We’ve just been out for our evening constitutional in the relatively cool night air (Bath sweltered at an oppressive 30C today and Bear Patrol was pretty gruelling), and we thought readers might be interested in what we saw.
The city has observed lockdown with great diligence, as we’ve previously documented, and to be honest we’re not sufficiently familiar with the latest rules to say it wasn’t still doing so tonight. But a nearby park, around 9.30pm, was a disconcerting scene.
The ramifications for Scottish politics of the failed stitch-up of Alex Salmond over false allegations of sexual abuse have hardly begun to be felt. The Parliamentary inquiry into the affair, which formally began yesterday and is due to start interviewing people in August, looks set to be swamped in material – or at least, whatever material hasn’t been quietly and conveniently disposed of already – and nobody knows how long it’ll take to reach any sort of conclusion.
It seems a safe bet that the SNP leadership will be praying it doesn’t do so before the 2021 Holyrood election, for all sorts of reasons – not least that it appears beyond any credible doubt that Nicola Sturgeon lied to Parliament about the investigation.
But while Salmond was found innocent on every charge, he continues to be attacked from behind a shield of anonymity by the accusers that the mainly-female jury declined to believe, supported and co-ordinated by organisations funded almost entirely by the Scottish Government and with very close personal links to it.
So when we were putting out our latest Panelbase poll, we thought we’d find out what the people of Scotland thought about it.
Now, as we noted earlier this month, that might just be down to people getting weary of false dawns. But it might also indicate that a measure of realism is belatedly beginning to dawn on the Yes movement about the lack of connection between nice poll numbers and actually securing another referendum.
We had a little mini-poll out with Panelbase this week, readers. Given that the SNP are currently still insisting that they need ANOTHER mandate at the ballot box to secure a second independence referendum (by our count that would be the tenth), we thought we’d see how many people believed this cunning plan would work.
The results, we suspect, will not amaze you.
Scottish voters, it turns out, aren’t completely stupid.
We’re pretty sure they used the same “separating rival groups” phrasing at Tianenmen Square too, but we’d have to go and check. Meanwhile, here’s what really happened.
We’ve noticed a fair few Unionists this week proudly claiming that an independent Scotland would have been too broke to survive the coronavirus pandemic. They might not listen to our many and comprehensive rebuttals, but maybe they’d heed the words of Tony Blair, from way back in October 1987:
The sliding doors of history, there, readers. When Unionists tell you Scotland is feeble, remember who made it that way, and never forget how it could have been.
I still don’t like JK Rowling, for reasons I set out earlier this week. I certainly never in a million years imagined I’d ever find myself in a position where I respected her 50 times more than I do Nicola Sturgeon.
We’ve often said on Wings Over Scotland that we really don’t mind if journalists are biased. Everyone is biased, including us – we’d just rather people stopped pretending to be impartial when they weren’t. But what we do really hate about the Scottish media is just how astonishingly bad at its job it is.
A particularly striking example arose recently.
Pretty much every newspaper and broadcaster in the country carried the sad story of former Labour MP Paul Sweeney‘s fall from besuited lawmaker to skint benefits claimant. And yet not a single one of them asked the question that literally every single reader of the story would have been shouting at their screen.
