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Scientists say genetic analysis could greatly speed restoration of iconic American chestnut

forests, nor has it served the same critical role supporting other species.So, the authors want a tree with the characteristics of the American chestnut and the disease resistance of the Chinese chestnut.That goal is not new — scientists have been reaching for it for decades and made some progress.But it has been difficult because the American chestnut’s desirable traits are scattered across multiple spots along its genome, the DNA string that tells the tree how to develop and function.“It

Trump’s EPA revokes scientific finding that underpinned US fight against climate change

The EPA also said it will propose a two-year delay to a Biden-era rule restricting greenhouse gas emissions by cars and light trucks.Zeldin, a former Republican congressman who was tapped by Trump to lead EPA last year, has criticized his predecessors in Democratic administrations, saying that in the name of tackling climate change, they were “willing to bankrupt the country.” Withdrawing the endangerment finding “is the most important step taken by the Trump administration so far to retur

Lawyers say access to ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ is still hard to get as a judge weighs the case

(AP) — Attorneys for detainees at a state-run immigration detention facility in the Florida Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz” said Thursday that they are still facing hurdles in getting access to their clients, despite state claims that those barriers have been removed.Two attorneys filed statements with a federal court in Fort Myers, Florida, saying their clients were unable to call them using staff cellphones, and the attorneys were unable to make unannounced visits to the facility. A s

Mason County man charged with manslaughter after body found near Collins Lake

A 55-year-old man has been booked for manslaughter after an “unconscious subject” was found near Collins Lake in Mason County on Wednesday.At approximately 9:17 p.m., Mason County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) deputies responded to the Collins Lake area after reports of an unconscious subject, MCSO announced.RELATED STORIESMason County pursuit ends after multiple spike strips, PIT maneuver stopped fleeing driver2 men plead guilty in ATM robbery scheme spanning 6 states, owe nearly $7

WA Rep. Newhouse breaks with GOP with vote to end Trump’s Canada tariffs

Newhouse said the tariffs on Canada, Washington state’s second-largest export market, have hurt farmers and the beer, wine, and spirits industries within the state.“While I understand the President’s approach to utilize tariffs as leverage to secure more trade deals, the fact of the matter remains the tariffs on Canada have harmed Washingtonians,” Newhouse said in a prepared statement.As a consequence of the tariffs, border crossings from Canada to Washington fell 24% in the fi

Judge temporarily blocks Pentagon from punishing Sen. Mark Kelly for call to resist unlawful orders

5 censure from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.In November, Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers appeared on a video in which they urged troops to uphold the Constitution and not to follow unlawful military directives from the Trump administration.Republican President Donald Trump accused the lawmakers of sedition “punishable by DEATH” in a social media post days later. Hegseth said Kelly’s censure was “a necessary process step” to proceedings that could result in a demotion from the senator

12s raise thousands to repair historic Pioneer Square pergola after Seahawks Super Bowl win

After the decades-old Pioneer Square pergola was damaged during the Seahawks’ Super Bowl celebrations, a fundraiser has already raised thousands of dollars to repair it.Following the Seattle Seahawks 29-13 win over the New England Patriots, the 12th man took to the streets downtown, with some climbing up the more than 100-year-old Pioneer Square pergola.Several dozen of the glass panels incorporated into the pergola’s roof were damaged, resulting in several hundred dollars spent per

Ukrainian athlete tests the Olympic rules on free speech – and gets disqualified

11 of that year, Heraskevych completed his races in China and held a small sign for the TV cameras in the blue and yellow colors of his national flag with the slogan, “No War in Ukraine.”The IOC took no action against him, deciding this was “a general call for peace” and not an explicitly political statement.He returned to the Olympics this year, with no end to the war in sight, and he again tried to state his views.Neutral politics, protecting athletesThe IOC says its athlete expression rules w

Mason County pursuit ends after multiple spike strips, PIT maneuver stopped fleeing driver

“Despite the disabled tires, the driver continued a short distance before a Mason County Sheriff’s Office deputy executed a successful Pursuit Intervention Technique (PIT) maneuver near State Route 3 and Southeast Arcadia Avenue, safely bringing the pursuit to an end.”The 47-year-old suspect was taken into custody and booked on suspicion of felony eluding, reckless driving, and driving while license suspended.“This incident highlights the coordinated teamwork between Washington

Judge won’t pause ruling keeping in place temporary protections for Haitians in US

