Ever since Scottish Daily Mail political editor Alan Roden jumped ship to go and rearrange the deckchairs for Labour, his former paper has very noticeably toned down its hysterical “SNP BAD” content. We can go through the Mail for days on end now without finding some ludicrously distorted misrepresentation or screaming outrage piece about how a Nat MP found 20p down the back of their sofa without declaring it to HMRC or such.
But we suppose that it’ll at least be bleakly funny, whenever the second independence referendum comes round, watching Labour try to sell a vote for the UK as a vote for internationalist brotherhood and solidarity.
To be honest, readers, we gave up on taking any notice of David Torrance‘s mundane attempts at trolling in the Herald some time ago. But some alert readers pointed us towards this week’s column, suggesting that it was a bald rewriting of history some way beyond their usual bland irritancy.
This was the passage they objected to:
It’s a patronising piece of “shut up and eat your cereal” condescension for sure. But to be fair to Torrance, it does also happen to be true. Wait, not true. The other thing.
The starting pistol hasn’t actually been fired on the two-year Brexit process yet, but now we have a clear statement of when it will be: this morning on The Andrew Marr Show, the Prime Minister pledged that it would happen before the end of next March.
(We might end up broke, in other words, but at least we’ll be good old British broke, with none of those awful smelly foreign Euro-Johnnies around to see it.)
And nobody was getting a sick note.
And for supporters of independence, that’s about as good as news gets.
Young Lochinvar on Safety First: “As my good lady wife pointed out to me, the whole affair has been an exemplar of fine footie but…” Jul 28, 02:22
Stuart on Safety First: “The trans gender nonsense continues, this time in the shape of Museums and Art Galleries Scotland, this from the Herald.…” Jul 27, 23:37
Mark Beggan on Safety First: “What’s the penalty for pretending to have a bomb on an aeroplane these days? Boy! This lads ass is grass.” Jul 27, 22:53
Mark Beggan on Safety First: “‘colonially subjugated’ I find a glass of warm water with a teaspoonfull of cider vinegar does the trick.” Jul 27, 22:49
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Safety First: “Encouraging high-register article by KATHLEEN STOCK on UNHERD (25 July 2025) – ‘IS THIS THE END OF TRANSGENDERISM: We are…” Jul 27, 22:38
Mark Beggan on Safety First: “Under Thatcher they would have taken away the wheelchair.” Jul 27, 22:37
Southernbystander on Safety First: “@Dave L. International fees can be set by the university. International fees in an ordinary ni in England are about…” Jul 27, 22:31
Alf Baird on Safety First: “Yes James, a colonized people are ‘procured’ (Memmi), the wages of colonialism (‘Equivalent’) paid to native elites, many already assimilated…” Jul 27, 22:27
Hatey McHateface on Safety First: “@NN! You need to prove that you are not paid to come on here and make Scotland and Indy look…” Jul 27, 21:45
GM on Safety First: “Welcome. Anything to report since you have been away?” Jul 27, 21:35
Hatey McHateface on Safety First: “Yes NN!, I have considered the matter. For a start, my considerations lead me to believe it’s not a “fact”…” Jul 27, 21:26
MaryB on Safety First: “Sarah, Northcode etc I find that inde-car ie Gordon Ross, also known as Partick Driver, is the best place to…” Jul 27, 21:06
Captain Caveman on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@Xaracen ‘… I’m disinclined to acquiesce to your request.’ Oh, I bet you are. Imagine my surprise.” Jul 27, 21:05
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Well, I enjoy Confused’s posts, sometimes simply cos they annoy YOU so much, but mostly cos they’re excellent. None of…” Jul 27, 20:56
Southernbystander on Safety First: “@Young Lochinvar. English students pay the same as they would in England yes. I suspect overseas students from China, India…” Jul 27, 20:49
Andy Ellis on Safety First: “Folk are of course free to support the referral to the UN using the process and procedure which is in…” Jul 27, 20:39
Xaracen on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@Captain Caveman; I’m disinclined to acquiesce to your request.” Jul 27, 20:38
DaveL on Safety First: “So how much do they pay?” Jul 27, 20:38
Stuart on Safety First: “Mr Ellis, how dare you mention the obvious solution! Not when those pushing this farce at the UN can keep…” Jul 27, 20:26
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Laughing out loud here 🙂 There’s an awful lot to unpack, Confused, when it comes to a witty come back…” Jul 27, 20:23
Nae Need! on Safety First: “No, Agent X, it’s not a laugh, and we’re not treating it as a laugh either. Like wot Willie says,…” Jul 27, 20:14
Andrew scott on Safety First: “O/t FFS Engerlannd win the footiie” Jul 27, 20:04
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Asides from your entirely unnecessary jibes/aspersions on my character, of which there were too many lolz, Mr Hatey, I do…” Jul 27, 20:01
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Yes. Of concern to me to.” Jul 27, 19:49
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Hatey, Ever considered the fact that those outwith those two categories of behaviour might actually be fewer than you think?…” Jul 27, 19:46
Hatey McHateface on Safety First: “Ah, c’moan noo, Andy. 1000 to 1 says absolutely delusional. With a healthy side order of “give me Indy, but…” Jul 27, 19:42
Hatey McHateface on Safety First: “Commiserations on your hyperactive imagination. Perhaps your only recourse is to spend your conscious hours seeking rapid paralytic unconsciousness through…” Jul 27, 19:38
Northcode on Safety First: “I also meant to add a link to this report dated 28th May 2025 submitted to the UN by Justice…” Jul 27, 19:36
Nae Need! on Safety First: “Och, Willie, I’m loving your thinking. ” reflecting the deep meaningful thought that pervades our Scottish Government.” They’re astounding and…” Jul 27, 19:36
Andy Ellis on Safety First: “So as many of us already thought, this process is of doubtful utility and could take some undetermined amount of…” Jul 27, 19:31
