iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Not a great way to start off Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Shame on the Chicago alders on this committee who couldn't be bothered to show up for survivors.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 20h

Important PSA, well and clearly stated. (Thread.)

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Jen Taub @jentaub.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Let this sink in. Cornell University refused to refund Jane Doe's tuition the semester she was raped. Without this money, she could not transfer to another school. Essentially, she was forced to stay on campus where she saw those seven rapists frequently. Eventually she dropped out of college.

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Robyn Swirling @rswirling.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

After being raped by a man on my hall sophomore year, I couldn’t leave my dorm room for weeks and failed several classes. I had to take out student loans so I could retake those credits. We almost never talk about the financial toll of campus sexual assault on survivors.

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Rep. Justin J. Pearson @justinjpearson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

ONE WEEK LEFT to register to vote in TN. There is no same-day registration, so everyone must be registered by October 5th. It is also important that you double-check your registration. You can do both on Vote.org! Early voting starts on Oct. 14th.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

We had a beautiful fall morning for AIDS Run & Walk Chicago on Saturday. It was wonderful to get together with my colleagues from @motherchild.bsky.social (Mother and Child Alliance), along with other local HIV/AIDS organizations, to raise funds for a worthy cause.

Photo of Dave on a sunny morning at AIDS Run & Walk Chicago, pausing along the route. Behind him are the blue waters of Lake Michigan, and a stream of other walkers making their way along the path, under a bright blue sky.

Photo of five members of Mother and Child Alliance's staff, standing on a field of green grass, wearing their orange team shirts, under a blue sky with Soldier Field in the background.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

This is horrific. Shame on Connecticut and any other state that does this to people. "But now Billy was dead, and the state of Connecticut said he owed $232,733 for room and board during his earlier prison stay. Selling the house where DeSenti now lived alone would help satisfy that debt."

ctmirror.org

They served their time in prison. Then the bills arrived.

Hundreds of CT residents have had money seized through a law that allows the state to charge a fee for every day a person spends in prison.

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James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

My dad was a small-town doctor who made late-night house calls on most nights I can remember growing up—and to my personal knowledge forgave (or delayed) payments from people who were on hard times. This story makes me want to move to Kansas and spend next 5+ weeks canvassing.

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Whitney Curry Wimbish @whitneycwimbish.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

The youngest person his pager attack killed was 9-year-old Fatima Abdullah, who had just started 4th grade. The pager was on a table when it went off and she picked it up to take to her dad. It exploded in her face and reports said it covered the room in her blood. She wanted to learn English.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

forgive me, my mouth has "gone rogue" on the plums in the icebox

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Just got the current issue of The New Yorker in the mail, and its cover (by Barry Blitt) is worth several thousand words.

Cover of the September 28, 2026 issue of The New Yorker with an cartoon-style illustration by Barry Blitt entitled "Pulling the Plug." It shows a man in a white lab coat, desperately trying to unplug a bank of computer equipment from a wall socket. He has the orange power cord wrapped around his arm and is pulling so hard on the plug that he's actually standing on the wall with both feet braced against it, but the poor guy just can't seem to get it loose.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I’ve had a couple of anonymous benefactors chip in to sponsor me for AIDS Run & Walk Chicago this Saturday. If it was you, I’m sending immense gratitude your way! For everyone else, there are 3 days left — a few bucks can help provide a lifeline for moms with HIV. action.aidschicago.org/DaveAwl26

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Patti Smith shared this photo of her with Joan Baez, taken at City Lights Books a few days ago, and I love it so much I had to reshare it. Two of my musical heroes, and continual sources of inspiration & joy. (I think this was a reading for Patti's book Bread of Angels, newly out in paperback.)

Photo of Patti Smith with her arm around Joan Baez, both smiling and standing in front of bookshelves at City Lights Books in San Francisco in September 2026. Joan is holding a bouquet of flowers. Patti is wearing a City Lights T-shirt under her coat. Photo by Tony Shanahan.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

This book looks great — bumping it up to the top of my queue.

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Terri Windling @terriwindling.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

I'm hearing a lot about this in the book world, and my husband is hearing a lot about this in the theatre world. If you care about the arts, please put pressure on your local MP as this really needs to change.

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Puff the Magic Hater @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

ICE activity has been picking up again in Chicago A LOT. If you were previously involved with ICE watch efforts, now is a good time to reengage. I’m going to start wearing a whistle again.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Not only a great spinster book, but a very autumnal kind of book. Perfect for this time of year. #SpinsterSeptember

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I honestly questioned whether this was real when I first saw the video, but the details have been confirmed. "A woman from Woolwich says a political canvasser took an Amazon package from her front porch Wednesday afternoon after leaving a flyer in support of U.S. Senator Susan Collins."

wmtw.com

Maine woman says political canvasser stole Amazon package from her porch

A woman from Woolwich says a political canvasser took an Amazon package from her front porch Wednesday afternoon after leaving a flyer in support of U.S. Senator Susan Collins.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

For the 4th year in a row, I’ll be walking with the team for @motherchild.bsky.social at AIDS Run & Walk Chicago on Sept 26. Huge gratitude to anyone who’s willing to chip in a little to sponsor me & support MACA’s incredible work on behalf of moms with HIV. Link: action.aidschicago.org/DaveAwl26

Photo of Dave (in the center) with two other members of the team for Mother and Child Alliance, on a sunny September morning at AIDS Run & Walk Chicago in 2025.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Respect to Annie Dillard. I’m grateful for the precise beauty of her prose and the startling clarity of her observations. So many of her books are touchstones for me — including The Writing Life, which contains some of the most compelling observations about the writing process that I’ve encountered.

npr.org

Annie Dillard, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, dies at 81

Dillard's work was characterized by spare prose and a deep connection to nature. She is best known for Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, An American Childhood, The Maytrees and The Writing Life.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

“The level of boredom that they experience is really unbelievable,” neuroscientist Lori Marino told Vox. “For an animal like that, with a brain like that, that’s torture.”

