What they left out
A particularly alert reader contacted us this morning with an observation so subtle it had totally escaped us, even though we’d seen both the things in question.
On last night’s BBC News at Six, the lead story – taking up over six minutes of the 30-minute show – was a steep 4.1% rise in English rail fares. The in-depth piece explicitly noted (at 5m 45s) that Scottish rail users would have a lower rise, saying “Passengers in Scotland will be better off, with season tickets capped at the rate of inflation” and also noting that no rises were planned in Northern Ireland and the decision in Wales was still to be made.
Reporting Scotland, immediately afterwards, took a different angle.
Blink and you’d have missed the story altogether. Buried eight and a half minutes into the bulletin, the entire piece was just 19 seconds long, and focused solely on the fact of the rise. It was so short we can give you all of it here:
“Fares for peak-time rail travellers in Scotland will rise by 3.1% in January. The decision means that about 60% of train journeys will increase in price in the new year. The news follows publication of the July Retail Price Index, the inflation figure that determines the average change in regulated train fares.”
Did you spot it? Both programmes simply reported accurate facts, but the UK one expressly pointed out that Scots were getting a better deal than the English, and that the English were doing worst in the country. The Scottish news, on the other hand, made no mention of the fact, and implied (by citing the UK-wide Retail Price Index) that the rise was universal.
English viewers (who make up the vast bulk of the UK audience) were left feeling that they were being victimised while everyone else got special treatment (“In England, the inflation-busting rises are set to continue – there’s another one planned for 2015 as well”), while Scottish viewers had (relatively) positive news about decisions made by the Scottish Government rather than Westminster entirely concealed from them.
Like we say, it’s subtle.
Makes you wonder if the cringe is a subconscious automatic response, or if there is a black ops bunker in the bowels of Pacific Quay. Or both?
The Metro have done something similar. You need to go to page five to get the actual facts.
Even if they did point it out, it would only be in such a way as to imply, the Scottish government can protect you as things stand, why would you want this scary independence thing?
#Boothman
I cant even bring myself round to look at her face anymore, she and her fellow band of unionists disgust me so much.
Roll on Edinburgh 21st Sept 2013.
Maybe the guys writing the peice are just crap. Unpaid interns who don’t know the difference between reserved and devolved. Given the cuts at BBC Scotland I would not be surprised the news is being put together somewhere else(possibly the same company that sub edits the Scotsman 🙂 )Whereas the BBC UK has the paid guys who do know the difference.
I’m beginning to get fed up with this. This kind of reporting is what makes the people of England angry at all our apparent “freebies”. The media report it in such a way as to make the people say “They shouldn’t be gettin all this good stuff while we suffer!”
instead of trying to make the choices our elected government taken on our behalf be stopped/changed because they are better for the people of Scotland they should be asking, nay, DEMANDING, better from Westminster!
After all, if a fat person complains they don’t have pecs, muscles and a six pack stomach you don’t tell the gym goer to get fat.
This sort of stuff has been going on for some time.
BTW
Can we all write to Gordon Wilson and tell him to just shut up.
Skimming through Sky News newspaper headline gallery, I notice The Times have a big splash
‘South ‘cheated’ in fares hike’
Maybe BBC Scotland don’t read the papers…apart from the paper review on GMS that is..
This one doesn’t actually bother me that much – what they stated was, on this occasion, factually correct and I don’t think they have to couch everything in comparison with the situation in England. It was relevant for a comparison in the main UK news, as it’s supposed to be for all of us (although it doesn’t often seem that way), but not in the Scottish news. I just can’t bring myself to be annoyed or even disappointed by this, unusually for the BBC.
You can add the latest unemployment figures to the same paradigm.
UK Headline [as of 14/08 10:00]: UK Unemployment falls by 4000 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23692996
Scotland headline [again as of 14/08 10:00]: Slight fall in Scottish Unemployment http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-23694473
“Scottish unemployment per captia falls at 3 times UK rate” is now apparently “slight”.
Pardon me for being slow of thought today
is the cap here
A coincidence
Scottish Government limiting the rise by just saying ‘no more
Scottish Government using its funding to top up the difference?
It was worse for our Southern cousins on the ITV ‘national’ news as well, where they were informed about the 4.1% rise, fully explained as inflation+1%, but absolutely no mention of non-English areas.
