Yeah, that definitely seems fine
Posted on
March 09, 2015 by
Rev. Stuart Campbell
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09 03 15 11:26
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09 03 15 11:42
Yeah, that definitely seems fine | Speymouth
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It’s concerted Cybernat baiting,we need to deal with this eloquently.
Regarding the second one – is it meant to imply that the SNP are mere puppets controlled entirely by the Tories and require radioactive shite for sustenance? I dunno.
Steve Bell crossed the line from satire to quasi-imperialism and racism a while ago it must be said.
I’ve got no time for people taking offence at everything up this is truly jaw dropping. I take it it’s meant to be funny? I don’t get it…
The propaganda war steps up a gear. I can smell their terror….. very similar to shite.
“Try anything once apart from incest and Morris dancing”
Can’t remember who said that. Will google.
Steve Bell has clearly list his mojo.
“Try anything once apart from incest and Morris dancing”
Can’t remember who said that. Will google.
Steve Bell has clearly lost his mojo.
That is absolutely appealing and shameful they really have gone to a whole new low surely that merits a law suit?
I am kind of glad they parody us. It means they really see us as a threat, to their establishment control.
20 years ago the SNP wouldnt have been mentioned by the English press. Now they are all over us like a rash.
I wonder why?
That looks more like Johann Lamont. And incest? If that’s the best they can do we’ve nothing to fear.
Free speech. He can say what he likes unless he defames somebody specific. You may think that he’s a diddy, which to me seems like a fair comment, but running around with our hands in the air is a bit Charlie Hebdo. In other words, calm down, it’s only a cartoon, nobody has died and you will get over it.
WTF are they gibbering aboot? Whats next. burning the Waverly novels and the works of Rabbie in a bonfire in Trafalgar square? My Lord it is a short walk from “we love you” to this.
This is getting close to rabid paranoia on the part of the English chattering class.
Be prepared for anything from now on and get down to your local SNP and work your socks off.
That seems to me to be both racist and sexist.
Satire and humour is fine, but this crosses the line. Mr Bell and the Guardian should be taken to task for this.
With the recent MP comment over the First Minister the Unionists can show that they can dig down to deeper depths than we can imagine. What next infanticide?
Sewer and cesspit comes to mind with that lot.
Aye, free speech right enough.
Disgusting.
And they wonder why their readership is dying. I’m surprised still so many people are buying this rag.
Yes, Steve Bell has crossed the line: it’s a vile cartoon.
The English press. What a disgrace. I suppose it makes them feel good to denigrate Scots. I note we have no such bigotry going the other way and yet we have many English folk whining about anti-English sentiment. You would need to be a saint not to be annoyed.
That green “stuff” is Bell’s representation of the Greens…Yeah!
I believe we should resort to that good old Scottish basic desire….
…Let’s take the pure Mickey out o’ Bell. Let’s laugh AT him.
Yup…that about sums up the opinions the of the London press towards Scotland
So the constant goading continues. *sigh*
I don’t think either of them would wear a MacLeod Tartan..
I am having trouble understanding the first one never mind the second. I always thought that political cartoons were meant to be funny as well as having some kind of message. Steve Bell fails dramatically on both counts. He is a loathsome creature!
Are we standing shoulder to shoulder in this great family of nations yet? 😉
I used to be a big fan of Steve Bell’s since his if cartoons in the time of Thatcher.
Yet another example of a lack of understanding of current Scottish politics.
Yet another source of disappointment along with Private Eye.
We are well past time for some militant action!
If that cartoon depicted people of colour while making British colonial sounding references to witch doctors & jungle drums, the paper would rightly be trashed for outdated, bigoted & racist attitudes.
But amongst the London Establishment, Scots are illogically exempt.
Grate Britain more like.
This cartoon has been brought to you courtesy of 2 million NO voters, who chose to remain in a country which treats Scotland’s voters and aspirations as one big joke.
Fucking hell.
That’s the level we’re down to now, is it?
Well, on the bright side, it speaks to a degree of tone-deaf political ineptitude that will be more or less defenceless when 40+ SNP grown-ups come down to London and start teaching those entitled, soft-headed expenses junkies and state-sponsored child-molesters how politics really works.
To paraphrase Gimli: Westminster is only still twitching because Nicola’s axe is embedded in its nervous system.
Seems the quote is attributed to Sir Thomas Beecham by most of Google.
No other country in the civilised world would allow such racist bile in their press. I suspect every Scottish no-voter is as disgusted as I am right now.
That has crossed the line.
Try replacing AS and NS with Black or Asian politicians and incest with Child grooming with Pakistani politicians as the but.
Come to think of it, they wouldn’t dare to do it to the Irish as they are independent and it would have caused a diplomatic incident.
Following on from David Hamilton’s misogynistic back-hander to the face of Nicola Sturgeon I am simmering in anger.
I wonder what the IPSO, or whatever name it goes under this week, has a clause about decency and incitement to violence.
I know a core function of a cartoonist is to lampoon and push the boundaries. This doesn’t do that and is just plain insulting. Insulting and vile to the extent that chanting that mantra would be criminally actionable in Scotland as a “breach of the peace.”
I wonder if that would be a route for someone to take in Scotland with Police Scotland?
Any takers?
Is this as bad as it gets from the Guardian? Anti Scots democracy Graun rage has been building up lately.
Try everything once expect incest and folk dancing but looks like even English phoney leftie Britnats down south will not allow Scottish MP’s in Westminster, and only loyal red tory.
Right I need to make a complaint before I fly to London and find this cunt.
Who do I write to?
Surely someone somewhere in Scotland has to chose this moment to press the charge of racism? This has gone on way way way too long now? This is just not acceptable in anyone’s book. Everyone knows there are limits.
As for the second cartoon, as the Major says re the SNP and the green turd is obviously the Green Party.
Where is UKIP?
Last time I saw Steve Bell he was an overweight, unkempt, boozer with a bad temper, who sat about and farted a lot.
I remember thinking, you should get out more often.
Rise above it all. They are leaderless, hopeless, and morally corrupt.
We are making history. We are driving a wedge into their cosy little privileged lives, where they claim expenses for garden furniture or cans of juice.
They fear change, because they have the most to lose. On the other hand, we have the most to gain.
Rise above their second rate efforts. Smile, breathe, and get the message out to the masses.
Oh dear.
Feelin’ the love.
Racism isn’t pretty, is it?
I’d just about calmed down after reading Massies “rivers of pish”article from yesterday as well.A new low indeed.
“For incest?…”
Disgusting rag.
And that’s from a paper which can also be read by children.
I think these Unionists should focus on cleaning up their own house (Westminster paedophiles) before casting false assertions elsewhere.
Mr Bell lost it a long time ago.
He is the unthreatening Cartoonist Laureate of the British Establishment.
Meanwhile, his paper and all the other members of Her Majesty’s loyal press ignore this.
https://commonspace.scot/articles/622/mp-accuses-government-of-covering-up-documents-relating-to-cyril-smith-child-abuse-allegations
…then they laugh at you ….. and then you win.
Disgraceful and overtly racist.
Crossing a legal line?
Some folks seem Hell bent on ending the Union … And they aren’t all Scottish Nationalists!
Tom: “Free speech. He can say what he likes unless he defames somebody specific. You may think that he’s a diddy, which to me seems like a fair comment, but running around with our hands in the air is a bit Charlie Hebdo. In other words, calm down, it’s only a cartoon, nobody has died and you will get over it.”
Why do people think “free speech” means “slag off whoever you like with impunity”? Free speech allows Bell to continuously show himself up as an anti-Scottish idiot – but it also allows us to criticise both him and the publication that didn’t think to go “err, Steve, could you maybe get back to us when you have something which is, you know, funny and satirical?”
If I was the grauniad editor, I’d be telling him to go back to the drawing board…
(Ba-doom TISH!)
Hey folks……Can you feel the love, I’m so glad Scotland voted No. We would have missed out on these types of things otherwise.
That is absolutely appalling and shameful they really have gone to a whole new low surely that merits a law suit?
What is the I will kill you with hammers thing is that someone hacked your site?
When will this love-bombing ever end? ????
Incest and Scottish country dancing – the cutting edge of British political satire.
I just feel so crushed 🙂
If Nicola says that the SNP will never agree to the renewal of Trident and that it is a red line issue, what processes in the Unionist brain change that statement into it is not a red line issue?
I realise that the use of the words brain and unionist in the same sentence could very well be an oxymoron.
To those on the comment feed that are raging… fine, that’s understandable to a degree, but by raging, screaming and moaning YOU’RE DOING EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT.
Stay calm and work your socks off to win GE2015 for the indy party of your choice.
Looks like Steve Bell needs some psychiatric help-that cartoon is simply sick, all politics aside.
He’s afraid, very, very afraid.
On a slightly different matter: Labour claiming responsibility for the good social change over the last 100 years. The best Home Rule deal for Scotland, which was control of all policy, including defence and foreign policy, was put forward and debated in 1913, but was stopped by WW1.
Now, in more ‘democratic’ times none of the parties want democracy for Scotland. They are all afraid, very, very afraid.
This is not funny at any time!
It is the thick end of the wedge. The thin edge on what is acceptable to say about people who want a free country having been trampled on years ago.
How did this get past the editor, what were the author or others who saw this thinking?
My view is that his should be drawn to attention of SNP and Scottish people so they can decide themselves what is acceptable, etc.
Doug McLean
I phoned up to make a complaint to BBC radio 4 this morning about appaling anti Scottish racism on the London/UK wide morning program.
Apparently a Tory alliance with UKIP to destroy the British economy is OK and not worthy of comment- and likewise a Tory alliance with the DUP threatening the Irish peace process is fine.
But God forbid any thought of a party representing Scotland in partnership in government. An alliance with the only party in the kingdom capable of balancing the books while protecting the vulnerable is beyond the pale.
Bells cartoon clearly is racist -please make a formal complaint.
About as funny as pulling teeth, Bell end dissed the dirt. Another one bites the dust. Guardian going down, down. Once it did fight injustice, now the Establishment mouthpiece, part of the elite. Part of the problem, now the elite, covered by the Official Secret’s Act.
Guardian have ruined the website in their bid for excess profits. Inaccessible. Poetic justice. Peaching to themselves. ‘Journalists’ should get out more. Feel the pulse.
It is not acceptable to use the word “incest” to insult the Scots and the current First Minister, and former First Minister.
The rUK wanted us to stay, and now the people of Scotland want the SNP to ensure delivery of Smith, end austerity and not to renew Trident,they don’t like it. Methinks the Tipping Point has been reached for this failed state.
Doug: Why do people think “free speech” means “slag off whoever you like with impunity”?
It doesn’t mean that. It means slag off whatever you like with impunity. See Denmark for reference, a nation where nothing is off-piste, unless it’s personal. They seem quite well adjusted.
This clown obviously thinks Jo Lamont’ is Nicky Sturgeon
Remember this is what the Brit establishment do when threatened. Look at this cartoon from the period of the Irish struggles against them 95 years ago.
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTjRAFHk4Sr39GXIQ-xY-6jpK7zlVj-YOV7pkqXs-xtKP6qHO7r
and we know what happened next folks…..
Can’t you just feel the love.
Clearly democracy only suits them, if Scotland votes to have a load of seat warmers.
Vote SNP, give Scotland a voice.
Steve Bell in racist pandering to childish stereotypes shocker. He’s been absolutely garbage for years. Someone pointed out that George W Bush looked like a monkey once and he dined out on that for years in his cartoons.
Well this has made me change my mind.
I was going to vote SSP because I have never believed in tactical voting. I have voted SNP since I was able to vote (except, obviously, when I lived in England) and this was to be the first time when in Scotland that I wouldn’t.
So, SNP for me once more.
I am truly disgusted and heartily sick of being portrayed by Westminster politicians and the right-wing media as a subsidy junky, a whinger, a virus, a Nazi, a Commie, and so on. And now we Scots in this ‘family’ of nations are incestuous.
So if we are incestuous and we’re in a family with England perhaps he’s right as I hope Scotland fucks England over this general election.
I have no problem with English people (who are like any other – good and bad), the countryside and some towns are beautiful but this ‘England’ Establishment mindset is starting to make me quite resentful.
Proof, if it were needed, that we’re all Better Together.
