Republicans are terrible at governing but exceptional at turning minor scandals into major conspiracies and major conspiracies into minor scandals.

This is not the inspirational, Instagram-quote version of hope. This is the stubborn, dented, slightly sarcastic hope that survives out of pure spite. The kind that says, “Yes, everything is on fire, but I’m still not letting the worst people win everything.” thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/26/y...

Speaking as someone who just wrote a book on the Manhattan Project, I can assure you that refugee immigrants were the *entire* reason the US mastered the atom first. The most chilling part of writing my book was reading about them fleeing fascism … abroad. www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/fleeing-on...

“They’re going to bring back suffering and death,” said Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the infectious disease committee for the American Academy of Pediatrics. “I don’t say that with any hyperbole, that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”

This exhibit in Houston’s Rothko Chapel featuring excerpts from the newly released Epstein files is quite stunning.

Congrats to all the viruses we thought we eradicated.

These are all of the empty seats on the state-appointed Houston ISD Board of Managers hearing meeting tonight. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath appointed board members who won’t even show up to their own meetings. Shameful. @texasaft.org @aft.org

if tumblr dies I need this video to make it's seasonal rotation here instead just in case, Happy holidays 🎄

My husband: Hey, you got a shout out

By the end of the year he’ll announce he discovered a 27th letter.

Left, 1991: The US is waging war for oil. Me, 1991: No, we're waging war to stop a dangerous dictator from seizing dominant control over a strategic resource, which happens to be oil. But this is about the balance of power, not economic exploitation. Trump, 2025: F* yeah we're taking the oil.

I hope national and local news outlets cover this @nbcnews.com @washingtonpost.com @nytimes.com @latimes.com @houstonchronicle.com

Reading @stephenking.bsky.social's beautiful tribute to Reiner, here as we conclude the year in which we lost my Dad, amidst so much collective loss, is equal parts cathartic & painful, inspiring & gut-wrenching, human in the worst & best ways. Like, y'know, art. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/16/o...

[stares in Texan]

Can’t recommend this enough to all the writers out there. #ai #llm #chatgpt

It hasn't even been twelve hours, but all three of us have been overwhelmed with requests from media for comment and I'm mostly writing this now so they'll leave me alone.

this is not behavior becoming of a FIFA Peace Prize recipient.

Public school librarians in Florida must now apply labels on the front of certain nonfiction material to note that Gulf of Mexico is now Gulf of America. I’m surprised the legislation doesn’t require the font to be Times New Roman. #gulfofmexico #florida

This entire weekend

The hero of the day was Ahmed al Ahmed, 43 year old shopkeeper and father of two. Wrestled the shotgun from a shooter. Give him the medal for bravery. He saved people today.

HOW 🤯

The funny thing about attacking nuns is that you look always look weak and contemptible while they're actually still quite capable of kicking your ass.

I learned a lot from reading this:

The State of Texas is in the midst of a hostile takeover of public education.

“Large tanker, very large, largest one ever seized actually.”

ICE's plan to lose the war has entered the Napoleon in Russia phase with winter deployments in snowy steppe without dedicated cold-weather kit

Things you should gift kids this holiday season: - Age-appropriate toys Things you should not gift kids: - Weedwhackers - Large aquatic animals - Most of the things Kevin turns into weapons in 'Home Alone' - Dirt

Freaks and Geeks got cancelled after one season but Lizza still has more episodes to go? Smh

My parents, siblings, our spouses, kids, in-laws, cousins. All Longhorns who are proud of and grateful for the outstanding education we received on the Forty Acres. I can’t describe my absolute disgust for Abbott, the Board of Regents, and the voters who support this.

The rank bigotry of today’s nativism is striking, but the utter stupidity of today’s nativism is almost as impressive.

Timeline cleanse

Me: Oh dear, the old demented man is posting again. Husband: Is it in Times New Roman?

This is a major victory for guys who spend a lot of time thinking about the fall of the Times New Roman Empire.

This is how you know you've got good friends.

Just watched Death by Lightning. And I now know where Trump’s brain will find its resting place. A dusty jar in a warehouse.

💙

UPDATE: Another Chicago-area church has put up an immigration-themed Nativity scene. A church member at Urban Village Church sent this one along, where Mary, Joseph and Jesus are gone and replaced with a sign that reads: “Due to ICE activity in our community, the Holy Family is in hiding.”

Thoughtful, impressive, and moving journalism everyone should read.

This is really interesting. It examines the radicalizing dynamics within the MAGA movement and asks a key question: if Trump's hold on the movement is weakening or if he goes, what happens to these dynamics? Does a MAGA civil war fuel or dampen the radicalizing impulses? Well worth reading.

People say FIFA disgraced itself by having that little Trump ceremony. Habibi, it’s FIFA. People died building the Qatari stadium for the last World Cup and it held the World Cup in Russia before that.

The difference between Cassidy and most other Republicans is that he knew exactly what he was doing to millions of Americans' livers and health in general, and did it anyway.

Gift article about the across-the-board *slowdown* in federal funding for science - on ALL the topics. But especially for up-and-coming scientists. www.nytimes.com/interactive/... 🎁

Not to defend Olivia Nuzzi, who broke every rule in journalism and promoted a charlatan to his current position. But it's incredibly telling that she will lose her job, but RFK Jr. gets to stay in his job despite the reports of his drug use, his affairs and his defenestrating of public health.

A heroin addict who writes bad porn poetry says eliminating the Hepatitis B vaccine will make kids healthier. Medical experts say it will kill thousands of innocent children. For busy parents, it can be hard to know who to believe.

Ray Wylie Hubbard is still an amazing badass musician at age *checks notes* 79. If you get a chance to see him live, do it. You won’t be sorry. @raywylie.bsky.social

I have to hand it to them: when Christians go hard, they go *hard*.

The only Wrapped we need

Quite a double-take here at Frost Bank Center during that timeout when it was announced a family of four had won tickets to ICE!, the unfortunately named holiday show starring Frosty the Snowman.