October 2020 Update to the About Page

I’ve updated the About page:

After a five year hiatus, I’ve decided to dust off my blog and see whether it is something worth doing still.

Over the last five years I have considered different ways to make the blog relevant, noting that the age of blogging has largely given way to social media commenting. I’m going to trial a few approaches here, however my basic idea is this:

• To be a ‘go to’ site for news about Bermuda’s municipalities and quangos.
• To be a ‘go to’ site for news about all public tenders and consultations.
• To be a site of political education for Bermudians in terms of explaining/exploring our constitution, the mysteries of our parliamentary system and Acts as tabled (and sometimes I’ll look to review existing Acts).
• To be a site looking at union issues in Bermuda and elsewhere.
• To be a site where I discuss theoretical political and economic issues.
• To be a site where I discuss issues related to cooperatives.
• Considering some economic analyses, especially around banking matters and global economics.

What I am not looking at doing is offering opinion about local politics. I know that’s a massive draw historically. And I know I could write about it. I’m just choosing not too. My discussion of local politics and Acts will be as non-opinionated as possible – I’ll consider things like election results, political appointments and seek to explain what this or that Act will do, just without really offering an opinion one way or the other. The closest I’d get to offering opinion might be my engagement with local union issues, though my focus there will be on union matters themselves.

Of course, I don’t live in a vacuum, and what catches my fancy from week to week will no doubt be influenced by local politics. What I decide to focus on as regards political theory, for example, will likely be influenced by what is happening in Bermudian politics.

For example, writing in mid-October 2020 as I am, I am interested in how a dominant political party with little to no parliamentary opposition is able to transcend electoral politics to realise transformative politics, or ward off against losing touch with the grassroots. However, I’ll be approaching that in theory only, only touching on Bermudian politics when and where I feel it will illuminate aspects of my theoretical investigation.

So, we’ll see.

Bermuda Blogging in 2020

It’s been some time since I blogged. I’m a bit rusty.

The blogging scene here is radically different from when I started in those heady days of the mid-2000s. That was I suppose the ‘golden age’ of blogs, and before Facebook, Twitter and Instagram were really mainstream.

As far as I can tell, all of my comrades (well, frenemies…) of that time are no longer active. And I myself went into quite a period of dormancy.

This doesn’t mean online discussion went away. It just means it changed in the way the discussion was held. In place of blog posts and discussions in the comments, or in the forums, the bulk of Bermudian online discussion now occurs on Facebook, and, to a degree, on Twitter.

So, is there space for blogging in Bermuda in 2020?

I’m not sure. I think there is. However, it needs to adapt and make use of social media better, as well as try new things.

Before I had to put my blog to sleep I was experimenting with creating a YouTube channel for this site, as well as a podcast version. I still have those plans and am looking at dusting them off.

I also need to change the nature of what I’m writing about, the focus of the blog.

I know that local politics is a draw. However, I’m not wanting to write about that – at least not explicitly – at the moment.

Instead, I am more interested in highlighting community issues, in particular the Town of St. George’s and the City of Hamilton, Government tenders, union issues, theoretical questions around the role of the State and issues of political parties, social movements and cooperatives, as well as doing analysis of things (like I did with the 2020 election’s voting results). If I touch on Bermudian politics directly, it will be more for the sake of history or to illuminate a theoretical point with a relatable event.

It might not work out. I don’t know. It’s a work in progress.

However, I think there is still space for blogs in Bermuda in 2020. I’m just going to focus on some niche areas and focus on quality over quantity. It won’t be a daily blog; I’m going to experiment with it being weekly (so posts around the weekend).

I’ll leave explicit local political commentary for others. And if people wish to infer insight from my theoretical articles, or articles about Caribbean or Scottish politics, well, that’s up to them.

Door closes, window opens… Welcome back 21square!

While I’ve ended commentary on local politics, I’m pleased to see that 21square has come back to life.

