The newspaper is a fantastic concept. A cheap, accessible product, it’s a brilliant way of keeping yourself broadly abreast of current affairs. You turn a page and are presented with a diverse selection of interesting stories, often on subjects you’d never have thought to go and seek out in the self-refining echo chamber of the internet.
(Theoretically links on websites serve the same purpose, but dodging “sponsored” advertorial, gutter-level clickbait, pop-ups, autoplay video and pages that judder and leap around so much while loading all this rubbish that you’re about 50/50 to have an epileptic fit before you can read the story, has made clicking on one into a game of Russian Roulette fewer and fewer people are willing to take a chance on.)
This site has never believed that the ongoing steep decline in newspaper sales is a fundamental problem with the format. Rather, the truth is that people stop buying papers because they’re full of garbage.
Most of Scotland’s news outlets, including the Times, Herald, Daily Record, Daily Mail, Express and the BBC, run today with the story that one in three Police Scotland officers intend to leave the force in the next three years, according to a recent survey for the Scottish Police Authority.
(The print edition of the Scotsman makes it the front-page splash, although the article has mysteriously vanished from its website.)
But a couple of pieces of important information are inexplicably missing.
You might have thought that the publication of the “Project Fear” book last month was an embarrassment for the motley collection of highly-paid but hapless Labour and Tory apparatchiks who ran “Better Together”, but it turns out there was worse to come.
Politics Home today reports what sounds like some alarming news:
An extract from First Minister’s Questions earlier today:
That was Kezia Dugdale’s opening question. Despite the Presiding Officer making it absolutely clear that the question was improper and outwith Holyrood’s remit, the Scottish Labour leader went on to use her entire allotted time on the issue. She was then followed by Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson doing the same.
The people of Scotland are being done a grave disservice.
It appeared on any possible interpretation to be complete nonsense, but Ms Dugdale – who’s pledged to make education the issue at the heart of her leadership – has been somewhat reluctant to clarify the statement.
Several queries from her Lothian constituents have gone unanswered, but one Wings viewer did manage to get a single tweet of response.
Alert social-media users couldn’t have failed to notice Unionist activists and hacks working themselves up into a very great lather last night over (currently former) SNP MP Michelle Thomson. The ex-director of Business For Scotland has resigned the party whip and is now sitting, at least temporarily, as an independent while police conduct an investigation into some property purchases in which she was involved.
As yet no criminal activity by anyone has been alleged, and Police Scotland has said that it has no plans at the moment to even interview Ms Thomson, let alone arrest or charge her. As yet it’s a political non-story.
But the mere proximity of the member for Edinburgh West – previously the victim of a smear related to the Ashley Madison website hacking – to even a sniff of impropriety has triggered a paroxysm amongst the media and the beleagured opposition.
Amusingly, some senior journalists have even tweeted an accusatory blog written by Labour activist and regular BBC pundit Ian Smart, whose own membership of the Labour Party remains a subject of uncertainty after a series of abusive incidents – Scottish Labour have persistently refused to confirm whether he’s been expelled, despite having been “investigating” him since April.
But that’s not the most interesting piece of hypocrisy on show.
We know that the media isn’t normally shy about identifying which side of the Scottish independence debate people are on, especially if they’ve been behaving badly.
So we were a little puzzled by the papers this morning.
We didn’t think that could be right, and dug up some figures suggesting that it was nonsense, but of course “the poorest kids” is a highly-flexible metric. Strictly speaking you could just mean the two poorest children in the country, and if one of those two can’t read there’s your 50%.
Luckily, we’ve now had some meat put on the bones of that claim.
Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “HMcH Oh, I get it. You start it, don’t come out best so revert to spellchecking sanctimonious teacher mode. Honestly!…” Mar 17, 08:13
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “An interesting article on why, after every political revolution, Orwell’s pigs eventually turn into the humans they overthrew: https://unherd.com/2026/03/trumps-betrayal-of-his-base/ Of…” Mar 17, 07:59
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “I’ve not been allowed near my local mosque since I tidied up all the shoes, bagged them up in pairs,…” Mar 17, 07:41
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: ““Whose bitter” Dunno, YL. But you saw it first. Fill yer boots. Bet some cant already gobbed in it though.” Mar 17, 07:31
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: ““you buy the house first before you start arranging the furniture” You’re thinking like a schemie who’s been 20 years…” Mar 17, 07:23
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Michty, Geri! Still only Tuesday and already you’re back to picking up the word on the streets. I see you’ve…” Mar 17, 07:16
twathater on Looking up at the stars: “MaryB After a Sunday Prism show I asked Alan Petrie in a comment if he would stop pushing immigration as…” Mar 17, 04:19
Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “‘How do we get better more principled people in power’ I’ve thought on that many times. Like atttracts like. What…” Mar 17, 04:02
Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “We should all learn from the destruction of the Death Cult and it’s Proxy’s. Be careful what you wish for…” Mar 17, 03:05
Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “Beggars; People are generally aware of the latter, sadly not the former. I only point out historical facts for those…” Mar 17, 01:32
Geri on Looking up at the stars: “Just think, shitey.. An Islamic NATO! I’d LMFAO if that is true cause I just know you’d not be able…” Mar 17, 01:28
Geri on Looking up at the stars: “Wrong. As said many times during indyref, you buy the house first before you start arranging the furniture on policy.…” Mar 17, 01:11
Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “HMcH Eh? No. You’re making a complete diddy of yersel yet again. England lost the 1st War of Independence as…” Mar 17, 01:03
Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “HMcH Eh? No. You’re making a complete diddy of yersel yet again. England lost the 1st War of Independence as…” Mar 17, 00:59
Geri on Looking up at the stars: “Shiteface, No. They’ll be watching the telly thinking FUCK! Would you jist look at all those eejits who are being…” Mar 17, 00:45
Geri on Looking up at the stars: “He said womens rights would be protected. Yes. He also said the TRA community is a discussion Scotland should have…” Mar 17, 00:09
Cynicus on Looking up at the stars: ““….No invasion that wiped out one group and replaced it. “-Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh, 16 March, 2026 at 10:54 am ======== Fearghas,…” Mar 16, 23:47
Geri on Looking up at the stars: ““100%YES: so how do you see it being sorted AFTER independence” Because we’ll have our own parliament. Not a Unionist…” Mar 16, 23:39
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Looking up at the stars: “Championing Scots is an entirely justified and laudable enterprise. There is world-class literature in it. All Scottish children should become…” Mar 16, 23:38
Lorncal on Looking up at the stars: “Dan: I don’t hate you for accusing me of being a Unionist when I was probably a nationalist when you…” Mar 16, 23:28
Lorncal on Looking up at the stars: “Geri: Alec Salmond said no such thing. He ensured that women’s rights were embedded in Alba policy. You, like several…” Mar 16, 23:03
Lorncal on Looking up at the stars: “100%YES: so how do you see it being sorted AFTER independence? Do tell. Because sorting it PRIOR to independence is…” Mar 16, 22:46
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Aye, Northy, if you start by ignoring the fact that the 2022 census found 5.44 million people in Scotland you…” Mar 16, 22:34
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Not saying any of the blokes in Your Party hate women. But many of them are enthusiastic followers of a…” Mar 16, 22:24
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: ““keep on making weapons on our soil” FFS, Dan, that ship sailed over 4 years ago. “makes you look obsessed…” Mar 16, 22:19
Northcode on Looking up at the stars: “This from the 2022 Scottish Census: 4.74 million Scots identified as white Scottish/British. 62.4% of that number identified as “Scottish…” Mar 16, 22:13
Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “I was told that when you finish a packet of smoked salmon, the most environmentally sound course of action is…” Mar 16, 22:09
