The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


Back to basics

Posted on April 20, 2012 by

This site was originally supposed to be quite a low-maintenance affair, planned to mostly link to interesting stories from other places. So much for THAT theory. But for old time's sake (and because we've got some paperwork to do today), let's round up a few worthwhile pieces that might have escaped your attention lately, especially if you don't keep an eye on our Twitter feed for some inexplicable and frankly rude reason.

Promising fairly-new blog A Sair Fecht offered up this impassioned plea to Labour and Liberal Democrat voters (in particular), which could probably have done without the word "fascism" but is otherwise a terrific piece of heartfelt commentary that couldn't be further away from the media myth of the "cybernat". While over on the other side of the fence, hardcore Labour activist Duncan Hothersall (who we're currently trying to tempt into a Straight Debate) broke a long blogging silence with a very honourable call for more decent discourse, which we hope he'll put into action here.

In the professional media we enjoyed Alain Massie's thoughtful appraisal for the Scotsman of Labour's chances in the Scottish local elections next month and his long-term analysis of how the party found itself in its current state in Scotland, while we were entertained in a very different way by trying to work out the exact shade of purple in Kevin McKenna's face as he embarked on a particularly bitter, vitriolic rant against the SNP in the Observer (yes, even by Kevin's high standards), perhaps as a result of his humiliation after the paper apologised for McKenna's lies in an utterly disgraceful piece about Jocky Wilson.

Away from party-political issues, Iain Macwhirter was also in good form in the Herald, spelling out the thing a great many people were thinking about the recent Elish Angiolini report on women's prisons but were afraid to say for fear of being immediately denounced as a vile misogynist by the increasingly militant fundamentalist-feminist (femdamentalist? fundafeminist?) camp. And on the Rangers front there was an intriguing financial investigation of the club's immediate future by Paul McConville, arriving (by way of well-sourced study of the available facts) at the conclusion that one way or another there'll be no Rangers in Scottish football next season.

With luck we'll have time later for a closer look at yesterday's First Minister's Questions and the disturbing picture it paints of deterioration in the quality of Parliamentary debate, but that should be enough to keep you going for a while.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

6 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Angus McLellan

On Cornton Vale, I'm largely in agreement with Angiolini. Prison should be a last resort, reserved for the violent and the incorrigible. Banging people up for non-payment of fines and repeat victimless crimes costs me a fortune and prison rarely turns anyone into a better person. The plural of anecdote is not data, but back in the 90s when there were a series of suicides at Cornton Vale I was struck by the relatively trivial nature of the crimes involved.
If you are an MP at Westminster then you'll have good reason to want to spend more on prisons. (Think about it …) For the rest of us spending on education makes more sense. Cornton Vale is only the start, buf you've got to start somewhere. And if not now, when? Et cetera.
 
 

Angus McLellan

We have to start somewhere. And it will be easier to take the second step after the first one instead of being all Lib Dem about it and insisting on both steps at once.

Clachangowk

A friend who is a senior prison officer has been complaining for years about the lack of action at Cornton Vale. He certainly agrees that CV should be pulled down but makes the point that many of the women are there because it is the only place available where they can get some respite from abusive relationships.
The sheriffs don't want to send them to CV – there is just no alternative place of care.

Shodan

RevStu…oh my. I didn't read it that way until you said that. Must be tired.


