Cascadia today: Spokane wildfires contained + feds can't cut clean energy grants to Cascadia + Zia Mohajerjasbi's gorgeous Seattle film

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As Spokane fires contained, issues linger

The AP reports that firefighters have drawn containment lines around all three wildfires that burned more than 850 building and forced evacuations of 67,000 people in and around Spokane. Earlier in the week, the feds approved a disaster declaration, opening the door for FEMA wildfire disaster aid. KUOW has a heartbreaking photo essay of people returning to their destroyed homes.

There are serious issues in the wake of the fires, one of which was likely started as arson. According to the Guardian, Oregon's US senator Jeff Merkley signed on to a letter calling for a ban on prediction markets sites such as Polymarket and Kalshi allowing people to bet on the outcome of wildfires – saying this encourages people to intentionally set fires. Meanwhile, the Spokesman Review reports on all sorts of conspiracy theories spinning around about the Spokane fires, including data centers sparking blazes, and people imaging nefarious reasons for why homes were destroyed but trees weren't (most native trees are adapted to be resistant to fire). Oh and RANGE Media reports that many victims of the fires could lose their insurance. Boy, capitalism sure does suck.

Meanwhile, CBC reports that six major fires continue to burn in British Columbia, and a fire actually broke out in metro Vancouver, in Belcarra regional park.

Zillow cuts 500 workers as AI continues to kill jobs

GeekWire reports that the Seattle-based online real estate company Zillow has laid off 500 workers, about 7% of its total workforce. In related news, Meta canceled plans to rent office space in Bellevue as it slashed its Seattle-area workforce thanks to AI. One job that can't be replaced by AI is music venue security – and the Stranger reports that security workers Neumo's, a venue in Seattle, have unionized and are threatening to strike. Solidarity!

Court rules feds can't eliminate clean energy grants

Oregon Capital Chronicle reports that a federal appeals court has ruled that the Trump regime cannot eliminate more than $20 billion in clean energy grants appropriated by Congress. The feds have a week to decide if they'll appeal to the US supreme court. In Washington alone, the feds canceled more than $1 billion in clean energy grants, and in Oregon, canceled more than $400 million in grants. If the grants aren't restored, it's another example of the huge tax imbalance Cascadia faces, and yet another argument for separation from the US:

As feds hold back disaster funds to Cascadia, tax gap grows to $51 billion

Cascadia – Oregon and Washington together – paid $51.5 billion more in taxes than were returned back to our region in funding in 2025.

Cascadia JournalAndrew Engelson

Know Your Place is a magnificent Seattle film

Zia Mohajerjasbi, director of the beautiful film Know Your Place, talked to the South Seattle Emerald about film-making as he took a walking tour of the city Central District, which has experienced displacement and gentrification. His 2022 film follows an Eritrean teenager on an odyssey through Seattle's neighborhoods trying deliver a suitcase to a relative. It's a touching and gorgeous film, and it's fascinating that Iranian-American director Mohajerjasbi used his deep connections to Seattle's Eritrean community to create such a fabulous film – all of them first-time actors. Know Your Place shows tonight, 7 pm August 6 at Tasveer Film Center in Seattle. I highly recommend it.

"Many of the third spaces I used to frequent have gone away; people have passed away, moved elsewhere. The way folks gather, or not as much, has also changed. So my relationship with the city feels a bit different now. I feel less anchored in any one area." – Zia Mohajerjasbi

Thanks for reading. Keep loving and keep fighting. --Andy