Hats off to the good guys
We’re big fans of Kevin Bridges. Not only is he one of the finest comedians Scotland has produced in many years, it turns out the Glasgow comic is also a top fella. On seeing a tweet last month from the Maryhill food bank showing some perilously empty shelves, Kevin got straight in touch, asked how much money it would need to fill them and turned up with Tesco vouchers for the whole £1000.
We salute him wholeheartedly, and it was right and proper that the story was widely covered in the press, with the Scottish Sun (pictured above), Daily Record and STV News all reporting the generous gesture, and all of them also mentioning that Celtic star Kris Commons’ wife Lisa Hague had made much-needed contributions too.
There was something missing, though.
Because just last week, the very same foodbank received a donation five times the size of Bridges’ one, yet which didn’t get reported anywhere in the media (other than this site, of course). Cyclist Mark Coburn had pedalled 500 miles around Scotland in five days, raising money for various Yes groups but also for Maryhill, and he doubled his initial target to produce a £5000 cheque for the foodbank.
The important thing in both cases, of course, is that the foodbank got the money. But it seems that in the Scottish media, you can only draw attention to foodbanks if you do so without mentioning the political system that brought them into being.
If celebrities are what it takes to raise awareness of this shameful blight on the face of one of the richest countries in the world, more power to them. But when the entire press so blatantly censors the news to suit one side of a political agenda, it’s perhaps worth pondering the state of our democracy.
Well done Kevin Bridges, Lisa Hague and Mark and anyone else who helps the Food Banks, thank you.
Touche Monsieur !
Hats off indeed, wonderful effort by Mark, Indycyclist extraordinaire, very well done. 🙂
tick tock msm tick tock
I think your last paragraph says it all……we don’t have a democracy.
I would expect nothing less from our, so non-biased, media.
Still good the money was raised/given.
Still sh*te the money had to be raised/given.
You have to wonder what goes through Gordon Brown’s mind over foodbanks, soup kitchens basically. 70+ years reign of power over Scotland, Labour’s either failed or they’re merely a Tory rebrand with spectacular hypocrisy.
Democracy, what, where?
Good guy. I was chuffed when he made it clear he was a Yes voter.
Same goes for Kevin Bridges.
(See what I did there?)
Those of us on Twitter will have seen a fundraising appeal for a non-political cause being made by a member of the Better Together staff, and having it tweeted and retweeted by people on both sides, including people in the media. It would have been interesting to see if Mark’s fundraising campaign got given similar across-the-board publicity if it hadn’t also been fundraising for Yes groups.
Still, the important thing is to make sure we eliminate the cause of this problem (Westminster) as well as treating the symptoms. Let’s hope the next time those shelves are bare, it’s because Julie’s no longer having to feed people hit by austerity.
We should not need foodbanks. That is not to say the efforts of all who contribute according to their means is not morally sound (and in some ways one could say the richer contributing are merely compensating for tax breaks). But the bottom line is we should not need foodbanks.
First class effort by all. Bunnet duly doffed for the good guys. 🙂
Don’t forget Wings donated over £400 raised at the bbc bias demo to Maryhill foodbank last week and that will definitely never be in any newspaper.
going o/t:
The organisers of the last BBC bias demo have opened an indiegogo site to finance the next event to be held at Glasgow Green on 16th August, they want to demo against all MSM bias this time:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/bbc-bias-peaceful-protest-iv/x/8319572
Well done the good guys!
“perhaps worth pondering the state of our democracy”
On the 18th Sept we will find out if we actually have a democracy! If NO win they the forces of hate, venom, fear, xenophobia and elitism will have prevailed. If YES, then democracy and justice are alive and well in Scotland.
What a nice way to start the morning.
Everyone who helps food banks is awright in my eyes. never mind the politics feed the bairns.
But it is sad Mark received no publicity other than Wings. ( mind you what else is needed ?)
Well done to Kevin B. He gives us laughs a plenty but still has time to look around and see folk are in trouble and is willing to do something about it. Respect.
Lets get shot of Westminster and get this country back on it’s feet.
O/T Sorry
But speaking of the good guys – sad to see the Margo Mobile fund has stalled.
Pity thought it would have attracted much more funding in Margo’s memory ?
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/margo-mobile
Foodbanks should not exist in the 21st century in any modern, developed country.
When you see the banquets thrown in London from taxpayers money, it makes it doubly sickening.
Great that there is some publicity for this donation in any MSM.
It will be great when the broken system that cause these lifelines to exist has been consigned to the dark pages of history.
