This site and other gender-critical voices are regularly accused of being “obsessed” with trans issues, even though the subject has been mentioned in fewer than 0.7% of Wings posts. But this week the SNP’s transgender faction – when it hasn’t been STILL raging about its battering in the NEC elections – has been swamping social media with organised complaints about a tiny prospective legislative change that they themselves insist doesn’t actually matter at all.
Rape Crisis Scotland, who are almost entirely dependent on the Scottish Government for funding, have chosen this evening to wade into the debate over the wording of a new law which is intended to lessen the trauma of people (nearly all women) who’ve been raped. We can only speculate as to whether they were pressured to do so, but the intervention seems likely only to pour petrol on the fire.
In his evidence to a Holyrood inquiry today, having been asked about some troubling WhatsApp messages concerning the case from 2018 which appeared to suggest the possibility of a conspiracy against the former First Minister, Murrell told members of the committee “I’m not on WhatsApp, it’s not a social media platform I use”.
Alert readers will have noticed a very careful use of the present tense there.
We’ve now filed a formal complaint with the Scottish Information Commissioner about this, because what we’d forgotten last week was that our original request was actually sent in September and it’s now been almost 60 working days with no sign of a proper response, not the 20 it’s supposed to take.
Because for some reason the Scottish Government REALLY doesn’t want you to know what the First Minister and Geoff Aberdein talked about in March 2018, and we think that you probably should.
We don’t normally like to devote much time on Wings to things that have been more than adequately covered elsewhere in the media, which is why you haven’t read much here about eg the Internal Market Bill. Unlike some we don’t see much point spending our limited human resources telling people stuff they already know and agree with.
But we’re going to make an exception for this next thing, which was already covered pretty well by Susan Dalgety in last week’s Scotsman, because (a) a lot of our readers, quite reasonably, will have an instinctively adverse reaction to either anything printed in the Scotsman or anything written by Susan Dalgety, and (b) a number of people have asked us to amplify this issue because it’s so important and so awful.
As well as the SNP NEC elections, the weekend saw the election of the first committee of a new grassroots independence organisation which is unfortunately and hopefully temporarily going by the stupendously terrible working name of “Yes Alba”.
15 people were elected to its ruling body by the votes of hundreds of delegates, with the top-ranked picks including SNP MP Angus MacNeil and former SNP MP George Kerevan. The majority of the successful candidates (eight) were female, even though there were no quotas or women-only shortlists imposed, and a wide range of ages was represented from young activists to former UK ambassador Craig Murray.
(We have no idea about any of their sexualities or gender identities, and also no interest in knowing, because those things have not the slightest bearing on their ability to fight for independence and are frankly none of our damn business.)
But that wasn’t good enough for Team Woke.
On a day when Joanna Cherry had a grown-up, reasoned and constructive column in The National calling for unity in the pursuit of independence, the outpouring of snide, sour sneering from a faction still raging with bitterness about being routed on the SNP NEC is instead curdling Twitter even as we speak.
And embarrassingly, not a single one of them has actually bothered to check even the most basic facts.
Alert readers will recall the deranged open letter released by a group of transactivists last Friday, in a nakedly transparent attempt to influence the SNP’s NEC elections that weekend which backfired on them horribly (and amusingly) when the party’s members instead kicked out three-quarters of the committee’s woke faction and replaced them with feminists, socialists and above all advocates of actually achieving independence.
Robert Matthews on The Mandalorian Candidate: ““As above, so below. As within, so without.” – Hermes Trismegistus” Nov 5, 23:10
Robert Matthews on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Who pays for the Scotch version of Wisners Wurlitzer, that’s the question.” Nov 5, 22:53
Jay on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Alf, i tried the link to that land comission. It looks like the sort of outfit from which no sort…” Nov 5, 22:37
gregor on The Mandalorian Candidate: “My Life Story: The Golden Mile: November 5th: “Oh my friend, you look so cold Frozen in thought, please take…” Nov 5, 20:53
Alf Baird on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Aye, thars naethin radical aboot Scotland’s colonial quango elites: https://www.landcommission.gov.scot/about-us/who-we-are” Nov 5, 20:49
gregor on The Mandalorian Candidate: “AFI: Shut Your Mouth And Open Your Eyes: A Single Second: “Oh my God, my god this can’t be happening…” Nov 5, 20:21
Tinto Chiel on The Mandalorian Candidate: “I’m afraid radical land reform will never occur under this compromised Scottish Government. In 2017, Sturgeon announced banker Benny Higgins…” Nov 5, 20:10
Achnababan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Mike Russell is in charge of the Scottish Land Commission which is meant to promote community land ownership. The SLC…” Nov 5, 19:47
Achnababan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Yup…and the same Mike Russell who tried to sell off Forestry Commission land in Scotland to an American corporation. .” Nov 5, 19:35
James on The Mandalorian Candidate: “You’ve not read it, then? Or looked into it’s history (try the 1930’/40’s).” Nov 5, 19:30
James on The Mandalorian Candidate: “And what is the point of you on this site, exactly?” Nov 5, 19:25
Dan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Short vid from Martin Kennedy of NFU Scotland, plus text in sidebar and further link. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=815459950570557” Nov 5, 19:16
Robert Matthews on The Mandalorian Candidate: ““What you ask of the runes Will prove true; They are of divine origin, Made by the mighty Gods And…” Nov 5, 19:02
Chas on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Yes. What we see is the usual mince from Alfie Boy. Who, as usual, fails to impose his dominant authority…” Nov 5, 18:55
Robert Matthews on The Mandalorian Candidate: “A government or a party gets the people it deserves and sooner or later a people gets the government it…” Nov 5, 18:33
gregor on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Thank God for the Jocks… Nothing More: Carnal: Sight: “We think ordinarily of the present As an infinitesimal point at…” Nov 5, 18:30
twathater on The Mandalorian Candidate: “There is a very informative programme on DISPATCHES channel 4 with collaboration from the Times newspaper EXPOSING the despicable and…” Nov 5, 18:05
Dan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Tack this on seeing as mention of thistles. https://www.offtopicscotland.com/post/why-the-thistle If you’re reading Clem, here’s a short article which ties in…” Nov 5, 17:57
Dan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Aye, Horsebox Russell was one of numerous names that caught my eye. Talked a radical game at times but still…” Nov 5, 17:55
twathater on The Mandalorian Candidate: “I went to fill in the consultation re land reform on the Scotgov website and lo and behold the consultation…” Nov 5, 17:51
McDuff on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Slug of society.That this miserable excuse of a human being is given a platform by these newspapers to dishonour the…” Nov 5, 17:49
Robert McAllan on The Mandalorian Candidate: “Wid that by ony chance be ‘the brilliant Lesley Riddoch’? Anither warble oan the back o’ the Independence movement!!” Nov 5, 17:36