I always appreciated 21square’s perspective and reasoned commentary, even if we naturally had our ideological disagreements. So, I’m happy that while I may be ending local political commentary another site has come back to life right at the same time.

 

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, good night.

This site has been operating now since January 2007. Throughout this time it has changed quite a bit, both in terms of its focus and its writing style.

I’ve enjoyed writing here.

The flame’s not out. Just taking a break. 🙂

However, after almost eight years, it’s time for a change.

I’m not saying the blog is dead.

I’m not necessarily stopping the blog. However, it is going to undergo a change.

A good chunk of this blog has focused on local politics, first as an independent pro-PLP site when I was an active member of the PLP, and since then as an independent, non-aligned, political blog.

I am not able to continue that particular line of writing going forward, at least not for the forseeable future. Effective immediately I am ceasing all commentary on local politics.

What that means for the blog, I don’t really know. I’ve been experimenting over the last few months with a non-political writing style. Thoughts on books or articles I’m reading, a review of this or that legislation (in a non-political way), or a look at historical (or other) speeches/writings which I think are simply interesting.

I’d like to experiment some more with such an approach.

I realise they don’t quite have the same popular appeal as posts framed around local politics. However, I’ve enjoyed them and found them quite stimulating. Whether readers agree, I don’t know. But needs must.

So, as regards blogging about local politics, adieu, adieu to you and you and you!

And for the sake of clarity, the above also applies to Facebook and Twitter.

My Vote Starling page on Facebook has already been converted to this blogs Facebook page, and my Twitter handle has changed to a non-political one. The Vote Starling website that I set up for the election has also been retired. The ‘About’ page has also been changed already to reflect this change in direction.

Reflections

I have tried over the years to engage in reasoned discussion.

I have my positions; I’ve never hid them. I have, however, tried to listen to others and been willing to change my mind if convinced by an argument. I’ve tried to be respectful of others and their positions. To what degree I’ve succeeded in any of that is not something I can really judge however. All I can say is that I’ve tried my best.

I am hopeful that other voices will continue to grow in strength and number to continue these political discussions going forward, even if I am not able to participate actively along with them.

While much of these conversations are quick to descend into partisan shouting matches and personal attacks, there are also good conversations where individuals come away from them with healthy respect for the other, positions have been clarified and perhaps even one or two minds changed.

Perhaps it’s wishful thinking on my part, however, I’d like to think that – in time – we’ll have more of the latter and less of the former.

On a related note, I realise that my ending local political commenting further reduces the number of local blogs providing local political commentary. Blogs provide a much different contribution in terms of such commentary, very much different from the more rapid-fire conversations that social media like Facebook and Twitter offer. They provide a greater in-depth more constructed argument in my opinion.

If we are to achieve a sustainable Bermuda then one thing we also need to achieve is sustainable and respectful conversations that are based on constructive dialogue, mutual respect and and reasoned debate which together contribute to positive change for our island. Central to this is the ability to listen to the other and reflect on what is being said rather than reacting. We must learn to listen to each other with enough care to learn from each other if we are to work together for our common interests.

I remain hopeful that such is achievable, and I wish you well.

Continuity?

One last note. I hope that someone else will pick up the baton of local political commentary. There is a space there for a critical progressive voice out there, and that’s what this site tried to do.

While I’m no longer able to continue that, I am happy to help facilitate anyone that wishes to do so. Just drop me a line.

There are already a number of other voices out there, writing on their own sites, on Facebook or in the media. I’ve enjoyed sharing the platform with them and learning from them.

Here’s Johnny!

As luck would have it, only a month after officially winning the 2015 Best of Bermuda Award for blogging, I lost my home internet access. I was expecting to only be offline for a week or two, however that turned out to be wildly optimistic.

Two months later, I’ve finally got internet back!

Being more or less offline for the last two months has been interesting. It certainly has its pros and cons – however, with our increasingly technologically dependent society, I feel the lack of email access was certainly a major con.

