Fields of gold
Posted on
February 08, 2014 by
Chris Cairns
The world's most-read Scottish politics website
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Wings Over Scotland is a (mainly) Scottish political media digest and monitor, which also offers its own commentary. (More)
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A tall tale
Wee Books
Video
Probably a robbery
Transphobia
Chris …if a picture spoke a 1,000 words…
If the Yes campaign wanted to put a poster on a billboard. This is the one. This is the one that would make people have a good damn hard think…
Excellent “cartoon” I agree with JLT – very powerful message.
It brings to focus a certain Labour MP’s comment “even if we would be better off I would still stay with the union.”
@JLT
Beat me to it, excellent for a billboard as you say.
Thanks Chris.
“American multi-millionaire oil boss says he likes things just as they are…”
There, that’s better.
Billboard crowd fund Rev
“American multi-millionaire oil boss says he likes things just as they are…”
And Labour agree. “even if we would be better off economically, I would still stay with the union.” Jim Hood MP Lanark
Your choice: YES or NO?
CEO of BP, Bob Dudley was given a package worth $6.8 million in 2011 and no doubt has made a lot more since.
He has nothing to lose if Scotland votes for independence so the only reason I can imagine he chose to make his opinions known, was to mitigate the report highlighting the poor economic performance of BP.
Operating in chaotic countries like Nigeria, Iraq & Libya for example doesn’t seem to bother Bob at all.
Odd then that he’s chosen to mention that the costs of a back office operation on the outskirts of Aberdeen is one of his key concerns.
He might be a knowledgeable oil man but he is politically inept. The previous CEO, Tony Hayward suffered from the same problem. And he got the boot.
Seen a comment in the Scotsman last week about Norway’s oil fund. It sits at app. £600 billion,but Norway’s foreign debt is app.£650 billion. The poster was creaming himself thinking he had discovered a coup for the no side. I looked up foreign debt per country,and the UK foreign debt is over £10 trillion !!!!!!! Now did I read that correctly or is it really not as bad as it looks ?
I’m sure some of you guys know more about this than I do, any explanations ? If it is true why is it not used to counter some of the claims that the recovery is under way ? Or are we maybe keeping our powder dry until just before the big day ?
Regarding Jimmy Hood my MP! Please don’t blame the people of Lanark for his 13,470 (29%) safe majority that allows him to spout pish without fear for his Westminster ambitions.
Lanark and Hamilton East also includes Larkhall and Strathaven not exactly hotbeds of nationalism for differing reasons. Lots of wee former mining villages as well.
link to en.wikipedia.org
I like this very much.
I don’t like Scotland being impeded in it’s desire to make life better.
No siree!…as American millionaires say.;-)
Sorry an error in my above comment. Please exclude Strathaven.
Weeembarasedfacething.
Folk seem to be trashing the Gardham/project fear article in The Herald today with some entertaining comments.
If you missed Channel 4 News last night here’s the full version of the cringeworthy Matt Frei interview with A Salmond.
The ‘Have your haggis and eat it’ part is around 3.36, I believe now deleted from their website.
Thanks to the wonderful work of FMQ Unofficial we have the original.
Oops, that’s never happened before, usually just the link appears not the whole screen. Apologies for that.
New reports published yesterday by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) have re-emphasied Scotland’s key economic strengths and the potential to improve Scotland’s economy with the full powers of independence.
Polls demonstrate that the economy is the key issue for voters in the referendum. The evidence demonstrates that people in Scotland will be better off as a result of independence.
Here are 10 points published in the NIESR reports today.
1) New Gross National Income (GNI) calculation implies that Scotland is even wealthier than previously thought.
The major revelation in the report is that new calculations of Scotland’s finances may upgrade Scotland’s economic position even further. Evidence already shows that Scotland is the wealthiest area of the UK outside of London and the South East. Scotland put in 9.9% of tax and received 9.3% of spending (GERS figures).
