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Lies, damned lies and welfare reform 28

Posted on July 11, 2012 by

The “No to independence” campaign launched last month, and at its showpiece event we listened to Alistair Darling talk of the things that we’ve shared as the United Kingdom – we heard him talk proudly, for example, of the NHS and the Welfare State. At the same time David Cameron was spelling out future welfare reforms for a system which will exclude the under 25s from housing benefit and which may lead to people on benefits in the South East receiving more money than those in the less affluent areas of Britain. Once again, David Cameron is targeting the poor and the most vulnerable in society in an effort to fix the mess that the rich and the greedy caused.

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The difference between words and talking 11

Posted on June 21, 2012 by

And so the phoney war rumbles on and gathers pace. The ‘No’ campaign – or whatever it decides to refer to itself as – will be unveiled shortly and we’ve heard (with a certain sense of deja vu) that the SNP has been debating the relative merits of the words “independenT” and “independenCE”. We have independence and Unionist groups galore appearing on Facebook and the web, we’ve got Cybernats and Britnats, republicans and monarchists, hawks and pacifists and goodness knows what else.

In the meantime, I still have the bills to pay, the washing to dry in the incessant rain, the mundane monotony of the “what’s for dinner?” conversations. Today a friend’s daughter is having a baby, while another lady I know has lost her best friend. The neverending cycle of joy and tears, grief and laughter rolls on.

Politicians would do well to stop and think about this – that away from Parliaments ordinary people are still living their everyday lives, and when we occasionally get to lift our noses from the grindstone we might appreciate a little passion from our politicians, a little honesty, some better research, and an end to the sniping and spin that threatens to suffocate the independence debate.

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Why nationalists aren’t racists 54

Posted on May 31, 2012 by

Despite the launch of the rainbow-coalition Yes campaign on Friday, we’re still fighting the assertion that Scottish nationalism is both racist and bigoted – one typified by a recent article by George Galloway in the Daily Record.

I have to admit to a guilty soft spot for the MP for Bradford West. I know he’s ridiculous in many ways, but I like him. Watching George on Question Time recently, I knew he’d be entertaining and sometimes disrespectful. It’s a nice change from the grey men of politics we usually see. I like the idea that some politicians have the bottle to say and do pretty much what they want and sod everyone else. Not always pleasant and often enough to make your toes curl with embarrassment, George is, at least, a character and we could do with a few more like him in politics.

But as I read the article he wrote for the Record, in which he talked about seeing people who have “what can only be described as a virulent hatred of English people and a belief they are the source of Scotland’s troubles”, I began to wonder what country George was looking at.

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Weekend: The state of our union 9

Posted on May 19, 2012 by

As part of our continuing look at the people who haven’t yet their minds up about independence, we’re delighted to present this piece by Sue Lyons. If you’re a “Don’t know” too, we’d love to hear from you – why not drop us a line?

I am a mum and a wife. In point of fact, I’m an English wife married to a Scottish husband, with three English children from my first marriage and two Scottish children from my current marriage. Why would I even bother to mention that at all, you might wonder – surely it doesn’t matter where my children were born, surely I love them just the same? And you would be right.

What makes it worth mentioning is that my husband is a Scottish nationalist. In fact, he’s such a Scottish nationalist that were the UK government to say tomorrow “You can have independence for Scotland but you have to pay for it yourself”, he would say, “Where do I sign?”

He describes himself as “rabid” and he’s absolutely right – if you cut off his leg he would have a saltire running through it like a stick of rock (but not Blackpool rock, because that’s in England). Not for him the sitting on the fence that others might do, not for him the idea that you can vote for the SNP and yet still be undecided on independence. John is for an independent Scotland completely and absolutely. That sometimes causes fun and games in our own personal Union – our home.

