Author Archives: davidsberry

About davidsberry

Local ex-councillor, tour guide and database designer. Keen on wildlife, history, boats and music. Retired in 2017.

Theatre of the Absurd

Posted on February 13, 2019

East  Lothian Council Annual Budget Meeting, Town House, Haddington, Tuesday February 12th, 2019 It’s a bit like a cross between an Oberammergau pageant and an accountants’ convention, but one that costs punters (in our local case) one quarter billion of … Continue reading →

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One of Ours

Posted on January 26, 2019

Across Britain these days, there is political friction on every hand. But one thing most people would agree on is a dislike of Donald J. Trump and his performance after two years as US President. People find him variously rude, … Continue reading →

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‘OMLET—A Tragedy in Three Acts

Posted on January 17, 2019

by Bard Brawl ACT I (a dark clearing, deep in the Bois de Boulogne) WAROLD HILSON (puffing on a pipe): Let oos join yer cloob and you kin forget all that daft froggie nosh and coom t’ noomber ten fer … Continue reading →

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The Great Bullshit Train Wreck

Posted on January 15, 2019

“It is impossible for someone to lie unless he thinks he knows the truth. Producing bullshit requires no such conviction.” —Harry G. Frankfurt, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Princeton University The world has always been a complicated place. But, until this … Continue reading →

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A Different Kind of Norway+

Posted on January 13, 2019

Norwegian Air Shuttle (NAS) started small. It was founded on 22 January 1993 from the bankrupt wreckage of Norwegian regional airline Busy Bee by 50 then-redundant former employees. Using three Fokker 50 aircraft, they contracted with  Braathens to link the … Continue reading →

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The Blank Coast

Posted on January 5, 2019

Retirement is great. It means you can welly off somewhere without having to explain yourself. After half a century of travel, I finally decided to try somewhere I’ve been avoiding all that time: Spain’s holiday coast. Never having been one … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment | Tagged | 1 Comment

Drought? It’s a Fecking Desert

Posted on December 11, 2018

Say what you like about America but, once Britain had wearied of empire-building, the USA pretty much invented the modern world single-handed. China is a great country now coming into its own. But, like its prosperous Asian neighbours their recent … Continue reading →

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“The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday”

Posted on December 7, 2018

For a nation at peace, the United States packs a hefty military punch.  Apart from a ten-division Army, 286-ship Navy and a 5,000-plane Air Force, they also can deploy 190,000 in the US Marine Corps—a force larger than all Britain’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged | 1 Comment

Ultimo Tango in Roma

Posted on November 29, 2018

“After a fight with cancer, film director Bernardo Bertolucci died on Monday 26th in Rome, surrounded by family.” Most famous for his Oscar-laden sweeping historic “The Last Emperor“, acclaim had come earlier in his career with the 1970 “The Conformist” … Continue reading →

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Get Yer Wellies Out

Posted on November 27, 2018

Like a spoiled kid in a toy store, President Donald Trump has played with just about every lever of American government available to him. Unlike his moderate predecessors, he has rampaged about, playing fast and loose with immigration laws, trade … Continue reading →

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