Independent News Drop

KELI From Inkwell, this is the Amarillo News Drop. I'm Keli, with Hast.

HAST We're starting with a local event from Friday — Brady Dental Group in Amarillo ran its fifth annual Smiles for Freedom, a free dental clinic for veterans. Dozens came through for cleanings, extractions, and other care that they wouldn't otherwise afford or access. The group's been doing this since 2021, and the turnout held steady this year. It's one of the few recurring veteran services in the city that runs entirely on donated dentist time and materials.

KELI That's the kind of program that fills a real gap — no bureaucracy, just show up. Moving to the road now. TxDOT posted its weekly closure report for the Amarillo district, and there's work happening on I-40 and I-27 through the week ahead. Monday and Tuesday see lane closures on both corridors. The state's asking drivers to cut speed in work zones and plan for delays. Full details are on the TxDOT website if you're commuting through town.

HAST Sticking with the courts — Texas appeal court news that matters to the Panhandle. The 15th Court of Appeals, which covers this region, just cancelled oral arguments in a challenge to state hemp rules. That cancellation clears the way for three newly elected Democratic justices to hear the case after they take office. The hemp industry in Texas has been tangled in regulatory fights for years, and this court's composition shift could change how those disputes land.

KELI Counter on that one — other outlets will frame this as a procedural bump. What's actually happening: the court majority flipped in the election, and the old judges are getting cases off the docket before the new panel seats. This is standard power transfer, but it means hemp regulation stays uncertain for another 60 to 90 days while new justices get their feet under them. Watch for the first substantive ruling in December or January — that's when the actual policy shift becomes visible.

HAST On a different front, state-level noise this week. The Texas Minute reported the attorney general is escalating language around what it calls woke initiatives at Texas A&M, including something called seed grants. The A&M Foundation has pitched several diversity and research programs — AG's office framing them as political spending. A&M hasn't responded with specifics on the grants' scope or cost, and the details are thin in coverage so far. This is going to be a running fight between the state and the university system.

KELI Before we close, a history note. On this day in 2017, Shamshad Television in Kabul came under attack by gunmen and suicide bombers, killing a security guard and wounding twenty staff members. ISIS claimed responsibility.

HAST That's the Amarillo News Drop. Full script and sources at inkwell.wiki/news/amarillo.

KELI Before we close, a word from Inkwell. The same workshop behind this drop just published the Magnificat — the song Mary sings in Luke, where the powerful are pulled down from their thrones and the hungry are filled.

HAST It reads less like a carol than a manifesto. Find it at inkwell dot wiki, slash giv.