Only Bad In Scotland
Following the Scottish media’s week-long frenzy of stories about the “scandal” of baby boxes – in which it was revealed to the astonishment of the nation that cardboard is flammable and incapable of stopping an armoured assault from a tank division or a zombie plague – we were a little startled to note that the Guardian (which has now run THREE stories about how terrible it is to give babies nice free stuff) didn’t always have such a downer on the project.
Apparently (and as recently as this February) baby boxes are “great innovations” and “hugely popular” – so long as the SNP aren’t involved, of course, at which point they turn into grotesque deathtraps.
And it got us wondering: what else is only terrible when it happens in Scotland?
There’s the terrible volatile curse of oil revenue, of course. (Even though it seems to be widely regarded as a good thing for other nations.)
And the awful nightmare of being popular with tourists who want to come and visit the country and spend money in it.
Obviously our world-leading bridges are all rubbish, whether they’re old or new, because no matter how many records they break they’re still in Scotland.
Our railway stations are similarly dreadful.
We can’t even deliver a pizza.
Whether we have more working-class people at universities or fewer, it’s always the wrong number and the wrong proportions, because we’re Scotland.
When we increase the number of teachers in our schools, that’s bad too.
If the First Minister makes herself accessible and approachable to kids, well, that sort of thing might be welcomed in other nations, but dammit, not OURS.
If we try to protect children from abuse and murder, which in some countries would be considered quite a good idea, well, that’s basically just turning into Nazi Germany.
It’s bad if we try to attract investment from China (although obviously it’s good for other countries to do it), and it’s also bad if we fail to attract investment from China. Honestly, we can’t do ANYTHING right.
When we’re talking about the Scottish media, we often jokingly suggest that if the FM personally discovered the cure for all cancer, the headline in the next day’s Scottish newspapers would be “RECKLESS STURGEON CREATES PENSIONS TIMEBOMB”. Soon, though, that won’t even be satire any more.
Too wee , too poor , too stupid – and that’s just the Scottish media !
I like to see the silver lining in the media cloud of doom. The more they do this and the more ridiculous it gets (cardboard burns- seriously?) the more people will see through it. Every person that wakens up to the idiocracy that the mainstream media has become walks away and walks away for good. I think they’re now doing the job of persuading people away from the Union (apart from the hardcore non-thinkers, of course)for us, happy to leave them to it.
Rest assured Rev…you’re really ‘yanked the tail of the yoon press’… well done and keep it up.
O/T
Ed Miliband says Leveson 2 should go ahead because Cameron, Clegg and himself all promised it.
Ah right Eddie. There was that other promise the three of you made on the record. Or rather in the Record.
their in lies the problem … Scotland has no media of it’s own it’s all controlled from London hence the constant barrage to belittle Scotland and Scots in a sinister ploy to stop Scottish Independence and show the world who is the real basket case between Scotland and England
Grimly analytical .. is our press.
Theres a ‘yoon bot’ somewhere distorting and distributing FACTS to ‘journalists’ across the UK.
I wonder if Jamie-Lee Green would learn what big words mean if he lived in a real country. Like Liechtenstein.
I wonder if Neil Findlay would develop a sense of awareness uf he lived in a sovereign country. Like San Marino.
I wonder if Willie Rennie… [No. No point continuing.]
I note from yesterdays news, 9/5/2018, that Brent Crude was trading at $76 plus change. To wee, to weak, to go it alone?
Well it is a well known fact that the North Coast 500 is way too long and a bit too tarmaciky.
🙂
Be of good cheer.
1st step is to isolate Europe through Brexit. (Because it’s shite and they’ll take NI with them)
2nd step hive-off Scotland. (Because Scotland’s shite aswell)
We’re being softened up prior to being dumped.
It’s shite being Scottish, eh?
Well, it certainly is as long as we’re ruled by another country anyways.
But, but We ‘nats’ are being hysterical nutters as the media is not being too critical of SNP or Scots or Scotland…
Damaging discourse between the media and the ‘special ones’ is why ‘we’ won’t win indy…or so some might say.
Not me, I’m fully eyes wide open and brain in gear!!
However to brighten things up there is great stuff in today’s National from Lesley Riddoch and Gordon McIntyre-Kemp.
I’m very surprised that Ruth Davidson isnt the FM by now, with all this state propaganda. All the WM gov is doing is TRYING to hold on to the 55% , which seems to be failing. They will continue to ramp up the Snp bad rhetoric right up to the Indy ref. We may even get a wee VOW thrown in.
I cannot help but think they’re by now only talking to themselves and those who want to believe this absolute tosh. Mum’s tend to be within the age group now more likely to want independence, they are on the internet, they are media wise.
Strange how often that the Edinburgh byepass features on the travel news, more often than what we have continued to call the vanity project. Was the Edinburgh Byepass not built by Labour, it has always not been big enough to cope with the traffic using it, just saying.
At one time a print journalist could aspire to be influential and honest and a force for good. To have their voice respected as being largely free of establishment cant. A good journalist could be a bit of a star.
Now, with the hollowing out of the media in the neoliberal era there is no outlet for good journalists. The honest and good writers work in the blogosphere.
Those miserable scribes left in the press barons’ disenchanting dead tree forest have nothing to do to earn their keep except do full on propaganda for the establishment. Whilst some of them sadly pretend to be the stars that their predecessors in the trade sometimes were.
These so called newspapers are worse than the Beano as far as fairy stories go.
We in the Yes movement have a duty to educate and enlighten those who believe this rubbish.
MSM keep it up the more ridiculous the better then more and more will come to the same conclusions we all have MSM mouthpiece of Yoon nats and BBC nats.
Just to be crystal clear though. Both the UKs unionist political class and their propaganda wing (that would be the Uks collective mainstream media) CANNOT BE TRUSTED. FFS! They even contradict their own guff simply to make their assault du jour on a target they personally find unacceptable. The Scottish government are the elephant in the room for the UKs population. The only thing preventing that population from realising just how badly they’ve been served by their Westminster government is the media.
We do have advantages in Scotland not enjoyed by the other UK partners. Advantages achieved through choices we made with our own budget. We do have a pretty capable and caring government. One that actually gives a shit about their population and their duty.
The unionist politcal class and their media do not work for you or me. They’re not even working on our behalf. They work in their own interests only.
The SNP could do a PPB that subverted all this SNP Baad meme.
Use the street slang trick of inverted meanings for words.
We abolished tuition fees….That’s Bad Dude!
We delivered the Queensferry Crossing on budget…Sick!
We provided baby boxes…….Really Bad!
The Islands Bill…….Wicked!
Even the older generation would get it and have a chuckle. At least, those that didn’t would be voting Tory anyway.
I noticed that the media did not report the demonstration against the AUOB march on Saturday. They missed a trick there didnt they ? or did even they think that the antics of the three useless fat nuckledraggers would rebound on them or perhaps they rcognised them as fellow jounalists !
Listening for a very short time to radio Scotland last night. After a piece about the sad suicide case they said the health minister had made a statement and they would play it. A period of silence ensued followed by an apology for a technical fault. Happens too often to SNP ministers
“Use the Powers!!” the BritNats screamed.
“Okay.”
“Scotland most taxed part of UK!!” the BritNats screamed.
Cleggie saying Richard Leonard is a success. Laugh or cry. Comedy half hour. DUP.
Councils have been given money for child care not taken up. £2Million Aberdeenshire council which was spent on education but they wanted to cut.
Drug taking going down. MUP. Pizza comments apply to London, New York and Berlin. London and Manchester have the higher numbers of violent crime deaths in U.K. Iran, Afghanistan, UK, America and Russia highest number of drug users.
Tomkins usual rambling incoherence.
Just waiting for the daily mile being declared a scandal. The number of trips and falls have increased dramatically, putting further pressure our teaching and medical resources.
Grief it so easy to make stuff and it looks almost as authentic as the stuff made up by the lie seekers.
The relentless anti-Scottish government stories in the MSM seemed to have little or no effect on voters when, in spite of it all, the SNP won a massive majority in the GE before last. So, there’s hard evidence to suggest, at least, that the mythical power of the media was and remains largely illusional.
Which begs the question: what underlay the lose of those SNP seats in the last GE and the Tory mini-resurgence? The lying MSM all by themselves? I don’t think so.
How many of us unquestioningly believed that Tory support in Scotland had largely melted-away over the years? I certainly entertained the notion; I’m now forced to admit that I was wrong in my assumption that we had rid ourselves of our lumpen, sociopathic cohort.
The reason the UK Tory, British nationalist London based government refuse to devolve broadcasting to Scotland is so that they continue to control the narrative. They just need enough people to believe in their faux news and overall sense of authority and, win win.
The reason they also demonise the Scottish government outside of Scotland, is to continue the ‘too wee, too poor, too stupid’, including your democratically elected government, Scotland.
To have a self regulating media is not democratic, it’s a regime, and why the vote went in favour of the big knobs controlling the media yesterday.
Remember that many do not know what is and is not devolved. Friends in Northumberland could not believe that Scotland does not control immigration and so the stories in the Graun were conning them into thinking that it’s the Scottish government that deports people out of Scotland. It matters that people are kept ignorant of basic political and economic reality.
It’s the thing that the media and Britnat gov absolutely abhor about Scotland, that many are very educated and aware of exactly how politics and economics is operated and how it affects everything.
Keep up the good work Stuart. 🙂
Excellent summary of the highlights of Project SNPBaaaad.
There’s only one thing in Scotland which is absolute shite …. the media we are subjected to.
what can any decent person say about the despicable British nationalist and their media, which hasn’t already been said.
We will continue to see them descend into the sewer
where they are quite happy to be
archbishop of dork at 1247,
That’s a good idea. Parody all the naysayers, just literally listing the achievements then doing the media lines of oh it’s by the SNP so it must be bad, no matter what. Ridiculing these nonsense attacks, would be a great idea.
The media and so-called journalists in Scotland are so deeply set in their ways of working. For decades, they could quite literally print any old rubbish they wanted, to skew political viewpoints, but now they get called out on their blatant lies, and they do not like it one bit.
I see some so-called journalists bleating online about this is what profession journalism is, etc.. holding Governments to account etc.. except they don’t. The attacks are just aimed at the SNP. And running down Scotland. Day in, day out. No other country in the world does this.
Those self same so-called journalists then assert that all their ‘professional’ colleagues agree with their somewhat distorted worldview, whilst missing the point that their ‘professional’ colleagues are NOT the ones why might choose to pay for their writing.
The whole world has moved on, yet the so-called ‘journalists’ of Scotland still want it to be like in ‘the good old days’, when they could laugh constantly at the SNP, re-hash a LabourTory press release without even checking if it was a pile of deceitful mince, submit it as an ‘article’, then b*gger off to the pub with all the other ‘journalists’ for the rest of the day.
Those days are long gone. The lies are getting called out. The obsession with running Scotland down is being called out. The Scottish public demand better, and those so-called Scottish ‘journalists’ who are stuck in the past need to sniff the coffee, get off their ego-driven high horses, and wake up to the modern world.
A message to the MSM in Scotland:
Your drugs no longer work.
I’ve had the Wings jab. It innoculates me against the MSM super-bug.
The revolution is coming.
You may stall it – a while. But you cannot stop it. Best get used to that. It’s coming for a’ that.
But it’s all in our imagination, according to David Leask. It used to be that Scottish news was just fitba and murder. Since the SNP took over Holyrood it’s now a daily assault on everything they propose or deliver.
I don’t think there is another part of the UK or Europe where the media spends 80% of it’s time attacking it’s institutions. But I say this. It is not the SNP’s job to fight the media alone.
I want the NHS senior staff, the police senior staff and the Midwives and businessmen to get angry at the media. After all it is those institutions that are being attacked. The government are the figureheads not the administrators. Why is there so little fight back. I think it would scare the hell out of the media if these people fought back. It would then look like they were attacking the workers rather than the government.
I know that my organisation would be taking these bastards all the way to court.
Artyhetty says:
That is very much the name of their game.
The confusion over what is devolved and reserved has always been intentionally fostered.
The most insidious aspect of Project SNPBad is to try to blame the SG/SNP for WM failings on reserved issues.
IMO a good leaflet would be a list of devolved areas along with positive achievements made. This should be contrasted by a list of reserved areas highlighting how these are dealt with at WM in ways most Scots would disagree with.
I think the reason the Guardian has had three pops at the story was down to you dear readers, this website (and others) who, when presented with the original “Babybox bad” story, reacted with incredulity. Overall the reaction took the form of sound reasoning, personal experience and, being Scotland, a gentle “piss take” calling into question the integrity of the story .
The volume got turned up however when the Sun decided to burn the box with yet another “expert” brought to the fore in support of the proposition – it’s a dangerous box.
Well what had been gentle up until then became an avalanche of witty, pointed, thoughtful, personal, and in some cases absolutely hilarious comments and pictures (the one with a box turned into a tank, with a cat in command was outstanding).
Out comes article three from the Guardian, in my mind in response to the absolute lashing they received from the public. The laughter and sarcasm must have cut them to the quick. Ouch, ouch, ouch and ouch again.
So well done everyone, and in light of the rest of the article above, keep it up.
Latest SCANDAL, SNP refuse to support a second EU referendum screams various outlets. They seem to forget they didn’t support the first one, nor did the Labour and Libdem representing Scottish constituencies as far as I recall. Yet still we were forced to have one, 1 out of 59 vote for a referendum (1.7% of Scottish MP’s).
No matter how many times the majority in Scotland votes to stay in the EU, Scotland’s membership of any international body will be decided by those from elsewhere.
Time for Scots to stop believing they are inferior to other nations, just look at the quality of the current Westminster sect. We could not do any worse than the present government, and I don’t see any prospect on the horizon of any improvement.
The Scottish nail that stands proud must be beaten down with the Unionist hammer.
Congratulations yet again Rev.
You provide conclusive proof that UK Media outlets like the Guardian should be hiding their heads under rocks with the rest of the snakes controlled by Westminster.
Dirty, Scheming, Lying, B**tards every one.
Full their pockets with 30 pieces of silver and produce this
garbage to keep the Scottish poor poor and increase new born
deaths.
All in the name of their glorious Empire that has completely fallen on its red white and blue arse.
It actually makes you weep, or it would if my rage was not suppressing the tears, or, as you (Stu) might put it yourself “Just goes to show you how little we know about the sick, despicable, sewer-dredging shitfestival that is the Scottish media, and how badly even we’ve been overestimating their humanity all these years.”
Baby boxes for Finland, the USA, England (oh yes), GOOD. Great idea. Finland showing the world how it’s done, a great innovation to save baby lives, a great help to young mothers, let’s hope these get rolled out across all of England…etc..
Baby boxes for Scotland, BAD, very,very bad, a fire hazard, not worth the money, too costly, babies still might die, a ‘scandal’ caused by the SNP, the box is too small/large (you choose), baby boxes being ‘forced’ on mothers..and so on.
Maybe one day so-called journalists in Scotland will wake up to just how f*****g stupid their stories really are. Their is NOTHING wrong with the baby boxes in Scotland. NOTHING. They are an excellent idea. Mothers choose to have them if they wish.
THIS is just one of many reasons why so-called ‘journalists’ in Scotland are regarded as paid liars. They truly are a blight on all of Scotland.
Hello Helena regards your bypass comment at 12.21.
A story for you. I was at college in the mid eighties and was a student alongside one of the engineers on the Edinburgh City Bypass project. He told me then, that in his opinion, the road would be running up to capacity quite quickly as it had been built using early 1960’s traffic projections (from the Scottish Office).
When it first opened it made a great difference to my locale in terms of through traffic, but that advantage has been largely eroded now.
Amongst this mendacious MSM Krakatoa of Keech I noticed the claimed drop in teacher numbers, employment and deployment of whom is down to local authorities like North Lanarkshire, whose leader was suspended because dedicated money given by the SG to the council was simply not spent on employing staff.
A great compilation, Rev. Mockery and ridicule are powerful weapons any of us can deploy at the bus stop, down the pub, in the queue, at the club.
We have the tools and we WILL finish the job.
It’s always interesting watching the journalists account on twitter telling each other how impartial, accurate and what great reporters they are, I suspect most of them hate each other in reality with this level of overcompensation. It’s like some kind of 1960’s love-in.
Of course they all agree that non-journalist have no right to criticise them. They hold a particular place in hell for Wing and any of its supporters. As I’ve said before most of them are really just egotistical arseholes with an overgrown imagination of their worth to society.
Don’t waste your money buying newspapers, you would probably feel better just burning it (in a baby box if possible).
Imagine your impressions of a country were based on what you read in its press and viewed on its television. Who would ever want to come to Scotland having read and watched this rubbish?
These people are the enemy within. It appears Scotland and her people are dispensible for the benefit of England . Not the UK, but England which forms the other half of the UK.
Makes me very very angry.
Thanks again. Someone tried to tell me the other day about the great Amazon alcohol loophole. Thanks to your article “In vino non veritas” I was able to say “hogwash” and explain how. Shot them down in flames, I did:-)
Nailed the basses right there Rev.If you cast your mind back to the fuckwittery of a certain ex “Scottish” Labour party now Lordy something declaring “but they’re doing it deliberately”live on TV you just knew the game was up the pole for them.
We’re winning this now and they know it too.
If Alexander Graham Bell lived in Scotland today and invented the telephone, the mail, record or express headline would be:
“Scots kids set to become obese as crackpot invents long distance talking machine!”
As for the guardian, its Scottish section is reduced to Scotland / SNP = Bad stories and trivia, sad really as was the only rag bar The National not rabildly anti SNP.
it makes you wonder, what pile of horse shit they have ready, when the AWPR opens.
re;
galamcennalath@1.26
Absolutely well said. It’s still an issue that needs tackling as much as possible. What is devolved, what is reserved, it’s also important that people in England know this as well. They don’t understand devolution at all, which means, do they understand how their own UK London government actually operates? Not to be patronising, but most people haven’t got a scoobie.
Teach politics at school, and economics. It could be taught in simplish terms at a young age. People need to know where their taxes go, and everyone pays tax, via VAT and/or via PAYE. Government is surely the most important subject, top down, who does what, and, just exactly how did they get there?
