Mike Elk
@mikeelk.bsky.social
Emmy-nominated labor reporter @PaydayReport often in 🇧🇷. Alum: @Guardian! Yinzer @UEunion fam. Autistic⚾️ Jew. Falo Português in Pittsburgh. [email protected]
Pinned
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
As a self-employed labor reporter, I have no paid holidays and stress when holidays like Thanksgiving.
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Reposted by Mike Elk
If you want to know why Hegseth is panicking about reminders that there is accountably for giving or carrying out illegal orders, it’s likely because he knows he has given illegal orders to murder people.
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order to kill all crew members in the Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug boat. Navy SEALs fired a second missile.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 28, 2025 at 8:02 PM
If you want to know why Hegseth is panicking about reminders that there is accountably for giving or carrying out illegal orders, it’s likely because he knows he has given illegal orders to murder people.
Reposted by Mike Elk
Watching the congressional press ignore Trump’s use of the “r word” today has me convinced they’d ignore him or any other politician using the “n word” next
November 28, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Watching the congressional press ignore Trump’s use of the “r word” today has me convinced they’d ignore him or any other politician using the “n word” next
Reposted by Mike Elk
A central issue at trial for the My Lai massacre in Vietnam was whether an Army lieutenant, or the Army captain who was his superior, was responsible for the order to leave no survivors.
Neither suggested the SecDef would have given such a command.
Neither suggested the SecDef would have given such a command.
If the U.S. was at war, Pete Hegseth's order would be a war crime, a military lawyer said. Instead, it might just be murder. wapo.st/49KbUJ1
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order to kill all crew members in the Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug boat. Navy SEALs fired a second missile.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:47 PM
A central issue at trial for the My Lai massacre in Vietnam was whether an Army lieutenant, or the Army captain who was his superior, was responsible for the order to leave no survivors.
Neither suggested the SecDef would have given such a command.
Neither suggested the SecDef would have given such a command.
Reposted by Mike Elk
a Black Friday deal: it’s a great day to support our independent journalism at Bolts
We want to prepare for 2026 on as strong a foot as possible, and we’d love to grow our supporter count (at any level!) by 50 people today.
If you can—jump onboard and help us cover local politics and civil rights!
We want to prepare for 2026 on as strong a foot as possible, and we’d love to grow our supporter count (at any level!) by 50 people today.
If you can—jump onboard and help us cover local politics and civil rights!
Support Bolts
We are a nonprofit publication that covers the nuts and bolts of political change, from the local up, and we need reader support to build our journalism.
Boltsmag.org
November 28, 2025 at 6:03 PM
a Black Friday deal: it’s a great day to support our independent journalism at Bolts
We want to prepare for 2026 on as strong a foot as possible, and we’d love to grow our supporter count (at any level!) by 50 people today.
If you can—jump onboard and help us cover local politics and civil rights!
We want to prepare for 2026 on as strong a foot as possible, and we’d love to grow our supporter count (at any level!) by 50 people today.
If you can—jump onboard and help us cover local politics and civil rights!
Reposted by Mike Elk
Sarah Beckstrom's ex-boyfriend told NBC News she dreamed of becoming an FBI special agent.
She didn't want to deploy to D.C.
"She hated it. She cried about it."
But she started visiting monuments and museums and started enjoying it.
May she rest in peace.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
She didn't want to deploy to D.C.
"She hated it. She cried about it."
But she started visiting monuments and museums and started enjoying it.
May she rest in peace.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
National Guard member killed in D.C. shooting remembered for 'heart of gold'
The slain soldier’s former boyfriend recalled her empathy and generosity. “She doesn’t even have to know you and she’ll do anything for you,” he said.
www.nbcnews.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Sarah Beckstrom's ex-boyfriend told NBC News she dreamed of becoming an FBI special agent.
She didn't want to deploy to D.C.
"She hated it. She cried about it."
But she started visiting monuments and museums and started enjoying it.
May she rest in peace.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
She didn't want to deploy to D.C.
"She hated it. She cried about it."
But she started visiting monuments and museums and started enjoying it.
May she rest in peace.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Reposted by Mike Elk
Amazon who? @bookshop.org has free shipping all weekend!
November 28, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Amazon who? @bookshop.org has free shipping all weekend!
Reposted by Mike Elk
Driven by bond policy changes and harsh detainment conditions, the number of immigrants choosing voluntary departure over fighting deportation has increased 1,373 percent this summer.
documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
Voluntary Departures of Detained Immigrants Have Surged 1,373 Percent - Documented
Driven by bond policy changes and harsh detainment conditions, the number of immigrants choosing voluntary departure over fighting deportation has increased 1,373 percent this summer.
documentedny.com
November 24, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Driven by bond policy changes and harsh detainment conditions, the number of immigrants choosing voluntary departure over fighting deportation has increased 1,373 percent this summer.
documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
Big thanks to a reader who donated $200 so that a self employer labor reporter like myself could take time off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
November 28, 2025 at 4:12 AM
Big thanks to a reader who donated $200 so that a self employer labor reporter like myself could take time off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Reposted by Mike Elk
great oped explaining the “we ain’t buying it” boycott of black friday sales by big retailers - namely those who abandoned previously advertised DEI or civil rights efforts and who have reportedly treated workers so badly in so many ways… www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...