Reported as though England was the only part of UK getting any type of fare increase. Looked like Scotland, Wales and NI were staying as they were as they were just ignored.
I think some will love this
On BBC Website under ‘UK’ section there is the rail increase story , headlined ‘Rail fares ‘to rise by 4.1%’ in England as unions protest’ AND comment is allowed http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23677173
Go to same website, but in the ‘Scotland’ section and they have ‘ScotRail peak time fares to rise by 3.1% in January 2014’ lower down the article (much lower) ‘Rail north of the border is a devolved power of the Scottish government’ and at the very bottom ‘In England and Wales, a rise of RPI plus 1% will apply to all regulated fares set by the UK government’ Naturally no comments allowed http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-23682508
I saw the bulletins and likewise didn’t notice it. What chance the general public.
I’m with Dave above – gordon Wilson is off his head if he thinks negativity equates to positivity. Obama won precisely because the opposition were constantly negative. Having said that, I watched the discussion on last nights’ Scotland Tonight and I have to say Blair Jenkins is far too nice. When do we start going on the offensive?
reminds me of this from 2008? –
Lord Foulkes: “The SNP are on a dangerous tack at the moment. What they are doing is trying to build up a situation in Scotland where the services are manifestly better than south of the border in a number of areas.”
A clearly bemused Colin MacKay : “Is this such a bad thing?”
Lord Foulkes: “No, but they are doing it deliberately.”
Slightly O/T, but quite current 🙂
Has anyone else noted the coverage of tonight’s game between Scotland and England. Is it just me, but I have noticed that ITV News and BBC News spend an inordinate time covering the England team, interview’s etc compared with coverage of the Scotland team. The impression I get is that they are treating England as the home team (yes I know in this instance it is, but in perspective the home team as in the UK team) and Scotland are the ‘foreign’ visitors that we really don’t need to know much about. Its strange as these video packages are broadcast on Network national as in UK wide news, so you would have though that the 2 country’s that make up the bulk , would be afforded equal exposure. From the packages I know more about Wayne Rooney and the England manager than I do about who is playing for Scotland – as I said an observation
Speaking as a former commuter into London(15 years man and er..man). You are more concerend what other people are paying on your route ,to get into London e.g. the east anglian season ticket from Ipswich costs more than the season ticket from Cambridge even tho’they are equidistant from London. That’s the real kind of stuff that pisses commuters off (along with the RPI +1) not whether the the scots are getting a better deal (that’s taken for granted re: prescriptions etc) BBC just being crap as normal.
O/T in a way, but only slightly, I’ve just read that “A poll of 1,000 adult patients from England and Wales found that 54.4% agree that taxes have to increase to ensure long-term healthcare needs are met”. Wait, what, our taxes?
It also states “One in 10 patients believe they will have to pay for their healthcare in the future”.
http://money.aol.co.uk/2013/08/13/tax-rises-needed-to-pay-for-nhs/?icid%3Dmoney%257CDL_1_link
And this dear reader is why we’re nae better thegither
BBC in Scotland radio the other morning were doing a report on a bag piper. He played a tune for them he had written. The report ended and the guy back in the studio said ‘oh I feel like eating porridge now’.
@Edward Barbour
This is par for the course
It’s the age old argument of “Conspiracy or Cock-Up”…
If anyone honestly believes any more that the BBC news are not seriously manipulating and creating propaganda, then they need to wake up.
Where there is smoke there is undoubtedly fire and Pacific Quay has perpetual black smelly poisonous plumes of the stuff billowing from every door and window opening.
O/T, but important.
Ernst and Young have released a report, which suggests that Scottish exports are literally booming, and will outstrip UK exports within 4 years.
http://www.newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-economy/7861-scottish-exports-set-to-outstrip-uk-within-four-years
No doubt later today, a bitter together personage will tell us that high exports from Scottish industry are a really bad thing for the Scottish economy, and we will be better off with some bods from southern England taking charge in Westminster.
Vote YES, in 2014.
“Has anyone else noted the coverage of tonight’s game between Scotland and England.”
OT but I’m slightly baffled as to why we’re having a Scotland England game right now. There hasn’t been one since 1999 – the year the Scottish parliament came into being.
