The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Ashley Nerbovig Dense fog continues: People will deal with pockets of fog between 8 am and 10 am, which can be especially dangerous for drivers and the National Weather Service recommends delaying travel where possible. Pedestrians, I know it shouldn't be your responsibility to look out for multi-ton metal vehicles, but maybe take extra precaution crossing the street in this weather. Otherwise, go enjoy the horror movie vibes out there today everyone! High of 44 degrees later today, and the fog should burn off by mid-morning. Rejected Rankin recall: On Monday, a King County Superior Court Judge threw out an attempt to recall Seattle Public School Board President Liza Ranking, ruling the recall "lacks legal and factual sufficiency," according to the Seattle Times. The recall effort spearheaded by five parents, in part, tried to hold Rankin solely responsible for the district not meeting its academic goals. The judge called this out as dangerous, especially blaming a single director for a broad failure "without citing specific acts of misfeasance, malfeasance, or a violation of the oath of office." It feels good to read that because literally every time I argue with some of the recall backers, I feel like pulling out my hair trying to make them stick to factual examples—it always feels like their arguments are, in actuality, very petty, targeted dislikes of Rankin personally.  SPOTTED: Alexis Mercedes Rinck taking her rightful place on Seattle City Council. After a swearing-in ceremony last week, Rinck joined the City Council briefing Monday and already she's making waves. As Hannah reported yesterday, Rinck is looking to force a debate on progressive revenue on her second day on the dais. Progressive maxing over here.  Rival Fitness on Pine closes: Apparently, the Rival Fitness Gym on Pine Street owes more than $200,000 in back rent after it started falling behind on payments in February of this year. I reached out to the owners this morning to ask about what happened, but it's big drama on Reddit. Martin Selig's financial woes: Seattle's least favorite Republican real estate developer and big-time campaign donor, Martin Selig, has fallen on hard times. Selig defaulted on a $240 million loan secured by two of his latest downtown office buildings. The financial picture in the post-COVID world has been bleak for Selig's real estate empire. Still, he's dug himself out of big debts before. And, his guy won the presidency.  Boeing Field to be used for deportations: As Trump promises mass deportations, a federal appeals court ruled last week the federal government can use King County-owned Boeing Field for deportation flights over county objections, according to the Seattle Times. King County will not appeal the decision.  Support the Everett Herald: The journalists at the Everett Herald head back to the bargaining table today for a fair contract! After two years of bargaining, devastating lay-offs that whittled away the newsroom, now management is requiring the remaining skeleton crew write two to three stories a day for a measly $1 per hour raise. Send an email telling their bosses to stop trying to tie raises to a ridiculous story quota. Let me tell you something, story quotas suck. They turn reporters into stenographers. I loved my first job in journalism, but part of my duties required me to just literally summarize six or seven court affidavits a day. No one needed that. Better to have high quality journalism than just words on a page. You can help our fight. Use this link to email Herald management and let them know our community demands better: https://t.co/vIQY542mbF — Everett NewsGuild ✊ (@EverettGuild) December 1, 2024 Nutcracker season: I got the chance to see the Pacific Northwest Ballet's "The Nutcracker" this weekend and it really is such a cool show. They have the rat king dressed in a costume with multiple heads like an actual rat king, which made me laugh. The mysterious uncle, Herr Drosselmeyer, played by Miles Pertl the night I attended, did an incredible job with their exaggerated reactions and comedic timing. And, even though the entire show had a revamp from when I was a kid, they kept the part where the Christmas tree grows like three times larger, and that made me clap like a delighted eight year old. I highly recommend herding up a group of your friends (ten or more and you can snag a discount on tickets) and seeing the show this year.  Speaking of the holidays: Bakers of Seattle, you're needed! The Christmas People, an organization that collects homemade cookies and delivers them to shelters and centers across Seattle in time for the holidaysm want your cookies. West Seattle Blog has more details, but The Christmas People hope to collect at least 9,000 cookies this year and they plan to pick them up December 21-24 at select locations. Put your depression baking to good use!  Martial law declared in South Korea: South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law Tuesday while accusing the opposition party which has parliamentary majority of sympathizing with North Korea and preventing the state from governing, according to the Associated Press. So to protect the country's constitutional democracy, Yoon declared martial law. Governmental leaders really seem unaware of irony sometimes. Yoon's approval rating has fallen recently, and he's fought independent investigations into scandals involving his wife and other top officials in his government. Soon after Yoon's declaration, the South Korean parliament said, "No thanks" and voted to lift martial law.  Transgender care for youth hits US Supreme Court: On Wednesday, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in US v. Skrmetti, a case brought by the Biden Administration challenging a Tennessee gender-affirming care ban that prevents doctors from administering puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender minors, according to CNN. So far, 26 states have passed laws banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth, though some are currently blocked by the courts. Government attorneys argue this is necessary and safe health care, and, if they win, it could significantly protect transgender rights across the country. If they lose, it could be disastrous for transgender youth, who already deal with higher rates of depression and anxiety, which are maladies gender-affirming health care could help ease. Take any and all hope with a grain of salt whenever this Supreme Court of ghouls is concerned.  More clips of "The Nutcracker" to send you on your way: At the front of McCaw Hall you can take a photo of you coming out of Mother Ginger's skirts. I love Pacific Northwest Ballet.