The report by John McLaren and Jo Armstrong concludes by suggesting that GNI calculations may place Scotland in an even stronger fiscal position:
“this implies that Scots are richer than had heretofore been recognised. This also means that previous (GERS-based) estimates of the Scottish fiscal balance are underestimating revenues and overestimating the size of any inherited net deficit” (page R12).
link to businessforscotland.co.uk
link to businessforscotland.co.uk
@Albalha
I saw the channel4 interview yesterday. I must say I was disappointed with Matt Frei. I would have thought that him being German would have altered his perspective at least a little bit. The “Have your haggis and eat it” jibe was cringeworthy. Salmond got the better of him though.
Matt Frei… what a fucking awful little horrible shite of a man.
Sorry for the swearing.
Watching the A.Salmond, Matt Frei interview again.
Alex Salmond should give eyebrow management advice to A. Darling. Watch Salmond’s eyebrows immediately after the “Have your haggis and eat it” statement.
I thought Matt Frei was poor. The haggis jibe followed by you only want PM after your name shows how out of touch he is. Disappointing from Channel 4 news. I usually expect far better from them.
WP
Regarding External Debt, as you say the UK is only 2nd to the USA as worst in the world, Regarding Norway, this may explain why they are marked at 18th
link to en.wikipedia.org
Quote
Note that while a country may have a relatively large external debt (either in absolute or per capita terms), it could be a “net international creditor” if its external debt is less than the total of the external debt of other countries held by it. For example, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland, China and others are net international creditors.
Unquote
Another terrific sketch from Chris Cairns.
The future Sir Dud Bobley must be very pleased with his illogical intervention.
Matt Fried by Wee Eck
“have your haggis and eat it” line highlights how abusive and out of touch thr London media……….. and to think Sarah Smith of Channel 4 is to head BBC Scotland’s referendum broadcasts.
Thanks for the link, Albalha
“You just want to be called Prime Minister, is that what this is all about?”
Schoolboy stuff, Mr Frei. Is that the level of debate we’re going to get from you?
First Minister / Prime Minister?
What’s the difference?
I thought that Mr Frei showed a level of disrespect that was out of order.
Any chance of a total ripping apart of the disgusting Herald article this morning in the Herald “Fresh blow to Salmond plans for pound and pensions”, which is either totally incompetent journalism by Marcus Gardham, or they published a Better Together press release by mistake.
The Herald should print a retraction on Monday on the front page, and hang its head in shame. Marcus should be sent on a journalism course.
The Herald was good for a time, but it looks like it’s been nobbled.
I’m not going to judge Sarah before she starts basically because she’s been worth watching when reporting on US politics.
I’m kind of hoping for a fair and balanced view from her and I don’t think she’d be daft enough to try puerile smart arsed comments like those of yesterday and the day before ,and the day before that and before and before and before!
Jim Hood is the worst of the worse, he would sell the hopes and ambitions of his fellow countrymen for the pomp and patronage of Westminster while some of his constituents probably have to decide whether to heat or eat. He is a bloated fucker who would probably rather be reamed by a red hot poker than leave the blessed union.
Thanks Jingly,
Latest odds. Yes 3/1
In an independent Scotland I think the correct term will be Chancellor not prime minister. Whether the Alex Salmond will be Chancellor will depend on the democratic will of the people of Scotland.
Dadsarmy
I went to bed happy about the NIESR report but woke up to read the Herald take on it.
Can’t believe it. We’re a’ doomed ah tell ye.
I wish they’d all lay off the haggis like.
Good cartoon, shame the irony.
Abandoned Communities the effect of British Conservatism on our ex mining areas. Us Scots have answered this by abandoning this heinous party north of the border we have still though to see through British Labour to realise they are basically the same I think people like Hood could open our eyes.
Matt Frei seemed like a very good example of a badly-informed, hectoring wee tosser. Interviewing someone of Alec Salmond’s calibre allowed him to reveal those unpleasant characteristics in himself very clearly. As that was evidently the intention, I guess Channel 4 must be quite pleased with themselves. They did the Yes campaign a big favour too, of course, whether they meant to or not. So I guess Matt ate his bratwurst and still had it to chew on later!
Chris, good cartoon, but wouldn’t I be right to say it’s from an actual photograph? I’m sure I saw this somewhere this week, but can’t find the link.
Can you put me out of my misery?
