Many of us will be reflecting on the things we're grateful for over the Thanksgiving holiday. But almost no one will have to do less reflection than Tater and Tot. Those are the names of the turkeys set to receive a presidential pardon (which makes it a little strange that they were named after food items). Yes, it's that time of year again when the office of the presidency becomes a little ridiculous (by design in this case). President Obama will be issuing his last poultry pardon, and from his comments over the years, you can assume it won't be a tradition he'll miss: "It is a little puzzling that I do this every year ... I know some folks think this tradition is a little silly. I do not disagree." But in the new American spirit of trying to see an issue from someone else's perspective, let's try to imagine this moment from the point of view of Tater and Tot, and thus view it with the seriousness it warrants. And let's also hope that they're part of the same political party. Otherwise, after Obama pardons them, they might end up killing each other.

"A pro-gun voter whose Ocean score ranks him high on neuroticism could see storm clouds and a threat: The Democrat wants to take his guns away. A separate pro-gun voter deemed agreeable and introverted might see an ad emphasizing tradition and community values, a father and son hunting together." In a very interesting look at how a firm called Cambridge Analytica uses information about you to target messages, McKenzie Funk examines the secret life of a Facebook Quiz.

+ Cambridge Analytica worked on the Trump campaign. They also worked for those in favor or Brexit. Now they're in talks to score a couple new big contracts.

+ The NYT's MIke Isaac on Facebook's plan to create censorship tool to get back into China

The NYT has released the full transcript from their much-anticipated sit-down with the president elect.

+ South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has been tapped to be the Ambassador to the UN, and Betsy DeVos has been named Secretary of Education. Ben Carson looks to be Trump's pick for secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Certain elements derived from marijuana have been helpful to kids suffering from severe and nearly nonstop epileptic seizures. But certain elements of society have a vested interest in keeping the promising treatment off the market. From Reason: How Idaho's Drug Warriors Stole Hope from Epileptic Kids.

From GQ: "In a year of uncompromising tragedy, the Orlando shooting ... stands out as among the most difficult to comprehend. This story is not about what happened that night but, rather, what happened in the days and weeks and months that followed, as a community -- a community of unbreakable young men and women -- found it within themselves to forge ahead." Sean Flynn on Orlando, the day after.

"One researcher the book cites clocks inner speech at an average pace of 4,000 words per minute -- 10 times faster than verbal speech. And it's often more condensed -- we don't have to use full sentences to talk to ourselves, because we know what we mean." The Atlantic's Julie Beck talks to a researcher who has been studying our "inner speech" to reveal why we talk to ourselves: The Running Conversation in Your Head. (I used to be bothered by the voices in my head, but then I set them all free on social media.)

Ellen DeGeneres, Michael Jordan, Robert Redford and Bruce Springsteen were among the recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. You can watch the entire ceremony here.

"The widespread assumption is that Asian Americans came to the United States very disadvantaged, and they wound up advantaged through extraordinary investments in their children's education." But according to Brown University economist Nathaniel Hilger, that's not exactly what happened. "Instead, his research suggests that society simply became less racist toward Asians."

+ LA Times: Here, I am above average: Chinese parachute kids are coming to the U.S. at younger ages

One of the things I'm thankful for this year (and all years) is the excellent work that many journalists do, and more broadly, for the freedom Americans have to speak their minds. I wrote a couple media-related pieces recently: The first was a take on the bigger meaning of the Hamilton controversy, and why editorial judgment should not be crowdsourced: The Neon Lights are Bright on Broadway. The second was a reflection on these particularly dangerous times for the media: We Know Exactly Who Strong Arms the Free Press. (I'm also extremely thankful that you take the time to read NextDraft. I'd get mushy, but it would be too off brand.)

For many Americans, Thanksgiving is a day for football. In keeping with that spirit, you can watch Earth's history play out on a football field. (It's great until humans get flagged for illegal use of planet...)

+ Need to confess? Well, now there's an app for that. The Vatican is calling it The Catholic App. They clearly missed an opportunity to call it an App of Contrition.

+ Time has published the most influential photographs of all time.

+ Hey, who lost Kyrgyzstan's constitution?

+ The original Gerber baby just turned 90.

+ And there's still time to score one of the new NextDraft T-shirts. You can get the Read Real News edition, or the Internet Superhero model.