In school they taught us about the tudors, with no context in terms of government, or anything much it was like one long soap opera, at least in Comp school in NE England1
Imagine training as a plumber, then being shifted onto a health consultants job, it’s what happens in politics. Jacks and Jills of all trades, experts in non quite often. That bit is a mystery imo, one day you are foreign secetary, the next, health minister etc.
OK, that’s my opinion and view and ignorance.
See you’s later!
Worth watching, apologies if nana/someone linked it this morning :
link to indyref2.scot
The media in Scotland are not Scottish they are a foreign power. They are a bunch of lying hypocritical tractor barstewards.
Do not buy these newspapers.
“It’s SHITE being Scottish! We’re the lowest of the low. The scum of the fucking Earth! The most wretched, miserable, servile, pathetic trash that was ever shat into civilization.
Some hate the English. I don’t. They’re just wankers. We, on the other hand, are COLONIZED by wankers. Can’t even find a decent culture to be colonized BY. We’re ruled by effete assholes. It’s a SHITE state of affairs to be in, Tommy, and ALL the fresh air in the world won’t make any fucking difference!”
dramfineday 1:27
Could not agree more. I think there was a whole media plan including the BBC to rubbish the boxes – however as usual Scots just poked fun at them and the whole thing became hilarious and backfired. A bit like the “better together patronising woman” adverts.
Yes I doubt they will give up, but laughter at their expense certainly riles them!
I think I spotted in a tweet why some journos hate Wings, it’s not just the pro-indy blog, it’s the money that really pisses them off.
I’ll give them a clue, I read Wings articles. And even although I can read the Herald whenever I want for free I don’t bother because there is little truly worth reading. In fact the headline is usually enough to make me think ugh! Just seeing the author is usually enough to know exactly what is to follow.
Magnificent panoply of the malignant cancerous nature ,and function of the British nationalist mainstream media in Scotland.
Spread this truth far and wide.
I also hope the Scottish Gov will begin to call out the Britnat liars too.
If they don’t do it whilst they have the power,then we will never get the truth out to the masses.
Again I can only stress that we hit these b#stards where it hurts in the pocket. Don’t buy their lying unionist rags, nor pay their tv licence, they’ll soon get the message alright.
smallaxe = amended
Here is the bbc news today
Your police are shite
Your nurses are shite
Your teachers are shite
Your baby boxes are shite
Your country is shite
And your shite too
Now for the weather oh that’s shite today – and now for the latest from the royal wedding and what Harry said to Meggan
In the Propaganda Offensive by Westminster against Scotland’s Independence movement, the Yes Campaign is out-muscled by ninety nine to one – if not more.
Like machine guns versus pea-shooters.
And yet, there is some value in the defiant use of peas against the overwhelming odds of the wholly owned British Mainstream Media spewing out its stream of daily lies in a never-ending attack on Scottish morale and self-belief.
Social media is now undoubtedly an important platform for news, current affairs and public opinion. But it’s not enough in the fight for Independence, is it. More is needed. The Under One Banner march on Saturday in Glasgow is proof of that.
Which is why the further marches in Dumfries, Bannockburn and Inverness are to be welcomed enthusiastically – and supported from all over Scotland, just as the Glasgow March was.
It is also to be hoped that these marches will evolve and expand as cultural events as well as political ones.
We have the opportunity to capture the imagination of the general public who line the roadside and watch on the telly, by injecting an even more Carnival atmosphere into the event by replacing the lengthy silences with much greater use of music and singing, not to mention more flamboyant attire, banners and placards, to stimulate both enjoyment and understanding of the Independence Movement.
If nothing else, the Marches Under One Banner have the very real potential to dispel any pessimism or frustration, by creating a newly energised force-field of hope and commitment to the cause of Independence, which, after all, is the best future for Scotland’s young people, as well as for many perhaps, one of life’s last big dreams.
Glasgow was the start. Let’s try to get to Dumfries, and beyond.
Saturday, June 2nd. 1pm for 1.30pm.
Has anyone seen the UK government trying to change the UKs.environmental commitment.Seems that the country has too much renewable electricity and we are asking the EU to allow us to halt further development. I am sure the Press will blame the SNP for being too green. Banning fracking bad
BREAKING from Pravda Quay
with Union Jackie Kim Ono:
Seems it isn’t only Scotland with a wee problem.
Apparently there was a 50 strong brawl at Goodwood – fuelled by booze and according to below the line, Cocaine usage.
Brits BAD!
Meant to say , the coverage of the brawl is contained in the sport section of the Guardian.
galamcennalath @ 1.26 pm
A leaflet listing and contrasting devolved matters/scotgov achievements with reserved matters/Westminster’s treatment of Scotland is a great idea. It would be “historical” and so not need updating, would undermine mainstream media tactics, be succint, and small enough for the recipient to keep – and most importantly it would “Talk up Scotland”. Rev Stu and Prof Robertson have the info!
The so-called “Scottish” media are in actuality an occupation force.
Yet another example of the brutality of the Westminster government. The Treason Act of Scotland did not cover the alleged crimes of Scots involved in the disturbance. So Westminster removed the Scottish law of Treason and replaced it with the English law enabling the trials of the 22 alleged leaders to be tried on the charge of treason and sedition. They were subsequently tried, found guilty and were sentenced to be executed by hanging
link to caltonjock.com
At the march last Saturday there were various groups handing out leaflets to those on the march. I didn’t, however, see anyone handing out info leaflets to the vast crowds on the pavements watching the march. If there were then I missed them doing this. If not then surely it’s something we need to do. The people watching from the pavements were a captive audience the entire length of the march. We need to use these opportunities and get piles of leaflets handed out during the march.
Also an idea – what about a competition where the prize is £1,000. We hand competition leaflets out at our marches. The competition presents youtube links to Indy videos and asks a question of five different videos (all promoting Indy). A tie-breaker question: “Independence would be good for Scotland because ———–” (No more than 15 words). Completed entries would be sent to (an address) or completed online. A winner is announced and published online. Could all be CrowdFunded. Just one way to get No or Don’t Know people viewing indy material.
Anyway – that’s just something off the top of my head. I’m sure it could be refined. We need to find ways of getting No / Don’t Know folks engaged and educated. This might be a way of doing that.
It’s because the newspapers reporting on Scotland are staffed by worthless malice driven c,unts. Simple as that.
You would never get anything like the Panama Papers or any other fantastic scoop from the regimes so called news outlets.
The question is why are they still doing it?
Folk are now fully aware of what’s going on with the possible exception of people over 80.
Do they know we know? Someone should tell them.
In theory of course the “free” press should welcome a site such as Wings looking over their shoulders, keeping them on their toes.
If they paid attention and improved their act, who knows, trust and circulation might even INCREASE?
Mmm, so basically speaking since they don;t welcome criticism, the only conclusion to draw is they’re all looking for early retirement and shutting shop. How, well, how recondite!
(I have absolutely no idea what that word means)
Comment to Herald article: ‘MSPs back rejection of Brexit Bill without “political solution” ‘:
Scotland should revert to being an independent country.
The Union: Jack it in.
It has been demonstrated by the Brexit powers grab that the UK Govt is unable to accept a situation where the Union works by mutual respect and mutual consent.
For UK Govts, its Westminster’s way only. UK Govts did not keep the promise that what is devolved remains devolved.
The only democratic solution left is to dissolve this lopsided, unfair Union:
Independence for Scotland.
Murdo Fraser tweets to say he’ll be going along at the weekend to the Medieval Combat World Championships currently taking place at Scone Palace. And with his customary bland humour says he’s hoping to pick up some tips for the world of politics.
Actually Murdo could be one of the coaches. He’s got years of experience at entering the lists.
Here’s a basic list of Scotland’s devolved powers and the Unionist view of the Scottish Governments running of them:
Health
Your SNHS is absolute crap. Despite it being the best performing by all measures in the whole UK and the best staffed and paid.
Education
Scottish schools are going done the plughole. Teachers don’t want to work for you. You’re crap. Despite there being more teachers under the SNP and better results for the children attending them.
Local Government
We’re underfunded, give us more money to waste. You’re crap and it’s not the Tories fault despite their councils being worse even to the extent of going bankrupt.
Law
Police Scotland is shite! Yet crime down 43% while rising in the rUK. More police while the rest cut theirs. Still Crap!
Social Work and Housing
You put Cocaine on your Pizzas before you deliver them to all those that are sleeping in doorways. You’re crap despite having fewer homeless and new initiatives that are closing hostels and actually giving homeless a real AND the support they need.
Economic Development and Transport
Your Railways are shite and when the snow falls your even more shite. And you’ve nae oil left, what about the GERS eh. You’re crap. Despite having the best performing rail service of them all in the UK and dualling the A9 at last.
The Environment
Why won’t you allow fracking? Think of the jobs that would bring. Forget about renewables like wind and tidal power. They’re crap as well. Despite reducing the Earth’s carbon footprint and opening the road to cheap power for all.
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
Who cares about farmers and fishermen anyway? What do they contribute to GDP. They’re crap as well. What have you actually done them despite the powers being at the EU and not Holyrood and you want them back. What would you do with them anyway, pay subsidies to farmers? Think Again hahaha.
Sport and the Arts
You’re football teams are shite and who would actually watch anything on the BBC if produced in Scotland? You’re too stupid to make programs anyway. Despite inventing the telly.
Is it just me or are the MSM having a go at devolved powers?
Remember when we were told indy Scotland = bankruptcy ?
Tories should take note about how THEY operate.
TORY led Northamptonshire county council declare as bankrupt.
link to archive.is
Some great posts re the media in Scotland. I’m particularly disappointed in Dani Garavelli and Libby Brooks. I expect better from women and had presumed, wrongly as it happens, that they would have empathy with young, and sometimes, not so young mothers. Absolutely heartbreaking that they and other so-called journalists would try to frighten these mothers off the baby boxes.
There are so many other relevant questions decent journos should be asking others rather than trashing the Scottish Government on a daily basis. Why does Ruth Davidson support the “rape clause”? Why does the Scottish Government have to mitigate the bedroom tax? Why is there no scrutiny of UK Government austerity when they can afford missiles to devastate parts of Syria – a country, among many, which has never offered us any offence. How can they afford to renew Trident when hundreds of thousands of kids are in poverty and hundreds of thousands have to use food banks? Why are they destroying the futures of our youngsters with their wrong-headed Brexit? How much more of a mess of Brexit can they make? Why is the Scottish Government to be attacked so vehemently whey they never attack the worst UK Government in my lifetime? Why do mothers need baby boxes at all in this rich and most wonderfullest Uk – the greatest country on Earth and with the most fabulous “British values”? Well, where are you journalists on these questions, which every person who contributes to this blog, not forgetting the Rev himself, knows the answers. By all means hold Governments ( and I mean governments) to account. Grow some balls men journos. Women journos remember it’s to your gender we all owe our lives and expectant mothers should NEVER be subject to scare-mongering especially from other women!
@ Thepnr 5:26 pm :
” Social Work and Housing
You put Cocaine on your Pizzas before you deliver them to all those that are sleeping in doorways.”
I have to take exception to this.
Surely its deep-fried cocaine? 😉
BBC article: “Oil and gas industry ‘needs 10,000 new roles’ over next 20 years”
link to archive.li
I was interested to see this quote whilst reading it:
Deirdre Michie, chief executive of industry body Oil and Gas UK, said: “I think that one of the great insights in the report is that if we work to one of the scenarios proposed, we will be in 2035 a 70-year-old industry that is still producing around one million barrels a day.
“That is extraordinary by anyone’s standards.
Surely not.
Oil is a curse, Scotland is rubbish, SNP Bad!
Great stuff again from the Rev. The anti-Scottish britnat media is crapping itself at the success of pro-indy sites like WOS. The incestuous britnat media is truly a disgustingly grotesque conglomeration of lies and deceit.
Jeezo! STV still telling us we are a bunch of cocaine addicts ,took about 10 minutes to tell us .
May I be the first to say I think that’s a load of utter ordure.
David Leask on WoS Twitter claiming jouros get “dog’s abuse” for “corrections”. “They are a sign we try to be right”.
UTTER BOLLOCKS!
The system of ‘news’ paper corrections is a sham. They lie on the front page in a huge font, then months later they do a 2cm correction on page 10 in a tiny font.
For corrections to mean anything, they have to be the same size and position as the original transgression.
That would force them to get it right!
I just saw a link to something called Scotland Thinks on Stu’s Twitter. What a brilliant idea putting all the really rabid reactionary Unionists on site so it is much easier to ignore them 🙂
And I’ll throw in a recent football one.
Union Scot Ally McCoist says Rangers appointment of Steven Gerrard will put Scottish football on the map.
The extra dimension to the cringe here is that this means Scottish football wasn’t on the map when McCoist himself was their manager.
link to bbc.co.uk
@Dorothy Devine
I read that report yesterday but you could only read online and had to pay for a pdf if you wanted a copy. I declined.
You’re right though the report itself I don’t belive to be “ordure” but all the smelly stuff is from the media reporting it. If they bothered to tell you the facts and from memory something like 1300 people took part voluntarily on an online survey and we all know how accurate they might be. Usually rubbish at predicting anything.
But again from memory it was around 115 people out of the 1300 that actually admitted to using the Cocaine survey was drawn from. That’s extremely low from a scientific point of view and hence the Authors own warnings about NOT using the survey to draw conclusions as to the prevelance on drug taking in ANY country.
I can almost guarantee you though that the “Scottish” media was the only country that have ignored this and used it instead to make Scotland out as a bunch of Cokeheads!!!
The 1300 and 115 figures are responses from Scotland just in case that wasn’t clear to anyone else 🙂
@mike cassidy
I loved that link, come home Ireland and you can have slightly less seats than Scotland but we promise we will not run roughshod over your wishes like we do in Scotland.
It effectively accuses Ireland of being almost a criminal organisation skimming of money from other nations.
They have chose Kaiser over King (there is no Kiaser or currently King), soon to have no friends in the EU due to its deserting the UK.
It’s an offer I expect Ireland will find hard to refuse, what next a horses head in the Taoiseach bed possibly.
Slightly O/T
re the Fracking case and Ineos v the Scottish government
seems the QC representing the Scottish Government has used the argument that the SG has not ‘banned ‘ fracking therefore Ineos cannot take them to court to have a ban overturned.
It is only the ‘preferred position’ of the SG and has to be discussed and finally decided on in october so they should wait till then. Fracking is currently subject to planning permission and is ‘effectively banned’
link to bbc.co.uk
Ineos accusing the SG of an ‘astonishing U -turn’ …. anybody know what’s actually going on?
‘It has been demonstrated by the Brexit powers grab that the UK Govt is unable to accept a situation where the Union works by mutual respect and mutual consent.’
The writing was on the wall long before Brexit.
Maybe Brexit is the final, the umpteenth if not hundredth nail in the coffin of their union.
Maybe Brexit was their joker, a ten year fudge they thought, except they were forced to play it early.
Maybe Brexit will fall.
There should be two half hour phone-in TV programmes at lunch time. One called “Ask The Government” and the other called “Ask The Opposition”.
These should have a spokesperson for either side to answer the questions phoned in by members of the public.
There should also be a host in charge of a cut button for dealing with abusive callers and for clarifying the question if they feel it is necessary.
The spokesperson should be a Government official or a shadow equivalent.
It could be run very cheaply using Holyrood TV.
Why a phone in? Because people are much more interested in hearing the opinions of other members of the public rather than those of MSM pundits, also they like hearing questions on issues of the day from other members of the public like themselves rather than from MSM career journos.
I guarantee you many more people would tune in to a programme with that format than do to the MSM produced stage managed pap.
Especially at times when the MSM frenzy is at fever pitch over some issue or other and at General Election times or Referendum times. It would be a very popular format.
Why at lunch time? Because then the spokesperson of the day from either side would be giving up their lunch break and the MSM could not accuse it of wasting elected representative’s time which they would otherwise surely do.
Why two programmes? So the service cannot be accused of party bias.
Why Holyrood TV? Because this would be a public service on behalf of the electorate and one which raised parliamentary transparency to new unprecedented levels, indeed new levels which would be a beacon of transparency for the rest of the democratic World to follow.
Incidentally, that rather obvious fact alone makes it again virtually impossible for the MSM to object to it, although we all know they would attempt to.
The rebuttal/clarification of issues raised by the MSM could then be made in real time, before the iron has cooled so to speak, when people were most interested and before their attention has been redirected.
Yes, agendised callers will phone in as well as genuine enquirers but as I see it, that is all to the good regarding the truth because then any erroneous presumptions and facts stated by the questioner, erroneous beliefs which unfortunately may already have some currency with others, can be quickly corrected by the spokesperson.
The watching public will make their minds up whether the spokesperson has managed to do that or not.
The lunchtime programmes would be live but would be made available for future streaming.
The host would have a slot for stating mistakes of fact subsequently coming to light and for relating answers to questions to which the spokesperson at a previous time did not know the answer. Nobody knows everything.
The service would, of course, as a trailblazing new standard in government transparency, qualify for a promotional budget to make sure everyone is aware of the existence of this new service.
shug says,
link to wingsoverscotland.com
Thanks, shug.
🙂
BBC Shortbread news, devoting a fair chunk of their propaganda half hour to the wonderful 50 years of Faslane as a nuclear base.
Scots have had a giant bullseye on their foreheads for 50 years, as we’d be first to be hit by incoming nukes. After indy we must get these nukes across the border asap.
If That little lot on Faslane wasn’t straight UK Government propaganda I don’t know what would be.
@Chick McGregor
Sounds like a very sensible idea and one I’d like to see so that the public become more involved.
The main downside is who is going to listen? Mainly YES only supporters I would guess but as you can see just from coming to read Wings BTL there would be plenty of questions for the Government of today as well as the opposition.
Absolutely no reason I can think of that should prevent this.
Vestas says:
10 May, 2018 at 5:52 pm
@ Thepnr 5:26 pm :
” Social Work and Housing
You put Cocaine on your Pizzas before you deliver them to all those that are sleeping in doorways.”
I have to take exception to this.
Surely its deep-fried cocaine? ?
See “what are facts”
Vestas that’s untrue BTW…the Cocaine is sprinkled on After its deep fried….jeez nae wonder there is confusion LoL
Meg merrilees,
I hope this helps, Meg.