The time has allowed me to focus on some other matters, and I am continuing to consider a different approach for this site. I haven’t made a decision yet, but I hope to trial a few things shortly.

Limited internet access…

Apologies to readers, however I have had limited internet access for the last two weeks, and likely for the next two weeks also.

So posting is kind of on hiatus at the moment – think of it as an extended CupMatch blogging holiday….

As soon as I’m able to get a regular and secure connection, I’ll be back to posting properly.

Welcome ‘bermudavoices’!

Observations

Things have been somewhat dismal as regards the Bermudian blog environment of late.

My own site has taken a bit of a back-seat to my studies, with the number, quality and frequency of posts being greatly reduced.  While Bermuda Blue and Beachlime continue to post, like me their postings haven’t really been as regular as in the past.  And while a number of new blogs emerged last year, I fear many underestimated the time and energy required to sustain blogs – Bermuda Independent hasn’t posted since the beginning of January, and The Soap Box has been dormant since last September.  21 Square and Politcs.bm remain inactive also. 

Despite this, online discourse continues strongly primarily on Face Book, the various traditional media sites and, to a degree, Twitter.  And in many ways I think these alternative commenting sites continue to suck the energy away from ‘blogs proper’.  I still think the two can complement each other, and I’ve tried to do so with this site, as has Bermuda Blue.

New blog!

Having said all that, I’m happy to announced the emergence of a new Bermudian blog – bermudavoices.

It’s run by Thomas Christopher Famous, who’s emerged as a key personality in online discourse, especially on Facebook, but also through his numerous opinion pieces in various traditional media.  As a pro-PLP voice, his presence goes someway to address what has historically been a political imbalance online, at least prior to the emergence of Facebook as a site for political discourse.

So far his blog seems to be more of a repository of his various opinion pieces rather than unique blog posts.  And that’s okay and welcome in its own right.  Whether it will also feature unique blog posts going forward is up to him, but as it is it is still a welcome addition to the Bermudian blogs, and an additional site for political and cultural conversations.  I also have a feeling that this blog will have a greater staying power than many of the other blogs that have come and gone to date.

I encourage readers to add his blog to their regular online visits – and hopefully it might inspire additional voices to also set up blogs and further diversify our online discourse.  So, yeah, go check it out!

Best of Bermuda Award!

Yay! I won!

I am proud to announce that I’ve won the 2015 Best of Bermuda award for the category ‘columnist/blogger’!

I would like to thank The Bermudian magazine for the award – I’ve been running this blog since 2007ish, and it’s nice to get some recognition! 🙂  Hopefully I’ll be able to keep posting to justify the award going forward!

The award blurb itself goes:

Columnist Jonathan Starling has been sharing his educated opinion on all matters of local issues—including everything from breed-specific legislation to same-sex marriage, cabinet shuffles, the casino gaming act and more—since 2007 when he first set up his blog “Catch a Fire” as an alternative political voice. The social research and policy analyst who ran as an independent candidate in the 2012 general election currently shares his discourses regularly on Bernews. Catch his latest insight at jonnystar.wordpress.com.

Thank You!

I’d like to thank my folks and my partner for their support and encouragement; ‘Limey in Bermuda’ of course deserves a shout-out for helping me set-up the site in the first place, and I think it’s important to give a particular thank you to the media proper, Bernews, the (unfortunately now defunct) Bermuda Sun and the Royal Gazetter.  All of these have, at times, given me a platform for opinion columns, as well as feedback and the opportunity to learn from their readers.

Over the years my writing skills have improved (I hope) and they’ll continue to improve with any luck.

Similarly, my understanding of certain technologies/software has improved over time – and this experience has proven to be a constructive and challenging experience so far.  Additionally, it’s forced me to learn and research topics that I doubt I’d ever have considered in the past.

To be honest, I don’t think I’d be exaggerating to say that this blog/column-writing experience has profoundly affected my world-view and the certain decisions I’ve made in my life since 2007.

