Quotes Of The Year #5
Can someone make years shorter, please? (January, February, March, April.)
We’re expecting to see the evidence of these “death threats” any day now.
“Located in the heart of Edinburgh and only ten minutes away from Princes Street and Edinburgh Castle, Surgeons’ Hall can accommodate between 10 – 300 guests.” – the official brochure for an Edinburgh conference venue casts some doubt on whether the No campaign’s launch there was really attended by “about 600” people.
“UKIP have asked to join us and we have said no. If they ask again, we will say no again. They are not a Scottish party and this is a Scottish debate.” – “Better Together” makes it absolutely plain that only Scottish people should be involved in the independence debate, unless they’re Spanish, Portugese or Welsh.
“Better 100 years of the Tories than the turn on the Poles and the Pakis that would follow independence failing to deliver.” – the year’s most offensive tweet, from Labour activist and solicitor Ian Smart.
“How much would a first class stamp cost in a separate Scotland?” – not even getting near the bottom of the barrel in the No camp’s unforgettable “500 questions” gaffe, which saw even the mainstream media begin to turn on the relentless petty negativity of the advocates of the Union.
“But if [devolving income tax] means that we are equalising at a fiscal level across the United Kingdom, while giving freedom to set income tax rates at a greater level in Scotland, then I have no problems with it.” – Gordon Brown, in one of many comments by senior Labour politicians revealing the party’s post-No-vote plans to slash Westminster spending on Scotland and force Holyrood to increase taxes or cut services to pay for it.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m British. And, yeah, I’m Scottish but I feel I’m part of the UK. I think it’s very important to have a Scottish government who make decisions for Scotland but I can’t understand how Scotland would survive independently. We don’t have the resources – like oil and gas – we’d need to keep Scotland afloat.” – Texas singer Sharleen Spiteri, a little behind on current affairs. Like, maybe 40 years or so.
“The hounding of Farage is a reminder that Scotland – or at least Scottish politics – is not quite as generous, open-minded and tolerant a place as it likes to fancy itself. There is, it seems, a narrow spectrum of views deemed acceptable or legitimate. Anyone who falls outside that range can be ignored or, better still, suppressed.” – Alex Massie bemoans the ongoing Stalinist censorship of little-known political outcast and UKIP leader Nigel something.
“The Scottish broadsheets produced from Glasgow and Edinburgh, the Herald and the Scotsman, are in an even sorrier state than the local BBC. Their circulation has nosedived in the last 20 years. Tiny numbers of Scots have access to them on a daily basis. Both rely on a core Left readership.” – Tom Gallagher demonstrates that the Telegraph’s idea of “centre” may be in some need of recalibration.
“The former Labour Chancellor, Denis Healey, has admitted his Government played down the value of Scotland’s oil reserves in the 1970s because of the threat of nationalism. Now Lord Healey of Riddlesden, the Labour peer said tax receipts from oil is the biggest factor behind Westminster opposition to both next year’s and the 1979 independence referendum.” – The Sunday Post, via Holyrood Magazine, with the year’s least shocking scoop.
“Labour are meant to be convincing Scots that we can trust them with our future. On this evidence, you would not trust them to go to the garage for chocolate.” – the Sunday Mail says what we’re all thinking.
“The Scots are accustomed to having their views ignored in the British political system. Despite voting consistently for the left, Scotland has been governed by Labour for only 30 years out of 68. If England is set to elect the Conservatives, in other words, it’s hardly worth going out to vote in Scotland at all: we know what we’ll get.” – and the Observer tells a home truth.
“I wasn’t around in Denis Healey’s days.” – Shadow Scottish Secretary Margaret Curran, who was secretary and vice-chair of the Glasgow University Labour Club, and chair and secretary of the Scottish Organisation of Labour Students, during the period when Healey was Chancellor of the Exchequer.
“The thought that my mother would suddenly be a foreigner would upset me very much.” – the great international socialist Tony Benn.
“Oh dear Chris, you have just went from being a Scottish hero in the eyes of the Bravehearts to being a traitor, how dare you ?” – a Unionist commenter on the Scotsman is used as evidence of “cybernats” unleashing torrents of “vile abuse” at the Olympic cyclist.
“I also hope to arrange an event to celebrate the start of the First World War.” – Labour MP, Rangers fan and bowl-cut aficionado Brian Donohoe accidentally tells the truth. Let’s party like it’s 1914!
Nearly halfway there, readers!
Sir Kenneth Charles Calman, KCB, DL, FRSE.
