The media and Unionist politicians (we really need to come up with a word to describe that single entity), when not concocting hysterical frothing diatribes against Michelle Thomson or complaining about the Scottish Government giving money to T In The Park – a position we must confess we find ourselves in some sympathy with – have recently been loudly protesting about last year’s “underspend” in the Holyrood budget.
There’s an extremely good article here by Dr Craig Dalzell of the Scottish Greens dealing with the broader issue of why such complaints are idiotic, so rather than go over the ground again we thought we’d look at another angle.
We apologise for another post on the subject of The Wright House, everyone, but we do love getting our teeth into a puzzle, especially when it comes with a side order of lots of juicy evidence of the Scottish media telling people outright lies.
This should be the last one for the forseeable future, and we’ve actually got some solid info to impart this time rather than just a confused expression, so buckle up.
Even the alertest readers will probably already be confused by the baffling tale of Douglas and Jacqueline Wright, who sold their home to Edinburgh West MP Michelle Thomson. We certainly were last night, but on delving a little more into the media coverage of their story, things got a whole lot worse.
Older readers may remember an ITV show called The Krypton Factor, which had an “observation round” section in which contestants were shown a short video clip and then asked a series of questions about it.
The newspaper is a fantastic concept. A cheap, accessible product, it’s a brilliant way of keeping yourself broadly abreast of current affairs. You turn a page and are presented with a diverse selection of interesting stories, often on subjects you’d never have thought to go and seek out in the self-refining echo chamber of the internet.
(Theoretically links on websites serve the same purpose, but dodging “sponsored” advertorial, gutter-level clickbait, pop-ups, autoplay video and pages that judder and leap around so much while loading all this rubbish that you’re about 50/50 to have an epileptic fit before you can read the story, has made clicking on one into a game of Russian Roulette fewer and fewer people are willing to take a chance on.)
This site has never believed that the ongoing steep decline in newspaper sales is a fundamental problem with the format. Rather, the truth is that people stop buying papers because they’re full of garbage.
Most of Scotland’s news outlets, including the Times, Herald, Daily Record, Daily Mail, Express and the BBC, run today with the story that one in three Police Scotland officers intend to leave the force in the next three years, according to a recent survey for the Scottish Police Authority.
(The print edition of the Scotsman makes it the front-page splash, although the article has mysteriously vanished from its website.)
But a couple of pieces of important information are inexplicably missing.
You might have thought that the publication of the “Project Fear” book last month was an embarrassment for the motley collection of highly-paid but hapless Labour and Tory apparatchiks who ran “Better Together”, but it turns out there was worse to come.
Politics Home today reports what sounds like some alarming news:
Jamie on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Hatey, I was trying to talk to you but I realise now you are either German or English, and I…” May 5, 22:50
Hatey McHateface on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Here you go, James, have a fish. Three days since it was landed. Been in the sun quite a bit.…” May 5, 22:42
Hatey McHateface on Binfire Of The Vanities: “I kind of skimmed your steaming piles, Confused, but glad I stuck it out to the end. Great news about…” May 5, 22:36
Hatey McHateface on Binfire Of The Vanities: “You talking to me? Jeezo, and you were the one complaining about “flat earth level of trolling pish”! But seeing…” May 5, 22:19
Bibo on Binfire Of The Vanities: “@ 100%Yes Ali won’t be back. You can tell he is totally indoctrinated and lacking in critical thinking if he…” May 5, 22:05
James on Binfire Of The Vanities: “The pair of them are sharing a caravan in Margate…. One bedroom.” May 5, 22:05
Confused on Binfire Of The Vanities: “it’s rude to mock someone for their looks, even if unfortunate https://archive.ph/eF9Eo sometimes you wish the sons of satan, enemies…” May 5, 22:02
Cynicus on Binfire Of The Vanities: ““Surely there must be one SNP politician who actually wants Scotland to regain its independence and is willing to put…” May 5, 22:01
Confused on Binfire Of The Vanities: “www.youtube.com/watch?v=W10xuGFYmM8 that is funny, but this next is hilarious, metal-guru polishes his brassneck and puts it on display https://archive.ph/HDj4H -…” May 5, 21:59
Mark Beggan on Binfire Of The Vanities: “They aint gettin off that easy. They still have to pay their share of the slave reparations and give back…” May 5, 21:58
Confused on Binfire Of The Vanities: “while its established TONY BLAIR is a cunt, a spawn of satan, who drove the nail into the coffin of…” May 5, 21:56
Confused on Binfire Of The Vanities: “the trouble with -cunts- being the devils own, is they never seem to go away; a bit of decent weather,…” May 5, 21:55
Mark Beggan on Binfire Of The Vanities: “So it’s the Beast cage for Linden. Only took ten years for justice to be served.” May 5, 21:49
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Binfire Of The Vanities: “RÓISÍN MURPHY: ‘FRIENDSHIPS COLLAPSED OVER PUBERTY BLOCKER CRITICISM’ (Republic of Ireland) Singer Róisín Murphy has spoken out for the first…” May 5, 21:47
Sven on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Mark Beggan @ 21.11. Well, definitely not with me, Mark (for which small grace I’m sure you are duly grateful).…” May 5, 21:31
Aidan on Binfire Of The Vanities: “No James – I have spent the last few days up in Svalbard. Nice to jump off my final plane…” May 5, 21:22
Doug on Binfire Of The Vanities: “James Connolly joined the British army. Michael Collins [and other republicans] worked for the GPO in London. Sir Roger Casement,…” May 5, 21:20
Mark Beggan on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Socrates said; To do is to be. Plato said; To be is to do and. Frank Sinatra said; Do Be…” May 5, 21:11
Doug on Binfire Of The Vanities: “As long as Swinney remains leader of the SNP there will be no progress on independence. Vote [or don’t vote]…” May 5, 21:07
agentx on Binfire Of The Vanities: “I predict that SNP and Reform UK Ltd will not perform as well as the polls predict.” May 5, 20:48
Jamie on Binfire Of The Vanities: “If you have so much pity for the people of the flag on my profile, why don’t you go and…” May 5, 20:33
Hatey McHateface on Binfire Of The Vanities: ““each one is free and independent when he/she realises it” Let me start a wee list: 1) Destroy your UK…” May 5, 20:27
Hatey McHateface on Binfire Of The Vanities: ““at least put some effort into it” You’re flying the flag of a country whose leaders have pursued policies that…” May 5, 19:53
Sven on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Mark Beggan @ 19.18 “Indy is finished before the vote begins.” To be is to do, Mark. The practise is…” May 5, 19:47
100%Yes on Binfire Of The Vanities: “I see Ali hasn’t returned your call. I’ll answer for him, their not and never will the SNP & Greens…” May 5, 19:36
Northcode on Binfire Of The Vanities: ““assimilation aye fails when peoples remain, even ‘the dregs of a rusted culture’ (Fanon) enough to breath life anew.” I…” May 5, 19:21
Captain Caveman on Binfire Of The Vanities: “On the contrary YL. The Welsh are a lovely, friendly and most welcoming people (as indeed are the Scots, present…” May 5, 19:20
Mark Beggan on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Indy is finished before the vote begins. Gloating is for fools.” May 5, 19:18
Jamie on Binfire Of The Vanities: “Hatey, your trolling is really low effort and lame. I was trolling people and got bored of trolling online before…” May 5, 19:17