We're not buying what Trump enablers sell this Black Friday | Opinion
This holiday season, we're launching the 'We Ain't Buying It!' campaign – a call to action redirecting our spending, and resisting authoritarianism.
www.usatoday.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:07 PM
great oped explaining the “we ain’t buying it” boycott of black friday sales by big retailers - namely those who abandoned previously advertised DEI or civil rights efforts and who have reportedly treated workers so badly in so many ways… www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...
Reposted by Mike Elk
These families are not having a happy Thanksgiving.
How workers died last week: Trench collapse, machinery, crushed by pipes, acid exposure, forklift, airplane crash, conveyer belt, shootings and vehicle incidents: The Weekly Toll jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
How Workers Died Last Week: Weekly Toll - Confined Space
On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. Here are how a few died last week.
jordanbarab.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:02 PM
These families are not having a happy Thanksgiving.
Reposted by Mike Elk
In case you think I am exaggerating when I say ICE/CBP are slave catchers.
Private prison company GEO Group allegedly made immigration detainees work for no pay. Now it's at the Supreme Court trying to prevent the detainees from suing. bit.ly/4pfafj2
Supreme Court Considers Private Prison Case
A private prison company seeks a ruling that could help all government contractors evade liability.
www.brennancenter.org
November 27, 2025 at 8:49 PM
In case you think I am exaggerating when I say ICE/CBP are slave catchers.
Reposted by Mike Elk
HAHR author John Marquez discusses the story of Marcelina Dias Silvestre, an enslaved woman in Brazil named who petitioned the Portuguese crown at the turn of the eighteenth century for her manumission. youtu.be/HWZyKlZ_KFM?...
GLC@Lunch w/ John Marquez: “Freedom on Three Coasts: Slavery, Law, and Belonging in the South ..."
YouTube video by The Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition
youtu.be
November 26, 2025 at 2:30 PM
HAHR author John Marquez discusses the story of Marcelina Dias Silvestre, an enslaved woman in Brazil named who petitioned the Portuguese crown at the turn of the eighteenth century for her manumission. youtu.be/HWZyKlZ_KFM?...
Thankful for our readers always getting the back of a labor reporter
As a self-employed labor reporter, I have no paid holidays and stress when holidays like Thanksgiving.
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
November 27, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Thankful for our readers always getting the back of a labor reporter
Reposted by Mike Elk
The Justice Department's settlement against RealPage doesn't take a dime of its profits from rental price-fixing, nor does it take away the data used to collude, which can still train the company's AI models. The restrictions imposed were things RealPage agreed to voluntarily a year ago.
Not good!
Not good!
The Wrist-Slappers Strike Again - The American Prospect
A settlement with algorithmic collusion facilitator RealPage allows it to keep allegedly ill-gotten profits and continue innovating to raise rents.
prospect.org
November 26, 2025 at 2:42 PM
The Justice Department's settlement against RealPage doesn't take a dime of its profits from rental price-fixing, nor does it take away the data used to collude, which can still train the company's AI models. The restrictions imposed were things RealPage agreed to voluntarily a year ago.
Not good!
Not good!
Big thanks to our readers for helping a broke labor reporter take the day off paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
November 27, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Big thanks to our readers for helping a broke labor reporter take the day off paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Reposted by Mike Elk
D.C. Shooting Suspect ‘Could Not Tolerate’ the Violence of His C.I.A.-Backed Unit in Afghanistan
“The units had been trained for nighttime raids targeting suspected Taliban members, & were accused by human rights groups of widespread killings of civilians.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
“The units had been trained for nighttime raids targeting suspected Taliban members, & were accused by human rights groups of widespread killings of civilians.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
D.C. Shooting Suspect ‘Could Not Tolerate’ the Violence of His C.I.A.-Backed Unit in Afghanistan, a Childhood Friend Said
www.nytimes.com
November 27, 2025 at 7:02 PM
D.C. Shooting Suspect ‘Could Not Tolerate’ the Violence of His C.I.A.-Backed Unit in Afghanistan
“The units had been trained for nighttime raids targeting suspected Taliban members, & were accused by human rights groups of widespread killings of civilians.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
“The units had been trained for nighttime raids targeting suspected Taliban members, & were accused by human rights groups of widespread killings of civilians.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
Reposted by Mike Elk
The decision to return to work comes after a federal court ruled earlier this month that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette must reinstate the old union contract, reversing wage cuts, health care premium increases, and cuts to paid time off. The union hailed the ruling as a decisive victory
At the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the majority of newsroom workers chose to cross the picket line.