Not…
Satire in the Guardian is dead. For Whom The Bell Tolls? It tolls for Steve…
Anybody notice that in the 2nd drawing in the first cartoon, Nicola appears to have a little Hitler Moustache.
Personally I think this is brilliant, the Brit establishment are afraid, very afraid. We got close to ending a abusive relationship six months ago, more of this “rough wooing” and the end is nigh.
Wow. Allan Massie, John Major and Steve Bell all spewing vicious anti-Scot bullshit these past few days. As ever, I do a wee test – how would this sound if you replaced “Scots” with “blacks.”
“If the blacks are allowed to rule England…”
“Our red lines are jazz and incest.”
It would be utterly unacceptable racist abuse and would simply not be tolerated by right-thinking people. This kind of thing MUST be highlighted and MUST be stopped. Steve Bell should be fucking ashamed of himself and should be publicly shamed for his attitude. It wouldn’t be so bad if half of them didn’t spend their time accusing US of vicious anti-English racism while completely ignoring the planks in their own eyes.
They’ll whine and bleat that it’s “just a cartoon” and “it’s all light-hearted banter” and je suis fucking Charlie, but it is part of a broader movement in the English press to exclude Scotland from British democracy. It has to stop and it has to stop NOW.
Enough bullshit. Call the cops on these idiots.
I hope the merriment and glee regarding this supposed implosion of Slab stops and stops right now, this lot have on a daily basis access to a compliant media ,even though this vote SNP get Tory mantra has been ridiculed its working this type of junk worked during the referendum they get away with it again this daily Labour to be wiped out in Scotland story is free publicity for them it will make sure their supporters and those easily swayed by fear again support this lot it worked the last time remember September ?
@
Paul patience says:
9 March, 2015 at 9:59 am
“Right I need to make a complaint before I fly to London and find this cunt.”
A wee bit of advice, if you are serious.
1 Someone, somewhere is already trying to find out who you are, just in case.
2 Don’t take a hammer with on the plane, as cabin baggage as it will be confiscated.
Only being satirical Officer.
…. and anyway, exactly what have the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, with patron HM Queen Elizabeth of Scots, done to offend the Guardian?
I trust there will shortly be an apology to the Palace 🙂
Steve Bell slips from the gutter into sewers.
This is an insult to Charlie Hebdo, the SNP and all those victims of sexual abuse.
Bell wears pants under his kilt. Undercover Agent of the Official Secrets Act. Major, Straw, Balls, Osbourne, Alexander, Cameron and Rifkind favourites.
I think what both mean, is that regardless of who we vote for, we’re imposing something the rest of the UK doesn’t want.
If we vote labour we’re imposing a labour gov on the uk
If we vote Green/SSP or anything else – we’re imposing a labour gov on the UK.
If we vote SNP we’re imposing a labour and a tory gov on the UK.
In short we went from a cherished neighbour and the jam in their jelly roll, to an existential threat to the fabric of the UK. We are banquo’s ghost, the ghost of the commandant in Don Giovanni and the spirit of Xmas past/present & future. And we have scared them shitless.
The mask of banal unionism as slipped. Their terror of our influence has extended beyond the SNP and is extended to all parties.
We are The lords of Misrule. The Lords of Chaos. We are Godlike, malign & are known to bear malice. The Thames will foam with the blood of the innocent. etc etc.
Bell is just picking up on this Bilious froth that passes for cogent debate.
I am going to have to stop now as my Hyperbole & plausibility mincer is backing up with crud.
I am so angry at this today. What is he implying, that all Scots (or is it just the SNP supporting ones) are incestuous cretins?
Urgh, it just gives you all the warm and fuzzy feels.
That’s the last time I buy the Guardian.
As someone said above it is paraphrasing the conductor Thomas Beecham: try anything once except incest and folk dancing.
It is a story Steve Jones uses to talk about genetics. He used it before explaining how closely related we are but here I cannot see the link beyond a generalised slur.
RE: Free speech…
The Guardian are free to print whatever they like, but I am free to tell them that what they are printing is absolute pish and refuse to purchase their newspaper, click their links, and take part in their below the line discussions.
Brian W
Big LOL!
I know I have twisted sense of humour I laugh inappropriately all the time at stuff, but I am struggling even to get giggle out of this, which sadly can only mean one thing it’s not funny…………… call me nat with knicker in twist if you like but I know humour and this is an epic fail.
This makes me fill sick to the stomach
To use child abuse , Incest to attack Nicola & SNP is sick beyond belief
So they can get away with calling Scots inbred but if we said it about the English we would be hauled into court for inciting racial hatred? Maybe this racism should be reported to ipso and maybe the police aswell.
Incest must be a reference to all David Hamiltons “brothers and sisters” in the Labour Party.
Because they are well f**ked!
Just give them love back, and enjoy the early hours of 8th May 2015, they are just full of hate.
Just makes me very sad
If this is love, what is hate?
It’s not a good cartoon and it is not “biting” in its satire/humour! (It’s not funny at all)
I compare this to the quality of Greg Moody and Chris Cairns and therefore consider it pitiful.
I’m not outraged just amused by the lack of skill.
“Only a cartoon” – in isolation, yes, it is only a cartoon. But this is not in isolation: this is part of a much larger anti-Scots narrative which is being propogated and exacerbated. Taken on it’s own, it can be laughed off, but it’s the drip, drip, drip, constant, incessant, unending, which does damage.
And it IS anti-Scots. How can you chalk it up to being criticism of individual politicians when Scottish culture is being used in and of itself as a punchline? “Ho ho, Scottish country dancing, isn’t that funny!?” Dressing the First Minister of Scotland in a kilt, or being played like bagpipes, or as a haggis. All this besides depicting Scots as sponging, whinging, backwards, racist, xenophobic and now incestuous subsidy junkies.
Since the referendum, it’s only gotten worse. You remember how London-centric journalists equated the independence movement with the SNP and Alex Salmond, as if the Greens and SSP and non-party supporters didn’t exist? That meant an attack on the SNP and Alex Salmond was a de facto attack on the independence movement, and its supporters, regardless of their political affiliations. Now that the referendum’s over, the SNP are projected to be the biggest party, and Alex Salmond’s going to Westminster. Now the narrative is no longer independence=SNP/Alex Salmond, but Scots=SNP/Alex Salmond.
So we get hand-wringing articles from Massie and Hastings and Mensch about “the Scots” running Westminster. Not “the SNP.” Not “Alex Salmond.” Scots. Yes and No voters are counted alike = as sponging, whinging, backwards, racist, xenophobic and now incestuous subsidy junkies. Scots, as a whole, have become the enemy, because they dared to push for the greater powers which Westminster “vowed.”
Well, it’s what Better Together wanted, isn’t it? They wanted One Scotland. Now they got it – only it isn’t the One Scotland they, or their masters in London, wanted. And now all Scots, even if they voted No, even if they vote New Labour/NeoLibDem/Tory/UKIP, even if they’re pro-Trident & pro-UK, are lumped in with those dreadful cybernats. They have a choice, now: do they want to be part of that One Scotland under the SNP, or are they willing to let the Tories continue to destroy it?
eloquently kick his baws
wtf?
Last time I saw Steve Bell was on ITV news coverage of that first Labour conference Milliband speech where not so Red Ed went speech note free and had just sacked poor old Morphy from Defence for kicks.
What a mess it was but Bell was in the front row and he stuck out with that beard but mainly with a look of quite creepy ecstasy, less man crush more idolatry for the saviour wunderkind.
Unfortunately prodigal Ed’s turned out to be just one shade less blue than your average Tory boy, so now we’re getting a kicking. He’s still funny Bell, a coward and bully sure but someone has to at least attempt phoney progressive liberal teamGB satire.
If Scottish democracy’s done anything for England, its really exposed the incredible stench of UKOK middle England hypocrisy to high heaven.
Here’s a though
What say Chris Cairns or Greg Moodie do a reverse version of that with David Cameron and Margaret Thatcher in the place of, and the catchline is
Morris Dancing and Paedophilia?
I know neither of our cartoonists would do that because it is just tasteless but, sauce for the goose etc.
Could you imagine the apoplectic explosion for “England”, whipped up to a lynching level of frenzy by the Guardian?
I believe that Polly Toynbee will be doing some appearance in Scotland for some reason or other.
Anyone want to turn up and ask her opinion about that cartoon in her treasured Guardian?
Aw, c’mon. There’s nothing like a good satirical cartoon……and this is nothing like a good satirical cartoon.
Greg Moodie he ain’t.
@Tom
Free speech. He can say what he likes unless he defames somebody specific.
_____
No he cannot, this is racism. You try saying or printing something dereogatory about the English, Welsh, Irish or jews and muslims and you will quickly find yourself in court so why is it okay to imply that Scots fuck their own siblings and children, that is what the dickhead implied.
I challenge mr bell to do the same to Islam if he hs the balls
Panda makes a great satirical point; a racist cartoon from the land of…
Morris dancing and paedophilia.
Where is oor friendly Will Podmore to explain it all to me .
I just do not get it …… Will …. ffs
I like a good laugh as much as the next man, but they have taken this too far. I have reported this to Police Scotland. It cannot be described as anything other than a hate crime. If it had happened below the line and been directed at the Welsh, English, Irish, Africans, Muslims, Jews it would have been described as vile cybernattery of the lowest order and would have acres of coverage.
Am I alone in being delighted at seeing this filth?
We are clearly winning and as Alex might say we are a furlong ahead going into the last furlong.
They now want us to get enraged and do something stupid but most of us are clearly not stupid.
If you read any stupidity like the K word or militancy please just suspect trolling.
“Work our socks of” is the clever thing to do!
BO Bell strikes again. Time him and the shitrag he doodles for were brought to task.
i made a comment at the Guardian cartoon. I just used the one word: Racist.
– that was it and then it was removed! by the moderator of the comments page. Hmmmm
i have now unsubscribed.
So, how does this freedom of speech thing work then?
– Il est un charlatan.
With Scottish MPs outnumbered 11 to 1 at Westminster, May 7th represents a unique opportunity for Scotland’s voice to be heard and the more SNPs that are elected then Scotland will get a better deal than the pathetic Smith Commission proposals that have been trashed by leading economists and by leading figures in the voluntary sector.
From having seen some of Steve Bells work before, I knew he harboured an unhealthy hatred towards Scotland.
Clearly the man has some sort of psychological problems and deep seated mental issues, which he has difficulty dealing with.
An ultra childish, and desperately unfunny cartoon.
god……..chortle….
Taranaich
Well said.
I think it’s really quite simple.
The British establishment is at war with Democratic Scots.
They know it & are fighting it. We, on the other hand..
On the subject of Cartoonist, check out the double standards of the French:
http://www.davidicke.com/headlines/french-cartoonist-zeon-arrested-for-anti-zionist-work/
@Tom 9.50am
“Somebody specific”
Can you not tell that’s clearly meant to be Nicola Sturgeon?
This quasi-racist attempt at humour so annoyed me I thought i’d check I was on the electoral register. Turns out I am not, despite having voted last Sept.
This could turn out to be a big issue. I have heard that those who were on the register/roll last Sept are still okay to vote in May but I am not certain. To avoid doubt, go to
http://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
with your National Insurance number and get registered.
I guess it is the only way to get back at the likes of Bell.
If you click to be on the Open register you will have your details offered up to anyone willing to pay for ’em. So avoid that option.
I see that anyone and their dog can get a postal vote – so plenty of room for postal vote fraud to commence, a la the Referendum last year.
Steve Bell is a cartoonist who takes the rip out of a host of characters including Cameron et al. Free Speech aside maybe we shouldn’t take too much offence at a cartoon? Mr Bell’s ‘agenda’ is to annoy and entertain in equal measure – painting this as the great liberal/labour agenda is not entirely accurate.
Minute I saw the cartoon I wrote to the Guardian. My post attracted six upvotes in one minute before the moderator-police pulled it. Anybody tell me what’s “inappropriate” about this?
Oh dear, I didn’t think he could stoop any lower but he has.
I posted this a couple of months ago after another of his breath-taking insults directed against the Scots. Might as well wheel it out again . . .
I am inclined to the view that Bell has become (or maybe always was) that particularly obnoxious type of Anglo-British nationalist of whom there are only too many in this little island.
Quite some time ago, his brand of narrow-minded insularity and racism was one of the numerous traits of the English noted by another satirist – an Irish one – who, by the way, would not have allowed Bell’s tongue to have come anywhere near his footwear.
You’ll have heard it before no doubt but, in response to Bell and his ‘followers’ on CiF, Jonathan Swift’s opinions are worth repeating here.
You may recall he put his views into the mouth of the King of Brobdingnag who, following Gulliver’s boastful description of his English countrymen and their institutions replied:
“I cannot but conclude the bulk of your natives to be the most pernicious race of little odious vermin that nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth.” (Gulliver’s travels Part II, Chapter VI)
Now, Steve, that’s what I call satire – funny isn’t it?
I just don’t get Bell’s cartoon. In order for a punch line to be funny it needs an element of truth in it. Neither incest or country dancing has the slightest relevance to the SNP, the polls, policy or the election. It is just a UKIP type insult.
Bell’s biggest sin is that the cartoon isn’t funny.
What about the guardian editor
Oh that looks fine steve,nothing wrong with the script,maybe put in a few extra tartan colours
wtf
So if the gloves are coming off can we associate the british state with the harbouring of child abusers and child murderers. Maybe a documentary detailing the amount of people labour have murdered?
I’m so infuriated that I have skipped straight to comment, so sorry if someone else has said this.
If those were two black people or two muslims depicted in that “cartoon”, the feet of the person behind it wouldn’t touch the ground. They would be charged with a Racial Breach of the Peace, have a night in the cells and appear in court the next day.
That is a Racist slur, period.
I can’t (because it would compromise me), but I would urge someone to report this matter to a local Police Station.
In Law, If a comment or action etc. is perceived as a racial Breach, then it must be dealt with.
I recall from last year that there was a cartoon of Alex Salmond as a dead haggis/set of bagpipes dripping blood and being carried off the hill as bagged by two presumably English hunters. This kind of shit has to be stopped.
Let them vilify us, as mentioned in previous posts, they are scared. The SNP cannot be controlled by English voters(they detest being helpless) so we end up with cartoonists having a go at us, who can’t draw and are not funny.
I am more interested in the opinions of Scottish Lab/Cons/Libs voters who see this, what do they think?? Do they side with this guy or the Scottish populace?
I never did buy the Guardian when all the trendy Brit lefties were drooling over Tory Wedgwood Benn. If I said that about Morris Dancers and female Labourites I would have been called rycist.
Pol Clem
As mentioned before in the comments feel free to have any minority (Blacks, Jews, Muslims, Pakistanis, Poles etc) put in place and see how ‘funny’ it is.
It would simply not be tolerated
I note this funny as cancer cretin has already been reported to the press complaints commission over nazi imagery. This deserves another complaint. Chocolate teapot time.
I would email in to complain about it but I’ve got to shag my sister and listen to Jimmy Shand this afternoon.
This cartoon is how many English folk already see us and our politicians. The Westminster parties and the mainstream media are doing their best to stoke the fireof anti-Scottish sentiment. Ultimately it is to our advantage if they get so sick of us whinging jocks that they just want rid. Every time I see something like this I smile because it takes us a step further down the road. It’s another hammer blow on the big wedge being driven between us and the rest of the UK.
What ever Steve Bell comes out with, we should not go down into the same sewer. There isn’t enough pot holing equipment around to get that far down!
This does though, reflect a widely promoted type of English humour and is xenophobic.
Discussing our Scottish humour with my English in-laws, the response to “what is your equivalent to deep fried Mars bars ? ” was ” deep fried Muslims “.
And this is from people who are invariably generous hosts etc, but clearly you have to be ” in “.
Lazy cultural mistake.
Sir Thomas Beecham said ‘Try everything once, except morris dancing and incest.’
Steve Bell has picked up on that, and assumes that Scottish Country Dancing is much the same thing.
Too obviously ignorant to be properly offensive.
If meant to be comedy, an epic fail.
As an insult, which I think was the aim it succeeded.
If you substituted Nicola Sturgeon’s head with any other foreign country’s elected representative and the word Scottish by the word Jewish or Arabic or Muslim Guardian heads would roll.
@Brian Powell 10:07am
There was an interesting programme on BBC2 Scotland last night (not broadcast down south, as far as I can make out) about the use of highlanders during WW1.
Essentially, we were a source of canon fodder and it really didn’t matter that whole communities were effectively doomed through loss of significant numbers of breadwinners.
It can be viewed here http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b04yl5ln/the-highlanders-war
Iv’e had many cases of love that were just infatuation,but this loathing I feel for BBC/MSM is the real thing.
The Daily Mail finally switched to broadsheet?
Well Well. Who would’ve thunkit! Let’s encourage him. Dimwit. The more s***e they spew, the more we win. And there is still 2 months to go! Go Stevie boy Go!
Author_al says:
“Satire in the Guardian is dead. For Whom The Bell Tolls? It tolls for Steve…”
For Whom The Bells Trolls…surely 😉
Satire???? Surely that would require a modicum of intelligence. Looking at the so called cartoons, they look like they have been drawn by an infant who has found a packet of crayons…..and the content is from the same age group.
Ron-this is a new one on me that the English perceive us as relative shaggers!
@ Taranaich 10:33am
EBC weather this morning had a grey picture with a umbrella in colour which was a Union Flag.
Am I paranoid? Don’t think so. Subliminal messages.
The cartoonist isn’t that good when he draws Susan Boyle in a strange way. I would ignore it. It proves that they are worried.
Nana posted a link to the telling off given to Labour this morning by the Scottish Sun’s Andy Nicoll. That is more important;
https://twitter.com/stephenpaton134/status/574848873501495296
“You can always tell a London politician from a normal politician by the company he keeps: his bank and his rent boys.” GB
https://grousebeater.wordpress.com/2015/03/08/a-weirder-weekend/
The linked ‘toon is an illustration of Bell’s archaic mindset.
Green Crap in one hand and a Sturgeon puppet in the other of a Dave Cameron with an English flag painted on his head.
That’s a typical right-on Britnat belief system about UK politics in full colour:
British nationalism (ahem, “Patriotism”) is a wonderful, unifying internationalism, as compared to the evil divisive nationalism of any of the UK’s components;
The SNP and the Tories are conspiring to destroy Great British Labour with their un-British nationalisms;
The ancient imbalances of the UK constitution don’t need to be examined;
The Green Party and all other left-of-centre parties are right-wing stalking horses meant to destroy the True Left of the Labour Party.
Somewhere there’s a retiring Labour MP laughing away as someone reads the cartoon to him.
I note that he depicts NS as a neanderthal with a continuous eyebrow.
Really quite scary.
Incest ?
That’s rich coming from a country that has the monarchy as head of state !
Wonder where the English get this warmongering, jingoistic, arrogant, racist, obnoxious superiority complex from? Living on past glories? They are an amoeba on the world stage now but still think they are a serious player. I detest these no voters that have lumbered us with this lot.
Excellent. Nicely on schedule..
First they ignore you..check.
Then they ridicule you..check
Than they fight you…
Then you win.
Looking forward to May. With thanks to MK Gandhi.
If we’re awe Jock Tamsons bairns, then Steve Bell must be the PLACENTA .
@Taranaich at 10.33
Excellent comment. Much appreciated.
“nemo me impune lacessit” which translates to “no one provokes me with impunity” Yes it shows they are running scared, and that we are doing something right. From indy-ref to now, the one thing we have exposed is how the establishment closes ranks & swings it’s propaganda machines into action, from daily rags to mainstream TV, from supermarkets to banks, watch & learn as come next indy-ref we know what to expect.. The best way to react to provocation like this is to get active in your local SNP campaign & make sure we send as many MP’s down to the corrupt cesspit that they call THEIR WM & expose their lies, hypocrisy & downright illegal actions..
Just submitted my complaint.
http://www.theguardian.com/info/complaints-and-corrections
Steve Bell has obviously used up what little wit he had of his own and had to scrape the bottom of Bernard Manning’s barrel. Or maybe he just scraped Bernard’s bottom. A very sad individual.
Maybe Steve Bell knows a lot about incest I don’t know.
This is racism at it’s worst, this should be reported and acted upon end of.
What happened to the “Love ” I ask. Oh well that will truly ended now that the Scots vote democratically! Meanwhile everything is fine, as long as we allow Westminster et al, to do whatever they want with us, without consequence.
But the cat is out of the bag…..
@Author-Al (10.44) –
Thanks for the heads-up about registering.
Just did it (only took two minutes) and it turns out I wasn’t on it either. Mind you, that could be because I’ve used my full name on some official stuff in the past, so I’m assuming that’s why I didn’t show up. Best to be safe though.
Of course it’s vile , of course it’s provocative ,it’s meant to be and it’s because they fear us like they always have, that’s the only reason to do this and it shows we’ve gotten to them
So boys and girls, lets do what we are the best at
Lets be funnier than them
I’ll guarantee you they’ll lose the plot first
I mean read the posts, i keep looking at it and there’s no joke it’s just offensive
I’m funnier then that in my sleep
“So lets get oot there and stick it tae thae cartoonists”
see what i did there!!!!!
@ Joemcg says:
9 March, 2015 at 11:03 am
“Wonder where the English get this warmongering,
jingoistic, arrogant, racist, obnoxious superiority complex from? Living on past glories? They are an amoeba on the world stage now but still think they are a serious player.”
———-from a few centuries ago.
Alexis de Tocqueville
b 1805 d 1859
The French want no-one to be their superior. The English want inferiors. The Frenchman constantly raises his eyes above him with anxiety. The Englishman lowers his beneath him with satisfaction.
Not a lot has changed.
It was once a commonly held belief in Scotland that the English were born with tails, which had to be docked. At the christening of Jamed VI the English delegation were mortified when their tables were served by satyrs with big long tails and so upset were they at this slight that one of their number wouldn’t eat his dinner and faced the wall. 🙂
This was the guy who did Maggie’s Farm?
I am astounded – he’s lost the plot.
Incest? I think we have been treated to an unwanted peek at the inner workings of Mr Bells sick mind.
Good luck to those that want to try their hand on the threads, but I now bear in mind that you can’t really wrestle with pigs without feeling shitty, and the pigs like it anyway.
I noted Will Podmores comment about the cartoon being vile, so well said, Will. I think you know well, we do not hate on the English, only Westminster.
I thought two things when I saw it, at least Muslims are getting a rest, and hopefully, right minded people will see how vile the cartoon is. It appeals to the very lowest common denominator.
I would say they are scared, but shame on those editors that let this, and Massies article through.
The “cartoon” above is firstly pathetic.
It has been created with the minimum of thought and effort.
If i were a political cartoonist i would be seriously embarrassed and ashamed to claim that as one of my efforts.
However, as we can clearly see, the clown who created it uses racial stereotyping and promotes a vile lie that the SNP believe in incest.
It’s a pathetically childish effort but this sort of stuff should be challenged.
For far too long certain elements of English society have gotten away with this racial stereotyping. Remember how dramas such as The Bill always portrayed the Scot as the rapist, alcoholic, child abuser, wife beater, junky etc etc etc.
It was almost standard practice for any Scot in these programmes to be cast as the villain and we should not be accepting it.
What’s that old saying? Something along the lines of:
“All it takes for evil to prosper is for good folk to do nothing.”
http://www.ipso.co.uk/IPSO/index.html
If the clown who created that garbage wants to learn how to be a real political cartoonist, may i suggest you study our own Chris Cairn’ works, you might learn a thing or two but be aware plagiarism is illegal.
Tom: “It doesn’t mean that. It means slag off whatever you like with impunity. See Denmark for reference, a nation where nothing is off-piste, unless it’s personal. They seem quite well adjusted.”
You’re missing the point though – free speech extends both ways. Yes, he has the freedom to call us incestuous country dancers, but others have the freedom to get pissed off about it. I’d be very surprised if people in Denmark react any differently to humans everywhere else.
As to the cartoon. Nicola’s a glove puppet ( of who I don’t know ).
England’s a TIT ( self explanatory )
The Green thing, ah bakers experiment with Merengue.
put it this way, if this was an African, Chinese or Pakistani people and culture they are trashing would this cartoon see the light of day? This is no different than a Ukipper going bongo bongo land on television.
Now I’m all for free speech and I’m happy for them to have their cake simply because they reveal themselves as not the enlightened well-educated middle-class press for the masses they think they are. Instead it casts a light on themselves and the readership they reflect. This is a suburbia of curtain twitching racists that have allowed the rise of a multitude of extreme right-wing groups to take hold in their communities, not because they are the silent majority, but they agree with them to some extent and see someone like Nigel Farage as a champion of the people.
So what we have here are people who can’t stand to be English, dress up their embarrassments in a British mask but actually only love the union if it is exclusively on their own terms. I’ve said it before on here, the denizens of the SE bubble love the Scottish scenery but don’t want the people that go with it.
Scotland is an important cash cow to the Treasury, we own 10 per cent of the British economy. That is the bottom line, take that away and there is a collapse, but it is also colossal leverage for us. All this fear of the Jock is dressed up as something to laugh at and nothing can upset where the power is, where the influence comes from and where the money goes. Reality of the situation is Britain is bankrupt and Scotland is key to fiscal recovery.
Smell the fear folks, they are choking on it.
Panda: They are an amoeba on the world stage
How many amoebas does it take to change a light bulb?
One.
No, two- wait!
Four- hold on!
Eight-sixteen… bloody hell, thirty-two…
(Fight bad jokes with good jokes!) 🙂
Love bombed in the Referendum.
Hate bombed in the General Election.
The Establishment can do/say what they want about Scotland with impunity because the majority of Scottish citizens voted to keep the Establishment yoke around our neck.
Both sides of the House of Commons are controlled by the same Establishment (banks,multinational business empires)and it has been since the days of the East India Company (Founded: December 31, 1600)and the thought of the SNP getting in the way of their control of the public purse will not be tolerated.
The Establishment control the political system the legal system the security services the media so they have multiple options in taking you out of their way and it looks like all are being used to destroy a strong uncorrupted SNP and anyone that dares to support the SNP.
Democracy is a sham, we live in and always have a Plutocracy,pay your taxes watch your soaps do your 9 to 5 but do not ever start thinking for yourself, believe me it aint good for your health.
@ Tackety Beets at 10.39
Credit where credit’s due – Will has already commented (at 9.53) that the cartoon is vile. I appreciate his taking the time to post that, given the sort of reception he usually gets.
Well I do hope that those who thought they were better together with these people are happy. Nothing surprises me about Steve Bell his Referendum Cartoons were equally disgusting. I think we should say to people that they are not discriminating that this is all Scots.
Take screenshots of your comments. The Guardian are deleting even the non-offensive ones.
Could the glove puppet and luminous turd be party of an acid flashback?
I would just add that in Scots Law for a Racial Breach of the Peace to have occurred, it need not be the intended victim/s that make the complaint, in fact a bystander who perceives the comment etc as racist can make a complaint and the intended victim may even refuse to provide a complaint.
Is the cartoon an example of British Jock & Awe?
Good morning You beautiful Peoples.
Some people somewhere don’t like us do they,never mind.
Jesus Loves us as WE know
Don’t you Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, he canny hear me he must be still readin the Guardian. I’ll try him later oan.
re my post above and Breach of The Peace
from Wiki
The Scottish Law definition of a breach of the peace is “conduct severe enough to cause alarm to ordinary people and threaten serious disturbance to the community.[8]”
A constable may arrest any person, without warrant, who commits a breach of the peace. A member of the public may not arrest a person for behaviour which amounts to no more than a breach of the peace (i.e. an arrest is not always for the offence for which someone is eventually prosecuted but can be for a more serious crime that appears to be occurring).
Breach of the peace can include, but is not limited to, any riotous behaviours (which includes ‘rowdiness’ or ‘brawling’) and any disorderly behaviour. This behaviour doesn’t have to be noisy but still of a nature that would cause concern to other people. Examples include ‘Peeping Tom’-type behaviour, persistently following someone, delivering ‘threatening’ letters and ‘streaking’ or ‘mooning’.
To prove a Breach of the Peace the most important things to prove is that someone was Alarmed, Annoyed or Disturbed by the incident.
Anybody here been
Alarmed, Annoyed or Disturbed? by that
Seems to me this could be tested in court.
Anybody reported this to Police Scotland as a “breach”?
That “hilarious” cartoon may not be eligible for a criminal charge INCITEMENT TO RACIAL HATRED, but as a former police officer, I would be inclined to seek a standard BREACH OF THE PEACE infraction against the miscreants as it fulfils the general lawbreaking definition…
“To prove a Breach of the Peace: The most important things to prove is that people were Alarmed, Annoyed or Disturbed by the incident.”
Then again, if any of us here on WoS did make a formal complaint to Police Scotland the acidic vile contemptible Guardian would trot out the “Whinging Jocks with no sense of humour” excuses.
Probably best to role with the punches.
But here’s the thing, and this is directed to UNIONIST READERS AND UNIONIST JOURNALISTS that visit this Wings Over Scotland website.
I WAS A LIFELONG LABOUR VOTER. All I want is for my country to be governed well. Hence I lent my vote to the SNP in 2007. The SNP did what they promised. Governed well. That’s excellent as far as I am concerned.
All the Guardian and their ilk do by insulting me and my countrymen and women with this excrement is make my vote – and it seems many others – stick even more with the SNP. You aint going to get this Labour voter back by insulting ex Labour voters! Nor I suspect hundreds of thousands of other Scots.
So Grauniad, you are marked zero out of ten for that puerile cartoon garbage.
Try harder or lose. Big time.
Methinks you are going to lose Scotland. Heavens above to think I wasted so many votes over decades ticking the Scottish Labour ballot. Just to send deadwood troughing MP lobby fodder down from Scotland to Westminster.
I feel far far more comfortable with the SNP fold now, and a lot cleaner for some reason?
For example, is it because Labour KILL DISABLED PEOPLE with their TOXIC welfare cuts introduced by Labour Minister James Purnell and obscenely revelled in by Iain Duncan Smith? This is a fact neither party can get away from nor wash their hands of the blood stains. Just Google “Welfare Reform Deaths”.
That is one example that will come back and bite those Westminster Yes Minister types in the backside.
The SNP have a DECENT set of policies that the real Labour Party would, or should be proud of. Looking after students, pensioners, the disabled, business [Small Business Rates Bonus Scheme helped us create over 100 jobs] – the whole SNP package is good.
But Labour? All we have now is the ghost of Labour led by a cadaver of a SLAB person.
I’m off for a while in disgust at the New Labour Party, Scottish Branch, and that vile rag of a newspaper.
Steve Bell,
Is that it?
Is that the best you can do?
Bring it on.
Gary
Free speech and political cartoons are one thing; racism is another. Replace Nikki ‘n’ Eck with a couple of black people in grass skirts with bones through their noses and this is a court case. Imperialism still rules in some quarters.
It truly is war ‘twixt The Establishment and Scots. The Establishment will learn on May 7th that there is only going to be one winner.
Hail Alba
G H Graham
Best quip of the day.
SNP still polling well in the latest UK poll from Populus – 49%
scott says:
“Maybe Steve Bell knows a lot about incest I don’t know.”
scott, my thought exactly!
😉
Where else would he get such a thought? Especially when you consider the fact that there has never even been one single incident associating the SNP with his subject matter.
This behaviour is typical of bullies in retreat – when you challenge them or their ideas they start name-calling. Tragic! We should never stoop to it!
@Author_Al
You have to check with your local office and not that link you provided as that does not contain a UK register and if you are already registered it removes you and starts again.
Only if you are not registered then use that.
I think they are deliberately trying to confuse us.
Steve Bell is a racist anti Scottish arse but it will be dismissed because the Scots are not a race according to WM.
This is being done to wind us up and god help me there are still folk out there who support Lab.
We have to win this election so please anyone with any spare cash support your local candidate crowd fund.
Labour not only have Blair’s blood money but also access to tax exile millionaires.
If we don’t get a big number of SNP candidates into WM we might as well crawl under a stone and stay there.
The naivete of the Scottish BritNat makes me despair we now have a BT journalist who is astonished at the exhibition in London about British history which is all about England – where has she been, are these people blind – it’s always been like that
@ GB
How many Californians does it take to change a light bulb.
Three
One to do it and two to share the experience.
Boom boom!
Terrified people in blind panic mode do and say very stupid things. Steve Bell is in some distinguished company in this regard. Expect more of this nonsense over the next few weeks.
The writing is on the wall, chaps. Did anyone expect the British establishment, so used to having it all their own way, to go quietly?
“Is the cartoon an example of British Jock & Awe?”
Its hard core thuggery and its only going to get worse. Would the Guardian publish/replace Nic Sturgeon and Alex Salmond with any Islamic politicians anywhere?
All that’s happening is voters in Scotland voting in the UK and after having been begged, threatened and endlessly lied at, all to make us remain in their strange union. And that’s all, nothing more, nothing less.
Liz-the most astonishing thing I read was that quite a lot of these “naive” Brit Nats said they have never heard of or had any problem with Scottish money down south!! Life must be peachy in their little Brit Nat bubble.
Just complained to the readers editor at the Guardian about my perfectly reasonable comment being removed “Je suis Charlie – by Steve Bell is a racist”
Phone: +44 (0)20 3353 4736 between 10am and 1pm UK time
Steve Bell is basically the Jim Davidson of political cartoons now. Complete waste of time with painfully unfunny stereotypes.
Martin Rowson is simply light-years ahead of him now and actually has something to say as well as a sharp pen and a social conscience.
BrianW says:
9 March, 2015 at 9:56 am
I thought it was the yellow Barclay tartan.
I typed – “anti scottish racist caricature”
into google images and half a dozen of Steve Bell’s efforts came up on the first page.
Racially aggravated behaviour (section 50A(1)(b) of the Criminal Law (Consolidation)(Scotland) Act 1995)
This is the correct piece of legislation.
Dcanmore wrote:
“I’ve said it before on here, the denizens of the SE bubble love the Scottish scenery but don’t want the people that go with it.”
On reading that i am reminded of a line from Braveheart, when the English king says, “The trouble with Scotland is it’s full of Scots.”
Nuff said!
🙂
Bell.
End.
Credit to Will at 9.53.
Un-acknowledged fear can cause you to do some pretty foolish things Mr Bell. Scotland is gonna need to open some windows because the stench of it from down your way is eye-watering.
I agree we should keep the heid but some well aimed complaints are also in order.
We have them running 🙂
A jailable offence if it was about Pakistan or suchlike, fortunately we don’t do knickerwetting up here.
In the event of a Labour minority government, would the SNP be prepared to support the Tories to confound Labour?
Better an Englishman as an enemy than a friend. As an enemy he will try to bribe you, as a friend he will try to sell you.
or
Better an Englishman as an enemy than a friend. As an enemy he will flatter you, as a friend he will insult you.
Feel free to use it Mr Bell of the Guardian.
Probably the most worrying aspect of this racist cartoon is how it demonstrates how even the non-Tory press and (presumably) the neutral BBC has been so thoroughly deflected by Cameron and the Tories from discussing the economy, austerity and the existential threat to the public sector.
Even though the polls show Labour and Tories on 272 MPs each – it is ONLY Labour being challenged on the potential option of an alliance with the SNP. NO-ONE is challenging the Tories on their presumed alliance with UKIP who want to destroy the British economy by taking us out of Europe – or the possible alliance with the DUP who want to end the Irish Peace Process.
The simple use of anti-Scottish rhetoric and racism has the London media bubble in a tizzy and unable to analyse the real issues 2 months ahead of the election.
You could not make it up.
@Calum McLean (11.27) –
Hear hear.
@ Bugger, nicked part of you ‘Breach of the Peace’ post.
It seems to be staying up.
What was the old whisky ad slogan?
“A Bells afore ye go”
Something like that.
Liz – well, that was certainly not made clear on the site. What a mess. Better get stu to take the above link down then. When you say Local Office – what do you mean? Council office?
Delighted at the BBC reveal this morning, of the Tories’ election campaign billboard which depicts a huge (threatening) Alex Salmond looking (bearing) down on a hapless Ed Miliband, whose head is peeking out of Alex’s top jacket pocket.
I’d love to have seen Jim Murphy’s war cabinet when they clapped eyes on that! It’s message drives a horse and cart through Murphy’s mantra, ‘Vote SNP, get Tories’!
Maybe the SNP could buy a few hundred of these billboard ads from the Tories and plaster them on every billboard in Scotland?
It’s quite a nice picture of Alex too, if a little severe.
I do wish someone would tell the folks ‘dawn sarff’ that Alex is an MSP backbencher, but they seem to love Alex too much to let him go.
After all the Nazi and fascists jibes during the referendum, I am finding the Steve Bell cartoons decidely lame, even Allan Massie’s rantings are becoming less offensive, more in the pathetic category.
I see Tory boy David Torrance is saying today that the SNP would thwart a deal with Labour, and that Miliband would not do a deal with the SNP because his defeated SLAB former MPs would be telling him not to a deal with the SNP! Of course Torrance fails to explain why Miliband would need to listen, and beholden to former SLAB MPs, who would have presided over the worst Westminster result in the branch’s history. The British establishment are in a state of panic, and their advocates in the MSM are not making any sense whatsoever.
TBF to Bell, I think his level of technical talent, notably his poor ability to capture likeness, kind of forces him into using shock tactics to maintain his position.
I smiled at the cartoon, after my initial reaction, as it demonstrates an excruciating paucity of satire and humour and an excess of fear for the cosy continuance of imperialism – Westminster style.
I wonder if this and similar attempts at denigration and smear against the SNP, in particular, serves two functions. Certainly anything, however vile, to provoke a reaction against the impending Independence of Scotland, via the SNP and its allies is becoming old hat. It serves only to harden and recruit support for the SNP. Are they really that daft? However the potential evolution of a reciprocal movement in England, noting the success of the SNP, where the WM establishment will be disestablished may be even more of a threat to the WM comfort zone than anything the SNP could bring about on their own?
Is this cartoon and its counterparts not also a warning for the English, Welsh and Northern Irish to ‘behave’ and not risk the WM status quo?
List of racist people to be ignored:
Jimmy Hill
Kelvin McKenzie
David Starkey
Katie Hopkins
Steve Bell
A wee bit of news for those inclined to worry about these things, may take a bit of the bad taste away. England is out of the Cricket World Cup. Many congratulations to Bangladesh.
Steve Bell is normally quite a good political cartoonist but he has let himself down on this one. Boorish and lacking subtlety, a bit Davie Hamilton if you ask me. My tip Steve? less is more, Chris Cairns gets his point across better without being a twat.
Meanwhile all is not well with ‘scottish’ Labour as desperate MPs belatedly realise that the Eggman and Maigrit are both trying to hog all the resources to save their own skins.
Labour insiders: saving Curran’s a drain on resources
SCOTTISH Labour’s bid to hold on to its Westminster contingent is being hampered amid claims that too much of the party’s energy is being used to save one Glasgow MP.
Sources have told this newspaper that the party is showing favouritism towards shadow Scotland Secretary Margaret Curran by staging high-profile events in her constituency
http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/labour-insiders-saving-currans-a-drain-on-resources.1425801336
It get’s better. 😉
A party insider said: “Margaret is getting a terrible reception on the doorstep, and the more hostility she gets, the more resources she wants for a seat nobody thinks we are going to hold.”
Another Scottish Labour source said: “Margaret has always been out for herself and Jim needs to have a word with her. It will be a blow to Labour if we lose our Scottish Secretary but we can take comfort in the knowledge that the IQ of the Westminster group will rise when Margaret goes.”
The SLAB civil war is already under way and it’s unlikely that Murphy will even hang around after the May slaughter to try and clean up the mess. It’s just not his style.
Murphy was supposedly in charge of the “root and branch” reform of SLAB after the 2011 pounding for SLAB but did absolutely nothing other than throw around a few platitudes. After which Murphy then went straight back down to westminster to climb the greasy pole again. He also got involved in the Falkirk scandal just to hammer home how little he cared about the state of SLAB and ‘scottish’ Labour.
An ultra-Blairite like Murphy will have other plans after May rather than sticking around to take the blame. Count on it.
@ Conan
Thanks
O/T – a big well done to Bangladesh this morning in some bat and ball game that happened to be on. Cue more hand wringing from our colonial masters…
“Any man or institution that tries to rob me of my dignity, will lose”
Nelson Mandela
Hi Panda [carnal of],
Apologies, missed your initial post about an old fashioned Breach of the Peace. Normally I am good at reading all posts, but was so angry at this stupid idiot’s cartoon that a reply was needed before I burst.
Also there seems to be a delay in the posts uploading from my old computer so your second post on the criminality of this offensive cartoon is uploaded near simultaneously right next to mine. Reassuring that we are of similar mind on this.
Though I reckon we just let this one go with the rest. I firmly believe these anti-Scots cartoons et. al., act as a recruiting sergeant to…
“Vote SNP Get Scotland”.
Works for me 🙂
Cheers,
Calum.
The danger for Labour MPs in Scotland is that any deal with the SNP could become a longer term arrangement. Voters then ask themselves, as we have been for years, what exactly the “Scottish” Labour Party is for. To be fair, it’s a question they even ask themselves.
The answer of course is that Labour has no purpose. It has a position which can be defined as unionist, anti-SNP.
The Labour Party has made itself irrelevant in Scotland.
Made my day that one! “The IQ of the WM group will rise when Margaret goes!” Classic!
Just made an online complaint to IPSO. I’m all for free speech and will respect anyone’s right to believe and say whatever rubbish they want. That’s not to say however that I respect what they believe or that I won’t exercise my own right to object just as vociferously. Rant over.
anyone seen this? Am I a bit late on it? http://scottishpol.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/prosecutors-consider-wings-over.html?spref=tw&m=1
Complaint submitted to IPSO, not sure it is any use, but at least I feel like I’ve done something.
They don’t seem to be able to distiguish between the roughly half of Scots who want out of the union asap and the half who are prepared to thole it a bit longer,so they just throw the abuse at the entire nation.Not clever.Not funny.Obnoxious.Condescending.Arrogant.Racist.But they have a right of free speech and it’s probably best we know exactly what they think of us.
Liz –
Just did some checking.
The gov.uk site I posted earlier is only for new registrations i.e. if you have moved house or not voted before. The fact it says “You are not registered’ is a load of cobblers. Only the local electoral office (i.e. “Electoral Registration Officer Ayrshire Valuation Joint Board” can ascertain that.
I have just been told by my local office -‘only we have your details’
They offered no explanation as to why an official gov.uk site would say I am not registered, only insisting that I am. Exasperated now, the advisor explained that the gov.uk site cannot add or remove anyone as it doesn’t have the details, or authority.
Still confusing.
For someone (Bell in this case) to revert to insult and name calling simply shows an indivuals lack of intelligent arguement as to why their stand point is preferable and their opponent’s not.
To support such a view by allowing such pathos, because at the end of the day, that is all it is, shows a deeper ingrained reaction to anything that is new. Luddite.
For the establishment and their mouthpiece to fight so desperately against democracy, and this they want us to believe they stand for, is a disgrace.
How stupid do these people think the electorate is?
They clearly don’t care about alienating the Scottish and their friends and admirers amongst their readership.
Maybe we should just ignore them. Boycott their rags, reject them once and for all and go about our business in the knowledge that is us who are using our democratic right to elect whomever we choose to represent us in Scotland.
If the unionist parties and their mouthpieces do not allow Scotland and it’s people to take part in the democratic process, then surely we have a right, no an obligation to reject them and start proceedings to end this union that we have been forced to endure for far too long.
If unionist Britain can except former terrorists and their supporters as elected members of parliament and not accept members of a freely elected Scottish Nationalist Party, then they are rejecting the Union. Thats fine, we reject it too.
Are they are clearly in breach of contract as far the Union goes and thus it becomes null and void?
There is only one way forward.
Vote SNP on the 7th of May and reject the hate ridden, racist and undemocratic unionist parties of Establishment Britain.
Better Together?
Aye right.
Does big ,bad Steve Bell do prophet cartoons? Umm , thought not.
I have made a complaint to the Guardian about the removal of my comment ‘Je suis Charlie – but Steve Bell is a racist’
Any complaints about the removal of comments or the suspension of posting rights should be sent to the moderators at cif.moderation@theguardian.com or community.suggestions@theguardian.com (as appropriate). The moderators operate a two-stage procedure for such complaints. If you are unhappy with the moderator’s response to your complaint you may use the same email address to ask for the decision to be reviewed by a second moderator. General comments about moderation should be sent to this email address: community.suggestions@theguardian.com
@Flooplepoop says:9 March, 2015 at 9:43 am
“It’s concerted Cybernat baiting,we need to deal with this eloquently.”
I’d put that eloquently in quite another way,Flooplepoop.
For example, as apposed to saying, “Cybernat baiting”, I’d say, “Cybernut Bullying”.
Besides which their cartoonist isn’t a patch on our very own Chris Cairns.
I admit my first reaction was similar to a poster above “what is Johann Lamont doing speaking about Westminster?” I suppose the Grauniad cartoonist Bell is merely keeping up with the tradition of Guardian typos, albeit with poor draughtmanship.
On reflection, I can no longer get even mildly annoyed at the puerile, ignorant nature of these so-called political cartoons. Every Scot who sees this “cartoon” will think “Whit?”
Do not be deflected from campaigning for change in Westminster.
The Guardian telephone number is 020 335 3 2000.
They will be delighted to hear from you!
Let’s be honest, this is not aimed at Scotland. It’s aimed at the London bubble. those who think that Westminster politics and the London media form the ne plus ultra. They see everything in terms of Westminster politics. Everything. They have no conception that there is a world outside which might have a different viewpoint (Europe for example, far less Scotland).
When you are in the bubble, it’s the bubble you see. Remember that the fall of the Berlin Wall was meant to be “The End of History”. Well, it wasn’t, but that is all that particular bubble could see. They have not got a clue what people think in Scotland, and more than that, they don’t really see why it should matter.
It is probably fair to note that few of the many comments on the Groaniard are happy with this cartoon, regardless of political affiliation.
Good link Marcia @ 11am, thank you.
https://twitter.com/stephenpaton134/status/574848873501495296
_______________
Helena Brown says:
“England is out of the Cricket World Cup. Many congratulations to Bangladesh.”
lol
🙂
Hi Mike,
If you are reporting this to the police, the better way is as a “Breach of the Peace”. It is legally competent. If the officer says “bu66er off”, kindly remind him or her that he or she may be committing an act of neglecting their duty which is a criminal offence that may end up with the police officer in court. Always useful if a “nudge” is required to get the officer to do their job.
Unfortunately Scotland is deprived of “hate” crime protection. The law was, and is an a$$ on that one.
If you do go ahead and manage to have the master bater cartoonist summonsed up to a Scots Court please let us know.
We can then, for the sake of irony, have placards made up of pictures illustrating David Cameron and Margaret Thathcher with:-
Morris Dancing and Paedophilia?
Plus these placards and a small demonstration outside [Jimmy Reid says: nae bevvying!]
My favourite Panda seems to be onto something with this Morris Dancing and Paedophilia sticking to Cameron and Thatcher. It is the truth.
—————–
Mike says:
9 March, 2015 at 10:39 amI like a good laugh as much as the next man, but they have taken this too far. I have reported this to Police Scotland. It cannot be described as anything other than a hate crime. If it had happened below the line and been directed at the Welsh, English, Irish, Africans, Muslims, Jews it would have been described as vile cybernattery of the lowest order and would have acres of coverage.
The cartoon is sheer hatred of the fact that us Scottish,particularly Wingers found the main media out.
So they are lashing out.
The National is turning into a really good paper – enjoyed pages 4 and 5 and the quality of execution and humour in Greg’s cartoon on page 14 puts Steve Bell to shame
How do I complain?
Please read the Guardian News & Media Editorial Code first to understand whether the readers’ editor can look into your complaint. You can then email the readers’ editor’s office directly on reader@theguardian.com or write to The readers’ editor, The Guardian, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU outlining the following points:
The article you’re complaining about.
The date on which it appeared.
Whether the article appeared in print or online (and whether through a browser or via one of our mobile apps).
The nature of your complaint in no more than 500 words.
Which part of the Editorial Code it breaches.
You can also get in touch with the readers’ editor’s office by phone on +44 (0)20 3353 4736 between 10am and 1pm Monday to Friday UK time.
The readers’ editor is also on Twitter @GdnReadersEd.
Calum McLean says:
At the moment my posts don’t go straight up and can take 30 mins to be approved.
It is something to do with Cookies, WordPress and maybe Firefox.
So it may have appeared after you posted and still be time when I sent it.
The name Bugger is not used in in its carnal sense but is a reflection about a how I was christened and dropped at the time, by Gotdon Brown’s father in Govan Parish Church.
Paul patience says:
9 March, 2015 at 9:59 am
“Right I need to make a complaint before I fly to London and find this cunt.”
What BtP says, with bells on.
They can get away with this garbage with seeming impunity, but us, the ‘little people’ need only make a joke on line and we WILL have the law breathing down our necks. I can personally 100% guarantee that.
They are trying to provoke violent action and we MUST stand firm and not fall for it.
The best way to drive a sledgehammer into this idiot is to vote for the SNP in May! No more complaints till the job is done in my opinion. Let’s see how he’s then to respond when the First Minister of Scotland is calling the shots!
I for one can’t wait to see his first cartoon then.
Lets face it, he sits in his room with drawings giving HIS view.
Some people are running a country without turning to racism and giving hope and vision to a nation.
@Jules says:9 March, 2015 at 9:46 am:
“I’ve got no time for people taking offence at everything up this is truly jaw dropping. I take it it’s meant to be funny? I don’t get it…”
Yes, Jules, but you are not supposed to, “Get it”, excepting as an insult to you, to the SNP, to Scotland and to the people of Scotland. The people meant to, “Get it”, are the swivel eyed Unionists, and even they are not meant to, “Get it”, as humour but as a form of therapy to assuage the fear and dread the author of the piece and his/her readership so obviously feel.
We should be proud that our combined efforts have brought the Cybernuts to this level of fear and dread.
I’m colour-blind so all I see when I look at the second cartoon is a deep fried teacake. It’s not something I’d even thought possible. Today is a good day.
Check out ratio YES to No voters in your local RSCDS group. My best guess that we YES were in the minority.
OOPs
Over the past few days I feel genuinely concerned. The rhetoric is NOT talking of policies, its not even just running a party down. This is hatred and hatred based on being Scottish. Unless SNP have REAL influence at Westminster there will be a harsh backlash.
‘Never interrupt and opponent when he’s making a mistake’.
I reckon that he’s swelling the SNP vote by the day.
Just had a very nice and polite conversation with a lady from the Guardian via 020 3353 4736.
The Guardian have received a LOT OF COMPLAINTS about this funny cartoon and Steve Bell. Apparently he works from home, and I suspect he will be sent to the naughty step by his overworked editor reading hundreds of Bell’s end emails. Like many MSM, The Guardian have been laying off staff. So who knows what freelance work Mr Bell may miss out on. Poor soul.
As for this Scotland bashing garbage. I think anyone who saw the brilliant way Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond handled the Sussex bonfire effigy burning incident, when recounting it briefly at the 12,000 capacity SECC rally might take the lead.
Ignore Steve Bell and laugh at him as an irrelevance.
All Steve Bell did here was encourage me to just join the SNP. Anyone else joining today?
So perhaps spend what valuable time we 93,001 SNP members have doing what the magnificent IndyRef Yes Campaign did. Keep moving forward with a positive message and shrug off the barbs and arrows.
I genuinely reckon the way that Yes Scotland put its case meant the 45% is transforming into a wonderful GE2015 campaign which will likely see a seismic shift in UK politics.
Too wee, too stupid, too poor. Us haggis bashing, whisky gargling, deep fried mars bar eating, highland dancing, incestuous (?) subsidy junkies just don’t know our place. Then again, had we not invented the telephone, television, bicycle, pneumatic tyres, waterproofing, powered aviation, etc. etc.
as well as the advances in medicine, geology, economics and just about everything else on the planet, they would still be living in the fucking dark ages.
Steve Bell’s cartoon is proof
Bugger (the Panda) says:
9 March, 2015 at 12:46 pm
Calum McLean says:
At the moment my posts don’t go straight up and can take 30 mins to be approved.
It is something to do with Cookies, WordPress and maybe Firefox.
So it may have appeared after you posted and still be time when I sent it.
The name Bugger is not used in in its carnal sense but is a reflection about a how I was christened and dropped at the time, by Gotdon Brown’s father in Govan Parish Church.
ROFLMAO!
93002
OK, so the gloves are off and it’s open season. I get that!
Now just for the sake of discussion and purely as a mental exercise with the usual disclaimers applying. (One has to be so careful nowadays doesn’t one?)
Suppose the somewhat poor likeness of NS were replaced by the equally poor one of Herlself (as say, done by Get Out Your Didgerydoo Harris) then maybe some Wingers would be able to fill in their own internalised images and see if the cartoon makes sense.
That You Gov Electoral Register said I wasn’t registered. I phoned Nth Lanarkshire Electoral Office I’m registered.
Number for Nth Lanarkshire in Hamilton ( 01698 476079 )
( phoning the 01698 30 2119 number ) they will only give you the above number,save yourself a phone call.
Everybody make sure You & Your Family members are registered to vote. And keep sharing this message across the board.
reader@theguardian.com, emailed in my complaint, please add yours to the no doubt long list.
Please Use polite language when you ask for resignations and apologies!
As a nice left-leaning chap I always regarded the Graun and Channel 4 News as natural allies in Scotland’s attempt to move the social democratic argument forward. Then came the Referendum and I was so disappointed at their establishment attitude. Still, I thought, it must be a bit of a shock to have some northern barbarians upset the Islington apple cart – they’ll come around.
Now this latest bitterness has confirmed my worst fears that even ‘social democratic England’ is so stuck in its ways that they of all people actually fear the Scots with a decisive voice.
Time for missionary visits darn sarf, methinks
And so, the message is that the red line for Scots, is Incest and Highland dancing?
Why are people complaining on here?
It’s a political gift! the next time someone is telling you we are all part of the Union, ask them if they participate in incest!!!
If they say yes, report them, if they say no… report what Steve Bell implied in the Guardian!
Hahahahaha NOT. Massive fail of a cartoon. Go take a lesson from Chris Cairns or Greg Moodie.
EEJIT. Probably put the SNP vote up even more, don’t think that was what was indended was it.
Satire, wit, a good point, poking fun at the establishment and powers that be, good draughtsmanship, raising a few chuckles in the reader… These are things I expect from a good political cartoon.
This cartoon by Steve Bell falls on all of the above accounts. (Except maybe the draughtsmanship one.)
It’s lazy, unfunny, cozying up to the Establishment, I don’t see the point – except maybe a generic “Let’s laugh at the Scots, ha ha ha!”
A pathetic effort.
Steve Bell would do well to study the work of our very own Chris Cairns or Greg Moodie to see how it’s done.
I think he’s implying they are shagging each other and look the same or something…it’s not very funny as it doesn’t have much logic to it. They sort of need to grow up a bit. I wouldn’t worry about the racist bit in terms of offence but what I do think is relevant is it shows a potential for vindictiveness towards Scotland and Scottish people post any independence…kind of a petty vindictiveness boycotting Scottish goods, intransigence on currency, EU acceptance, intransigence also on accepting independence if it was close or if it was UDI, the 1999 maritime boundary debacle which needs challenged in some International Law body….there are a number of possibilities to make life harder and they might just do it. That’s the real point of the cartoon – it shows how irked they are. That’s sad that that has happened. It’s not a positive sign. I find it a bit depressing for that reason not due to the casual racism in it which just demonstrates a lack of mature thinking to me.
He’s pretty much implying that these are the core values of Scottish people, not the SNP. I’d have thought for a moment I was reading the Sun, not the Gruaniad. This odious and xenophobic little comic strip is enough to put me off them for good, now. :/
The interesting, and important, thing with this is that it’s piss poor. Badly drawn, not remotely funny, and saying nothing important. If this is the best they can do, no worries. Childish guff. You’ll hear wittier any day on a Glasgow bus.
I think you are perhaps directing your ire at the worng person. It’s a cartoon in very poor taste but it obviously got through the editorial process so perhaps it does far more harm to the Guardian to be painted as racist. The self appointed socially left paper has developed some very right wing tendancies lately which doesn’t bode well for it’s long term survival. I know if I were a teacher I wouldn’t be seen with something which prints such offensive material. It could have been made funny if they hadn’t used the incest bit but they obviously chose not to for a reason.
Well what do you think?
https://twitter.com/IndyForTheGuy/status/574929160512086016/photo/1
See what happens when you give a big wean a pen?
Dire stuff from a desperate paper.
Don’t get mad, get canvassing.
Calum McLean says:
9 March, 2015 at 12:36 pm
Hi Calum, I have reported the cartoon as a hate crime. Police Scotland have already been in touch to say that they will send someone round to take a statement, that they can forward to the Met. I will be sure to tell them that I am alarmed and annoyed by the cartoon and will report that a breach of the peace has been committed.
Thanks for your suggestions.
Regards
Mike
First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win.
Mahatma Gandhi.
Not long to go now !
https://archive.today/f1M4o
As for the other one which Rev asked for thoughts on…more c rap but I suppose it’s Cameron agreeing SNP and Greens into a leadership debate and something about Tories wanting Scottish people to vote SNP so Tories increase their chances of winning or something like that. Not sure why Nicola is a hand puppet or why the Greens are a pile of sh ite. It has I suppose some philosophy behind it but could have been better…he seems to lack clarity in his message. Odd. Chris Cairns never does that. Maybe Bell is just a tw at.
Have they deleted the cartoon? I loged on to the Guardian but could not find it.
What I can’t figure out about Steve Bell’s offencive cartoon in the Guardian is, what has Susan Boyle ever done to him?
@boglestone @ 11.50.
Just read that.
Most amusing.
To’al respek, bruv.
On the point of potential vindictiveness to Scotland it could undermine the huge potential for cooperation between an independent Scotland the rest of the UK. We have many services that are integrated already and we needn’t dismantle many of them post-independence. A currency union, NI numbers, phone numbers, issues around defence (not trident or foreign policy) but monitoring air space, common area on passport control vis a vis Schengen or the lack of it here. Many English people contribute to Scottish tourism, this is an area we could expect a hit in too. I hope not but I do consider this a real possibility. I’d hope it’s just rhetoric and sense would prevail but it does make me wonder as this is aimed (i think) at an English audience so isn’t being done to scare independence seeking Scottish people. So it’s reflecting and possibly encouraging some deep felt views held by some people there.
Doesn’t affect my views on independence, if anything it makes me more committed as I would see it as an immature reaction.
I met Steve Bell at a book signing in Shetland a year ago,at the ‘wordplay’ festival.
His talk before the signing was very funny,especially the anti- Thatcher cartoons.But at one point he had a real go at Salmond,which the audience clapped and cheered at(this was Shetland remember!)
At the book signing he drew a cartoon for my hubby,but noticing my YES badge gave me a dirty look! Later we saw him drinking at the bar not chatting to anyone and generally being a miserable sod.
I was an ex fan of his ever since,and now he sinks to the depths it seems….sad man.
Mosstrooper says:
9 March, 2015 at 10:06 am
If Nicola says that the SNP will never agree to the renewal of Trident and that it is a red line issue,
:::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tin hat on.
I have just watched Guardian video of Nicola.
She says that we will never vote for renewal of Trident. Fair enough.
This leaves the possibility of working with Labour and Labour quite happy to let SNP vote against Trident in the full and confident knowledge that the rest of the House will vote in favour.
This is not what I consider to be drawing a red line.
My idea of red line issue is that Labour only gets support on other issues if it in turn does not support the renewal of Trident.
Of course, my notion of red line may not be shared by others and that is why I am now donning my tin hat.
It is a pity that David Hamilton has tainted that figure of speech.
Started reading the comments after my first one above.
Capella @ 9.48am and 9.57am provides some explanation of that last panel.
A quote attributed to the English music conductor Beecham, “Try everything once, except morris dancing and incest.”
So is Steve Bell’s point that the SNP will try everything, including Scottish country dancing and incest to further their aims?
Now the cartoon makes more sense. Still not very funny, though.
I should’ve made the connection on my own because I first heard the phrase “kaikkea pitää koittaa kerran, paitsi sukurutsaa ja kansantanssia” (“Got try try everything once, except incest and folk dancing”) as a teenager in Finland in the mid-1980s from the mouth of a teenage friend. I thought she got the expression from some old proverb or maybe a Väinö Linna novel. Since then, I’ve heard it (in Finnish) quite regularly though not often. Funny how quotes travel.
I doubt Steve Bell wants to comment.
Cameron? Clegg Milliband? any one of you. Bloody hell what a filthy bunch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm-CIbXZhzU
Slightly O/T
I notice that Kezia Dugdale has had ‘words’ with David Hamilton concerning his remarks at the Edinburgh conference
Dugdale has tweeted “no and he was pulled up about it at the women’s reception”
So Dugdale is trying to convince critics that not only did David Hamilton go to a ‘women’s reception’ , but she ‘pulled him up’ about his outdated sexist crap
I wonder if he listened and apologised? Doubt it
The Guardian is not amused by anyone trying to draw comparisons between Steve Bell and Herge, creator of Tintin.
sThis is from the original 1931 edition of Tintin in the Congo:
http://fr.tintin.com/images/tintin/albums/01congo/74.jpg
Tintin is saying ‘My dear friends, today I am going to talk to you about your homeland: Belgium’.
Obviously a wee bit on the imperialist side…
Several posts of mine on CiF satirically suggesting that Steve Bell might want to draw inspiration from Herge’s cartoon above have been deleted without trace.
It’s almost as if the Guardian is trying to censor cartoon-based satire…
Cadogan Enright says:
9 March, 2015 at 12:23 pm
I have made a complaint to the Guardian about the removal of my comment ‘Je suis Charlie – but Steve Bell is a racist’
Any complaints about the removal of comments or the suspension of posting rights should be sent to the moderators at cif [dot] moderation [at] theguardian [dot] com or community [dot] suggestions [at] theguardian [dot] com (as appropriate). The moderators operate a two-stage procedure for such complaints. If you are unhappy with the moderator’s response to your complaint you may use the same email address to ask for the decision to be reviewed by a second moderator. General comments about moderation should be sent to this email address: community [dot] suggestions [at] theguardian [dot] com
They will not even entertain any comments which suggest that Steve Bell is racist or has an imperialist mindset towards the Scots. Try commenting on the Guardian, comparing his attitude to Herge’s attitudes (as shown in Tintin in the Congo) and you’ll see what I mean.
She will consider Labour’s proposals on a case-by-case basis. Bell begins with a sellout hiding her lack of principle behind weasely politician-speak. Trident is considered a key issue, but she’s open to conceding her position on it – it’s not a ‘red-line issue’ for her. Her only red-line issues – the two activities she insists upon doing – are the things that you are supposed to never do. Trident is the real ‘thing you’re never supposed to do’, but her priorities are absurd and trivial.
Bell is satirizing, albeit in an ineffective way (fairly obscure quote plus dubious accuracy re. Sturgeon) what he perceives as Sturgeon’s empty show of being a tough, principled negotiator.
Then he decides to top it off with the Scottish equivalent of black-and-white minstrels. Because we are all stereotypical, shortbread-guzzling, sister-shagging, country-dancing buffoons. It’s like a Carry On film but grotesque and harder to see as benign.
This is typical tory fighting that is so pathetically untrue you just have to laugh. The tories know that they don’t stand much of a chance because of all the Westminster pedophile rigs its had in the past. And the latest news about what maggie thatcher knew just lets the cat out the bag. Look in Westminster and ask yourself, who else knows what else?
This is typical tory fighting that is so pathetically untrue you just have to laugh. The tories know that they don’t stand much of a chance because of all the Westminster pedophile rigs its had in the past. And the latest news about what maggie thatcher knew just lets the cat out the bag. Look in Westminster and ask yourself, who else knows what else?
I think hes calling us “MotherFlockers” or summit like hat?
Mike at 2.23pm
Hi Mike, thanks for that. I am a little rusty but for a Breach of the Peace to stick there needs to be more than one annoyed, upset or distressed person.
So maybe ensure you have your partner or a friend give a statement to the police as well. It is likely that a lot of wriggling will go on to avoid action. So if you are proceeding it is important to be thorough.
I am sure if all else fails, this is a good old fashioned Breach.
Also ask the police to interview the Guardian phone operator that answered 0203 353 4736 at the MATERIAL TIME of 12.46 on 9 March 2015 as to how many complaints about this she took = evidence. Also formally request Police Scotland seize The Guardian Complaint Log for this day as a PRODUCTION for investigation, court and multiple Breach prosecution purposes.
If this is done right then the result should ‘Levison’ the vile anti-Scots bile from MSM. A Breach may seem a low crime but it carries a custodial sentence.
Whether it’s a good cartoon or not, it’s interesting to see how all you right-on progressives turn on one of the most consistently left-wing cartoonists in the papers the moment he says something not to your liking. I can also see how many of you are delighted, even outright ecstatic, to be able to pretend to be the recipients of racial abuse. It’s sinking Nats’ inferiority complex and petulant victimhood narrative to whole new depths, and your joyous masturbatory outrage is an insult to those who actually suffer from real racist discrimination.
@author_al Have a read through that.
http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk/frequently-asked-questions/registering-to-vote
Put a good few copies of the I on top of the Guardian in shop this morning. Small but satisfying payback.
It is OK folks, Mike Dailly from the Govan Law Thingy has been on to explain why this is brilliant satire and that we are all missing a wonderful joke.
Or….
as Scott said
Oh, what a tangled web we weave
When first we practise to deceive!
🙂
Bugger (the Panda) says:
9 March, 2015 at 12:46 pm
Calum McLean
Panda replies…
The name Bugger is not used in in its carnal sense but is a reflection about a how I was christened and dropped at the time, by Gordon Brown’s father in Govan Parish Church.
Calum replies: Priceless Panda, priceless 🙂
Hope your old noggin is okay since the Meenister let you slip and bounce!
The cartoon by Steve Bell, contains no subtle underlying arguments, or double level humour, or sophisticated play on words. It doesn’t expose some hidden meaning, relating to political policy, or give us an insight into an ‘oft-missed’ aspect of Scotland. No, it does none of those. It’s just plain old racist.
Doubtless there are communities which practiced incest, Pitcairn Island springs to mind, the Egyptian Pharoahs likewise, but it seems to have done little harm in the British Royal Family, a model of sanity in an otherwise mad world.
Well if Mike “making a list” Dailly says it’s ok I guess it’s ok. We haven’t heard from him for a while and he chooses to put his head up over this, not very smart for a lawyer.
See the wee troll has clicked on shift. You’ll have tae dae better than that son.
It’s the scintillating wit that grabs me …
The other cartoon, whatever you do don’t vote Labour, implies that SNP would rather Scots voted Tory than Labour. This an old British tactic: accuse the enemy of the very things your side is guilty of.
Kezia may be saying she had words with Hamilton but she was later retweeing a photo of him alongside former SNP MSP Bill Walker who was convicted of wife beating. That gutter is getting closer Kezia.
I see a nameless troll has come onsite. To quote:
petulant victimhood narrative to whole new depths, and your joyous masturbatory outrage is an insult to those who actually suffer from real racist discrimination.
No pal, just recognise when something is wrong and the point when enough is enough. This racist Shi te WILL stop. As for real racism? Does being humorously referred to as a ‘Jock Bast ard’ count when I had the pleasure of working for 2 years in ENGLAND? Or is it only if your skin colour is more coffee than polar bear white do you have any rights?
O/T I’m really angry about the cartoon and will email.How about a few texts to Classic FM who play a Britnat advert at least four times an hour. Not only is it inappropriate on a music station but it is dishonest.
(text Number 61812). I’ve had enough of being nice and polite while these s…s take the p..s out of us!
Steve Bell, if you are sober, and reading, here is how to do a cartoon. Posted in November 2014, just as it was becoming clear, that having lost the independence vote by 5%, the Scots were not going away. Indeed, with surging membership of the pro indy parties (greens, SSP and SNP), many looking back, now see it as the beginning of the end for the union.
Anyway, here it is;
http://wingsoverscotland.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/hamishcorner.jpg
We are mainly simple Scottish people who don’t understand the sophisticated metrpolitan ways or humour of people like Steve Bell. There is obviously some satirical meaning or joke in there that we’re just not getting. You are definitely way smarter than we are, Mr Bell. Any chance you can enhance our understanding of your latest piece of art by explaining it?
@RJF
quote:
“Whether it’s a good cartoon or not, it’s interesting to see how all you right-on progressives turn on one of the most consistently left-wing cartoonists in the papers the moment he says something not to your liking. I can also see how many of you are delighted, even outright ecstatic, to be able to pretend to be the recipients of racial abuse. It’s sinking Nats’ inferiority complex and petulant victimhood narrative to whole new depths, and your joyous masturbatory outrage is an insult to those who actually suffer from real racist discrimination.”?
Inclusion of the word “incest” is the driver of the discussion here. If you can’t/won’t see that, then your selective miopia is truly staggering. Without that, there would be no issue re. a ‘toon which would just be yet another in a long line of what we have come to expect of the ‘toonist himself.
Laugh, all of us, laugh. Extreme cartoon caricature is a mark of political influence. I’ve laughed at them since the days of Clement Attlee (gives my age away, I know) and being pilloried like this just shows we’ve ‘arrived’. To paraphrase Howard Hughes (I think) there’s only one thing worse than being caricatured and that’s not being caricatured at all.
Hey Marie, I’m not trying to get someone – who is also virulently anti-Tory to the extent of depicting Cameron as a co dim-head and who any other day you’d be cheering to high heaven – arrested because he got up your nose by saying a mean thing about your precious idols. Vous n’etes pas Charlie, evidently.
Certainly, you can be offended. It’s a natural response. But racism? Seriously? You are all showing symptoms of utter self-obsession.
On a related note, I’m seeing a disturbing resurgence here of the poisonous thought that any criticism of the SNP or its members is a criticism of Scotland itself. You are not Scotland. You are one of a spectrum of political opinions within Scotland, and anyone who has the temerity to disagree with you is not an UnScot to be purged from fair Caledonia.
“On a related note, I’m seeing a disturbing resurgence here of the poisonous thought that any criticism of the SNP or its members is a criticism of Scotland itself. You are not Scotland. You are one of a spectrum of political opinions within Scotland, and anyone who has the temerity to disagree with you is not an UnScot to be purged from fair Caledonia.”
Oh piss off. That’s not a “related note”, that’s a tedious smear crowbarred in for no reason. For a start, Steve Bell’s not from Scotland, and I’ve seen nobody demanding he be “purged”, just noting that his shitty cartoon is unfunny, offensive bollocks.
“Just lost it!”
That’s going to appear in someone or something’s obituary – Steve Bell, The Guardian or the UK – I dunno which one’s going to be first
RJF says:
9 March, 2015 at 4:15 pm
Whether it’s a good cartoon or not, it’s interesting to see how all you right-on progressives turn on one of the most consistently left-wing cartoonists in the papers the moment he says something not to your liking. I can also see how many of you are delighted, even outright ecstatic, to be able to pretend to be the recipients of racial abuse. It’s sinking Nats’ inferiority complex and petulant victimhood narrative to whole new depths, and your joyous masturbatory outrage is an insult to those who actually suffer from real racist discrimination.
Since I am English born AND a member of the SNP I know the difference between banter and bile. 50+ years living in Scotland and I’ve had (and given) my fair share of banter. I don’t actually find the cartoon racist, it is however offensive in the extreme to imply Scots (is that all Scots?) are incestuous. Politics is rough, tough and sometimes dirty business – it goes with the territory when huge over inflated egos are at stake and cartoons and lampooning are a part of that rough and tumble. Je suis Charlie and all that.
However, the cartoon in question is not only in bad taste, it is badly drawn and is neither funny nor informative to boot. It’s just a cheap shot that says more about the ‘artist?’ than it does about the Nation of Scotland or Her place in the UK, which, as I seem to recall, we were begged, bribed and bullied to remain a part of.
If 45+% of us refuse to go away and cower under a stone, then as my dear old mum would say, ‘Tough titty!’
