Monthly Archives: October 2011

Bullshit Makes for Bad Politics

Posted on October 18, 2011 by davidsberry

Given that I have spent most of the last two decades getting my feet firmly under the table in my home town of North Berwick and three of those years absorbed by running the local council as Leader, it’s gratifying—and … Continue reading →

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Why the LGC Matters to the SNP

Posted on October 17, 2011 by davidsberry

In these heady days of new frontiers for their parliamentarians, SNP activists may be forgiven for sidelining the work of volunteers elected to the SNP’s National Executive Committee. As with other political parties, the NEC is theoretically the supreme body of … Continue reading →

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Do Not Adjust Your Browsers

Posted on October 16, 2011 by davidsberry

Delighted as I am at the number of people choosing to read this blog, regular readers deserve a content warning covering the next week: this blog will turn heavily SNP-internal. Being nominated for the SNP’s Local Government Convener post on … Continue reading →

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Alexander the Greet

Posted on October 13, 2011 by davidsberry

Finally, five months after May’s drubbing and several months into a leadership contest comparable to watching paint dry, there are some signs of life in Labour. Not Scottish Labour, mind you, but someone down in Victoria Street has read dispatches … Continue reading →

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Daft Question

Posted on October 11, 2011 by davidsberry

Even the Guardian has recently highlighted the debate here in Scotland whether we should be teaching Scottish culture in schools. For me, this is the ultimate daft question. My reasons are not political, nor simply because it is hard to … Continue reading →

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Getting Above the Law

Posted on October 9, 2011 by davidsberry

Unluckily, the day scheduled by the local Friends of the Law & Glen (FLAG) for me to give an informal history walk up Berwick Law was so resolutely driech that the summit, though only at 200m, was firmly in the … Continue reading →

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That’s All, Foulkes

Posted on October 8, 2011 by davidsberry

A quirky characteristic of Labour in Scotland is that, while they field formidable and subtle politicians, such abilities traditionally, with rare exception, head South. Once there, such contributions as they do seek to make back here in Scotland are drowned … Continue reading →

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Stay Hungry; Stay Foolish

Posted on October 6, 2011 by davidsberry

The motto was one by which Steve Jobs lived all his life. He may have been fortunate to grow up in Silicon Valley but he and his buddy Steve Wozniak (‘Woz’) were not only creative enough to be part of … Continue reading →

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A Faraway Conference, of Which We Know Little

Posted on October 4, 2011 by davidsberry

Manchester or the Moon, the debate seems to be just how relevant the Tory Conference can be for Scotland. With ex-Tory Brian Monteith fulminating eloquent as ever about their lost opportunities in the Hootsmon and Iconoclast-in-Chief Murdo Fraser not showing up … Continue reading →

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Sectarianism: the Common Enemy

Posted on October 3, 2011 by davidsberry

As a long-time member of the SNP, I cheerfully confess that it’s seldom that I’m uplifted by the thoughts of any member of the Labour party. But, as regular readers of this blog will recall, Tom Harris MP, contender for … Continue reading →

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