Neptune Landing

      Seattle, fittingly known as Emerald City, is enjoying its cultural moment right now. In the past month, the Seattle Seahawks have nabbed their first Superbowl title and gay-friendly, local (white) hip-hop artist Macklemore took home four Grammy awards including Best New Artist, Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance. During the November 2012 election, Washington State voters approved Initiative 502 which would legalize the sale of recreational marijuana and pot shops are to be up and running sometime this year. After fourteen years, Microsoft has a new CEO with India-born Satya Nadella and local girl, Amanda Knox has gone from guilty to innocent to guilty in an Italian trial that has lasted longer than the building of Rome. Did we also mention that Seattle continues to be the home of high-performing Amazon, Boeing and Starbucks? As well as some of the most popular (and also wonderfully obscure) bands of the past twenty years? Think Nirvana, Death Cab...

     Journalists (and writers) in general are caught in an ethical bind. We have big mouths but recognize that some things must remain sacred. This curse of the loose lips has haunted California its whole life - how do you keep the stampedes from ruining the special qualities that you simply cannot help but advertise?   Looking east towards Sea Cliff       California is the Fleetwood Mac of U.S. states - a beautiful-sounding band that suffers from being overplayed on every major commercial radio station. Just refer to this Wikipedia collection listing the songs celebrating The Eureka State. It's gotten so bad that many native Californians flee for adjacent Oregon, Nevada or Arizona where they are not always welcome. This turf-and-tribe conundrum is not necessarily a western problem but a human one. It would be nice if the worldwide population could be kept in checked but are you going to let someone tell you how and when to reproduce, or Goddess f...