So, you want to do business in Washington State, COVID-19?
"So, you want to do business in Washington State, COVID-19?" ArtistGNDphotography/gettyimages.com

COVID-19 Deaths Are on the Rise in Washington State. Seattle Times: "For the past four days in a row, for the first time since May, Washington state reported double-digit numbers of COVID-19 deaths: 11 more deaths confirmed by the end of Sunday, 14 on Monday, 10 on Tuesday and 15 on Wednesday." What this means is reopening the state is not going to work out well. Expect the number of dead to go up and up. Economics and the virus are a lethal combination. There is no getting around this fact, even here in deep-blue Washington.

"Buffets, Salad Bars Reopen in Snohomish County." Translation: "Coronavirus to reopen in Snohomish County." We can expect COVID-19 to have excellent business at these locations. Indeed, if some thought is put into the biology of this virus (its spreading mechanisms), one will reach the conclusion that, in Darwinian terms, it chanced upon a genetic sequence that's perfect for overwhelming the subjects of American capitalist ideology. Without this kind of economic culture, which is driven by an insatiable drive for profits, COVID-19 wouldn't have much of a chance in the world.

Nearly 70 Percent of Americans: Aren't feeling "Trump's oversight of the COVID-19 crisis."


This brings us to the famous prediction that Trump has a 90 percent chance of winning the presidential election. The prediction comes from Helmut Norpoth, a political science professor whose model "has accurately predicted 25 out of 27 elections." In February, Norpoth's prediction would have made perfect sense. But not in July, not as a good number of states are in the thick of a still-surging pandemic. Not as Americans are dropping like flies in Florida and Texas. There is, really, no model that can properly function in this exceptional political condition.

Latinos Not Feeling: Goya's CEO's sloppy kissing of Trump's ring. He basically called Trump the very best thing that ever did happen in this here universe.

Mayor Jenny Durkan Says: Either we have a police department or we don't. For her, there will be no halfway about it.


Seattle City Council has the veto-proof votes to slash the SPD's budget by half. Again, the question we must ask: What is the key purpose of the police? The answer is easy: To protect property.

Man Fishing with Son: Falls out of a boat and drowns in Deep Lake. He was not wearing a life jacket, of course. And nor was the boy who watched his father die.

The Beaches of Seattle Are to Remain: Closed and without lifeguards. If you are upset about that, read the next Slog AM item.

There Is No Climate Change: Because Seattle is experiencing an usually cold summer. What I done did in the previous sentence is called in Keynesian economics The Fallacy of Composition. (For the record, Mudede is not a Keynesian. He is a Kaleckian Marxist, which means, he is not a communist but a critic of capitalism. Keynesianism is the economics of keeping capitalism, or its property relationships, alive.)

Seattle Author and Filmmaker: David Shields is not at all impressed with a recent article by humorist David Sedaris called "Dressed Up With Nowhere to Go."


Shields is the author of Black Planet (race and professional basketball) and the director of Lynch: A History (race and professional football).

American Politicians Are At Their Best When It Comes to Finding a Reason Not: To tax the rich. If it's not one thing, it's sure going to be another or another or another.

Now That CHOP Is Gone: Donald Trump can safely claim that he was on the verge of going to Seattle and squishing the rebellion himself. In fact, he gave Seattle a deadline to do something, and the next day, Mayor Jenny Durkan acted swiftly. And so, it was his awesomeness that brought an end to Capitol Hill's infamous autonomous zone. By the way, this is nothing more than a rumor spread by Jason Rantz, Seattle's chief Trumpist.

Get This Straight: TikTok influencer is as real a job as you can get in our hard pandemic times.