Washington

Advice | Ask Amy: Amy revisits a favorite reader prank column

Published

2 years ago

June 7, 2024

Advice | Ask Amy: Amy revisits a favorite reader prank column

Dear Readers: Before I leave this space at the end of June, I’m taking advantage of my senioritis and rerunning some of my favorite columns.

The following Q&A is an example of a prank question that savvy readers enjoyed so much that it went viral. Honestly, I don’t know how I missed this obvious nod to a beloved sitcom, but I did. I hope you enjoy this reprise of one of my favorite humiliations.

Dear Amy: I recently ran into a famous local sports figure at my gym.

I didn’t want to bother him, but much to my surprise he approached me. Turns out he knew me from my profession. He asked if I wanted to go out for coffee, and we exchanged numbers. A few days later we had coffee, and I thought it was pretty cool that he considered us friends.

Then everything changed. He told me he was interested in taking out a woman we ran into. She is my ex-girlfriend and we’ve remained good friends. He asked me a couple of times if I wouldn’t mind if he asked her out. I reluctantly said no. I made plans with him, and then after talking to my ex I found out that he ditched our plans to go out with her.

The next day he called me and asked if I could help him move some furniture. I barely know the guy, next thing he will be asking me to drive him to the airport. Two friends of mine warned me not to trust this guy. What’s the deal — am I being too rash or should I dump the guy as a friend?

Foolish: The good news here is that you won’t have to dump the guy as a friend because he is not a friend. He’s an opportunist who just keeps asking you for stuff. I suspect that when you turn down his generous offer to let you move furniture for him, you’ll likely never hear from him again.

Dear Amy: I would like an objective opinion on a situation I haven’t faced before. A while ago, we met and became good friends with a couple our age. We then introduced these friends to some of our family members that we socialize with regularly.

We’ve noticed that in recent months our family members have started socializing with our friends — without us. I mentioned this and asked my family members about it. They said that this happened accidentally. I felt so silly and tried to ignore it. However, then I noticed when I scrolled through social media that it was happening more and more at planned events that we were not invited to join. I commented on social media that we would have enjoyed being included and was promptly blocked.

It hurts, but what hurts worse is that this same family member also blocked my young adult kids, who were hurt by it as well. I’d like advice about where to go from here. I’ve thought about asking the family member why she would do this but I don’t want to start a bunch of family drama.

Excluded: First, a word about “blocking.” A block on social media because of a resolvable issue is like throwing a hip-check when a conversation might do wonders. In my opinion, blocking over non-emergency issues (like this) has actually caused more serious problems than it attempts to solve.

Unless there is much more you aren’t revealing, the choice of your family member to then go through and apply this block to your children is ridiculous and just flat-out rude. I need to add, however, that your own choice to lay open your own obviously hurt feelings on social media though your comment (where many others could see it), was also unfortunate.

I’m not blaming you for having these feelings, but Facebook is not generally a good place to reveal your vulnerability, especially to people who are both reactive and rude.

Dear Amy: “Perplexed” reported that she enjoys dining alone at her neighborhood bar and restaurant, but that she is often intruded upon by men who want to join her.

I have had the exact same experience. Like Perplexed, a man actually sat down at my two-top in an attempt to join me for dinner. I’ve learned to place my jacket on the opposite chair.

Dining Solo: Great solution — but I wish it weren’t necessary.

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Washington

Suspect in National Guard shooting faces new federal charges that allow death penalty discussions

Published

7 hours ago

December 26, 2025

Press Room

Suspect in National Guard shooting faces new federal charges that allow death penalty discussions

WASHINGTON — A man accused of shooting two National Guard troops near the White House has been charged in a complaint with federal firearms charges in connection with the ambush on November 26 that fatally wounded one of the West Virginia National Guard members and seriously injured the second.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, has been charged with transporting a firearm in interstate commerce with the intent to commit an offense punishable for more than one year. He has also been charged federally with transporting a stolen firearm in interstate commerce.

“The transfer of this case from Superior Court to District Court ensures that we can undertake the serious, deliberate, and weighty analysis required to determine if the death penalty is appropriate here,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro. “Sarah Beckstrom was just 20 years old when she was killed and her parents are now forced to endure the holiday season without their daughter. Andrew Wolfe, by the grace of God, survived but has a long road ahead in his recovery.”

Lakanwal remains charged with first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill and illegal possession of a firearm in the shooting that killed Beckstrom, 20, and wounded Wolfe, 24, in violation of D.C. code. Lakanwal, who was shot during the encounter, has pleaded not guilty to the D.C. charges.

There is no death penalty in D.C. Superior Court.

