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The Valley Of The Dolls 81

Posted on December 09, 2025 by

The first and most important thing to note about yesterday’s judgment in the Sandie Peggie tribunal is that it’s a very big victory. The tribunal found that Sandie Peggie was gravely and heinously harassed by her employer through no fault of her own, and she’ll be entitled to substantial compensation as a result.

It also ruled, repeatedly and unequivocally, that Dr “Beth” Upton (who’s referred to in the judgment as “the second respondent”) is a man.

After that, it lost its mind.

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The Long Walk To Freedom 112

Posted on December 07, 2025 by

On 5 April 2021, I sent a short and simple Freedom Of Information (FOI) request to the Scottish Government asking for:

“All written evidence to James Hamilton’s QC investigation into the FM under the ministerial code. This includes evidence from the FM, her chief of staff Liz Lloyd and any other individuals within the Scottish Government who have submitted evidence.”

Over four and a half years later, because of the government’s pathological aversion to transparency and accountability, we’re still not there.

But we’re inching closer.

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The cost of failure 117

Posted on December 04, 2025 by

For several years now, this site has recorded how the SNP’s continued existence is now entirely dependent on UK state funding. The party would simply go bust without Westminster money. And how precarious a position that puts it in is sharply illustrated by the latest release of donations income from the Electoral Commission.

In a 12-month period running up to the last UK general election, the UK state gave the SNP a little over £1.3 million.

In the corresponding period for the last year, after the party was reduced to just nine seats, that figure plunged to just over £0.4 million, a drop of over £0.9 million.

And that’s money the SNP can’t afford to lose.

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Wishing for swans 89

Posted on December 01, 2025 by

For lack of anything more interesting to write about, we thought we might do a monthly rundown of polling in the leadup to next year’s Holyrood election, with seat projections from a neutral source, in the shape of the newish Devolved Elections website.

And very quickly, things got a bit weird.

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The Groomers’ Friends 130

Posted on November 27, 2025 by

We’re just putting this here for the record, really.

It’s a “debate” from the Scottish Parliament last night, on a motion from Patrick Harvie complaining that vulnerable children aren’t being pushed into a programme of lifelong medicalisation, sterilisation and mutilation quickly enough.

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.)

The list of those who spoke in favour of child harm was:

Patrick Harvie (Scottish Greens)
Paul McLennan (SNP)
Mercedes Villalba (Labour)
Maggie Chapman (Scottish Greens)
Elena Whitham (SNP)
Monica Lennon (Lab)
Rona Mackay (SNP)
Jenni Minto (SNP)

We hope one day they’re held publicly accountable for their actions.

Searching And Looking 226

Posted on November 22, 2025 by

Disgraced ex-policeman and notorious vexatious serial complainant Lynsay Watson is having quite the meltdown on the groomer-and-paedophile haven Bluesky tonight.

Let’s listen in.

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Reach For The Stars (And Stripes) 296

Posted on November 19, 2025 by

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.

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Over The Hill And Down The Slope 250

Posted on November 14, 2025 by

We’ve just been leaked the SNP’s first poster roughs for Holyrood 2026.

One more push, everyone!

Grift Away 329

Posted on November 08, 2025 by

Oh good, another plan. Just three and a half years to wait.

Should we, what’s the phrase, “Save The Date”?

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Rise Of The Machine 110

Posted on November 07, 2025 by

It’s Wings’ 14th birthday today, and to be entirely honest with you, readers, like a lot of teenagers we’re having a bit of an existential crisis. It’s quite difficult to see any point in being a Scottish political journalist for the next five years, because it’s just going to be one depressing Groundhog Day after another.

So rather than moan on as usual, today we’re handing over to a precocious new talent whose enthusiasm can’t be dimmed. It’s one that garnered a lot of attention this week by delivering a comprehensive and very entertaining spanking to SNP MP and devoted friend of the site Pete “Cosy Feet” Wishart. 

Wishart threw such a petulant strop that he accused a code algorithm of defamation and threatened legal action against the inanimate collection of 1s and 0s.

With skills like that already placing it well beyond the abilities of most of the Scottish political commentariat, we thought we’d give it a tryout and ask it to take a look into the country’s future.

The following article is completely unedited other than a bit of formatting, though we did ask it (with only partial success) to tone down the haggis-and-bagpipes stuff slightly from its first draft. Ladies and gentlemen, we give you Grok. Unlike most journos, it provided links and it did write its own headline.

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How To Create Racists 565

Posted on October 29, 2025 by

This really is an extraordinary headline, for multiple reasons.

Because what actually IS “the rise of Reform”?

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Great news, everyone! 223

Posted on October 27, 2025 by

We’re important!

Something to look forward to there, then.