Why hasn’t there been one for so long? And why one now? Perhaps I’m being paranoid but in the kind of atmosphere we have right now it seems an odd decision and also a good arena for those who might want to create trouble to make Scotland look bad. You only have to think of the Rangers fans in Manchester to see what a drunken football riot can look like. Plenty of people both within the Scottish football crowd and outside it have a vested interest in making that happen, portraying us as anti-English etc.
I hope I’m entirely wrong and it’s actually an attempt to lighten the atmosphere and perhaps even bring back the match as a prelude to independence and us being two properly separate countries. But I’m a bit nervous frankly.
Do you think that BBC Scotland and MSM will be sreaming out the latest jobs figures and also economic figures, that show Scotland is way ahead of the rUK in both, and is likely to be for the next few years. All this is done with one hand tied behind our backs.
http://news.stv.tv/politics/236001-scottish-employment-continues-to-outstrip-uk-after-13000-jobs-boost/
http://www.istockanalyst.com/business/news/6531622/scottish-economy-firing-on-all-cylinders
I’ve often said I couldn’t care less about news from south of the border. Why would I want to know about their train fares? I think sometimes we need to roll back the paranoia and take straightforward fact reporting for what it is.
As much as I’d like to see the BBC do a better job. I don’t think they have to report everything wrapped in the context of the independence referendum. Both programs have different editorial teams. They’re never going to report everything word for word exactly the same. Where the BBC need to be held to account is when they cherry pick sources and interviewees, citing them as experts, to support an agenda and unfairly influence the vote.
Perhaps this is so subtle there’s really nothing to it.
Found this:
http://metro.co.uk/2013/07/07/wimbledon-2013-david-cameron-and-ed-miliband-try-to-keep-cool-as-they-watch-andy-murray-win-3872406/
and I thought u all may enjoy some caption game.
Cath: reason is the 150th anniversary of either the tie or the FA.
OT
Have you seen this? The lonely Better Together Lady complains of racism. It`s from the Dundee edition Courier.
https://twitter.com/Stuart_Winton/status/367509247728177152/photo/1
Cath,
I share your concerns. Let’s never forget, that the british state, have form for using undercover police within organisations, as internal agitators (as they did in the McLibel case, and Greenpeace). All of us need to be aware, that it is the ultimate weapon used by London. Have someone on the inside, who seems to completely agree with the motives of a group, and then at some stage start to encourage members to indulge in illegal behaviour or to discuss the potential for illegal behaviour (all of which is recorded). As recently seen in England, such special branch/police/MI5 agents provocateurs, then seem to just disappear.
Any groups meeting up should be wise to the potential of such things.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/jun/21/mclibel-leaflet-police-bob-lambert-mcdonalds?INTCMP=SRCH
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/undercover-with-paul-lewis-and-rob-evans/2011/oct/28/undercover-police-officers-latest?INTCMP=SRCH
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/jun/24/undercover-police-spy-girlfriend-child?INTCMP=SRCH
Cath
I think it’s just because the English FA are celebrating their 150th anniversary, and Scotland v England is the oldest international football match in history (England played their first ever international against us). Scottish fans have an excellent reputation and usually behave perfectly well, if anything, it’s the England fans that will be under the spotlight here as they have had serious problems with hooliganism.
Let’s take a positive out of this! the more resentment those “dawn sauff” feel towards the Scots the more they will encourage us to vote yes!
On the same programme scots were reported as being the worlds 2nd fattest country but when you google this the closest you get is the uk in fifth. Obviously RS take pleasure in making its viewers feel guilty.
The BBC are good at twisting stories for Better Together. Anyone else notice this one last night?
On the Six news the average house price in England had risen even in areas hit by recession and it was all good for the industry but they also reported that in Scotland house prices fell on average by 0.9%. On Manipulating Scotland at 18:30 there is no mention of the fall in Scotland at all only that there was an increase in demand and that things were working out nicely for the industry.
The BBC edited out the facts of this story and by doing so made it look like things are better than they are.
It’s hard to believe that we are forced to pay for this rubbish and that this supposed to be a democracy.
yesitis,
To be fair to REV, she says in the courier article she thought the numerous pictures at various locations were funny, and it was the comments that bothered her. The key point however, is that none of it was racist, which seems to be what the lady is saying in the courier – unless of course saying somebody is a geordie is somehow racist nowadays.
All pretty tame compared to the genuine racism against Scots on show in comments in the likes of the Daily Telegraph and Daily (hate) mail on a near daily basis.