O/T
As I was sitting in the Stornoway Yes rooms yesterday afternoon, resting up from a morning of leafleting, my eye was distracted by a massive red blot on the horizon. The Slab battle bus had arrived in Lewis and Anas Sarwar MP (hereditary) was walking round the town looking for islanders to scare.
So I decided to see what he was up to and walked round the corner to find Anas and a brave band of Slab faithful worrying the shoppers. I walked up to the bedroom-tax-dodging MP and he asked me how I was intending to vote. I had my ‘Bu Choir‘ badge on so I said, “No need to ask, my badge says ‘No Thanks’ in Gaelic.”
“Brilliant”, says he, “Where do you get those?”
“They’re made locally”, I replied, “but here, you can gave mine if you like.”
“Thanks very much”, he said as he prepared to pin it to his chest. At which point his minder, ex MSP Alistair Morrison, approached him, shaking his head and being careful (as always) not to make any eye contact with the Devil – yours truly.
Damn! I had him for a minute. Felt good.
ps. For those who don’t know, ‘Bu Choir’ is ‘We Should’ in Gaelic – the closest you can get to Yes.
And from the islands to the borders.
http://www.in-cumbria.com/home/debate-to-discuss-how-scottish-independence-may-impact-cumbria-1.1152169
Please can anyone help me? I live in this really weird reality bubble where me may friends, colleagues, neighbours and Facebook friends all seem to be saying they are voting Yes, but all these pollsters and their media pals keep telling me it’s the opposite! I live in the east end of Glasgow and people are champing at the bit for a new start but when do we ever hear the voice of the poor? I’ve decided to just trust my own common sense which tells me that most of us know that Britain is broken (sadly) and only fools or knaves believe otherwise and lastly that wee Scots are not that daft, no one is.
independiente – unfortunately there are a LOT of Yes-related fundraisers at the moment, and only so much money to go round them all. I think the success of earlier fundraisers (particularly Stu’s ones) has perhaps lead people to be a little unrealistic about how much can be raised, especially when there are so many others to contribute to.
I for one started getting “fundraiser fatigue” quite a while ago, especially as it’s sometimes hard to picture what the money is going to be spent on, and in other cases it simply feels like someone has had a half-baked idea and decided to start a fundraiser, without actually stopping to consider how exactly their plan is going to change anyone from a No to a Yes, and whether there might be more cost-effective ways of doing it.
(And some of them simply feel like stunts to make the person doing the fundraising feel like they are contributing to the campaign so they can pat themselves on the back, while the rest of us do the actual hard graft of speaking to people, in some cases at significant personal cost…)
Well done big kev a true gent
O/T
Scotland and NI are not part of the British isles anymore
http://www.express.co.uk/news/nature/493781/SHOCK-WEATHER-FORECAST-Hottest-August-in-300-YEARS-on-way-as-jet-stream-BOILS-Britain
Independiente,
Done.
Saw Jim Sillars on a program here in Australia during the week.What a passionate speaker he is…..He could convince almost anyone.
shall we let them have a drink?
Bob Duncan, love the anas story, he’s my local mp here in the calton, not seem him in the barras since i arsed and necked him from my door, better not ever again either. Bu choir, saor Alba a’nis.
Everyone who donates to foodbanks should be recognised but of course none do it for recognition. Not even Kev, nor Mark Coburn.
Their contributions, particularly Kevin’s because the MSM decided that was worth publicising (not that they’re major hypocrites or anything…) are valuable, but should not be required. I look forward to building a Scotland which doesn’t have foodbanks.
Bob Duncan; brilliant work. Shame it didn’t run on for a wee while longer but I suppose there’s a good number of folk around Stornoway who have the Gaelic and sadly aren’t all on our side. Ironic, given the British state’s opinion of Gaelic over the centuries, that anyone who speaks the language would support the Union.
Mark should be getting top billing but of course that wouldn’t work with the narrative now would it. Hats of to everyone but let us give credit where it is due, Mark has worked his legs off for the cause. Let us hope we can get shot of this very quickly in an Independent Scotland.
@ Peter Sneddon… this time, we all get a voice. Everyone from the poorest to the richest, and you know what’s great about the poorest in all this?
There are more of us than anyone else. The UK Government has seen to that.
In a democratic vote they’re very efficient at creating their enemies.
Doubt if Ian Smart cares. He won’t be crying into his bowl of Baxter’s cockaleekie soup.
Bob Duncan, you naughty naughty man but I love you. Fantastic. Now I do hope he doesn’t look at Wings and continues to wear it everywhere Gaelic is spoken.
