Although this site is blacklisted by the press regulator IPSO and therefore unable to file complaints about inaccurate and misleading newspaper articles, our alert readers sometimes pick up the baton from Wings articles and do the job themselves.
But the reader who took up that complaint has furnished us with a bit of interesting background to the story, and also news of a rather more alarming outcome.
We’re seriously starting to think there’s some sort of competition going on among the Unionist parties of Scotland to see who’s the thickest. We’ve spent quite a bit of time pointing out the scarcely-believable dimness of the Scottish Conservative benches, but this week Scottish Labour really pulled out the stops to try to seize back the initiative.
Yesterday was quite an eventful day, so it’s moderately possible you may have missed the alarming news that some shady Mafia-backed hedge fund or such has apparently funded these irresponsible and morally-suspect chancers (last seen shilling on air for literally Vladimir Putin and BBC Scotland, in that order) to produce an all-new series of scurrilous and dubious fact-grubbing for some inexplicable reason.
We have alerted the appropriate authorities. For safety, remain in your homes.
As you can see, the Speaker offers Ian Blackford MP, who was protesting about last night’s silencing of Scottish MPs, a choice of when to hold a vote under Parliamentary standing orders, but then improperly refuses his choice and orders Blackford from the chamber, at which point the rest of the SNP’s MPs followed him.
Let there be no mistake about what just happened. Last night, Scottish devolution – an institution 111 years in the promising, just 19 years a reality – died. Iain Macwhirter summed it up concisely and accurately.
The Sun (English edition only, the Scottish one goes for a domestic murrdurr story) has an inflammatory front page today, as Parliament debates the most important series of votes so far on Brexit, including one to overrule devolution.
It’s a rerun of a(n in)famous previous front-page illustration from the paper, which you can see below. But there’s something odd about it.
It’s probably fair to say that the voters of Scotland have been feeling a little put-upon lately. In the last decade they’ve been sent to polling stations on no fewer than 12 occasions (Holyrood elections in 2011 and 2016, UK elections in 2010, 2015 and 2017, council elections in 2012 and 2017, European elections in 2009 and 2014, and finally referendums on AV, independence and the EU).
And they’ve been subjected to endless weeks, months or even years of campaigning and haranguing each time. One woman – who only had to endure nine of those 12 – had famously had enough of it.
Yet Scots face possibly three more in the next 12 months or so, if various factions get their way, taking the total to 15 major votes in a decade. And if we want to secure the desired outcome in any of them, we’re going to have to ease the load on folk a bit.
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Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “I’ve been listening to Baud for years. He’s excellent. That happened to him a few months ago. It’s terrible what…” Apr 13, 00:20
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Look at you, all big & all clever celebrating war crims, Jenny & bent, unelected midget president just lifting ppl…” Apr 12, 23:57
Confused on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““where is the lie”? www.youtube.com/watch?v=5G9DNx7xIIc but seriously https://archive.ph/QQgz6 telling the truth in wartime can get you in trouble – jacques…” Apr 12, 23:45
Confused on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Orban buys it; the only decent man in the EU. the 90B to yookie was a loan, but its the…” Apr 12, 23:41
Confused on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “not you, Scotland https://archive.ph/k6AUO “we” is doing a lot of faking going on, it means … me, josh, piers, the…” Apr 12, 23:39
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Thanks, CC. It’s a fraught time for anybody trying to run a small business so I have been busy. I…” Apr 12, 23:12
Frank Gillougley on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “I remember now, the apparatchick’s name was a Valerie. Two legs bad, four legs good kinda person. Back on topic…” Apr 12, 22:53
Mark Beggan on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “The Uruk-Hia are having serious staffing problems. There’s rumours they’re in discussions with G4S.” Apr 12, 22:43
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “I’m no fan of the EU but fair play to them. poot is down one apologist tonight and that’s a…” Apr 12, 22:26
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “90 billion Euros for our fighting friends in the east have just been unlocked as Orban is consigned to history’s…” Apr 12, 22:11
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “The EU was always going to get rid of him, by hook or by crook. He just wasn’t playing ball…” Apr 12, 22:00
Frank Gillougley on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Meanwhile, back at the ranch, here in sunny Hungary, Orbán concedes and Tisza will pass the 2/3rds majority needed to…” Apr 12, 21:42
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““There’s a very good reason the whole world hasn’t joined in with this madness” Sure, feart of the followers of…” Apr 12, 21:40
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “LOL! I asked myself that same question when it comes to UK elections & Brexshit referendum. Why does Pam fae…” Apr 12, 21:28
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““the Greens 11 seats” Was that before or after the Green quine announced that a Green Scotland will dig deep…” Apr 12, 21:22
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “First off – let’s remind the group these are war crims. An unjust & illegal act of aggression. There’s a…” Apr 12, 21:20
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““The tech Mafia will make their own version of obedient human” Truly it is as if you are completely unaware…” Apr 12, 21:15
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Aye, aye, Captain fckwit. Y’all will be swimming with the fishes in nae time. Mind wear yer armbands! Unleash the…” Apr 12, 21:09
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Oh dear, Geri, you’ve just provided two reasons for them to disappear you. The first is you’ve gone public. Doh!…” Apr 12, 21:04
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Then again, “Rt Hon. Lord Barony” may simply be cultural misappropriation by somebody of Caribbean or Indian heritage whose parents…” Apr 12, 20:53
Geri on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: “Transhumanism. The tech Mafia will make their own version of obedient human.” Apr 12, 20:48
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““Operation “Cutting your nose to spite your face””. I don’t see that. Blockading the towel heids exports in makes perfect…” Apr 12, 20:45
Hatey McHateface on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““should normally protect the sovereignty of the indigenous people, including those living abroad” Why should anybody care about the sovereignty…” Apr 12, 20:33
Alf Baird on Do You Believe In The Westwood?: ““the occupation of ALL of our top cultural, heritage, environmental, educational, etc. positions” Indeed, an Anglo cultural hegemony and hence…” Apr 12, 19:01
