Quotes Of The Year #2
The best of February 2013. (January here.)
“Could we possibly not export [England’s nuclear waste] to Scotland, and then give them their independence?” – audience member on BBC’s Question Time, to much merriment among the crowd and panel.
– Guardian cartoonist Steve Bell.
And the respect just kept coming in February.
“There’s one thing that’s absolutely certain – if the nationalists get a Yes vote, Scotland will be leaving the UK and so we’ll be leaving the European Union.” – No campaign director Blair McDougall shows why he’s by a massive distance the least trusted man in Scotland.
“Actually it’s difficult for people who are trying to get into work if they’ve got the burden of having to pay for a house they can’t really afford, it makes it much more difficult – they’re going to have to earn more to make work pay. What we’re trying to do here is improve social mobility, so that people can get into work.” – Willie Rennie explains how the bedroom tax is actually HELPING poor people escape poverty by taking money away from them.
“You have a situation where the SNP cannot tell us what their position now is on things like the currency, or on pensions, or on defence, or on Europe.” – Alistair Darling, perhaps needing his ears cleaned out.
“If a referendum were to result in a vote in favour of independence, the associated monetary, banking and regulatory arrangements would be for Westminster and Scottish Parliaments to determine. However, we stand ready to provide technical assistance to advisers to the Scottish Government’s fiscal commission.” – the Bank Of England, not seeming to regard a currency union as a “delusional fantasy”.
“Britain works. Britain works well. Why break it?” – David Cameron, apparently disowning five years of his own ‘Broken Britain’ rhetoric.
“Whether or not England was also extinguished by the union, Scotland certainly was extinguished as a matter of international law.” – the UK government’s first paper on independence drops a bomb.
“Scotland would [face] similar demographic challenges to the UK as a whole and will also have to manage the projected long-term decline in North Sea production and tax receipts. An independent Scotland, however, would have greater flexibility to respond to these pressures than it currently does as part of the UK.” – report of the independent Fiscal Commission.
“What I think the SNP don’t like about the opinion is that it suggests that [independence] is quite a difficult thing to do, because they would be placed in a position of having to negotiate 14,000 agreements.” – Scotland’s only Tory MP, David Mundell, trails in a week behind the news.
“This is a blatant attempt by the Nationalists to shut down debate in the UK parliament.” – a Labour spokesman explains why Labour cancelled a House Of Commons debate after Westminster clerks ruled that they had to stop referring to independence as ‘separation’.
“There is no point funding free care for the elderly when half the people in the poorest parts of Scotland do not live long enough to take advantage.” – Glasgow Labour MP Anas Sarwar decides that because Glaswegians die early, the rest of Scotland’s old folk should have to suffer too.
“Taking winter fuel payment and free bus travel away from richer older people would save relatively little, cost a lot in administration, increase poverty among the old, and undermine solidarity between the generations.” – BBC financial expert Paul Lewis talks sense.
“There are serious discussions to be had about how much economic freedom an independent Scotland using the Bank of England’s pound would have, butthe idea that England would deliberately try to sabotage an important political and economic ally is for the birds.” – Sunday Mail editorial leader.
“At least Irish nationalism is a pure, honest form of nationalism. Scottish nationalism, which has been a fraud committed on the Scottish electorate for the last few decades, has finally been exposed as nothing more than what has now become its own political class, seeking to justify its own existence. “ – Nigel Farage, leader of UKIP and apparently a big Sinn Fein fan.
“Anti-English hatred is the default position of the SNP, so it is no surprise when the party shows its true colour.” – pure, honest Irish nationalist Michael Kelly in the Scotsman.
“Whatever the legal formalities, in terms of the political will if Scotland were to vote for independence, I think Europe would try to smooth its way into taking its place as a European member.” – Lord Malloch-Brown, the former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.
And again we’ll finish on a rather older quote that we only uncovered this year:
See if you can guess what’s coming next.
I always wondered where the lawyers were hiding…
This is like a belated selection box !
All my favourite britnat-quotes in one item – magic.
I think he looked prettier(Hothersall) with the red rose in his hair!
Hothersall ? Pretty ?
More like a tube
Steve Bell has in today’s Guardian named that “cartoon” one of his top 5 favourites of his own work this year.
Should Scotland go and f*uck itself? Not half as much as Steve Bell should! Sorry, is that me being a nasty cybernat for saying that?
Hurra! Indy best of 2013.
Just in reading Jan & Feb, you realise how little has changed in the B.T. Fear lexicon.
Whilst sites like WOS have helped supply and spread info, facts, figures, polls, debunked myths, defenestrated journalists and mocked MSM. We have been comprehensively re-educated about all manner of statistics and half truths pertaining to Scotland’s standing in the UK.
BT stagnating and Yes going for crash course in creating fully educated and enlightened voter population.
I know which side looks like a winning side!
Loving the annual review.
@PP:
I think the word behind Mr. Salmond’s head is “RULE”, I’ve already ticked the “YES” box and claim my free country!
The negativity towards not just Alex Salmond and the SNP but Scotland in general and its inhabitants is quite odious.
The perpe("Tractor" - Ed)s of friendly fire (particularly the so called Scottish socialists of Labour) must be where our attention falls. If only a few trusted Scottish journalists were with us .. but alas they seem to have set out their stalls.
It appears Project Fear has had its most success within the ranks of the press & media in Scotland.
Looking forward to seeing some of Lamont’s best lines.
Are we going to have one of things where we can vote for what we think was the best?
Bags me ‘Look, there’s a squirrel!’ – an outright winner from ‘Debater of the Year’.
Willie Rennie – a pound of mince connected to a mouth.
“Whether or not England was also extinguished by the union, Scotland certainly was extinguished as a matter of international law.”