INEOS wins right to challenge the Scottish Government over fracking ban – and to sue for damages;
link to drillordrop.com
Andy-B.
Donald Trump making Eastern countries give up their nuclear weapons.
Next he persuades Westminster to do the same to save the money.
Donald Trump’s golf courses attract more golfers.
Donald visits Scotland and gets a wonderful welcome.
SIMPLES !
@smithie
I always wondered why the stuffed crust pizza was invented, this is an obvious drug distribution ploy. Also confuses the drug dogs who can’t drag themselves away from the pepperoni and eat the evidence.
mike cassidy at 6.30
When I bumped into Ally McCoist (a long time ago)he was voting SNP
Meanwhile cuts in the NHS in England and Wales steps up a gear.
“Some ‘over the counter’ remedies will no longer be available on the NHS from the end of this month as part of plans to cut costs.”
Imagine the Yoon-unist outcry if this happened in Scotland.
link to liverpoolecho.co.uk
Thank you for bringing the sunshine indoors again!
@ Meg Merrylees.
‘re fracking court case.
I think Ineos jumped the gun, or were maybe pushed. Trying to keep the SG preoccupied, something for the media to use while Westminster makes off with the loot, Brexit powers.
Any how, Westminster or Ineos, or both. Either seriously not paying attention to just where the proposed Fracking ban was in Parliamentary procedure and that it requires to be sanctioned in Parliament or, were they desperate to distract the Scottish people,fracking being no more popular than Brexit. Was this anticipated by the SG, I don’t know, it would be nice to believe it was.
If this is thrown out of court, and it should because there is no case to answer, just how much kudos does the SG get, just how much more aware will the public be, and just how evident it is to the voting public that being tied to Westminster in this union is bad for Scotland.
link to plotaroute.com
“MARCH FOR INDEPENDENCE- DUMFRIES
SATURDAY- 2ND JUNE
HIGH STREET(South) TO DOCK PARK
GATHERING AT 12.00 PM, LEAVING AT 12.30PM SHARP
PROCESSION ROUTE: High Street, Burns Statue,Castle Street, Buccleuch street, Whitesands, Dockhead, Dock Park.
I believe there are toilets in the bowling in Dock Park. However, there are loads of pubs and cafes nearby along Whitesands and Friars Vennel. There are also public toilets at the top end of Whitesands (20p) or good (free) toilets in the Loreburn Shopping centre which is also fairly close by.
Hopefully, AUOB could manage a couple of portaloos too?
Be aware: even thought the event is child friendly,if bringing young children or pets, the fast flowing River Nith runs through the park and much of it is NOT fenced off with only a 10ft grass verge between the main path and the river, so don’t let your children or pets run off.
There is a nice playground area in the park that is fenced off but, it gets very busy even on normal summer days.
Finally, Dumfries is rich in Scottish history, not only because of the association with Robert Burns: Friar’s Vennel is so called because, it was the site of a Franciscan Monastery.
This is where Robert the Bruce met John the “Red” Comyn in the church, that resulted in the murder of John Comyn( Comyn was the brother-in-law and supporter of the deposed King John Balliol “Toom Tabbard”).
At this time, Comyn and Bruce were the Guardians of Scotland but, also bitter rivals. Hence, the meeting on hallowed ground was supposed to guarantee the safety of both.
Also, if you cross the road at the end of Dock Park, there is another park, called Castledyke Park. (It has a dingy toilet up the hill).
Castledyke Park was the site of Dumfries Castle. There is a plaque explaining the history at the entrance to the park.
The castle was captured and slighted (demolished) by Bruce’s forces to prevent re-occupation by an English garrison. Nothing remains of the castle but, there is the motte (steep hill) and the site is marked by a plaque and a flagpole with a Saltire.
They print their hateful dross, and whine like crabbit toddlers when anyone has the temerity to question the content, correct the assertions. Then they have been subjected to “abuse”.
Leasky is on for a daily rant at all and sundry, with quite mad and rambling diatribes.
Grown men like Loki and McEnerary, tweeting their sneers about Rev in his pants, and how we damage the movement by funding him. How dare they?
I simply cannot imagine why it’s like this. Their hatred of the vast majority of the independence movement is bottomless. They have no respect for anyone, but we should be grovelling to them.
Somebody google earthed?
Watch American Coup. What they did in Iran in the 1950s is what they’ve been doing to Scotland since 2013.
Thepnr that BDTTs ah Cokeheid he buy’s they big 2 ltr bottles lol
Thepnr
10 May, 2018 at 5:26 pm
Thanks Thepnr! great post.
Its a handy daily guide, all I have to do now is glance at that, and I dont even have to bother switching the radio on in the morning. So much time saved and electricity too!
More BBC Mi5/6 shenanigans .
link to facebook.com
Another London centric edition of BBC Question Time with no rep from third largest party in the House of Commons.
That will now be one SNP parliamentarian out of the last 105 panelists (excluding the last episode from Scotland when even the BBC allowed one SNP rep against four Unionists).
At lunch time overhead middle class pensioners in Edinburgh blaming the SNP for wanting to give 25 year olds £10,000.
Was going to correct them but better half stopped me. It illustrates what Indy supporters are up against when he didn’t get fair media coverage.
Leask is still trying to justify that story about Scotland being as racist as England.
When someone said but the stats show different, he than launched into a rant that ‘there are false assertions and inaccuracy from a blogger – ie WoS- unfamiliar with the issue’, the person making the comment states that they got their stats from UK & SG sources, to which he replies that ‘all values are unreliable’??
The fact he’s still on about it, suggests there has been some serious backlash as in, for example,cancellations
Remember Cambridge Analytica? gone all quiet?
If you want an example of media bias and agendas to point out to people, consider this.
We all knew a year ago about CA’s activities.
Eventually after a year the media couldnt keep it quiet any more.
Then a CA person under questioning mentioned they had spoken to the SNP.
MASSIVE HEADLINES. Questions in Holyrood, all over the papers and BBC.
SNP publish email trail showing they gave CA the bums rush, and challenge Tories and Labour to do likewise.
Since then –
tumbleweed
Carole Cadwalladr’s twitter feed is the only place I know you can keep up to date with it.
link to twitter.com
@Meg merrylees – a statement from the SG, said that the moratorium is permanent which is as good as a ban.
It means that all local councils can call in any application for fracking and even if the LA agree, the SG can call it in.
So SG 1 Ineos 0, I hope
re fracking it sounds like Ineos need new lawyers.
Bottom line – they cant frack, or sue us. Result.
Opposition will squeal that ministers misled parliament, but I seem to recall the phrase used was ‘effective ban’ which it is.
Question Time is the typical BBC Scotland budget allocation production. Ostensibly made by BBC Scotland but actually rarely a trace of any Scottish involvement, not even as guests. It is made purely for English consumption, with the odd bone throw to Wales, NI & Scotland. I suspect there is a desk in PQ with a BBC QT label, rarely occupied.
These types of programmes are classed as BBC Scotland spend but provide little work in Scotland. Learned from the treasury no doubt, maybe it’s called BERS.
I recall at the time that the opposition parties complained that there should have been a legal ban rather than an effective ban. I don’t think anyone was misled. Brian Taylor wrote a piece last Oct entitled The Scottish government’s ‘effective ban’ on fracking
Some journalists and politicians (and lawyers it would seem) have very short memories.
Dear all thanks for your helpful explanations re Fracking, Ineos, the moratorium etc.
What worries me is that they are fronting this article on the BBC with footage of Nicola at Holyrood stating concisely that ‘Fracking is banned in Scotland’ . Now her QC is saying that this is just the language of press releases???
link to bbc.co.uk
So to most people, Nicola has definitely done a swift and pretty massive U-Turn and you can bet that (t)Ruthless won’t miss this chance next week at FMQ’s.
My understanding is that there was a permanent moratorium but wasn’t there a fairly recent debate and subsequent vote defeating the moratorium – hence giving Ineos the chance to challenge it in court which they could not have done if the moratorium had been maintained, the whole reason for the moratorium.
Maybe I’ve remembered it wrongly!
I suppose tomorrow’s headline will be SNP U Turn etc etc. surely Ineos hasn’t been that negligent? is this another set-up?
Losing count here and by the way what’s happening with novichok now? Dropped off the radar now that the council elections are over…
Fracking will be permitted assuming, as planned responsibility for the enviroment is removed from the Scottish government to Michael Gove at Westminster at Brexit.
As the Herald sales tank a senior reporter suggest the way to turn it around is to target 45% of the population by inferring they are deluded fools under the influence of the Kremlin.
The good news for them is they have a dedicated team of BTL commentators who are lapping it up. So good luck with the ten subscriptions (although some seem not to live in Scotland and I’m not sure they even subscribe).
Craig Murray’s take on Question Time’s right wing bias here.
link to craigmurray.org.uk
But he could have also mentioned the discrimination against the SNP who play a constructive and progressive role at Westminster.
Just Lurkin’,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, for now.
Keep up the good work Rev.
@ Meg Merrilees.
Yes there was a motion put forward against the moratorium, but, and its big but, it was non legislative. In other words, the SG wasn’t bound to repeal the moratorium.
Meg merrilees @ 10 pm
That was my understanding as well. SG wanted to keep it as a moratorium based on the planning powers that they had which would allow them to stop any fracking. But as I remember it the Greens and Labour pushed for an outright ban which of course would be open to legal challenge.
They got their way and the rest is history.
Tell ye what, Saturdays march has fare got the wind up the yoons.
In my eyes England is a Foreign country. I don’t recognise it as any kind of partner of Scotland.
Question Time tonight will have no bearing on what is happening in Scotland what so ever.
I don’y recognise the British Armed Forces. They don’t represent me.
Treeza was on the phone to the Israeli Prime Minister giving him support after Iran fired a couple of missiles into Israel.
Treeza and her English Army can go to war with whoever they like but don’t expect any support from me.
Get us out of this crazy mental Union we are in with these English Crackpots.
@jfngw: “As the Herald sales tank a senior reporter suggest the way to turn it around is to target 45% of the population”
I’m starting to say “half the population”. Well, it is near enough, same type of language the MSM uses. And if unionists protest it’s “shrug, so currently around 47% then to be exact, that’s half near enough”.
How the hell can the SNP expect our deep-fried cocaine pizza businesses to thrive with initiatives like this being encouraged?
link to archive.is
I mean three years on it is spreading round the world.
link to archive.is
No doubt the Sun is already preparing an article about how easy it is to set alight kids while they indulge in this practice.
An good analogy of us watching Question Time from England would be a similar programme being aired in Belgium and on the Panel were five French Politicians discussing topics that matter only to France.
The Belgians wouldn’t put up with it, why the hell does Scotland?
@mike cassidy
Interesting articles and my children were still in primary I’d be all for it. Another Scottish first, well done St. Ninians primary in Stirling!
mike cassidy,
My nine-year-old grandson participates in the daily mile and he and the majority of his classmates thoroughly enjoy the exercise, there’s also the added bonus of getting out of ‘lessons’ for a while, it’s a win-win situation for them and their parents.
🙂
This Week -Andrew Neil and his pals from the Spectator. if it ain’t that lot it is the Torygraph or the Economist. Portillo says Trump has done well over Iran. Yip choo choo Portillo has lost the plot. Pro Israel right wing government pro Saudia Arabia. Yip this is the left wing BBC. The world of the Brit Nats. Aggression backed up by the US of A power.
Thepnr
“The main downside is who is going to listen? Mainly YES only supporters I would guess”
I’m a bit more optimistic on that front Alex.
I think many of those near neutral on the indy question but who have been somewhat alarmed by a vigorous establishment propaganda machine on some issue or non-issue or other, would tune in to see what the government has to say about it in response to questions from concerned members of the public.
Our biggest weapon is, after all, the truth but it is one which has been effectively neutralised by a morally and democratically bereft SMSM.
There would too, be an audience of those of an MSM engendered unionist position who would tune in to see and enjoy the government spokesperson squirm. Some of those, the more intelligent ones, when faced with that magic weapon, the truth, may convert and because of their personal history might even number amongst the most enthusiastic of pro-indy supporters ultimately.
The reason I cannot see it happening is the dread fear of the MSM which politicians are conditioned into having, including those of the SNP. ‘What if I say the wrong thing and the MSM pounce?’.
In fact you could argue that that generally, politicians hold a very similar view to how much of the truth the public can handle as do the vile MSM cohort themselves.
The SNP need to break that mould and trust to the truth and the judgement of the people.
What the SNP needs to do is realise that truth and right is on our side and that any mistakes on a point of obscure detail, provided they were done honestly, would be forgiven by the public if a later correction is made.
They should also realise the devastating effect such a move would have on the credibility of the SMSM.
I have no doubt that if they find the courage do so and have faith in the truth and the public’s ability to acknowledge that, there is only one side which will ultimately suffer the most, the Britnats.
Die Wahrheit wird euch frei machen!
The difference between poor and impoverished.
link to weegingerdug.wordpress.com
Worth reading.
Interesting views from incar Gordon Ross
link to youtube.com
“Build all navy ships in the U.K. “ says Corbyn ahead of Govan visit ( BBC online headline).
Either a general election or a war is imminent or both??
@dakk says: 10 May, 2018 at 3:34 pm:
… If they don’t do it whilst they have the power,then we will never get the truth out to the masses.”
Bit of wishful thinking there, dakk.
In almost 70 years of being an indy/SNP supporter I cannot remember a time when the SNP did manage to get the truth out to the masses unless by hard slogging foot soldiers on doorsteps with leaflets.
Mind you way back when the National Union of Journalists were the regulators and God help an owner or an editor who attempted to tell a journalist that they had to report the news wrongly. There was, though, never much good to say about nationalists of the Scottish kind.
My first real awareness of the vileness of the Establishment was more subliminal than real awareness. My very young mother was conscripted in error to do war work in the English north. So it was just that I was separated from my mother and father as dad had also been called up to the army.
The guy that got mum returned to Scotland, but not out of doing war work was Arthur Donaldson of the SNP who was branded a NAZI and still is today by the Yoons. Donaldson was never charged with anything so draw your own conclusions.
By the time I became really aware of political events I was around 11 and had joined the schools debating society and was living in Edinburgh but going to school in Leith. I was a great reader and on Saturdays I would trail around the many book shops, second hand dealers and pawn shops in the Old Town looking for books. On good days I would go into Greyfrier’s Churchyard and sit there in the peace and quiet to read.
There was an old gentleman who often sat there reading and we became friends as he and I were interested in Scottish History. The old guy was a semi-retired QC, or rather in those days, a KC. It was from him I got a vast load of information about how the Union came about, and believe me, in those days few Scots knew what a confidence trick was being used not only to suppress the historic truth but the criminal actions that brought the union into being.
On Sundays I would often end up at Speaker’s Corner at the foot of the Mound and there were some great nationalist there and around Edinburgh. People like Wendy Wood, Canon Kenyon Wright and Willie McRae to name but a few. The point, though, was there was very little reported on the wireless or in the dead tree press unless it was Labour or Tory doings and dealings.
In point of fact we Nationalists were treated as either, at best a lunatic fringe but more likely as dangerous, militant and evil activists. After a while you began to recognise the security services people and the local plain clothes police officers who hung about those great nationalists. Very impressive and inspiring people to listen and learn from.
To be fair there was indeed a tiny lunatic fringe who did blow up pillar boxes and such like but the SNP did eventually expel them from the party. The SNP were a genuine political movement rather than a militant faction. We were never reported in a fair manner by the Media for the media has always been the Westminster propaganda wing.
@Robert Pfeffers
Re the blowing up of pillar boxes – just how much of this was at the behest of agents if the crown. There are claims that at the time there a certain amount of coercion by unknown “agents of a certain state” who offered to provide explosives to do the job.
And let’s face it, if they would provide the UDA / UVF with the movement details of the Eirish leader 30 years ago in the hope that they would attack him, this would not be beyond them.
I for one would love to read your memoirs!
Al Dossary
Don’t know about the blowing up of pillar boxes but explosives were easily obtained in central Scotland being widely used in both shale and clay mining. Magazines were built away from other buildings with no security whatsoever. I saw my father using gelignite to remove a mole from his garden, a bit extreme but all we heard was aloud ‘ bump ‘ and nothing much else, it shifted the mole however. Security was greatly tighten up in the early seventies thanks to the IRA.
Links
link to news.gov.scot
link to indyref2.scot
Convener @RHBruceCrawford explains why the Committee recommends a ‘political solution’ to Clause 11, otherwise Parliament should not consent to the #EU Withdrawal Bill. Find out more: link to ow.ly
link to twitter.com
Brexit Endgame: Uncertainty Mounts in Face of Deep Tory Divides
link to scer.scot
Brexit and Scotland’s future
link to youtube.com
link to peterabell.blog
link to change.org
link to informscotland.com
For anyone who missed this yesterday, a wee reminder of how Scotland was cheated
link to macalbasite.wordpress.com
Funny, I didn’t hear Mr Whitfield speak up for the #NursingBursary (which SNP have kept in Scotland) in debate last night. Vote was formally under EVEL so my vote was annulled . Bizarrely, in this pathetic article, he doesn’t seem to know that his vote didn’t count either! #EVEL
link to twitter.com
University recognises contribution to nursing provision in the Highland and Islands
link to archive.is
Link to the devolution guidance notes within this thread
link to twitter.com
link to irishtimes.com
link to politicshome.com
link to uktradeforum.net
Brexit could cost UK research sector billions, says Oxford boss
link to archive.is
link to rt.com
In the end, none of the arguments mattered, because the Tories had already struck an outlandish and disgraceful deal with the DUP
link to byline.com
link to middleeasteye.net
link to middleeasteye.net
quick shut him down!
link to twitter.com
link to aljazeera.com
link to politico.eu
Banned in the UK!
This documentary was shown on German and French TV but not in England.
link to youtube.com
Good morning, Nana, thank you, for your links. Sun is shining the weather is sweet.
Kettle’s on!
🙂
Good morning Smallaxe, it’s sunny here too.
link to news.gov.scot
Reversing his previous answer, David Mundell has refused to say that Westminster would respect the will of the @scotparl. Here’s what he said then and now.
link to twitter.com
link to indyref2.scot
Brexit Endgame: Uncertainty Mounts in Face of Deep Tory Divides
link to scer.scot
Good morning Nana! Thank you – as always – for the brilliant links.