Robert Louis
I agree with you, but she does imply a more sinister side to the site. I do not recall anything particularly sinister posted in that thread. Why is there not an article in the Courier mentioning the councillor`s alleged ill tempered behaviour?
Again, the media portray Better Together as victims.
I was down in N. E. England yesterday and saw the rail fares report, they reported it without mentioning the differences for Scotland, Wales and Ireland. It was obvious they didn’t want English people to see how much they are being ripped off by westminster. I commented on the blanket reporting to the people I was staying with, it didn’t register though.
O/T,
Well, sort of, it was interesting to note that none of my friends in the North East of England have a clue about what’s going on within or without Scotland, regards Scottish independence. They even asked ‘why is it not being debated?’ implying that it’s the SNP/Scottish government refusing to have a debate!
OK. The first comment, and I quote, ‘ the UK gov have bigger fish to fry than being worried about the oil in Scotland’. This from an ex professor at Newcastle University. Early retirement, good retirement package, nice for some eh?
When we showed them Duggy the DUG film, the comment was, ‘ is that the work of the SNP?’.
Now, wait for it, ‘are you sure Scotland will be able to keep ANY of the oil/revenues? I mean, what if it’s already been handed over to the big fat oil companies? ‘How do you know Scotland will benefit from having oil at all?’ Are you sure they have any claim to it at all?
They told me that they are hearing nothing, and seeing nothing about the referendum at all. I could see one friend silently snigger about the whole thing.
They asked how could we ‘believe what the pro Indy sites are saying anyway?’
They are not seeing anything so have no knowledge about anything to do with Scotland’s referendum next year, in fact they didn’t know when it is scheduled to even take place. However, their scepticism was palpable. So perhaps we can surmise from this that something is getting through somehow, but it certainly ain’t anywhere near the truth.
Basically they mostly don’t care and see it as a huge joke as far as I can gather.
My cousin and her partner are quite interested, but know very little about what’s being said or reported. Their daughter’s boyfriend is 19, he works, due to necessity, for a payday loans company, he is not allowed to sit down all day, he has a break at 4.30 having started at 8.30, not being allowed a break until then, he is exhausted, it is morally destroying him but they have scared him into not even applying for other jobs in case he is sacked. He simply cannot be off sick. That’s how wasteminster is working for them, it’s disgraceful. I sincerely hope that the Scottish people choose a different path in 2014, which looks after it’s people, unlike the con-dems, which is attacking it’s own people.
It’s ok we are still friends, but it’s quite depressing to hear about the ignorance among certainly the people that I know, South of the border, in fact, just across the border. I felt so much better when I saw the ‘Scotland’ sign from the train.
Oh look, today we are able to make comments on a BBC online article to do with Scotland –
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/scotland/ re the football match tonight of course.
Meanwhile, business as usual, no commenting facilitated, on any of the BBC’s Scottish politics or ‘news’ stories… As it is clear that this not because the technology isn’t working or not enough staff at Pacific Quay, what could the reason be?
#bread&circuses #Boothman
There was also an unexpected comment among the quickies that took me by surprise. Ms Bird said something along the lines that the oil will last another 40 years. I only caught the tail end of it. Puts Darling’s two year forecast to shame.
Edward Barbour
English bias towards the England team has been a bugbear for Scottish sports fans for as long as I can remember. (It wouldn’t matter, except we pay for and get English coverage.) The classic example to look out for is during a World Cup, where the live commentary on, say, Uruguay vs Ghana is constantly veering off into news and speculation on the England team, and mentions of 1966. Fortunately I don’t watch TV any more (except in the pub) so it no longer affects my blood pressure 🙂
Cath
I think you’re getting worried over nothing – it is a friendly organised in good faith well before the referendum was announced, for the occasion of 150 years since the forming of the FA and the first international match in England – which was against Scotland.
This is all getting a bit negative.
We are all agreed that there seems to be some bias in BBC Scotland’s approach to the Indy debate. Whinging about it endlessly on here will not do any good.
The poll was good. What else can we do? For a start, there is the BBC complaints procedure – a flood of quiet, polite complaints with detailed instances might be helpful.
Update to my post above:
Found this. It is the Clair field which will produce 640 million barrels over the next 40 years.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-23681061
I see a comment about the metro’s reporting on this. What a nasty little rag that is, the worry being that people on public transport are bombarded by the lies in the metro. Let’s hope most see through it, for the lies it spouts.