I know a lot of political and social discourse has largely moved away from the blogs and forums and onto Facebook and Twitter.  And there’s only a handful of blogs and forums (with various degrees of activity) still clinging on compared to the ‘golden age’ of Bermuda blogging.

Nonetheless, I think blogs still retain certain qualities that the Facebook and Twitter threads miss out on, particularly the ease of finding articles and those conversations.  Facebook/Twitter are more like a flowing river, a stream of consciousness – an active ongoing conversation – while the blogs serve more as more detailed and solid writings.  Fleeting conversation versus the solidity of writing I suppose.

The two, of course, can be used to complement each other.  I do hope we’ll see a few more – and more ideologically diverse – blogs in time.  Perhaps we’ll even see a backlash against Facebook/Twitter and a return to more full-on blogging?  Who knows?

Criticism

I’d be remiss to not recognise that there’s been some criticism – on Facebook and Twitter – to this particular category of ‘blogger/columnist’.

I don’t think the criticism is personal against me, against me winning this years award.  Rather, the criticism seems to be that there should be two separate categories.  Some seem to interpret the combined category as meaning one has to be both a blogger and a columnist in order to win it.

Myself, I took the category as meaning ‘and/or’ and that it was created to expand the pool of possible winners away from just traditional columnists in the media proper, recognising that bloggers also contributed to opinion-forming in the Bermuda context.  Not that one had to be a blogger and a columnist to win it, but that one could be a blogger and/or a columnist.  I happen to be both, but that doesn’t mean that someone who just blogs or just writes columns couldn’t win it.

Anyway, as the saying goes, one can’t please everyone all the time.  There’s always going to be some criticism when it comes to handing out awards, and I’m not taking it personally.  Just thought it important to recognise that there is such criticism.

Hog Money on Channel 82 (Bermuda)

I hope everyone’s enjoyed a good National Heroes weekend – I’m still in Scotland working on my PhD research, hence the general lack of regular posting at the moment.

Despite this, I was invited to take part in a panel-like discussion on a relatively new show (I believe this was the second one ever) called ‘Hog Money’ on Bermuda’s Channel 82.  The show is co-hosted by Lamone Woods and Robert Stewart, and touches on various political and economic issues, with a particular theme for each episode.

The particular episode in question was focused on welfare/financial assistance and the various pros and cons of it.  Mr Stewart is rather well-known for his rather neo-liberal and, arguably, conservative, positions, and I think myself and the other guest, Cordell Riley – a social scientist/statistician and former president of the anti-racism group CURB, were invited in order to provide a counter-narrative to his.

I enjoyed the show and the clashing of strongly different perspectives.  It is supposed to be broadcast in about three weeks, so early July, and I’ll write a post about it closer to the time.

As part of my preparation for the debate I did some minimal research and wrote up a few notes.  These notes are such that I think they could serve as a series of posts on different aspects of the issue, and they also expand and could provide links to the various statistics, etc, that I brought up during the debate.  Which I think will help augment the show itself – and I of course welcome Mr Stewart and Mr Riley to comment here or elsewhere in like manner.

I don’t want to steal the proverbial thunder from the show itself however, so I won’t say much more until it is due for broadcast.  I’m thinking I’ll release a series of posts based on my notes around that time too.

Closing the Recycling Centre a Backwards Step

This is just a short post alerting leaders that I’ve got a new piece on Bernews right now concerning the news the announcement yesterday that Government is to ‘suspend’ operations at the recycling centre based at Government quarry.

In this piece I mostly highlight how this announcement raises more questions than it answers and warn that this decision may prove to be a false economy – providing some short-term savings but risking greater long-term costs.

I am also concerned that this is a move towards privatisation, although I don’t discuss that issue in the piece itself – which was an immediate ‘reaction’ piece.

I hope to release a follow-up piece which highlights alternative policies towards recycling, building on what I’ve already stated publicly in the past, be it in my 2012 platform [pdf] or subsequent statements.