The strike's ending raises fundamental questions about how the Pittsburgh NewsGuild rebuilds trust and regains majority status at Pittsburgh's marquee newspaper.
paydayreport.com/ending-three...
The strike's ending raises fundamental questions about how the Pittsburgh NewsGuild rebuilds trust and regains majority status at Pittsburgh's marquee newspaper.
paydayreport.com/ending-three...
Ending Three-Year Strike, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Union Seeks to Rebuild Trust & Unity with Majority Scab Newspaper
The strike's ending raises fundamental questions about how the Pittsburgh NewsGuild rebuilds trust and regains majority status at Pittsburgh's marquee newspaper.
paydayreport.com
November 26, 2025 at 11:07 PM
The decision to return to work comes after a federal court ruled earlier this month that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette must reinstate the old union contract, reversing wage cuts, health care premium increases, and cuts to paid time off. The union hailed the ruling as a decisive victory
Amo
Good morning to Brazilian reporter Manuela Borges, who’s been waiting eleven years for this petty moment. ❤️ 🇧🇷
November 26, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Amo
Reposted by Mike Elk
As a self-employed labor reporter, I have no paid holidays and stress when holidays like Thanksgiving.
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
November 26, 2025 at 1:02 AM
As a self-employed labor reporter, I have no paid holidays and stress when holidays like Thanksgiving.
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Donate to help a broke labor reporter take Thanksgiving off
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
My grandparents, who were children of Russian-Jewish immigrants, loved Thanksgiving cuz it was a holiday that they could celebrate too
As a civil (and not religious) holiday, Thanksgiving opens the door to a lot of new Americans to be able to participate in a broader America in their own way. No other public holiday comes close to the assimilating force of Thanksgiving
November 26, 2025 at 4:57 AM
My grandparents, who were children of Russian-Jewish immigrants, loved Thanksgiving cuz it was a holiday that they could celebrate too
Reposted by Mike Elk
I dunno, man. I have zero emotional connection to pilgrims and all that stuff. But a public holiday at least nominally about gratitude (and also about togetherness) is a good thing.
Originalism really narrows the scope of the good it does
Originalism really narrows the scope of the good it does
In @nytopinion.nytimes.com
"What we are meant to commemorate on Thanksgiving isn’t merely a mythologized version of our origins," our columnist Bret Stephens writes. "It’s a celebration of American rebirth — and of the possibilities, personal and political, that go with it."
"What we are meant to commemorate on Thanksgiving isn’t merely a mythologized version of our origins," our columnist Bret Stephens writes. "It’s a celebration of American rebirth — and of the possibilities, personal and political, that go with it."
Opinion | Thanksgiving Is a Celebration of American Rebirth
An opportunity for families and friends and, by extension, communities, states, and the country itself to have a national reset.
nyti.ms
November 26, 2025 at 4:51 AM
I dunno, man. I have zero emotional connection to pilgrims and all that stuff. But a public holiday at least nominally about gratitude (and also about togetherness) is a good thing.
Originalism really narrows the scope of the good it does
Originalism really narrows the scope of the good it does
A mãe brasileira dos sobrinhos da porta voz da Trump tava prendido pelo ICE www.wbur.org/news/2025/11...
White House spokeswoman Leavitt now has a family connection to an ICE arrest
Bruna Ferreira, a Boston-area woman who is the mother of Leavitt's nephew, is now in custody at an ICE facility in Louisiana.
www.wbur.org
November 26, 2025 at 4:45 AM
A mãe brasileira dos sobrinhos da porta voz da Trump tava prendido pelo ICE www.wbur.org/news/2025/11...
The Brazilian mother of WH Press Secretary’s nephews was arrested by ICE
White House spokeswoman Leavitt now has a family connection to an ICE arrest
Bruna Ferreira, a Boston-area woman who is the mother of Leavitt's nephew, is now in custody at an ICE facility in Louisiana.
www.wbur.org
November 26, 2025 at 4:42 AM
The Brazilian mother of WH Press Secretary’s nephews was arrested by ICE
$36 donation from a reader from Illinois.
$196 raised tonite. Can we keep the momentum going?
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
$196 raised tonite. Can we keep the momentum going?
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
Help a Broke Labor Reporter Take Off Thanksgiving
I’d love to take some time off for the holidays, but these past few weeks, Payday Report has been in a fundraising drought.
paydayreport.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:16 AM
$36 donation from a reader from Illinois.
$196 raised tonite. Can we keep the momentum going?
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...
$196 raised tonite. Can we keep the momentum going?
paydayreport.com/help-a-broke...