Depending on which parts of the media you were reading yesterday and this morning, the economic case for independence was either “shattered” (the Herald), “demolished” (the Spectator), “shredded” (Daily Record), “smashed to smithereens” (Willie Rennie, bless) or any number of other apocalyptic metaphors for total destruction, by a 1% fall in Scottish revenues resulting from a steep drop in oil prices which led to a notional Scottish budget deficit that by some measures was as high as 10% of GDP.
We must assume, then, that the economic case for the UK being an independent nation was rendered unto ruins in 2009-10, when its deficit exceeded 11% of GDP.
(The GERS figures actually showed Scotland’s revenues in 2014/15 dropping by ONE PERCENT as a result of the oil price collapse. Non-oil revenues were UP by 3.2%.)
This year’s GERS figures will be published today, purporting to illustrate the financial relationship between Scotland and the rest of the UK. With oil revenues down, they’ll undoubtedly provoke an orgasmic explosion of glee among Unionists crowing about “black holes” and how Scotland is too wee, too poor and too stupid to survive alone.
We’ve already run an extremely detailed explanation of all the flaws and booby-traps in GERS, but of course we’re a pro-independence website and we would say that. So instead we’ll direct you to someone who’s very much NOT on our side.
This week Scottish Labour have been attacking the SNP’s rather timid plans for the reform of Council Tax, which is an entirely fair and legitimate opposition pursuit.
But as is their wont, Kezia Dugdale’s branch office just can’t help overplaying their hand and doing it in a highly dishonest way.
The dogged determination of Scottish Labour to insult the Scottish electorate is a source of constant slack-jawed astonishment to us. Over the years we’ve lost count of the number of times the party’s politicians have effectively said “People are just too stupid to vote for us”, in the apparent belief that abuse is the way to win back support.
But it’s not always so overt. The subtler ways in which the party treats voters like morons include the assumption that people’s memories only go back to yesterday’s newspapers, and there can surely be no more stark illustration than its recent adoption of the attack line that the SNP are standing “shoulder to shoulder with the Tories”.
An interesting and illuminating exchange has taken place in the last few days between the First Minister and Times columnist Kenny Farquharson, one of the many senior journalists who’ve recently jumped from the sinking ship of The Scotsman to take up less prestigious but more secure positions elsewhere.
It started on Saturday night, when Farquharson tweeted this:
So after all the kerfuffle and commotion and comedy, a deal was done, of sorts. The unsquareable circle wasn’t squared, but the day of facing up to it was punted down the line for five years, by which point everyone hopes that it’ll be someone else’s problem. (Which is certainly the case for David Cameron.)
Every newspaper in Scotland tomorrow will look like this:
It’s quite incredible that someone with Jim Sillars’ political experience should be so naive about the tactics surrounding the EU referendum. Regardless of your feelings on the EU itself, there’s absolutely no point in any supporter of Scottish independence voting Leave this June, and here’s why.
Alert readers can’t have failed to notice a desperate Scottish Labour dusting off the old “Tartan Tories” attack on the SNP recently, over the Nats’ unwillingness to join in with Kezia Dugdale’s kerrazy kaper of hiking up income tax.
So after today we can only assume they’ll be looking for some similarly pithy zingers for their colleagues in Wales. They can have this one for free.