“But when the entire press so blatantly censors the news to suit one side of a political agenda, it’s perhaps worth pondering the state of our democracy.”
Why is BetterTogetherBBC Project Fear reduced to a perpetual state of lies, fear, lies and deception on Scotland anyway?
Not voting Labour in Scotland is treated as blasphemy by BBC shills, online and by all UKOK press. I used to buy into the progressive liberal Guardian.com ghastly fraud but that lot are the biggest creepiest bullshit artists of the lot.
eg. Stick yer independence up yer arse, with ribbons and girly giggle, from Libby Carrell and their CIF swamped with laughable frauds like my Slovene girlfriend and another buffoon that comments exactly like Jim Murphy MP, if you’ve actually seen the Jim Murphy MP Vote no or else Scotland tour. Talk about rule Britannia, Britannia rules you, you silly little Scots, Have you caught Ebola yet, no well BBC says there’s an even hotter war coming, with Russia this time, so vote no.
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/scottish-independence-blog/2014/aug/01/scottish-independence-referendum-weekly-review-trains-teacakes-and-telly#start-of-comments
So over the years we’ve produced more oil than tha Abu Dhabi and Dubai combined. They’ve got a sovereign wealth fund of £770 billion. We’ve got food banks.
Hats off to the likes of Mark and Kevin for supporting them but jeez, I hope the people who are actually using food banks are voting Yes.
“But when the entire press so blatantly censors the news to suit one side of a political agenda, it’s perhaps worth pondering the state of our democracy.”
Or the democracy of our state!
@Bob Duncan
So close. 😀
Front page vote NO desperation, BetterTogetherBBC style. Anything to save their union and their jobs, although presumably they’ve all got slots back in England waiting.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28598715
Bob Duncan – ha ha, brilliant.
Scots cause further food anguish in UK
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-28582365
@Doug Daniel
@liheartScotland – cheers
Point taken Doug; just thought Margo was such a big hitter for us on YES it deserved a special mention for anyone with a couple of quid to spare. I beleive it is going to the right areas and mixing with the right sort of possible undecides.
Just thinking of the profile & suspect the mileage the ‘No’ side will make of this if Margo’s funding falls so short. (Well Smart for one will jump on anything)
Well done to all fund raisers, raspberries for the press for their blinkered coverage.
Having met Kevin several times, he is naturally funny and an absolute Gentleman on stage and off. He makes time to meet his fans and have a laugh, he should talk to a few more at his Management Agency and get serious fund raising gigs underway across the Country!
“But speaking of the good guys – sad to see the Margo Mobile fund has stalled.
Pity thought it would have attracted much more funding in Margo’s memory?”
I’m not a world expert just because Wings has run four successful ones, but there are some pretty obvious fundamentals about fundraisers, and the biggest one is TELL PEOPLE WHY YOU NEED THE MONEY AND WHAT YOU’RE GOING TO SPEND IT ON.
Everybody loved Margo but £50,000 is a hell of a lot of money to take a bus around the country for a couple of months, and the fundraiser does absolutely nothing to explain where the money’s going.
Are they going to BUY the bus? Unless they want one brand new out of a showroom they can get a whopper for a fraction of that cost:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/Cars-Motorcycles-Vehicles-/9800/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=bus
Renting one, you’d have to assume, would come in even cheaper still. You’ll need fuel too, of course, but Scotland isn’t that big a country. How many days are you going to be covering more than a hundred miles on?
I’m absolutely certain there was no scam going on, but you have to EXPLAIN where that much cash is going if you want people to fund it, and you also have to explain why it’s the best use of £50K.
Who’s it going to reach that leaflets and meetings don’t? And with the best will in the world, Jim’s getting on a bit and he’s just suffered an awful trauma – is he up to the schedule? Come to that, what IS the schedule?
Etc etc. I don’t doubt the Margo Mobile is a great cause, but it’s a terribly-conducted fundraiser. It’s done well to get £15K.
I really needed this after that last post. It’s good remembering there are good people in the world.
Spoke to a woman I’ve known for a few years yesterday. She saw my Yes t.shirt and asked if I was supporting “that lot?” I said “100%” then asked what her fears were. Canny afford it, Alex Salmond, canny afford it, Alex Salmond…. I told a huge white lie by saying I never liked him either but it wasn’t about one man. I went on for 10 minutes solid on BBC, peados, Westminster, Labour, Crossrail, Trident…..
She asked what had changed from the (funny as funk) joke telling windee cleenir she had known for years to the man standing in front of her with all this anger, passion and hate. “Food banks”. Simple as that. A 30 second rant on why the funk we even have them and she said I’d made her think and she’s now gona reconsider.
