iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 3h

Wasn’t there a back story about Krasnov?

Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 9h

Public executions in the United Kingdom were discontinued in 1868. Charles Dickens had witnessed the aftermath of a double execution in London in 1849 and was appalled by the behaviour of the crowd. He argued that events such as this degraded rather than improved society.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 15h

Nona Hendryx is 82 years old today.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 16h

Jackson Browne is 78 years old today.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 18h

17 years ago today, on October 9th 2009, Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. There are only three other US presidents who have received this award.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Matt Damon is 56 years old today. Of Trump, he said in 2016 "There's no way we can let this guy be the [president]. To let that dude have the nuclear football, are you kidding me? That's dangerous. He's impulsive and rash, and doesn't seem to think deeply about too many things."

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Chevy Chase is 83 years old today. He says that “Trump makes George W. Bush look like Roosevelt.”

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Trump has promised to give US taxpayer money to the communists.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Does this mean that he’ll have to spend a bit more time in Clacton?

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

On 23rd September 2026, the OSCE announced that the US had not invited its observers to monitor the forthcoming midterm elections. The organisation criticised that decision as inconsistent with America's international commitments. odihr.osce.org/odihr/667722

odihr.osce.org

ODIHR and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly regret the absence of invitation to observe U.S. mid-term elections

WARSAW/COPENHAGEN, 23 September 2026 – The decision not to invite the OSCE to observe the 2026 mid-term congressional elections in the United S...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Jesse Jackson would have been 85 years old today.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Trump is correct when he suggests that people are being paid to heckle him. They are to be paid $5000 each.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

150 years ago today, on August 2nd 1876, lawman, scout, and gambler Wild Bill Hickok was shot and killed while playing poker in Deadwood, Dakota Territory. Jack McCall shot him from behind. Hickok's death inspired the legend of the "Dead Man's Hand" - a pair of black aces and a pair of black eights.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Come on peeps, don’t just post material that looks good. What is the source of this? Just because someone has put Alex Pretti’s name on a video doesn’t mean it is him. If this was really Alex Pretti it would be backed up by multiple sources. We’re done with being subjected to misinformation.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

Charles I was born 425 years ago today, on November 19th 1600. Believing in the divine right of kings and authority over Parliament, he used taxation in the form of tariffs (customs duties) without parliamentary consent. Tried for treason, he was executed in 1649 as a threat to constitutional rule.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

65 years ago today, on November 14th, 1960, 6-year-old Ruby Bridges was the first African-American child to integrate into an all-white elementary school in the South U.S. Escorted by federal marshals through angry crowds, her courage inspired Norman Rockwell’s painting The Problem We All Live With.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

At 10:58 a.m. on November 11th 1918, 2 minutes before the ceasefire of WWI, Canadian soldier George Price was killed by a sniper near Mons, Belgium. At 10:59 a.m., U.S. Private Henry Gunther, unaware of the imminent armistice, charged a German machine-gun post near Meuse, France. He was shot dead.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 10/11/2025

Richard Burton was born 100 years ago today, on November 10th 1925. Throughout his life he was a voracious reader. In his diary he recorded carrying a “book bag” everywhere, noting on one particular day that he’d read five books. He described books as his “first love”. museum.wales/blog/2306/Bu...

museum.wales

Burton and his books

Richard Burton had many loves in his life but one of his less-known and lifelong was his love of boo...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 02/11/2025

95 years ago today, on November 2nd 1930, Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned as Emperor of Ethiopia, known as Haile Selassie, meaning “Power of the Trinity.” According to Ethiopian imperial tradition, he was a descendant of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, through their son Menelik I.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 01/11/2025

75 years ago today, on November 1st 1950, Puerto Rican nationalists Oscar Collazo and Griselio Torresola tried to assassinate President Truman at Blair House to promote Puerto Rican independence. A shootout killed Torresola and a guard; Truman survived, and Collazo was jailed.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

61 years ago today, on October 14th 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his dedication to tackling racial segregation and discrimination in the US. Through peaceful protests and powerful speeches, he inspired millions, advancing civil rights, equality and justice.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 04/10/2025

89 years ago today, on October 4th 1936, London’s East End saw the Battle of Cable Street. Tens of thousands of anti-fascists - Jews, Irish, and socialists - united to block Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists march. Clashes with police led to the march being abandoned.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

50 years ago today, on September 22nd 1975, President Gerald Ford narrowly escaped assassination in San Francisco when Sara Jane Moore fired a revolver at him at close range. Ex-Marine Oliver Sipple deflected her shot, preventing tragedy - just 17 days after another attempt on Ford’s life.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Jimi Hendrix died in London 55 years ago today, at the age of 27, putting him in the so-called ‘27 Club’, named after the numerous well-known musicians such as Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse who died at the age of 27. www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...

rollingstone.com

The 27 Club: A Brief History

From Robert Johnson to Anton Yeltsin, 20 members of the 27 Club, stars who passed away at 27.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 22/08/2025

Ray Bradbury was born 105 years ago today. He warned in Fahrenheit 451 of a future where books are banned and burned, and shallow entertainment replaces knowledge - highlighting the dangers of censorship and the loss of critical thinking.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

114 years ago today, Italian handyman Vincenzo Peruggia stole the Mona Lisa from the Louvre, believing it belonged in Italy. Hidden for 2 years, it was recovered in 1913 in Florence, where Peruggia had attempted to sell it.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