You are very welcome exile 🙂
@Nana
Mornin’ Nana. In the midst of all the serious stuff? Here’s one to raise a smile.
link to weegingerdug.wordpress.com
Now. Cup in hand and onto the morning read. 🙂
A Tweet from WoS Twitter caught my eye
SheRa Marley-Threepwood
@SheRa_Marley
8 May
I don’t really remember being “proud” to be British, but I definitely remember not feeling profound embarrassment about it
I’ve always been Scottish first. I worn an old style SNP badge to school in the late 60s. I suppose at some point in the past I would have felt a bit ‘British’.
Not now. The UK IS a complete embarrassment and if anything it’s anger and disappointment I feel for being part of it.
Nana , thank you I think – I started with the documentary on nuclear waste dumping so you will understand from whence I’m coming.
I remember the media making out that Greenpeace was the equivalent to a bunch of environmental nutters .
I am now wondering when steel barrels start rotting and spewing out their evil.
Hi nana – your Pileus link isn’t working. I think you might have been linking to the BBC item on a certain sesuroty service whih Jo Cobun had to pull?
Anyway, can be read from the twitter account if you scroll down a little,
link to twitter.com
O/T but if you want to throw things at the radio tonight, try Dumblebum’s Any Questions? from Dunoon on Pravdasound4, with Drew Liquerman (crazyTrump trumpet), “Tricky Dickie/Who?” Leonard, and Liam Fox (where do you start/finish?).
Only chink of light is Kirsty Blackman (deputy SNP HoC leader) who will no doubt be talked over, interrupted, ignored as necessary.
Styrofoam brick, anyone?
@Macart
Ginger dug always manages to raise a smile. I try to leave his articles for last read of a night for that very reason.
@Dorothy, goodness only knows what else they have kept from us.
@Capella, thanks. Yes it was the video of Coburn getting a tad anxious, lol
Typos! sensuroty = security (it’s our secret code sshhh)
Capella, understood over and out 🙂
Dorothy,
I hope this doesn’t add to your worries but it’s better to know about these things than be kept in the dark.
Government says it could put nuclear waste site under national parks;
link to unearthed.greenpeace.org
Thanks Nana, Peter Bell excellent on Beeb Chancers!
The SNP Scottish Gov has just invested £Millions in training up more nurses and healthcare personnel. The Westminster Gov has been cutting funding for NHS/Education since 2010. The Scottish block grant has been cut 10% a year. Now £3Billion less. The Oil sector has been ruined with Tory high taxes when the price had fallen. Costing £Billions and thousands of jobs.
Scotland loses 10Billion a year to Westminster mismanagement and misappropriation. £1Billion Trident, £Billions on interest on loans not borrowed or spent in Scotland, EU grants lost because of Westminster indecision. Investment lost because Scotland can’t borrow. Illegal wars, financial fraud and tax evasion cost Scotland £Billions,
£10Billion becomes even more with less to invest. Years of Oil revenues taken secretly and illegally spent on London S/E. Kept secret under the Official Secrets Act. Iraq, Dunblane and Lockerbie kept secret for 100 years. The British Gov making pay outs and apologies for facilitating illegal rendition and torture. Denied at the time. Blair and Straw should be in prison.
A political system changed so that unionists can gang up and keep the SNP out of power with less pro rata votes, Thousands of SNP first choice votes put in the bin. Counted as worthless.
The Tory unionists are try to force Scotland out of the EU. The Tories manipulated the vote in the UK. They broke all electoral rules on spending and told lies. In spite of this 1/2million people in Scotland did not come out to vote in the GE and let the Tories in.
Mundell and his cronies are just despicable, Tompins is incoherent. No rational argument at all. Does he even know what he is speaking about. No one else does.
Morning Fred, he doesn’t hold back 🙂
Here’s more from him
link to scottovoce.wordpress.com
@liz
I think u r right. Panic attacks the herald. A hurried defence of indyref2 and a very pro yes article by Haverthwaite. Leask very indignant on twitter
TAXI FOR ANGELA
LOL
Nana
Never saw that frightening documentary. Just shows how well the UKscum cover things up.
Me neither Chick, I’m sharing it furiously this morning.
Thing is, what else are they hiding.
Al dossary, here on Arran in the very early seventies, the councils gelinite for a major road building project was just stored in a wooden 8×6 shed with no lock on the door, it was never properly accounted for either. I remember a huge panic in a cousins house when my cousin for a laugh threw half a stick on the fire, he knew it would just burn the rest of us did not! I was working having just left skool with the Council and three of us were given what we thought was the punishment of breaking up very large pieces of rocken rock with sledge hammers, after a couple of days of this back breaking work , we borrowed a couple of sticks of Jelly and let it do the work , first time was a bit dodgy as we vapourised the rock with too much explosive, but we eventually got it right. It was great we could skive all day , and the foreman who used to visit about 8:30 in the morning thought we were doing a great job!. Unfortunately after a week or so somebody complained to the council about the big bangs coming from the Coup road area every morning about ten. The foreman came back and there was this smell or cordite hanging in the air, he could not prove it was up but a padlock went on the store.,.,
As an aside several boxes of gelly were found in an derelict shed beside the main Brodick Lamlash road. Seems that when the roadworks were finished they were forgotten about !
Smallaxe, it did add to my worries as it brought back a half forgotten piece I read some years ago which suggested Barra as a great place for a nuclear dump.
I always suspected Chernobyl as a great event for hiding Hunterston / Sellafield /dumped waste and ‘wee accidents’ particularly as Arran had fields on one side of the road with sheep which could be sold and eaten and on the other non moveable beasts contaminated by supposed fallout.
Lenny Hartley will remember that better than I.
@ Dorothy Devine 11:06 am :
“I always suspected Chernobyl as a great event for hiding Hunterston / Sellafield /dumped waste and ‘wee accidents’ particularly as Arran had fields on one side of the road with sheep which could be sold and eaten and on the other non moveable beasts contaminated by supposed fallout.”
No, it was the same on Lewis – some stock could be sold, some couldn’t. I wasn’t that interested in sheep but my dad had a few dozen & from memory it had to do with what they’d been eating. Pretty much all the sheep who’d been on the moor couldn’t be sold, the ones on reseedings could – or something similar/other way around. It had to do with how much of one specific isotope was absorbed. Frankly it made no odds anyway, before Chernobyl you weren’t so much selling sheep as giving them away – prices were low for years.
Great stuff again from the Rev. The britnat media is bricking it again. They know their britnat influence is waning. They’re behaving like spoilt little brit-brats. [A good sign]
I don’t think Humza Yousaf should have issued that tweet about salt useage in the winter which is now (hopefully) past – this is Scotland, you never know.
Colonel Yadaftie, Mad Murdo WATP and Obersturmbahnfuhrer Carlaw, not forgetting the msm will be up in arms at such an increase in use.
All that salt, they will be saying the Baaaadddd SNP is encouraging an unhealthy diet or something.
@Nana
Brilliant links again this morning and much appreciated.
I thought the one in the Irish Times about the DUP was very interesting, the first paragraph in particular.
“Last week, as the British government’s plan for a customs partnership with Europe following Brexit fell apart and both houses of parliament voted to stay in the European Union customs union, the DUP reportedly informed Downing Street it would also back customs union membership if that was the price of preventing a so-called sea border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.”
Without the DUP onboard then a defeat on the Customs Union in the commons is the obvious result depending of course on the mood of Jeremy Corbyn.
If Corbyn persuades enough of his party to abstain or vote to exit the CU then May loses as a hard border mena sthe loss of DUP support in future votes and that could bring down the government.
If Corbyn supports staying in the CU and wins the vote then May must go and that could bring down the government.
Corbyn also has a dilemma, he needs to reveal on which side of the fence he sits and refusing to support staying in the Customs Union when given an obvious opportunity to defeat the government will not sit well with many. His coat could be on a shoogly peg too.
Great stuff, looking forward to this 🙂
Vestas , if it was airborne contamination how did it distinguish ‘twixt field and moor.
Caesium was the particular contaminant I believe.
I wouldn’t put it past the government of the day and the nuclear industry not to be thinking ‘Whoopee! a great day to bury bad news’
@ Dorothy Devine – if I remember correctly, it was the HARD RAIN which falls mainly on the hills, and not in the plain. Venison was also off the menu after Chernobyl.
@ Dorothy Devine 11:39 am :
“Vestas , if it was airborne contamination how did it distinguish ‘twixt field and moor.
Caesium was the particular contaminant I believe.”
Yes it was a Caesium isotope, well remembered.
Basically heather/moorland plants absorbed more caesium (IIRC) so if the sheep ate that then you couldn’t sell them for 6(?) months or so. Pretty certain it was the plants on the moor that absorbed more of the isotope but could have been the other way around.
Nothing to do with hills Capella – Lewis is mainly flat as a pancake 🙂
Capella yep and wind direction.
Smallaxe 9.32am.why don’t these cnuts take their nuclear waste and instead of Scotland or the lake district, dump it in the queen Elizabeth country park in the south downs. No, thought Not. P*ss taking b’strds right enough who don’t give a monkeys about the health of the people up here.
Sorry OT.
The search function here is crap, maybe just me.
Where’s the post about Nicola Sturgeons rat infested constituency?
link to archive.is
So…Leave.EU are fined £70,000 and their head is referred to the Police,but hey, at least they were not involved with buying services from Cambridge Analytica !
….
” the Electoral Commission probe found no evidence Leave.EU received donations or paid-for services from Cambridge Analytica for its referendum campaigning and the group’s relationship with the firm did not develop BEYOND INITIAL SCOPING WORK” (my caps).
………….
Guardian writer now being slaughtered for writing several articles about links to CA and Leave.EU
THE HERALD should be getting slaughtered as well for their disgraceful smearing of the SNP.
Goose/gander and all that.
The Pileas video link I put up at 9.14pm is still working . Sos Nana came across that link last nite so put it up .
Scottish viewers will be treated to a different version of the Eurovision contest tomorrow night on BBC. Every country (not only Australia and UK) will be performing in Union Jack outfits, singing songs first popularised by Vera Lynn, George Formby and Gracie Fields.
The show will be presented by David Mundell and Margaret Curran, with the interval act “Something For Nothing” being performed by Joanne Lamont and Ruth Davidson under the stage-name “Twisted Sister”.
Scottish viewers will not be required to vote.
Dorothy, re Chernobyl, think Capella and Vesta’s are right, the hill mosses or whatever they scoff absoerbed more caesium , incidently a few of us were partaking of a beverage or two the night the of the radioactive rain, there was a huge area outside the book and card centre Brodick flooded to a couple of feet so off course we were swimming it it ! Off course had we know that rhe Radioactive alarms on all the North Sea rigs and platforms were going mental we would not have been outside. So they know it was about Scotland but did they warn people to stay indoors?
Mad cow came from Alabama. No beef exports for over 10 years from the UK. £Billions to bail out farmers. Foot and mouth etc. No good enough food standards in the UK.
Leave EU fined £70,000. Campaign reported to have spent £20Million before campaign limits came in force. Arron Banks reportedly giving loans and charging interest. Was it an illegally money making scheme. Farague has been illegally funding a Political Party with EU money. Fraud. No accounts put forward for years. Protected by high Tories.
@Chick McGregor says: 11 May, 2018 at 12:51 am:
… I have no doubt that if they find the courage do so and have faith in the truth and the public’s ability to acknowledge that, there is only one side which will ultimately suffer the most, the Britnats.”
It was a nice analysis, Chick, but a shame that you drew a wrong conclusion.
The correct one, mind you this is only my own opinion, is that the SG/SNP are correct in not taking up cudgels to attack the Establishment – much as the already well convinced Indy supporters might want them to.
First have a thought as to how an SG/SNP series of attacks upon the SMSM & UK/British/English MSM, plus the Establishment would seem to the , ‘not quite convinced’, and the unionist Scots.
The first reaction of the Britnat/English, (cough!), patriots would be a totally blanket condemnation of the whole YES movement and the SG/SNP by the all powerful Establishment propaganda wing and hosts of Britnat ‘Celebs lined up on all medias to decry the vile Cybernats who are attacking those nice British people and, guess what? The waverers would swallow it whole and queue up for more of the same, “Please Sir, can we have some more?
All SG/SNP Chimpanzee shit throwing attacks upon the Britnats would be every bit as counter productive as are the present SMSM and Broadcasters present Chimp shit throwing attacks are having upon the wavering Scottish electorate.
That wavering electorate are at present slowly coming over to the YES to independence side of the debate almost certainly due to the incessant and persistent Chimpanzee Shit throwing attacks from the unionist loving media.
The Scottish electorate are not daft, ignorance does not equate to foolishness, it simply means they didn’t know the truth. This over-egged media campaign against the obviously competent SG/SNP and the quite obviously better performing SNHS, Scottish Education good performance and the best, and getting better, Police Scotland crime statistics is becoming ever more apparent to the, not so politically aware section, of the Scottish electorate. All due to the idiotic Scottish MSM and the Westminster funded broadcasters.
The current trend is towards independence and that should not be altered for you should never sort that which is not broken.
Heard former Labour MP Ian Davidson on Radio Shortbread on failure of UK to honour 2014 referendum promises lack of ships being built on the Clyde.
Davidson is not a towering intellect and decent BBC interviewer would have challenged his claims that if Indy there would be no frigates or warships built on the Clyde when the UK is now allowing “foreign” yards to tender.
So its only in the unlikely event of Labour winning England after Indy that UK would refuse to allow Scots yards to tender.
What
Dorothy Devine
There are still restrictions in place on the movement and sale of animals due to the fallout from Chernobyl more than 30 years ago. Wales seems to have several hundred farms affected. But restrictions lifted in NI in 2000 and Scotland 2010
Good article on this in the Guardian from 2009
link to archive.is
And this a about Scottish sheep farms in 2010 finally being declared contamination free
link to independent.co.uk
O/T just finished moving the National around in the supermarket and then watched them being covered with several Guardians. On challenging the cover up the guy informed me that the Essenpee were a bunch of gangsters and Salmond used to send heavies round to sort out anybody who argued against their policies. We’re all doomed.
Re Chernobyl incident – if you lived in/around the Firth of Clyde then I seriously doubt it had much of an effect in terms of overall lifetime radiation exposure. That probably happened/still does from the previous two decades of god knows what dumped by Brit/USA operations/training.
I worked the Ardrossan-Arran ferry route for a summer in the 1980s. Lost count of how many times we saw subs – was the sub captains training/examination place of course.
Lots of stuff at the bottom of the Firth of Clyde…
@Sinky –
Yeah, I heard Davidson too.
Doesn’t think much of Mhairi Black, does he?
Affy angry-soundin fella altogether, he’s got the cork in too tight.
We can’t easily pull the rug from under the Unionists whilst they stand on it.
All their ‘established’ laws are on their ‘establishment’s’ side.
But imagine them like a football wall, just for a moment, they all jump together to block a free-kick..
..but the canny midfielder hits it low like a penalty, under the wall, job done..
..the in-rushing strikers take the ball from the net while the goalie is still frozen to the spot.
Timing under pressure, disguised intent, predictable behaviours, confidence.
Nana, forgot to say thanks! for the links. Still working through them.
You’ve gotta love YouTube. Thousands of hours of various truth just lying around.
A few links for a quiet afternoon
link to informscotland.com
link to indyref2.scot
Good news
link to twitter.com
link to chrisgreybrexitblog.blogspot.co.uk
Interesting development. Downing St has had to agree terms suitable to both DUP and SF, on investigations into deaths by soldiers in NI.
Only yesterday Brillo was screaming about pursuing elderly vets for crimes.
This has rumbled for decades, with ex soldiers given amnesty thus far.
Very interesting.
Grenfell now won right for 2 more panel members. I just think Grenfell sums up this murderous, inhumane gov’t, above all else. One year on, and these poor, traumatised relatives, survivors, fighting for fairness. Unbelievable.
Further to the nuclear dump video this morning, here’s some more
Clip from 2009 -Trident poisons Scotland
link to youtube.com
link to dpf.org.uk
Scotland is a UK gov nuke dump
link to twitter.com
@ Ronnie, the Piles is a curse, the whisky disnae help!
Robert Peffers says: 11 May, 2018 at 1:20 pm
“The Scottish electorate are not daft, ignorance does not equate to foolishness, it simply means they didn’t know the truth. This over-egged media campaign against the obviously competent SG/SNP and the quite obviously better performing SNHS, Scottish Education good performance and the best, and getting better, Police Scotland crime statistics is becoming ever more apparent to the, not so politically aware section, of the Scottish electorate. All due to the idiotic Scottish MSM and the Westminster funded broadcasters.”
Some of this I agree with, some I don’t.
The public are not fools, but they get bbc in their living rooms and elsewhere, the papers at home, work and in a Drs waiting room. The drip – drip – drip does and will have an impact on the opinion of an individual and the whole of society in any country. I do not believe Scots are better educated than the English as to how they are being played by the bbc and press. Whereas in Northern Ireland, people are highly aware and know they are either being supported or undermined.
I agree that throwing mud at the bbc and the press will be counter productive if that’s the strategy. I’d prefer a more focused response on countering each attack on a timely basis.
When in government labour rolled out in front of the cameras Frank Dobson, John Reid and Alastair Campbell to counter attacks. Dobson pleasant and grand fatherly, Reid snappy and direct, whilst Campbell did a complete destruction. All completely loyal and speaking for the leadership. These people were rolled out in preference to the minister whose responsibility was under attack.
Today we have the tories, they have no one to provide a similar role and it shows. Currently the tories rely on their control of the establishment, bbc and vast majority of the press to counter attacks on the uk government.
The SNP must adopt a similar approach to that of the last labour government (minus dodgy spin). Keith Brown is the most obvious person to take up this role, supported by others, it’s not a one person job. I have thought this before his intention to stand for deputy leader, based on his grasp of topic, can think on his feet and his direct no nonsense approach.
I use the example of Police Scotland, if Alastair Campbell was at the disposal of the SNP, this story would be what it is, a complete non-story. Yes there are teething / legacy management problems, but how many countries would like the problem of homicides being halved in 10 years and crime being at a 43 year low? We need some to spell this out!
