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Archive for the ‘corruption’


The Deep-Fried Banana Republic 167

Posted on March 20, 2025 by

It’s 18C today in Bath, readers, so after the dentist we went out to enjoy the sunshine for the afternoon. And you know what happens when we go out.

But really, what even is there to say?

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Bricked-up windows 98

Posted on February 11, 2025 by

Readers may have noticed recent speculation in the media (based on the wording of a press release) that Police Scotland had ended their investigations regarding Operation Branchform. As it happened we’d already submitted a Freedom Of Information request aimed at finding that out, and the response arrived this evening.

You can read it below.

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The Silent Revolution 550

Posted on January 23, 2025 by

Robin McAlpine published a very important piece yesterday, detailing how the SNP is about to become even more of a leadership dictatorship than it already is.

You can read the article to see why this is a change of enormous importance, and a catastrophic one for the independence movement. It will make it just under 17 times harder for any sitting SNP leader to be challenged for the leadership – let alone defeated – and effectively turns the party into a private oligarchy every bit as total and unaccountable as that of Reform (which is not a member-directed political party in the conventional sense, but a limited company personally owned by Nigel Farage, who holds a majority of the voting shares and can do whatever he pleases with it).

We’re annoyed at ourselves, because we got sent the document revealing the change a month ago, but we missed it. And now we’re going to show you why.

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Nicola’s Non-Truths 167

Posted on January 13, 2025 by

Peter Murrell really ought to have seen the writing on the wall a while ago.

But at least it’s in keeping with her track record.

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The Cost Of Truth 509

Posted on December 17, 2024 by

The Scottish Government just issued another response in the long-running Freedom Of Information battle with alert Wings reader Benjamin Harrop over its conspiracy to frame and imprison the late Alex Salmond on false charges. Here’s a genuine extract.

Yeah, definitely nothing to hide here.

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The Long Unravelling 399

Posted on November 18, 2024 by

You’ve got to admit, that’s a zinger.

Craig Whyte is a man who knows all about financial doom looming on the horizon of a once-powerful institution. But it doesn’t take an expert with lived experience to spot what’s coming down the line for the SNP.

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The Skeleton Dance 73

Posted on November 02, 2024 by

A Delicate Art 255

Posted on October 26, 2024 by

Redaction is a tricky business, and comes with numerous pitfalls even if you’re being careful, which not everyone is. If you’re involved in creating a document you know will have to be redacted, there are a variety of safeguarding approaches you can adopt.

When I worked on a videogames magazine called Amiga Power in the 1990s, we ran a fun comedy feature about censorship. But because the company that published the magazine had had some unfortunate mishaps in the field, we took extra care by typing all the “offensive” words as random-length strings of Xs when we wrote the article.

And it was lucky that we did, because as you can see in the feature’s strapline, the art department misaligned the red redaction bar on some of them, and if there’d been a sweary in there it would have been easily identified.

Another way to go is to simply slap down some black ink and hope for the best.

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A Danger To Women 52

Posted on September 23, 2024 by

As we write this article, Sandy Brindley (on the left of the picture below) is still in post as the CEO of Rape Crisis Scotland.

For as long as that remains the case, rape victims in Scotland will not be safe.

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Say What You See 142

Posted on September 20, 2024 by

Don’t say we don’t tell you, readers.

Because we do tell you.

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The Land Of Immunity 101

Posted on September 12, 2024 by

Astonishingly, there isn’t a single word of apology anywhere in this statement.

There isn’t a scintilla of contrition, not the tiniest glimmer of admission of culpability or responsibility. There isn’t even a weasel-worded expression of “regret”.

Rape Crisis Scotland is unfit for purpose, and its CEO must resign.

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Coming Yet 63

Posted on September 09, 2024 by

The dogged persistence of alert Wings contributor Benjamin Harrop with regard to the Hamilton inquiry has been truly heroic, and today it has borne fruit in dramatic style.

The 10-page adjudication from the Scottish Information Commissioner that you can download by clicking that image is a somewhat labyrinthine (but fascinating) read, but the upshot of it is that the Commissioner has now ordered the Scottish Government to release all of the legal advice it was given with regard to its refusal to publish the written evidence submitted to James Hamilton for his inquiry into the events around the alleged conspiracy to falsely convict Alex Salmond of sexual assaults.

(See, even that one-sentence summary was quite hard going.)

But why does that matter and what does it mean?

