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As consumers struggled to cope with rising prices at the pump, the oil industry pulled in a record $101 billion in profits last year — about $11.6 million an hour — and according to Barb Flye of the Washington Tax Fairness Coalition, taxpayers are picking up the tab… twice.

“Individuals have to dig deeper to fill the gas tank and heat their homes, and collectively, all taxpayers will be covering the higher gas and heating costs for a host of publicly-funded services and institutions,” Flye said. “We’re paying more for heat at public schools and colleges, hospitals and nursing homes, courts and other government buildings, not to mention the higher cost of running school buses and public transit.”

This has prompted state Rep. Steve Conway to introduce HB 2128 a tax hike on excess oil industry profits. The bill would put a 3% B&O tax surcharge on gross receipts of companies with a refining capacity in excess of 10,000 barrels a year, whenever retail gas prices exceed $1.75 a gallon. The Washington Tax Fairness Coalition will be holding a press event at noon today in Olympia, in support of HB 2128.

The Seattle P-I editorial board gives credit where none is due:

Still, principal owner Clay Bennett deserves credit for sincerity in his efforts to work out a deal that keeps the team in the Seattle area.

Um… okay, let me get this straight. After failing to secure $200 million in public funding for a $220 million expansion of Key Arena, a frustrated Howard Schultz sells the team to Clay Bennett, a prominent Oklahoma City businessman. Then, fully aware of the cold reception local icon Schultz received from lawmakers, and only months after 74-percent of Seattle voters rejected a public subsidy by approving I-91, the Sonics’ new owner — hailing from a city famous for its basketball jones — asks taxpayers to contribute $400 million towards what would be the most expensive arena in the entire NBA, but with no public vote.

And I’m supposed to believe this effort is sincere?

Call me a cynic, but I never believed Bennett ever intended to keep the team in Seattle. Even the most casual observer of Washington politics could have told Bennett that his $530 million hoop dream would be D.O.A., so I can’t help but view it as a disingenuous con game intended to fill Key Arena with gullible fans until the lease expires in 2010. But it’s hard to keep fans in the seats when you put such a crappy product on the court, so now Bennett is hinting that he may not even honor the last couple years of the lease.

“I would expect we would stay, but I’m not so sure a lame duck franchise is good for anybody.”

Whatever.

I suppose it is possible that our Legislature could foil Bennett’s plan by being stupid enough to give him what he’s asking for. But I’m guessing not even Bennett thinks it likely.

Al Franken explains what it means to be a progressive. (And oh yeah… why he’s running for the US Senate.)

Since daily newspapers are fair and balanced institutions staffed entirely by objective journalists who merely report the facts, one might expect that our two dailies, covering the same public hearing on the same day, would pretty much report the same story.

Hmm. Interesting thesis. But how does it work out in practice?

Seattle Times: OLYMPIA — Sonics owner Clay Bennett ended a long-running mystery Tuesday when he told state lawmakers he prefers Renton over Bellevue for a new $500 million basketball arena.

Seattle P-I: OLYMPIA — The Seattle Sonics want the public to pay for most of a new $500 million multipurpose arena in Renton, they want most of the proceeds from that facility and they want the money without a public vote, owner Clay Bennett told lawmakers Tuesday.

According to the Times, the big story was the stunning, plot-twisting conclusion to the Bellevue vs. Renton “mystery.” According to the P-I, the big story was the Sonics intention to fleece $400 million out of taxpayers to build them the most expensive basketball arena in the nation.

Both articles report that the proposed arena would cost about $500 million, and that the Sonics are requesting $300 million in “state-authorized” taxes — but only the P-I spells out that the tax money would come from King County residents, not the state. The Times reports that the remaining $200 million would be “split among private investors and the city of Renton,” whereas the P-I is more specific:

Bennett told the Senate Ways and Means Committee that he expects the public to provide most of the financing — $300 million from the state, about $100 million from the city of Renton — and that most of the money from the facility should go to the team.

And only the P-I points out that the 22-acre site the Sonics have chosen is probably not for sale.

One hearing, two newspapers, two ledes. And two very different story lines coming out of yesterday’s events. I’m not implying any intentional bias on the part of the various reporters, just that bias inevitably exists, and inevitably seeps through every journalist’s work, no matter how hard they try to suppress it. (And sometimes, because they try to suppress it.)