This prompted my first ever comment on my previously empty facebook thingy.
Ah don’t you just love those dark wintery nights sitting by a log fire reminiscing about years gone by? :P:
Oh wait a minute it’s not years gone it is just year gone by!
How will we be able to cope with Stu’s recollection of March?
How will we cope with 2014?
If you ever need to be convinced of the need to redouble our efforts you just have to think of these scumbags’ crowing faces the day after a No vote. Too horrific to even consider losing this.
It is advantages to both sides if Scotland supports sterling, more so England and they know it. In my humble opinion it would be worth stating that we will not stay in the sterling zone. Then watch HMG’s reaction, and international action to sterling.
The loud mouth liars in BT/UK should ask for clarification on eu status like is their prerogative and obtain a definite answer to that question, as they have the right to do. THEY KNOW THE ANSWER SO WILL NOT ASK THE QUESTION.
As for NATO membership if they don’t want us in their gang then we should just set up a CETIC defence force with Ireland, or just not bother. The truth would become evident PDQ.
So these three critical questions are in fact only raised to frighten the poor thick jocks into questioning wee Scotland’s independence. They are either non existent or of little consequence to an Independent Scotland.
Who wants to stay in a union with a big bully, who steals from you can’t be honest or straight with you and talks down to you at every opportunity. THEY ARE LYING SCUM AND I WANT NOTHING MORE TO DO WITH THEM.
@panda paws:
Says it all about Labour-supporting Steve Bell that he loves a cartoon that, were he to have replaced ‘Scotland’ with ‘Islam’ or ‘Ireland’, would have ended his career.
Feckin hell, i skimmed through the the first one and thought it was some of the best howlers for the whole year……Only just realised it was only a month when February got posted.
Yi canni knock their inventiveness i suppose.
macandroid
dont you mean
a mouth connected to an arsehole
Or an arsehole talking mince
16.50 Sky news presenter interviewing the Lord Pro vast of Edinburgh. Is S Frazer gieing
Electracution lessons noo
Oh lest we forget, the mince they have said AND will continue with, plus a few yet unseen. Water under the bridge, my mind is long made up. However, for me, and I suspect most of us, we cannot fail, as the vile and bile that will be forthcoming from the Union shite, will be too much to bear! We ALL need to work harder, we cannot fail!
We will not fail.
Keep right on to the end o’ the road and the end of the unequal Union, along with the parasites at Westminster.
“Scotland certainly was extinguished as a matter of international law.”
As 66% of people in Scotland consider themselves only Scottish, this is one of the strategically most stupid statements ever published in support of the Union. The “No Scotland” campaign really does mean there is no Scotland and they also provided the proof with this statement. Use this statement when talking to the undecided, it works a treat.
Good stuff Rev.
Seeing this endless parade of lies, mendacity, half-truths, propaganda and self-delusion laid out in one place is a tonic for the soul. It’s also a vision of what we can expect, magnified ten times, during 2014.
Prepare yourselves everyone!
About that Steven Bell cartoon…
I didn’t find it particularly offensive, just a bit lame and not very witty of funny. I don’t mind politicians being lampooned and caricatured and ripped to parts quite savagely – that’s what cartoonist are supposed to do, after all. Modern day court jesters, something like that.
That Steven Bell cartoon fails on two accounts.
1) It’s firmly on the side of the establishment. Massive fail for a cartoonist.
2) It’s crude and petty and angry. Not witty. Witty cartoons give you a chuckle and a sense of delight even if you disagree with the message. Cartoonist should never be angry or petty, get too involved. They should just laugh at the foibles of all the powers that be and rise above it all. This one didn’t.
I much prefer Martin Rowson’s cartoon after Dave Cameron had been up north in 2012.
link to theguardian.com
It works on so many levels. The Monarch of the Glen thing, hapless Nick Glegg put to yet another use, the fat cat, the clueless, jittery, scared little Lord Fountleroy in foreign ground; the clichéd idea of Scotland as a some sort of huntin’ and shootin’ reservation for the rich in England… And the FM stalking (with a bazooka, no less :-D) to blast the UK into history!
No wonder the establishment (and the MSM, which take their lead from the establishment) hate Alex Salmond so much. He’s the worst threat to English establishment hegemony since 1066.
Steven Bell doesn’t get it. John Harris does. Ouch well can’t win them all. Neither of them can vote, anyway. Shame.
‘Scotland certainly was extinguished as a matter of International Law’ ? Blair tried it but didn’t succeed. The lawyer who did not uphold International Law.
Scotland was guaranteed an Independent Education/Legal system under the terms of the Act of Union, forever. One of the reasons under Law, International or otherwise, Scotland could have a Referendum on Independence. Cooper 1953. Add in the European court of Human Rights, of which the Britain was a founder member, and the right to self-determination.
I think I earned my second session on the Guardian’s ‘naughty-step’ after leaving my ‘considered views’ on that Steve Bell, “Do you agree that Scotland should go and [fuck] itself?” cartoon. It had no qualities of humour or satire about it, unless he believes that showing the Establishment’s bette-noir, Alex Salmond, with a Saltire painted on his face is cuttingly satirical then there’s the Britnat attitude to Scotland, its prople and its aspirations right there. It needs to be given a wider showing, especially to those Don’t Knows out there. We need all the weapons we can get, aftre all. This one will do well in the ‘This is What They Think of Us’ section.
I just wrote something reeaally smart and important, at length, but succeeded in bungling it all into cyberoblivion.
I think my point was that Scotland’s great and should be independent.
Oh, and that Nicola Sturgeon should be the first Prime Minister. She’s great.
That Steve Bell cartoon was something of a turning point for me and I made this in response: link to 2.bp.blogspot.com
Please feel free to share.