Ah, all that about the football is reassuring. I’ll just enjoy the match with a pint then 🙂
BBC Radio Scotland aka “All we hear is Radio Naw Naw”
The Metro is from the Daily Mail stable what do you expect?
BBC Scotland tend to rarely broadcast any news that shows the SNP in good light. Any positive is automatically countered with a quote from Rennie or Moore (occasionally Lamont if she has come out of the bunker). Sometimes the counter is twice the length of the say that the Government get. Sometimes you look at the issue and wonder why it even needs a counter. The rail story doesn’t really lend itself to be used in this way and consequently is a minor story…they would argue that the rises were covered in the 6 o’clock news although that hasn’t stopped them in the past. It is subtle, although oft times it is not subtle at all and borders on North Korean style managed news.
Mind you if you think we are annoyed you should see what some Tories say about the BBC in Englandshire and the same lean towards Labour there. Beyond furious in some instances with talk of walls and who should be first up against it. You would think with all that has happened over the last few years that they would be rowing to a more neutral position in their coverage of domestic politics. Yet instead they seem to have joined Johann in the bunker.
balgayboy says:
BBC Radio Scotland aka “All we hear is Radio Naw Naw”
Would I be sent to the naughty step for suggesting Radio Haw Haw?
“The poll was good. What else can we do? For a start, there is the BBC complaints procedure – a flood of quiet, polite complaints with detailed instances might be helpful.”
It won’t, bud. Speaking as someone who has engaged with this process a good number of times (including even a token complaint about their lack of coverage of the WoS poll) all you receive in reply is a series of evidence-free assertions that the BBC is fair, impartial, honest, the best purveyor of apple pie in town etc. etc.
The BBC is not just unaccountable, it is actively provoking the Yes campaign, as we saw in the latest of a number of instances on Monday night as Brewer wittered on about how ‘polls’ show No Scotland in a strong position. Don’t tell me Brewer and Boothman were not aware of the WoS poll prior to broadcast.
Webcraft
Every so often a pop up appears asking for feedback on the BBC. I think I have had it twice over the last couple of years and I have completed that both times. I think they take more note of that than complaints and I would urge people to resist the temptation to close the pop up and complete the questionnaire.
@Hetty …
I live in London and there’s nothing on the referendum apart from the occasional negative tripe from the right-wing newspapers, mostly with an anti-Salmond angle. Nothing at all on television unless it’s Question Time from Edinburgh or Glasgow. That is how many people in England are being ‘informed’ which of course leads to the hate and bile in the comments section of those newspapers from mostly UKIP and BNP supporters. The only reason my London colleagues and friends are informed as they are is down to myself in conversation and answering any questions I get. There is a lot of curiosity from open-minded individuals but there is also many a UKIP voter in the making that come up with the ‘subsidy junkie’ line as well, sadly.
@dave hill
Yes, poor Gordon can always be depended upon to blast a large calibre bullet straight through the foot – the media love him. It honestly concerns me that he doesn’t see he’s being used.
However, in this instance, isn’t he right and didn’t it need said? I know that the Yes group in my area are highly concerned at the apparent basic incompetence of Yes Central, and increasingly our plans are to go it alone as it seems we can expect nothing from them. They can’t get leaflets printed, FFS.
Lianachan
A wee bit Godwinny but I think it is certainly further down that continium than is comfortable (hence my North Korea jibe 🙂 )
@Webcraft Fair point. Have now done that.
Type of complaint: BBC Online
What is your complaint about: BBC News Online
URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/scotland/
Complaint category: Bias
Complaint title: Not being able to comment on Scottish politics etc
Complaint description:
It is very rarely, if at all, that any BBC online item about or with a reference to Scottish news and politics is open to comments. However today, a Scotland related item is open to comments – about a football match. Many items about politics in the BBC online ‘main’, UK and England news and politics sections are open to comments, so why not any in the Scotland section? The fact that today’s BBC online item about football is open to comments shows that it is not a lack of technology nor resources within BBC online nor BBC Scotland. Please explain and rectify this undemocratic anomaly, as soon as possible.
@ Jimbo says:11.35
Correct, HHI in South Korea presently building a large FPSO for the same field, huge investment with huge returns…follow the money.