This is all we need to know.
Calman (Tells funny stories ?), Spittieri (A real intellect ?) & Curran ( Glasgow / Irish / British at its very best) Boak !
Spoiled ma toasted cheese Rev !
Dug now well satisfied
Massie / Muppet
Surgeons Hall – Who’s gonna check ? OOPS
Wow, you’ve managed to reach May. Well done Stu. We all know the depths of your stamina but I think what you have achieved today has left us lesser mortals stunned. Maybe you should call it a rest for the night. After all you can continue tomorrow and tomorrow is also a big night for all concerned! :P:
Out of that lot, I think for me, its Tony Benn’s comment which is most disappointing as I used to have a lot of time for him.
truly truly scrumptious
Tony Benn’s wife was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. Maybe they met before the American War of Independence – which would mean his kids would not view their mother as a foreigner?
O/T
Some excellent info on IFS here – very good read
link to scotgoespop.blogspot.co.uk
I volunteer to help carry the Rev shoulder high at the next ‘Scotland agrees – She is a Sovereign Country’ rally of his choice.
I have just got to say that Wings Over Scotland wins my vote for best, best, best Pro Independence website of the year : ) The number of items I have shared is beyond belief in the hope that some of the lesser mortals I know who maybe undecided will read something, just something, that may change their minds! Well done Rev Stu and all concerned, lang may yer lum reek : )
Another astounding comment was Blair McDougall, allegedly reported calling, Alex Salmond, ‘a fat arse’.
Obviously no reflective mirrors available.
Tony Benn, ‘don’t do as I do, do as I say’. Great Socialists? = Fallen idols.
I can’t remember if it was this month (May), or the next that I stopped getting angry at the scarestories, misinformation and lies emanating from Bitter Together and just started to laugh at them.
You could not make it up.
The UK state/establishment in mad preservation mode, grasping at every straw.
They just cannot see themselves as others see them – a declining country with delusions of grandeur. To be fair, few in foreign media report this madness. So they’re home and dry?
What then, when Scotland becomes independent. Lots of Westminster/Whitehall dirt will become public. Oh dear, poor dear old perfidious Albion exposed for all it is. The French, Spanish, Italians, Germans etc. will be a bit gleeful and gloating.
In BT unionist dreams, European countries will feel sorry for poor England and the unruly natives they have to deal with, and duly reject indy Scotland… More likely, the European countries will embrace indy Scotland and let xenophobic England stew in their own juices. Nobody really likes a bully.
Senior European politicians won’t, of course, be that petty in public, but I bet lots of people and even senior politicians will have a private chuckle. Scotland’s great and took England down a peg or two, he he.
Calman’s claim was for me one of the most obnoxious of the year – no proof whatsoever (like Twitter is hard to find anything on even if deleted?) and total non story run by the MSM ad nauseum.
Still, she’s had a lot of work from the BBC since, almost constant, for someone that is a totally unfunny comedienne with no talent whatsoever is amazing, and totally predictable.
most way out claim of the year for me was calman was a comedian.
“I think it’s very important to have a Scottish government who make decisions for Scotland but I can’t understand how Scotland would survive independently. We don’t have the resources – like oil and gas – we’d need to keep Scotland afloat.”
That just unwittingly sums up the “too wee, too poor, too stupid” mentality of the No campaign. How the fuck could someone, who calls them self Scottish, not be aware of Scotland’s abundant natural resources, namely the very oil and gas she mentions?
How funny and ignorant are these comments by Texas’ finest…
Calman episode was embarrassing – but as usual – she’s on unionist side and got off very lightly with press.
Others would have been castigated about this non-story.
Maybe NNS should put newshound David Torrance on the case to get to the real facts?
Well the first of the New Year messages are out folks. It looks like young Mr Darling has heard our calls for some humour cause he is out of the starting blocks first. If you can resist the desire to switch him off you will here this soon to become epic phrase:
“what ever decision we make this year it needs to be decisive”
www.bettertogether.net/blog/entry/alistair-darlings-new-year-message
I think we can all do a Gordon Broon and agree with Alistair on this one topic at least, whatever decision we make it does indeed need to be decisive but it will not be US who are chewing our fingernails on 19th September! :P:
Ah May.
The month that I finally had my eyes opened. For more than 35 years I had never failed to vote in an election until May 2012, Scottish local government elections. I remember very well my wife saying “we better go soon before it shuts”.
I said I’m not going, astonishment is all I can say was the look on my wife’s face. “Why not, we always vote?” Not this time because I had no party to vote for and to be honest was sickened. Yes I was a traditional Labour supporter.