While South Dakota continues to marginalize itself, Kansas is stepping back from the precipice of kookiness by taking an important step to restore proper science to their education standards:

The Kansas state Board of Education on Tuesday repealed science guidelines questioning evolution that had made the state an object of ridicule.
[…]

The board removed language suggesting that key evolutionary concepts are controversial and being challenged by new research, and approved a new definition of science that limits it to the search for natural explanations of what’s observed in the universe…

What is the reaction from the fringies?

John Calvert, a retired attorney who helped found the Intelligent Design Network, said under the new standards, “students will be fed an answer which may be right or wrong” about questions like the origin of life.

“Who does that model put first?” he said. “The student, or those supplying the preordained ‘natural explanation’?”

Mr. Calvert picks an interesting case—the origin of life—because that is truly an elusive, intriguing area of science. We currently don’t have great answers to how life originated on earth. Rather we have several competing theories, each with strengths and weaknesses. The fact of the matter is, all of them may prove to be incorrect (and it is a lot easier to show a theory is wrong than it is to show any given theory is approximately correct). But no scientist is claiming to have unequivocally solved the “origin of life” question.

Mr. Calvert asks who is served by teaching the ideas about the origins of life? I would strongly argue that the students are served. They are served by being introduced to science at the edge of knowledge—something that scientists should neither avoid nor be ashamed of. Science has made progress at different rates across differing areas. Some areas are ripe for innovative ideas and empirical testing; other areas stubbornly resist the best scientific minds. Origin of life studies falls on the stubborn side, and students should know that. After all, the stubborn, poorly developed areas of science offer the greatest and most exciting challenges for young potential scientists.

The students are also served because they receive a proper science education. The “theory” of intelligent design is to evolution what a theory of angels holding up airplanes on strings is to aerodynamics. In my opinion, students who believe airplanes fly because angels sweep them across the sky like puppets have no place in higher education. Likewise, students whose school system forces them to learn that “intelligent design” is a valid scientific theory of evolution, really shouldn’t be allowed into college.

Many colleges have prerequisites for admission that include things like coursework in a foreign language, algebra and trigonometry, English, etc. I think all respectable colleges and universities should add coursework in “scientific biology” to the entry requirements—and they should keep track of school systems that fail to provide courses in scientific biology. That way, school boards that foist anti-science curricula on their students would be excluding their children from qualifying for college. Of course, the students would likely be able to make up the deficiency through night courses, etc., but such school boards would be starting their graduates off with a hefty economic disadvantage.

A harsh policy, to be sure, but nobody said stamping out inter-generational transmission of ignorance was going to be easy.

New Alaska Way Viaduct at Washington St. (Existing structure superimposed in red.)

I appreciate the value of the Seattle waterfront and recognize that the project design must be mindful of the principles of the community.
— Gov. Chris Gregoire, 2/13/07

Governor Chris Gregoire and several key legislators announced today that the state intends to replace the Alaska Way Viaduct with a new, bigger elevated structure, regardless of the outcome of Seattle’s March 13 advisory vote. Councilman Nick Licata wants to scrap the vote, calling it “pointless,” but to do so at this time under these circumstances would be insulting and defeatist. Instead, I think we should revise the ballot to remove the tunnel alternative, and make this a straight up or down vote on a massive elevated freeway. My sense is that under these circumstances a rebuild would be overwhelmingly rejected by Seattle voters.

Perhaps the state might still have the legal authority to shove this down our throats anyway, but at least they would be fully aware of the political consequences should they try.

The Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally meets tonight (and every Tuesday), 8PM at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E. Come join me for a hoppy Manny’s and some hopped up conversation.

I’m told that Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis will be stopping by tonight. We’ll see if we can get a few drinks in him and then ask him what he really thinks about the state declaring the tunnel dead (and totally pretending that a surface alternative doesn’t even exist.)

Not in Seattle? Liberals will also be drinking tonight in the Tri-Cities. A full listing of Washington’s eleven Drinking Liberally chapters is available here.

