Authoritarianism
Politics
20th Century
The Tectonic Plates Shift
As we make our way back from an enjoyable day trip by train to Edinburgh, Mrs AWS and I have pause for thought as we pass through Lockerbie, scene of the 1988 bombing which claimed [more…]
America
Outwith The Expected Path
American presidencies have typically followed the expected path of an election cycle, with presidents either completing their terms or being voted out of office. However, the history of the United States includes several presidencies that [more…]
21st Century
Kenya Is Not Asleep Anymore
Weeks of anti-government demonstrations demand an end to bad governance, corruption and for President Ruto to step down. 24 July 2024 Nairobi, Kenya – Daniel Wambua did not flinch, even as police fired tear gas [more…]
20th Century
Report From Kenya, 1955 – Part Six
In 1955, at the height of the Mau Mau Rebellion, my uncle John Alldridge produced a series of reports from Kenya for the Birmingham Mail and the Manchester Evening News – Jerry F Nairobi With [more…]
Elections
Leaving on a jet plane
So many broken promises, so many empty seats and we are deprived of watching the door hit their backside as they exit stage left. In a fit of chutzpah rarely equalled in modern times Charlie [more…]
20th Century
Disaster Over The Strait of Hormuz
As Mrs AWS and I flash through the Scottish Lowlands after our day trip to Edinburgh, passing through Lockerbie station reminds us of events decades ago and thousands of miles away. Nowadays the term ‘Gulf [more…]
America
An Honest Biography of Kamala Harris
The 20th of October 1964 saw the birth of Kamala Iyer Harris at Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Oakland, California, a daughter to accomplished academics Shyamala and Donald Harris. Shyamala was already a PhD in nutrition [more…]
America
Here be Dragons – Beware Quicksand
“Treason doth never prosper, what’s the reason? For if it prosper, none dare call it Treason.” – John Harington Shortly after 12:30 pm local time on November 22, 1963, the medical staff at Parkland Memorial [more…]