Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Spooky Anarchic Squid

@leahanelson.bsky.social

1.1K followers 490 following 3.2K posts

Alabama, fines & fees, harm reduction, access to healthcare; kids, dogs, nature, culture. Jewish. Future founder, Center for the Study of Boring Minutiae. Actively fearful of the Mariana Trench, still not 100% convinced quarks exist.

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · Jan 10

In a postage stamp of a town at the southernmost tip of Appalachia, a minister and self-described anarchosocialist operates Alabama's only Narcan vending machine. I wrote about his lifesaving work in this, my first piece for @oxfordamerican.bsky.social.
oxfordamerican.org/oa-now/the-o...

The Only Narcan Vending Machine In Alabama

oxfordamerican.org

4 52 200

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 1h

I forget the name of the heroic group that defeated “antifa” during the Weimar era ..?

Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 2h

From Donald Trump's Roundtable on Antifa just now —
"Antifa has been around in various iterations for almost 100 years in some instances, going back to the Weimar Republic in Germany."
— special guest Jack Posobiec

1 4

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 1h

Is anyone?

1 1

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Barred and Boujee aka Madiba Dennie @audrelawdamercy.bsky.social · 3h

I couldn't imagine a more perfectly poetic example of saying the quiet part out loud than "we took the freedom of speech away"

6 84 470

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

nosé @lightblanket.bsky.social · 6d

We’re getting rid of leaf blowers by eating 50 leaves a day each. Get out there

2 210 980

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 3h

Do you remember the Quiznos commercials staring this creature, apparently?

a cartoon of a rabbit and a cat playing guitar in front of a quiznos sub

ALT: a cartoon of a rabbit and a cat playing guitar in front of a quiznos sub

media.tenor.com

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 3h

Omg remember those Quiznos commercials?

a cartoon of a rabbit and a cat playing guitar in front of a quiznos sub

ALT: a cartoon of a rabbit and a cat playing guitar in front of a quiznos sub

media.tenor.com

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 3h

very teeth

Lisa Kadonaga @tapirtrouble.bsky.social · 6h

Tapirs are horse-adjacent, but are often underestimated because a) they're pretty shy in the wild, and b) their legs are much shorter so they appear small, though they're the biggest native land animal in the Americas, south of Mexico City.

Photo of Chupi, a lowland tapir. It's mainly his head that's visible, as he looks over a partition in his stall, eyeing a half-eaten breakfast sandwich (biscuit with cheese and egg?) in a person's hand, in the foreground. Chupi has a long snout, and large white teeth are visible as his lips are pulled back a bit.
Photo by Chupi's keeper, bobrossfanclub15
https://www.reddit.com/r/tapirs/comments/cu1xut/when_youre_eating_a_nutritious_breakfast_but/

Chupi's keeper notes that Chupi found a package of Pop Tarts in their pocket and has been checking for snacks ever since.

1 1

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 7h

really can’t say enough about how mike johnson is a sniveling little coward of a man. a bayou-bred pushover with a dignity deficit that would embarrass renfield

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 8h

Q: Do you agree that the mayor of Chicago and governor of Illinois should be in prison?

MIKE JOHNSON: Should they be in prison? I'm not the attorney general. I'm not following the day to day on that

560 2.4K 15K

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Daniel Knowles @dlknowles.bsky.social · 7h

I mean who isn't avoiding America right now

Dave Levitan @davelevitan.bsky.social · 7h

Was there a memo to all Atlantic tropical cyclones this year or something where they were all told to avoid the US

National Hurricane Center map of the Atlantic showing Tropical Storm Jerry to the east of the lesser Antilles with a projected path skirting the islands to the north before swinging further north and then east out to sea

Map of the Atlantic showing all tropical cyclone paths for 2025, with most of them following the same general path where they appear scared to come anywhere near the US

9 57

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 7h

She is awesome and so is her entire family.

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Daniel Knowles @dlknowles.bsky.social · 20h

My own story on the raid is here:

What a Chicago immigration raid says about Trumpism
www.economist.com/united-state...
From The Economist

4 59 250

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Daniel Knowles @dlknowles.bsky.social · 22h

Good reporting on the South Shore raid from South Side weekly here.

Confirms one thing I was told but didn't put in my own piece because I didn't have a second source and it seemed too insane: border agents segregated arrested residents by race

southsideweekly.com/federal-agen...

Federal Agents Storm South Shore Building, Detaining Families and Children

Families were woken by flashbangs and helicopters as hundreds of federal agents raided their homes. Days later, neighbors are still searching for the missing.

southsideweekly.com

140 2.9K 5.6K

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 9h

THATS MY FRIEND!!!!

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 10h

One woman's quest to reclaim the ugly history of Black maternal health

Artist Michelle Browder's Mothers of Gynecology project is an act of resistance.

www.motherjones.com

1 6

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 10h

One woman's quest to reclaim the ugly history of Black maternal health

Artist Michelle Browder's Mothers of Gynecology project is an act of resistance.

www.motherjones.com

2 41 160

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Shannon Sanders @shanders.bsky.social · 10h

Today is class picture day, not to be confused with individual picture day, when you dress your child cutely (that’s next week), but rather where you have to thread the needle so your kid looks neither too fussy nor like you forgot it was class picture day

1 1 10

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 10h

Living in Montgomery, I sometimes get frustrated that EJI isn’t more involved in the day to day of Alabama politics. When I mentally step back and read interviews like this, I am grateful they chose to focus on narrative.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/u...

Civil Rights Lawyer Bryan Stevenson on How America’s Story Should Be Told

www.nytimes.com

1 2

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 19h

Thank you I am very happy with it! Will mostly wfh or out in the community but I do love stacks of books so much!!

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 19h

Some personal news: I started a new job today and there are bookshelves and stacks of books on surfaces all over the office and the first conversation I had, before even meeting everyone, was about data visualization. Feeling good about the choices that led to this moment. 📚

1 9

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 19h

a cartoon character is dancing in a living room with a dog .

ALT: a cartoon character is dancing in a living room with a dog .

media.tenor.com

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 19h

Sometimes I get the theme song from Doug stuck in my head and I absolutely do not mind it.

1 3

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

madison! @madepn.bsky.social · 1d

here is my first rendering of the bread scale of triviality (any suggestions welcome; I love thinking about bread)

68 160 820

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 20h

The tweens are so deep they’ve manifested a form of shallowness the late GenX mind cannot fathom

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Eric Michael Garcia @ericmgarcia.bsky.social · 21h

I've been banging this drum for the past four months or so: DOGE and Russ Vought broke the appropriations process. What's the point of going through the arduous process of crafting 12 spending bills, clearing them through committee and getting them through two chambers if Trump does rescissions?

Garrett M. Graff @vermontgmg.bsky.social · 1d

If appropriations bills are not seen as enforceable contracts, why should any Member of Congress vote to fund any part of the federal government under Donald Trump? You're voting to provide money for lawlessness. www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/there-is-n...

There is no budget "deal" to be made

President Trump has so broken the constitutional framework as to make joint normal, responsible government impossible.

www.doomsdayscenario.co

25 440 1.4K

Spooky Anarchic Squid @leahanelson.bsky.social · 21h

This is how my kids described it but also they have forbidden me to say it so I thought it meant something bad and they are embarrassed to have me find out but … it means nothing and they are embarrassed for me to find out

1 1

Reposted by Spooky Anarchic Squid

Tom Breen @tombreen.bsky.social · 21h

Learning stuff on my phone

2 1 3