Think of it as a cross between a lizard and an eel — at the scale of a Tyrannosaurus rex.

NEW YORK — Danny Lin cruised his white sports car down Broadway, the bright lights of Times Square gleaming off his sharply detailed Audi R8. He looped through the tourist hot spot again and again, navigating around Corvettes, Mercedes, Mustangs and BMWs — a parade of high-priced vehicles gathered for a rare photo-op. “I never […]

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — A Utah Highway Patrol trooper got a pint-sized surprise when he pulled over a 5-year-old driver who was swerving so badly he thought the driver needed medical attention. Trooper Rick Morgan said Adrian Zamarripa, who turns 6 next month, did not respond to his lights but pulled over when he hit […]

In the mountains of rural Japan, “murder hornets” are known for more than their aggression and excruciating sting. They are seen as a pleasant snack and an invigorating ingredient in drinks.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The woman attacked and killed by an alligator in a gated community along the South Carolina coast was visiting the homeowner to do her nails and was trying to touch the animal when it grabbed her, authorities said. After briefly getting away from the alligator Friday, the woman stood in waist deep […]

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — A Utah Highway Patrol trooper got a pint-sized surprise when he pulled over a 5-year-old driver who was swerving so badly he thought the driver needed medical attention. Trooper Rick Morgan said Adrian Zamarripa, who turns 6 next month, did not respond to his lights but pulled over when he hit […]

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court held Day Three of arguments by telephone with the audio available live to audiences around the world. The higher profile case of the two heard by the justices on Wednesday dealt with Trump administration rules that would allow more employers who cite a religious or moral objection to opt out […]

"When COVID-19 struck, all of the local shops ran out of flour very quickly," said a museum employee. "We had a stock of good-quality milling wheat and the means and skills to grind it into flour, so we thought we could help."

GREAT FALLS, Mont. — For patrons at a Montana tiki bar that has a back wall of a window into a motel swimming pool, it’s typical to see mermaids in the water five nights a week. So as the owner of the O’Haire Motor Inn and the Sip ‘n Dip Lounge in Great Falls began […]

GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — For patrons at a Montana tiki bar that has a back wall of a window into a motel swimming pool, it’s typical to see mermaids in the water five nights a week. So as the owner of the O’Haire Motor Inn and the Sip ‘n Dip Lounge in Great Falls […]

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Three teenage McDonald’s employees in Oklahoma City suffered gunshot wounds when a customer opened fire because she was angry that the restaurant’s dining area was closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, police said Thursday. Gloricia Woody, 32, was in custody after the Wednesday night shooting on four counts of assault and […]

By all accounts, 2020 has been, to put it mildly, a weird year. This week alone has already seen a 5-year-old boy from Utah attempt a solo drive to California on a mission to buy a Lamborghini, a llama named Winter emerge as a potential key player in the race for a treatment targeting the […]

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii authorities are cracking down on rogue tourists who are visiting beaches, riding personal watercraft, shopping and generally flouting strict requirements that they quarantine for 14 days after arriving. A newlywed California couple left their Waikiki hotel room repeatedly, despite being warned by hotel staff, and were arrested. Others have been arrested […]

Using materials available on site for a moon base or other construction would reduce the need to launch supplies from Earth.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that he and his girlfriend have named their newborn boy X Æ A-12. But that might cross the line with state of California, which has limits on what parents can name their children.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A Colombian advertising company is pitching a novel if morbid solution to shortages of hospital beds and coffins during the coronavirus pandemic: combine them. ABC Displays has created a cardboard bed with metal railings that designers say can double as a casket if a patient dies. Company manager Rodolfo Gómez said […]

In addition to selling some of their excess, airlines have put donation programs in place.

Re: “Quinault Indian Nation opposes new dam on Chehalis, seeks alternatives” [April 16, Northwest]: As a resident of Lewis County, I appreciate the leadership of the Quinault Nation opposing a massive dam proposed for the Chehalis River. Gratitude should also go to the Chehalis Tribe for its opposition. The Chehalis River is an aquatic artery […]

Re: “Our homelessness crisis is urgent, tragic — and completely solvable” [April 24, Opinion]: The authors, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal and Diane Yentel, propose a “Housing is a Human Right Act” taxing and spending $200 billion over 10 years in housing and homelessness services. No details are offered in this solution except block grants that […]

How tragically ironic is it that American farmers are plowing their crops under and dairy farmers are dumping their milk when food banks have more clients than ever before? There must be some way to correct this absurd wastefulness. Chris Syrjala, Seattle

While President Donald Trump pushes for investigation into the possibility of the coronavirus escaping from a lab in Wuhan, China, many scientists are pointing to a live-animal market in that city. Found in many countries around the world but primarily in Southeast Asia, live-animal markets sell domestic, wild and imported animals for human consumption. Conditions […]

Re: “Seattle’s war on employers must end now” [May 3, Opinion]: The solution to the area’s housing problems and its related issues is the creation of more and better paying private-sector jobs. Raising taxes on large employers will only reduce their interest in growing their businesses here when they have options to go to other […]

Re: “Bird-watching soars among bored Americans” [May 3, Nation]: Will Americans learn anything from observing birds? I’ve been birding for years and have learned how much bird populations are changing due to the annihilation of the world’s environment. Will the newest birders begin to understand that we must all take care of the planet as […]

The reintroduction of the business head tax by Seattle City Councilmembers Kshama Sawant and Tammy Morales is the height of irresponsibility. Only an ideologue could survey the current landscape — an economy in induced coma, a downtown deserted and a business climate of unparalleled uncertainty — and think, “Now’s a splendid time to put a […]

