iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

How is Trump's 'public relations' stunt in Iran workin' out for you at the pump, MAGA? Are you feeling the PR? Remember, always remember, because those of us who saw this coming will never, ever let you forget it: YOU wanted this, and YOU did this. 🫵 😅 😂

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Just discovered this remarkable artist, beautiful work. I could look at this stuff all day. 😍

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

You rock, thank-you for doing what you do! 🙏 😍

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Dr. Annie Andrews @drannieandrews.com · 14/04/2026

If you cannot tell, you should consult your physician.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Well, so far, today. The day ain't over yet.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Imagine spending an eternity listening to Donald Trump.

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Michael F. DuBois @michaelfdubois.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

I wrote and posted this to Instagram a couple of days ago and it became my most-read poem ever. I’m honored I get to feel big feelings alongside you all. I’m posting it here too and want to use this space more consistently. Hello friends ❤️

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Artemis II crew learning that three new episodes of the new season of 'For All Mankind' will be available when they get back.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Goddammit, that motherfucker is going to get my nearly 60-year-old ass chaining myself to a tree before this shit show is over. 🤬

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Would it be okay to reach out over there, DM? (or here, for that matter)

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

I didn't realize you were on Substack, that's where I settled in. It seems like we chatted a few times on pre-X Twitter. I'll have to check you out over there, nice to see you're still active.

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Kim Wexler's Ponytail 🐝💛🎗 @madisonkittay.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Look at all that DEI sending astronauts around the moon.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Thank-you. I don't care WHO is implicated. I don't care if every one of my childhood heroes and favorite actors are implicated. I want ALL the files released, and I want those who hurt women to be held accountable. Don't let her squirm away from this. 🙏

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

A good friend who graciously gave this one a beta read told me that this is one of my "most honest" pieces I've done on Substack, one where "the wizard behind the curtain" is on full display.

open.substack.com

On Masks, Acting and Artifice

In which I reflect on the question 'How are you?' in a world where no one is 'fine.'

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

I was a few minutes ago but fine now.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

A good friend who graciously gave this one a beta read told me this is one of my "most honest" pieces I've done on Substack, one where "the wizard behind the curtain" is on full display. #Depression #MentalHealth

open.substack.com

On Masks, Acting and Artifice

In which I reflect on the question 'How are you?' in a world where no one is 'fine.'

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

My latest over on Substack, where I write about art and culture in these unsettling and terrifying times. Subscribing is free, I've paywalled nothing, and no password is required. #Art #Culture #Substack

open.substack.com

On Centering, Art and 'Renaissance'

In which I list a few podcast conversations (and a book) I've been thinking about

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Crystal Fleming is on sabbatical @alwaystheself.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Astronaut Victor Glover, pilot of the #ArtemisII, and his family. They must be so friggin proud.. www.nasa.gov/learning-res...

Astronaut in space suit surrounded by his beautiful family, including their dog

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Randi Mayem Singer @rmayemsinger.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

I'm confused. I thought we needed scientists and experts to go to the moon. Or did we send "do your own research" astronauts launched by "both sides" engineers and physicists at Mission Control?

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Now Trump's team knows what it felt like to be Biden's team watching the train wreck of the final debate that finally persuaded them it was long past time for Joe to go. 😒

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

Just a friendly reminder to check your voter registration regularly. A lot of us have had our voting records sent to The Regime. There is no reason to believe this was a benign action.

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

I just did 2.5 hours in an MRI and I’ve had COVID19 vaccines numbering in the double digits, so I think we can confidently conclude that the vaccines don’t, in fact, magnetize a person.

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Chris Hayes @chrislhayes.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

I really feel like we are at the dawn of an age in which truth, the simple facts of the matter, will be more valuable than ever and also less accessible than ever.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Years before anyone called Leslie Nielsen "Shirley." I can't recall, does the film have a "Gonzalo" character, an old sage? That's who I played in The Tempest about 12 years ago.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Art Candee's feed piling up with pathetic ICE "agents" pulling airport duty is the laugh I needed today. 😂

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

As long as ICE is in U.S. airports, I will not be. COMPLETE AND TOTAL BOYCOTT! Thank you for your attention to this matter!!

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

I fell for a Facebook ad scam earlier this month, bargain prices for Taschen art books. Some shady outfit in Hong Kong. Could have been worse, only out fifty bucks. Canceled the card, etc. 🙄

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

"Hegseth increasingly desperate"

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Voices for Vaccines @voices4vaccines.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

"She’s hearing from people sick with the virus: 'A number of them clearly said if they had known, they would have vaccinated themselves and their children against measles, but they didn’t realize how bad it was.'" What happens when we downplay disease. www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

nbcnews.com

Measles is 'worse than expected' in Utah, officials say

Measles patients in Utah are developing severe complications, health officials say, including potentially life-threatening anemia and liver inflammation.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Watched press conference footage of Pete Hegseth a couple days ago and the mind just reels: What a monumentally stupid, astoundingly insecure and immature piece of excrement he is. Makes Rumsfeld and Cheney look like enlightened intellectuals. Every fucking day, I'm like 🤯 🤯 🤯 WTAF?

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

I'm guessing Elon will shut that down soon.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Reagan killing the Fairness Doctrine in his second term was also a tectonic shift that gave us Fox News. And here we are.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

I've resumed writing on Substack, here's my latest. Please like, share, subscribe ... it's free and simple, no password bullshit. I ain't selling anything (although paid subscribers obviously are always welcome).

open.substack.com

On Some Films, some Art, and Writer's Block

In which I refer readers to two pieces I published elsewhere while preparing to reboot the 'ol Substack and explaining what's going on with 'Renaissance Watch'

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

The Trump administration can shuffle HHS personnel all they want. Until this administration is over and RFK Jr. is removed from office, the process of rebuilding science and public health in the United States cannot begin.

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Randi Mayem Singer @rmayemsinger.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

I guess "mass deportations" actually meant "mass detention in prison camps." Deportation and imprisonment are not the same thing. But I guess imprisonment has way bigger profits.

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

A lot of people, including me, were wondering how an IRB could ever approve this study. The answer is that no IRB did. The person who “signed off” on approval from the only ethics board that reviewed it had resigned three years earlier. His signature was used without his knowledge.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Trump's America. If you're okay with this, I'm not okay with you.

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Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

If you refuse to vaccinate and your child becomes seriously ill with a vaccine-preventable disease, I can assure you that all of your anti-vax “friends” that you met on social media will be nowhere to be found.

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WIRED @wired.com · 30/01/2026

Since last year, we’ve been reporting on ICE extensively. But every week brings new information, and it’s getting harder to keep track of what’s happening, let alone remember what’s already happened. So here’s a quick thread to help.

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

This needs to be read as widely as possible, it's likely the next play -- possibly attractive to the fascist perpetrators because it's less optically repugnant than simply shooting American citizens in the street. Heads up, Minnesota, show the country how to fight this shit.

open.substack.com

What to Do When They Arrest Your Governor

Options exist, let's explore them.

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Mark Hamill @markhamillofficial.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

"I was only following orders" wasn't an acceptable excuse at the Nuremberg trials & won't work now. #AccountabilityIsComing

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David Bates @davidbwriter.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

I see what you you you you you you you you you you did did did did did did

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