<block>A federal judge on Thursday refused to pause her ruling blocking the Trump administration from ending temporary immigration protections for Haitians living in the United States.During the hearing in Washington, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes also addressed threats she had received since that decision Feb. 2. She read directly from profane emails and social media posts that called for her death.Reyes said it was common for judges to receive such messages these days. She closed the hearing by saying they would not be intimidated.She had granted the request to pause the termination of temporary protected status, or TPS, for Haitians while a lawsuit challenging the Republican administration’s effort to end it proceeds. Her ruling came a day before that designation for people from the Caribbean island nation had been scheduled to expire.The designation allows roughly 350,000 Haitians to live and work in the U.S., though it does not provide a legal pathway to citizenship. The homeland security secretary may grant the designation if conditions in home countries are deemed unsafe for people to return due to a natural disaster, political instability or other dangers.Haiti is one of several countries that President Donald Trump has sought to strip of such protections as part of his administration’s mass deportation effort. Reyes was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden.</block>

Europe warily awaits Rubio at Munich Security Conference as Trump roils transatlantic ties

The China deal drew new threats from Trump.Greenland and Ukraine fearsFor many in Europe, Trump’s intentions regarding Greenland exacerbate their fears over Russia’s war with Ukraine and serve as a reminder of centuries of power politics in which diplomacy was subordinate to the use of military force.“Greenland is to Trump as, essentially, Ukraine is to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, although obviously without the devastating war at this stage,” said Fiona Hill, a Russia expert who served o

Grieving families press Congress on aviation safety reforms after midair collision near DC

But ADS-B in systems that can receive those signals and create a display showing pilots were all air traffic is located around them are not standard.If the American Airlines jet had been equipped with one of the ADS-B in systems that can receive location data, the NTSB and the victims’ families and key lawmakers say, the pilots may have been able to pull up in time to avoid the Black Hawk that inexplicably climbed into the plane’s path.The receiving systems should have provided nearl

Oklahoma set to execute man convicted of double killing in 2006 drive-by shooting

McALESTER, Oklahoma (AP) — A man who apologized for killing two men in a drive-by shooting after a nightclub altercation was set to be put to death Thursday in the first execution of the year in Oklahoma and the second in the United States.Kendrick Simpson, 45, was scheduled to receive a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary for his convictions in the 2006 killings of 19-year-old Anthony Jones and 20-year-old Glen Palmer, who were fatally shot after a dispute at an Oklahoma City cl

In blunt warning, the US says Peru could lose its sovereignty to China

LIMA, Peru (AP) — The Trump administration on Wednesday expressed concern that China was costing Peru its sovereignty in solidifying control over the South American nation’s critical infrastructure, a blunt warning after a Peruvian court ruling restricted a local regulator’s oversight of a Chinese-built mega port.The $1.3 billion deepwater port in Chancay, north of Peru’s capital of Lima, has become a symbol of China’s foothold in Latin America and a lightning rod for ten

Democratic-led states sue to stop Trump from withholding $600M in health grants

JB Pritzker called the funding cuts “a slap in the face” to public health leaders who have stepped up as the Trump administration “takes a sledgehammer to public health infrastructure.”The administration is also targeting a $7.2 million grant for the Chicago-based American Medical Association, noting its support for gender-affirming care for minors, which a Trump executive order opposes.Other grants help the states track disease outbreaks and collect public health data that the CDC also uses.Cal

BYU standout receiver Parker Kingston charged with first-degree rape in Utah

<block>Prosecutors in Utah have filed a first-degree felony rape charge against Brigham Young University standout wide receiver Parker Kingston, officials said Wednesday. Kingston, 21, is being held without bail in St. George, a city near Arizona, Washington County prosecutors said. His initial appearance in court is scheduled for Friday. The investigation began last February, prosecutors said in a news release. A woman who was 20 years old at the time told officers at a St. George hospital that Kingston assaulted her on Feb. 23, 2025, prosecutors said. Police gathered digital and forensic evidence and interviewed the parties involved and other witnesses, prosecutors said. It was not clear if Kingston had an attorney. He didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comment. A phone message left for his family was not immediately returned. BYU said in a statement that it takes any allegation very seriously, and will cooperate with law enforcement. It said it would not be able to comment further due to federal and university privacy laws and practices for students.Kingston had a team-leading 67 receptions and 928 yards with five TD catches last season. He also rushed for 199 yards on 25 carries with a score, and returned 17 punts for 230 yards and a TD.</block>

