A Texas school board got so spooked by a girl playing the male lead in Little Shop of Horrors that they canceled the whole show and tried to swap it for Frozen. Their legal justification shifted citations mid-scandal, from the 2023 drag ban to a 2025 parental-rights bill, and somehow neither one actually says what they claim it says. Now the 17-year-old they benched is suing in federal court, and Lydia walks through the complaint line by line. Spoiler: Title IX did not get the memo that musical theater is supposed to be scary this year.

If you enjoy our work, please consider leaving a 5-star review! You can always email questions, comments, and leads to lydia@seriouspod.com.

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Elon Musk told Joe Rogan that California made it illegal to show ID to vote. Rogan ran with it, Rand Paul repeated it, and now it's a ballot fight. Lydia walks through what California's 2024 law, SB 1174, actually does: it stops cities and counties from adding their own voter ID rules, and that's it. Then she digs into the voter ID initiative headed for California's ballot, the conservative activist and podcaster Carl DeMaio behind it, the big-money donors on the "yes" side, and what the measure would really require. Thomas and Lydia also check governor candidate Steve Hilton's version of the story. Patrons: our bonus with Noah Lugeons on the Ben Shapiro review takedown is up now.

Sources:

• California Senate Bill 1174 (2024), signed September 29, 2024

• The proposed California voter ID ballot initiative led by Carl DeMaio

• The Joe Rogan Experience episodes with Elon Musk and Rand Paul

If you enjoy our work, please consider leaving a 5-star review! You can always email questions, comments, and leads to lydia@seriouspod.com.

Correction: An earlier version had Thomas saying George Santos was a Democrat. Thomas was able to recognize his mistake after only a fact check. Also, he must have been thinking of Bob Menendez or something.

Please pretty please consider becoming a patron at patreon.com/wherethereswoke! You get ad-free episodes and patron-only bonus episodes.

Remember Public Square, the self-declared "anti-woke Amazon" that promised conservatives shopping without funding a rainbow flag? Yeah that didn't work. But not for lack of trying! Lydia has the history and also the business that DID work out: infinite grift and corruption.

Please pretty please consider becoming a patron at patreon.com/wherethereswoke! You get ad-free episodes and patron-only bonus episodes.