Well done Kevin & Mark also well dome Mrs Commons who does a lot for charity, but biggest well done goes to Julie for being there for people in need of food, she also did well last Sunday speaking at the BBC protest, God Bless you all.
Wee Jonny, well done mate
Rev,
I agree with you that Jim Sillars fundraiser does not explain in detail (in detail) what the funding is needed for, but he is an asset to the cause of independence and a very good speaker. I think that it’s well worth a punt by your readers – he has proved before that he can win over hard to reach areas.
Respect to all those supporting Maryhill.
I do worry, however, that there are hundreds of other struggling foodbanks who could also do with help.
Maybe we need some country-wide co-ordination between these groups to spread the love around.
I’ll be glad when all the indy fundraisers are over and we can get back to providing more support for foodbanks, Syria and Palestine et al.
Hopefully in our independent Scotland our government will work to raise the profile of these causes.
independiente – most of that rant wasn’t directed at you as such, you just reminded me of something that’s been itching to get out for a while!
Stu makes some good points though. It’s worth noting that Jim himself has already said (either on Scotland Tonight or Twitter, I forget which) that enough money has been raised to get the project off the ground. So at least it’s going to happen even if the target hasn’t been met (and out of all the tour-the-country-in-a-bus campaigns that have sprung up, it’s difficult not to have a soft spot for one that’s done in Margo’s name).
But then that begs the question even more: why set such a big target and make it look like the campaign has “failed” when it hasn’t? A bit of an explanatory blurb saying “£X,000 is the minimum we need to get the campaign off the ground, and then we would like another £Y,000 in order to do this and this and this” would help matters.
The signs were there at the end of last year when three big fundraisers happened at the same time and only the smallest one met its target. I’d hoped folk had maybe learnt the lesson…
OT Very powerful article in Bella from Alan Smart.
Kudos to Mark, and to Kevin and all others who are helping at all of our foodbanks, the fact they have to do it at all of course,is shameful.
A Union dividend indeed, and do not start me about Slab’s compliance with them, perhaps the most shameful part of all of it, as far as Scotland is concerned.
Ponder the state of our democracy? Easy, there ain’t any, full stop.
I post on another forum on the net weather channel under November 13. This is a weather forum with a Scottish Politics thread. I have been posting for years. We have had to put up with Southern attacks on the forum over the years. It came to a head last night when the Forum moderator deleted post about the BBC bias at the games and said it wasn’t relevent to the debate. Despite that they went ahead and left comments from South of the border sticking up for the BBC. It’s a smaller scale but represents the way we are treated by those souht of the border.I posted my last one last night. Can I urge anyone interested in fairness to sign up to the forum and bombard them with posts in order to even up the balance and make a point to them. I wasn’t banned just wasn’t prepared to put up with being censored. Link – http://forum.netweather.tv/topic/69584-scottish-politics-2011-2016/page-407
I might have posted on the DR a well done for Kevin but they have stopped putting my posts up. Not banned of course just censored it would appear. The DR don’t like the truth I suspect.
In ref to Margo’s bus I agree with Stu’s comments, but there is another issue which has bearing on it. Very many of us have put money out constantly across very many crowd funding issues. Myriads of good funding issues have arisen over the last couple of years, people have well funded most of them.
Perhaps people are now at the point though, when funding ever more is becoming a financial problem for them. Most who do this do not have bottomless pockets and funding fatigue may be setting in. I do think it is an issue which is not considered but should be.
We are on the home straight, but if you do not have any more to spare money you cannot continue, and general funding of even the best of causes will start proving more difficult. Ever more feet on the ground becomes the way to keep momentum going.
But they own the Ballot Boxes that are probably already stuffed with “No Votes” long before Sept.
Glenrothes – 4 x Ballot Boxes Vanished.
4x ballot boxes that can be Rigged
4 x genuine counts replaced by the 4 x stolen boxes.
Leaving 4 x new boxes for rigging a later election.
Zero GPS or any tracking devices to ensure that the boxes that leave the Polling Station actually arrive at the Central Count.
Glenrothes was won by SLAB – nuff said.
At least two of the people handing out ballot slips at my local station are SLAB Party members and we will be paying them to screw us in Sept.??
Well! Did anyone ever think it would be otherwise?
Now I’m not really a cynic – so is it just me?
@independiente
This could work!
http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/live-experience/cps/512/media/images/76680000/jpg/_76680447_glasgow.jpg
We expect nothing less from the media – of course they ignore the great Mark Coburn’s efforts, and those of us who gave money at Pacific Quay.
