In a post last month we referenced a ZX Spectrum computer game from 1984 called “Worse Things Happen At Sea”. Today as we watched the First Minister on the Andrew Marr Show, we were put in mind of another nautical-disaster-themed one from a great deal nearer to the end of the Speccy’s life.
When’s a Plan B not a Plan B? Well, when it’s something that could and should have been done already, and won’t be anywhere near adequate even if delivered.
Yet that seems to be what some colleagues are now arguing for. It’s welcome that their thoughts are at last turning to the possibility of the Tories saying No to the Scottish people’s democratic vote. But it’s happening dangerously slowly as the dismantling of devolution and reintegration into the UK gathers pace. Which’s why the Yes Movement needs to act now, not after a Holyrood election.
This week on Wings has been altogether more navel-gazey than we’re comfortable with, as various SNP MPs have mounted a series of all-out personal attacks on the site before the weekend’s crucial NEC elections.
So we’ll have a proper article for you a little later on today, but in the meantime it’d be remiss of us not to tidy up the last fragments of shrapnel, so we’ll direct you to the right of reply to Alyn Smith’s column that The National kindly gave us today:
(Sadly they chose to disable comments, we’d quite have enjoyed the reaction from the few remaining diehard leadership loyalists still posting there.)
We couldn’t help but chuckle yesterday when the £100K-a-year Westminster MP and obsessive Wings Over Scotland reader “Pension Pete” Wishart announced – in the space of six minutes – that this site was simultaneously an irrelevance that nobody listened to, but also somehow one of the greatest threats to independence.
Wings Over Scotland marked its ninth birthday earlier this month. To be honest, we totally forgot about it until someone reminded us. Normally we mark the anniversary with a small reflection and taking of stock over how things are going, but this year we couldn’t be bothered – we’d already mentioned readership stats in August.
But today in The National we found out that we were apparently dead.
But reports of our demise have been, as the saying goes, somewhat exaggerated.
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Northern Visions NVTV interview in Irish with English subtitles. Fionntan de Brun speaks to Seimi Mac Aindreasa in the studio…” Jul 27, 01:12
Young Lochinvar on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “MB You clearly are unfamiliar with the concept of asymmetric warfare. Perhaps you’ve been reading Hateys pieces too much and…” Jul 27, 00:43
Young Lochinvar on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “MB You clearly were never there. I assure you the streets in West Belfast had names that remain imprinted in…” Jul 27, 00:23
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “This is a public platform. We don’t want to know what you have done to your genitals.” Jul 26, 21:45
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “THE CRISIS IN HUMANIST POLITICAL THEORY by Herman Dooyeweerd PDF: https://vcho.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/The-Crisis-in-Humanist-Political-Theory-B-Vol-7.pdf” Jul 26, 19:49
Lorncal on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Minceheid: it’s fire-raising in Scotland. No such crime as arson up here. Not trying to be smart or putting you…” Jul 26, 19:46
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “THE CRISIS IN HUMANIST POLITICAL THEORY by Herman Dooyeweerd (1931, republished 2010) Currently (re-)reading above book. Just reached the following…” Jul 26, 19:30
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “It goes further than that, Mark. Once you are a woman they send in the crone with the rusty razor…” Jul 26, 19:27
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “During the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’ the streets had no names. In today’s Middle east ‘Troubles’ the names have no streets.” Jul 26, 19:14
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I think we can all agree there’s a need to dampen things down. Send for Rayner.” Jul 26, 19:11
Bilbo on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Labour is ideologically tied to immigration whether they like it or not. We are in a time where the UK…” Jul 26, 18:42
Southernbystander on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I would have said yes to this genius spot, but no, unless the Cairngorms are full of ham.” Jul 26, 18:12
Southernbystander on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I was on the border not very long ago and I can assure you there was a broken old fence…” Jul 26, 18:01
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Being a Trans in a Muslim country is a waste of time and money. Once you are a woman they…” Jul 26, 17:13
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I’ve came to the conclusion that if you are a gay Scot then voting for the Green party is Turkeys…” Jul 26, 17:04
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “They are going to blame Elon Musk. They won’t admit that progressive leftist ideology has failed.” Jul 26, 16:29
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I used to have a T-shirt that said in German ” I’m a jelly doughnut”.” Jul 26, 16:06
Young Lochinvar on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Two of JFKs most memorable speech quotes; “Ask not what your country can do for you..” And “Ich bin ein…” Jul 26, 15:49
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “So that’s were the saying ‘cut your cloth according to your pocket comes from. The Jocks had big deep pockets…” Jul 26, 15:49
Northcode on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “The length of time a constitutional arrangement has existed doesn’t determine whether it operates on long-term or short-term incentives. A…” Jul 26, 14:37
Northcode on Ain’t it funny how things change?: ““…even though we now live in a revised world.” Your comment seems to rest on the assumption that constitutional questions…” Jul 26, 14:29
John Cleary on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Hello Stu, Want to know what happened to John Smith? Have a look here https://drive.proton.me/urls/0J0FYKBG24#F9ZfxS0qYcr6” Jul 26, 14:07
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Burnham setting the heather alight? His very name suggests guilt.” Jul 26, 13:53
James Che on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Meantime, back to the news that Stu posted, Anas Sarwar, Ruthie, the SNP, and Labour switch believes and shared branch…” Jul 26, 13:39