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Idea for a movie about an alternate timeline where nobody can remember that Ed Sheeran ever existed — well, except for this one single guy, who thinks he might remember having heard an Ed Sheeran song once, but he's not really sure "Edsterday"

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Wajahat Ali @wajali.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Ed Sheeran is worth more than $300 million. How much more do you need to gain a little courage to stand up against genocide?

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Unlike Macklemore, these support acts don’t have big followings and they are giving up their chance to perform to stadiums to push back against censorship, not of themselves but of a fellow artist. Respect.

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Naomi Klein @naomiaklein.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Today is the day! A journey that Astra and I started as an essay in The Guardian is now officially out in the world. End Times Fascism – And the Fight for the Living World is in bookstores now. If you are inclined, please buy one from an indie bookseller or borrow it from your local library.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

A lot of good points packed into a short video. Really rooting for Justin J. Pearson ... he'll be such a great addition to Congress.

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TheBossRoss 🧶 @thebossross.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Yesterday, @english.lemonde.fr pointed out the 🇸🇪 campaign centered around purchasing power, education & healthcare (*not* immigration & security) & left parties polled better. ...and now won. The far-right Sweden Democrats lost votes. If anyone is looking for a strategy: Stop following theirs.

politico.eu

Sweden exit poll: Left on course for election win in blow to far right

Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson is heading for a comeback as prime minister in charge of a left-wing coalition, exit polling suggests.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I still haven't forgiven Netflix for canceling Sense8, and I probably never will.

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Them @them.us · 11/09/2026

The Saddle Lake Cree Nation is standing up against the Canadian Province of Alberta’s gender-affirming care ban by positioning itself as a safe haven for transgender people seeking medical care.

them.us

A First Nation Is Making Itself a Safe Haven From Alberta’s Trans Youth Care Ban

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Well, how come you only want tomorrow With its promise of something hard to do? A real life adventure, worth more than pieces of gold ... Blue skies above, sun on your arms, strength in your stride And hope in those squeaky clean eyes

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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 11/09/2026

AN URGENT EXCLUSIVE: Ahmed Soliman, the 30-year-old gay man ICE expelled in April to Equatorial Guinea, a country he has no ties to, was arrested this morning and cannot be located, his attorneys say. They fear he may be in one of EG's torture prisons. prospect.org/2026/09/11/i...

prospect.org

Immigrant Trump Sent to African Hotel Prison Arrested After Speaking With Media, Lawyers Say - The American Prospect

Ahmed Soliman’s attorneys fear he may have been sent to one of Equatorial Guinea’s notorious torture prisons.

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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

In what universe would a white Mayor be told he could not attend a commemoration in Oklahoma City because "Timothy McVeigh?"

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

This is a worthy remembrance of Wendell Berry. And the poem at the end, about the continuing presence of those we've lost, is a keeper.

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Wow: Adam Hamilton, the Democratic nominee for US Senate from Kansas, is within 2-3 points of the Republican incumbent (Roger Marshall) in all the polls listed on Wikipedia, and even leads him by 1 point in one recent poll. With around 10% undecided in the race. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Un...

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

It may not be the most important thing to remember on Star Trek TOS anniversary day, but without the Live Long and Prosper hand gesture we wouldn't have had the Nanu Nanu hand gesture

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

OMG, this guy's name was Lundeen, as in SENATOR Lundeen, who died in a mysterious plane crash in 1940 while being probed by the FBI for his ties to the Nazis? That's some weird historical slant-rhyming ...

independent.co.uk

American Airlines passenger duct-taped to seat after mid-air meltdown loses his job

Other passengers claimed Lundeen was using vulgar and bigoted language toward the flight crew

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

"You hire a clown you get the whole damn circus." He's not losing his touch. Several lines in this made me laugh (ruefully).

youtube.com

The Nerd Reich

YouTube video by Jesse Welles

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Homer Simpson hedge meme performed by a pair of elephants!

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Not sure how long ago this improvement rolled out, but I just noticed that it is *finally* possible to rearrange one's list of feeds just by dragging them around instead of having to click a million arrows (on desktop), and I am infinitely thankful to the Bluesky gods for that.

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pmamtraveller.bsky.social @pmamtraveller.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Rob Gonsalves - "The Sun Sets Sail" (2001)

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Dave Awl @daveawl.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

This was such a phenomenal takedown of toxic sports arrogance — from Bill's column in the Chicago Reader many years ago. The second part (next post down in the thread) is the payoff.

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