Published in Birl Media·PinnedHas Star Trek lost its Way?Star Trek has become a lot less optimistic and it was the absolutely right way to (boldly) go. Star Trek fans were thrilled when they heard the news that the first Star Trek TV series since 2005 were on the way. But while Star Trek: Discovery (2017) and Picard (2020) have become hits with most Trekkies, there’s some disquiet in Star Trek fandom. …Star Trek8 min read
Published in Birl Media·PinnedHow Close was the 2020 Presidential Election? It’s Complicated.Figures have been updated to reflect recounts and the resulting small changes to the final voting figures. All states (and DC) have now certified their presidential election results and while Biden won the popular vote by over seven million votes and handily won the Electoral College, it’s clear that the…Politics6 min read
Published in Birl Media·Feb 15English and Dutch Words that are Exactly the Same or Very SimilarThe easy way to start learning Dutch — Hallo, zal ik beginnen? (Hello, shall I begin?) For English-speakers who are tempted to learn a new language, Dutch offers a number of advantages — Dutch and English share a huge vocabulary with many words either very similar and in some cases even identical. Dutch is perhaps the most similar…Language6 min read
Jan 4, 2021Who’s the Better Manager?Starmer and Corbyn — Seeming Relevant Versus Being Relevant — Someone pointed out that the biggest lasting legacy of the Corbyn-McDonnell project, from when it ran the Labour Party, could well be its influence on Rishi Sunak and the Conservative government’s economic policy response to COVID-19. The ex-leader and ex-shadow chancellor called for massive state intervention in the economy and…Politics4 min read
Published in Birl Media·Dec 31, 2020Could Britain Rejoin the European Union?Could Britain rejoin the EU? Yes, but it will be tremendously, enormously, difficult. That’s no reason to not try but it’s important to recognise the scale of the challenge ahead. …UK Politics10 min read
Jul 28, 2020Trump 2024? If Trump Loses in 2020, He Could Run Again…If Trump loses his bid for reelection this November, which according to opinion polls is an increasingly likely outcome, what’s next for Donald Trump? Those who are hoping to see the back of Trump if Biden beats him may be disappointed. If Trump loses this November, he could run again…Politics5 min read
Jul 21, 2020I Went on a Course to Find the Meaning of LifeI was crying in the basement of a hotel in Eastbourne. Through some intense emotions, I thought; I’m overweight, I’m in my thirties, and I’m crying. I must look ridiculous. It was definitely not part of the plan for my life or this weekend. There were thirty or forty of…Faith17 min read
Published in Birl Media·Jun 15, 2020The Last Episode of Game of Thrones was Very, Very BadBeware there are spoilers here — though they won’t spoil Game of Thrones as much as the writers did with the show’s last episode. Is there a TV show that has disappeared from our collective cultural awareness as quickly as Game of Thrones did? There were so many stories in newspapers and on websites, so many conversations in the office and the pub but now… no-one talks about it. It’s like it never happened…Game Of Thrones18 min read
Published in Birl Media·May 10, 2020Has Britain Learned the Wrong Lessons from World War 2?Britain was forever changed by the Second World War, though not as much as some countries like the defeated, annihilated Germany and Japan, nor the new superpowers that emerged from World War 2; a devastated Russia with its millions upon millions of dead or the United States which became an…World War II7 min read
May 7, 2020COVID-19: Why Are We Not Talking about the Dead?Tens of thousands of Britons have died with no end in sight to this pandemic. Each day sees a new number of total deaths but that number is too often treated as a mere statistic if it’s mentioned at all — and in many newspapers, it isn’t. The media and…Coronavirus5 min read