So yes, retaliate, but in a focused manner that seeks to highlight the chimps from the bbc and press have brown hands! Under focused examination the behaviours of the bbc and press will then be evident for all!
@Louis b
Tell me about it, lol. Easyto lose track of time in the youtube world.
link to rt.com
link to timhayward.wordpress.com
BAE also did well out of Syria. Largest shareholder is Capital Group, Philip May’s company.
link to twitter.com
link to evolvepolitics.com
Off Topic. BREXIT,The BBC in Scotland and the Press in Scotland.
“Scottish Government makes 200 European links in effort to counter damage from Tory hard Brexit. BBC Scotland says: ‘eh, what, when?’ ”
Talking-Up Scotland:
link to tinyurl.com
Vestas, yup that was the Perishers course at one time HQ’d at Brodick, Arran but in the eighties until they were phased out it was diesel/electric subs they were using, the only Nukes in the Clyde at that time were the Polaris missile carriers of both the USN and its cadet branch the RN.
I can assure that according to many of my colleagues who were offshore that night there was near panic on the rigs with the Alarms going off. There was more than a little bit, Arran hill sheep were not allowed to be sold for several years after and ten years later in 1996 there was this report in the local paper “Sannox farmer James McKinnon was having trouble with one sheep lambing last week. When the lamb was eventually born, dead unfortunately, he found that it had three front legs and that the extra legs had two hooves. Until this year he’d never had such abnormalities and he said: ‘That’s the second lamb this year with abnormal limbs.’
Mr McKinnon’s farm was one of those affected by the ban on sheep movements following the Chernobyl accident 10 years ago. Could there be any connection, we asked him: ‘Well, I find it strange that there’s two,’ he said.”
The Mckinnon family are well known to me , sadly James Mckinnon contracted Leukemia and after a brave fight for many years succumbed to the Illness.
My message to someone arguing the case for AFTER brexit is completed.
……
Did we wait in 2014 until polls showed 50% ?
Did we fuck, we moved on 29% and CAMPAIGNING TOWARDS a known date is what moved it up.
If we are starting at 45-49% this time, as the polls tell us, campaigning towards a known date will surge us past 50% fairly easily in my opinion.
This is based on 2 main premises.
1. Scots are more aware of the lies told to them in 2014, they can see that in 2014 they were duped.
People do not like politicians lying to them and tend to punish them for it.
This can explain the 2015 GE result, a MASSIVE backlash against BT deception and backsliding.
Now think WHICH DEMOGRAPHIC helped enable that stunning result ?
Large chunks of those previous labour/libdem and even some Tory voters MUST have voted SNP in 2015, so the obvious question is WHY ?
Surely, after a triumphant unionist referendum victory, Scottish unionist voters should have swept the SNP aside, crushing the idea of independence for years if not decades to come.
Yet that did not happen, after voting No, lots of those No voters voted SNP. And kept voting SNP, culminating in helping to hand the SNP a new indyref mandate in 2016 at the Holyrood election.
THOSE voters are more likely to vote Yes than No this time, no matter what lies, in fact more likely because of the coming lies, they are told by the No campaign.
2. Brexit and Devolution.
62% of Scots voted to REMAIN IN the EU.
74% of Scots voted FOR devolution.
Both those figures transcend the SNP support.
In 2014, people in both those demographics felt that voting No, was no threat to either of those 2 things.
Indeed, they were told the ONLY WAY to GUARANTEE continuing EU membership was to vote NO.
They were also promised more devolution and told how Holyrood would be the most powerful devolved parliament on earth etc…
On that basis, people within the 2 democraphics above, felt safe to vote No in 2014.
That is absolutely NOT an option this time.
NO means ABSOLUTELY and DEFINITELY OUT the EU. (March 29th 2019 to be exact).
NO means an all out attack on devolution itself, the current WM behaviour is absolute evidence of that, they have STATED they want the right to over rule Holyrood ANY TIME THEY WANT on ANY DEVOLVED ISSUES for 7 YEARS.
This is what Clause 11 is about, effectively ending Devolution by weakening it so much it is unworkable in practice.
Both these aims are undeniable, they are set out in black and white at WM.
The previous No voters amongst those 62% and 74% of Scots i mentioned earlier have a choice,
A. Vote for independence and maintain the values they voted for in huge numbers.
B. Vote No and be out the EU 100% and lose devolution in any meaningful form.
That is why will win.
There is no reason for a long campaign and absolutely no need to wait beyond march next year to hold the indyref.
Really big obstacles can be put in our way after next march which may be insurmountable, some of which i have previously explained.
It is UNIONISTS who fear the referendum, not us.
It is unionists who are DESPERATE to not have it before next march.
Whu do you think that is ffs ?
Thanks everyone.
I am always astonished at the breadth and depth of knowledge and superb memories to be found here at Wings .
Dorothy Devine @ 3.49
I agree. Most independence supporters I know are the same.
When our Yes shop opened I went into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee and there were about 8/9 men chatting about their plans for the Clyde and shipbuilding. Many of them had been shipyard workers or had fathers who had been employed by the yards and they all had picked up knowledge over the years.
They were happy to educate others and people like me who had no first-hand experience.
re radio activity
cos granite is slightly radio active, born and bred aberdonians have a slightly greater genetic resistance to contamination, than the average joe.
in the event of a nuclear disaster, they would live 5 secs longer than everyone else
just long to say, eh min!, a’ telt ye……….
not a lot of folk ken that 🙂
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results. The Scottish media clearly don’t live by this little pearl of wisdom because they have not yet realised that constant, relentless, hysterical SNP bad “reporting” is not having the desired effect. Scots have been bombarded by this crap for years but we keep voting the SNP in. Scots can see past the BS the media spews.
One popular refrain I see, especially on the comment sections of the Herald, is that “criticising the SNP does not mean you are criticising Scotland” or “hating the SNP does not mean you hate Scotland.” While this may be true to an extent, the absolutely relentless way in which the media screams about how terrible everything in Scotland is, to ordinary Scots, it looks more like they’re talking their country down rather than legitimately holding the government to account.
I hope the media becomes better in an independent Scotland. Or will it remain the same? “Everything in Scotland is shite, let’s go back to being ruled by England/Westminster.” I’ve often said this kind of self-hating, cringing attitude is unique to Scotland. I’ve not seen it anywhere else on a widespread scale, not even in former British colonies which may have become worse after independence.
I do love Scotland but sometimes its people really do mystify me.
O/T
Interesting article about Spanish TV journalists – female – and their protest campaign against government interference amongst other things.
Link to article in Guardian
link to archive.is
“hating the SNP does not mean you hate Scotland.”
I’ve heard that quip also. If they don’t hate Scotland why then, we have to ask, are they happy for Scotland to have governments its people never vote for, implementing heinous policies that causes misery right across our society and breaking promises made to Scotland?
They might no’ hate Scotland, but I don’t see the love either.
Re Chernobyl I remember it very well for the simple fact my sister was in Kiev at the time only 80 miles or so from where the nuclear power station blew up.
At the time she was a student at Liverpool University studying Russian and French and was on a foreign exchange stint in Kiev at their University for 6 months.
This was cut short but not immediately after Chernobyl erepted it was FIVE days before anyone know what had happened and only then because one of her fellow students heard it on the BBC World Service.
Peopel in a panic so in steps the UK government and organised a flight back to London for the 30 or so students, back then there weren’t many British tourists in Kiev.
At the Kiev airport were British officials and the students were told to hand over all their belongings but would be getting them back and that included the clothes they were wearing. Of course they complied.
They were then given British Airways tracksuits to wear for the flight back. Three months later all her belongings were returned except for the training shoes she normally wore in Kiev. Were they contaminated? Who knows, we don’t.
It’s high time that sanctions were imposed on lunatic Trump’s US and that they were kicked out of NATO.
Schrodingers cat..
Hating the Tories is not the same as hating those who vote for them, or hating the damage done by those who misinform those who vote for them.. but it’s close..
Been a good day for paradoxes today..
Isn’t hate a crime now anyway?
Has ones else name disappeared on this site only. since the update ?
I have, by some act of mercy, avoided most of the output Tom Gallagher has produced by bashing his angry head against his keyboard but I have just seen a copy of his latest tweet on Facebook and I think he is aiming for Katie Hopkins levels of tastelessness…a mission successfully accomplished.
Given that Stu is a Frightened Rabbit fan I can’t see this ending well. I rather like them myself although I only have Pedestrian Verse in my collection.
@HandandShrimp
Intriguing, does he hate the Rev that much? Got a link?
So the BBC are in Dunoon tonight on radio 4 with some guy called Leonard on. Had to smile with the launch (excuse pun) of “British” Labour -wanting RN ships to be built on the Clyde led with the support of the GMB union . Their rep on GMS this morning didnt want to go back over the vow or the wonderful pictures of Labour, tories and the GMB saying Vote NO. Later a tory MP side stepped the 13 ships promise to the Clyde. All in the past. The bit you had to laugh was when the UNION guy said the GMB doesn’t play politics!! All the GMB guys I know are the classic hard labour/ No types. Hate the SNP more but smooch with their tory britnats. All to protect the workers jobs. Warped minds
@ Dorothy Devine
Radiocaesium persists on moorland because of the way it is recycled by heather (Calluna vulgaris, not the Erica species). Consequently, Chernobyl-derived radiocaesium was detectable in heather honey (but not other honeys) from Scottish hives at least as late as 1995. The shorter-lived isotope, 134Cs, was close to detection limits in many places by then, but 137Cs, which has a half-life of 30 years, will have remained detectable well after that date.
(The amount of honey a person would have to eat to be affected by this is such that they would be likely to have many other problems to worry about first.)
link to twitter.com
There you go Thepnr
Just watched reporting Scotland discussing shipbuilding and Corbyns visit. Not a word on the broken promise from the 2014 referendum that the Clyde would build 13 ships.
In fact there is a long long list of broken promises made at the 2014 referendum. Never mentioned by our media. This should be sufficient grounds for a new Indy ref.
Our media is a bloody disgrace. Propaganda Quay the worst broadcasting in the world. Turns my stomach every time I turn it on. Turning off now can’t watch till the end of the programme.
@yesindyref2
“Mmm, so basically speaking since they don;t welcome criticism, the only conclusion to draw is they’re all looking for early retirement and shutting shop. How, well, how recondite!
(I have absolutely no idea what that word means)”
I laughed out loud when I read this ~ & I’m still chuckling away ~ humour on several levels
Apologies for the delayed comment ~ I’m about a day behind reading btl
@HandandShrimp
There are some very sad people in the world. Some both sad and twisted then there’s Tom Gallagher who is just sick.
That tweet was disgusting and there can be no excuse.
@Cubby
You should think seriously about turning it off permanently and no longer paying the licence as I did in 2014, check out the alternatives and believe me they are cheaper and better.
I miss nothing about the BBC nor even TV in general and can still watch the rest if I choose to through catchup for free.
The licence is a waste of money and paying them to lie in your living room is best avoided.
@Calum McKay (2.41) –
‘So yes, retaliate, but in a focused manner that seeks to highlight the chimps from the bbc and press have brown hands! Under focused examination the behaviours of the bbc and press will then be evident for all!’
Allow me to disagree Calum, as you did with Robert Peffers, in (hopefully) a constructive way.
The BBC cannot be beaten at their own game. The templates used by most msm were devloped by them. Our own perception of the whole political culture we grew up with was formed largely by them. In any ‘square-go’, we win hands down because we have the arguments and the facts to back them up. But the playing field is not level. As George Carlin said, ‘the table is tilted folks, the game is rigged.’
We could, as you suggest, find the perfect spokesperson and have him/her on permanent stand-by, ready to refute every lie as and when it appears. But it wouldn’t matter because that person will never be permitted the space and time to discuss anything in a reasonable manner. The veteran presenters hector, interrupt, insult and sneer to order, doing it so skilfully that it sometimes feels that they’ve been given a number from 1-10 by the show’s ‘director: ‘Swinney can get riled if you really push him, so give it a nine for the first two minutes.’ The young aspiring broadcasters soon learn that if they’re to advance in their careers then they’d better learn to do likewise.
Then there are technical problems which overwhelmingly afflict anyone voicing a pro-indy stance. In extremis, if the pro-indy voice is doing well, the plug can be pulled completely.
Let me leave one wee example. Most of us have seen this but it’ll be new for some. We all know the FrenchGate story and that Alistair Carmichael was the main player, but David Mundell has never explained his role in it all.
Check out the behaviour of the other people in the folowing clip. So far as I’m aware, not *one* of them has ever challenged Mundell on his stuttering evasiveness here. It’s as plain as day that he’s lost the script and is freaking out about a question which he was *supposed* to just bat away. Everyone in this clip is complicit in the selling of a huge and serious fucking lie and there’s no-one to stop them.
‘I don’t think David Mundell’s going to be able to avoid further questions on that’ (Carrell)
Well, surprise surprise, he didn’t get any further questions – not from that lot anyway. That’s what we’re up against.
‘A Gift For Semiotics’
as published here, 27.5.15
link to youtube.com
O/T … BREAKING NEWS:
Channel 4 News reporting that Aaron Banks and Nigel Farage attending DUP dinner in NI tonight.Speculation one or both may be about to join DUP.
Neil Mackay has announced a piece in response to the criticism of his front page monstrosity last week in the Sunday Herald. Both Haggerty and Leask are jumping up and down in excitement so you can imagine it will be a full-blown attack on any criticism of those doughty souls who write for the Herald in all its permutations.
I was emailed by a Herald lackey asking why I stopped my subscription to the SH after their disastrous hubristic headline before the 2016 Holyrood election. I explained as best I could regarding my disappointment and bafflement at the road they had taken.
However, my main problem was Neil Mackay who I feel is loyal first and foremost to his journalist colleagues, no matter who they write for, and not to his readers. I think this week has borne this out. Bingo cards at the ready, I suggest ‘Cybernats’, ‘Trumpist’, Abuse’ and ‘SNP must act’. Maybe others have more cliches that spring to mind.
It won’t be his fault though, you can be sure of that.
– on “chimps throwing shit” … the obvious thing is to throw it back, but then it gets messy and you end up looking the same as them – the best solution – so I have heard – is to turn the FIREHOSE on them – they don’t like that, they really don’t – oh how they screech! (Cleans them, knocks them over, humiliates them – makes them think before they do it again)
In the context of media debate this means – something we need a new word for – a form of polemical invective which combines – factual rebuttal, gratuitous abuse and the ad-hominem – all at once
– like when Jackie Bird is talking pish and has the “alarmed” look on her face (SNP?!!? what – how – oh no!!!) – you want to
– prove her wrong with facts and logic, but also
– call her a scrawny-necked old witch, and
– a trait’rous mouthpiece for a criminal conspiracy
It does annoy me when I see an SNP guy/gal on the telly still acting as if the obviously-hostile questioner in front of them is -somehow- an unbiased member of a Socratic Academy attempting to simply find the truth in a pure and objective manner …
SNP folks should get their media training from stand-up comedians – learn a few tricks for putting these arseholes down- real FAST
For how this plays to the public – it is always when the target fights back that wins plaudits – many examples
– Chomsky getting Andrew Marr all riled up
– Galloways had a few good spats
– Cathy Newmans besting by that canadian geezer
– Eric Cantona kicking that hooligan/fan bloke could be seen as a form of “performance art as banter”
– and just to say – all the best political insults gain you a form of immortality. Notably both Trump and Hugo Chavez have done rather well with a uniformly hostile mainstream media against them (- strange bedfellows, I know)
The recent baby box nonsense – the SNP should have just ridiculed that, in public – not even bothered with the facts and logic; they could have at least attacked their opponents motives.
The SNP are all caution and moral rectitude (- and it works), but putting the boot in, once in a while, would be nice to see – especially if you attack people whose votes you have lost anyway. They need a SHITLORD-in-chief – where do Frankie Boyle and/or Jerry Sadowitz stand on independence? Better still, that guy from Galashiels with the Tourettes Syndrome – and they can’t hit back on him as it would be “hating on the disabled”.
Now, serious point over – let me lower the tone
“What the Farmer said to the Judge”
link to bbc.co.uk
– which he followed up with “just don’t look at my hard drive, eh now”
Re; Corbyn and the Naval orders for the Clyde.
“An MoD spokesman said the Clyde had secured 4,000 jobs until 2035, having been given a commitment it will build the Navy’s eight planned Type 26 Frigates.”
This has got to go into the “Bullshit” tray.
I know for a fact that it will not take anywhere near 17 years to build 8 Frigates, especially with 4000 shipbuilders. They could have three Frigates getting built at the same time, all at different stages of production.
The Clyde would take about 4 years to build these 8 ships with another couple of years for fitting out. Meaning the vast majority of the 4000 workers would only get about three years work.
2035 my arse.
Just more crap from the English Establishment.
And the Frigate contract is not signed and sealed yet. More ammo for IndyRef2 for them.
link to dailymail.co.uk
Serious question –
Have you ever watched or listened to a *live* BBC Scotland programme about the contemporary Scottish independence debate which you felt was balanced, enlightening, civil and well-chaired?
If so, please tell us about it. (A link would be great, but if there are enough clues then we should be able to nail it.)
😉
The English Establish like nothing more than having the Clyde Shipyards in a constant state of dependency.
They want our shipbuilders to be in the “Begging Dog” pose permanently, preferably with their tongues hanging out.
There are so many other projects our shipbuilders could turn their hands to. As well as shipbuilding for our new Scottish Navy, we could also turn our hands to building Wind Turbines or Oil and Gas related work for the North Sea.
There is a future for the Clyde once we become an Independent Nation.
The media are letting the Tories off sooo lightly when they should be getting the boot in! The Guardiian … it didn’t used to be so light on the Tories.
“Brexit customs standoff could go on for another week – sources
Ministers pessimistic about prospect of finding solution, with two rival plans in play”
What is this!? If they were contemplating customs union then it might make sense, but they’re not! Their two plans are wishy washy wishful magic thinking which the EU will reject out of hand. They are not having meaningful discussions nor realistic planning.
Yet no one seems to be challenging them to get a grip of the situation.