@Jimbo – Without going into detail, my two sons work in the oil industry and both have been told by their respective companies that North Sea oil has at least fifty years left. That is not allowing for the vast reserves in the Atlantic which your link highlights. Licenses are also being issued for exploratory drilling off Scotland’s West Coast, off Oban etc.
Oil could be the game changer, if only the people of Scotland could be made aware of just how much has still to be exploited. I live in hope that the YES Campaign will release a ‘paper’ or launch a publicity drive highlighting just how much potential lies off our shores.
Without going into detail, my two sons work in the oil industry.
As do I and various other contributors. Join now as a young un and it’s still a career for life.
@Lianachan @balgayboy @ HandandShrimp
BBC Radio Scotland aka “All we hear is Radio Naw Naw”
Would I be sent to the naughty step for suggesting Radio Haw Haw?
A wee bit Godwinny…
How about a Scottish, less Godwinny, conflation: Radio Hee Haw?
Complaints to BBC Scotland dont work – they have never responded to any of mine
Usually newsnight Scotland (Brewer sneering) latest night when Fergus Ewing was on
shocking no response at all to polite complaint.
There could be a plan in all the negative spinning of positive news, or leaving it out of reports.
Labour assumption that there is going to be a No vote, then, why would voters continue with the SNP SG, so when they get back in, the real news and good stories are released to show they, Labour, have been more effective. Hurray. It’s a known tactic.
However it is hard to find a situation similar to what is happening in Scotland concerning the news coverage, where there has not been a deliberate propaganda war by the Government.
Possibly National Collective’s press project might encourage journalists to break ranks and tell us what is happening inside the newspapers.
There is at this moment a brilliant article on National Collectve by someone called Andrew Rdmond Barr, EIF’s Independence Censor Neglects Public Debate.
An essential read.
@scottish_skier
Agree, there are huge amount of opportunities for our youth not only in the North sea or Atlantic but with the natural ability to learn the skill sets and diligence including the high educational standard achievements that Scottish people are renowned for worldwide these opportunities are borderless.
From Andrew Barr’s article,
“There is an alarming narrative unfolding before us. Only a few days ago an article written in the Huffington Post calling for Scottish culture to be kept out of the Independence debate entirely. It was praised and promoted by leaders of the No campaign, including director, blair McDougall, and Shadow SofS for Defence, Jim Murphy.
Their contention is that independence supporters should not utilise Scottish culute, but that Union supporters should utilise British culture. We’ve ween this already with team GB, jubilee Celebrations, the birht of a prince, and we’ll see it again when the British Governments patrioitc great War celebrations are begun quite deliberatel in Glasgow, not london.”
There is an alarming narrative unfolding before us. Only a few days ago an article was written in the Huffington Post calling for Scottish culture to be kept out of the independence debate entirely. It was praised and promoted by leaders of the No campaign, including director Blair McDougall and Shadow Secretary of State for Defence Jim Murphy.
Their contention is that independence supporters should not utilise Scottish culture, but that Union supporters should utilise British culture. We’ve seen it already with Team GB, Jubilee celebrations, the birth of a prince, and we’ll see it again next year when the British Government’s patriotic Great War celebrations are begun quite deliberately in Glasgow, not London.
– See more at: http://nationalcollective.com/2013/08/13/eifs-independence-censor-neglects-public-debate/#sthash.5A3QvD6q.dpuf
McDougall and Murphy want Scottish culture off stage simply because so few people involved in that culture, actors, artists, writers, commedians, poets, games designers and musicians support the No side and so many of international repute support the Yes side. They are embarrassed by the paucity of their cultural support…and so they should be. Culture is the living, breathing representative of our society.
Blair, if you are reading, by their very nature people active in culture communicate and communicate well…..so you have hew haw chance of shutting them up. In fact I would have thought they will take umbridge at your attempts to shut them up and redouble their efforts.
McDougall & Murphy and their ilk want Scotland of the map. No friends of Scotland these people.
Here we go….
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/news/local/dundee/councillor-claims-she-faced-anti-english-racism-on-wings-over-scotland-website-1.120400
Seen it – rubbish front page crxp
told them so.
Perhaps I’m being paranoid (about there being an England Scotland friendly in order to make Scotland look bad).
