Reading Time: 3 minutes On the edge of Western India, a lunar landscape glistens under the midday sun. There are no signs of life, only the muffled sound of crushed salt crystals under the feet of gobsmacked tourists. The Rann of Kutch is a seasonal salt marsh, and is the land of the Agariya people, who have lived here for […]
Economics
The Morality Of Western Arms Sales – From Argentinian Tango’s To Arabian Nights
Reading Time: 6 minutes The morality of Europe’s foreign policy is not as one might hope. The UK was making profits from selling arms to Israel, whilst Tony Blair was being paid by Arabs to ensure that there is peace in the region. It doesn’t sound quite right, does it. In 2017, former UK prime minister Tony […]
Brexit Musings (35) – British Ferry Firm Seaborne Confuses “Brexit Deal” With “Happy Meal”
Reading Time: 3 minutes What’s the difference between a cargo full of cheap imitations labelled “Made in Taiwan” and the same cargo full of Happy Meals – from “you know who” – comprising quarter pounders and French fries? Well, if you don’t know the answer, don’t worry because you’re not the only one. The British novices in cross-Channel disasters, […]
FRANCE: Gilets Jaunes: Bombe A Retardement Pour Emmanuel Macron?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Emmanuel Macron nous démontre qu’entre les excès d’un populisme dangereux et d’un socialisme décadent, il n’y a plus rien. La France risque de sombrer dans son propre désarroi. Les Français adorent le chaos, se plaindre de tout et de rien, et ont une passion pour descendre dans la rue. Les manifestations de Gilets […]
French “Gilets Jaunes” Movement Is Emmanuel Macron’s Time Bomb
Reading Time: 4 minutes The French just love chaos, adore complaining about everything and have a passion for taking to the streets. The latest movement of discontent targetted at Emmanuel Macron, the “gilets jaunes,” (yellow vests) is no exception to this French pastime. During my 15 years in France, I fell victim to this undisciplined, vociferous, and disrespectful mentality all […]
Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte – A Martyr To Multinationals?
Reading Time: 4 minutes Dutch politics is currently preparing itself for a war of words concerning the ruling coalition’s proposals to scrap Dutch dividend tax. Under present rules, companies have to pay 15% tax over profits that are distributed to shareholders. This sum is withheld on the amount that a shareholder receives. However, shareholders who live in the Netherlands […]
Russia’s Fake World Cup
Reading Time: 5 minutes In the Russian town of Ekaterinburg, 14 households are currently cut off from the gas supplies for a month during the FIFA 2018 World Cup. The official reason, given by the authorities, is that the high-pressure gas supply is considered to be too dangerous during the period when the town hosts four group matches. This […]
Avanti La Musica – The Italian Flop
Reading Time: 2 minutes There’s good news, and bad news, coming from Rome. The good news is that Italian coalition governments don’t last that long. Since WWII, there have been 19 general elections, but more than 60 different governments. The chances are, then, that the latest coalition will not last very long. Now for the bad news. The latest […]
Emmanuel Macron Cannot Change French “Strike Culture”
Reading Time: 6 minutes There is another culture that the French are proud of, besides the “cultural exception” represented by their language, in the face of Anglo-Saxon dominance. It is the right for you to strike, regardless of whether your actions will close schools, disrupt the business commuter, or leave the unsuspecting tourist stranded at Charles de Gaulle airport. […]
Dikes, Bikes, And Perks – Holland’s Underwater Haven
Reading Time: 7 minutes photograph © Raimond Spekking / CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons) The latest OECD report, focussing on the work-leisure balance – so important in stopping each one of us from giving up on life – puts the Dutch at the top of the class. This does compensate the dire results of the Dutch national football team, which […]