Kevin is box office despite being pro Yes. I think he is a great guy and our best comedian and canny wait for his Live at the Referendum Kings Theatre gig in September – BBC covering it so anticipating some shenanigans.
The unfortunate reality is that Mark could have raised £50000 for Maryhill food bank and the media would block coverage.
We’re getting to the end game though – the forces of No keep attacking Scotland’s democratic cause but it will be over soon. I keep thinking of the Terminator movies – September 18th and the Westminster machine goes into the hydraulic press. And the MSM? Down she goes, into the foundry.
I more or less agree with Doug and Stu about the Margo Mobile. The appeal hasn’t been well handled.
When Stu raised his eye-popping sum, he did it all right. First, he had his product all there for us to see. In fact he’d done the base work with the previous year’s fundraiser. So we knew we were paying for quality. He also trailed it in advance so that by the time he finally put it up he’d got half of us already reaching for our PayPal passwords. And he had some rather covetable collectible perks – something that could only have worked in the situation where he’d grown a community which made these items desirable. Finally, he itemised the bill so that we could see he’d put thought into what he was going to do with the money.
He also knows there are two points where people dig deep. One is to get the appeal off the ground, and the other is to get it to its target. For either of these to work, the target has to be achievable and realistic. The Margo Mobile isn’t going to get much of a last-minute boost because nobody now thinks £50,000 is achievable.
I did cough up a respectable sum towards it, but even as I did so I thought, why do they need so much? Hire a coach, wrap it with some fancy livery, maybe a salaried driver for a few weeks, and some money for publicity materials and literature. Maybe they need to hire the odd hall?
No way does that come to £50,000. One starts wondering if hotel accommodation for the participants is also being funded, and at that point I start to think, nice work if you can get it. Maybe it’s not that. Stu’s right, they need to explain and itemise.
An achievable target, even £20,000, would have attracted more support and probably made it, reducing the Indiegogo fee significantly. And then if they needed more they could have run another one, saying what it’s for.
I’m glad it’s going ahead, and I don’t feel bad because I chipped in, but it’s all been a bit amateurish.
Still, how’s Rory the Tory getting on with his appeal for £55,000 for a pile of rocks in a field?
A friend of mine works in the Maryhill food bank and he says all the volunteers are voting Yes, which could explain why they have to pay the full Cooncil tax.
They prefer to give grants and contracts to local drug dealers.
Wanton Wampum
That’s been worrying me too. I campaigned in glenrothes and still do not believe the outcome wasn’t rigged. Surely the Scottish Government will have people in place to stop that this time? If not now, then when?
@Brian Fleming
Ive just had to get a postal vote form printed off for my daughter who works offshore. I know its just my paranois but oh how i grimaced when I saw it was red white and blue!
I’m afraid that well intentioned as it is, and I don’t want to sound criticalas I do support the idea but Jim Sillars and his team just don’t “get” social media/crowd sourcing/twitter etc. and therefor may have had unrealistic expectations of what’s possible.
Apart from anything else, most of the successful crowd sourced funds have been based on pre-existing networks, Stu can get us to donate because we are already here bought into the service he provides.
on a positive note BT obviously don’t get it either
Bob Duncan says:
1 August, 2014 at 12:10 pm
I have seen ‘s urrainn dhuinni used for “Yes we can”
I’m no expert so wondered if it is possible for voters in rest of UK to register in Scotland as a one off?
I’ll be checking to see if No campaigners suddenly take in lodgers.
Rev Stuart Campbell ;-
Please alleviate my fears that ALL the ballot boxes in Sept can be traced and tracked because there is zero reply from the Electoral Commission.
The same EC that supervised Glenrothes – and lost 4 x ballot boxes there – will be in charge in Sept.
Registration Stamps and Seals that were applicable in Glenrothes and elsewhere on Ballot Boxes obviously FAILED.
The ballot box design has operated longer than I have existed, and ominously the same boxes are used in England, Wales, Ulster and Scotland.
I am wondering WHY this BT Mob are so confident about victory when common sense shows the opposite.
“THEY” seem to know something we do not.
Rev whit have you done tae that Photo, am nae lordy lindley, but ah did take ah good photo of Julie & Nicola & the ither wee wummin who,s name escapes me.
But the guy done good, not only Maryhill but other Foodbanks received £1000 donatations,Tammys doffed tae Kevin Bridges, he even made Wee Jackie,s (another volunteer) day with a signed autograph. Julie was gutted she had missed him, but said he would be going back to visit her. And that perticular shopping expedition on the Mon nite was hilarious,just the tonic for the Volunteers to de-stress with what confronts them daily, they are a credit to their Wider Community.