The criminals in Westminster cost Scotland £10Billion+ a year. £7Billion + £1.5Billion Trident + £1.5Billion (a tax on ‘loss leading’ alcohol).
The £ has fallen against the Euro. It was £ = €1.44. Now £ = €1.21.
Matt Frei is very badly informed.
‘Haggis’? ‘Want to be PM’? So AS joined a Party committed to Independence.
Still reeling after listening to my mp jimmy hood the other day , what a complete bamstick
The haggis jibe is contextually racist. Like African Americans and fried chicken; Scots and fried Mars Bars; French and garlic; anyone of African decent and bananas; it really depends on the circumstances and the perceived motivation of the doer.
Certainly the haggis comment made me pause and it was not a pleasant interlude. It seemed to me he was referencing ethnicity pejoratively. He just couldn’t help himself.
Do you think if the interviewee had been black would Frei have used “banana” under ANY circumstances? ‘Course not.
I like when AS gets a rough time from an interviewer. I think that is when he comes into his own, putting forward the facts in a concise and intelligent manner. When you look at the Channel 4 interview who come out of it best? AS made Mr Frei look ridiculous and immature. Another few Yes votes in the bag.
Sorry, forgot to mention, that cartoon should be on every billboard we can afford to put it on.
So, that’s C4, BBC and STV all off the Christmas card list for disrespecting Scotland and our ambitions. A ‘sterling’ show by the FM on all channels.
And we look over to that bonny fechter in the Scottish camp, (appointed), our heavyweight champion Carmichael sitting looking gormless as Pete Wishart tells it as it is and watch buffoons like ‘true blue’ Jimmy Hood of Labour and ‘bayonet’ Davidson, wade in against Scotland, while yet another feckless ‘Scottish’ MP claims in Westminster that the SG’s initiative to get Treasury ‘permission’ to top-up the social grant and eliminate evictions was all due to Lamont and Gray – yeuuuccchhh! Enough already!
But there it is, the common-denominator – ‘disrespect’, we see it, we know what they’re about and the whole shootin-match lot of them can just bugger off, smartish! We’re on our way big-time.
Not that bothered about the haggis comment. It was a good interview where Alex got a lengthy opportunity to very clearly articulate his case. It finished on a good humoured note and I think that Alex felt pretty pleased with how it went. Matt Frei actually sounded quite warm by the end of it too. Haggis aside, Matt Frei left a lot more space for the questions to be answered clearly and in a way that the viewers would be able to digest than Brewer and Co. would have.
Alex had a good day yesterday. It has been a good couple of weeks all in.
While it was good to see the positive support coming from outside Scotland yesterday for a Yes vote, the niceness shown could make it difficult for some to ‘walk away’.
Judging by today’s media coverage, the press will be pushing against independence even harder now. The Guardian’s editorial, for example, makes it clear that they see this solely as about saving the UK – permanently stopping the movement for independence (or substantially more powers) is their aim.
It’s Yes or nothing.
Reckon it’s definitely Game On now.
Great cartoon, and I’m in for any billboard crowd-funding!
@X Sticks,It,s a depiction of flat,s in Easterhouse about 5 yr,s ago,and yes they were left like that by Glasgow Gity
Council.
@X_Sticks
It is indeed adapted from a photo – of Easterhouse, I think. I’d tell you the source but I’m sure their copyright lawyers don’t any more help in tracking me down!
Don’t know if anyone’s got the time to read this, but the Americans seem to have sussed our problems 10 years ago
link to academia.edu
@ronnie anderson
@Freddie Threepwood
Sadly it could be any scheme in any Scottish town city or village.
@ Tree of liberty 10.22 Ave got a big back garden, with exsposure to a main road,bus route,short cut route to main rd,would sit nicely with my Wee Shed.
Thanks guys – good to know my brain is not completely scrambled!
O/T good response to Cameron’s love-bomb from Ian Bell in the Herald:
link to archive.is
I’m a bit peeved that none of my English friends or in laws have been on the dog and bone yet.