  • About

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

    Stats: 6,673 Posts, 1,203,210 Comments

  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Tags

  • Recent Comments

    • Breeks on The Unbargain Bin: “I detest the 2014 Referendum question. Should Scotland be an Independent Country is, how can I put it, – overweight.…Nov 26, 04:10
    • Robert Matthews on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Says the crackpot Wild Colonial Bore.Nov 26, 02:38
    • Donald on A Personal Best For Kezia: “That ghoulish front bench looks like the Munsters at HalloweenNov 26, 02:26
    • DaveL on A Personal Best For Kezia: “That’d be a dolls house smartie aye?Nov 26, 01:56
    • Campbell Clansman on A Personal Best For Kezia: “If the SNP is considered “Unionist” (as some here assert) that means the Indy parties are getting a 1% vote…Nov 26, 01:04
    • Young Lochinvar on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Correct. Brain dead Dugdale can only go on current polls and not look at future possibilities or probabilities as that…Nov 26, 00:39
    • Michael Laing on The Next Government Of Scotland: “That’s not going to happen, is it? The SNP is now a unionist party and it has done everything to…Nov 26, 00:05
    • willie on The Next Government Of Scotland: “Very good point Monica Worley. Voters have no where to go. The election but last was the opportunity for voters…Nov 25, 23:00
    • Alf Baird on A Personal Best For Kezia: “British identity is also a cultural illusion which many buy into.Nov 25, 22:52
    • Hatey McHateface on A Personal Best For Kezia: “What happened to you? You’ve become like Winston Smith at the end of 1984, a pathetic husk of your former…Nov 25, 22:13
    • Hatey McHateface on A Personal Best For Kezia: “In 2024, the political “right” has what our grandparents would have described as centre ground policies. That’s how far the…Nov 25, 22:05
    • James on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Clown.Nov 25, 21:50
    • John on A Personal Best For Kezia: “For the good of Scotland we don’t want the SNP anywhere near the levers of power for a very long…Nov 25, 21:42
    • robertkknight on A Personal Best For Kezia: “If an infinite number of Kezia Dugdales sat in front of an infinite number of typewriters and randomly pushed the…Nov 25, 21:37
    • sarah on The Unbargain Bin: “Thank you!Nov 25, 21:33
    • Ted on A Personal Best For Kezia: “There ain’t no stopping Reform UK, certainly not by a “centre left alliance”. It’s “centre left” that’s got us where…Nov 25, 21:14
    • Captain Caveman on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Maybe in the Scottish parliament there will be some lame, moribund left wing “coalition of the clueless” along these lines?…Nov 25, 21:00
    • John Moss on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Not going to happen. Simples ?Nov 25, 20:58
    • Hatey McHateface on A Personal Best For Kezia: “You quite sure these parties don’t exist? A heck of a lot of Scots vote for them, time after time…Nov 25, 20:56
    • Hatey McHateface on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Ach, it’s a puff piece not worth the paper it’s printed on. Nobody, but nobody, can see past February 2025,…Nov 25, 20:49
    • Robert Hughes on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Genius ! Maybe this suggested Coalition of the Centre Dim would be able to call on a reciprocal gesture from…Nov 25, 20:43
    • Ian McCubbin on A Personal Best For Kezia: “The only votes in 2026 worth making for independence are Alba, ISP , New Scotland party . An SNP/Labour alliance…Nov 25, 20:35
    • James Gardner on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Joined at the hip…..Nov 25, 20:21
    • holymacmoses on A Personal Best For Kezia: “With all due respect Kezia was in alliance with the SNP years ago:-)Nov 25, 19:44
    • Mark Beggan on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Roles in Life Politicians Salmond played the role of Independence leader. Sturgeon played God Swinney plays the Butler Flynn plays…Nov 25, 19:41
    • Craig on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Christ, is there no way we can stop her name in the public domain. Everytime I see or hear her…Nov 25, 19:39
    • Republicofscotland on A Personal Best For Kezia: “The Emperor has no clothes on – as the saying goes, this in mind that there is no such party…Nov 25, 19:36
    • Mark Beggan on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Kezia is a Bisto Kid.Nov 25, 19:22
    • Mark Beggan on A Personal Best For Kezia: “Smarty people are happy people.Nov 25, 19:20
    • Aidan on The Unbargain Bin: “To the latter question, the normal response is a load of abuse, with random capitalised words, no punctuation and normally…Nov 25, 19:11
  • A tall tale



↑ Top
125
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x