Julie Webster is speaking in Oban Tonite, so if your from that area go along & support her.
Wanton Wampum
Do you know they can put unique tracking chips on wheelie bins and there are versions with GPS tracking for about £4.
I wonder why this has never been mooted.
@wee jonny
Similar tactics to me these days.
I pretend to be a ex-No voter who’s been won round. The undecideds/soft No’s tend to listen and engage more that way.
Well done everyone involved in the fundraising. O/T but I’m now approaching freedom from crap shifts and would dearly love to attend the next BBC bias protest. Anyone know when it will be?
O/t ish…
“..the French have a strategic stake in keeping Britain in the nuclear weapons business. As retired Gen. Henri Bentegeat, a former chief of defense, told French Parliament members in April, “By helping the British … we are also protecting our own nuclear deterrent. Imagine the intense pressures that France would confront if they were forced to abandon their deterrent.”
So don’t be expecting the auld alliance to carry much weight.
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20140801000777
Brian Fleming
completely agree, there needs to be close observation of all events just prior and on the day of voting as well as upto and including the count.
This needs a complete cross (pro independence) party/group support. I would also think that the Electoral Reform Society should be involved , either on the ground or advising.
Clearly we will not get any support from observers from UN or EU, though would also prefer if they were involved as well.
Hewitt83
Re the next BBC Bias protest, I see from my Facebook feed, that there is still bickering within the FB group.
Not sure what is going on, but not healthy, with some people being put off
@Bob Duncan
Nice one :0
On topic, looks like Frankie Boyle needs a hat tip also.
Maryhill Food Bank ?@MaryhillBank 2 hrs
Big thank you to the fabby Frankie Boyle for his kindness much appreciated Julie RT
Sorry lads n lasses forgot to mention Mark Coburn & his contrabutions to the Yes Campain & the Maryhill & Coatbridge FoodBanks , well done Mark more power to Your Pedals.
Bugger, just in time for one I can make. If it does seem to be on, if someone could let me know, I’m not on Facebook
Martin its a joint effort with the Wings Team here
Patrician has put up the Indigo appeal for the Glasgow Green Rally Wings are in the loop as with other groups, We will keep You’s informed & links will be on site soon for the F/Book page.
Gerry Parker, Patrician,myself will co-ordinated from the Wings involvment.
Having read the posts re funding of various events,its understanable that there is funding fatague, the glas Green event will tie in with the YES CONVOY its all Media Bias Rally more details will be forthcoming, but I would ask You’s to support our efforts Thanks.
Was talking to an ex serviceman in Kirkwall a few weeks ago and he was telling me that he was speaking to the chap that organises the foodbank in the Orkneys. He asked him how many people used the services of his organization. He was told 2,000 people. He asked if the 2,000 were folk coming back again and again. He was told they were 2,000 different individuals. The population of the Orkneys is roughly 21,000. This means that 20% of the population need to use the foodbanks to eat. According to the only figures I can find, the unemployment rate up here is under 2% noted in 2011 in the Orcadian newspaper.
This would indicate that an awful lot of Orkney folk who are in work, have to apply or be referred to the foodbank so they can eat.
The serviceman told me that an awful lot of Scots having served in the British Army, in his experience, will vote ‘Yes’.
Fatso Carmichael is our M.P. and when the fat retard stands for election he will in all probability be re elected.
Human nature eh?
O/T Noticed this story in the DR about “Propoganda” that’s stikers to you and me on council road signs.
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/politics/referendum-activists-under-fire-costing-3946044
BTW Moray council is conservative controlled and the picture just had to show a Yes stiker Quelle surprise! 😯
Just a correction to the blog. Mark Coburn’s 500 mile cycle ride was covered in depth by Newsnet Scotland. Two or three articles and two specially made videos at start of fundraiser and near the end.
The second video with the lady who runs the foodbank was very good.
Edward there is NO bickering within the F/Book Group, that site is ( Exposing Anti- Independence Bias on the BBC.) nothing to do with US or the YES group, they have previouly taken a protest page down the ARE TROLLS. I have asked several times for a name of the person that runs that page with no anwers SEE Anti-Independance in they’re name that should be a CLUE they are a BOGUS SITE,
As I said previously Gerry Parker, Patrician, myself will keep WINGERS INFORMED, dont spread dis-information on this SITE it only makes our job harder. WE have a lot to do in a short space of time,without distractions of People who have NO Involvment with US or the POLICE LIASION OFFICERS,We have that Contact as the Official Orginizers Group.