Re: “In French fry heartland, spring turns bitter as coronavirus cuts into global demand” [May 1, Northwest]: This made me pause, cringe and empathize with the farmer, Mike Pink. Pink was going to plow millions of pounds of potatoes under, basically making them garbage, because there are no buyers. His usual buyers are french-fry processors. […]

With the extension of Washington state’s stay-at-home order pushed through May 31, I’ve been thinking a lot on whether we have a plan to keep our citizens safe from infection after reopening before a vaccine is developed. Do we all just go about our lives as if there’s not an incredibly contagious disease spreading itself […]

Re: “Seattle Times wins Pulitzer Prize for Boeing 737 MAX coverage” [May 4, Northwest]: Congratulations to aerospace reporter Dominic Gates and the entire staff for this Pulitzer Prize for the Boeing 737 MAX disaster. Some Seattle-based pilots were quick to blame Third World pilots and operators for these terrible events. In my 53 years as […]

Re: “Wear a mask for you and your neighbor” [May 5, Opinion]: We need to establish a new etiquette for hiking our wonderful trails this summer. Tuesday was the first day that some outdoor areas reopened, so I decided to hike. The trail was full of young people, none wearing masks. As an elderly solo […]

Let’s all remember that COVID-19 is a global pandemic. As bad as it is in the U.S., low-income countries are suffering in nightmarish ways. The gains made in child immunization are lost because of a critical shortage of health workers. We have clean water and sanitation not available in many countries. I’m asking our representatives […]

“Coronavirus pushed Seattle to treat homelessness differently. Will those changes last?” [May 3, Project Homeless]: Greater than the fear engendered by exposure to the coronavirus, we are facing our society’s unwillingness to address growing economic inequality. It has taken an extreme crisis for local government to take action that has long been in its grasp. […]

Re: “King County Executive Dow Constantine proposes additional $57 million for coronavirus response” [April 23, Northwest]: While this proposal, expected to be voted on by the Metropolitan King County Council Tuesday, distributes $16 million among small businesses; tourism promotion; homeless-youth programs; and arts and culture groups, it designates no allocation for queer bars and nightclubs. […]

Re: “Pandemic exposes our neglect of children, families” [April 26, Opinion]: Tim Burgess points out that “nowhere are our systemic failures more damaging and longer lasting than in the education of our children,” and he goes on to note research that early learning opportunities in child care and preschool can have a lifetime impact. As […]

Re: “The business of burps: Scientists smell profit in cow emissions” [May 2, Business]: The lengths to which humans will go to subdue and tweak nature and animals for their own whims and profit boggles my mind. When I read that scientist are lending their names and investors money to studies about how to make […]

Gov. Jay Inslee’s continued lockdown is not giving us transparency on metrics for reopening the state. Even with the so-called “phased approach,” there’s nothing that the public can look for to know whether the next phase is in sight. The governor keeps talking about “data.” The Seattle Times publishes graphs of the daily number of […]

Re: “How we got here: One country, several nations” [May 3, Opinion]: Thank you to David Horsey for an excellent column that summarized the book “American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America” by Colin Woodard (and also provided a colorful map). It is a book I have shared over […]

Tim Burgess’ Op-Ed “Pandemic exposes our neglect of children, families” [Opinion, April 24] and the letter to the editor “Inequities: Don’t waste opportunity” [May 1, Opinion] demonstrate how low-income people suffer more during a crisis. I agree that a moratorium on evictions and a 15% increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits would help […]

Kathy Jackson was at Life Care Center in Kirkland, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., on Friday. By Sunday she was sick. But the public health system still didn't seem interested in testing her.

As Trump bashes our governor and the streets of Seattle get emptier, it's starting to seem like we're being cut off a bit from America — if not blamed for the outbreak altogether. "It feels like we're going it alone," says one relative of a resident at Life Care Center in Kirkland.

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. But in early returns in Washington's presidential nominating contest Tuesday, he was in a dead heat with the more moderate Joe Biden.

From 'quarantinis' to sex, what are the rules of the coronavirus avoidance strategy known as social distancing? A Seattle 'Infection Preventionist' answers our etiquette questions, via Danny Westneat.

When the longtime owner of the tiny Leschi Market along Lake Washington came down with COVID-19, the coronavirus hit home for generations of his patrons and fans.

Steve Shulman, longtime grocer and community figure at Leschi Market along Lake Washington in Seattle, died Wednesday night from the effects of COVID-19, his family says. “We all mourn the passing of this generous man who has been a pillar of the Leschi community and beyond for many years,” his nephew Yousef Shulman, co-owner of […]

Suddenly everybody's a fan of big government, now that a crisis has hit. But we're not ready for this one -- precisely because of the decades-long movement arguing that government needs to be slashed and burned.

School leaders in Seattle have said our district is too big and diverse to transition to online learning in the face of coronavirus, writes columnist Danny Westneat. Yet they're trying exactly that in … Los Angeles?

The news that Seattle and King County have put up 1,900 emergency shelter beds for the homeless in the last three weeks makes you wonder: Why didn't they do that when they declared a homelessness emergency four years ago? It's one of the many issues being suddenly cast in a new light by the pandemic.

Washington voters turned out to the polls in nation-leading fashion in March. The reason we were able to do that — even as we were an epicenter of coronavirus — is because we don't actually turn out. We vote from home. The president made clear this week he doesn't like the idea to expand this way of voting, because too many people might vote.

Farm field workers, many undocumented, have now been categorized by the Department of Homeland Security as "essential critical infrastructure workers" during the pandemic.

A teriyaki joint shuttered by the government's social distancing order asked for help with the rent from two landlords. The responses could hardly have been more different.

The $500 million a year "Amazon tax" before the Seattle City Council would also likely hit some firms in the health sector that are working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

James Thompson was considered "a goner" when he got COVID-19 last month. But he's here to tell that if he can face down the virus at age 96, and come out the other side, then we can too.