Curley: Want better leaders? Start with better-educated citizens

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.It’s good for the king, probably not the best for the subject, especially when the king says, “Hey, listen, I’ll lead the army. I got one eye, I might be able to hit something. Don’t ask me to make a three-foot putt.”There are problems when you only have one eye.So, in the blind voter, in our sort of fictional world of the One-Eyed King, this is what Plato was concerned about.See, 2,400 years ago, the famed Greek philosopher didn’t have a lot of good things to say about democracy or one-night stands. He was not a big fan of get-out-the-vote. Sorry. [Insert name of movie star or musician here.]The public was, as far as Plato was concerned, collectively not smart enough to make the right decision. They were easily fooled to choose the liar over the leader, the charmer over the honest, the charismatic over the competent.People will vote for the people who they think, well, we’ll give them everything that they want, and then end up not giving them anything or just taking more of what they have. See, promises benefits without cost, and the skilled manipulator will always win the crowd.<h2>A 1950s film that still rings true</h2>Now, if Plato were alive in the 1950s, he would have given five stars to this movie. It was a dark and disturbing film that Elia Kazan directed. It’s called “A Face in the Crowd.”Andy Griffith plays a country boy who has enough charm to knock a buzzard off a gut wagon. And Griffith plays this guy named Lonesome Rhodes, and Lonesome Rhodes is the radio host who finds himself influencing powerful men, quite possibly all of America. He understands how to influence the public.Rhodes understood he had some great strength. In fact, he was able to influence a whole bunch of people, eventually getting power over the White House, major corporations, and they all wanted him to deliver the message until one fateful night … not gonna ruin the movie for you. Came out in the 50s. You missed it, it’s too late.More than, I don’t know, 10 million, 25 million people who were listening to him at any time were able to catch old Mr. Rhodes with the microphone open.The truth is revealed and lost. Lonesome’s true character comes out, breaking the spell that held the public stupefied.Lonesome Rhodes is the character that Plato feared the most, whom voters would fall for every single time. He said poor people should not vote, and uneducated people should also not vote. Now that’s nothing that would fly in the United States or probably anywhere else in the free world. So how about educating or enlightening the citizen to be more astute and more discerning, more discriminating, less likely to be fooled, conned, or manipulated?<h3>Civics education could fix what ails us</h3>Let’s all be like Switzerland, the land of army knives and cheese that goes great with ham, which also has the highest government stability and the most trust in government. They’re at 68%, while the U.S. is struggling at 33%.Maybe we don’t trust our elected officials because we’re conned and duped and swept off our feet. We are blind, right? We get invited to the P Diddy party and wonder, “Why is there so much baby oil?”The Swiss educate their young little Swissies with civics that are woven right into most of the classes. The students have a firm grip on what the government can and cannot do. Now, when it comes to U.S. high school students and the rest of us, 70% of adults fail basic civic literacy quizzes.The country needs better leadership, and it can all start with better-educated people.Thomas Jefferson, with an IQ of 160, said it best: “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in the state of civilization, it expects what will never was and will never will be.”We have to get smarter if we would like to have a better government.Listen to John Curley weekday afternoons from 3 – 7 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the <a href="https://mynorthwest.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=1089&n=The%20Tom%20and%20Curley%20Show">podcast here</a>.<a class="twitter-follow-button" href="https://twitter.com/http://twitter.com/curleyseattle" data-show-count="false" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Follow @http://twitter.com/curleyseattle</a><script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Massachusetts Gov. Healey pays up on Super Bowl bet with live lobsters

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey made good on her Super Bowl bet with Washington Governor Bob Ferguson.Healey promised Massachusetts finest products if the Seahawks won the Super Bowl.“In the unlikely event you win, here’s what we’re gonna send you: Legal Seafood’s famous New England Chowder and lobster rolls, maybe some East Coast oysters — the best and the only kind — and I hear you don’t have very good coffee out there, so we’re gonna throw in some Dunki

12s celebrate Super Bowl LX title with ceremony, massive parade through downtown Seattle

“I love to see great players do great things, and if you’re doing it for the city of Seattle, I’m happy and I’m excited and we’re world champs.”Finally, clutching the trophy, Coach Mike MacDonald said to a cluster of reporters outside the military Humvee he would ride in, “It’s in the right city … to understand what it takes to get to this point, the whole city, all of our community, all of our fans, our whole organization, Jody, all of our players, faith, the hard work, the courage, the toughne

Pierce County prosecutors weigh rape charge in transgender teen wrestling case

The girl reported the alleged assault to school officials on December 8, but it wasn’t reported to the school resource officer until January 30.Video evidence inconclusiveThe only real evidence is the video shot by the girl’s mother, and Pierce County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Carly Cappetto said what the video actually shows is inconclusive.“What’s being alleged isn’t visibly seen by the eye. However, that doesn’t mean that an incident hasn’t happen