OT But 2 gold medals to Scotland today – so far.
@Black Douglas
This story was in the Press & Journal and Moray local councillor Douglas Ross (Tory) is quoted “I hope both sides of the argument take heed. I have to say, however, that every sticker that I’ve seen on road signs, bus shelters and lampposts, not just in Moray but across the Highlands have been YES stickers”
We are obviously too far North for them to bus Scousers up to pretend to be “local” activists.
Shouldn’t need the small stickers anymore anyhow as all the road side signs (over 100) are going up now so Moray will be well YESSED
@Colin Watson
Good to hear and much the same as in this part of the world was driving through Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly earlier this morning and both towns have the large YES stikers on most of the main road signs 😀
ALso a special mention to Ballingry not only a few Saltires flying in front gardens but a large wooden YES sign on the back road to Kinross 😉
O/T Just watched Dan Purves receive his gymnastics gold medal (well done son!) and have to say the crowd singing Flower of Scotland came across loud and clear. Loads of saltires on show.
We have many valid gripes about these games but I see saltires everywhere when they show crowd shots, be it at the Hydro, Hampden, Tollcross, Cathkin Braes or the road shots in the marathon and cycling time trials. I did notice during the marathon an overhead shot where you could just pick out a home flying a UJ in their front and back garden but it was near Ibrox!
Aye looking forward to the open top bus going through Scotland with maybe 55 medal winners on it. We are sitting at 46 Wow!
Everyone at Glasgow Green going mad with joy at English women winning a penalty shootout ( men take note) at the Hockey semi final. Im sure Ian Smart will be crying now.
Re indigogo media bias protest on 16th at Glasgow Green
I take it Yes/Wings badges, stickers, flags, bunnets, T-shirts, posters etc won’t be confiscated (by those all-singing, all-dancing cops) this time?
Ronnie Anderson
That’s me telt ;), I’m away to stand in the corner
Thanks for pointing out something that I should have noticed
I wasn’t trying to spread dis-information, realistically I wasn’t paying attention
Humble apologies (I’m suitably chastised)
Say NO to food banks. Vote YES
O/T
re AD and Eck on Tuesday
I have just called Yes to see if the blood fight between AD and Eck will be available outside the UK and they think it will be available on the Net.
They say it is nothing to do with YES, which I understand so, usual caveats on the above.
Anybody can confirm what I believe?
STV are not taking calls, after 2 pm.
HELP!
Before the landslide SNP victory. There were only SNP signs, posters everywhere on the road from Braemar to Dundee. Only one Tory sign in a farm field.
Tories also Vote YES
There are Tories who are disgusted at food banks, who are voting YES
Bugger the Panda
Hope this helps
http://news.stv.tv/scotland-decides/news/284650-how-to-watch-stvs-alex-salmond-vs-alistair-darling-referendum-debate/
Carmichael – Orkney is retiring.
Mark Coburn should be up on that podium getting a gold medal.
What a contribution he has made to Scotland.
A true hero.
@Edward sos for the blast but I,ve dealt with this pish since early today on F/B,I did,nt expect Winger to fall for it as Patrician Gerry Myself have posted on the subject.
@ronnie anderson
O/T
Hi ronnie, a lurker here who fell for it too.
I’ve been following ‘Exposing…’ Facebook page for a while and was a bit put off by the supposed infighting he/she/it reported and nearly didn’t go to PQ3. But I did and it was great. Too shy to introduce myself tho!
Anyway, I commented on ‘Exposing…’s latest ‘don’t go to Glasgow Green because they’re fleecing you for money’-type-post, along the lines of Wingers have said this is bogus and I believe the Wingers thanks, so cheerio.
My comment was immediately deleted and I’m now blocked. Thanks for the tip, I won’t be going back there.
No problem Ronnie, glad you have been on the case
I’m annoyed for falling for the F/B shit
I don’t usually fall for bogus F/B pages, but have so much cascading through my newsfeed, never have time to take a closer look.
Will do though from now
Curious to know who is behind it
Please note, Further to ronnie andersons update at 3:51pm, Wings will not be involved with the BBC bias demo on 16th August in any capacity other than what we usually do, manning a stall at the event.
Bob Duncan says:1 August, 2014 at 12:10 pm:
“ps. For those who don’t know, ‘Bu Choir’ is ‘We Should’ in Gaelic”
Ach! Bob! That’s hilarious! Here was me feelling a bit down after a none too good afternoon out and I read that post. It would have been bad enough needing to clean my screen. I avoided that fate but now I’m going to have to wash the dug – she’s mainly pure white and tea stains are not pretty on a dug.