If there were an annual Scotland England friendly and it was cancelled this and next year, then there’d be someone saying “perhaps I’m paranoid, but isnt this designed to suppress Scottish identity etc etc”. My advice when any Scottish nationalists find themselves saying “perhaps I’m being paranoid but…”, take a breath.
Anent the oil reserves–am I not correct in thinking that the reserves in the Firth of Clyde were confirmed some 30 to 40 years back with some large hotel chains building new hotels in Irvine in preparation for the coming boom. This was then knocked on the head by the Westminster regime due to the nuclear submarines having right of passage in the area with, wait for it, THEIR FEARS of an accident
A good argument against the lose of the relatively few direct jobs associated with the removal of these WMD. would be the number of jobs to be created in a new local oil boom in the area, this being used to [hopefully] convince the unions to at least look to their own self interest but then again I recollect a project being scuppered in Dundee by union opposition with the jobs being ultimately located down South.
The old Scots saw comes to mind:—keep yer ain fish guts for yer ain sea maws.
Gordon Bain says:
Here we go….
Sorry, sorry stuff, published by a very parochial former tory rag of a newspaper owned by a Scottish Pro-UK ( anti-worker union btw) multi-millionare family which has jumped onboard any anti-independence/SNP that it can dig up in it’s usual amateur way to sell as many of it’s “we are to wee to believe in thinking and deciding for oorselves” Oor Wullie!
les calthorps says:
Ford motors UK wanted to open a factory in Dundee to manufacture some of their car components but the project was shutdown because of the strife and objections from the labour unions down south….I recall.
@les calthorps
Les, there was continued arguments throughout the early 1980’s about drilling in the Clyde estuary and yes, the MoD played a hand in stopping any exploration.
Indeed, on January 26, 1984 (how appropriate), George Foulkes wasn’t very impressed at the MoD quoting “the ministry believes the interests of defence are far more important than the provision of energy”.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19840126&id=oMJAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-6UMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2456,4410737
David Lambie, the local Labour MP at the time (and sadly missed by his constituents lucky enough to know him), raised numerous questions in Parliament and of the MoD http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19830914&id=ivU9AAAAIBAJ&sjid=CUkMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3594,2623144
My, how things change eh.
With regards tonight’s football game I can only hope that it’s not turned into a political football by those wishing to make unionist hay, or clumsy metaphors for that matter. Seems the only saving grace is that it’s being shown on STV so shouldn’t suffer from the insidious hegemonic death by a thousand cuts of Atlantic Quay.
And I hope we pure hump them.
The BBC continue to peddle the myth to the southern English, I mean the Bwitish and the southern Tory English/Bwitish in particular that we are a load of freeloading subsidy junkies. Fine with me! I am no in the mood to enlighten or educate them.
Regarding the football match tonight, the ITV website says:
Adrian Chiles will be live on ITV from 7.30pm, while match commentary comes from Clive Tyldesley and Andy Townsend.
I sincerely hope that’s an “except for viewers in Scotland” moment, or I’m going to end up throwing a shoe through my new telly at some stage.
Oh, and beachthistle – Radio Hee Haw works a treat.
DMW42
David Lambie was my Geography teacher who fired my interest in economics. He slanted geography to explain the economics on manufacturing, consumption and development.
I gained an A in my Higher, thanks to him.
A really and genuinely nice man.
Radio Hee Haw Naw?
They also said house prices in Scotland were starting to rise and reported that they had only fallen 0.3% over the past year right after the London news claimed they had fallen 0.9% in Scotland.
They seem to be trying to maximise the effect of Osbourne’s property bubble faked economy recovery scheme (which will only make the final financial reckoning worse when it comes immediately after the referendum and the 2015 GE).
@BtP
I campaigned alongside David Lambie in the late 70’s, not only was he supportive of devolution but openly stated on many occassions “a separate Scotland would give Scots a better deal” (much to the angst of the Labour hierarchy it has to be said).
dmw42
Are you going to the “tasting” in the Horseshoe Bar in Glasgow for Wings People on the 23rd at 7pm?
BtP – I sent an email to IB earlier saying no as I thought it was this Friday (16th). If it’s 23rd, I’ll see you there mate.
Emailed the BBC.
They HeeHawMailed back.
Yer on
@ Lianachan
http://sport.stv.tv/football/international/233896-stv-to-show-england-v-scotland-international-live-on-air-and-online/
Alan Brazil and Derek Rae on the mikes, mercifully not a Chiles or Townsend in sight.
