What the fuck, everybody? Why have only 4% of eligible Americans (which is most of us, at this point) received their latest COVID booster shot? They're free, widely available, and they're the single most important thing you can do to protect yourself against a severe case of the disease. With public health officials projecting a surge in infections as the winter forces us all indoors for several months, there's never been a better time to fire up the Department of Health's vaccine locator and make yourself an appointment. 

Oh, that's why: It's only a partial explanation, but we'd certainly be doing much better on our vaccination rates if a multi-billion dollar propaganda network wasn't discouraging its middle-aged viewers from getting a life-saving and safe vaccine.

It's never been this bad: And by "this," I mean the Seattle metro area's rising median incomes. The latest Census Bureau data reveals that our region's median income now ranks fourth in the country at nearly $101,800, according to Gene Balk over at the Seattle Times. Just twelve years ago, the median household income clocked in at $63,100. 

I point out that difference only by way of observing that our intractable housing crisis is actually a relatively recent development, and it might have been avoided if local policymakers had acted quickly to respond to the tech boom. But this is America, where no one does anything until a problem matures into a "crisis" for a decade.

Smoke season not over yet: The experts over at the National Weather Service have bad news. The smoke from the Bolt Creek Fire will likely hang around like an unwelcome house guest until Thursday. If all of you summer-loving freaks hadn't wished away the fall rain so effectively, we could be breathing easy. Are you pleased with yourselves?

Mariners won! I could not care less about baseball, but lots of people I follow on Twitter seemed to lose their minds in a good way when the home team pulled off a 10-9 win on Saturday to advance in the playoffs. 

ICYMI, WA's the best: Or close to it, when it comes to voting anyway. Axios reporter Melissa Santos highlighted our stunning performance on the 2022 Cost of Voting Index, where Washington clocks in at second, just behind Oregon. Now is the perfect time to take advantage of those accessible voting laws by updating your registration online if you've moved recently. If you prefer to register in person, then you can do so at a voting center.

Feels like "sorry" won't cut it: Pretty much everyone and their mother is calling for the resignation of Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez after a leaked recording revealed her using anti-Black, racist language during a private meeting with several other city leaders about the City's redistricting process. Martinez's apology did not seem to mollify the people she insulted. There are too many offensive remarks to single out just one as representative of the conversation, so go read the New York Times piece in full.

Let's restore some faith in humanity: Hannah worked late on Friday to cover this protest where local Seattleites stood in solidarity with the Iranian people protesting their country's murderous morality police.

About those protesters: They're getting creative in how they spread their message, as a group of anonymous protesters calling themselves "Adalat Ali," or Ali's Justice, hacked Iran's state-run TV to broadcast a recruitment message urging more Iranians to join their resistance against the morality police. One caption read "our youths' blood is dripping off your paws."

Gun violence prevention nonprofit cuts ties with sex offender: After a KUOW investigation revealed that the man running Renegades for Life, a sub-contractor involved with King County's Regional Peacekeepers Collective, falsified his credentials and is a registered sex offender, the lead contracting nonprofit cut off funding for the dishonest man's organization. Community Passageways, the gun violence prevention nonprofit that leads the Collective, said Renegades for Life misrepresented whether it actually worked with youth and terminated the contract as a result of that breach.

Direct action works: Hell hath no fury like that of a parent whose child was gunned down with an assault rifle while cops in body armor dicked around outside and listened to them scream for help. 

More misery from Ukraine: Putin authorized several missile strikes against Kyiv and several other major Ukrainian cities today, striking civilian and military targets alike, reports the Associated Press. Ukrainian officials say the strikes killed at least 11 people and injured 64 others across the country in the deadliest attack since the early days of the war. The sudden escalation comes after Ukraine blew up part of a key bridge connecting Crimea to Russia, and as Putin's military suffers embarrassing defeats in parts of eastern Ukraine that Russia is trying to annex, as well as a mass exodus of fighting-age men from Russia in response to Putin's recent partial mobilization.

Now, the aftermath: The wind and rain of hurricane Ian was just the start of the damage for many people in Florida, where a lack of flood insurance casts doubts on their ability to recover. Because the storm caused flooding in areas where federal regulations don't require homeowners to carry separate flood insurance, CNN reports that as many as 96% of households in some counties in Central Florida could be left to pick up the tab for rebuilding their homes entirely on their own unless Congress acts to provide disaster aid. 

Today's news has been rough: So I'm ending AM with a slightly more positive take on the impending doom of the country with this discussion about how, just maybe, we can fix the Supreme Court before we get our own version of Iran's morality police. Enjoy.