Posted in the Seattle Times.

Space travel will always be for the wealthy

Editor, The Times:

The recent decision of Paul Allen’s to develop space tourism is a combination of absurdity and self-indulgence. [“Rocketing into dream of space travel,” page one, Dec. 14.]

The energy requirements to get anything into space are so large that an average human will not be in a position to afford it, now or in the future. Even if the scheme can be successfully developed, it will appeal to those who can afford it and can exercise their right to exploit the opportunity. Their decision will not be unlike that of people exercising the right to own and use an oil-consuming vehicle, just because they can afford it.

If Allen is set on spending money, might it not be better if he helped finish the incomplete trolley line in Seattle that now serves only his real-estate holdings by expanding it to be useful for other people in our community?

— Reiner Decher, University of Washington professor, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Seattle

KENT

Seattle (11-15-0-1) faces the Victoria Royals Saturday night at the ShoWare Center in Kent at 7:05pm.

Colin Jacobs made his season debut Friday night. He had missed the start of the season due to an upper-body injury. Connor Honey also made his season debut Friday night.

Prince George (11-19-0-2) made it 1-0 on a power-play goal by Cody Carlson 21 seconds into the second period. Troy Bourke and Martin Marincin had the assists.

Prince George finished with a 38-24 lead in shots on goal at the end of the game.

Calvin Pickard made 37 saves on 38 shots, making his record 11-12-0-1.

Drew Owsley saved all 24 shots on goal, improving his record to 10-16-0-1.

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Seattle city officials have been approached by a private group looking to build a basketball arena in the Sodo District near Safeco Field in the hopes of attracting an NBA franchise, according to two sources who have been briefed on the talks.

The proposal involves an investor who has acquired property, apparently south of Safeco Field, although at least one business owner has declined to sell, according to the sources.

Mayor Mike McGinn has been working with the group for several months to explore how the city can aid the effort, including help with financing, the sources said.

McGinn’s office confirmed Friday night that it is examining an “opportunity,” but declined to provide specific information.

“Our office has had many enthusiastic overtures concerning the return of an NBA franchise to Seattle,” the statement said. “Some of these offers have been serious. Some have not been serious. And the current speculation is over one of these proposals. We are looking at this opportunity, examining its specifics and how it fits our city. At this point, we have not received a concrete offer.”

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Matt Hasselbeck’s record-setting 10-year stay with the Seahawks is over, according to multiple reports, and QBs Tarvaris Jackson and Matt Leinart have reportedly agreed to terms with the team.

Matt Hasselbeck is out as quarterback of the Seahawks and Tarvaris Jackson and Matt Leinart are on their way in, according to multiple media reports on Tuesday.

The end of Hasselbeck’s 10-year stay with the club is the latest transitional move by general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll, who pulled off a staggering 284 transactions last year during their first season with the Seahawks. It’s also the latest indication that they will continue to go younger – even at the most pivotal position on the team.

Schneider and Carroll called Hasselbeck to inform him of the decision, Tim Hasselbeck told 710 ESPN during an interview. Tim Hasselbeck, Matt’s younger brother, also played QB in the NFL and now is an analyst for ESPN.

“In a very classy move, Pete Carroll and John Schneider called Matthew and said, ‘Listen, we appreciate what you have done for the organization, but we are going to go in a different direction and sign another quarterback,’ ” Tim Hasselbeck said.

Jackson played for new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell the past five seasons in Minnesota, where Jackson started 20 games after being selected in the second round of the 2006 draft by the Vikings. Jackson is expected to compete with incumbent backup Charlie Whitehurst for the Seahawks’ starting job, with Leinart also in the mix.

Although Jackson and Leinart reportedly agreed to terms on Tuesday, they cannot sign the contracts until Friday under the rules that accompany the agreement on a new CBA that was reached between the owners and NFLPA.

Jackson, 28, was 8-4 as the Vikings’ starter in 2007, when he completed 171 of 294 passes for 1,911 yards and 12 TDs – all career highs. In five seasons, Jackson completed 354 of 603 passes for 3,984 yards, with 24 TDs and 22 interceptions.

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The verdict from the “experts” is in, and it’s almost unanimous: The Seahawks “reached” in selecting James Carpenter in the first round of the NFL Draft.

At least that’s what everyone from ESPN’s Mel Kiper, to Pro Football Weekly’s Nolan Narocki, to ESPN’s Trent Dilfer had to say about the decision to take the tackle from Alabama with the 25th pick in the first round.

Actually, it was more of a stretch, because that’s what general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll had to do while embracing the 6-foot-4, 321-pound Carpenter at his introductory news conference Saturday morning.

The thing that stood out most about Carpenter was not his height, weight or even the dreadlocks that framed his smiling face. It was how thick he is. Tough-to-get-your-arms-around thick.

“A big, massive guy,” was the suitable description offered by first-year line coach Tom Cable.

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Royals 6 – Mariners 5

KANSAS CITY — Erik Bedard made his third start of the season on Friday, and for the third time he was unable to go deep into the game.

