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Something to hide 86

Posted on April 21, 2023 by

Alert readers may recall our last foray into Freedom Of Information requests, when a couple of weeks ago we belatedly received a peculiarly evasive response from Police Scotland with regard to a meeting in February between the then-Chief Constable, Deputy Chief Constable and the justice secretary Keith Brown.

We duly followed it up with an FOI to the Scottish Government for Keith Brown’s official diary on that day – just about the most mundane, run-of-the-mill request possible. We expected nothing remarkable, just a short list of meetings, fully corroborating what we were told by Police Scotland.

What we got was rather more intriguing.

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Putting our foot in it 415

Posted on April 19, 2023 by

Goodness knows we could all do with some cheering up at the moment, so let’s have a momentary change of tone and kick today off with a chuckle or two.

We’ve been working a bit too hard lately, and yesterday’s Wings post went to press with an unprecedented FOUR errors in it, including an “is is” instead of “it is”, a “more far” in place of a “far more” and a “strata” where there should have been a “stratum”. We’re deeply ashamed, and thanks to the alert Wings readers – including our mum – who swiftly drew our attention to them.

The most embarrassing clanger was this one, which we fixed promptly:

So imagine our surprise when we were reading this morning’s Scottish press.

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And so far yet to go 199

Posted on April 18, 2023 by

Almost every day is now a new crisis for the SNP.

But it better get used to it.

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At close of day 276

Posted on April 16, 2023 by

Some years ago while working in the NHS I investigated a situation where a group of very senior staff colluded in an attempt to cover up the misdeeds of a colleague, in the full knowledge of the devastating effect their dishonesty would have.

Yet in amongst that betrayal of professional ethical values one person’s integrity could not be swayed and they spoke the candid truth. I don’t know how it affected them in the long run, but it was clear that integrity mattered to them and doing the wrong thing was a burden they were unwilling to carry.

Anyway, their courage  to hold firm to these principles impressed me and chimed with the values I believe are absolutely necessary when you are charged with responsibility over the lives of others: honesty, integrity and a strong sense of justice.

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Clearing the bar 118

Posted on April 15, 2023 by

Also Humza Yousaf 89

Posted on April 12, 2023 by

7 April 2023: “Your priorities will be my priorities.”

1 April 2023: “Here are our priorities.”

Now for the surprise!

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From the mouths of idiots 113

Posted on April 11, 2023 by

Readers with any modest working knowledge of Scottish politics in recent years would naturally assume at first sight that the illiterate, corrupt, self-serving, gravy-hoovering drama student with whom the SNP hilariously replaced experienced KC Joanna Cherry as shadow justice secretary simply couldn’t spell “final straight”, a term meaning the easy last stretch of a horse race where there are no jumps or turns.

(We are, after all, talking here about someone who can’t spell her own name.)

But they might be wrong.

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The Party’s Over 399

Posted on April 09, 2023 by

On a day like today, all an honest person can really do with the Scottish National Party is make like Pontius Pilate and wash their hands of it.

Because there ain’t no resurrection from this.

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That Sinking Feeling 217

Posted on April 08, 2023 by

Lipstick On Your Collar 338

Posted on April 05, 2023 by

Until a few weeks ago Calum Steele was the chief of the Scottish Police Federation, so as due-credits go we particularly appreciate this one.

So let’s remind ourselves of a few things.

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Two separate facts 114

Posted on April 05, 2023 by

Presented without comment.


And a bonus one, from two years and one day ago:

Whatever else may change 161

Posted on April 01, 2023 by

Scottish politics might be a binfire floating down an overflowing sewer, but it’s nice to know there are at least a few things that are reliable constants, and one of them is that George Foulkes is an idiot.

But while his tweet is wrong, it’s not VERY wrong.