HA co-blogger Will speculates about former state rep Toby Nixon and his political aspirations:

Maybe Nixon’s stoking the fires for a run at his old seat (won by Roger Goodman when Nixon ran for Senate). I’ve got a better idea…

Lieutenant Governor! Think about it, Toby… I don’t know anyone who’s “high” on Lt. Gov. Brad Owen. He’s got that ridiculous rock band which he takes across the state, trying to keep kids off drugs (If he had come to my high school, I would have STARTED smoking pot, just to spite him). He endorses right wing judicial candidates and wants to spend tax dollars on a NASCAR track. What a waste!

To which I say… do your homework Will. I’m guessing our friend Toby might be planning to run for King County Auditor, an obvious stepping stone to the Secretary of State’s office.

What’s that you say? I’ve got my head up my ass? Toby can’t possibly run for Auditor because it is an appointed position? Well, not if Toby has his way. Just last week Toby filed a C1 with the Public Disclosure Commission creating “Citizens for Accountable Elections,” a new PAC supporting a King County initiative to make the Auditor an elected position. Given Toby’s deep interest in election reform, and his admitted eye on the SOS office, this would seem to be an elected office tailor made for (and by) Toby Nixon.

Toby and I disagree on a lot of stuff, but he’s a standup guy and a great sport. I’m off this weekend, but Toby has agreed to come on my show on 710-KIRO the following weekend, when I’ll have the opportunity to ask him the tough questions, and he’ll have every opportunity to respond.

UPDATE:
Via email, Toby elaborates on his initiative and his plans:

The proposal is not for an elected “auditor”, but an elected “elections director” – it wouldn’t include the full range of auditor responsibilities, but just the election functions. There have been folks trying to encourage me to seek the office if it were to become elected, and I haven’t told them flatly No. I haven’t told them Yes, either, but I haven’t ruled it out. I do believe an important part – maybe the most important part – of the responsibility of the office would be to exercise leadership to create a culture of excellence, accountability, integrity, accuracy, and transparency in elections, and anyone who knows my legislative record knows that I am strongly committed to those things. But you also know that my interests cover a wide range of topics, and I’d have to think hard about whether I’d want to forgo other opportunities to serve where I could have an influence in those broader areas in order to focus specifically on the elections office.

Toby will join me on 710-KIRO in the 8PM hour, on Sunday Feb. 25.

Toby Nixon is straight-up freakin’ over Senator Eric Oemig’s plan to put impeachment of Bush “on the table.”

The man Oemig beat in November to win the open Senate seat, former Rep. Toby Nixon, wrote to his supporters today questioning whether Oemig was honest with voters:

Oemig’s campaign web site said (and still says) “the Eastside needs a State Senator who solves problems and gets things done. We cannot afford more of the same old thing. I’m not a politician, and I reject the extremism and partisan bickering of Olympia”. It also says “Elected officials must live up to the highest standards of honesty”. Well, Mr. Oemig, was it honest of you to run a campaign saying you’re going to “solve problems and get things done” and that you “reject partisan bickering”, and to turn around “soon after taking office” and take the lead on impeaching the President? How is that living “up to the highest standards of honesty”. It certainly looks like “extremism and partisan bickering” to me.

Just so you know, Toby Nixon is well-liked here at HA. He even shows up at Drinking Liberally from time to time. Needless to say, I don’t agree with his assessment.

Democrats have been timid as heck, unwilling to stand up to Bush even when he’s been weak and wrong at the same time. Is it bickering to stand up to Bush, even at the local level? Maybe Nixon’s stoking the fires for a run at his old seat (won by Roger Goodman when Nixon ran for Senate). I’ve got a better idea…

Lieutenant Governor! Think about it, Toby… I don’t know anyone who’s “high” on Lt. Gov. Brad Owen. He’s got that ridiculous rock band which he takes across the state, trying to keep kids off drugs (If he had come to my high school, I would have STARTED smoking pot, just to spite him). He endorses right wing judicial candidates and wants to spend tax dollars on a NASCAR track. What a waste!

I guess what I’m saying, Toby, is aim higher! Imagine the satisfaction of swinging that gavel whenever Senator Oemig gets out of line. Sweet revenge, sir. Sweet revenge!!

