Good morning! If you haven’t gotten dressed yet, I thought I’d help you pick the practical thing to wear: A jacket! According to Weather.com, Seattle girlies can expect the day to start with cloudy skies, some rain, and temperatures in the high 40s. Starting at around noon, the chance of precipitation drops pretty significantly, and the temperature will heat up slightly to the low 50s. Chance of rain will pick up in the late evening, but otherwise the temperature will pretty much hold steady in the high 40s or low 50s. 

Did I do a good job reporting the weather? I took a class in college that I don’t want to go to waste. 

Important reminder: After a long and bumpy ride, the initiative to establish a public development authority and one day bring social housing to Seattle will go to a vote in a February special election. This thread will give you a better run down:

Yang Gang rejoice: Tacoma rolled out a universal basic income (UBI) pilot program that gave some residents a $500 check each month for a year. Recipients called the program "transformational," which could help convince the State Legislature to implement a statewide UBI program in the coming years. Here’s how it went. 

Hit-and-run: The Seattle Times reported that King County prosecutors filed charges against a 20-year-old for vehicular homicide of a cyclist and fleeing the scene almost six months ago in West Seattle. The victim’s death is just one in a long, tragic history of cyclist deaths in a city built for cars (and, in this case, a driver doubling the speed limit). The new director of the Seattle Department of Transportation said he’s reviewing Vision Zero polices, which aim to improve infrastructure in order to end pedestrian and cyclist deaths. But that review hasn't done much so far. The Times said the City failed to lowered the number of pedestrian and cyclist deaths last year compared to previous year. 

Dang: The Splintered Wand, a geeky (celebratory), wizard-themed bar and restaurant closed after just one year in business. I like anything themed, so I’m sad to have never made it out there. In my defense, it was in Ballard, which is basically another country. RIP The Splintered Wand. 

Check on your tech friends: On Tuesday, Amazon's CEO said the company will lay off 18,000 workers. According to KOMO, most of those layoffs will target workers at Amazon stores and the People Experience and Technology Solutions team. "Impacted" workers can expect a little chat on January 18. Hoping everyone that Amazon cans finds a better job right away that pays them more money and treats them better.

He lives: Earlier this week, a nose-first plane crash in Provo, Utah killed the private jet’s pilot, Nathan Ricks. The three passengers aboard, including CEO of Seattle-based WaFd Bank, survived with minor injuries.

Slowcession: You’ve heard of a recession. Now get ready for “slowcession.” A leading Moody Analytics economist forecasted that the U.S. economy’s growth will stall and unemployment will rise, but growth won’t see a downturn. We’ll see! Remember: Economics is just astrology for boys. 

Power’s out: Still can’t turn on your lights? You’re not alone. KIRO 7 said strong winds knocked out power for thousands yesterday, mostly on the east side in Bellevue and Redmond. As of this morning, almost 15,000 people are still without electricity. 

Bryan Kohberger: Police brought the 28-year grad student suspected of killing four University of Idaho students back to Moscow yesterday to get booked at Latah County Jail. He could appear in court as soon as today, according to the Associated Press. 

Still at it! President Joe Biden is taking on the Supreme Court to fight for his student debt forgiveness policy. On Wednesday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) submitted its opening briefing, which argued that, under the HEROES Act, Biden’s plan “falls comfortably” within the law. The Court will hear opening arguments next month, so watch out for updates here on the Slog! 

They all deserve each other: The U.S. House Republicans cannot, for the love of God, get their shit together. As Jas wrote in Slog PM last night, Rep. Kevin McCarthy keeps failing to get enough Republican support to be elected the new Speaker of the House. After six votes and two days of sheer embarrassment, today the House enters its third day of trying to herd right-wing cats so we can all move on with our lives. 

Royals gonna royal: According to the gossip blogs, in his new memoir Prince Harry blames his brother, Prince William, and his brother's wife, Kate Middleton, for the Nazi costume he wore to a “Native and Colonial” party in 2005. Harry couldn't decide between dressing as a Nazi or a pilot, and I guess his brother and sister-in-law laughed harder at the Nazi one. Not to Stan any royal, but let's be real: Harry decided to go to the weird-ass party, Harry picked out a Nazi costume, and even if William and Kate encouraged it, HARRY fucking wore it. Sounds like it's still your fault, buddy! I have a feeling his memoir is just pages upon pages of him playing the victim, but maybe I'll eat my words. After all, it appears one time Harry might have been the victim when his brother allegedly attacked him in 2019. 

Rest In Peace, Takeoff: