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Wings Over Scotland


Your love keeps lifting us higher

Posted on June 01, 2014 by

Readership stats for May, if you like that sort of thing.

wingslandviews-may2014

So, yeah, milestones. We broke through a quarter of a million readers and four million pageviews in a calendar month, both for the first time. It was also the first calendar month in which there wasn’t a single day below 100,000 pageviews. (It was only back in December that we had our first ever six-figures day.) The increases on April were:

SESSIONS: up 120,577 (15%)
UNIQUE USERS: up 20,310 (9%)
PAGEVIEWS: up 403,657 (10%)

The unique-users stat is in fact much better than it looks, because April’s figure was inflated by two days of one particular post going viral – twice as many views as the second-highest post of 2014 – and drawing in upwards of 20,000 new readers by itself (you can see the spike three-quarters of the way through on last month’s charts).

Not only did we manage to survive the loss of that spike, we piled an extra 20,000 new readers on top, so the “real” underlying uplift in May was more like 40,000.

2014’s total pageviews so far have now overtaken those for the whole of 2013. Google Analytics says we’ve reached over 816,000 unique readers this year alone. Jings.

It’d seem silly to stop now.

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Gaavster

Those wings are spreading further and further Stu…

Ever on ever up….

Croompenstein

Well done Stuart you absolutely deserve this endorsement for your hard work and endeavour. I know you sell yourself short by saying that you just google and stuff but no way it’s more than that, dunno where we’d be without you..Thanks

Croompenstein

In saying that, where was our cartoon 🙁

Morag Graham Kerr

I wonder how many additional votes this site has secured, now?

Susan

Fantastic news. Well done.

Taranaich

Clearly you’re only doing damage to the Yes cause, with all these millions of page views directing people to the arguments, links, documents and analysis. HAVE YOU NO SHAME

Paula Rose

(actually it’s the comments btl that draws the crowds)

Duff

Do you have a breakdown of which countries people have logged on from?

Croompenstein

@Taranaich – are you still in a different timezone? did you manage to seek out a medicine man and get him to ask the Great Spirit to influence the fearties and dinnaekens to be brave and get our country back?

Croompenstein

@Taranaich – Are you still overseas?

Calum Craig

Good.

Mary Bruce

Excellent, it won’t be long before we have half the voting population visiting on a daily basis. It was the Rev wot won it.

Colin

If it keeps going like this you will be able to sell advertising soon, to selected pro independence companies of course 😉

Thepnr

Rev

I talked to real people face to face last night at CH2. Believe me, we are in awe of what you have managed to achieve.

Right. I didn’t mean to go overboard, so you’ll have to come hear it for yourself ASAP. Ta from me.

kininvie

@Paula…

A little video of your universally acclaimed talents would boost the readership even further, I’m certain.

How I wish I’d met you the other night!

Elizabeth Stanley

We’ve had the poor of Glasgow will swing the vote.Then we had the vile English living in Scotland(hands up on that one)swinging the vote so now there is a third vote swinger.

It was WOS that dun it.How wonderful.

Oneironaut

Feel like sending those stats to the Daily Hate-mail?

Perhaps with a message from a concerned citizen inquiring after the state of their sales figures… 😉

Lesley-Anne

If you keep putting up graphs like this Stu then I DEFINITELY will need a larger computer screen, I think 72″ by 72″ might suffice for next month’s set of figures. 😛

Seriously though can I add my congratulations to you and your little unseen and unnamed helpers for such a fantastic site. 🙂

Neil MacKenzie

Blocked ads:
0 on this page

Thanks Rev Stu, you’ll get your reward in Heaven. “Freedom of Scotland”

Croompenstein

@Neil – The Rev could make an absolute fortune if he was a sellout f*cker like SLab but thank F*ck he is one of us

Democracy Reborn

Big congrats, Stu.

I’m sure I speak for lots of others when I say that I’m hooked on the site. Previously, my daily politics fix always began with a browse through BBC & Guardian online. No longer. You are now the first port of call. Your analysis is superb & always cross-referenced to linked factual sources. Your simple exposure of the MSM’s tendentious coverage of the referendum has well & truly made the scales fall from my eyes. I am actually quite ashamed to only now realise just how biased they are. And no matter what the result in September, I will no longer trust any of them again.

Keep up the excellent work.

Suzanne

What else would we expect from one of the very best sources on the intertewbz of pro-Indy news. Well done, Rev.

I’d say you were streaking past the readership figures of many a unionist rag. 😀

Taranaich

@Croompenstein: Aye, still in Arizona, getting ready for Phoenix Comic-Con. John Barrowman will be in attendance, but that won’t stop me from putting on my Yes badge!

J. R. Tomlin

It is very important that your session duration is so high. That people means that people are staying and reading. This is really a huge deal as you know.

Tattie-bogle

wow

sionnach

Most WoS posts cry out for a LIKE button, and this is no exception. Brilliant stats, Stu!

Have you thought of going for a horizontal presentation? Or a logarithmic scale? Or circles. Bigger and bigger circles.

Think I’ll go and lie down now.

john king

On the way home on Saturday from the CH2 we stopped in at the Glasgow Fort shopping centre to get some supplies and when we walked into a shop passed a couple standing outside in the sunshine (yes it really does happen)and Irene noticed a tattoo on the man’s calf (wearing shorts) and it said Bannockburn 1314,

taking one of the wings yes badges Kendo gave me to pass around I went out of the shop and offered the guy it, saying I had noticed his tattoo and thought he might be a yes man,
he took one look and asked how much I wanted for it, when I said “absolutely nothing other than a yes vote”, he replied your a fu**ing gentlemen, walking away from him, Irene (who was looking out the window of the shop)said the couple were studying the back of my tshirt,
at least another two readers I think Rev
some days things just feel right. 🙂

jim arnott

And to think you haven’t really started yet Rev – lol

Weedeochandorris

Great stuff Rev. You’ll be on telly next!

Calling Kininvie! How can I get in touch to do something useful like delivering leaflets etc. Let me know.

Robert Peffers

Well done Thje Rev Stu.
Give that man the Freedom of Scotland.
Oh! Wait a moment – all Scots legally have the freedom of Scotland and the right to roam.
Damn! Ach! Just send him another wee donation.
;-))

Zorbathejock

Never mind vote no and have the best of both worlds. Vote yes and have the best of the whole world.

Macart

Right, you’re just showing off now.

And you’re doing it deliberately. 😀

squarego

Amazing! You do know that iScotland’s Fleet Street will be called Rev Stu Street?

I’ve had the pleasure of hanging around here from the early days and have witnessed droves of people have their eyes opened to what’s really going on. These stats are great, but your contribution to the cause is immeasurable. Thank you.

Graeme Doig

Excellent stuff Rev. Not surprising though. Your work is invaluable in this ‘debate’ … I mean fight to the death !

Luigi

I’m thinking of starting a WoS cafe, where people can pop in, have a nice cuppie, chat about independence, rant about the BBC and check out what’s happening on Wings.

There’s definitely a market for it!

Clootie

Rev – It must feel good. However I know that is not why you do it.

Your main achievement is that somehow you have managed to create a forum of outstanding quality with a very light touch regarding rules.

People respect you (you can blush now!)

Marker Post

It’s not only the page views, it’s the comments. From memory, you passed the 100,000 comment mark in late November 2013; it now stands at about 215,000. And I’ve been noticing lots of newcomers, particularly in the past 2 – 3 months.

Snowball effect has well and truly kicked in. Well done, Rev.

Cactus

4,396,151 pageviews for the month of May, congrats all round!

Now that X Scotland X is in the official campaigning period and more people are wanting to seek independence info and become involved in the debate, I wouldn’t be surprised if that figure rises to roundabout 5,000,000 pageviews for the end of this new month (if not sooner).. that would be just short of Scotland’s current population!

Infact, for fun I guesstimate 5,109,515 pageviews for the end of June.. is there a bookie in the house for the odds on that one?

Good morning Scotland.

Ken500

The only way is up. Brilliant

: – )

Chitterinlicht

This is what a real grass roots campaign looks like. Well done and thanks.

jim arnott

In an earlier tweet Stu, you asked what we could do with this graph. Simple! turn it upside down and you have a representation of the Hootsman’s circulation figures.

cynicalHighlander

Alex massie talking mince on radio Scotland. Well done Stu.

MochaChoca

I’m sure the good people of the official YES campaign are among your avid readers, even if they are unable to officially admit to such.

Every now and then you read or hear something in an official statement that’s very similar to something that’s appeared in an article or even in a comment on here.

Mealer

Still way,way short of the readership required on referendum day.But getting there.

seoc

Heartiest congratulations on the continuing success of Wings.
The huge gap so well filled by Wings lay there in full view of the established media for many a year – yet they cowardly looked the other way.

Now, they are steadily evaporating.

I gratefully look forward to living out the remaining stump of my life in the new dawn in a Free Scotland.

Caroline Corfield

So glad to see that the people who visit are still taking an average six minute look around. This and the bounce rate are great, nevermind the size of the visitor numbers, which are very impressive. But this site is totally addictive, I am not really surprised. There’s a great crowd with banter below the line as well. And Stuart provides the ammunition for all our arguments.

I really hope after a Yes vote this site continues. It fulfills a need that won’t necessarily be gone; the press, the TV and the politicians will still need to be held to account when they try and manipulate us with lies.

Goan yersel’!

Brian Powell

What real journalism and a real grass roots campaign looks like.

TYRAN

You submitted to Google news, rev?

link to support.google.com

Graeme Reid

Remember people can invite friends to WOS on their home page on FB if they have liked the page and bring more people into the discussion and the revs unique, and without doubt best analysis on project fear and the lies that they spew.

Nation Libre

Just brilliant. Well done Rev

Martin

Scotsman management still scratching their heads at how this site is so good !
Like many “No”…they just don’t get it.
The other great thing about Wings is the prominent links to Bella Derek Bateman Wee Ginger Dug and Scot Goes Pop

JLT

Taranaich

Are you on holiday; is it work; or have you actually emigrated?

I’m a bit behind on the old boards here as I’ve been busy doing a ton of other things. Seriously! There are NOT enough hours in the day!

Rev …Brilliant, mate! Keep it up.

Out canvassing yesterday. Once again, some folk just shook their heads, some said ‘Union’, but there were seriously a good many who were a ‘Yes’ or a DK on the verge of ‘Yes’ …and this was in what was is perceived to be a tough union area. Pretty good going!

cearc

Congratulations yet again.

Is Chris OK?

His cartoon was missed. Hope he is just having a great holiday or too much fun to draw.

Red Squirrel

Well deserved and thank you – to the Rev for the brilliant analysis and to everyone who posts here for giving hope of a better future.

Jim Marshall

Well done Stuart. A big Wings welcome to the new readers and congrats to all the regulars.

Dave

Great stuff Stu – nice to see what real journalism looks like.

If you flip the chart left to right you will get a good idea of B&Q and Screwfix’s sales for the rest of the year.

Jeannie

@zorbathejock

I love that slogan, vote no and get the best of both worlds but vote yes to get the best of the whole world” Will be using that!

ronnie anderson

Well done Rev your a ALBATROS roon the neck of the establish ment,pick them up an drop them far out to sea.

Quinie frae Angus

This is truly fantastic, Rev Stu.

Congratulations and huge, huge, thanks.

We are all so grateful. Believe me, from the way people were talking on Friday night at the Wingers’ do, and on the Dundee bus home, about our gratitude for your impeccable work, and our amazement at what you have managed to CONSISTENTLY achieve….

It truly IS love.

ronnie anderson

Anybody no doing anything special today, get yourselves into the toon Bbc Pacific Quay demonstration , bring your Bbc licence / threatening letters & burn them.

See you,s there at 12pm,if your shy dont worry no doupt the Beep wont be filming today.

heedtracker

“Your love keeps lifting us higher
Now, once I was downhearted
Disappointment was my closest friend
But then you came and he soon departed
And you know he never showed his face again”
Jocky Wilson.

Great work Reverend

Patrick Roden

Well Done Stu and well done all the regular commenters.

Famous15

@Jeannie. To be accurate put their “worlds” in inverted commas in the “best of both ‘worlds'”as in the BT sound bites their world is confined to Great Britain. Our World is all of planet earth.

Perhaps I have taken that too far but I do love the quote!

galamcennalath

To add to the good new, and cheer everyone up, I collected some alexa rankings.

These are Alexa’s estimates of where a site ranks in the world and in the UK. As a very rough rule of thumb, when you half Alexa ranking, you double the visitor numbers.

The absolute values are of less interest that the relative positions of each site.

Yes are certainly winning the Cyber War on the face of it! However, many people will visit the BBC & MSM sites for their independence news. Most of these sites’ traffic will be for other things, so it’s hard to deduce their Independence specific traffic.

90,432 / 2,529 wingsoverscotland.com 🙂

206,628 / 9,620 newsnetscotland.com

217,183 / 9,829 snp.org

239,112 / 16,186 yesscotland.net

336,901 / 29,556 bellacaledonia.org.uk

366,492 / 31,986 businessforscotland.co.uk

407,816/ 53,349 scotreferendum.com

491,581 / 26,217 whatscotlandthinks.org

503,157 / 27,038 bettertogether.net

1,091,972 / 18,560 votenoborders.co.uk

1,066,078 / 39,814 scottishsocialistparty.org

1,360,444 / 47,442 scottishgreens.org.uk

1,786,240 / NA scottishconservatives.com

2,102,617 / NA scottishlabour.org.uk

2,351,298 / 68,771 scotlibdems.org.uk

call me dave

Confirms that people who are thirsty for real information about the referendum and the state of Scottish politics know where to get a refreshing drink.

‘Headlines’ on BBC Radio takes 18 minutes to get their guests to comment on any of the stories which ,to my mind, have been carefully selected. Oh well half an hour gone.

‘Lallands Peat Worrier’ and ex msp are guesting.

Just about to switch off then politics at last… Ruthie’s line in the sand being discussed… Jam tomorrow.

Morning all…:-)

cearc

Stu,

re Chris. Thanks for that. Glad he is having fun and not unwell.

Taranaich

@JLT: Visiting family, will be back about the middle of June. Emigration’s not on the agenda for me, I love my wee toon & hoose too much, and the advent of the Internet means I don’t need to go down to London to get work.

TheItalianJob

So proud of you and this site. I’m on it everyday, and it’s the only site I comment on. Scotland should be proud of you and your endeavours. Also my appreciation to all main commentators on this site.

Big thanks to all. Onwards and upwards.

K1

Brillian stats Rev, I echo all previous comments in saying thank you for all your amazing work and of course to all the fantastic people who comment btl.

Just a wee headsup for an event not far from Pacific Quay this afternoon between noon and 6pm, sorry if it’s already been mentioned…

link to ayetalks.wordpress.com

HoraceSayYes

As lots of others have said, this place is indispensable.

And just think, Rev, only 16 weeks until you can take a day off. (Just the one, though, mind!)

yerkitbreeks

@ cal me dave yes, Bill Whiteford with his ummm-ing made me switch off, even tho’ Lallands was on. Bring back ken McDonald’s humour.

How the MSM miss out on objectivity without the Rev’s references to his sources.

Taranaich

Off-topic again, but I just noticed this on Neil Oliver’s Wiki:

In May 2014, Oliver stated in an interview with the Herald, that he was “proud of Britain” and noted his dislike of the upcoming Scottish independence referendum saying that he found “this kind of internecine squabbling puts my teeth on edge. I would rather that it would just go away – or that it had never happened.” He went on to say that he “liked the status quo.”[10]

Can anyone confirm that Neil actually says that? Because if he did, well, that ticks me RIGHT the hell off. It’s one thing to be a No voter, but to think that this referendum – the only time the people of Scotland have actually been ASKED if they want to remain in the union – is “internicine squabbling,” and that he would prefer it go away or have never happened? He’d prefer that this never happened at all? Does he think the same of the National Covenant? Of the Radical War? Of the Devolution Referendum?

If I didn’t already know he realises the importance of the referendum, I’d think he was blind to the monumental history of the here and now. I had a lot of respect for him, but that’s gone straight out the window – again, if Wikipedia’s reporting it correctly. I’ll happily be corrected.

link to heraldscotland.com

Wee poor stupid Scotsman

WoS is superb. It’s as simple as that. I’ve alerted all four (count ’em – 1,2,3,4) of my friends to it. I hope the No-voting dolts (three of them) are tuning in.

More power to your intellect, Stu.

Andy smith

O/T Came across elderly couple in Edinburgh’s southside yesterday going around removing yes stickers from lampposts, bus shelters etc.
Told the guy he was just like king Canute.

Ken500

The Sunday Herald has turned out to be a bit of a damp squib, but it’s good to have a paper to read on a Sunday.

Iain Macwhirter ‘it’s about what we do with what we have’. Aye. Vote YES.

Les Wilson

The Rev? He is doing very well and delivering with the truth, and HE IS DOING IT DELIBERATELY!

By filling a craving for the truth, is bringing it’s deserved rewards, and satisfaction to me personally, as a long term supporter of the Rev and WINGS.

However, I an equally sure that all those who visit here, are getting a breath of fresh air! It is also great for the Rev,who is getting satisfaction for all his hard efforts. Kudos!

Capella

Great news. This site and Derek Bateman, Wee Ginger Dug and Bellacaledonia are my must reads for focus on the important issues, along with Newsnet for the headlines. Takes hours but the comments also make it worth while. I got rid of the TV years ago and the radio is now almost a dead duck so WOS is a lifeline. Thanks to Rev and all who make it special.

Alabaman

Rev,
Congratulations to you and this site, I think that you will have to change your “wings” from feathers (which my be fine for a bird of pray) to wings designed by Boeing , in order to carry such a load

Appleby

It’s pure honest graft and deserved results. Well done.

Nana Smith

Well done Rev…I have to have my daily does of Wings,keeps me somewhat sane.

Also the regular commenters [you know who] also deserve a pat on the back.

Tom Platt

Great news.

WoS is one of the Indy sites that is surely helping the world appear less crazy.

Tom

Flower of Scotland

Well done Stu! It’s the site that I visit first thing in the morning but it now takes much , much longer to read the comments, that I’m later in posting these days!! Not moaning! It’s great news! I also pop in and out of the site all day. Members of my family who are voting yes are wingers too. The nos in the family only read newspapers and watch the BBC! They don’t know what they are missing!!

JLT

Taranaich

Aaahh! That explains it. To be honest, from the 3 or 4 recent postings from yourself, I was bit like ‘Eh! Taranaich’s left just as it’s getting interesting! No way!’ (LOL)

You had me wondering, matey. I though some American company had somehow managed to throw their kitchen sink at you, and persuaded you to go and live in the States!

Well anyway. Envious as hell! Enjoy the holiday. Have a very good one!! And if you do see Mr. Barrowman, you flash that good ol’ ‘Yes’ badge at him …and better still …if he engages …convert him! How funny would it be, if he came back from the States, crying, ‘Yes!!!’

Marcia

Taranaich

I prefer Tom Devine, you know what you are getting. With the other I think (and it is only my opinion) he keeps an eye on the work he gets from the BBC. Although to be fair he did do a reasonable job of the programme that included Christopher Murray Grieve a few years back.

Iain Lennox

>>Andy Smith..
please advise whereabouts in Edinburgh Southside and I shall arrange for immediate replacements of all YES advertising
🙂 🙂 🙂
…and next time get a pic of sticker removal-people 🙂

Seasick Dave

Taranaich

Neil Oliver will still be British whatever the result as the island of Great Britain will be unaffected by Scotland being responsible for its own affairs.

Just remember:

Great Britain = geographical construct.

United Kingdom = political construct.

msean

Well done,keep it up.

Peter A Bell

Interesting. I appear to be the only one who can no longer see images on this site.

Dr JM Mackintosh

I think that is called exponential growth. Well done Rev Stu.

Time for Project Fear to be afraid – very afraid.

Jim Thomson

@Peter A Bell 10:37

Have you tried a different browser? Which one do you normally use? Internet Explorer? Chrome? FireFox?

Which OS are you using? Windows Xp/Vista/7/8/8.1? Linux? Mac OS (any flavour)?

Have you changed any settings in your browser recently?

And (back on topic), excellent stats Rev. Keep up the fantastic work 🙂

Taranaich

You had me wondering, matey. I though some American company had somehow managed to throw their kitchen sink at you, and persuaded you to go and live in the States!

As much as I love the wondrous and terrifying land that is America, I could never leave Scotland. Even now, I already miss the jackdaws and magpies, the Scottish accents on the street, even the cold wet drizzle. A few weeks is probably all I could stand to be away. Indeed, while I respect the decision of a lot of people saying they’ll move in the event of a No vote, I never could, even if it’d hurt financially. Just too tied to the roots.

Well anyway. Envious as hell! Enjoy the holiday. Have a very good one!! And if you do see Mr. Barrowman, you flash that good ol’ ‘Yes’ badge at him …and better still …if he engages …convert him! How funny would it be, if he came back from the States, crying, ‘Yes!!!’

Believe me, I’m sairly tempted! My grandmother and great aunts are also Yes, so it’d be a pretty spectacular united front against him and (maybe) his sister, who’s also in attendance. Would be great to have an impromptu debate!

@Marcia: I prefer Tom Devine, you know what you are getting. With the other I think (and it is only my opinion) he keeps an eye on the work he gets from the BBC. Although to be fair he did do a reasonable job of the programme that included Christopher Murray Grieve a few years back.

It’s indeed possible. I did have certain quibbles with his “History of Scotland” series – particularly the first episode, but bits and pieces here and there – but I really hoped he would have the sense to keep himself out of the debate. A few years back he was very guarded and just said that “this was a big decision and we don’t want to make a knee-jerk vote” – it was somewhat discernable that he was a No, but at least he was being constructive.

@Seasick Dave: Neil Oliver will still be British whatever the result as the island of Great Britain will be unaffected by Scotland being responsible for its own affairs.

Of course, but I’m pretty sure it is in fact the political construct Neil’s proud of. And there IS a lot to be proud of in the UK’s history – but not at the expense of perpetuating a sham. At some point, no matter how many races its won, you have to put a horse out to pasture when it can’t run any more.

Les Wilson

How is all this happening, Wings will continue getting the truth out, as a result it is addictive!

Truth

Don’t ever stop.

manandboy

link to bbc.co.uk

This could have a bearing on IndyRef

German magazine Der Spiegel says British PM David Cameron warned that the UK could leave the EU if Luxembourg ex-PM Jean-Claude Juncker became president of the European Commission.

It reported Mr Cameron as saying that the appointment could destabilise his government, which may bring forward referendum plans on EU membership.

JLT

Taranaich,

Oh aye …Neil Oliver.

I must admit, I’m very surprised if that is his view. From the various documentaries that Oliver has done on Scotland, he seems to come across as man who is rather passionate about his homeland, but from the following interview he did do with the Herald, it seems he wants the ‘best of both worlds’. I can see his point, but at the end of the day, no matter how he tries to explain it, we the Scots, didn’t cause this! Westminster did! With it’s divisive, ideological policies designed only to help the elite, they have pushed us to a point where half of Scotland has had enough.

I did find the article. This is what he said in the Herald on the 17th of May 2014…

The significance of the anniversary coinciding with another pivotal moment in our history – the Scottish independence referendum on September 18 – isn’t lost on Oliver.

“There is quite a lot of wry, almost with a glint in the eye stuff, because people are wise enough to know it’s no coincidence that the referendum and the anniversary of Bannockburn have somehow come together as one,” he says.

Oliver has previously warned against Scots “sleepwalking” into independence and said he believed people needed to have a “historical grasp” of Britain to make an informed decision. He says: “The analogy I would make is that we have been married to the UK for a long time and now we are basically saying: ‘I feel like a change. I’m not necessarily going to move out of the house but I want my own bit of the house. I would like to continue to share the bank account. I want a share of the pension. I just don’t love you the way I used to.’

“We’ve put that out there. So, no matter what happens as a result of the referendum, whether Scots vote to stay in the Union or not, it’s already out there. If a wife had said to her husband: ‘I’m thinking about leaving you, I’ll tell you in six months time.’ Then six months down the line said: ‘I think I’ll stay with you.’ The relationship is never going to be the same again.

“I’m proud of Britain. I find this kind of internecine squabbling puts my teeth on edge. I would rather that it would just go away – or that it had never happened.”

Some people might be surprised to hear him air these views given he is seen as so quintessentially Scottish, I muse. “I’m a proud Scot,” he interjects. “It doesn’t have anything to do with that. I like the status quo. Alex Salmond? The whole thing makes me think of the television series Citizen Smith with Robert Lindsay.

“Citizen Smith was a young Marxist. It was always ‘freedom for Tooting’. It was the Tooting Popular Front he represented and he wanted wholesale revolution. He would steal tanks and drive them to Downing Street. Ultimately he was living a relatively comfortable lower middle-class life and wanted to rebel. You’d think: ‘What is the revolution about? What is so bad? It’s not as if you are coming out of the slums or an oppressed, downtrodden society.'”

Personally, I’m a bit taken aback with his view. If thinks we’re ‘sleepwalking’ into this, then he’s kidding himself. This has been 35 years in the making since 1979. Has he forgotten Thatcher’s policies, the Poll Tax, an Illegal War, the Financial Crash, and then another dose of the Tories again. What can he not see! How is this ‘sleepwalking?’

Even though he is an archaeologist by trade, we all know he has a great passion for history. Well, so do I; it’s all I read. So, his view given, implies that the Scots have caused the basis of the referendum to happen, strikes me as highly odd. As said, Westminster did this; not the Scots. We are a sovereign people, and if we’ve had enough of the Union, then it is our God given right to end it.

BuckieBraes

A big ‘well done’ from me too.

No doubt many of these tens of thousands of unique users come here to witness the fabled hatred and bile of the anti-English ‘cybernats’; and what do they get instead? Clinical analysis and intelligent conversation.

It won’t stop ‘Better Together’ from lying about the kind of people we are; but the evidence is clear. Those of us who are enthusiastically for Yes must outnumber those enthusiastically for No (if such creatures even exist) by an enormous margin.

If Scotland votes Yes, that enthusiasm will carry it forward. If it votes No, it will be on the back of ignorance, fear, doubt and almost instant regret.

orri

vote no borders have yet to break 3,000 likes on FaceBook. It’s almost as if they don’t exist.

bookie from hell

I posted a comment on,the Scotsman,another poster accused me of being a wings of scotland junkie,I thanked him for directing me to site,as I never heard of it.

Thepnr

I echo ronnie andersons earlier comment Re demonstration at Pacific Quay. If you can, get along there to see what the crack is.

I unfortunately can’t make it as I have a bouncy Castle to blow up, as the foot pumps broken and my puff is not what it used to be it could take a while!

Les Wilson

bookie from hell says:

I laughed at that one, well answered!

Training Day

Well done Rev.

Oh, and Neil Oliver is a charlatan, reviled by serious historians for his ‘anglocentric’ History of Scotland. If the interview above is anything to go by, he’s also a patronising oaf.

Ian Brotherhood

Scottish historians – ‘windswept and interesting’ or not – have one vote each, same as the rest of us.

Schrodingers Cat

well done to wos

o/t
newark by election, ukip set to do well but tories likely to retain seat

might be a good time just after to carry out another poll, im interested to see what the ukip success down south has affected the yes vote

seanair

As anyone who has seen any of Neil Olivers shows will know, he is very backward looking.

cynicalHighlander

@Peter A Bell says:

Interesting. I appear to be the only one who can no longer see images on this site.

I had similar trouble with an update from Flash Player a while back so reinstalled an older version and disabled auto update.

link to helpx.adobe.com

CameronB Brodie

Neil Oliver comes across as a bit of a Tory twit, IMO. A bit ‘I’m alright Jock’. A bit Malcolm Offord, though I see the video where MO expresses these sentiments, has been removed from VNB’s site. What does Neil Oliver understand about economic planning or public policy?

This is new to me from VNB. 🙂

What is Acanchi’s involvement in Vote No Borders?

Fiona Gilmore founded Acanchi in 2003 and since then has worked with many countries, providing research, communications advice and support. While fundraising only started in January 2014, Vote No Borders has been in development for two years after a meeting in Aberdeenshire with a group of concerned voters. It became evident that there was an opportunity to provide a platform for people to express their views and aspirations for the future of Scotland as part of the Union. Acanchi is assisting the Vote No Borders Campaign with research, support and production. Acanchi is not a PR company – no PR agencies are involved.

Strenuous efforts have been made to employ Scottish specialists in research, production and music at every stage of the campaign development. The reason for the use of a London-based group has much to do with the treatment that those who disagree with the separatists anticipate from offering their support to Vote No Borders. Claire Borley was the photographer employed by Acanchi to take the original shots of every one of the Vote No Borders authentic voices.

Really?

heedtracker

Neil Oliver”s a BBC Proud Scot but man to the core, of his mortgage. If he had it him to vote yes, he’d be out of a job by the end of the day. Rule Britannia:-(

bookie from hell

2014

news shate?

BBC Scotland has already been forced to defend its new flagship current affairs programme, Scotland 2014, after viewers deserted it in droves within days of its launch.

YESGUY

A huge thank you from me Rev Stu.

To see so many people onsite and engaging in the debates is fantastic. Your work has gone a long way to quelling the voter apathy that was prevalent here for years. You have given us Scots YESsers a voice and have sparked an immense hunger for “real information”

Stu you have a place here that brings together people from all walks of life to discuss Scotland’s independence, what it can bring and more than anyone got to the root of scares and smears to get the truth out there.

I have no doubt you have surprised yourself with the success of WINGS , but not me . This blog always had something to say and the message was often “forget all the negativity” this is what we CAN do. It was such a change from the MSM norm.

And can i say well done to all the commentators as they have played a huge part too . Many a smile on our faces as we read. Thank you all.

Wings should have a weekly magazine you know. It would be a success and i for one would buy and contribute anyway i could. Just a thought Stu.

WELL DONE

JLT

Ian Brotherhood,

Scottish historians – ‘windswept and interesting’ or not – have one vote each, same as the rest of us.

I agree …but if anything, if there is one set of people that could explain why Scotland should remain with the Union, then you would expect it to be a historian.

I can understand that we would have historians on both sides of the fence, but for Mr. Oliver to state that ‘I find this kind of internecine squabbling puts my teeth on edge. I would rather that it would just go away – or that it had never happened” when the piece earlier mentions that he previously stated (or so the paper says) ‘warned against Scots “sleepwalking” into independence and said he believed people needed to have a “historical grasp” of Britain to make an informed decision

That seems to contradict itself. He would like reasoned answers as to why Scots should believe in the Union, but later states that the whole things ‘puts his teeth on edge’. So, what does that mean? We should discuss it, but only through gritted teeth. Yeah, that sounds like reasoned debate.

It’s a poor answer if he did say that. It doesn’t help, and it explains nothing if he is backing the Unionist corner. Personally, if he find it truly grating, then maybe he would be best to stay out of it. As discussed with other ‘Yes’ members yesterday, if Tom Devine or Michael Fry were to get involved (to a degree, Michael has, and seems to be fairly close to the ‘Yes’ camp), then great. From what I remember, Michael has offered some good points without denouncing either camp, and I would take the insight of both men with good deal of interest.

James Kay

I looked at the Herald article about Neil Oliver, and I was struck by one particular statement:

… we have been married to the UK for a long time …

I thought that the ‘marriage’ was the union! It’s like saying “we have been married to Mr & Mrs X for a long time.”

heedtracker

So BBC TV super star or history lecturer at Glasgow uni? £30k per year at uni or £150k per year at the BBC with lots and lots of BBC expenses, is the historic choice for Oliver.

After Scotland votes for independence, how will Scottish history remember these BBC liggers and spivs, is my idea for a BBC history documentary, hosted by Neil Oliver, oh the sheer thrill of being ruled by England resonates through the ages, across time, across continents, in a world where everyone wept when England was asked to leave, sometimes politely, sometimes they didn’t want to go, but they did.

JLT

CynicalHighlander / Peter Bell,

Guys, install the latest versions of Flashplayer, Adobe Reader, and Microsoft Updates (for the MS updates, you can get them by clicking on the ‘Start’ button (bottom left), choose ‘Control Panel’ and then ‘Windows Update’.

Usually, doing those 3 will keep your system up to date for browsing the internet.

jon esquierdo

Excellent

Iain

Trouble at t’propaganda mill:

‘BBC strike threat after Gary Robertson is fired’

link to tinyurl.com

SheepOnFire

Donald Trump Live on C-Span BBC Parliament ch81

CameronB Brodie

C-Span is Newspeak central. Sorry, couldn’t resist. 🙂

Alex Beveridge

Very well done, Stuart. Without you and the others previously mentioned, we would be lone voices in the wind.

call me dave

The Herald final mentions the CBI today (not much) and shows where £500,000 of our hard earned money dosh ends up through membership fees frm public bodies.

Universities, quangos and the BBC shelled out the cash despite the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) defence of public-sector cuts and wage freezes for staff.

Green MSP Patrick Harvie questioned why the bodies had signed up to the CBI in the first place.

The CBI, which acts as the voice of big business, was criticised recently when it formally registered as a No campaigner in the independence referendum.

As a result, the CBI was legally able to spend up to £150,000 of its budget campaigning to keep Scotland in the Union.

The move backfired after it emerged that some of its fee-paying members were public-sector bodies under the control of the Scottish Government.

Around 20 such bodies either terminated or suspended their CBI membership.

The CBI admitted a mistake and deregistered as a campaigner with the Electoral Commission.

Aye!
Half a pound of tupenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.

James123

Stu, I wouldn’t be surprised if your uniques reached half a million in the last weeks running up to the referendum. That could make a real difference to the result, in fact it could be the difference between winning and losing.

Schrodingers Cat

‘BBC strike threat after Gary Robertson is fired’

mmm, it would remove the bbc from the debate

i wonder if gary………new blog site?

keep ignoring and slating their new program by the way

Ian Brotherhood

And what does the CBI do with all that dosh? Just have a slap-up dinner, no expense spared, and a huge wodge goes to the esteemed speaker? Sounds like a fancy Christmas Club for the usual suspects.

heedtracker

Gary Robertson”s been handed his cards and his ex BBC in Scotlanders want to go on strike? One off the trough, all off the trough and NOW they complain about BBC bullying and underfunding. You couldn’t invent a shabbier outfit than Pacific Quay.

S Mac

Hello and thanks for a fantastic source of information. I have been a regular (daily) reader for a few weeks now but this is my first post. I was previoulsy a “maybe” yes voter but Iam now convinced to vote Yes. Your expose of the shenanigans of the mainstream press and broadcasters was a turning point for me.
Cheers.

Brian Powell

It is worth reading Newsnet on the relationship between the EC and the CBI.

newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-news/9265-cbi-silent-after-documents-reveal-inconsistencies-in-cridland-submission-to-electoral-commission

cearc

seannair,

You don’t say!

CameronB Brodie

O/T
Here is a wee reading list from a selective search. That should keep you buys for a wee while. Might take some pressure of the BBC? 🙂

link to tandfonline.com

Cindie

Wings goes from strength to strength! Well done Stu, so very glad that I found this site and made it a part of my daily life. Meanwhile at PQ, BBC Scotland seems to be about to go into total meltdown!

Andy-B

Well done, Rev.

Your ability to deconstruct more than one false story by the unionists, and then to present the truth in a candid manner, has seen your stock soar, who’d have thought the truth would’ve been so popular.

O/T Ruth Davidson,is kind of making promises of more powers if we vote no, what happened to her infamous quote, There’s a line in the sand the Conservatives WON’T cross. “The old adage beware Greeks ( no offence intended to lovely Greek people)bearing gifts” springs to mind.

link to scotsman.com

john ferguson

Many many thanks Rev. for expanding my education. We hear we have to move with the times, so. the time is right to move to a yes.

Les Wilson

ain says:
1 June, 2014 at 12:01 pm
Trouble at t’propaganda mill:

“BBC strike threat after Gary Robertson is fired!”

No BBC Scotland ” Politics Scotland” this morning, this likely the probable cause.

HandandShrimp

Why was there a chap in called Henderson sitting in for Ken this morning?

velofello

I’m now into my 4th year of reading Wings. Jings.

Andy-B

Its been rumoured that Jeremy Paxman is in line to be the new Director General of the BBC, Paxman did his chances no harm when he stated live on a radio 4 programme. “Since there’s such a head of steam building in Scotland for hating the English”. which of course is completely untrue, I wouldn’t be surprised if his name sake Jeremy Clarkson became Mr Paxman’s number two at the BBC if he gets the job, birds of a feather and all that.

link to heraldscotland.com

gordoz

Big question is; will so called BBC Scotchland staff ‘with a conciense’ join public in ‘Bias demonstration’ at Pacific Quay today ??

Don’t hold yer breath !

heedtracker

Paxo is just one more teamGB thug. Check out pissy old progressive/liberal/lefty Guardian today or peruse the Guardian CiF britnats raging with not English surely, fear and loathing?

link to archive.today

mr thms

I hope the BBC Pacific Quay demonstration, at lunchtime, had a large turn out

TickTock

Re WoS site traffic stats, brilliant, you da man Rev!

As someone above mentioned though it would be good/useful to know if possible how many new unique visitors are in Scotland. The vast majority of those coming on from abroad won’t have a vote!

As for Neil Oliver, if it’s true then fuck ‘im. Another BBC whore seeing his gravy train heading for its last stop. Fuck ‘im. Either that or he thinks it will all just be forgotten and he can carry on as usual, yeh right.

TickTock

Oneironaut

@Taranaich
“He went on to say that he “liked the status quo.”

He’s lucky he didn’t say that to me.
My reply would have been something along the lines of:

“Oh you like the status quo do you?
I’m guessing you also like the necessity of food banks in one of the richest countries in the world because their neighbour is stealing all their wealth, hmm?
Do you also like children being born into poverty? Or maybe you like a coalition of thieves and racist thugs in expensive suits controlling our once-fair land?
Oh, and I bet you just love people freezing to death in winter because they can’t afford heating fuel and food?”

My sarcasm can be a truly ego-shattering force when it’s unleashed! 😉

@john king
I really want one of those T-shirts! 😀 hehe

Andy-B

It seems Scotland’s UKIP MEP David Coburn has vowed to do his utmost to overturn a YES vote when its returned in September. Mr Coburn added hopefully the English will have us back.

link to heraldscotland.com

Flower of Scotland

O/t

Is the protest at Pacific Quay happening? There is a news blackout on it if there is!

heedtracker

Plus non Scots hating Paxman was always whining about England ruled by the Scottish Raj of Westminster. TeamGB, the true home of the world class hypocrite.

cynicalHighlander

This is what I was on about Stu about 1hr 5mins in.

link to bbc.co.uk

WantonWampum.

Well done Wings.
Well done Rev.
Well done to our brothers and sisters overseas.

I am doing my bit to kill MSM

The contributors excel via the breadth and depth of their astounding knowledge.

Well done one and all.

CameronB Brodie

Flower of Scotland
It might not be well enough attended to be new worthy. That’s the risk. Hope it went well though and would be happy to do a stint, if an ‘impartiality camp’ was to appear.

Andy-B

David Cameron is heading for, a head to clash with EU chiefs if Mr Juncker, becomes President of the EU Commission, Mr Cameron has threatened to pull the UK from the EU, much sooner than the intended EU referendum, if Mr Juncker is elected. So the UK could be dragged from the EU, sooner than later by a Tory party which has only one elected member in Scotland.

Uncertainty under the union is a major concern for Scots, another reason (As if you needed one) to vote YES.

link to bbc.co.uk

Lesley-Anne

Congratulations Stu on creating an unbelievable site. This site just keeps growing fro strength to strength. More power to your elbow, fingers, keyboard or whatever. 😉

In terms of the pecking order in which I visit sites this site is the last in order for me. It is last for a very good reason, in my view. Once I’m on here I spend so long on here I almost forget what day of the week it is, MY excuse and I’m sticking to it. 😛

tony o'neill

When we win our freedom,wings over scotland will join the pantheon of hero’s who helped win our childrens freedom.

Lesley-Anne

Sorry Stu, but you know what I’m like when I find stuff on Twitter, I can’t help myself, I just can’t help myself. 😛

link to tinyurl.com

CameronB Brodie

You couldn’t make it up. 🙂

link to imgur.com

Andy-B

Nicola Sturgeon welcomes Common Weal’s new 50 page book, published by the Jimmy Reid Foundation, on how Scots could make a better Scotland for themselves and their children, under independence, there’s some good ideas there.

Unless you’re Johann Lamont, who said Scots, aren’t genetically programmed to make political decisions.

link to bbc.co.uk

Lesley-Anne

Aye they certainly do elections and voting in the Western Isles with STYLE Cameron. 😛

Geoff Huijer

Well done all!

I was hooked from the moment I first saw Wings – I mean a site that uses links to sources of information! How radical is that in the age of spin?

I always had hope that the ‘truth will out’ – I never in my wildest dreams thought it would be a one man army based in Bath that would do it.

Shame on all those so-called professional journalists who have sold their souls to big bucks. This site is EXACTLY what journalism should be about. OK, I know it is Pro-independence, but backing up arguments (or even a point of view) with reasons, sources, and er, facts is essential. Journalists should be challenging the ‘system’ not blindly following.

Oneironaut

@Andy-B
Yeah I noticed that earlier when I was looking for something on the Sunday Herald site, and it ticked me off so much.

Who does he think he is???

It’s only because he knows that UKIP wouldn’t stand a chance up here in an independent Scotland.
The only hope for his collection of racist thugs to get into power up here is if we’re forced to accept them as part of the UK, the same way we’ve been forced for far too long to accept Tory governments we didn’t vote in either.

I’m guessing he’s also using that as a tactic to try to get all the No voters to turn to UKIP.

Considering only something like 3% of the population voted UKIP at the EU election, I doubt he’ll ever get the power to reverse the referendum anyway. And if he tries, he’ll hopefully end up getting hunted out of the country like Farage did.

SheepOnFire

I’m very longtime BBC Radio Scotland listener, thus an expert.

BBC/BBC Scotland are not honest brokers, and are a British government department! They are appointed, salaried, hired and fired by Westminister. BBC are totally owned and run by Westminister.

In the business world, if your appointed and salaried by your employer, your position depends on you to do the bidding of your employer. As it will be in the BBC, no matter how its presented. Its a deceit.

BBC Director General & Staff are all appointed and salaried by Westminister. Thus owned by Westminister, and under total control of Westminister.

BBC/BBC Scotland management will only be Safe Brokers if openly elected to their positions!

ps. Hope BBC Scotland Gary Robertson has been keeping and recording all his conversations. I didn’t think he looked comfortable with the BBC deceit.

Gary Robertson could be great asset to YES, if he redeems himself and exposes the corruption of the BBC.

BBC Scotland will only want committed fanatical Unionist presenters in the lead up to Independence Day(I-Day). Reporters with integrity would be a risk to BBC, they may whistleblow.

ps. He’s fae Elgin, an Elgin loon(laddie), so I expect he’ll ultimately do the right thing.

pps. Its going to get bad. The British Empire are fanatical. Look at its history, more atrocities, murder and genocide than Nazi Germany or Roman Empire. You wouldn’t know, unless you go digging. Thank you Internet.

kendomacaroonbar

@Cameron B

Absofekkinlutely Brilliant ! thanks for sharing 🙂

Lesley-Anne

Anyone wondering about the anti BBC protest at Pacific Quay well here’s a photo that has just been posted up on Twitter about an hour ago.

link to tinyurl.com

Roll_On_2014

Ian Brotherhood: at 12:15 pm

And what does the CBI do with all that dosh? Just have a slap-up dinner, no expense spared, and a huge wodge goes to the esteemed speaker? Sounds like a fancy Christmas Club for the usual suspects.

Aye Ian the collective dosh of CBI UK is used to buy politicians. After all the UK has the best government that money can buy, and it quite often is, via the revolving door at Westmidden.

Andy-B

@oneironaut.

Yip I think we’ll hear and read all manner of nutty and bonkers comments from UKIP’s David Coburn, I’m sure he’ll give us many wonderful comments, that will ultimately backfire on him.

@Sheeponfire.

Have you any idea how depressing and ethically wrong the line “Reporters with integrity would be a risk” sounds, sadly, you’re bang on the money with that one liner.

Lesley-Anne

The TRUTH behind the video star.

link to tinyurl.com

Jim Bo

Thanks Rev for keeping the site as informative and sharp as it is. I spend way more time here than I ought to however surely that can only be a good thing right?
I just love the way that graph looks and can’t wait for the coming months!

Marker Post

Found article on the Sunday Post site on BBC strike threat after sacking of Gary Robertson:

link to sundaypost.com

Ekindy

@flowerofscotland 1:19

Just back in from over at Pacific Quay. Reasonably well attended by probably a couple of hundred anyway.

Was still going on when i left. Plenty of photographs taken by folk and one independent news guy filming but not sure where it will appear (if at all).

Democracy Reborn

Re. Neil Oliver:-

TBH, I almost stopped reading after he uttered the words “I’m a proud Scot.”

Frankly though, it’s shocking that an alleged serious commentator can advance such cogent reasons for remaining in the Union as ‘you don’t understand your history’ (hands up those of you who don’t have an “historical grasp of Britain”?). Or that ‘if ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. Or to compare the referendum to a late 70s TV comedy show & dismiss it because we’re not living in “slums” or “oppressed & downtrodden”.

Quite apart from the issue of self-determination, I wonder if Neil gets out much & sees the modern reality of much of modern Scotland. The notion that we’re all comfortably living some cushy middle class existence is laughable.

Still, as I understand he is actually a qualified architect rather than historian, he’ll be used to digging trenches. A wee tip Neil : when you’re stuck in a hole, stop digging…

Andy-B

UKIP to contest senior Tory seats at next General Election, a ComRes poll, commissioned by UKIP, suggests that 86% of the 4.3 million people who voted for them in the EU elections will do so again in the General Election.

If indeed its true, there is a distinct possibility of a UKIP/Tory coalition in 2015 at Westminster, do we really want to be caught in the middle of that, or do we want to be independent by then, and planning our own future.

link to theguardian.com

Les Wilson

Lesley-Anne says

link to tinyurl.com

Hey thanks for the youtube clip, brilliant!, we do have some clever people on our side.

heedtracker

Gary Robertson could be great asset to YES, if he redeems himself and exposes the corruption of the BBC.

Derek Bateman’s got a great blog going, explaining how the BBC in Scotland “works” so what are you waiting for Gary?

cynicalHighlander

@Ekindy

one independent news guy filming but not sure where it will appear (if at all).

GCHQ

Les Wilson

Come on BBC Scotland staff tell us how you feel about things in Pacific Quay!

Use a strange name and a strange avitar, we do not care, just give us the inside info! ( Please !)

Morag Graham Kerr

Can someone remind me who to contact about getting Aye Right leaflets? I know it’s been repeated ad nauseam but I don’t have a note of it.

Lesley-Anne

Les Wilson says:

Lesley-Anne says

link to tinyurl.com

Hey thanks for the youtube clip, brilliant!, we do have some clever people on our side.

Glad to be of service Les. I’ve been told before I have my uses, apparently, I guess this must be it. 😛

Les Wilson

Lesley-Anne says

Yup, you are certainly useful Ha Ha!
Get back to twitter and find some more!

Democracy Reborn

Re my last post & reference to Neil Oliver, should have been that he is a qualified “archaeologist” rather than historian. (Predictive text!)

Morag Graham Kerr

Here’s where I was delivering Yes newspapers yesterday. Envy me, o my compatriots.

link to goo.gl

Morag Graham Kerr

Neil Oliver doesn’t seem to realise that history is happening right in front of him and all around him. Deal with it, Neil.

rab_the_doubter

SOS today banging on about the threat to scottish farmers not being able to brand their product ‘British’with a wee butchers apron logo.
Because, obviously there’s no market for Scottish Beef, Lamb, Salmon, Seafood, Ayrshire Potatoes, soft Fruit, etc etc etc.

Independence can only be good for m Scottish food producers. The ‘Made in Independent Scotland’ brand can be a genuine guarantee of quality Without any effort at all. Come on Scottish food producers, its the best opportunity you will ever have to get distinctive trusted branding, don’t miss out on this chance.

rab_the_doubter

RE Neil Oliver, He has an upcoming TV programme on the BBC, I’m going to reserve judgement on it because I know his co-presenter Dr Tony Pollard and, regardless of Tony’s personal opinion on the referendum (which I don’t know as he’has not publicly expressed it) he is a good guy. Suffice to say though that if the programme ends up being a union flag waver without substance I will be having words with him ?

Andy-B

More bad news for the BBC as it come under scrutiny from Westminster, who claim changes are afoot.

link to standard.co.uk

Cindie

Thanks @Leslie-Anne, great vid. Have shared it on Twitter x

Mary Bruce

rab_the_doubter: that whole English will only buy British-labelled produce thing doesn’t stand up to any scrutiny at all, it is drivel, it really pisses me off.

When Scotland becomes independent will the English also suddenly stop buying: coffee, tea, rice, coke, Danish bacon, Bordeaux/Beaujolais, Australian cabernet, Edam, Parma ham, parmesan cheese, peanut butter, kiwi fruit, bananas, Peroni, Tiger beer, brie, gruyere, parmesan, soy sauce, South African merlot, olive oil, Argentinian beef, New Zealand lamb, orange juice, pineapples, asparagus, grapes etc etc etc?

The Scottish farming label is far more valuable than the British one, Scotch beef is already more desirable and sells at a premium.

What the Scotsman should be telling farmers is that an extra £billion of EU funding will come our way if it is a yes vote.

Nana Smith

An evening with Derek Bateman can be found on youtube.

Have tried linking but my posts disappear!

Democracy Reborn

O/T (apologies)

Courtesy of the Guardian : the reaction by our good old Labour Party (‘internationalist’, not nasty nationalist) to UKIP’s Euro victory has begun in earnest.

Senior backbenchers including Frank Field, Kate Hoey & (Red) Jon Mann, together with Prescott, want restriction on freedom of movement for East European workers. Need to address working & middle class voters ‘concerns’ about migration from Europe, particularly (surprise, surprise) in marginal seats.

Workers of the continent unite!

Morag Graham Kerr

Nana, your posts of YouTube vids will disappear unless you remove everything in the link before the www. If there is no www it will be OK.

That link has been posted before, but try it again the way I suggested.

Oneironaut

@Nana Smith
Make sure to remove the “http” bit from the links. For some reason Wings doesn’t like that bit. Maybe some kind of formatting filter in place, I’m not sure.

@Andy-B
Maybe the government are concerned there are still too many honest journalists in the BBC that they need to prune out.

Or maybe they hope that by getting rid of the licence fee, it’ll mean more people will be prepared to tune into the official Westminster propaganda machine…

Morag Graham Kerr

Oneironaut, Stu has put a filter in place to prevent YouTube videos embedding on the page. It fouls up the formatting something awful. It’s all explained on the page he tells people to read before they start posting.

Nana Smith

Thanks Morag & Oneironaut

youtube.com/watch?v=T8G-cu6a6Pg

Les Wilson

Morag Graham Kerr says:

Morag, at least when you were delivering, you would have done it calmly with a smile on your face. It is great countryside.Gee,your dedicated though!

Morag Graham Kerr

I absolutely did. You can’t have a frown on your face in the middle of that lot. Even when your being laid into by a convinced Britnat, or when a farmer at an isolated farm (not the one I was heading for up that road) comes out of his house and asks you to take the paper and leaflets away again because “I’m no in favour”.

(What was that all about anyway? If someone from BT put something in my door I’d just drop it in the recycling basket I keep there for junk mail, not open the door to find the messenger and ask them to take it back!)

Greannach

Morag, where exactly is that loch where you were delivering the papers? Is it above Tweedsmuir?

ronnie anderson

Just back from Bbc demo about 150/200 people there met a few Wingers CAZ-M was there had our photo taken to post on Wings both of us gave a Interview for Radio Free Scotland.

Handed in my Bbc Licence/threatening letters, policeman helped me up the steps & got the security man to take my letters brilliant.Bbc staff told not to appear at the windows.

Went from there to Govan debate hall full meet Stevie B at that venue so need to watch the live stream as I had to leave early.Roll o the next one & hopefully thousands in attendence.

Weil done awe YOU,S YESSERS

Les Wilson

Morag Graham Kerr says:

Yup, you are right about the recycling, I do the same. Mind you they come by post, but few put through my door, must be the YES sign that frightens them off!!

Giving Goose

Neil Oliver? I’ve got one of his books and it’ll be the last one of his I buy.

Andy-B

A leading supermarket chain has warned it will stop buying Scottish stock if Scotland becomes independent, the Scotsman newspaper doesn’t name the supermarket, but I would like to know so I make sure I don’t buy a single thing from them.

link to scotsman.com

Morag Graham Kerr

Greannach, spot on. Talla reservoir. You can just zoom out of the streetview and get a fix on the position.

The drive up there certainly did me good, even though it takes all afternoon and into the evening to deliver about 75 papers. We’re trying to cover everywhere, no matter how remote.

cynicalHighlander

@Nana Smith

Had to search that link this hopefully will work.

youtu.be/T8G-cu6a6Pg

haud on the noo

Andy-B :

Not surprised that the supermarket is not named as I do not believe it for one minute. Its a lie a blatant lie. Supermarkets are a business…

That really is scare-mongering of the most pathetic sort.

haud on the noo

Morag :

Talla ? A seriously beautiful area.

Morag Graham Kerr

Guys, you can link to the videos, just don’t let the links become embedded videos. This should work.

link to youtube.com

Note I only removed everything before the www. Leave the www itself.

Nana Smith

@Morag

That’s exactly how I posted the link,just went into the mystic![hubby a huge Van the man fan]

galamcennalath

Lesley-Anne says
Congratulations Stu on creating an unbelievable site.

Don’t you mean a believable site? 😉

It’s sites like the VNB which are completely unbelievable!

Morag Graham Kerr

haud on the noo, yes it’s amazing up there. It’s all in my council ward, which is an area you can see on the actual map. A woman in a house on the way up there asked me where I was from when she took the paper and I said West Linton and she said what a long way.

It’s about 20 miles. And as I said, it’s in the same council ward I live in – that’s why I was doing it.

I wonder if they’ll see a local BT person up there? There are plenty Tories around, you’d think one of them might stir themselves, but I’ve seen no sign of it.

HandandShrimp

As far as I am aware the supermarket that specifically uses a union flag is Morrisons and they are the one supermarket above that categorically states it wasn’t them (probably because they are know that such a description points at them.)

Name names or it is lies Scotsman.

It is of course complete pish, the supermarket shelves are full of foreign produce. We buy because the price and taste is right. Scotland’s farmers have a quality product and a lot of it. We export so much because we have 37% of the land and only 8% of the population. The Conservative chap saying that UK food production and consumption is very integrated and impossible to untangle is probably correct and this totally contradicts the story.

cearc

Ronnie A,

Well done you!

Nice to hear of public money being well used by our polis.

Morag Graham Kerr

Nana, the system puts the http:// back in after you post it. If you post it the way you see it there, it ends up in the spam filter.

Like I said, remove everything before the www, but leave in the www, when you post. It will appear with the http://, but you didn’t put it there.

Liz

Thanks for the time and effort you put into making the truth available to the rest of us too lazy to do it for ourselves! Glad to see more and more people are accessing the site. Whatever the vote, people who have read your articles can’t say they were not informed.
Thanks again

heedtracker

Sunday Times massive puff for Ruth Davidson who is going to give Scotland more devo tomorrow apparently like 100 % Scots PAYE which is probably just more UKOK! smoke n mirrors.
Also big boost ST style for at least 2 vote no Glasgow uni academics. A Ronald MacDonald says £9k costs per Scots if we vote yes and another one says he thinks their will be Salmond/Cameron pact if we vote No and the “English will be distraught if Scotland leaves the union”
Wish I’d bought the Herald but it looks like it’s been having Scotland on too.

ST also have a terrify dystopian future for evil and cruel separatist Scotland if we do vote yes. its all from our old friend Professor Ian MaClean of Nuffield College and his Edinburgh is the next Athens of the north because, well Ian says that Trident never leaves Faslane as AlicSalmin reneges on Scotland with Trident for a currency union with England but future PM Bojo forces spending cuts and tax hikes on silly little wimpy Scotland and so on. It’s weird reading so much malice pulsing away in UKOK universities but this git’s lecturers must be a right hoot. MacClean also has it has it in for Romanians and Bulgarians.

WTF is it with far right England, Romanians and Bulgarians?

Dr JM Mackintosh

Team Yes (me and my son) were at PQ and a good day was had by all.

BBC tried their best to ignore us. STV did not turn either but they had a long way to come ~ 200m.
Our un-biased TV is just wonderful !?

A bit rainy but well worth going and around 250 to 300 people turned out.

KOF

Quest for Bannockburn promo link (The ones on the BBC site don’t seem to be working) –

Hmmm?… Based on this small clip, I’m not expecting a lot from this.

From the voice over –

“The spear men of Bruce’s army fighting for independence, up against the cavalry and archers of Edward the second. Intent in suppressing once and for all their unruly Northern neighbour”.

Independence? I thought we were fighting an invading army? If they had said “fighting to preserve their independence”, then perhaps, but “for” independence? “Unruly Northern neighbour”? What, you mean those folk in the North who wouldn’t just give in to domination? What about the unruly Southern neighbour?

Sheesh!

gordoz

@Democracy Reborn – Neil Oliver, all that potential spoiled.

TBH, I almost stopped reading after he uttered the words “I’m a proud Scot.”

Bingo for me too!

Bye Bye Neil ProudScot (Nelson is his hero by the way)

HandandShrimp

There seems to be some speculation that Ruth has stepped over her line in the sand and walked on several miles along the beach where she has set up a beach cafe and is offering double the amount of tax raising powers that Labour coughed up in their yellow paper. (It was supposed to be red but they were chicken).

Alexa

Amusingly, your stats don’t fit in with two other traffic reports from last month – or your global rank would be much higher than it is.
What a shame you are so dishonest with your loyal cabal but you really aren’t spreading beyond that core. Your readership is lower than you claims and daily pageviews down on previous month. #deluded

heedtracker

Hi HandandShrimp, to be fair to Ruth Davidson, teamGB union has been one great opportunity for Ruth Davidson. Weak degree, cheesee BBC job, MSP, head of Scottish Conservative Party within 2 years. It’s nice to think of Ruthie babes slumped in her sun lounger studying her big Economics for Dummies book, Page one, draw line in sand, page two, pretend you didn’t.

Andy C

Mentionned it before on here ,but half of sainsburys fruit and veg is wrapped up in a union jack.
Mow Hovis are at it, loaves wrapped in a polythene union jack. Another two to add to the list of shit companies.
How much does all this psychological pish cost and how are they getting away with it, since it’s now the official run up to September?
Well narked, but it won’t be forgotten!

Flower of Scotland

Well done all the yessers who went to PQ at lunchtime! Hope that the photos go viral!

heedtracker

Glasgow uni Professor Ronald MacDonald, double whopper, extra fries Sunday Times thing is worth a read if only for his staggering ability to bullshit Scotland but to be fair he does halve his front page £9k per Scot if they dare etc, so that his long dreary wind down to £4.5k per person makes even less sense.

And Professor Ronald MacDonald, double cheese burger, extra fries, extra large macslushy, makes no mention whatsoever of the Danny Alexander debacle last week and the Treasury making up as they go along the times it by 12 economic buffoonery.

Funny that, maybe next lecture Prof?

call me dave

New from the Herald today.
A’Better Together Poll’ Labour are running with it next week.

Most Scots believe money raised from North Sea oil and gas in Scottish waters should support public services across the UK, according to a poll.

The finding suggests 64% would prefer to share the proceeds, compared with 30% who think the revenue should stay in Scotland.

The YouGov poll, compiled by Better Together, also suggests most Scots want to share pensions and benefits across the UK.

Labour released the findings ahead of the launch of its referendum campaign, due to take place at a rally in Glasgow on Tuesday.

Scottish leader Johann Lamont will be joined by former prime minister Gordon Brown at the event.

Ms Lamont said: “According to this Better Together polling, most Scots understand that our pensions and benefits are better being backed across the United Kingdom, spread across 60 million people rather than six million.

“On oil, it is clear that Scots see the value of sharing out the volatility and uncertainty of oil revenues across the UK rather than being reliant on it as part of a smaller economy. We Scots want to share the benefits of oil throughout the UK and the UK wants to share the wealth of London with us Scots.

Mr Brown said: “Scots have contributed to the UK all of their lives, they have made their national insurance payments and paid their UK taxes. They think that the UK should continue to honour their promises. They are right.”

The poll suggests 79% of Scots think the old age pension should be the same across the UK.

It shows 70% want corporation tax to remain the same, rather than allow a different rate in Scotland as proposed by the SNP.

Some 69% of Scots think the cost of paying benefits to people in Scotland should come from taxes collected across the UK.

The poll of 1,051 Scottish adults was carried our between May 14 and 18.

HandandShrimp

The Better Together poll is remarkably consistent with Labour policy…75% agree with Scottish Labour but only 25% voted for then in the EU elections…perhaps they need to work on something…or stop insulting our intelligence with a silly poll.

Sounds like Johann is framing an argument to scrap devolution. Everything should be the same across the UK.

Les Wilson

Talking about what Ruthie and the Tories are going to throw in the pot.
Rest assured it will be a voter capture idea, but when analysed it will amount to more powers, maybe some on tax and other fiddles.

The truth is it will be designed for Westminster’s agenda,
they want to make it easier for them by “giving” this kind of stuff in order to cut Scotland’s pocket money.
They will NEVER offer near what we want and need. Smoke and mirrors as per usual.

Andy smith

Iain Lennox,
it was causewayside,the stretch between national library to down past swany’s pub.Never thought to take photo,will bear that in mind next time I come across one of these clowns.

SheepOnFire

@Lesley-Anne

Great vid. Funny and professional.

tinyurl.com/lxt4xo4

Back to Independence: Marty McFly changes Scottish History
by Indy TV on YouTube.

John O

Well done WOS, the only way BT would ever get that much traffic would be to pay for it.

Jeannie

@ronnie anderson

Awe Ronnie, I was at the demo today too. Sorry I didn’t get to meet you. I’m quite wee and couldn’t see over the tall people, but heard some people shouting about not being allowed on the steps, but couldn’t see what they were shouting about. Must have been you!

Jeannie

@Hand and Shrimp

Re the British thing and Morrisons – I was at my mother’s and she had a prize draw thing with a big Union flag on it that she’d got from Morrison’s. On the front it said in big letters that you could win “British Prizes” – you can see it on their website. I wondered what a British Prize could possibly be. Turns out the main British prize is a Mini Cooper, which is made by …BMW!

BuckieBraes

‘Your readership is lower than you claims…’

Who’s talking here – Uncle Remus?

TJenny

Buckie Braes – ‘Your readership is lower than you claims…’

Who’s talking here – Uncle Remus?

I think it might be Gollum. 🙂

Democracy Reborn

“There are lies, damn lies and…..Alexa’s statistics”

Paula Rose

Here I am twiddling my thumbs – come on Alexa hurry up.

Andy-B

Oh Alexa!

We get the odd troll on here,now and then, and they leave one or two false claims, but you Alexa, seem too cowardly to back up your claim, I have to say there’s nothing amusing about you our your comment.

HandandShrimp

LOL not spreading beyond our cabal, but Alexa is still here avidly reading and crunching numbers between his/her grinding teeth it would seem.

Dcanmore

now that’s a graph Ally McCoist would be proud of 🙂

ronnie anderson

@Jeannie 6.26, sos I didnt get to meet you to but we will cross paths at some point.Yes it was me they were shouting on I handed in my TV Licence/theatening letters,its they way I walk that the Polis helped me up the steps.

Wobble like a Duck an dont give a F—, ah wuld be dancein the noo,but its a long time since I did the Huckle Buck,n ma dancein shoes are worn oot.

Stay strong people we’re winning.

X_Sticks

Onward and upward Rev Stu you sure do work hard for it I know. Much appreciated. When you make to to a Wings night I’ll get the beers 😉

@Clootie

I met Jean on the YesMobile at Ellon today. Had an excellent day and handed out loads on Aye Right flyers (hope that keep me on topic enough not to incur wrath 😉 ) so hopefully helping to keep adding to the cracking stats for Wings. Lots of support for Yes and quite a few conversions from DK or even No’s. Good days work.

Hello to all the Ellon Wings lurkers *waves* come on in folks and join the party, it reall y doesn’t hurt at all 🙂

The YesMobile set up and ready to go this morning at Ellon had a beautiful warm sunny day for it: link to twitter.com

Thanks to Square Haggis for helping us get packed up. He’s been offline with PC problems. Back soon hopefully.

john king

Oneironaught says
“@john king
I really want one of those T-shirts! 😀 hehe”

I can have one made for you but they’re dear mind, the cat protection shop in my town did it for me but the computer stitching took the man a while to set up and cost 25 quid,
but worth every penny, I wear it as often as I can.

john king

But now that I think of it the template will be in the computer now so could cost less for another run, hmmm

Kestral

Hi all at BBC today, was great

and especially thanks to the brill lasses thinking up chants on the spot, next time I will bring a megaphone

Any of you guys remember the blue/red/pink sheep at the grass pyramids between Glasgow and Edinburgh

I have the details for the farmer who does this and since he painted them blue for St Andrews day I have a feeling he would be agreeable to some more paining of his sheep with saltires

Good or Bad idea?

Kestral

if you are looking to get a run of t-shirts done with printing instead of embroidery this Scottish business seems really good value

link to glasgowbadges.co.uk

100 t-shirts at £3.16 each

excellent value and supports a Scottish business 🙂

john king

Not so keen on the connotations of saltire painted sheep, gives the wrong impression, but I did see them painted tartan a couple of years ago on the pyramids, they were cool.

Paula Rose

I think they should be randomly painted with either an ‘l’ a ‘u’ an ‘m’ or an ‘i’.

Kestral

thanks – I was kinda thought it might end up with the yes = sheep

but tartan sounds lovely and would be nice for the games

lovely idea, will let you know how it goes

🙂

tartanarse

Well that’s annoying I’ve never had any bother posting here but my posts are not appearing. Can’t be bothered amending the sweary words.

WantonWampum.

Did you notice that paxo described ” Britishness” as being, in this order :- Belizian British, Asian British,English British,Scottish British and….

Why Belizian (formerly British Honduras).

Arch-tory funder Lord Ashcroft hid his tax haven billions in Belize for 64 of his 68 years and only started paying a little in 2010 – after BamCam won a position to reward Ashcroft.

Whatever became of Lord Ashcroft`s Review of the British Military Bases on the EU Nation state of Cyprus.

Is Paxo hiding the money we pay him in a tax haven.?

Paula Rose

Alexa honey – still waiting dear.


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