James M. Thomas (JT)

Gov. Greg Abbott Was Ordered to Release Some of His Emails With Elon Musk. Most Are Blacked Out. Months after fighting to keep secret emails between Gov. Greg Abbott and Elon Musk, Texas officials released 1,400 pages of records. But they reveal little about the two men’s relationship or Musk’s i...

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office said it would cost $244.64 to review the emails between Abbott and Musk, which @kutnews.bsky.social and The Texas Newsroom paid.

After the check was cashed, Abbott’s and Musk’s lawyers sought to keep the records secret.

when the tryptophan hits

lol sign worked

The Secretary of Defense, ladies and gentlemen

Sweet potato for sure. Possibly one more

I view it as a high compliment that my MIL basically trusts me to handle the turkey and pies by myself, w/ no assist.

How billionaires took over American politics The current concentration of wealth is unlike anything in history. So is billionaires’ involvement in politics.

The party of billionaires.

Roughly 1 in every 13 dollars spent in 2024 elections was donated by a handful of the country’s richest people.

More than 80 percent of federal campaign spending by the 100 wealthiest Americans went to Republicans.

www.washingtonpost.com/politics/int...

White House blew past legal concerns in deadly strikes on drug boats The Trump administration sidestepped skeptical lawyers across national security agencies as it pursued a military campaign against alleged narcotraffickers, officials say.

“Junior officers, fearing potential legal exposure, asked military lawyers for written sign-off before taking part in strikes...

“It does not appear that such memos were furnished.

“Some personnel are worried they might need attorneys” under a new administration

wapo.st/43FXQfO

Texas A&M Was Wrong to Fire Professor Over Gender Lesson, Panel Rules

Texas A&M Was Wrong to Fire Professor Over Gender Lesson, Panel Rules

The firing put the school at the center of national debates over gender identity and academic freedom. A faculty panel ruled unanimously against the termination.

www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/u...

Had my Intro students take what we learned about theories of social movements and apply it to issues, causes, and concerns they have.

Really interesting to learn about their worries (mostly housing and parking!)

Chart showing detention population, among those arrested in the interior, by criminal record, May 2019 through present. There are three lines shown. (1) Prior conviction (which rises from around 9,000 in January 2025 to just over 16,000 in November 2025), (2) Pending criminal charges (which rises from around 5,000 to 15,000), and (3) No criminal record (which rises from around 1,000 to 21,000).

NEW: ICE has finally released post-shutdown detention data. The latest data reveals that a full 40%(!) of people arrested in the interior and held in ICE detention have no criminal record; no criminal charges or prior convictions. That is up from just 4% when Trump took office.

How billionaires took over American politics The current concentration of wealth is unlike anything in history. So is billionaires’ involvement in politics.

Why do they give?

“If you’re a billionaire, you want to stay a billionaire,” John Catsimatidis told @bethreinhard.bsky.social. “I worry about America and the way of life we have.”

www.washingtonpost.com/politics/int...

Party of Billionaires

Behind this important reversal is a member of the Coast Guard who saw what was happening and had the courage to leak it to the press. That person deserves serious praise.

Mississippians Still Waiting on Full SNAP Benefits Mississippi SNAP recipients are still waiting for full payments more than a week after the government shutdown ended due to technical issues.

Mississippians who rely on SNAP to afford food are still waiting to receive full November benefits more than a week after the government shutdown ended due to technical issues with 40-year-old computer systems.

There’s no guarantee full payments will arrive by Thanksgiving or even before December.

Roughly 16,000 families waitlisted for child care vouchers as Mississippi providers struggle to stay open Parents are losing their jobs, children are suffering inconsistent care, child care workers are being laid off and providers are going without pay or shuttering their facilities, according to advocates and industry leaders who spoke with Mississippi Today. 

Roughly 16,000 families waitlisted for child care vouchers as Mississippi providers struggle to stay open

Parents are losing their jobs, children are suffering inconsistent care, child care workers are being laid off and providers are going without pay or shuttering their facilities, according to…

The head of CBP testified in federal court and after the judge found him to be a lying liar who lies (I’m paraphrasing).

Any “good apple” still left would have sense enough to resign at this point.

www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/20/i...

Pretty sure the evidence that ICE and CBP are, broadly, lying sacks of shit and unworthy of taxpayer support is overwhelming after today

Absolutely incredible; after shooting Marimar Martinez 5 times and arresting her on claims that she rammed them and pulled a gun, prosecutors have now moved to dismiss ALL criminal charges against her and her codefendant.

THREAD: Judge Ellis is the first federal judge to review extensive body cam video of DHS's actions in Chicago. She finds that DHS *repeatedly* misled the public and made claims that were disproven by agents' own videos.

I'll go through some of the most egregious ones here.

Ellis repeatedly accuses multiple CBP and ICE officials of lying (under oath) and says their "widespread misrepresentations call into question everything" they "say they are doing in their characterization of what is happening." She broadly discredits their testimony as objectively false.

Parents Fell in Love With Alpha School’s Promise. Then They Wanted Out In Brownsville, Texas, some families found a buzzy new school’s methods—surveillance of kids, software in lieu of teachers—to be an education in and of itself.

Alpha School, which promises to educate kids using an "AI tutor" in two hours a day, is a budding national empire and a darling of the Trump administration.

According to some parents who spoke to @wired.com for this investigation, it's had nightmarish effects on their kids.

The President of the United States just called for Democratic members of Congress to be executed. "HANG THEM", he posted.

If you're a person of influence in this country and you haven't picked a side, maybe now would be the time to pick a fucking side.

Well well well. This is going to be interesting (by which I mean, a fact pattern on a Professional Responsibility final exam by time this is all done and over).

At least Bama, Georgia, LSU, Florida, Auburn, and A&M can point to a legacy of success for their hubris.

We have a “Walk of Champions” and no championships!

Nobody gets higher off their own supply than University of Mississippi football fans. Nobody.

www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/...

YouTube video by Saturday Night Live Debbie Downer: Thanksgiving Dinner - SNL

This made me think of the Debbie Downer character from SNL

youtu.be/wZ1AjaNjack?...

Today in our social theory seminar, my students and I did some concept mapping of Hardt and Negri’s Empire, Pts I and II.

Malpractice

With all the “will he, won’t he” rumors swirling around our football coach, just here to say no college football coach should be paid millions of dollars per year while full-time workers at the University struggle to pay rent.