So suck it up or GTF!
It’s called political comment. Just to put the record straight Steve Bell’s father was born and brought up in Inverness. Why is everyone so touchy about anything negative that is published, some seem to have a sense of humour bypass
First, the Guardian came for the incestuous, & I did nothing for I was not incestuous. Then they came for the Scottish country dancers, and I was silent for I was not a Scottish country dancer…
I really dunno.
First they hate us … then they love us … now the hate us … AGAIN!
I just wish they would make their darned minds up!
Dear Mr UK personage,
I know it hasd only been six months since we, the people of Scotland, agreed to stay with you … for a wee while longer at least. However, you have to realise that by us agreeing to stay with you then you have some serious obligations to attend to, if you do not then guess what … we are oot the door and up the road before you can say Westminster!
First up you will have to read up what the Oxford English dictionary defines as being respectful. Failure to show us the full respect we deserve will resuilt in … well you know what will happen.
Secondly, as we agreed to stay then that means that we have an equal say, well as equal as 59 S.N.P. M.P.’s out of 650 M.P.’s will allow, in how the UK is run.
Third. Just because your preferred political party is led by a no hoper and a numpty to boot is no excuse for you to go about showing total disrespect to our First Minister.
Fourth. The fact that your other preferred political party is led by a bunch of money grabbing toffs is really NOT our problem therefore it is not really acceptable for you to keep battering US because YOU can’t accept their Toffiness.
Finally, just to make absolutely sure that there is no mistake here. Scotland is an independent country that sits to the NORTH of your beloved Engerland. I know you think Engerland is the do all and end of of the UK but here’s a wee newsflash … it doesn’t. The UK consists of Engerland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. I know this is rather upsetting to you but don’t worry you’ll get over it eventually, but don’t take too long otherwise you WILL find the UK no longer exists.
signed
A Cybernat
allmediascotland 09.03.2015
I will be glad when both these rags, along with a few more, fall of the media map.
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Just watching Reporting Scotland with Jackie Bird, (I know), with an opening shot saying Alex Salmond is the Poster Boy in Piccadilly Circus as well as the Poster Boy of the Tory Party. How bloody stupid can you get. They are absolutely shitting themselves. Now the Liberals are getting in on the act.
What a shower of skid marks.
Stephen.
@Lesley-Anne
Ooh well said!
To the troll, don’t think I’ll bother answering you obviously don’t know how to even try and debate. Must try harder.
I agree with the Rev piss off.
Annie
I had completely forgotten about the Dailly list….I so wanted to be on that. Did anyone ever see it?
We have all heard the saying sticks and stones, there is no hope for humanity when a individual can project such hatred to ones country or believes, if this doesn’t tell you we need to be independent you must be fucking brain dead.
Nip over to Wee Ginger Dug’s view on this – and a great post from macart on the blog 🙂
BTW Alex’s fundraiser is coming on but I’m sure more bawbees would be very gratefully received – let’s help get our main man elected.
https://www.ipso.co.uk/IPSO/makeacomplaint.html
Complain – I did. Fuckers.
Now this is how we can respond to garbage with style and good humour…
Http//www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/03/09/david-hamiltons-sexist-co_n_6830180.html?
Bawbag Bell used to be cool back in the late seventies. The Clash album, Sandanista was full of his neat cartoons.
How his talent has faded, when he tries to make fun of incest.
Who is the target audience for such a bizarre and insulting cartoon?.
Is it English voters?. Perhaps to encourage them to have a negative view of ALL Scots.
Is it Scottish voters?. Perhaps to encourage some of them to break the law; remember a government of “National Unity” needs some catalyst.
Labour and the Tories ramp up the anti-SNP rheotoric to a crescendo and voila!, they unite for the good of the UK!
I was angry then tbought I have never wanted to be living in an independent country more.
Oh and without stating obvious spend your media pennies elsewhere, say Wings.
@ Doug McG at 12.20
Did Steve Bell ever do a Prophet cartoon? Not that I’m aware of, but last year he did an anti-Semitic one, utilizing all the classic slurs and caricatures from the Middle Ages and the Third Reich.
He was heavily criticized but utterly unrepentant, claiming it was merely anti-Israel. He could easily have expressed that without copying Der Stürmer. Past his sell-by date.
Hi BTPanda, hope you don’t mind me quoting your excellent post from Wee Ginger Dug but it really shows what a nice guy Steve Bell is. I like the way Bell Ends his email…
————
Bella has from John Robertson of WQ of Scot Uni an e-mail exchange between the two last year
“From: Steve Bell [mailto:steve.bell@theguardian.com]
Sent: 29 April 2014 19:51
To: John Robertson
Subject: Re: Cartoons of course
n 29 April 2014 16:50, John Robertson wrote:
Steve
Please stop the anti-Scottish stuff
You don’t understand
It’s upsetting me because I still love all your other work
Gonnae no dae that?
John
John
How dare you accuse me of being anti-Scottish, ye fatuous nationalist dupe. As a half breed myself I can say what I like about Salmond, and youse can stick yer report on bias up yer airse.
Steve
Apologies. Here is another go at posting a web link to proper humour…
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/03/09/david-hamiltons-sexist-co_n_6830180.html
lets not waste energy getting mad – lets channel it into getting even by winning back Scotland for the Scots..
and teach England a lesson in democracy.
Steve Bell , like David Hamilton and his kind are yesterday’s men, and no one is paying any attention to them any more. They are the jokes…
One rule for Brits, another for Scots, if this site did a cartoon like that about Cameron / Milliband, would be vile Scot nats
I’m genuinely curious to know whether the Guardian will realise they’ve overstepped the mark here, or whether they’re just rubbing their hands in glee at the antics of the ridiculous Jocks.
Probably the latter I’m afraid.
H&S, yes the Dailly list appeared. Amazingly, I was on it. I got about 50 new Twitter followers in five minutes.
I know of no incest in Scotland.
If there had been any such story, I am certain that it would
have made the front page of every Red and Blue Tory newspaper in the country’ possibly a whole series on the BBC. Perhaps research would confirm incest rates at the UK’s highest levels in England?
I can confirm that England leads the way in pedophilia.
It’s own papers suggest that for many decades Westminster MPs
have formed collective groups to force themselves on children
and ruining a multitude of young lives.
More recent reports also suggest that youngster may well have
been murdered by politicians?
How will the establishment deal with these most heinous crimes.
Well it seems that Thatcher was informed of by her police body guard, she was again informed about Cyril Smith before awarding him a knighthood. It seems that this didn’t bother her one bit.
Guido Faulkes assures us that Tony Blair had to lock away details
of Labour Lord Robertson and Gordon Brown’s relations with suspected pedophile, and Dunblane killer, Thomas Hamilton.
It will take 100 years before the details can be discussed?
Why do you think this man’s relationships are more secret than
anything that happened in World War 2??
Did any Cabinet Ministers know about these beasts?
It seems that rather strange Leon Britton had a file on that very subject which he handed in somewhere to someone before an unknown party lost it?
Did the Police know about the vile creatures?
Well yes, but something again happened where their files just vanished too?
Canadian Police sent proof of 2,000 UK citizens who were using
illegal sites to purchase illicit pictures of children.
So far 1 person has been convicted over the last 2 years?
They were told that they had other priorities?
Great! Westminster now having an official inquiry!
So they appoint a friend of one of the politicians under suspicion. Then after an outcry, they appoint another friend
of the suspect, and now after such a prolonged period of inaction, and to my thoughts major cover up, the suspect dies.
Now they can appoint someone who didn’t know him personally?
The new appointee doesn’t want to hone in on the hot spots where
there appear to have been lots of activity and abusers willing to testify. She wants to seek out more unconfirmed snippets from
remote corners of the country?
Just a few days ago Cameron and Clegg accused of covering up files about pedophiles with their parties.
What shall the press focus on- a wee cartoon to ludicrously link
Scottish Country dancing with incest???????
Thank you great UK OK journalists and cartoonists!
Nothing like getting your priorities right in life.
Wait a minute! You don’t suppose that some people connected to these newspapers could be linked to….?
Wish I could draw!
I am well known for my lack of humour that is why I despise racism, especially, self racism, self loathing and self hatred as practiced by the Imperial Unionists and their colonial footstools and particular the party that does not see the joke in referring to themselves as “Socialists”.
OT. But linked to Wings. Sir Paul McCartNae has a new tour…called Out There…but only to London, Brum and Liverpool. Sadly, Glasgow is outwith his schedule. I wonder why?
This reeks of classic bullying tactics, played out in playgrounds the world over.
Bully says something overtly hurtful or offensive and then follows it up with “What, can’t take a joke?”, “No sense of humour?” or in this case “You didn’t get the joke? You’re obviously too thick to understand”.
The intent is to ridicule and belittle the target in front of an audience. It often works, it’s hard to hit back without falling into the trap of looking humourless and oversensitive.
The difference here is that the ‘punchline’ isn’t relevant, it doesn’t ring true and its not an existing stereotype for Scotland/SNP either. It just doesn’t fit with the rest of the cartoon! So rather than the ‘joke’ being hurtful, it’s slightly bewildering. The offence is caused by the fact that the cartoonist thinks that he is justified in trying to attribute such an offensive term to the SNP and use it to poke fun at them. I’m struggling to find any context where incest is funny to be honest.
And anyone who says it’s only aimed at the political party and not Scotland, is being naive. The hatred is so thinly veiled as to be transparent and only those who choose not to see it won’t see it.
Hmmm…this will make for an interesting conversation when the tories/sorry,labour/whatever,come looking for my vote.
“Hi, can we rely on your vote to keep the SNP out/oops, labour out” ?
Me.
“That depends if you ACTUALLY think i F**K my wife ??
“Bye bye now….!”
I meant “oops, tory” of course…not that it matters really
Surprisingly enough Scotland 2015 tonight commented disparagingly about both the Cartoon and Dave hamilton’s speech.
Oh dear.
I think the Geoff Capes of political satire has finally lost it, don’t you?
…. well at least we’ll not have to fight for the moral high ground, seems to have been abandoned by the opposition … what ?
I think the reason this has caused so much offence is that many people (myself included) were unaware of the quotation about incest and folk dancing that it is apparently based on.
In the absence of that knowledge the cartoon clearly looks like an attempt to portray incest as a stereotypical Scottish trait along with country dancing, which would be incredibly offensive.
Once I learned of the quotation, the cartoon looks less like an attempt to be offensive to Scots and simply becomes an unfunny and slightly confusing attempt at satire that doesn’t really work.
Wings should start a section for this anti-Scottish stuff and call it ‘Consigned to the Bin’. We need to call it out in a dignified fashion then ignore it. The ‘Consigned to the Bin’ will keep it uploaded for people to see in years to come.
I went from a fan to completely stopping looking at Steve Bell ‘toons during the referendum. I’ll still happily look at and enjoy Martin Rowson’s work, he gets it. But not Bell, he doesn’t and doesn’t care he doesn’t.
You can no longer comment on “that” content “This discussion is closed for comments”
Still blocked from posting on The Guardian web site, probably because my posts were not anti-Scottish.
Perhaps the SNP should rule out a formal coalition with Labour
Je suis nicola
Bell is even more offensive in digging his hole.
I wonder if the Queen purred when she read that cartoon?
I do not know anything about Mr Bell, but I believe I can tell a lot about him from the content of his drawing. To me he seems a misogynist. His caricature of this intelligent, highly shrewd politician seems to lack any kind of truth. It is unrecognisable as a caricature. It is a violent depiction and Nicola is gentle but powerful. Nicola is a very slim lady with a very sharp honed intellect. She is outstandingly moral and upright and people place their trust in her. Yet he perceives or wishes to portray her as the very opposite She looks fat, decadent and has a moustache. This reminds me of the history of the suffragettes and how they were treated by men by slashing them across the breasts etc. Nicola must be a dreadful threat to merit such vile and untruthful depiction.
Bellend
Steve Bell is a Trotskyist. You can always rely on Trotskyists to smear and discredit any cause they claim to support.
Politics should be about ideas, not personalities.
We should all decry disgusting personal attacks on Nicola Sturgeon, like this ugly, witless cartoon.
Similarly, we should all decry personal attacks on any politician.