Thanks for the kind comments on my red bus tale. Here is a wee follow up:
Local Slab had placed police bollards on Stornoway’s busiest car park, taking up around 10 places reserved for cars. It turned out that this was to make space for the bus.
When the bus moved away to tour the town, some bad boys (who shall be nameless) hid the cones so the bus could not get back in. It quickly moved on after that, taking Anas and his namesakes with it, never to be seen in Lewis again.
Some Yes people are just shameless!
Ken500 says: 1 August, 2014 at 5:32 pm:
“Say NO to food banks. Vote YES”
A sticker to append to NO stickers that matched their NO style stickers to read -,“to FOODBANKS – YES to INDEPENDENCE.”.
Giving a resultant of, “NO to FOODBANKS – YES to INDEPENDENCE.
Might be an idea.
Bateman Broadcasting – with Julie Webster from MFB
o/t
Heard interesting tale today about a driver with commonwealth games. He’s been pestering athletes and team members for their commonwealth badges. That in itself is against protocol, staff are not supposed to approach the teams at all unless they are requested to do so. The interesting thing is, he’s been trying to swap the badges for ‘vote no’ badges. The story may break before I find out more but I’ll try and get an update tomorrow (damn it’s today, already)
Clever comedian, is our Kevin Bridges.
However…
Like so many stand up comedians, (there are far too many!) and following from Connolly, give him more than ten minutes and intelligent, sharp humour dissipates in favour of base jokes about farting, defication, and toilet problems.
Renting one,[bus] you’d have to assume, would come in even cheaper still.
Why rent when Souter can offer one free for the duration?
O/t
I am hoping to run some roadside signs at key spots near me. I have in mind stuff like
Uk pensions
Lowest in EU
Vote no keeps it that way And
Vote no
To frack
The national park
I have a few more ideas but would be pleased to have any other ideas. I only can manage about 4-5 boards and I expect to lose some but roundabouts seem a great venue for captive audiences at rush hour.
Sorry additional information
I intend to run gone boards in sequence with a few words on each board. Possibly max a3 size but smaller if I can
Stu, nail on the head; “But it seems that in the Scottish media, you can only draw attention to foodbanks if you do so without mentioning the political system that brought them into being.”
Away to Edinburgh Fringe today to see “All Back to Bowie’s” and “The Pure, Dead and Brilliant” 🙂
Ian Smarting
http://www.scotsman.com/news/poli…pology-over-games-tweet-1-3496763
Fans told to remove ‘Yes’ badges at Glasgow Green
http://www.scotsman.com/news/poli…badges-at-glasgow-green-1-3493082
I am off to meet the councillor for maryhill tomorrow
In the end the donations are great, but maryhill foodbank is still being charged 5 grand to operate
it turns out that glasgow district council sold all commercial property to a third party (joint venture) in 2011
However they seem to have a grant system in place for charities
So lets see what I can do to get the 5 grand bill reduced
Kestral
Only speak to Franny or John, anybody else is a waste of time.
I’m off to Maryhill in 10 minutes to start canvassing.
Good luck tha’ morra.
Franny, John, Phil Green, or Billy McAllister. Or Bob Doris MSP. The rest are numpties feathering their own nests.
Here is the latest daft logic from a company called Endura in Livingston.They employ 200 people and make cycling gear.The boss says he will move part of the firm to the Czech republic following a yes vote.Reason well he trades with Europe and wants unbroken membership.So he is assuming incorrectly there will be a break in membership when we know this is bullshit.Then the daft bit really kicks in.He says he will not relocate to England as he says without Scotland the Tories would get in and there would be a Europe referendum and England would be outside the EU.Well the Tories are in at the moment and there will be a referendum against the will of Scotland and we will be out of Europe.The best defence is independence.What a Muppet utterly stupid.
It’s interesting how the Celeb metality permeates most organisations and institutions. It does underline the unfair society we live in when the loose change in a celebs pocket gets more publicity than someone who has grafted and cycled for miles let alone the volunteers who have pounded the streets delivering the leaflets. All of it will get us an independent Scotland and at that point we can really address poverty and inequality.
Following on from the wonderful effort by Mark we are hoping he comes along to our YES Cowal bike trek and we’ll make him our celeb for yet another day. See link for details
https://www.facebook.com/events/671764676238633/?ref=5
I like Kevin Bridges apart from the Ham Sandwich. Do they all feel it is necessary to swear now?