They are just playing for time. Passing the days meaninglessly, and the media is allowing them to do so,
link to archive.is
Shug 10th may 4.06pm
Funny how they say everyone in Scotland is shite except for journalists and broadcasters. We of course know that it is the media in Scotland that is shite.
Try having a good look at yourself you bunch of shite journalists and broadcasters. The stench of propaganda is overwhelming. I have to hold my nose if I go anywhere near Propaganda Quay.
“Theresa May has reportedly just agreed to spend £13.4bn on a nuclear power plant”
link to thecanary.co
So does Scotland get a proportionate amount for our Energy Sector?
Here we go again:-
Green Light given to a new £1Billion tunnel under the Thames.
Gus 1940,
Hmm, new tunnel for London..
Can we (that’s everyone outside England’s capital) get electric trains and bridges at level crossings first?
I don’t know whether to bother with a detailed rant, or just to say that David Leask can’t read, sees only what he wants to see, is obsessed with Wings, and is a dick.
Thepnr, 4.54
Jeepers….
The Trade Union Unite support spending £Billions on Trident for jobs in Burrow in Furness. £1Billion from Scotland. They should be building ferries, liners, supply and patrol boats in Scotland. Get rid of Trident.
The Tories are already wasting £Billions on Hinkley Point. 2 tidal barrages would be far cheaper and produce more energy. Crossrail cost £Billions. London transport totally subsidised. HS2 is a total waste of money. Subsidised. Hinkley Point and HS2 are the Tory slush fund. Embezzling public money. The British Chinese consortium. Cameron, Carrington, Osbourne’s father in Law et al. Getting consultancies, fees and expenses. Cameron bought another £Million house in Devon.
Yesindyref2,
You could at least expand on how much of a dock he is… Go on, you’ll feel better for it..
Louis.b. A `dock`??
Crazycat , thanks for that!
I am a radio active Aberdonion by the way – I want those 5 secs!
Northern Rock,
thanks..
From the Canary report on Theresa May’s new multi-billion-pound nuclear power station..
‘On 11 May, the Nikkei Asian Review reported that May has agreed to loan Hitachi $18.2bn (£13.4bn) for the project. She reportedly agreed to the loan during a meeting on 3 May with Hitachi chairman Hiroaki Nakanishi.’
NOW, these are exactly the kinds of economic levers Holyrood needs but doesn’t have.
Economic levers and revenue and spending ‘streams’ that Scotland could use, efficiently, to fund diversification of defence and shipbuilding, or upgrade essential infrastructure, or future-proof pensions and currency.
All underwritten by money we can print.
This power station is being stolen from our future, from our rightful oil revenues, from fuel duties and other taxes.
Robert,
How can increasing Government transparency, talking to the public directly and having faith that the truth will prevail be considered an ‘attack’ on the establishment? Especially if exactly the same opportunity is given to the opposition?
Well, of course it can because the three things are anathema to the establishment but the beauty of it is they can never admit to that.
I luv luv luv this one.
This would be a great leaflet/flier for distribution.
Can these posts be printed out Rev?
Without wanting to pre-empt WBB3, maybe Indyposterboy could prepare leaflets based on this?
Corbyn’s saying Labour want MOD ships to be build in the UK ( note UK ) not specifically the CLYDE , if the Clyde siders swallow this again this is what they’ll end up building & they won’t get subsidised for retraining
youtu.be/TlOqDzcRFvw
@ProudCybernat
I wonder that too. Are all these terrible Tory policies the price of the wonderful Union? They certainly seem to think so. An independent Scotland will undoubtedly have Conservative governments. But I’d grit my teeth and bear it in that scenario because at least it would be a government Scots voted for. I’m sick to the back teeth of enduring constant Tory governments foisted on us by England.
The response I often hear to that is, “but we’re all equal, we’re all British, we all get one vote.” You cant reason with these people because they see Britain as one country, not an island comprised of three separate countries, one of which dominates the Union.
But of course, pointing out this simple fact is considered anti-English which is naturally the worst of all crimes in their eyes.
Ian Brotherhood @ 7-28pm
I think you would have to go back to 2011/12 ish…cant be more specific than that Ian sorry…shortly after Eck declared there WOULD be an Indyref….but I do remember what seemed like a fairly even-handed debate.Mind you…at that time Yes were polling somewhere in the region of 25/30%….they could afford to be ‘fair minded’…lol
@louis.b.argyll
His reply to me on today’s Herald posting by McAskill.
Sees only what he expects to see from a “nat”. Well, he got that wrong, and I had a good discussion with a couple of unionists, including one surprising one, which should have alerted even the most unintelligently thick and short a whole load of brain cells of a so-called “journalist” who doesn’t even seem able to use google. What a prat.
@Tam the Bam –
Cheers for response.
It really is *very* difficult to think of any stand-out examples of meaningful discussions as opposed to tribal slogan-fests.
There must have been hundreds of *live* discussions/debates on indy since, say, 2011, but I honestly can’t think of one that generated more light than heat. To what extent does that reflect the attitude of those directing the discourse?
@louis.b.argyll
Actually I think the problem is that David Leask had actually read a book, or at least had got past the front cover and the picture on it, and was so proud of his achievement he mistook it for the Bible according to the great sociological guru itself, and couldn’t see past the first chapter.
Hey, this is fun 🙂
Scottish Steve @ 8-57pm
…so in essence…you’re a tory..right?
Ian Brotherhood
Absolutely…I agree.Come to think of it..I think Crawford Beveridge (remember him?) was one of the panel as I recall and the chair may well have been Bernard Ponsonby….and my brain-cells may well be feeding me total porkies!…lol…doing my best.
Dorothy Devine,
Typo! Won’t waste any more virtual ink on Leask.
Flickr just removed my photos of the march in Glasgow from public view!
The Brits really are clamping down on Scotland.
One photo was of an Indian man in a kilt playing the drum to a piper, is this really so bad?
Tomorrow’s National front page:
link to twitter.com
Yesindyref2, it is fun.
Look at Trump and his lawyers and Murdoch and his. Power can’t corrupt absolutely any more. But it still has a majority.
Time’s up for the UK media puppet-masters like Leask and his coven of doom.
Brilliant poster also from the National:
That would look good on a 50 feet Billboard LOL.
Wrong thread, I’ll repost it
OT
Jeez, who wants to be a millionaire. If you have a target set the safety net ONE BELOW so you get a free go at your target. It’s not rocket science. Two at least have failed because they did it too late.
On other matters I did think of reporting David Leask for breaking community standards (for a laugh), but don’t know the current moderator. Calum in the old days was grand, had a couple of exhanges with him, having had a couple of warnings 😎
Herald certainly ain’t what it used to be. I’m rapidly losing the will to bother, have been for a long time, and stick to the National.
Fell asleep before Radio 4 Any Questions from Dunoon was on. Did I miss much from Leonard?
Haggishunter,
The British and their complicit ‘investors’ think all foreigners are vile, Scots, Irish, Indian, everyone. They have paid off big tech all over the place.
@Tam the Bam –
Crawford Beveridge?
Naw, rings no bells for me. Must google him…
Hamish 100
The biggest ear-opener on Any Questions was the contribution from the audience. It was most definitely NOT handpicked nor seeded with propaganda merchants. There was a steady supply of mocking laughter, oohs and aahs and strong support for Scottish matters. Made a refreshing change.
Leonard tried to do his ‘This is really important and I must treat this as an opportunity to come across as a strong and stable leader’ stuff but he was lucky if he got lukewarm applause at the best of times.
It’s worth a listen to the repeat tomorrow lunchtime. Kirsty put some good points across, Liam Fox’s comments were either laughed at or met with NO applause and the American guy – a bit loopy- jumped on and off the fence but said his bit regardless to mixed reception.
I think the audience and Kirsty carried the day – Liam Fox made mincemeat of Leonard in his special oily way and this Dimbleby operates much fairer chairing of the debate.
Personally I thought some of what Leonard said sounded as though it had come straight from Nicola’s mouth so maybe she’s teaching him how Scotland works and he’s listening.
Questions about Iran, Brexit, Frictionless borders and Customs Unions, Fracking banned pro not, Shipbuilding contracts.
@ CmonIndy at 8.47
At the bottom of every article there is a button to click to obtain a .pdf or a print-out.
Then it is up to you to create a leaflet, or pass it on some other way.
Sad news about Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit who was a supporter of Independence and whose band headlined (for no financial reward) the eve of poll concert at Usher Hall in September 2014.
A tragic loss for a very good band and a nice tribute here:
link to theguardian.com
O/T
The BritNat Establishment know our weakness. They also know our strength.
We have virtually zero mainstream media presence (The National notwithstanding – no Rock, that’s not a cue for you to enter here with your usual pish). THAT’S our weakness.
Our strength – Social Media.
They control the MSM. So, come IndyRef2 – what do you think they will target?
Exactly. Social Media. It’s already started.
I was long skeptical of Social Media. But having been on Twitter (not Facebook) I now realise its power.
If we are going to hope to win IndyRef2, each and every one of you is going to have to put your dislike of Social Media aside and get ON IT. We need as many keyboard warriors on there as we can get. Social Media is the battleground of IndyRef2 since more and more people are using it and getting their info from it.
They are already training an army of keyboard warriors to combat the already significant Indy army on Social Media. We need to get more recruits to combat what’s coming.
Get on there folks. The Rev has always advocated it. I turned my nose up at it for years. But no more – I can see it’s power to communicate our message. But we need a BIGGER army of keyboard warriors on it.
Just sayin’.
Sad news about Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit who was a big Independence supporter and whose band headlined (for no financial reward) the eve of poll concert at Usher Hall in Edinburgh in September 2014.
A very good band and nice tribute here:
link to theguardian.com
Ach I went for it, hit the report button on David Leask’s comment and this is what I put:
————
Please pass this on to David Leask.
I research my own postings, have done since 2012 on the Herald, and if I don’t, put in my posting that it is unverified. If your comment “Please stop putting misleading information gleaned from blogs on to our website” was in reply to this from my opening post which has as the opening parargraph of my comment: “Any comparison has to start with the reported statistics which are 62,685 race hate crimes in England and Wales compared to 3,349 in Scotland.” then these figures can be seen on the BBC website in these article which I’m not allowed to include the URLs for:
“Rise in hate crime in England and Wales” 17 October 2017
“In 2016-17: 62,685 (78%) were race hate crimes”
and
“Call for ‘public health approach’ to tackle hate crime” 28 September 2017
“These included 3,349 racial … hate crimes.”
The figures are also on the official gov websites.
If your problem is with my opinion in that posting, then what part exactly is it, and/or subsequent ones in that thread, rather than insult me by falsely accusing me of posting “misleading information”?
David, you owe me an apology, under my reply to your reply to my comment.
————–
Now we’ll see what is the mettle of the Herald – and the man.
@ Tam, wasn’t Crawford Beveridge was the guy who maintained that Scotland should leave the Union without taking the debts?
We need to keep highlighting this.
link to scotgoespop.blogspot.co.uk
BBC Question Time (the most viewed political TV programme) but
SNP as third force at Westminster has only one representative out of the last 105 panelists (excluding the one programme from Scotland in the last 22 episodes).
Scotland a valued partner in UK … my ar*se.
Picked up from wos twitter
The tories get closer and closer to the horizontal position when it comes to how-low-can-you-go political limbo dancing.
link to archive.is
@yesindyref2
Good luck with your complaint re Leask. I actually blocked him. His cancerous fiction was just getting me too annoyed. I just respond to the @herladscotland twitter handle and ridicule that instead.
I had a brief exchange with him over ‘salmondgate’ and RT. I put to him that i watched RT mainly for its economics content. if you are an economist calling out the falsehoods of neoclassical economics you simply won’t get air time on MSM. Perhaps the odd guardian piece or on bbc hard talk but that’s it. You only have to look at Steve Keen’s appearances on RT compared to BBC to see the difference.
Her rejected this without providing any evidence. Suggested I was a Russian robot and then blocked me. We are in interesting times but I pick and choose my battles. I don’t get personal and indeed it’s much better to discredit the entire paper. We are making an impact and that is why we are witnessing reactions like this from so called ‘respected’ journalists.
@ScottieDog
Yes, I don’t watch RT but then it’s mostly light entertainment I watch on “normal” TV, plus News 24 in the background when I’m working nights.
I’ll wait for an apology, choose battlegrounds and Leask was clearly in the wrong as far as I can see – and I did re-read my postings a couple of times.
But if I don’t get one, I don’t go quietly. And as for loosening the laws of defamation which are the last protection punters like us have against a journalese which lacks integrity at an increasing rate of decline, they can forget it.
@ScottieDog
The irony, by the way, is that from a sociological and statistical point of view, I was arguing AGAINST the “Nat” view, as well as the headline of the article. He really can’t read or understand jack shit.
Let’s keep focussed on the goal.
“To be kind to all, to like many and love a few, to be needed and wanted by those we love, is certainly the nearest we can come to happiness” – Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots (1542 – 87)
Yesindyref2, good luck with that complaint, you never know.
Proud Cybernat, yep, your right we need to branch out. Am on twitter now..slowly getting a hang of it.
@louis.b.argyll
It was an interesting thread until Leask butted in with his total lack of intgelligence. One anti-nat and anti-SNP poster was a surprise, as the points he made were good ones. And there’s a lesson I’ll learn there, even if, as I believe, he’s not eligible to vote in Indy Ref 2. Very reasonable postings, and if Leask has known his standpoint, and had read the back and for posts, he might have had more of a four by two. But Leask just did a knee-jerk jump to conclusions, same as he does on twitter (I’ve checked out his timeline a good few times).
And my posting was because with my bland headline stats on the thread the other day, another poster put the “4 times the immigrants in England” line, which made me think – and realise that wasn’t the whole story either, just another factor.
It’s all a good laugh 🙂
yesindyref2 have a look at channel four news tonight on catchup, there was a UN person saying that Race Crimes in the UK were increasing rapidlly. off course by the UK they mean not Scotland. 🙂 Might have some ammunition for you as figures were quoted but tbh I was scoffing my tea and wasnt paying much attention.
@schrodingers cat says: 11 May, 2018 at 4:04 pm:
“re radio activity
cos granite is slightly radio active, born and bred aberdonians have a slightly greater genetic resistance to contamination, than the average joe.”
Aye! And here is another one for your collection.
To illustrate a point, for an apprentice I was training, I took the laddie with a Geiger Counter type instrument and a Scintillation Style counter instrument for a wee stroll across Rosyth Dockyard. I had him note down the readings of each instrument of background radioactivity across the yard.
Every dry dock and the entire non-tidal basin and emergency entrance lock plus the large main Naval Stores buildings, the old generating station and a good few of the other older buildings were all built with large granite blocks and all indicated a significantly larger background reading than the brick built or even more modern Breezeblock built buildings.
Not to mention several road areas that were cobbled. The final reading I had him take was the reactor-less hull of the Old HMS Dreadnought which was way higher than the granite areas.
To the best of my knowledge the Dreadnought hulk still lies rusting, and irradiating, the waters it lies in today along with several other hulks and apparently some still have their reactors, (de-fuelled I expect).
Proud Cybernat @ 10.40
Oh… Very, Very well said…
We need to stay on social media and stay in touch.
This is SO important..
We can’t let the MSM rubbish it,thankfully I think the young people know… We just need to get Them to be voting too!
Our north east scotland yes group has been plugging away for two years now. But guess what? We’ve had our first trolls – all since the March. They’re rattled.
Let’s face it. The unionists can’t get anybody out on the streets unless they’re orange.
By the way Jeremy Corbyn is an insincere fake. I thought originally he was decent. But no. And he’s wise enough to know he’s Screwing us over. What a let down. And a sell out
Oh well…its becoming so difficult to post here when yer pished…why is that Sturgeon must answer!
Terry @ 12.14
Congratulations…. Ye have arrived… Yay…
Stay the course my friend,sometimes they are just funny,sometimes just weird,but they can be used to make a point.
Have fun…
yesindyref2,
They’re clearly desperate, have no pity.
@Lenny Hartley
Thanks for that, I’m probably done with the H though. When a journo doesn’t even follow the paper’s own community standards it’s lost the btl plot.
@louis.b.argyll
Well, after last Sunday’s front cover, this is some well-deserved critiques for the SH:
link to twitter.com
I don’t think it’s been pro-indy for a long time.
Up with the larks, good morning Nana, got through the last two days links. Good morning also to all you lovely Wingers.
####### Remember tomorrow is..
####### BOYCOTT THE SUNDAY HERALD DAY.
..get word out, discuss with anyone you know who is not well enough informed to make an informed decision to ignore their sinister ramblings.
Auld-style journalists of the stamp of Arnold Kemp, editor of both the Scotsman & The Glasgow Herald must be revolving must be revolving ablow the turf at the shite-bags which now fill their seats. To be editor of either then U actually were somebody!
O/T,
This really does my head in. Almost every month we are now hearing of tagged eagles or sea eagles ‘disappearing’. These are truly magnificent birds, of which Scotland is rightly proud. The latest one to be ‘disappeared’ near a grouse estate, was only one year old. Oddly, they all seem to go missing above or near Grouse shooting estates.
Meanwhile the gamekeepers stand around saying innocently, ‘nothing to do with us’ , just coincidence.’
Grouse moors and estates are truly the scourge of Scotland, they exist so that rich w***ers from England can jet up here and play at being ‘lairds’. Time they were taken back by Scotland (most of these so-called estates were back in history actually stolen from the people who lived there anyway).
This should not still be going on in 2018.
It has got to stop.
link to thenational.scot
The cancer rates higher in granite (nuclear waste) invironment. They are flying nuclear all around the world. It is an absolute disgrace. The Tories are the only ones in the world expanding nuclear. Ever other country is changing to renewables.
Iran has Oil and solar should not need nuclear. It need to improve it’s economy without being sanctioned by the West all the time. In the 1950’s Churchill took all their Oil. Destabilised the country. Spread false rumours about the PM. He was put in jail. M15/CIA caused chaos.