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    • Ian Brotherhood on Mad caps: “@Sarah (9.16) – Thanks for that and aye, totally agree, there’s nothing like meeting folk in the flesh. Sometimes they’re…Apr 7, 00:09
    • diabloandco on Mad caps: “IanB, I do hope so , I am definitely in need of meeting up with the cheerful , positive folk…Apr 6, 22:10
    • sarah on Mad caps: “MaryB, it is encouraging that you read para (a) the same way that I do i.e. that it empowers People’s…Apr 6, 21:27
    • sarah on Mad caps: “I miss the way btl was. It was always relevant to independence, and pleasant on a personal level. OK Robert…Apr 6, 21:16
    • MaryB on Mad caps: “Sarah @ 4.48 & Duncx I tried to post this earlier today, but it didn’t appear. So here it is…Apr 6, 21:07
    • Ian Brotherhood on Mad caps: “Hi D, Yes, it was good. Not just because the atmosphere was relaxed (because the Eagle Inn is Robert Slavin’s…Apr 6, 20:18
    • Tinto Chiel on Mad caps: “Had forgotten all about that, Robert. No idea what we were discussing. Love, Samantha 🙂 .Apr 6, 19:44
    • Ian Brotherhood on Mad caps: “Hoots aplenty sah, you’ve got me off the hook as Tinto was fingering me for that one! 😉Apr 6, 19:41
    • Aidan on Mad caps: “@Hatey – you aren’t supposed to look into things, you’re supposed to sign the petition and possibly donate money regardless…Apr 6, 19:39
    • diabloandco on Mad caps: “Sorry I missed the night too – it sounds as though a good time was had by all. Next time!Apr 6, 19:27
    • Robert Hughes on Mad caps: “ha ! you told me your name when you emailed me a while back – including your surname – which…Apr 6, 18:51
    • Tinto Chiel on Mad caps: “@Robert Hughes 3.23: nae probs, Robert. See you next time. Had to head off early. Don’t know how you know…Apr 6, 18:26
    • Hatey McHateface on Mad caps: “Please tell us, sarah, that when you say you haven’t had a proper look at this thing you are enthusiastically…Apr 6, 17:46
    • Mark Beggan on Mad caps: “The First Minister in crucial trade talks confirms someone, no knows who, is very much interested in business.Apr 6, 16:54
    • sarah on Mad caps: “@ Dunx at 8.46 a.m. “..had a look at the blog. Article 25 of the ICCPR…nothing there about referendums..” Well…Apr 6, 16:48
    • Robert Hughes on Mad caps: “Ah ! likewise , T.C ( Peter ): I never realised you were there , if I had I would…Apr 6, 15:23
    • Tinto Chiel on Mad caps: “Sorry I couldn’t stay long, Ian, but thanks for all the effort you and your fellow insurgents put in to…Apr 6, 14:56
    • Andrew scott on Mad caps: “If dross geer is the answer What on earth is the questionApr 6, 12:56
    • GM on Mad caps: “Apologies Iain, I couldn’t make it. Glad you had a good meet up.Apr 6, 11:41
    • Captain Caveman on Mad caps: “@Hatey Agreed. Step 1: Less lawyers. Especially lefty lawyers….Apr 6, 10:54
    • Hatey McHateface on Mad caps: “Sure, Marie, we’re doomed. You’ve said this before. Weird, though, how other electorates, in other countries, aren’t doomed. The MAGA…Apr 6, 10:53
    • Captain Caveman on Mad caps: ““Whether potential candidates have ever had a proper job is neither here nor there.” That’s factually wrong in the case…Apr 6, 10:50
    • Hatey McHateface on Mad caps: ““How such a thing can be achieved, though (or the whole of the UK for that matter) is anyone’s guess.…Apr 6, 10:42
    • Marie on Mad caps: “Look it’s not just the Greens – every political party controls its members and potential candidates – national or local.…Apr 6, 10:31
    • Hatey McHateface on Mad caps: “I guess, Anthem, you’re blaming the German part of President Trump for the mayhem. Myself, I see the German part…Apr 6, 10:24
    • Captain Caveman on Mad caps: “Well, quite, and I daresay that’s the problem: how many of today’s utterly useless, woke-captured, counter-reality Political Class has never…Apr 6, 09:29
    • Anthem on Mad caps: “He’s also part German. Think on.Apr 6, 09:24
    • Dunx on Mad caps: “@Sarah I’ve looked at the blog. The writer refers to Article 25 of the ICCPR which states : Every citizen…Apr 6, 08:46
    • Hatey McHateface on Mad caps: “I had a wee look at the text of the International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights online. It consists…Apr 6, 08:37
    • Aidan on Mad caps: “@Dunx – it doesn’t say that anywhere and the ICCPR does not provide voters to call for referendums in the…Apr 6, 07:13
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