Danny Westneat
The Seattle Times
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Past articles by Danny:
The death of the moderate in WA politics
Nobody knows from personal experience more than Reagan Dunn that the most hazardous position in our polarized politics is to be caught reaching across the aisle, writes columnist Danny Westneat. → Read More
Stopping the presses, again: The story ends for 2 more century-old Seattle newspapers
At their peak, in the late 1980s, the Robinson family ran five community papers. “Printing on dead trees, it isn’t sustainable anymore,” says one brother. This week, the presses will roll the final time for their last community newspaper. → Read More
How some frustrated COVID-19 vaccine hunters are trying to fix a broken system
Frustrated about finding the COVID vaccine, with dozens of sites to search? We are too. But instead of getting mad, some guerrilla techies have instead invented a one-stop shot-finding website. → Read More
The curious and lonely tale of ‘Seattle’s only Trump voter’ comes to an end
Tod Steward was dubbed "Seattle's only Trump voter" after the 2016 election. But as with some others in the special group that veered from Obama to Trump, now he feels he can't defend the sitting president anymore. → Read More
Even for easygoing Seattle, living in the parks has gone too far
As wooden structures for campers are being built right next to a kids' play area in a city park, New Holly residents learn that Seattle has pulled the plug on its homeless Navigation team. → Read More
Seattle coronavirus survivor gets a $1.1 million, 181-page hospital bill
The COVID-19 patient, from West Seattle, has insurance and so isn't on the hook for the vast majority of the charge. But the gold-plated cost highlights one reason why American health care is so hard to reform. → Read More
With both Trump and the virus looming, Democrats are suddenly seeking safety
Bernie Sanders was widely expected in recent months to win our Democratic primary, just as he had steamrolled the Democratic caucuses here against mainstream favorite Hillary Clinton four years ago.... → Read More
‘Third World hellhole?’ New data shows Seattle had lowest property crime rate in decades
For all the caterwauling about public safety in Seattle, here on the streets crime actually went down, across the board, in 2019. Robbery was down 9 percent from a year... → Read More
‘Our house is on fire:’ Democrats sure have abandoned that ‘hopey-changey’ stuff
What did they do to our Sunny Jay? “Our house is on fire!” shouted the new version. Angry worked for Trump in 2016. But the Democrats are probably going to need a more positive approach than declaring that the world... → Read More
Bad omen: Even the Catholics are growing frustrated with Seattle’s efforts on homelessness
A series of damaging incidents at St. James Cathedral, Seattle's largest Catholic church, has the pastor there calling out the city — and worrying whether the church's open-door approach to all can be sustained. → Read More
These mammoth new parking garages speak an inconvenient truth about green-talking Seattle
Some of the largest parking structures ever built in Seattle are coming on line in and around our high-tech neighborhoods. But we're embarrassed about it, so it's OK. → Read More
In Seattle, the socialists are giving big business a run for their money — literally
We had an excellent story in this paper over the weekend about how big business is fed up with city politics and is ready to throw its weight around. Headlined... → Read More
Republicans around here are now complete lambs to Trump. Except for one.
Last summer, after President Trump had been implicated in illegally trying to influence an election (by making hush-money payments to a porn star and then lying about it), I asked... → Read More
‘Making Amazon look bad’: The unique and welcome way Microsoft is getting Amazon’s goat
Remember when Microsoft was the Death Star? Well now it's down at the state Legislature doing good works like lobbying for a tax on itself to pay for higher education.... → Read More
Amazon puts the smile in federal income taxes — by not paying any
How do you book record profits and still pay no federal taxes? The tax wonk who discovered that Amazon has done this two years in a row worries that "the great disruptor" may be starting to destabilize democracy itself. → Read More
How Amazon gets whatever it wants
Two power plays this past week show why it's Amazon's world, and we're just living in it. → Read More
Howard Schultz is above the political fray — so high above he often doesn’t vote
Like a lot of outsider business execs who want to come in and fix politics, Howard Schultz has kept some distance from the mess of democracy in the past. By not voting. → Read More
In the great debate to save the orcas, the apex predator is missing
Some say we could give our starving whales more food instantly simply by not fishing. But the idea that the apex predator might need to stand down isn't on the table. → Read More
Story of Seattle: The city’s new soda tax is usurious — and also too low
Soda tax revenue is pouring in so much faster than expected that it may not be having the deterrent effect city officials were hoping for. Maybe the tax is just too low for such a wealthy city? → Read More
Even Trump’s supporters seem to realize the dream of the wall is dead
It was the most audacious political promise in generations, and so simple you could chant it at rallies. But like a lot of things with Trump, a wall on the border was more about symbolism, not practical sense. → Read More