
I spend too much time reading about mass killing & state violence| Criminologist| @DepaulU Asst. Professor| Debate Coach| @UOfMemphis, @WSU_scj, @UML_Crim Alum
Amsterdam โ Memphis โ Chicago
Joined February 2009
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The PhD Journey is officially at an end.
Forever grateful for my time at @uml_crim.
Grateful for the professors that poured into me (most notably the greatest chair I could have ever asked for!), the classmates that loved on me, and everyone who supported me along the way โค๏ธ
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Gay rights activists literally did this. They swallowed doma in exchange for FDA funding for aids research & medication, they ate DADT to not get fired from jobs. Obama famously was against gay marriage in 08, they didnโt pout, they remembered the bigger picture & got favorable scotus seats under both Dem admins
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
I think the fact that Marissa Mayer would voluntarily disclose this to a reporter is a pretty good demonstration of how deeply the culture of Silicon Valley has diverged from the rest of humanity
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
The idea that Amanda Seyfried owes Holmes an apology for portraying her in a miniseries is asinine, especially coupled with the fact that Holmes has never once been sorry about her own actions (including driving a person to suicide!) and still believes her own bullshit
I think Nathan Fielder did a really good job with You Can See Everything. Especially in showing how unwilling Amanda Seyfried was to acknowledge her own role in potentially harming another person. He had everyone looking at one another and questioning everyone elseโs intentions, while seemingly being completely unwilling to examine their own behavior. I thought Amandaโs resistance to doing that was especially revealing
I also obviously think Billy is terrible. I think heโs cruel and exploitative. Iโve seen Elizabethโs tweets for years and thought they were her. Finding out theyโre his was jarring and sad.
But as much as I dislike Billy, I think he made a very good point. Why would he care what Amanda thinks? Sheโs an actress who has profited from portraying his wife as a bizarre and dishonest and manipulative freak to an audience that is largely voyeuristic, incredibly binary in their moral thinking, and seemingly unable to separate fiction from reality
I donโt think that Amanda needed to defend Elizabeth or excuse anything sheโs done but I do think itโs bizarre how unwilling she seemed to consider that she might have contributed to another personโs suffering
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Nancy Pelosi, who is regularly hammered for her perceived insider trading, has made 213 total trades since 2014. Trump exceeded that number in a single day, which just happened to precede his own tariffs announcement.ย My latest on the mind boggling self-enrichment:
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Everything about this story breaks (and rebreaks) my heart, but this interview is a good reminder that everyday people are capable of extraordinary acts.
opb.org/article/2026/10/23/bโฆ
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Replying to @HeerJeet
Iโve been saying for years that the reason Moms for Liberty exists to ban books, is that those moms in conservative communities donโt like their children having the words to ask about what daddy, uncle, grandpa, moms boyfriend, pastor, sheriff do to them in private.
This makes sense when you realize that Acton's estranged mother represents a major demographic cohort -- parents who covered up horrific family secrets and are puzzled why their kids don't talk to them. This cohort is becoming politically organized.
#OhioGovernor
Axios: Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign says the ad with Actonโs estranged mother will begin streaming tonight, and will be airing statewide in Ohio.
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
I admit this is more a DUI reaction than a Second Amendment reaction, I know, but I think DUI is a very violent crime with a death toll in the tens of thousands, and it's a mistake to treat people who do it as "non-dangerous". (Plus alcohol is a factor in firearms accidents.)
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Is there a reason for the complete death of kids media? Like growing up we had 3 juggernauts pumping out great shows. No wonder kids are addicted to slop, they have nothing else to watch
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Most people on EBT are children and the elderly. Most adults on EBT are employed. You are subsidizing their employer paying poverty wages. You all are mad at the wrong people because you are dumb.
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
An 8-year-old girl was abducted near her South Side home and found murdered in a ravine a few hours later in November 1960.
This year, CPD detectives cleared the case. The girl's murderer was a 24-year-old CPD officer who worked for the dept. until 1987.
chicagotribune.com/2026/10/1โฆ
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
The asymmetric nature of our media coverage - El-Sayed has to repeatedly apologize for things he has said, but Rogers never ever has to apologize for much worse things that he has said - he literally called El-Sayed a โterroristโ the other day & has supporters who do Nazi salutes
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Itโs honestly amazing for tort lawyers everywhere that Sortor and the other guy committed such brazen libel that we could get a case where a public figure might win based on actual malice. Good on them for being knuckle draggers
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
We gotta face the fact that COVID hasn't ended in the commercial sector.
24 hours stores are gone, everything is run by 5 people at most, and no one wants to hire because it might make profits a little less
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
None of the many Carrie adaptations have had the guts to make Carrie weird, ugly, and off-putting enough to implicate the viewer and make them realize "Yeah, I probably would have ostracized her, too."
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
bleak
I visited Uganda amid an ongoing reign of terror and saw that, for all my criticism of traditional U.S. foreign policy&human rights, it's now immeasurably worse. Trump/Rubio's withdrawal from public diplomacy leaves China, unchecked abuse & surveillance.
nytimes.com/2026/10/08/opiniโฆ
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
These dumb fucks actually did textbook "actual malice." They knew it was false, clearly, because they doctored the call recording to say something it didn't say and invented a whole story around it. I hope they get sued into generational poverty.
NEW: We obtained the full six minute audio of the Lindner recording. The employee there repeatedly denied anyone named โJames Talaricoโ was in her system at all. Only towards the end did she say someone had checked out that day.
via @willsommer
thebulwark.com/p/maga-james-โฆ
Melissa E. Swauncy-Coleman ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ธ๐ท๐บ๐ธ retweeted
Reminder: there is no domestic or intl legal basis for the murders that Trump ordered (and Rubio backed) in the Caribbean. No war. No authorization. Apparently many innocent fishermen killed. Sanctioning the ICC won't make that crime disappear after they leave power.
I actually disagree here in that I think plenty of Americans are actually fine with executing innocent black people ๐คท๐พ
Replying to @dilanesper
But at any rate, that is untenable. Indeed, despite the death penalty itself having a lot of public support, the number of "it's OK to risk executing innocent people to do executions faster" supporters is going to be very low.














