Ah, bless you Salt Ire.
@BTP-
**NB**
It’s NOT on the 23rd, it’s this Friday coming i.e. the 16th.
Shit I don’t fly to Scotland until the 21st
I going back to Shanghai!
Bugger!
echo, shit.
Just opened this thread so apologies for going back over the issue about mis/negative-reporting on BBC Scotland by citing a report on the National Student Survey by Ipsos Mori in yesterday’s Herald (wisnae mine – honest!). This survey showed that students gave an overall satisfaction rating of 86%to Scottish Universities compared to 85% in England and 84% in Wales. Also mentioned were recent surveys which show that Scottish graduates were more likely “to be in positive destinations of work or further study after six months than their counterparts in RUK and also commanded the highest average starting salaries”.
Great news of course, but somehow I didn’t hear it reported on the Beeb, although I now listen/view less than ever to their “balanced and unbiased” output so may have missed it. What I did hear on radio the day before this report, however, was an item about the stress experienced by students dealing with uncertain job prospects after gaining qualifications.
I guess the timing of this item was meant to pre-empt any feeling of optimism or confidence by North British students should they get wind of the above report, or am I just being cynical again?
Re D C Thompson anti- independence stance, I glanced at a copy of The Scotland Magazine in a friend’s house and it would gladden the heart af all pro-indy readers in terms of promoting Scottish culture and nationhood. Even mentions that the country is at an important crossroad.
Since the magazine is also part of the DCT stable, this is the most two-faced attitude I’ve ever come across. Don’t buy the Courier, but also don’t buy The TSM.
balgayboy says:
14 August, 2013 at 12:05 pm
@ Jimbo says:11.35Correct, HHI in South Korea presently building a large FPSO for the same field, huge investment with huge returns…follow the money.
Just a small correction. The FPSO being built by HHI is for the BP Schiehallion field and is a replacement FPSO for the one that has been operating West of Shetland for the last 15 years. The Clair Ridge project (£4.5 Billion) also for BP is not an FPSO but standard Jackets and Topsides, Jackets were installed only recently. The third big project West of Shetland is the Solan field for premier Oil, note that Solan is the only job where the fabrication is being done in Scotland at Methil.
@Alan Gerrish
Optimism, confidence and comparative facts/information: the 3 things which the Hee Haw campaign fear the most, and, coincidentally, the 3 things BBC’s Reporting Scotland has been careful to avoid for years…
A little story if I may.
Had a friend in financial charge of the new Forfar bypass. He, squaring up at the end of the contract, had an overblown claim for £250,000 from a white settler farmer for broken drains and other damage to the land due to the works. Derrick Thompson of D.C. Thompson was asked by my friend to submit his claim for a similar amount of damage, his response was that he would be making no claim as it would be a charge to the taxpayer. Sitting near where they were talking was a large earthmoving machine, when informed by my friend he had to claim to allow the contract to be wound up he said if the firm would level out a piece of ground to form an arena for his wifes riding for the disabled group he would be satisfied.
This was done at an estmated cost to the contractor of a one thousand part of the neighbours claim. I have no connection with D.C.Thompson but report this fact to show that we still have people in these parts not driven by greed.
where the bloody hell is jimmy krankie ?
I stopped paying my license fee in protest that they have BBC1 Scotland and we rarely get Scottish programs, in fact some of the programs are down-right ridiculous, do they think they can appease us by having a soap and biased newcasting
This article seems to imply that every news article should come with a description of how the same story affects England. Am firmly pro Independence, but seeing conspiracy everywhere in the media isn’t going to achieve it. As has been pointed out elsewhere in the comments, the UK news bulletin broadcast the situation for England AND Scotland, the NE English bulletin pointed out the situation for England, and the Scottish bulletin likewise pointed out the situation for Scotland. Sometimes it’s the rational thinking on display here that’s so subtle you cannae see it.
“This article seems to imply that every news article should come with a description of how the same story affects England.”
The article doesn’t imply any such thing. What you infer from it is sadly outwith my control.
When can we get Real news in Scotland? One News broadcast.
Scottish Commissioner in the EU says ……..
Defence Secretary …………. announces date of Trident removal
Prime Minister Sturgeon welcomes President _ _ _ _ _ _ of the USA to speak at Holyrood
etc
Local news: man bites dog