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    Wings Over Scotland is a (mainly) Scottish political media digest and monitor, which also offers its own commentary. (More)

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    • James on The shifting sands of memory: ““The spirit of Britain”? Don’t make me laugh! That’s an Anglo fantasy – “Britain” = “Engerlaaaaand”…. Stale sandwiches, pish beer,…May 24, 01:10
    • James on The shifting sands of memory: “Trolls gonna troll.May 24, 00:48
    • gm on The shifting sands of memory: “DoneMay 24, 00:20
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: ““the ToU as envisaged has never even been implemented” I firmly believe the Scottish parliamentarians in 1706 genuinely thought they…May 23, 22:40
    • willie on The shifting sands of memory: “Andy, Britain is a hollowed out busted flush heading towards a potential Greek style debt crisis. And that is why…May 23, 22:15
    • willie on The shifting sands of memory: “Interesting how LPG which is much greener than diesel or petrol is being phased out by the Westminster government. Why…May 23, 22:08
    • Scot Finlayson on The shifting sands of memory: “Scott McTominay wins the Italian league for Napoli, Finn Russell wins the Challenge Cup Final for Bath, Wha`s like us.May 23, 22:05
    • Andy Storrie on The shifting sands of memory: “Scotland deserves a gargantuan reparations package when she finally gets tf out of this shit show, Fake country, international GDP…May 23, 21:54
    • Alf Baird on The shifting sands of memory: “Yes, ‘banishment of the natives’ combined with ‘se**ler occupation’ are well established ‘colonial procedures’ (Memmi) resulting in mass population displacement,…May 23, 20:13
    • sarah on The shifting sands of memory: “Since we are now all talking about the key issue of restoring Scotland’s status, there’s another easy thing that may…May 23, 19:15
    • Dan on The shifting sands of memory: “Or alternatively… Why we shouldn’t listen to anybody who’s a climate Armageddon net zero zealot that gets taken in by…May 23, 19:00
    • sarah on The shifting sands of memory: “@ Tartanpigsy: I’m hoping for a zoom link for tomorrow’s AGM in which case I might see you!May 23, 18:53
    • sarah on The shifting sands of memory: “You’re not wrong, Mia!May 23, 18:48
    • David Holden on The shifting sands of memory: “This place smells a whole lot better since Yoon’s cum has left the building and a question over whether he…May 23, 18:25
    • twathater on The shifting sands of memory: “Yes Dan, Leah certainly provides information of the continuation of contempt that the Scottish administration inflict daily especially when there…May 23, 18:11
    • Dan on The shifting sands of memory: “Oh, that’ll be Norway that managed their oil and gas resources somewhat better than the UK’s incredibly bad shitshow of…May 23, 18:08
    • Northcode on The shifting sands of memory: “Mia @ 4:59 pm “I wonder if we will ever know what that political fraud Sturgeon got in exchange for…May 23, 17:50
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: ““plenty are getting a lot denser” Oh dear, are you having trouble keeping up with the pace and depth of…May 23, 17:38
    • Tartanpigsy on The shifting sands of memory: “Hmmm, there is certainly the smell of fear in the myriad unionist posts on this thread. The UN route is…May 23, 17:34
    • Northcode on The shifting sands of memory: “James Cheyne I could be wrong, James. But as far as I’m aware Denunciation is just a legal term for…May 23, 17:33
    • Bilbo on The shifting sands of memory: “The idea of independence has been irrevocably tarnished by the actions of Sturgeon and the SNP. Besides, what exactly is…May 23, 17:19
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: ““today I’ve seen a petition from people in Fife in 1701 asking for the removal of “the army of occupation”!”…May 23, 17:18
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: “If the ToU remains valid, then Scotland could have ended it at any time of its choosing. The problem is…May 23, 16:59
    • James Cheyne on The shifting sands of memory: “Northcode. I am interested on how denounciation would take effect and what strength it would have say compared to ending…May 23, 16:54
    • sarah on The shifting sands of memory: “@ Mia, Fearghas, Xaracen and Northcode: yeah, let’s focus on denouncing, ending the Union. This stand demonstrates that Scotland has…May 23, 16:36
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: ““The Monarchy is different, part of 1603 matters not 1707 so if the public will is there it can then…May 23, 16:27
    • Mia on The shifting sands of memory: “I like it. Question in the ballot: “Should Scotland end the union with England?” I think it is very clear.…May 23, 16:10
    • Northcode on The shifting sands of memory: “I believe bilateral treaties can be denounced. Legally, Denunciation is a unilateral act by which one party terminates its participation…May 23, 16:04
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on The shifting sands of memory: “Or a Proclaimers version: “UNION NO MORE!!”May 23, 15:52
    • Young Lochinvar on The shifting sands of memory: “Westminster is where it’s at, like it or not. Holyrood has been clarified by the so called Supreme Court as…May 23, 15:43
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