Links

Yikes.

• CNET: At least 45 die in London blasts
  

  Witnesses saw the top ripped off a double-decker bus near Russell Square close to King’s Cross train terminal, and three more apparently coordinated explosions caused carnage on packed subway trains as Londoners made their way to work.

  Security sources told Reuters there were fatalities at all four bomb sites, and Sky Television said at least 45 people had been killed. A further 150 were seriously wounded, and hospital staff said some were unlikely to survive.

  “I was on the bus,” said one dazed passenger. “I looked round and the seats behind me were gone.”

  “You could see bodies on the road outside,” said another eyewitness, Peter Gordon. “There was smoke everywhere. It was carnage.”

• CNN: London bombs kill at least 33
  

  Paddick said the first explosion had come at 8:51 a.m. BST (O351 ET) near Liverpool Street, Aldgate and Aldgate East Underground stations, where seven were confirmed dead.

  At 8:56 a.m. there was a second explosion on a Piccadilly Line train near Kings Cross and Russell Square tube stations, where 21 were confirmed dead.

  At 9:17 a.m. there was an explosion on a train traveling into Edgware Road station, affecting two other trains, with five confirmed dead.

  At 9:47a.m there was an explosion on a bus at Upper Woburn Place near Tavistock Square. Fatalities have been confirmed, but the number is unknown at this stage.

  There were 700-900 people on each of the affected trains at the time, he added.

• Flickr: Photos tagged with ‘london’, London Bomb Blasts Pool, London Explosions Pool

• Metroblogging London and Londonist are both covering events.

• The Guardian’s coverage.

I wondered why there was a helicopter hovering over downtown as I came back to work after picking up a job outside of the building. Now I know why…

• Seattle Times: Man shot at federal courthouse in Seattle
  

  A man who walked into the federal courthouse in downtown Seattle today carrying what appeared to be a hand grenade was shot, police said.

  Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske said the man walked into the building armed with a hand grenade that appeared to be real. After a 20-minute standoff, Seattle police officers fired several rounds. The man, still clutching the grenade, collapsed.

  Kerlikowske said the man appear to be dead, but was being attended to by medics.

• Seattle PI: Shooting at federal courthouse
  

  It was not known whether the man had made any threats or said anything to the officers or courthouse personnel. Kerlikowske said the man may have been known in the neighborhood but offered no suspects.

• King5: BREAKING NEWS: Police shoot grenade carrying man in Federal Courthouse
  

  The suspect was seen entering the courthouse shortly before noon, carrying a yellow backpack strapped to his chest, raising suspicions by police and courthouse guards.

  Around 11:30 a.m. a woman cleaning windows in the lobby saw a middle-aged man enter the building. He was acting oddly, she said. “Usually you don’t wear a backpack in front of you.” He drew the attention of security officials when he tried to sneak around the security gate.

  She described what happened next when they told him to stop. He responded, “don’t come near me don’t come near me, I’ll blow it up!”

Wow.

Interesting bit of controversy going on in Seattle’s gay community right now, as the annual Pride Parade has grown so much that organizers want to move it to downtown and the Seattle Center for next year.

This year’s gay pride parade — happening a week from Sunday — may be the last on Capitol Hill, the traditional center of gay life in Seattle.

For more than 20 years, the colorful march has made its way along Broadway and culminated at Volunteer Park, where a festival takes place. A co-chairman of the Seattle Pride Committee, which runs the events, said yesterday that the festival will relocate to the Seattle Center next year.

While the committee hasn’t made any final decisions, the procession also may make its way along a new route through downtown Seattle in 2006.

[…]

To some, the move signals the advances gays and lesbians have made in society. Holding the festival at the Seattle Center — where more traditional celebrations such as Bumbershoot and Bite of Seattle take place — can be seen as a sign of mainstream acceptance and an acknowledgment that gays are part of the entire city, not just one neighborhood.

Still, many find the idea of the gay pride festival being anywhere else but Capitol Hill hard to fathom.

Protest signs have gone up in many storefronts along Capitol Hill’s main drag proclaiming, “Keep the Pride Parade on Broadway.” Dozens of people have signed petitions that have appeared at stores such as Broadway News and the Panache clothing store.

I can see how many of the people in Capitol Hill would be bummed about this, but I also think that having the extra space and possibilities of the Seattle Center would be a good thing. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.

Either way, though, I’ll be there this year, and next, and most likely, any other year I’m in Seattle.

“Speedfreak” by Secret Hero from the album Lit Up (1999, 7:07).