Netanyahu was at the Russian remembrance parade. Why? There are a lot of Russians in Israel. Some of them are Nazis. An ex Russian migrant Nazi once held the balance of power in the regime. Without US funds and support Israel would not exist. A US military base in the Middle East. The Balfour Agreement. Britain and France carved up the Middle East. US commercial interests. Illegal wars causing the worst migration in Europe since 11WW. What a waste. A total disgrace,
Sheep go missing. They disappear.
Many of the ‘wealthy’ landowners are in debt. The banks own the land. They mortgage the land to fund their extravagant lifestyle. A land tax could put up the price of land. Benefit the landowners. Put up the price of food and building homes etc.
The Scottish Gov/buy outs have brought back more land than was taken/cleared.
Landownership has stayed the relative same because Scotland was depopulated by Westminster centralist policies. Otherwise more land would have come back into more public use. There have been changes now. Some Landowners support Independence too. Land is exempt from tax to keep farms together, Bigger farms produce more. There is more hilly ground in Scotland.
Average farm revenues £27,000 (including living expenses? ). Same as the average wage. Family members have to work outside the farm. Many youngsters will not take over because they can earn a better living elsewhere. On average farmers are elderly. There will be a change over soon as more retire or expire.
Anyone can buy an acre of land (£5,000) and put a hut in it (£5,000+). Mortgage. In Scotland there is no need. Scotland has a right to roam. People can go where they like within reason. Safety issues. For a small sum they can go everywhere. B&B or self catering. Tourism is big business.
Links
LIVE SAT 9am: Netherlands march and rally for Scottish Independence in the Hague
link to livestream.com
Alex Salmond recalls getting a phone call from Donald Trump that seems quite ironic in hindsight.
link to twitter.com
link to alynsmith.eu
link to indyscotnews.com
Delighted that @UKGovScotland are highlighting their £53m contribution to the Inverness City Deal. However just for completeness the @scotgov contribution is £135m
link to twitter.com
Curtice writes
What do voters make of the customs debate?
link to archive.is
Farming is at a crossroads
link to archive.is
MPs summon ex-Cambridge Analytica boss Alexander Nix
link to archive.is
link to prospectmagazine.co.uk
link to rte.ie
link to politico.eu
link to politics.co.uk
link to novaramedia.com
link to ukandeu.ac.uk
link to skwawkbox.org
link to infacts.org
The former Tory attorney general has been called a ‘("Tractor" - Ed)’ in the rightwing press for his refusal to accept a hard Brexit. But he remains committed to softening our exit from the EU – and says it is time for the foreign secretary to go
link to archive.is
link to thelondoneconomic.com
The British government has proposed to arrange all 2 trillion yen ($18.2 billion) in lending
link to asia.nikkei.com
Nigel Farage ‘could join DUP’ amid speculation he could be making another bid for Parliament
link to archive.is
Good morning, Nana. Thank you for your links, another nice day here.
Kettle’s on!
🙂
Good morning Smallaxe. Nice day for grass cutting, if I can persuade someone else to do it!
Nana, try this;
My neighbour asked if he could use my lawnmower. I told him of course he could, so long as he didn’t take it out of my garden.
🙂
O/T, just a thought in the wake of all this relentless media negativity, but maybe the best way to “sell” indy to the sceptics is very simple, just tell them that with indy, no more government by proxy – no matter which party forms the Scottish government, they (the voters) will finally have the full power to boot the lot out!
Never mind the Kumbaya stuff for these folk, appeal instead to their distrust of politicians and a wish for eventual revenge at the ballot box! (heh, heh)
@ Ken 500, “The Scottish Government buy-outs have bought out more land than was taken/cleared!” Sounds a bit preposterous, facts & figures please & include the Lowland Clearances please!
@Smallaxe,
I will give your suggestion a try, lol 🙂
Thanks for the links Nana. Just back from a couple of days off grid on the beautiful west coast so got quite a bit of catching up to do.
Looks like Brexit is now hurtling towards its inevitable bad end. Still no customs agreement, no Irish border solution, no juicy trade deals and for the avoidance of doubt, Mundell has confirmed that UK Gov will impose the deal on Scotland if we don’t agree. We know where this is going,we’re just waiting to hear where to buy the tickets for the best view.
Only good news is we aren’t going to get ringside seats for the Royal Wedding – no large tv screens in any Scottish towns or cities. Sometimes it pays to be ignored by the BBC.
@ Highland Wifie
There is much more to this consent nonsense that meets the eye. Fluffy telling us that they will impose consent, if we refuse consent,eh!. So why are they so desperate to receive consent from the Scottish Parliament, why go to court, why the amendments to clause 11 after their submission to the SP.
‘Grouse moors and estates are truly the scourge of Scotland, they exist so that rich w***ers from England can jet up here and play at being ‘lairds’’
Aye well, we’re ni longer their playthings, no longer will we tip our caps to their supremacy.
Nana – Do you have a blog or twitter account? If not I think you should condider it to post all these interesting and important links. It would be a real asset to the cause – “Nana Notes” or something like that.
Excellent work!
Golfnut
12 May, 2018 at 9:30 am
It is interesting that Tomkins gets so agitated by this.
@nana @jamesd
dont u go anywhere
bigger audience here
dont like sausage
but luv your links
Louis. b .argyll @ 9.32
While I know there are some who would pitch a fit….
I’ve always held that it’s “inherantance” that’s the problem.
If ye didn’t make it or cause it to be there,then you shouldn’t be able to leave it to your kids.
That’s Land,Water,Mineral rights….
They belong to Scotland…. they ARE Scotland.
Buy the rights to use and make yer money from them from the people of Scotland, but those rights should die with the owners and the people (government on our behalf) should get to sell these rights again.
If you want your kid to have yer land, or mineral rights,then you need to make sure that they earn enough to buy it for themselves when you’re gone .
I could even live with a First Refusal for heirs to repurchase the rights, but the resources Scotland herself provides should always be for the use of all it’s peoples, and we get to choose who manages (Holyrood) it.
@ Golfnut
@ Highland Wifie
It’s what follows on from the power grab and the concept of consent.
I may be wrong, but I think theTories fear that the Scottish Parliament is going to present a big problem for them when it comes to future trade deals with the likes of the US and Australia. Trade deals often don’t include agriculture and food, but these ones certainly would.
Those countries (and others) will demand as part of the deal that UK standards align with theirs ie drop massively!
If the Scottish Parliament were to retain powers over these areas (as it rightfully should) then there would be no way it would agree to GM, antibiotic, growth hormones, chlorine etc etc.. If WM doesn’t grab these powers, then it is in no position to negotiate trade deals at a UK level.
The SG suggest the compromise that future changes at a UK level should be made by cooperation and mutual agreement. Clearly, that will not appease the Tories.
There are very high stakes being played for here.
We talk of there being a Westminster power grab. Yet that phrase does not convey the full implications of what the Tory government intends. The signs are ominous. They talk of imposing the deal regardless of the wishes of Scotland’s Parliament, and by extension the wishes of the Scottish people.
What is being planned can only be properly described as a coup. A Petain style coup which would leave any Westminster PM with more power over Scotland than any individual has ever had.
Our friends in Wales sadly have got themselves into the trap. Their best hope for freedom is that we get ours. Not just in seeing off the coup attempt but in regaining our independence.
One defeat of Westminster over the transfer of powers, over the coup attempt, would surely not be enough. They would try again and again to diminish Scotland and our democratic rights.
Independence is the only sane route to go down. And not a difficult one either. Not compared to the only other alternative. That of being subjected to a coup.
Me @ 10.03
Forgot to add….. If we the people of Scotland don’t want a Grouse Shooting Estate to be resold AS a Grouse Shooting Estate…..
Then that’s what WE tell the government to do!
@galamcennalath
Indeed the stakes are very high. My intention was not to be flippant but to highlight the depth of the constitutional crisis that is inevitably coming. The only problem is that much of the general population are in complete ignorance of the seriousness and importance of the power grab, mainly due to a dearth of in depth analysis in the media. If we did have such a discussion that resulted in general awareness of what’s going on there would a negative reaction that the media would be no longer able to control. Hence the low profile, the Welsh have signed up why can’t you, it’s no big deal narrative.
If WM really were looking for compromise there are two perfectly good options available. The fact that they are both unacceptable to WM tells you all you need to know.
Golfnut @ 09:30,
Well observed. They are desperate to avoid using “the nuclear option” and override the democratic mandate of the SG, since they fear they would become political pariahs in Scotland from then on, and it might well trigger IR2, for which they would get the blame.
This could well be the final straw that reveals to even the densest PSB that we are no more than an English colony at the mercy of a remote and uncaring overlord.
But then, just like Brexit in other matters, UKGov is being driven into a Grimpen Mire of ever-increasing difficulties by its own perverse obsessions. It’s hard to see how they can possibly turn around now.
“Liam Fox has made striking a trade deal with the US one of his first priorities …. chlorine-washed chickens, hormone-treated beef, meat from animals fed on chicken faeces and crops washed with controversial herbicide chemicals. … Fox has previously insisted there are “no health reasons” why UK consumers should not enjoy chlorine-washed meat, if regulations on food produce are relaxed once Britain leaves the EU. “
Therein lies the background to the power grab.
There is no way an SNP SG would agree to any of this.
A post Holyrood2021 BritNat Coalition would!
We NEED ScotRef sooner than later.
link to archive.is
@Fred says: 12 May, 2018 at 8:54 am:
“@ Ken 500, “The Scottish Government buy-outs have bought out more land than was taken/cleared!” Sounds a bit preposterous, facts & figures please & include the Lowland Clearances please!”
Also never forget the southern upland clearances either.
Louis B Argyll @ 9.32
re the eagles and sea eagles ‘disappearing’ close to grouse moors, if you have evidence for this, then please submit to the Scottish Land Commission Call for Evidence which ends 30th june. They are asking for submissions on the effects on people of the unusually concentrated land ownership in Scotland, much of which arises from these big estates which are kept as shooting playgrounds for the southern wealthy.
Further details from:
link to landcommission.gov.scot
tel 0300244 4452
Scottish Land Commission, Longman House, 28 Longman Road, Inverness IV1 1SF.
I hope they are inundated with evidence of the negative effects on the people of these huge estates and concentrated land ownership, and I am sure wingers can contribute much to their inquiry.
I, for one, have had my dogs shot at from a moving vehicle, when walking beside a track in a designated picnic and walk forest area, by a fellow complete with London accent, yelling that he had paid good money to come all the way from the south of England to shoot deer and my dogs were ‘scaring them away’. My dogs were close by me, so effectively I was also in the shooting range.
This sort of incident is by no means isolated, with many hillwalkers, birdwatchers and similar being threatened with guns or shot at when walking on rights of way and designated walking areas on these big estates. Tourists are also blocked from walking by various means such as gates being tied, wired up, padlocked, cctv, and signposts hidden. High time the Right to Roam laws were enforced on these landowners and their lackeys.
@James D
No blog James, I’ve just ‘muscled’ in on here lol, and as long as Rev allows me to post, I will do so. Share links anywhere you think will help our cause.
Some of the blogs I visit are already noted in Rev’s list at the top of the page so they are easy to find. The rest I’ve visited for a long time and some I’ve found when trawling the interwebby.
Since brexit there’s been an explosion of new bloggers, it can be difficult to keep up and decide which articles are worth posting.
James D Luckily Nana’s a committed Winger an gon naewhere her links are shared by the many Wingers here , an she’ll tell you the same .
link to peterabell.blog
link to theferret.scot
Nurses from EU face annual £600 fee for own NHS costs after Brexit, leaders warn
link to archive.is
link to spiegel.de
link to thenational.scot
I don’t know if GB has linked to his blog, so here it is
link to grousebeater.wordpress.com
Will not archive
link to buzzfeed.com
Cheers everybody 🙂
link to twitter.com
galamcennalath says:
12 May, 2018 at 10:59 am
“Liam Fox has made striking a trade deal with the US one of his first priorities …. chlorine-washed chickens, hormone-treated beef, meat from animals fed on chicken faeces and crops washed with controversial herbicide chemicals. … Fox has previously insisted there are “no health reasons” why UK consumers should not enjoy chlorine-washed meat, if regulations on food produce are relaxed once Britain leaves the EU. “
Therein lies the background to the power grab.
There is no way an SNP SG would agree to any of this.
A post Holyrood2021 BritNat Coalition would!
We NEED ScotRef sooner than later.
Don’t forget the deregulation of food labelling. Supermarkets are already homogenising “British” food labels, and we as consumers see fewer saltires on our supermarket shelves. Is that being petty? Well no actually. A Saltire means the product is Scottish, but it also means it is GM free.
Once Supermarkets are trying to sell you American foodstuffs and production standards, you can bet you will see a lot less distinction and clarity in the labelling. Chlorinated chicken is only the thin end of the wedge.
You all remember the US Superbowl half time advert featuring Carl’s Jr Burger and Charlotte McKinney? Nevermind the sexism, but in the prime advertising slot on the US biggest sporting event, focus on the end, where the “natural” burger is distinguished from other burgers for having No antibiotics, no added hormones, and no steroids. Yum, yum. Just makes you want to rush out and buy a US burger…. Nah, me neither.
Even if Scotland is successful in preventing the power grab of former EU powers, and sees these powers come to Holyrood, it’s still a Pyrrhic victory. Once out the EU, Scotland would be alone and isolated in an uphill struggle against UK Supermarkets and US intentions. The best place for these powers to be is where they already are, in the EU, protected and backed up by the EU’s collective strength.. That’s why these powers were given to Europe in the first place.
Only EU Membership will do. EFTA has no leverage over the UK, the USA, or China. If we commit to Europe, Europe will defend our interests, and frankly, there is nobody else who can do the job.
“What the people never gave away the people still own.”
A little enlightenment on Scotland’s constitution: link to wp.me
Reading all the comments on Twitter from all the people refusing to read the Sunday Herald (well not buy it). Some go further by saying they won’t but the National either. (Mini rocks if you like). Does this help our movement? I don’t believe so. We need to have some voice in a daily paper form.
As stated previously I buy a hard copy of the National and leave on the bus or train. I recognise we are fighting against free copies of the Metro or free handouts of unionist papers handed out regularly at stations etc.(Scotrail, McGills etc all who receive public monies to exist yet promote Unionist views) Time for this to stop or equality to reign.
I stopped paying for my NTS subscription after Oliver was shooed in to his new post courtesy of the yooniists running the show and got a rather cheeky letter for my troubles. Some of my fellow Independence colleagues are still members sadly despite their claims that they would stop. One is even a councillor.
So tomorrow may be the last time I buy the SH (DELIVERED TO MY DOOR). The Editor still has time to rethink the way forward. Share his paper to follow an anti-Scotland slant with the Sunday’s ie Mail, Express, Times, Post etcetera where he can fight over that diminishing return or be forward thinking pro Scotland.
As for Leask and his anti cult stance. He is a worried man and still as offensive. oh for some decent columnists and for some fairness in the media. iS IT TOO FAR GONE?
Have we had hugs of solidarity from the Yoon press yet? Not long surely before ‘I may differ politically but Mackay is a damn fine editor and one of us’ platitudes start. Followed by the real nasties of Yoon twitter retweeting. Then the sneerily superior right-on collective from Leith and their wee pals in the publishing and ‘entertainment’ world going on about ‘gammon’ and how they are above it all. So predictable.
Oh, and David Pratt now giving us the equivalent of ‘eat your horrible dinner and be quiet because people are starving in the rest of the world’. Did you know Syrians are coming together and here we are arguing about silly stuff like distrust of the press?
The contemptuous patronising tone towards the last of their readership is astonishing. Apparently, what we need is a civil war then we would know that we are well off.
link to snp.org
link to thoughtcontrolscotland.com
THROUGH A SCOTTISH PRISM 12 5 18 | Truly Scottish Radio
link to viloud.tv
Arrogant, ignorant clown
link to twitter.com
Nana @ 11.34 am gave a link to an article in the Independent about the possibility of nurses from the EU having to make payments towards their healthcare costs.
Here is a companion piece from the Guardian about non-EU nurses who are already paying this fee for themselves and their families
link to archive.is
It is important that we know this is happening because It shows that despite the best efforts of the SG to maintain and increase staff levels it can be set at nought by the policies of the UK Government.
Already a week since the march. I have to say the ire amongst those of a yoonish disposition has been remarkable. I have no idea where the 93216 and 6/8ths number came from. It appeared on Facebook unsourced and unsupported. I was overjoyed at the 35,000 police figure starting off from Kelvingrove Park. More joined along the way and a fair number opted to go straight to Glasgow Green. A total participation of about 40,000+ seems pretty fair. If there had been toilets at Glasgow Green I think a lot more would stayed for the full programme of speakers but that is by and by.
I love this picture
link to tinyurl.com
It captures the day and the mood…although I daresay it will convince the rather loopier yoons even more that Police Scotland should be “cleansed” and only Imperial Stormtroopers should be employed.
Off Topic re Mhairi Black MP stating Jeremy Corbyn, in a private conversation, supported independence for Scotland.
The Herald/Sunday Herald has REMOVED that piece of news. Surprise. Surprise
link to archive.is
PANIC STATIONS… The Herald/Sunday Herald is now running frantic denials by Jeremy Corbyn:
link to archive.is
PS. They must be asleep at The Scotsman. 🙂
link to archive.is
Leask is trained to spot lies.
I’m Jim, I’m trained to spot bullshit.
Diverted the money I spent weekly on Sunday Herald into buying iScot subscription, received my first copy today, saved over £25 on deal.
Good and informative links Nana as usual. Many thanks.
@Highland Wifie says: 12 May, 2018 at 10:38 am:
“Indeed the stakes are very high. My intention was not to be flippant but to highlight the depth of the constitutional crisis that is inevitably coming.”
I believe most Wingers are falling into the Westminster trap here. Many seem to be following the brainwashing of the Establishment in this matter. So let’s just take a step back and take a broader, and more realistic, view of the reality and not consider it in the terms dictated to us by the Westminster Establishment.
The United Kingdom is exactly that – A KINGDOM. It is thus not either a country nor is it a component part of the, UNITED KINGDOM. It is the resultant union and not a component part of the union.
As such it only has two partner KINGDOMS, as equally sovereign partners. i.e. there are only two players in this matter of consent being given and the actual, UNITED KINGDOM, isn’t one of them because the, UNITED KINGDOM, is the resultant of the Treaty of Union and thus is not a partner in the, UNITED KINGDOM.
