*** REGIONAL NEWS FROM FRIDAY ***

+ JOLT News: Bob Iyall selected Chair of Port of Olympia Commission – Commissioners discuss conflict of interest claims

+ JOLT News: Olympia council discusses plans to require all-electric buildings – Washington’s Deep Decarbonization Study, determined that building electrification remains one of the most cost-effective ways of reducing greenhouse gas in homes and buildings.

+ JOLT News: TRL Story Trails combine love of reading and nature – People of all ages can enjoy a nature walk and a delightful book at the same time.

+ The News Tribune (Tacoma): Debt overwhelming many in Washington state restaurant, hotel industries, new data show

+ Delta New Hub: [Sea-Tac hub operator] Delta Air Lines has been awarded the Platinum Award for operational excellence by aviation analytics firm Cirium. Delta also took home the award for most on-time North American airline. 

+ JOLT News: City of Tenino ripped off in email scam – Tenino lost $280K in what the state auditor called “irregular payments.”

*** NATIONAL NEWS FROM FRIDAY ***

Truthout: Public Health Professionals Must Demand an End to the Use of Weaponized Drones

AARP: Where to Donate All of Your Unwanted Stuff – Declutter by finding new homes for electronics, medical supplies, furniture and more

The Washington Post: Surveillance will follow us into ‘the metaverse,’ and our bodies could be its new data source – Virtual reality headsets learn more about you than traditional screens. That could be good news for creepy companies.

*** VIRUS NEWS FROM FRIDAY ***

McClatchy Newspapers: COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough cases on the rise amid unprecedented surge, WA says

The Defender: Myocarditis Tops List of COVID Vaccine Injuries Among 12- to 17-Year-Olds, VAERS Data Show – VAERS data released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention included a total of 1,033,994 reports of adverse events from all age groups following COVID vaccines, including 21,745 deaths and 170,446 serious injuries between Dec. 14, 2020, and Jan. 7, 2022.

The Defender: As Protests Erupt, Some Countries Backtrack on COVID Mandates While Others Double Down – As protests grow in EU countries and worldwide against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and so-called “vaccine passports,” some countries appear to be backtracking or at least harboring second thoughts about enforcing such measures, while others are digging in their heels and moving forward with punitive restrictions on the unvaccinated.

*** TRUMP NEWS FROM FRIDAY ***

CNN: Fact-checking Jim Jordan’s letter to the Jan. 6 committee

MSNBC Opinion: Kevin McCarthy is choosing Trump over America – Kevin McCarthy, Jim Jordan and Mark Meadows have a shared hypocrisy when it comes to special committees in Congress.