I was just reminded that we’re having one of those weird, King County Conservation District elections today where they make it extremely difficult for people to cast a vote. The result is, this is one of those few elections in King County where Republicans tend to routinely win. (See how that works? Few people vote… Republicans win. That’s all you need to know about most Republican proposals for election “reform.”)

Anyway… property rights/pro-sprawl incumbent Mark Livengood is being challenged by Max Prinsen, a past Chair of the Conservation Board, the current President of SHADOW (Save Habitat and Diversity of Wetlands), and a member of the Cedar River Council. Prinsen is also a member of and endorsed by Washington Conservation Voters.

Obviously, I urge you to vote for Max Prinsen.

Unfortunately, casting your vote isn’t all that easy. Polls are open from 11AM to 7PM today at the following locations

• Renton City Hall. 1055 South Grady Way, Renton
• Snoqualmie Valley Community Center. 4610 Stephens Ave, Carnation
• Kent City Hall. 220 – 4th Ave South, Kent
• Enumclaw Fairgrounds Administrative Office. 45224 – 284th Ave SE, Enumclaw
• Kirkland City Hall. 123 Fifth Ave, Kirkland
• Shoreline City Hall. 17544 Midvale Ave N, Shoreline
• Garfield Community Center, 2323 East Cherry St, Seattle

There are no absentee ballots and no provisionals. Hell, there isn’t even a polling place in downtown Seattle.

The King County Conservation District Board has a $6 million annual budget. Don’t you think maybe a real conservationist should help determine how that money is spent? Fewer than 1000 people generally vote in this election, so every vote counts.

UPDATE:
I have been corrected. Max Prinsen is not currently an active member of Washington Conservation Voters, though he had been some 5 or 6 years ago.

The blog that made it’s name savaging the rightwingers takes a shot, for the first time, at perhaps the nuttiest lefty blogger out there.

It’s really, really good. Check it out.

Oh, and on a totally unrelated topic, a tip of the hat to the Seattle Times’ David Postman for pointing us to breaking news… about talking urinal cakes:

SANTA FE — New Mexico is taking its fight against drunken driving to men’s restrooms around the state.

The state has ordered 500 talking urinal cakes that will deliver a recorded anti-DWI message to bar and restaurant patrons who make one last pit stop before getting behind the wheel.

“Hey there, big guy. Having a few drinks?” a female voice says a few seconds after an approaching male sets off a motion sensor in the device. “It’s time to call a cab or ask a sober friend for a ride home.”

Oh great. I’ve already got a touch of “shy bladder.” A talking urinal cake is going to shut the hose right off.

Last night on my show, former Governor Gary Locke unequivocally stated his opposition to building another elevated freeway to replace the aging Alaska Way Viaduct… and he said former Governors Rosellini, Evans and Lowry were firmly with him. (Gov. Spellman is apparently neutral.) Gov. Locke went on to say that while he enthusiastically supports the current “Tunnel-Lite” proposal, and believes the financing is in place to build it, he would back a surface-plus-transit option over a rebuild should voters reject the tunnel on March 13. The overwhelming priority for voters in the upcoming special election, Gov. Locke repeated several times, is to vote “No” on the rebuild.

Personally, I tend to agree with King County Executive Ron Sims, who last week on my show stated that Mayor Nickels’ tunnel proposal is politically dead. But what do we know? It is very clear that Gov. Chris Gregoire, Speaker of the House Frank Chopp and a handful of vocal legislators adamantly oppose a tunnel, and it is hard to imagine them backing down. But the pro-tunnel forces contain some heavy hitters and experienced politicos, so it may be too early to count them out.

What I find most striking though is the growing number of high profile political, civic and business leaders who are willing to publicly lend their credibility towards the notion that a surface-plus-transit option is not only a reasonable and serious alternative, but preferable to a rebuild. The pro-rebuild/anti-surface camp tends to brush off surface supporters as a bunch of crazy, car-hating hippies or something like that, but that’s a pretty dismissive way to describe Gov. Locke, Executive Sims and a substantial chunk of our political and business establishment. While wealthy developer (and deadbeat) Martin Selig may support a rebuild/retrofit campaign, Gov. Locke insists that many of Selig’s tenants do not. Indeed, Gov. Locke claims that the majority of businesses who would be most impacted by waterfront redevelopment are willing to tax themselves hundreds of millions of dollars via a special improvement district to help pay the cost of a tunnel. (A funding mechanism I first floated way back in November of 2005.)

