies in America.

Democrats are getting impatient with Joe Biden: He has set up all the infrastructure you need to run for president, but he hasn’t done one crucial thing: actually announce he’s running for president. The former vice president is already a leading contender despite not officially being in the race. He would shake things up in an already crowded field. He’s telling Democrats that he’s “95 percent” committed to running. Come on, Joe, shit or get off the pot. You’ve only got a year and half until the election. Oh wait, that long? We start these things way too early. You take your time, Joe.

About 500 ISIS soldiers surrendered to Syrian forces: As they captured one of the last Islamic State strongholds in Syria. They may not hold any land or be large in number, but US generals say the fight against ISIS is far from over. Thousands of people were freed from the city, among them are several European nationals who came to Syria to join the Islamic State. No one is sure what their fate will be if they try to return to their countries of origin.


Florida bill would ban banning plastic straws: You have one too many "bans" in there congressman. It would also ban the banning of sunscreen harmful to coral reefs, which in Florida doesn't seem like a very wise decision. Florida has sea turtles, and if they have to go straw-less then that is a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

Tonight's best Seattle entertainment options include: Patty Gone's new show Love Life and other Pioneer Square Art Walk events, a show with Cherry Glazerr and Palehound, and a performance by Kimya Dawson and Clyde Petersen to accompany a screening of Torrey Pines.