85 years ago today, on August 20th 1940, exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky was attacked with an ice axe in Mexico City by a Soviet agent. Trotsky, a key figure in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution had lived in exile after being expelled from the USSR. He succumbed to his injuries the next day.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

85 years ago today, on August 18th 1940, 3,000 people gathered at Camp Nordland, New Jersey, for a joint KKK–nazi rally. The event, featuring a Klan wedding and cross burning, promoted both white supremacy and fascism. newspapers.ushmm.org/historical-a...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

60 years ago today the Beatles were playing in Atlanta, Georgia. www.beatlesbible.com/1965/08/18/l...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 17/08/2025

In the UK 50 years ago today, there was a broadcast of what was at that time the latest episode of Alias Smith and Jones. I’m pretty sure that I would have been watching it with my dad, as it was one of the family’s favourite cowboy series. Anyway, here’s my piano version of the theme tune.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 17/08/2025

80 years ago today, George Orwell’s Animal Farm was first published, on August 17th 1945. The novel shows how totalitarianism crushes freedom through fear, violence, and propaganda. Apathy, like Benjamin the donkey’s indifference, enables corruption. Silence can be as deadly as tyranny.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 16/08/2025

206 years today on August 16th 1819 in Manchester, cavalry attacked a crowd of 60,000 peaceful people who were seeking political reform. Eighteen were killed and hundreds injured. Though met with repression, the ‘Peterloo Massacre’ became a lasting symbol of democracy and workers’ rights in Britain.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 16/08/2025

89 years ago today on August 16th 1936 the Stars and Stripes and the Swastika flag were displayed next to eachother at the closing ceremony of Hitler’s Berlin Olympics. youtu.be/sgfVoU-CZrw?...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

Oscar Peterson was born 100 years ago today, on August 15th 1925. A legendary Canadian jazz pianist famed for his virtuosity, swing, and improvisation, he recorded 200+ albums, won 8 Grammys, played with jazz greats, and earned the title “Maharaja of the Keyboard.”

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 09/08/2025

80 years ago today, on August 9th 1945, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan, killing an estimated 70,000–80,000 people instantly. The bombing came three days after Hiroshima. www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles...

nationalww2museum.org

The Bombing of Nagasaki, August 9, 1945

The bombing of the Japanese city of Nagasaki with the Fat Man plutonium bomb device on August 9, 1945, caused terrible human devastation and helped end World War II.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

100 years ago today, on August 8th 1925, over 50,000 Ku Klux Klan members marched in full regalia in Washington, D.C., near the Capitol and White House, flaunting their power and promoting a racist, anti-immigrant, and anti-Catholic agenda.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

80 years ago today, on August 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima during WWII, killing tens of thousands instantly and devastating the city in the first use of nuclear weapons in war. www.nps.gov/articles/tru...

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

100 years ago today, on August 5th 1925, Mussolini's regime banned all opposition parties, ending political pluralism in Italy. This key move cemented his totalitarian rule and silenced dissent, paving the way for a fascist dictatorship until WWII. www.britannica.com/biography/Be...

britannica.com

Benito Mussolini | Biography, Definition, Facts, Rise, & Death | Britannica

Benito Mussolini, the controversial Italian dictator and founder of fascism, rose to power through his charismatic leadership but ultimately led Italy into disastrous alliances during World War II.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 21/07/2025

100 years ago today, on July 21st 1925, teacher John T. Scopes was found guilty in the famous "Monkey Trial" for teaching evolution, violating Tennessee's Butler Act. The case spotlighted the clash between science and religion and fueled lasting debate on education in the U.S.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 15/07/2025

Here’s the scene from Planet of the Apes in which Charlton Heston discovers the Statue of Liberty and the Epstein Files.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 12/07/2025

For the first time in 116 years, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has not invited the sitting president to its 2025 convention, citing Trump’s actions as unconstitutional, anti-democratic, and contrary to civil rights, labeling his policies as fascist and un-American.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 11/07/2025

65 years ago today, on July 11th 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird was first published. It depicts the trial of Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of rape yet convicted by an all-white jury despite clear evidence of his innocence, showing how racism distorts morality and corrupts institutions.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 10/07/2025

Lady Jane Grey,fluent in Latin, Greek, Hebrew and Italian, was declared Queen of England at the age of 15, 472 years ago today on July 10th 1553, by Protestant men who did not want the Catholic Mary Tudor to reign. Jane was Queen for 9 days. She was imprisoned and executed for treason, aged 16.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

US President Zachary Taylor died whilst in office 175 years ago today, on July 9th 1850. It is believed that he had either acute gastroenteritis or food poisoning. His body was exhumed in 1991 due to speculation that he had been poisoned, but tests ruled out the possibility of foul play.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

Jean Moulin, a key WWII French Resistance leader, died 82 years ago today on July 8th 1943. Captured by the Gestapo and tortured by ‘The Butcher of Lyon’, Klaus Barbie, he never revealed his secrets. Honoured as a national hero, his ashes were placed in the Panthéon in 1964.

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Rob Smallwood @robjsmallwood.bsky.social · 06/07/2025

The current Dalai Lama is 90 years old today. His full title is “Holiness Knowing Everything Vajradhara Dalai Lama". In a visit to Oregon in the US he once stated that “Allowing the gap between rich and poor to grow is not only morally wrong, but also practically a mistake.”

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