Author Archives: davidsberry

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About davidsberry

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

Some Candle!—Still Burning

Posted on August 5, 2012 by davidsberry

“She only acted according to the script we gave her
” —Ernesto Cardenal Exactly fifty years ago, when Marilyn Monroe died aged 36 of a sleeping pill overdose in 1962, I was—like Elton John at the time—just a kid. From age seven, I would … Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Education | Tagged | Leave a comment

What Next for (Scottish) Labour?

Posted on August 2, 2012 by davidsberry

A book is published this year, entitled What Next for Labour. The blurb for it states “Now is the time for a real debate about the future of the Labour party and its decisive role in British politics. Labour needs to … Continue reading →

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Why SNP Will Not Say ‘No’ to NATO

Posted on August 1, 2012 by davidsberry

The Scottish press are rather relishing the rammy that they expect to break out within the ranks of the SNP in the run-up to their main annual conference in Perth in October. On some levels, they are right to do … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 4 Comments

Made Fae Gurdurs? Shairly No’!

Posted on July 31, 2012 by davidsberry

…or, for outraged feminist readers who believe men really ought to have evolved beyond this sort of thing by now: …and for those really hard-core feminist readers who didn’t get a giggle out of that either, the truth is out … Continue reading →

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Labour for Independence

Posted on July 30, 2012 by davidsberry

The title of this blog is not nearly as bizarre as the present leadership of Scotland would have you (and many of its membership) believe. But while official party policy appears stuck in a miasma of denial that anything beyond … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 4 Comments

Out of Our Shell

Posted on July 28, 2012 by davidsberry

This week has seen a resolution to the ‘prawn wars’ brewing off the West Coast as larger boats from the East Coast, having meagre pickings in home waters, muscled in on their brethren. Another example of the idiocies perpetrated by … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce | Tagged | 1 Comment

More Important Than Knowledge

Posted on July 27, 2012 by davidsberry

Albert Einstein was no dummy. He believed imagination to be more important than knowledge. And that mantra that would serve Scots well as they gather information to help them decide their future in about two years. None of us should … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged | 2 Comments

Eff Ofgem

Posted on July 26, 2012 by davidsberry

The legacy of Thatcher is a long one. Despite folk tradition (especially in Scotland), all that she did was not evil. But her successors’ efforts to create a real market in industries like railways and energy have proved illusiory.  See … Continue reading →

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Buildin’ a Brig Tae the Bass

Posted on July 22, 2012 by davidsberry

It’s a truism that natives of any given place seldom appreciate what they have all about them: sunshine in LA is a given, as is the waterborne romance of Venice or the cultural kaleidoscope of London. As a kid growing … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment | Leave a comment

North of East Coast Eden

Posted on July 21, 2012 by davidsberry

On June 26th, the UK Department for Transport published its Consultation on the East Coast Rail Franchise, to which all assiduous anoraks will have replied by the closing date of September 18th. The summary of results are to be published, … Continue reading →

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