One year on, May 2013, gets a letter through the door from Yes scotland. Nothing special in the message, but amongst the various groups logos at the bottom was a wee red thistle saying “Labour for Independence”.
Checked out their website and it wasn’t long before I found my way to wings. From a definite No to a Yes in one fell swoop. Thank you Rev and LFI.
Quotes of the year # 4 Mrs Brown boys Quotes of the year # 5.
If ah wiz wearin Incontanace pants they wuld be ful tae the ochsters
Rev you need tae keep some back fur the morra, ma ribs canny tak any mair
Arbroath 1320
But how can we be decisive about such a decision when we cant find out where the money for an Oil fund will come from ? Iain Gray at the top of his game !
It looks like its game over folks; I’ve finally found the Holy Grail of 40 reasons to stay in the Union…
link to dailymail.co.uk
Vote No, you know it makes sense.
I agree with you gordoz, I mean if we have no idea where all this money for the Oil Wealth Fund is coming from then how on earth can we possibly even begin to contemplate voting YES next year! It beggars belief that anyone would want to vote YES without knowing where the necessary money is going to be coming from!
Big Al, Secretary of State for Portsmouth addresses the nation
link to youtu.be
link to youtu.be
Perhaps Ms Calman knows Ms Davidson
For UK Labour to implement it’s universal childcare policy, they would need to win the next THREE Westminster general elections in a row, with a majority government.
“It’s very expensive you know” says their shadow childcare minister Lucy Powell.
That’s worth hanging about for then, is it not?.
Wonder if wee Johann will let her merry band of followers in on that minor point.
You’ve got to hand it to Susan Calman though, she’s managed to create a reasonably successful career in comedy without ever having said anything funny, Well done Susan, well done.
@caz-m: “It’s very expensive you know” says their shadow childcare minister Lucy Powell.
They say these things, but they don’t mean them. In the Times last month there was a story about the Tories and Lib Dems discussing tax cuts in the next parliament (if they are still in coalition together). One of the ideas was to increase the basic tax allowance to £12,500. If that was done right away, it would cost something over £8 billion a year based on the IFS’s (all hail the IFS!) estimates of what the increase to £10K cost.
(There’s another story in that. Increasing the basic tax allowance to £12.5K would have a much, much bigger impact on Holyrood tax revenues than on Westminster ones. Needless to say, that was not mentioned in the Times and the story doesn’t appear to have made the Herald or Scotsman. And even if it had, the devoboosters would deliberately have missed the implications …)
Remember Spiteri uttering this misinformed grossly inaccurate rubbish and how disappointed not to mention angry I was after it. This blatant ignorance is wholly inexcusable, and shows the complete and utter contempt she has for us all here in Scotland. If this country and its inhabitants held even the slightest importance to her and people with similar views, she as the rest of us have, would be taking the time to educate herself before blurting out such nonsense, even more so in these times. Shame on her.
My grandson 13 has vg school reports, popular, athletic well mannered, a credit to him and his single mum. A candidate for uni. Only problem on the horizon is if NO win he will be unable to get his UNI education due to the lack of money to pay for uni fees.
result: kid punished for being poor, scrapped by the unionist caring types. (Better together)
NOT ONLY DO THE NO TOFFS WANT TO STEAL MY COUNTRY, THEY ALSO WANT TO STEAL MY GRANDSONS CHANCE AT EDUCATION BUT TO STEAL HIS CHILDHOOD.
CANT THINK OF ANYTHING LOWER THAN STEALING A CHILDS CHILDHOOD. STAND UP AND TAKE A BOW ALL YOU PROUD SCOTS. HOPE YOU CAN LOOK A YOURSELF IN A MIRROR.
Tricky thing comedy, I don’t really get Miranda or Mrs Brown’s Boys. The little I have seen of Calman puts her in that camp. I don’t dislike any of the three but I wouldn’t go out of my way to see them either. I don’t think there is any mileage in discussing whether she is funny or not or indeed whether she is going to vote Yes or No but rather the way she was either the willing or unwilling pawn in a journalist’s confection about evil Nats. The way her head disappeared below the parapet when it became apparent we were not prepared to stand and be an Aunt Sally for fabricated accusations.
This was the one that made me smile…
link to twitter.com
Bless.