Beckstrom and Wolfe were deployed with the West Virginia National Guard for President Donald Trump’s law-enforcement surge in the nation’s capital, which has flooded the city with federal agents and troops since August. Lakanwal is accused of driving from Bellingham, Washington to Washington, D.C. while in possession of a stolen firearm and ambushing the two Guard members outside a subway station three blocks from the White House.

An Afghan national, Laknawal worked with the American government, including the CIA, “as a member of a partner force” in Kandahar, Afghanistan, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said.

Lakanwal, 29, entered the United States in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, officials said. That Biden administration program evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from the country.

Lakanwal’s lawyer was not immediately available for comment.

The video in the player above is from an earlier report.

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Washington

Video Shows Moment Man Carjacks Washington State Patrol Lieutenant’s Car

Published

19 hours ago

December 26, 2025

Press Room

Video Shows Moment Man Carjacks Washington State Patrol Lieutenant’s Car

TMZ.com

Here’s an easy way to find yourself on the naughty list … a man in Seattle is in police custody after stealing a patrol car from a Washington State Patrol lieutenant … and only TMZ has video of the suspect shoving the cop to the ground and taking off in her car.

We obtained footage showing a man casually crossing a busy Interstate-5 in Seattle when a WSP patrol car shows up … the guy stops in his tracks, paces around, then goes up to the driver side door and yanks the cop out of the car. He pushes her to the freeway pavement, then gets behind the wheel and speeds off.

pursuit-x-wspd2pio-1

That’s where our wild video ends, but the story doesn’t end there … because an intense police pursuit ensued … and it ended with WSP officers pinning the car and taking the guy into custody.

122525_seattle_carjacking_stolen

Washington State Patrol Trooper Rick Johnson tells TMZ … the female lieutenant from the video was not injured and she will not be reprimanded for the incident.

This all started just before noon on Christmas Day … and we’re told the guy is now getting grilled by detectives. Sounds like he’s having a not-so-merry Christmas.

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Washington

RFK Jr. declares public health emergency for Washington state flooding

Published

1 day ago

December 25, 2025

Press Room

RFK Jr. declares public health emergency for Washington state flooding – OPB

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By Jake Goldstein-Street (Washington State Standard)

Dec. 25, 2025 4:55 p.m.

A road is covered by floodwaters after heavy rains led to historic flooding in the region Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, in Burlington, Wash.

Lindsey Wasson / AP

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared a public health emergency Wednesday over this month’s flooding in Washington state.

The action from Kennedy, the head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is focused on helping meet the needs of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. As part of that, his agency is providing access to HHS emPOWER, which gives data on the number of Medicare enrollees reliant on medical equipment dependent on electricity and other health care services that could make them especially vulnerable to a disaster.

The announcement could be a good sign for the state’s chances of getting a major disaster declaration from President Donald Trump to potentially open up tens of millions of dollars to deal with the flooding’s aftermath.

Gov. Bob Ferguson plans to ask for such a declaration in the coming weeks.

The flooding from heavy rain and overflowing rivers forced thousands of evacuations, breached multiple levees and damaged numerous highways. It still didn’t quite reach the levels some forecasts predicted. One person has been reported dead.

Kennedy’s order follows an emergency declaration from Trump that unlocked federal resources to respond to the storm.

John Knox, of the department’s Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, said in a statement that, “HHS stands ready to assist state and local response efforts in the state of Washington due to the potential health care impacts from severe storms.”

Health and Human Services has also waived penalties for violating federal health privacy rules under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, for hospitals.

“With today’s declaration and waiver, HHS is helping ensure that residents in the storm’s path have continuous access to the care they need during and after this storm,” Knox said. “ASPR’s highly trained personnel are prepared to support state and local actions to save lives and protect the delivery of health care services.”

The federal Disaster Distress Helpline is also available for crisis counseling. The multilingual hotline, open 24 hours a day, can be reached via call or text at 1-800-985-5990.

The declaration is retroactive to Dec. 9.

A windstorm forecast to arrive in western Washington on Wednesday could exacerbate problems, as saturated soil from the recent rain could make trees and powerline poles especially susceptible to falling over. But the wind is now not expected to be as intense as predicted earlier this week.

Meanwhile, Washington Attorney General Nick Brown filed a lawsuit with other states against Kennedy on Tuesday for his threats against gender-affirming care providers.

Brown called Kennedy’s move “as cruel and unnecessary as it is illegal, but consistent with an administration that puts politics above health.” It’s Washington’s 49th lawsuit against the federal government since Trump retook office in January.

Washington State Standard is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501(c)(3) public charity.

This republished story is part of OPB’s broader effort to ensure that everyone in our region has access to quality journalism that informs, entertains and enriches their lives. To learn more, visit opb.org/partnerships.