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    • DaveL on And every day was exactly the same: “Quite attached to the ‘rules based world order’ you say. That shows how attached you are to western hegemony/ideology because…Jan 5, 02:04
    • Young Lochinvar on And every day was exactly the same: “Get a room you two! YOU are amongst the most prodigious creators of spoiler (going nowhere) BS AI reliant rubbish…Jan 5, 00:54
    • Alf Baird on And every day was exactly the same: ““Oman, UAE and Singapore aren’t democracies …” The matter of economic success of ex colonies was the main issue, not…Jan 5, 00:03
    • Northcode on And every day was exactly the same: ““Oh, get the fuck over yourself, you arrogant dishonest prick!” A tame exclamatory, Xaracen… you used the temperate obscenity “fuck”…Jan 4, 22:58
    • Alf Baird on And every day was exactly the same: ““There is nothing in the least bit bigoted about ANY native wanting to defend his nation from unwarranted, unlawful, and…Jan 4, 22:36
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on And every day was exactly the same: “KAFKA: THE TRIAL (Chapter 1 ARREST) « Somebody must have made a false accusation against Josef K., for he was…Jan 4, 22:29
    • Jay on And every day was exactly the same: “Your comment 3:39 on 4th Jan. finds fault with Alf Baird’s comment (shortly preceding) by referring to the issue of…Jan 4, 22:20
    • Alf Baird on And every day was exactly the same: “Yes James, the “hateful racism” of colonialism (Cesaire) inevitably shows through whenever the colonizer, always with great relish, endeavours to…Jan 4, 22:08
    • DaveL on And every day was exactly the same: “Hi Hatey, you’ve still not informed us about your man Stepan Bandera. I noticed they had a torchlit parade in…Jan 4, 22:02
    • Northcode on And every day was exactly the same: ““So there you have it, the ongoing oppression of native Scots is largely a consequence of privately schooled Anglicised sadomasochistic…Jan 4, 21:54
    • Alf Baird on And every day was exactly the same: ““Dae masochism next” Kipling, brought up initially in India and then sent to private school in England, imagined British society…Jan 4, 21:27
    • Andy Ellis on And every day was exactly the same: “And yet here you are for some strange reason giving us the benefit of your dazzling insight. I doubt my…Jan 4, 21:13
    • Andy Ellis on And every day was exactly the same: “@ Xaracen 8.08 pm Wind yer neck in ya bigoted piece of work. I didn’t say ALL Scots were bigots.…Jan 4, 20:58
    • Ross on List Voting For Cretins: “Which other pro independence party is likely, on current polling, to achieve more than the 1 list seat though? Every…Jan 4, 20:49
    • Xaracen on And every day was exactly the same: “@Andy Ellis; Way to go to miss the point, prick. Your attribution of bigotry to Scotland’s people in the context…Jan 4, 20:08
    • Hatey McHateface on And every day was exactly the same: “The greatest living half-Scot, President Donald J. Trump, continues to expand the American language: Trump said under Maduro, Venezuela hosted…Jan 4, 19:54
    • Hatey McHateface on And every day was exactly the same: ““Note the curtness of my response (a single sentence) set dow above this observation” I’m seeing what you’re about, Northy.…Jan 4, 19:18
    • David Holden on And every day was exactly the same: “Hard to wade through the comments at the moment as life is too short. Dr Ellis seems to be trying…Jan 4, 19:14
    • Hatey McHateface on And every day was exactly the same: “Wow! Assertions, propositions, veracity, premises. Check out the big vocabulary on Brad, sorry, Northy. But tell us true, Northy, as…Jan 4, 19:08
    • Northcode on And every day was exactly the same: ““…when you give someone enough rope…” It isnae rope ther needin, James, it’s mair ‘bullets’… fir ther nivver feenisht shootin’…Jan 4, 19:00
    • Northcode on And every day was exactly the same: ““A wholly unsuprising lack of originality on your part.” This assertion has been noted and immediately dismissed due to its…Jan 4, 18:50
    • Hatey McHateface on And every day was exactly the same: “Xaracen expressing his inner James there. Such lack of magnanimity and uncivil rudeness from someone forever telling us Indy is…Jan 4, 18:46
    • Andy Ellis on And every day was exactly the same: “@ Xaracen QEDJan 4, 18:46
    • Andy Ellis on And every day was exactly the same: “I am really liking thon Northierthanthou moniker… I might use it. A wholly unsuprising lack of originality on your part.…Jan 4, 18:36
    • Andy Ellis on And every day was exactly the same: “You patently don’t know what paranoia even is James. The block function I mentioned wouldn’t stop you posting your superabundance…Jan 4, 18:27
    • Northcode on And every day was exactly the same: ““What can be asserted without evidence can be similarly dismissed Northierthanthou!.” I am really liking thon Northierthanthou moniker… I might…Jan 4, 18:15
    • Hatey McHateface on And every day was exactly the same: “I make it 11, James. Could I be paranoid? Or maybe just colonised?Jan 4, 18:13
    • Xaracen on And every day was exactly the same: “Andy Ellis said; “at least you’re not a sweary, moronic nativist bigot” Oh, get the fuck over yourself, you arrogant…Jan 4, 18:08
    • James Cheyne on And every day was exactly the same: “Paranoia is a peculiar illness. Including this present post I have posted 10 times on different topics Compared to Andy…Jan 4, 17:41
    • James Cheyne on And every day was exactly the same: “North Code, Alf Baird, I think it is very nice and thoughtful of Colonial mindset posters to help us prove…Jan 4, 16:57
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