Arbroath 1320
I watched Darling’s new year “message”, is it just me, or is the old dog, looking a bit WUFF ! O/T could not find anything from Jim Murphy, shame, but is it again only me who thinks he would make a great “Rev Jolly MK2 “, I think he would look the double if he had a dog collar on, the looks and the deadpan voice are unnaturally close. He is, and would be very funny at it ! Ok forget the funny bit!
With regards to Tony Benn: I notice a few contributors are feeling a bit like me. Can we just accept the cognitive dissonance his words have engendered in us all and put it down to his age?
It’s maybe a cop out, but I’m sure he’s meant something to too many of us to let a wee daft comment late in life tarnish a lot of what was good.
And before anyone drags up previous “wee daft comments”, can you leave me with at least one of my heroes partially intact before he goes?
@Papadocx -You speak for hundreds of thousands of Scots. Problem is, many of our countrymen/women are just beginning to realise it. Hopefully your grandson will spend the rest of his Teens in a progressive, independent Scotland and never need to pay for his education.
There seems to be some belief that Calman has been somewhat ambiguous regarding her voting intentions in the referendum. She was asked on Alexander Armstrong’s show if she shared Alex Salmond’s belief that Scotland should be an independent country, her answer “of course not”, how clear do you want?
Surely something amiss, Rev your not on the New Years Honours List – How Come?
Thing is Fab001 you have fallen into the trap that:
a) any one here gives a damn about her
and
b) anyone who was watching the Alexander Armstrong show when she was on.
I’m thinking anyone who would have normally watched the Alexander Armstrong show would have turned it off the second she appeared on stage! :P:
@Alex Taylor – Re Tony Benn, no axe to grind here Alex, but my Best Man and I had many an argument about Tony’s ‘socialism’ in the Seventies and Eighties. My Best Man was a Labour official and great supporter of Benn. I was a socialist and member of the SNP. My thought at the time and my thought today, is that Benn was and is an Agent Provocateur for the Tories. He undermined Labour chances of winning power in ’79 with his carefully crafted ‘socialist’ statements.
Anyone countenanced the possibility that Murray knocked back a knighthood, rather than being ‘snubbed’ as the British MSM would have us believe?
In other news, shhhepratishts bomb Stalingrad. The BBC tellt us so.
@Training Day – I have to say, I am a wee bit surprised at the ‘snub’, for is what it is. More to come on this one I think!
Good to see ex FA chairman David Bernstein being honoured, along with Karen Brady and Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud.
Vote Yes to lose bathing in this glory.
Not sure when this appeared but it was made by Johan Lamont when she described The Independence movement as a Virus . Yes indeed a Virus which is catching on And will decimate Better TogetheR in the New Year . Those already carrying this particular Independence Virus are thankfully not dangerous to society but are well adjusted with much to share by way of good news. This in the run up to next September’s vote will certainly prove to be an inconvenience to Bitter Together who have not been inoculated against the spread of this particular viral infection .
Alasdairb
Speaking of Murray, worth watching again his victory speech after Wimbledon if only to see a Scottish Saltire fluttering behind Camerons heed.
Did Andy turn it down – or did he not even have the chance? That’s the crux of this matter. Would Tim Henman have been offered after winning Wimbledon for England?
It’s rhetorical – don’t bother answering.
Thanks Rev Stu. What an amazing year and a huge amount of articles! I really do think that Wings has done more than any other Indy site to highlight and explain the reasons for voting Yes. Funny, insightful and deliciously irreverent, it really has become a favourite read for me and for so many others.
Tony Benn participated in North Sea oil lies.
Susan Calman? Who is her father? Nuff asked.
Charlene Spiteri? Are you serious? I’ll raise you Eddie Reader and Annie Lennox – by a huge margin.
Tony Blair. First time I heard of him and saw him on TV he was ranting about how single mothers only got pregnant so they could live off the state, the wife and I berated the obviously Tory bastard who had gone a step too far and were shocked when the caption at the end of the interview said ‘Labour MP’. We were convinced this was an editorial mistake and that a huge row was bound to ensue over it, a couple of years later he was Labour leader.
Andy speaking after his Wimbledon victory.
link to mirror.co.uk
Not long after his victory, Scottish tennis were awarded millions of pounds to promote the game in Scotland.
Why did the Scottish government give such a large amount of funding to Scottish tennis.
Why did the Scottish government give such a large amount of funding to Scottish tennis.
To be honest caz can you honestly see Westminster giving anything to Scottish tennis, if anyone did then surely it would be better if the Scottish government rather than Westminster.
I’m sure I heard that Andy Murray had been invited to no. 10 and had his arm twisted a bit to ensure that he would accept a knighthood. Now obviously that was rumour, but the current rumour is just plain weird.