@Seanair
What’s worse than the story itself though is the fact it happened at all. For a time the Herald seemed to be presenting a balanced coverage, with stories against, but stories for as well. Then I noticed MacWhirter adopting more and more the Unionist take, even using the same language as on their website. Gardham was always a bit distorting, but his articles weren’t too bad, it was the headlines that were misleading even to the contents of the article.
But this latest is just sheer blatant lies, both in the highly selective article itself, and a headline that bears no relation to the NIESR reports – themselves portraying only the worst case scenario for Scotland.
Perhaps YES campaigners could carry a tablet if they ahve one, or even arrange access to a laptop, and carry a dvd or even a flash drice, with some of these actual reports on them, so they can show people on a screen just how much they’re being lied to by the disgusting media in the UK.
So Alex Salmond want,s to be primeminister, ah dont give a shit, if he,s called the Tree of Life,as long as we,re free to make that choice, sorry to bring your family, into the debate Tree of liberty. lol nae smiley,s.
@ Dorothy Devine 9.50
Sarah Smith is hostile to Scottish independence and is being brought in to do a demolition job. Fair and balanced view from anyone at BBC Scotland?. Aye pigs will fly.
As much as the Channel 4 news presenter was a bit of a twat, I think his comment at the end, “we just need the other guy to play ball as well”, was a tipping of his hat to how well Alex Salmond handled his harassment.
O/T seen this on FB, Lovely poem by Jock Campbell.
The smouldering..
9 September 2011 at 21:17
The man at the podium sells a grand vision.
Spins us a line on democracy and wisdom.
Twisting the words to sound measured in tone.
Burning our senses, our flesh to the bone.
I stare at the screen in blank disbelief.
Numbed by the image, stunned into grief.
The sound has now faded, my ears cannot hear,
The mantra repeated; ‘Please do not fear.’
Before his words end I am out on the street.
I’m walking in silence, on poorly-clad feet.
I walked countless miles through the wind and the rain.
My limbs never tire, I am numb from the pain.
What has become of the nation I knew?
Where are the men who’d fight for their due?
Standing together for what they believe?
Supporting their neighbours in love and in grief.
Before me stands tall the castle of power.
A thousand spires shadowed by a Gothic clock-tower.
Surrounded by barriers of cold stone and steel,
Protecting the “entitled” from the honest man’s zeal.
I stood there in silence, my heart in dismay.
Stared at the walls through the heat of the day.
I realised as hunger had come and had gone.
Here at the barriers, I was not alone.
To my left stood a woman her face streamed with tears.
To my right a young man was contorted with fears.
A girl in a wheelchair had her head in her hands.
An impoverished old man with a child in his arms.
At first just a handful joined me at the gate.
Ten thousand more had come before late.
Before the clock had struck nine a million had gathered.
Westminster village was completely surrounded.
We stood there in silence, our eyes stared as one,
At the walls of corruption we gathered our frown.
A smouldering rage burned us deeply within.
Let the past burn in hell and the future begin.
By the force of our minds we’ll tear down the walls.
Rewrite the rulebooks, democracy calls!
Free our society from greed and selfish will.
Make opportunity equal for one and for all.
Jock 2012
Sorry that,last post is wrongly worded, their claiming that Alex Salmond want,s the title of PM,show a example of Alex Salmond saying that, they just throw those thing,s out to show disrespect to the person.
Good cartoon but too optimistic. It implies that No will at least keep it as bad as it is. It won’t, it will get worse.
“sorry to bring your family, into the debate”. Brill, Ronnie.
The Man in the Jar said: I saw the channel4 interview yesterday. I must say I was disappointed with Matt Frei. I would have thought that him being German would have altered his perspective at least a little bit.
To paraphrase myself from Derek Bateman’s blog comments a few days ago, his real name was Albert Matt Frei but he changed it by deed poll to avoid suspicion.
Listened to GMS this morning and there was a good piece on economics with basically all the economic think tanks saying that one cannot say one way or another if independence would be good or bad. It would depend on policies pursued and that is true for the future of every country including the UK. Back to the studio and George Kerevan and Jim Gallagher talking about these views. George was buoyant and Jim had a wee competition with himself to see how many times he could get the word uncertainty into one sentence….quite a lot as it would happen.