sam on Narrowing the options: “Caveman’s a fool. Knows nothing about the case. Opens his gub with nothing to say.” Jul 4, 21:46
Captain Caveman on Narrowing the options: “Sam is a pronouns kinda guy.” Jul 4, 21:22
Andy Wiltshire on Narrowing the options: “That’s just what you would say if you were working for MI6, which I think we can all agree proves…” Jul 4, 21:09
Hatey McHateface on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: ““Colonialism eventually eats itself” Care to put a date on that, Alf? Currently, you’re claiming colonialism is eating us to…” Jul 4, 19:55
Insider on Narrowing the options: ““James” Che… Have your carers walked out on strike and left you alone with the computer ?” Jul 4, 19:53
Doddsotheglen on Tuning In The Shine: “Apart from talking down Scotland and Scotgov and SNP the BBC in Scotland is very controlling of it’s journalists and…” Jul 4, 19:40
James Che on Narrowing the options: “The decision on wether we are in treaty of Union with England may or not may come a lot quicker…” Jul 4, 18:05
James Che on Narrowing the options: “Fearghas, The private rights of the Scottish people would include mums and dads in Scotland, It would also include wether…” Jul 4, 17:47
Captain Caveman on Narrowing the options: ““Like Roddy, QC, there will be plenty of pro British people united with us pro Indy/Scottish types, so the reach…” Jul 4, 17:44
James Che on Narrowing the options: “The Bank of England? Obviously not the Bank of Scotland, the Bank of Ireland, or the Bank of Wales. Perhaps…” Jul 4, 17:32
Willie on Narrowing the options: “And whilst we are on tbe subject of politically corrupt colonial police doing how many folks have heard of Home…” Jul 4, 17:29
Willie on Narrowing the options: “4nd whilst we are on tbe subject of politically corrupt colonial police doing how many folks have heard of Home…” Jul 4, 17:25
crisiscult on Narrowing the options: “Regularly drop by, but rarely post. I’ve been a frequent visitor here since 2012. I used to subscribe, then stopped…” Jul 4, 17:23
sam on Narrowing the options: “My apology Fearghas. It is a discrimination and harassment claim which has been running for several days and reported by…” Jul 4, 16:49
Alf Baird on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: ““if London wasn’t a colony?” The collaborating elites/bourgeoisie of hundreds of ex colonies are forced to head for the metropolitan…” Jul 4, 16:41
Mark Beggan on Narrowing the options: “A Bank of England note please. Can’t trust those Reichsmarks. Very volatile exchange rate.” Jul 4, 16:33
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Narrowing the options: “Thanks. A bit of context from you would have helped. I read through the whole thing to my bemusement. I…” Jul 4, 16:04
Hatey McHateface on Narrowing the options: “I have a brand new, crisp, uncirculated Bank of Scotland £20 note that says the legislation won’t be applied to…” Jul 4, 14:55
Hatey McHateface on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: “Poor example, Aidan. Do you think Sadiq Khan would be London mayor if London wasn’t a colony?” Jul 4, 14:49
sam on Narrowing the options: “Fearghas Please see here. https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/2069729510468034778.html” Jul 4, 14:49
Hatey McHateface on Narrowing the options: “It can’t be, Mark. Cesaire predicted this and there were no puberty blockers in his day.” Jul 4, 14:42
Hatey McHateface on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: “You’d try the patience of a saint, Alf. Few believe the “too poor” jibe these days. It has been replaced…” Jul 4, 14:38
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Narrowing the options: “PEERS: ‘WESTMINSTER’S CONVERSION PRACTICES BILL IMPERILS THE INNOCENT’ Peers have warned that the Government’s plans to ban so-called conversion practices…” Jul 4, 14:31
Mark Beggan on Narrowing the options: “It’s the side effects of the puberty blockers.” Jul 4, 14:18
Aidan on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: “There are over 500 independent (e.g. colonial lol) schools in London, so I assume that also makes London a colony?” Jul 4, 13:46
James Che on Narrowing the options: “No private rights for the evident utility of the of the subjects within Scotland. Or No union, And this covers…” Jul 4, 13:41
Chas on Narrowing the options: “As I look at the comments just now, 7 out of the last 8 posts from the same nutter. Probably…” Jul 4, 13:40
James Che on Narrowing the options: “The courts have no ruling over what are the private Rights of the Scottish people as it is the peoples…” Jul 4, 13:10
Alf Baird on Fob, Fob, Fobbing Along: ““GDP per capita is higher in Edinburgh than Oslo” The ‘wages of colonialism’, aka the Holyrood budget, are only permitted…” Jul 4, 13:01