Bedard lasted just 4 2/3 innings as Jeff Francoeur and Matt Treanor homered to springboard Kansas City to a 6-5 victory at Kauffman Stadium. Bedard, who threw 106 pitches, had gone five innings and four innings, respectively, in his first two starts.

The Mariners (4-10) have dropped the first two games of the brief road trip, while Kansas City (9-4) won its third in a row.

The Mariners scored three runs in the ninth during a late rally, but Royals closer Joakim Soria got out of the jam when Chone Figgins lined out to third to end the game.

The Mariners had managed to jump ahead in the first, thanks largely to a leadoff double by Ichiro Suzuki. After a grounder to the right side by Figgins advanced Suzuki to third, Milton Bradley drew a walk. Jack Cust brought home the run with an RBI forceout.

Royals starter Luke Hochevar worked seven innings and didn’t allow a hit after the Suzuki double. The right-hander exited after throwing 100 pitches.

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida

Twenty-one museums and centers around the country put in bids for the space shuttles, massive mementos of 30 years of American spaceflight that are expected to be just as big tourist attractions in the years to come. The announcement came on the 30th anniversary of the first space shuttle flight — and coincidentally, the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s first historic first flight.

Fighting back tears, NASA chief Charlie Bolden announced that Atlantis will remain where it is, in Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, where its storied history can be shared with as many people as possible over the coming decades, Bolden said. The California Science Center will get Endeavour, he announced, while a Virginia branch of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum will get Discovery.

New York City will be the new home of space shuttle Enterprise, the prototype shuttle used for test flights more than three decades ago. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand said Tuesday that Enterprise will go to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.

By Greg Johns / MLB.com |

SEATTLE — Massive rookie right-hander Michael Pineda provided the heat on a crisp Tuesday night at Safeco Field, blowing down the Blue Jays, 3-2, for his first Major League victory.

The 22-year-old from the Dominican Republic lit up the radar gun in his home debut, consistently throwing fastballs in the 96-98-mph range while handcuffing a Blue Jays squad that has lost five of its past six games.

The 6-foot-7, 260-pound Pineda gave up just five hits and two runs (one earned) in 7 1/3 innings, shutting out the Blue Jays until the eighth and finishing with two walks and seven strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 2.70 after two starts.

Seattle preserved Pineda’s win with an inning-ending double play in the eighth, when first baseman Justin Smoak caught a foul ball down the line and then threw out Corey Patterson trying to score the tying run from third.

The Mariners managed three early runs off the Blue Jays’ Opening Day starter, Ricky Romero, which was enough to get the Mariners to 4-7 after snapping a seven-game skid a night earlier.

Pineda allowed only one runner to second base in his first seven innings before giving up a single and a walk with one out in the eighth. A passed ball put both runners in scoring position, and they crossed the plate on Patterson’s two-run single to right.

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Felix struggles, but Mariners’ bats come alive late to clip Blue Jays

By Greg Johns / MLB.com

SEATTLE — Luis Rodriguez might be the 25th player on the Mariners’ roster, but the utility infielder came up with the biggest hit of the young season Monday to cap a dramatic 8-7 victory over Toronto and snap a seven-game losing streak.

Rodriguez, who replaced an injured Chone Figgins in the fourth inning, finished off a 10-pitch battle with Blue Jays reliever Shawn Camp by ripping a game-winning two-run single in the bottom of the ninth, walking off as the Mariners overcame a 7-0 deficit.

The Mariners scored seven runs in the final two frames against a Blue Jays bullpen that came into the game with a league-leading 1.11 ERA.

After Michael Saunders led off the ninth with a double, the Mariners sacrificed him to third. With two outs, the Blue Jays chose to intentionally walk Ichiro Suzuki to pitch to Rodriguez, who came into the at-bat hitting .091 (1-for-11) on the season.

Ichiro wound up stealing second during Rodriguez’s long duel, then scored the winning run behind Saunders when Rodriguez stroked a Camp change-up into the right-center-field gap.

“I knew the situation, especially with our seven-game losing streak,” said Rodriguez, a career .243 hitter whose only previous walk-off hit came in 2008 for the Padres. “This win is really big for us.”

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Pioneer Square marks Seattle’s original downtown, dating back to 1852. The district is characterized by late nineteenth century brick and stone buildings, and one of the nation’s best surviving collections of Romanesque Revival style urban architecture.

Pioneer Square is home to art galleries, internet companies, cafes, sports bars, nightclubs, bookstores, the Seattle Underground Tour, and a museum and info center for the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park.

The popular Seattle Underground Tour visits the eerie sunken storefronts of what was ground-level Pioneer Square before the Great Fire of 1889. Smith Tower, which overlooks the square, was the tallest building west of the Mississippi when it was completed in 1914. Ride the last manually-operated West Coast elevator up to the Smith Tower Observation Deck for a panoramic view of downtown Seattle, the waterfront and Mt. Rainier.

Excerpt From Seattle.gov

The Alliance for Pioneer Square