I fully understand that some of our state Democratic leaders see a political upside to shoving another elevated structure down our throats: that voters elsewhere in the state will view them as finally standing up to us Seattle bullies. But I sincerely hope that such a base (and ultimately self-defeating) political motivation does not overwhelm the decision-making process should Seattle voters reject a rebuild on March 13. The final decision shouldn’t pivot on a political battle between Seattle and Olympia or between Nickels and Gregoire; it should be based on what is best for Seattle and the state. But for such an objective debate to occur, the pro-rebuild forces must actively disown the politically convenient misconception that Seattle is somehow demanding the rest of the state to pay for its “gold-plated tunnel.”

The state has committed $2.8 billion towards replacing the Viaduct. Assuming WSDOT’s cost estimates are correct, that is exactly what it will cost state taxpayers to build a new elevated structure. But if the city chooses the more expensive tunnel alternative, nobody expects the state to cough up additional funds. The tunnel will not cost state taxpayers a dime more than the $2.8 billion already committed… indeed, if the city opts for a cheaper surface-plus-transit alternative, it will save state taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars!

I find it ironic that there are state legislators — Democrats no less — who are willing to pass a state law requiring Seattle voters to tax themselves to build a new Sonics arena we’ve already rejected at the polls… while at the same time refusing to let us tax ourselves to build the Viaduct replacement alternative the city wants.

This is our city, this is our waterfront, and the Viaduct overwhelmingly carries our traffic. If we choose to raise the money locally to pay the difference between a rebuild and a tunnel, that should be our choice. And if instead we opt to let go of our 1950’s mentality and re-imagine the way we address transportation and transit issues, we should be given every opportunity to make the case that a less expensive, less auto-centric surface-plus-transit alternative is the right solution for our city.

Have you always wanted to compensate for the small size of your penis while at the same time doing right by the environment? Here’s your chance!

The FT-HS is a hybrid sports car–the name stands for Future Toyota Hybrid Sports. Its powertrain marries a 3.5-liter V-6 with a new-generation hybrid system to provide a combined output of some 400 hp driving the rear wheels.

Not only does it kick ass versus other cars in its class, but it’s a hybird. Why is this important?

What is interesting is not the direct impact of this car on the environment, though we can expect it to be better than the “traditional” V8 gasoline-powered sports cars it will compete against (a lesser evil). No, the interesting thing is the “halo” effect it could have, making hybrids cool and desirable to a new public. Even if they never end up buying that particular model, they’ll notice the technology and associate it with something they want instead of something they don’t.

Making hybrids cool… That’s an idea worth pursuing. The Honda Civic Hybrid is pretty low key, as is the Toyota Prius. Dori Monson calls Dave Ross’ car a “prissy” Prius. That’s Dori for you, but he has a point. Hybrids have an image problem. If people think of a hybrid car as more like this and this, and less like this and this, we’ll make progress.

The FT-HS isn’t yet in production, but if they move forward this year, they can have them ready for sale at Toyota dealerships just in time for a “Dori Monson Midlife Crisis” purchase.

It’s politics as unusual again tonight on “The David Goldstein Show” from 7PM to 10PM on Newsradio 710-KIRO. I like to go with the flow, so things could change, but here’s what I have lined up for tonight’s show:

7PM: What’s happening in the other Washington? Ken Vogel, formerly of the TNT and now an investigative reporter The Politicogives us an update from our nation’s capital. What’s the latest scandal? Is Obama for real? Will Republicans ever allow a vote on a resolution opposing escalating the war in Iraq? Ken will fill us in on all the latest news, rumor and gossip.

8PM: Obligatory Viaduct Hour!!! If this is a political talk show in Seattle, then we must be discussing the fate of the Alaska Way Viaduct. Former Gov. Gary Locke joins me to tell us where he stands on (or under) the Viaduct replacement controversy, and share is vision for Seattle and the downtown waterfront. Will Gov. Locke be in lockstep with Gov. Gregoire? Tune in to find out.

9PM: TBA (I’m gonna rant about stuff.)

Tune in tonight (or listen to the live stream) and give me a call: 1-877-710-KIRO (5476).