That is the legal actuality and not as portrayed by the Westminster Establishment as four countries with the country of England being the masters and the other three countries as English dominions. So the country of Scotland is also a kingdom and is the only actual partner kingdom with the, (three country), Kingdom of England in the United Kingdom.
Wales, Northern Ireland and the country of England came into the United Kingdom as a single kingdom entity. Both Wales & Ireland were not parts of the Kingdom of England as equally sovereign kingdoms. Both were annexed and not united by treaty of union. There is thus no legal comparison between Wales and Scotland in the matter of required consent.
To put that plainly Wales, and what remains of Ireland, in the United Kingdom got there as vassal states and integral components of the Kingdom of England. Scotland is therefore the only other equally sovereign component in the United Kingdom along with the, (three country), Kingdom of England.
Now there is the totally illegal status we have all been brainwashed to believe the United Kingdom to be but it is a totally illegal bare faced lie.
the actuality is that the Westminster Establishment has simply ignored the legal international Treaty of Union and assumed that the Kingdom of England, (England, Wales and Ireland), has annexed the country of Scotland and simply ignored the fact that The Kingdom of Scotland is the only equally sovereign kingdom partner of the Kingdom of England in the United Kingdom. In fact Westminster commissioned a couple of so called constitutional experts who claimed that, “The Treaty of Union, “extinguished”, the Kingdom of Scotland and renamed the Kingdom of England as, “The United Kingdom”.
This bare faced lie was quoted by the current Secretary of State
foragainst Scotland, David Mundell on national television:-link to youtube.com
There is absolutely no evidence in the Treaty of Union to even hint that as true and the Treaty of Union still has only two legal partners and either can legally withdraw from the treaty if the terms of the treaty are broken, or indeed just because they want to.
There is, though, two wee problems to a Scottish Kingdom’s withdrawing from the treaty of Union.
The first is the differing status of the royal person in each kingdom. In the English Kingdom the Queen of England is legal sovereign but was, (before the Treaty of Union, compelled to delegate her sovereignty, (Divine Right of Kings), to the Parliament of England. (but note that there has not been an elected as such Parliament of England since 1707), but she is not sovereign in Scotland where she is the defender of the people of Scotland’s sovereignty.
That means the Westminster Parliament is NOT the continuing parliament of he Kingdom of England and thus did not obtain automatically obtain sovereignty over the Kingdom of Scotland in 1707.
Yet today Westminster acts as if it has complete sovereignty over Scotland and treats Scotland as only a dominion of the country of England to the extent that there is no elected parliament of the Country of England and Westminster introduced EVEL to prevent not only Scotland but also Wales & N.I. from interfering in Westminster being the de facto parliament of England.
Scotland thus still has her people as being legally sovereign and the only way that the Kingdom of Scotland can legally withdraw from the Treaty of Union is by the consent of a majority of the legally sovereign people of Scotland. Meanwhile Westminster continues to treat Scotland as a vassal country of the country of England, while pretending to be the United Kingdom Government, but acting as the country of England Parliament devolving the country of England’s assumed sovereignty over the country of Scotland.
You can bet that Westminster does not want this to be tested in a court of law … that is unless it is a court of law that Westminster controls and they will attempt to avoid even the Westminster invented United Kingdom Supreme Court if they can get away with it. Which very well may be the real reason for the
BRUKEXIT Westminster is so insistent upon. For as long as we are in the EU we have better recourse to the international Court of Human Rights.Looks to me as if Westminster wants to just assume Scotland’s consent but does not want the matter to end up in the courts.
Yet here we have Wingers debating things in the absolutely wrong terms as laid down by Westminster. Please Wingers, once and for all can you please get things into true perspective and stop seeing all things in the terms Westminster has lied to you about all your lives.
The United Kingdom is legally a two partner union of kingdoms and not a country of England dominion of three countries with England the dominant country, (calling itself the United Kingdom), but actually acting as the parliament of the country of England with three dominions including their only legal Kingdom partner of the Kingdom of Scotland relegated to the status of just another country of England defeated country.
We will never gain our independence while our staunchest supporters continue to see the matter with unionist eyes.
SCOTLAND IS THE ONLY KINGDOM PARTNER TO THE KINGDOM OF ENGLAND IN THE UNITED KINGDOM.
Noted earlier remark about a balanced audience at Any Questions. A lesson here. Because the venue – Dunoon Burgh Hall – is opposite the (YES)Forward Shop and because many involved in the Burgh Hall are also with us we were told that even before the venue had been announced they were getting requests for entry tickets. So we did exactly the same and probably made up a very large part of the audience. Those who attended were impressed by Kirsty and by Mr Dimbleby who moved freely among the audience afterwards.
Breeks @ 12:11:
That’s the bottom line right there. With Ireland as the current prime example.
You would think that ultra-leftards, of all people, would recognise that fundamental truth, but apparently not all do. Too busy waiting for Nirvana, apparently.
Plus those supposed yessers who are apparently quite untroubled about the presence of 100k+ of potential yes-voting EU27 residents and positively lust to delay, delay, delay IR2 until after 29.March next year so they won’t be counted. Inclusive in word maybe, but not so much in deed.
Regarding the possibility of EU nurses being made to pay £200/year per member of family (shortly to rise to £400) the so called ‘immigration health surcharge’ which all non EU immigrants already pay,
This “tax” introduced by the Tories in 2015 in order to cover possible NHS costs that they or their families might incur on the NHS is outrageous.
They pay tax and NI I assume just like everyone else does, so why the additional financial burden? Might as well just stick it on a Home Office van with the words Immigrants Not Welcome so bugger off back home.
@jfngw
Been away for a couple of days and just catching up. Saw Mr Leask’s complaint… He’s wrong and wrong on every level. The end user of any product, even the product of a commentators muse, reserves the right to complain, disagree, and spend their monies elsewhere if they feel the product is bad, harmful or simply not as billed.
As for ‘cybernat rhetoric’ on journalism? Yeah, some can be unacceptable, but it’s their right to have a say. It is also necessary in order for democracy to work. FREEDOM of speech isn’t simply for journalists and it’s not for journalists to dictate who is free to speak and who is not. There’s plenty in the media we find beyond unacceptable, but the average person in the street doesn’t have a paid for daily national soap box.
We do however have new media and social media. THAT is the problem the likes of Mr Leask truly finds unacceptable. Public forums where people can voice their opinions on media narratives. Judge the commentariat and even expound on counter narratives. A place where the public have a voice of their own.
No journalist and no politician has the right to TELL you what to think.
Thepnr @ 1.29pm
My thoughts exactly. A double tax.
Seen in Twitter that around the same time Scott Hutcheson was sending his final tweet the BBC chose to undermine any success in MH treatment and suicide prevention Holyrood and others achieved.
Also some dickhead poo pooing the compassion the FM showed in regardless of that drowning out her pointing to where help may be found.
You also get those claiming the drugs don’t work. Which might be true in those cases.
None of that is helpful where mental illnesses is concerned. Unlike physical illness where you can, usually, see what’s going on the best you can do is ask where the patient thinks it hurts.
Drugs might work even if only to hold you together for a while. They do need specialist supervision.
Counsels of despair are verging on deliberate harm.
The facts are:
The UK Govt is beholden to the DUP, which is in reality the political wing of the UDA and the UKIP / BNP type politicians who form a considerable proportion of the Conservative and Unionist Party.
If we face up to that reality, we must also face up to the reality that there is zero chance of permission or any cooperation from the UK Govt regarding dissolving the Union via a Scottish independence referendum.
I would argue Scottish Sovereignty at the Continuity Bill proof / hearing at the Supreme Court. It is time to play that trump card.
If a UK Supreme Court fails to recognise and defend / uphold Scottish sovereignty exercised via democratic mandate in the CB proof, then we have the answer if the same arguments are used to validate the legitimacy of an indyref and indyref result, if Scotland votes YES to independence.
If the SP rules Westminster sovereignty overrules Scotland’s democratic sovereignty and democratic mandate, we either bend the knee and throw in the towel or assert UK constitutional convention does not apply to Scotland any longer; that Scotland’s people’s ancient and supreme sovereignty takes precedence over any UK constitutional arrangements.
I would argue that the only way Scotland can become independent – under the present circumstances – is by defying the mantra of Westminster Parliamentary sovereignty.
No, I am not saying we live without rule of law. I am saying we may have to assert that the UK Union’s CONSTITUTIONAL law ( based on historical convention, mainly English political tradition and whatever the Tory / DUP invent as they go along) is no longer recognised by the Kingdom of Scotland and her Government and most importantly of all, by her sovereign people.
No doubt, I’ll be told we can’t, that that would provoke a constitutional crisis.
What do you think the Brexit power grab is? What do you think refusal of a democratically mandated indyref will be?
We are already in a constitutional crisis. A crossroads where we will have to choose between Scottish Sovereignty and UK Parliamentary sovereignty.
If we don’t use it now, we risk losing it forever.
@Robert Peffers
You have taught me well Obi Wan! This is why I’m so looking forward to the denouement.
@Tam the Bam
How am I a Tory? Where did you get that idea from? I hate the Tories and everything they stand for.
@Hamish100
Totally agree, The National is an asset for Indy that needs to be supported. It was inspriational today, great articles.
@Macart
Yes, and one of the advantages of the likes of this forum is we can express our displeasure here, and since it’s reasonably certain they read comments as well as articles, or at least do a find on “Herald”, it puts pressure on them to do the right thing, rather than just ignore us – something I think Leask just don’t like. He doesn’t want the press to be “held to account” by us plebs.
The Tories are for putting Scotland under authoritarian rule, desperately trying to sell the lie that it’s all in the interests of good governance.
All those who oppose our country’s subjugation, whether they’re a politician or one of the people should not offer any basic civility any longer to Tory MSPs and MPs. They have forfeited the right to it. For as long as they think we have forfeited our democratic rights and national identity.
Don’t call a Tory politician by their first name. Don’t shake their hand. Don’t smile at their jokes. Don’t be nasty in any way. But don’t accord them respect and friendship. They want your rights taken away.
Every Scottish Government-funded estate buy-out is a nail in the coffin of the lairds, this has went well in the Outer Hebrides but North Uist opting to keeping their laird, a scion of the infamous Sutherland’s is a mystery.
Not that long ago, the so-called Macleod of Macleod (name change) put the Skye Cuillins up for sale & tried to con the nation into buying them to pay for his roof repairs. When challenged as to his right to sell the said hills he came up with an old charter. The Cuillin’s were nowhere mentioned as they were absolutely good for nothing. No king would include a desert, (which could raise no rent), in a charter unless as a joke!
I think he did get some cash for his roof though! Away wi them!
@Colin Alexander says: 12 May, 2018 at 2:25 pm:
“The facts are:”
What facts are those, Colin?
You neither cite sources nor offer logical arguments to show what you claim as facts are other than the impressions of Colin Alexander and indeed some of your claimed facts are downright lies.
” … If we face up to that reality, we must also face up to the reality that there is zero chance of permission or any cooperation from the UK Govt regarding dissolving the Union via a Scottish independence referendum.”
The above is typical CA thinking and claiming conclusions without any real substance. First of all the two things you want us to compare have no comparison. If for no other reason that N.I. was part of the former Kingdom of Ireland and that was annexed as an integral part of the Kingdom of England in 1542 by the Crown of Ireland Act. Note annexed as a kingdom and not by a treaty of union. It thus was, and still is part of the Kingdom of England which is the only fully sovereign kingdom partner with the kingdom of Scotland in the united kingdom that resulted from the Treaty of Union of 1706/7. There is thus no comparison between the English Kingdom’s province of N.I. and the only equally sovereign kingdom partner of Scotland in the two partner United Kingdom.
“I would argue Scottish Sovereignty at the Continuity Bill proof / hearing at the Supreme Court. It is time to play that trump card.”
And just what is it you think that the Scottish Government’s case has consisted off from the start, Colin? There is, though, that one wee fly in the ointment.
It is that while the SG/SNP has a mandate to hold a referendum they do not have a proven/verified democratic majority of the legally sovereign peoples of Scotland to tell Westminster that the union that is the bipartite United Kingdom Parliament is over. To do so requires a majority of the legally sovereign peoples of Scotland to do so. Which is why we needed the second referendum in the first place.
BTW: the actual personal United Kingdom of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth cannot be ended under Scotland’s independent Rule of Law. As under that Rule of Law the legally sovereign people of Scotland only have the right, as stated in the Declaration of Arbroath, that states:
The simple fact is that, to date, there is as yet not enough evidence to present to the legally sovereign people of Scotland about that little matter of what
BRUKEXIT holds in store. It would thus be not only foolish to hold a referendum without giving the legally sovereign people the information they need to decide our future actions.BTW: It will be a separate and different set of arguments that decide if, and/or when, Scotland decides whether to replace Elizabeth Regina or to declare Scotland a republic – but that is not for a Scottish Government to decide but for the people to decide. Though it could be the people give a mandate to our parliament to decide.
Robert Peffers
These are my facts:
1.The UK Govt is beholden to the DUP, which is in reality the political wing of the UDA.
Okay, I will re-phrase that to please you: The DUP are the endorsed politicians of the UDA’s political wing:
“The political wing of the UDA urged loyalists to vote for Emma Little-Pengelly and Nigel Dodds in South and North Belfast, both marginal constituencies with large working-class loyalist areas”.
link to irishnews.com
and
2. UKIP / BNP type politicians form a considerable proportion of the Conservative and Unionist Party ( Westminster parliamentarians):
Brexit, Windrush, devolved means devolved until it’s power grabbed and reserved to WM.
The rest of my comment is mainly argument.
Robert Peffers
I did not suggest we hold any indyref now. I just think the Sovereignty and democracy argument should be used regarding devolution.
There was a devolution ref. The people chose devolution. Thus, those devolved powers should not be grabbed back.
I expect the SP will rule that according to the Scotland Act 1998 and 2016 that they can be grabbed back.
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Taking your point about the sovereignty has to have the backing of the majority of the people to be active. There was the 2016 Scottish election.
The soveriegn people voted for the parliament’s MSPs. As a result, SNP and Green politicians formed a parliamentary majority in the vote to endorse an indyref.
To become indy via indyref, if the UK Govt says no to indyref and if the SC agrees the UK Govt has the right to say no to indyref, how does Scotland express that majority?
It has to either defy UK Govt and ignore the SC ruling and hold it anyway,or obtain the indy mandate via an election manifesto ( my own preference).
By either method Scotland would have the mandate to dissolve the Union by the expressed democratic will of the sovereign people of Scotland.
Of course
@yesindyref2
The meeja believes now that since Leveson 2 has been kicked into the long grass they can’t be held to account. That they are in effect untouchable. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The people themselves can hold them to account and they can do so instantly. If they won’t bow to commissions or inquiries with teeth then the public themselves can punish them and not just the offending journo du jour, but the title and the publisher.
They may come to wish that a relevant commission was the one doing the wrist slapping.
Not only do people have the option of ridiculing or complaining on a public forum, they can do so and make clear their intent to withhold funding and support for the offending organ.
They need us. I’m not so sure we need them in their current form. People can have a representative media. The media merely needs to decide who it is ultimately answerable to.
Their choice.
Negativistic rumours with the intent of sapping morale by naysayers of the UKSC ruling are greatly premature.
“The Supreme Court will hear the UK government’s challenge to the Scottish Parliament’s Continuity Bill over two days in July, the court has confirmed.
Hearings will take place before five or seven justices from 24-25 July 2018 to establish whether the bill is within Scotland’s devolved competencies.
Brexit minister Michael Russell has said Lord Advocate James Wolffe QC will argue “it is within the powers of the Scottish Parliament to prepare for the consequences for devolved matters of UK withdrawal from the European Union”.
On the other side of the argument, Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC MP has said the bill risks creating “serious legal uncertainty for individuals and businesses as we leave the EU”.”
link to scottishlegal.com
@Macart
They’re quite dumb as well. The more sensible use the likes of Wings to pick up news, Rev’s twitter feed is full of people scouring the internet and finding stuff, and some journalists do use this, and even ready-made opinion to consider, agree with it or not. But others want to destroy the source of stories which helps them to do their job.
Mmm, brainless doesn’t even come close.
Yesindyref2
If you are hinting at me, I don’t believe I said anything morale sapping intentionally or unintentionally, or negative about an indyref or the SC case in my above comments.
I feel it’s quite an interesting and positive development. Despite being interested in independence – not devolution – I’m on record as praising the SNP Scot Govt’s and now Scot Parliament’s stance on refusing to back down over the Continuity Bill. It’s been a pleasant surprise. I’m perfectly willing to give credit to the SNP, Greens and even Labour MSPs on this matter.
I would be happily amazed if the SC found in the Scot Govt’s favour. I also await with interest what legal arguments the Scot Govt puts forward.
I wrote my comments with a deliberate avoidance of negative remarks about the Scot Govt or SNP.
Learning the SC’s ruling on the competencies of the democratically elected, democratically mandated Scot Govt / Scot Parl under the Scotland Act 1998 and Scotland Act 2016 is useful.
Even if the Scot Govt lose the case, it’s useful: it could be used to promote independence if it reveals Scottish democracy under UK Govt devolution is a total sham.
I just read that the DUP is considering the baby box for Northern Ireland. Will it be condemned there?
It really doesn’t matter if Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC MP argues that the bill risks creating “serious legal uncertainty for individuals and businesses as we leave the EU”.” @yesindyref2 says at 6:01 pm
Only one thing matters.
“Is it within Scotland’s Parliaments devolved competencies to prepare for the consequences for devolved matters of UK withdrawal from the European Union”.
I think we all know the answer to this (even the BritNats know).
Also it’ll got to the EJC if Tony BLiars (no typo) Supreme Court rules against Wolfe and the Scots Govt.
fionan says, louis B Argyll @ 9.32
re the eagles and sea eagles ‘disappearing’ close to grouse moors, if you have evidence for this, then please submit to the Scottish Land Commission Call for Evidence which ends 30th june.
Sorry late reply, been waaaay out West.
Not many of us have evidence but their motive is unquestionable.
Dons best of the rest for 4th year in a row.
What a win at Parkhead plus extra half million in the kitty.