Hatey McHateface on Or Something: “Your post is telling me you have no idea of what constituted the reality of 1930’s Germany (presumably you were…” Aug 3, 13:55
sarah on Or Something: “Rev, I am sure you are aware of the need to keep yourself safe. Perhaps get some professional advice?” Aug 3, 13:53
Rookiescot on Or Something: “After what they did to Alex Salmond I expect we will see nothing but partisanship. That alone told me who…” Aug 3, 13:48
Colin Alexander on Or Something: “An FOI to the Electoral Commission on related Police / SNP matters was also refused with a: “can neither confirm…” Aug 3, 13:38
Willie on Or Something: “When you read responses like the one thst COPFS has just sent you realise that the COPFS has just issued…” Aug 3, 13:35
Rev. Stuart Campbell on Or Something: “No, there’s a third option: simply explain the reason someone was not prosecuted in the face of what appears to…” Aug 3, 13:10
Hatey McHateface on Or Something: “OK, so I lazily exaggerated. I’ll re-write. Over the months of July and August, when the schools are out, sufficient…” Aug 3, 12:42
agentx on Or Something: ““Sandie Peggie’s employment tribunal appeal to go ahead next year. A statement released on behalf of Peggie’s lawyers said a…” Aug 3, 12:35
Campbell Clansman on Or Something: “The letter demands that the government agency admit they are institutionally inept or corrupted. Here’s a list of the number…” Aug 3, 12:33
H Scott on Or Something: “‘everybody will be on holiday’ Not in Scotland.” Aug 3, 12:20
joolz on Or Something: ““there are only two possibilities: COPFS is institutionally inept, or COPFS is institutionally corrupt. Neither would be a good look.”…” Aug 3, 11:59
am firinn on Or Something: “In fact COPFS have all sorts of duties to explain things. Notably, under section 6 of the Victims and Witnesses…” Aug 3, 11:59
Skip_NC on Or Something: “As I recall, this started as a criminal complaint to the police following John Swinney’s confession and they kicked it…” Aug 3, 11:46
David W Aitken on Or Something: “Is there the slightest prospect of a private prosecution here? It seems clear that only this would break the mulish…” Aug 3, 11:36
AlMac on Or Something: ““Please do not make the mistake of thinking that I will eventually get bored and go away. I will not.”…” Aug 3, 11:28
Frank Gillougley on Or Something: “I think that what they have said to so far amounts to no more than this: 1. Now be a…” Aug 3, 11:14
Robert on Or Something: “COPS may well, and quite reasonably, reply that it’s not their job to explain the law to anyone, or their…” Aug 3, 11:00
DaveL on Or Something: “On number 6 of your listed points, COPFS being either inept or corrupt I have no doubt (despite their inept…” Aug 3, 10:31
Sean Duffy on Or Something: “Excellent riposte. Reminding them that this is not simply going to go away and die quietly and unseen in some…” Aug 3, 10:29
Arbroath1320 on Or Something: “Please do not make the mistake of thinking that I will eventually get bored and go away. I will not.…” Aug 3, 10:22
Hatey McHateface on Or Something: ““wha aye hauds pouer in a donsie wee colony?” According to Fanon, the whites. According to Hatey, that’s a useless…” Aug 3, 10:22
Hatey McHateface on Or Something: “Excellent article. It really could not be made any simpler or any clearer. “in around a month’s time” would be…” Aug 3, 10:18
factchecker on Or Something: “Excellent. Could not be made plainer. Hard for them not to address the real issue without looking either stupid or…” Aug 3, 10:18
Tony Little on The Deaf Eyes: “On the contrary @Northcode COPFS chose to ignore the simple fact that on EVERY occasion the SNP asked people to…” Aug 3, 10:15
Alf Baird on Or Something: ““why COPFS is turning a blind eye?” Good question, Rev. This business suggests people in very powerful positions may be…” Aug 3, 10:06
Ronnie on Or Something: “When you come for the King…….yie ken the rest.” Aug 3, 09:49
Hatey McHateface on The Nobodies: “An interesting article about how the EU – that wonderful EU that so many “Indy” Scots yearn to join with…” Aug 3, 08:25
Hatey McHateface on The Nobodies: ““a godsend to Scotland…..liven the place up from its geriatric torpor. many of them are rather well educated to boot”…” Aug 3, 07:32
Hatey McHateface on The Nobodies: “Not a bad post from Confused, there, shows what he can do when he’s not obsessing about his #1 and…” Aug 3, 07:18
Captain Caveman on The Nobodies: “” Right, so before much was known about it and no-one was reporting accurate numbers because they were not known,…” Aug 3, 06:48