For my own part, I wouldn’t be knighting any sporting hero while he or she was still competing (that’s if I approved of gongs at all!) It just seems wrong, somehow. But given that they do do that, what on earth does it take, if winning Wimbledon isn’t enough?
Strange and curious.
Arbroath
I agree, but I was also thinking along the lines of, If we fund your sport, will you come out next summer as a supporter of Independence.
As we all know Portsmouth has its very own Secretary of State for Portsmouth, well I think he will be heading a wee bit further West if he gets wind about this. I don’t think he will be too happy that the good people of Plymouth might be supporting us in our fight for Independence!
link to plymouthherald.co.uk
Well, in defence of Sharleen she is about as clued up as any other Glaswegian hairdresser
I’d rather have Amy Macdonald.
“Better Together” makes it absolutely plain that only Scottish people should be involved in the independence debate, unless they’re Spanish, Portugese or Welsh.
That’s not fair Stu – Belgian unionists are allowed to stick their oar in as well.
Anthony Wedgwood Benn is an aristocrat who renounced his title to become a career politician.
He supported Blair’s illegal war in return for a cabinet post for his son. Effectively, he was bribed.
With hindsight we can see that Labour has been rotten for a long long time.
Y’know when you read em all back to back like that, it really does paint a picture of the no campaign which no amount of squirming can explain away. Day after day, week after week, month after month of ye cannae dae it. Not one single solitary example of just why we are better together. Not one single solitary example of what bright future awaits the Scottish electorate in a new and improved UK. Just months of endless fear and negativity.
Seriously, who needs that? Enough already.
If you’ve seen enough folks, just vote YES and watch as Scotland enshrines a constitution, becomes a nuclear free, WMD free hive of activity. Watch as we overhaul government and hand the electorate popular sovereignty and give our government, which we vote for, the tools to reprioritise tax and spend and so overhaul the life chances of every Scottish citizen. We deserve better than our current representation in Westminster and we should aspire to a better example of social justice and equal opportunity than is currently on offer from the current failed system of politics.
C’mon, just vote aye and we can get on with it.
Current, currently, current?
Jeez, you should never post before your second cup of coffee. Poor grammar and sentence structure aside, vote YES anyway.
Mcart says
“Current, currently, current?
Aw ye need is a some bread and butter and ye’ve got a braw puddin there mcart
Doug Daniel says
“That’s not fair Stu – Belgian unionists are allowed to stick their oar in as well.”
You forgot Sarah (for gods sake think of the children) Palin
shes allowed
The Spiteri quote has to be tongue in cheek, doesn’t it? I mean who would zero in on oil & gas like that unless they knew the real story? I’m sure she was taking the pish out of the interviewer.
@John King
LOL
Heh, nice one.
Good to see one of us operates on all pistons in motion early doors.
Sorry couldn’t resist it,
mmmm bread and butter pudding,
I cant talk about anyone,
the revs always getting on at me for grammatical errors and such like,
Happy new year
I wish I could believe that Holebender I really do , but I really think she herself believes what she said.
The level of cognitive dissonance I’ve personally encountered beggars belief.
believe ,believes, belief,
good grief I’ve turned into Mcart
Sorry, I really cant help myself,
someone take this keyboard off me pleassseee
Have a good one John and all the very best.
Still don’t know who this person is. It’s the scotch equivalent of ITV I’m A Celeb.
Holebender
No She is that thick – did it on radio also.
Looking at that Scotsman pic at the top of the article… the phrase ‘two-faced liar’ springs to mind.
Was Tony Benn still trying to hide the McCrone Report when came out with that pish?
Love this one: There are more pandas in Scotland than Conservative Members of Parliament.
O/T. Typed “Too wee, too poor, too stupid” into Google and then clicked onto Rationalwiki. Good read.
Tony Benn: phony class warrior fraud, married to a DU Pont heiress, who gave Shetland Town Council a percentage bribe of oil revenue, as part of ‘divide and rule’ Brit protocol while leasing the bulk off to multi-nationals. Sharleen Spiteri: bigger arse than Susan Calman’s and Ruth Davidson’s put together. Tony Blair: sociopathic and messianic mass murderer.
@Macart
Day after day, week after week, month after month of ye cannae dae it. Not one single solitary example of just why we are better together. Not one single solitary example of what bright future awaits the Scottish electorate in a new and improved UK. Just months of endless fear and negativity.
That about sums the No campaign up.