That cartoon is brilliant. I also think the pics of Maggie with the caption “vote no, it’s what she would have wanted” would be a fabulous vote-winner in selected areas.
Why don’t they just play the lotto? Sure they doubled the prices but life is a lottery anyway in TeamGB and their lotto fun does go to great causes, like paying for the 2012 London Olympic velodrome that PM Cameron and cousin of the Queen told them how much he really weally loves them and wants them to vote no, and Tory!
Major
Do you mean Arbeit Macht Frei or am I missing the joke?
Seasick Dave
That was indeed the joke
Jimsie , my thinking is that all will be under scrutiny by the time she gets started ,from the academics who reported on bias , to the electorate who recognise the bias and those who monitor such things officially.
It may be naïve but I live in hope of an even playing field in the latter months of the campaign.
Having read that back , I have to say I also believe in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.
HandandShrimp
Its a slow brain day
That interview was disgraceful! Disappointed in Matt Frei, he comes across much more reasonable on radio 4 but showed his true character here.
Increasingly impressed with Salmond though.
O/T At Murrayfield today we will sing Flower of Scotland with great gusto especially the heart wrenching line ‘be a nation again’ so if the naysayers drag us down I would imagine we will never sing this song or that line again so if it’s no they will have to sing something different at ‘Twickers’ next year..I’ll go for I’ve got a loveley bunch of coconuts..any other ideas?
Nur ein Zufall (natürlich).
we should rejoice when English interviewers use quasi racist comments because it is further confirmation that they are unable to formulate a disciplined, reasoned, fact based argument.
These types if insults are thus a result of personal & collective frustration exhibited by people who are struggling to advocate a positive case for retaining the status quo.
“Your papers, Mr. Frei, are not in order!”
jingly jangly says:
A brilliant post, I hope someone puts it on Facebook/twitter.
It should have more exposure.
rev could you send me a email address, something I would like you to see, not sure what to do with it, or precisely what it means. You may interpret it differently from me.I do not want to post it on the comments, not yet anyway.
If it means what I think it does, we have been waiting for this. If it does not mean the same to you, you can just bin it.
@Les – you tease!
My grandfather told me he stayed in much worse. We are lucky and it’s all thanks to our loyalty to SLAB.
He was born 1875, died 1960.
I thought Alex Salmond was great in the Channel 4 interview. He was obviously relishing the questions. I used to really admire Matt Frei. His reports a few years ago from the debacle of New Orleans floods were the stuff of real journalism. But the last twice I’ve heard him on the subject of Scottish independence, he’s sounded petty. Talking about the currency, it was ‘we’ and ‘you’ showing clearly which camp he was in and the snide haggis and prime minister remarks yesterday were unworthy of him. I do believe the London journalists are only beginning to wake up to this story.
Les Wilson,at 12.10
You can just use the contact link, that is how I contacted the Rev about The Claim of Scotland book. I just explained that I had a book that might be interesting and he got in touch with me, easy! You are very teasing!
Sign me up for billboard crowdfund if it’s placed in front of the same type of communities. Or can you not just send it to yesscotland and get them to use it?
Alex Salmond should have told Matt Frei that the next time he has some haggis he will accompany it with a side order of sauerkraut!
@Chris Cairns
Can I use that as my fb cover please?
@Tree of Liberty11.11, Hey we could be spore connected
ma Clan Crest is a OAK Tree,smily,s.
@
Barontorc
Pete Wishart calling mundell a Scottish national treasure had me in tears of laughter .after all he is an endangered species
Another great cartoon.
Macht Frie used that ‘haggis’ jibe because he knew he was losing: a bit like a kid upending a ludo board when he is getting beaten.
Imagine though, if he had been debating with the Prime Minister of Egypt or Saudi Arabia, and made the same comment but using the word bacon instead.
TMIJ
Your dug photie / Avatar thingy is being used by someone else on another blog, I think.
Unless it is you and you are using the dug’s name as another personna?
Haggis and eat it? ffs,now we can win,they are down to this with 8 months to go.
Disappointing from Matt Frei. Loved his documentary series on Berlin a few years ago.
Showed complete ignorance here and no in depth personal research.
Oh well, ex-BBC man so it is to be expected.