This clip was broadcast on ITV News Wales this week.
It’s a staggeringly obvious mess for a whole raft of reasons – a number of completely spurious, illogical and unsupported claims are accepted as facts without any sort of challenge or balancing voice (which has been standard practice on ITV News for a while now across almost any contentious political topic) – but it led us to somewhere magnitudes of crazier still.
It’s almost – almost – worth voting SNP in May because of this:
Because it would be at least momentarily absolutely hilarious watching Swinney try to explain why his “100% guaranteed” second indyref didn’t happen if the SNP actually did get a majority on 30% of the vote (which is narrowly feasible on current polling).
Something very odd happened when the Sandie Peggie employment tribunal delivered its judgment – and it wasn’t just the made-up quotes and mangled law.
Call it institutional bias, ideological capture, or just the law doing its job, but what Employment Judge Sandy Kemp’s tribunal delivered was the most one-sided outcome since Butch and Sundance decided to come out shooting.
One must assume from reading the Sandie Peggie judgment that the tribunal was more concerned with discouraging further litigation than with giving full and fearless effect to the Equality Act.
At the heart of this case lies a straightforward question: does a biologically male employee have a legal right to undress in a female-only changing room? For Women Scotland answered that question at the Supreme Court: women-only spaces are for biological women.
Yet instead of applying that binding precedent, the tribunal awarded Sandie Peggie a technical win based primarily on procedural failings and delay, while simultaneously undermining the legitimacy of her core complaint. The effect is a ruling that says: “You were treated badly, but only because you reacted to a situation we pretend has no legal significance.”
The motion completely ignored both the findings of the Cass Review and the Supreme Court judgment in For Women Scotland, but not a single MSP spoke in opposition to it. (Jenni Minto, the Minister For Public Health And Women’s Health, actually broke down in tears at the end because she wasn’t managing to get children’s futures permanently destroyed with sufficient urgency, mainly because the UK Parliament took legislation out of Holyrood’s hands to protect them.)
To be honest, we’re mainly putting these here so you don’t have to keep looking at that picture of Alan Cumming.
But they also show what you can achieve, whether in football or politics, if you actually attack rather than being content to endlessly shuttle it all sideways and backwards until you get beaten without even taking a shot.
Perhaps the key graphic from last night’s by-election in Caerphilly is this one (green means Plaid Cymru in the context of Wales):
In the end, Plaid won pretty comfortably in what had been predicted to be a very tight contest between them and Reform, with a majority of almost 4,000. But Plaid aren’t going to be the next government of the UK, so what’s the real story?
Young Lochinvar on Seven Days Too Long: “Wonder why the MSN news is what it is today and who is pulling Starmers strings? Google: declassified uk for…” May 2, 14:13
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: ““They would have run you through, quick as look at you, and worried afterwards that perhaps they had defiled their…” May 2, 13:31
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: “I doubt it. Anyone who follows outside news is well aware this thuggish behaviour by law enforcement is indoctrinated, imported,…” May 2, 13:06
James Che on Seven Days Too Long: “Runners for Scottish elections registered in England. The devolved Scottish act government under The Scotland act legislation from Westminsters parliament…” May 2, 13:00
Young Lochinvar on Seven Days Too Long: “HMcH @ 7.24 Up early in the Remand block again Hatey eh? Maybe that’s why your rambling post makes no…” May 2, 12:13
TURABDIN on Seven Days Too Long: “CHICKEN OR THE EGG https://archive.is/gYo12 Two elephants vying for supremacy? Not just a matter of taste but the very heart…” May 2, 11:25
Bilbo on Seven Days Too Long: “Install Firefox, Chrome or some other internet browser.” May 2, 11:23
Bilbo on Seven Days Too Long: “I see that Polanksi has dug a right big hole for himself with his tweets. I also see that there…” May 2, 11:21
Aidan on Seven Days Too Long: “Fuck me Geri – that’s nuts even for you! Have you been to bed yet? @CC – we’ve been told…” May 2, 11:18
Aidan on Seven Days Too Long: “Fuck me Geri – that’s nuts even for you! Have you been to bed yet?” May 2, 11:17
Bilbo on Seven Days Too Long: “Second this comment from Confused. Ingrained tribalism in Scottish politics is never going to change. This will result in the…” May 2, 10:56
Captain Caveman on Seven Days Too Long: “Heh. Hot on the heels of “Geri” quoting forum rules for personal attacks, here he/she is extolling their supposed moral…” May 2, 10:14
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: “Well said, Confused. The Yes movement was like that. A collective of everyone, all political backgrounds or of none at…” May 2, 10:09
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: “I disavow nothing. I’ll gladly play tour guide Barbie if yer going to take everything literally. That’s so your type.…” May 2, 09:32
Cherrybank on Seven Days Too Long: “The You-Tuber Craig Houston stands a good chance of being elected as an independent for Glasgow.” May 2, 09:14
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Seven Days Too Long: “REALLY STRUGGLING WITH DRUGS? If you are OK with a Christian ambience, Glaswegian Terry McCutcheon is founder and current Executive…” May 2, 09:13
Nicky T Naquetti on Seven Days Too Long: “@diablo Get a Linux/Ubuntu installation. Unless you are a gamer or run some esoteric Windows-only software, you can easily make…” May 2, 08:22
Hatey McHateface on Seven Days Too Long: ““carpet bomb Tehran – that’ll show them! So now those who maybe were West leaning are all dead” An odd…” May 2, 07:39
Hatey McHateface on Seven Days Too Long: “Here you go, YL. Your one (1) response per Diem in which I validate your pathetic, pointless, and obsessively focused…” May 2, 07:24
Hatey McHateface on Seven Days Too Long: “Interesting ideas, Confused. But who will talk for the Benefits Classes? Who will champion the grifters, those with hands permanently…” May 2, 07:09
Aidan on Seven Days Too Long: “Oh yes Dan you have me worked right out mate, don’t let me “divert” or “distract” you from whatever exceptionally…” May 2, 07:06
Hatey McHateface on Seven Days Too Long: ““The gas chamber again eh? Do you never bore yourself tae death playing yer banjo again?” Not where you’re concerned,…” May 2, 06:58
Hatey McHateface on Seven Days Too Long: ““There’s nothing that stipulated a lifetime” Naw? Which part of the “heirs and successors” clause continues to defeat your comprehension?” May 2, 06:50
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: “We know where it is. What we don’t know is… Where’s Scotlands oil fund? Where is £15.5 BILLION in fake…” May 2, 03:13
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: “The gas chamber again eh? Do you never bore yourself tae death playing yer banjo again? Treacherous liars & devious…” May 2, 03:03
Mark Beggan on Seven Days Too Long: “Talking money. Where’s the 600K?” May 2, 02:46
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: ““Rational, wise, educated people might well believe it’s far too early to say.” They admitted it, ya plank. The orange…” May 2, 02:03
Geri on Seven Days Too Long: ““The last ugly, overweening monstrosity cost a billion” A Yoon government. A farce from start to finish. It wasn’t their…” May 2, 01:28
Young Lochinvar on Seven Days Too Long: “George I swore-in in sectarian divided Glasgow during the troubles era where the oath was accepted if mumbled. Nonetheless I…” May 2, 01:13
