Laura Vecsey is a former sports columnist for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Baltimore Sun. She has lived in Seattle since 1994, which does not qualify her as a resident, according to unwritten rules of local citizenship. She lives in Magnolia, studies at the University of Washington and is the Local Content Director in Seattle for Examiner.com.

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Another Seattleite rudely introduced to city's vigilant jaywalking enforcement

3 comments

July 17, 6:56 PM

by Laura Vecsey, Seattle People Examiner

The fact that Seattle is a pedestrian-friendly & highly walkable city is not lost on any of us who live or visit here. It really is a part of what makes living here so addictively easy. There are crosswalks and right-of-ways and Washington state laws in which Seattle pedestrians have the clear advantage over two-ton Tessies & assorted Priuses and Smart Cars. That sense of safety and freedom is what gives Seattle pedestrians that unmistakeably haughty air of "Don't Mess With Me'' superority when crossing Queen Anne Ave or Greenlake.

The flip side of the equation? Yeah, you got it. That would be the militaristic approach by which the Seattle Police Department issues tickets for jaywalking.

I've seen stats that say demonstrate Seattle is among one of the most restrictive cities for would-be jaywalkers. One Seattle police report showed the department issues one ticket per every 370 city resident, each year. That means anyone who dares tip a toe off a curb in downtown Seattle when the crosswalk signal says stay put is, well, in danger of being treated like a common criminal. Or at least someone who is suddenly and annoyingly fined $56, like this Seattleite.

And on that note, we deliver today's YouTube selection from our friend David Gibbons. David works for Zillow, a real estate valuation company with a database of 80 million homes. Zillow's offices are downtown in the Wells Fargo building, which means Gibbons is not exactly a neophyte when it comes to getting himself safely across the streets of Seattle. Nonetheless, Gibbons became another sad Seattle statistic today: He was caught jaywalking and issued a citation by a Seattle police officer.

The video is NOT exactly scintillating. But then again, when is getting a ticket for jaywalking ever scintillating? Still, this IS the way it is here.

Topics: Seattle

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It's October: Do you know where your favorite ex-Mariners are?

4 comments

October 1, 11:56 AM

Well, it's October. The start of the real season in baseball. Good to see so many familiar Mariner faces in the MLB playoffs. Oops. They aren't exactly Mariners anymore. But we digress. Lou Piniella is taking the Cubs back to Goat Curse Killer... Read More
Topics: Griffey , pinella , MLB

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September 30, 7:46 PM

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Obama campaign gear gets a uniquely Ballard makeover

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September 28, 3:05 PM

The best presidential campaign item we've seen so far this election season? No doubt about it: Ballard for Obama t-shirt.They're on sale at Epilogue Books in Ballard for $14.95, which means you will have enough money to head to La Carta de Oaxaca and... Read More

Waking up to find our WaMu/Chase checks will clear & ATMs spitting fast cash

1 comment

September 26, 1:31 PM

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Topics: WaMu , KIRO

Nickelsville, Hooverville: Seattle homeless take on new meaning in market collapse

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September 23, 10:52 AM

It is either odd, ironic or, perhaps, prophetic that the entire issue of homelessness in Seattle is at the top of the news today. And we are not talking about the lone man or woman selling a copy of Real Change newspaper to shoppers in front... Read More
Topics: Nickelsville , Hooverville , Seattle homeless

McCain camp pulls a Piniella, minus the base-throwing

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September 22, 12:43 PM

We really miss him in Seattle, now that the Mariners are the worst team in baseball. Good ol' Lou Piniella. The Mariners skipper and his antics are the stuff of legend around here, the way he used to throw a base and get himself ejected.It's a time-honored... Read More
Topics: Piniella , McCain

If it's Election Day in Washington state, it's time for more Tim Eyman hijinx

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September 22, 11:27 AM

Yes, it's true: Seattleites have been preoccupied -- OK, obsessed -- with the 2008 Presidential race between Barack Obama/Joe Biden vs. John McCain/Sarah Palin. The future of the U.S. economy, the Supreme Court and foreign policy in Iraq,... Read More
Topics: Tim Eyman

Seattle-based journalist Tim Egan has a good read on Palin, Alaska

1 comment

September 18, 11:22 AM

The New York Times sent its requisite bevy of reporters, photographers and columnists to Alaska these past two weeks to commence the vetting of GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin. And after some steady reporting out of the Last Frontier state, it appears a... Read More
Topics: palin , alaska , Tim Egan , Cronyism

Ron Sims Twitters with increased bus service for King County

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September 15, 2:42 PM

These are tough times in politics. And there's not a public servant who isn't under the microscope -- or worse. And that might include Ron Sims, the outspoken King County Executive.Sims might have been one step closer to a Cabinet position in Washington... Read More
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Another Seattleite rudely introduced to city's vigilant jaywalking enforcement

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