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    • Aidan on The quality of mercy: “Absolutely Geri – it’s one of the most important lessons we can learn from great military generals, major construction projects…Apr 7, 06:45
    • Mark Beggan on The quality of mercy: “I served in Operation Lionheart. Auf vedersein pet! Was the golden age of British television. Never missed it. Yes Deutsch…Apr 7, 02:52
    • Mark Beggan on The quality of mercy: “Why Aye man.Apr 7, 02:45
    • Young Lochinvar on The quality of mercy: “Beggars Spend much time on the tools in West Germany or BAOR holding back Ivan?? No? Thought not. I did.…Apr 7, 00:29
    • Young Lochinvar on The quality of mercy: “Beggars Quoting Hitler (one on from the derivative Main Kampf here).. You’ve graduated from Moseley it seems.. Not a good…Apr 7, 00:21
    • Sven on The quality of mercy: “I’m just betting it wasn’t either of Ms Sturgeon’s “Clyde Built” Ferry boats with painted on windows, Mark. You’d be…Apr 6, 20:57
    • George Ferguson on The quality of mercy: “@Fearghas Agreed people don’t understand the Constitutional implications of King Charles not fulfilling the Union treaty to the Church of…Apr 6, 19:43
    • Mark Beggan on The quality of mercy: “Why Aye Man. ‘We had no way of staying afloat We had to leave on the ferry boat Economic refugees…Apr 6, 19:40
    • Geri on The quality of mercy: “It’s more than ten years & I hate to break it to you but it’s GLOBAL. England has perpetual grudges.…Apr 6, 19:38
    • Geri on The quality of mercy: “Agreed! I’m also so over the eejits who constantly think we need to fix this & that before Indy. England…Apr 6, 19:24
    • Mark Beggan on The quality of mercy: ““It is thus necessary that the individual should finally realise that his own ego is of no importance in comparison…Apr 6, 19:24
    • Alf Baird on The quality of mercy: ““Hate by its very nature is destructive. To hate an entire nation over a period of ten years rips the…Apr 6, 18:55
    • Young Lochinvar on Clocks And Calendars: “What in tarnashun boyy! Aint not no none of yer good ol’ boyys talkin’ likee that in tham there Scahtland..…Apr 6, 18:31
    • TURABDIN on The quality of mercy: “From WIKI: «The earliest use of the term appears in 1507, when King James IV of Scotland was granted the…Apr 6, 16:56
    • Andy Ellis on Clocks And Calendars: “@YL Given that “gotten” is – as I stated – probably more common amongst Scots than English users of the…Apr 6, 16:47
    • Young Lochinvar on Clocks And Calendars: “Yee Haw Pardner! You for forget to say FACT after your “construction” (?!?) statement.. Do you also call trousers “pants”,…Apr 6, 16:27
    • Young Lochinvar on The quality of mercy: “Beggars Then stop dissing all things Scotland “old boy”! By your own acknowledgement ye’ll feel so much better for it…Apr 6, 16:20
    • Andy Ellis on Clocks And Calendars: “The construction “might have gotten” is perfectly acceptable English usage: it’s probably more common in US, Canadian and indeed Scots…Apr 6, 16:05
    • James on The quality of mercy: “Purpose here? Distract, divide, dereail. Rinse, Repeat. And he/she/it thinks everyone is his/her/it’s “mate”. When in reality I don’t expect…Apr 6, 15:57
    • Mark Beggan on The quality of mercy: “To hate someone takes a lot of energy. Energy that could be better spent and used more constructively. Hate by…Apr 6, 15:46
    • crisiscult on Clocks And Calendars: ““might have gotten”? Who writes the blog these days? 8-/Apr 6, 15:17
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on The quality of mercy: “CONSTITUTIONAL STATUS of CHURCH OF ENGLAND and CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. When Elizabeth was Queen the royal website carried the following:…Apr 6, 14:35
    • James Barr Gardner on The quality of mercy: “I totally agree word for word, more and more people agree with it but the process needs speeding up for…Apr 6, 14:06
    • James on The quality of mercy: “Wilma; “Hello, pot? Kettle here…..”Apr 6, 12:51
    • Captain Caveman on The quality of mercy: “Heh. If there’s one thing I couldn’t been accused of, mate, it’s “poor self esteem”… much to the annoyance of…Apr 6, 12:45
    • Jay on The quality of mercy: “Thank you for the ‘good luck’ comment, Young Lochinvar. Regrettably, I lack your knowledge of M. Beggan and what I…Apr 6, 12:19
    • Confused on The quality of mercy: “an independent Scotland with the worst government imaginable is still preferrable to being in the UK with a government of…Apr 6, 11:51
    • Confused on The quality of mercy: “I’m not here to talk / debate / discuss with the hotpot-eaters, but merely to piss on them, from a…Apr 6, 11:47
    • Northcode on The quality of mercy: “I asked the internet this question: Do colonised elites appease their oppressor? And the internet said this: “In summary, while…Apr 6, 11:22
    • Northcode on The quality of mercy: “A hae writ doun a new vers fir thon rideeculous, agin-the-Scots, hatesome Inglis naconal anthem pish tae pit in the…Apr 6, 10:36
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