The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


Data without information 193

Posted on January 07, 2017 by

This week a Scottish journalist told us ruefully that over the festive holidays, all parties send the newspapers “Christmas boxes” comprising a load of ready-made and pre-chewed garbage stories, each embargoed to specific days, for them to run in the news desert between Boxing Day and January 3rd with no further effort required.

(This year’s crop had been particularly dismal, our source revealed.)

emptybox

It seems, though, that the media plans to continue the practice all year.

Read the rest of this entry →

Tags:
Category analysis, history, missing context, scottish politics

The opposite of information 133

Posted on March 10, 2016 by

Good luck with this one, folks:

guardiandeficit

All clear now?

Read the rest of this entry →

Tags:
Category comment, media, scottish politics

The Pish Gallop 133

Posted on December 15, 2015 by

We’ve spoken a number of times before on this site about the “gish gallop” or “swarm of wasps” debating technique, in which a person attempts to bury their opponent under such an overwhelming tsunami of false, misleading or nonsensical claims in a short space of time that they can’t possibly debunk it all.

The Urban Dictionary gives an example of the form:

gishgallop

Faced with such a rushing torrent of drivel, it’s almost impossible for an opponent to know where to start in order to begin to even scratch the surface (if you can scratch a torrent). And that brings us directly to Severin Carrell’s article in today’s Guardian.

Read the rest of this entry →

Tags:
Category analysis, comment, debunks, media, scottish politics

  • About

    Wings Over Scotland is a thing that exists.

    Stats: 6,886 Posts, 1,237,722 Comments

  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Tags

    and finally and firstly arithmetic fail braveheart klaxon britnats captain darling cartoons Chris Cairns confused cringe crybabies dateline debates Devo Nano Douglas Daniel Federalists Unionists and Devolutionists flat-out lies foreigner watch from the archives fundraisers galleries hamish hypocrisy liars light-hearted banter lizards memogate misinformation one nation perspectives poll project fear project feart qft Scott Minto smears snp accused soapbox the positive case for the union The Vow ticktock toldyouso too wee too poor too stupid unionist of the day vote no get nothing

  • Recent Comments

    • twathater on Looking up at the stars: “I commented recently that I had contacted ALL my MP’s and MSP’s of ALL parties to complain about Shabana Mahmood’s…” Mar 14, 03:39
    • Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “3. Proud Boys” Mar 14, 02:06
    • Young Lochinvar on Looking up at the stars: “HMcH Oaths? Let’s have a wee look at yours eh? 1. The Cub Scouts: Rule number 3: (That you swear…” Mar 14, 01:57
    • Cynicus on Looking up at the stars: “Iain More says: 12 March, 2026 at 10:24 pm “So the SNP SG continues to drag its heels over releasing…” Mar 14, 01:33
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “On the subject of pets, Geri, hows the dugs? At weekends, do you usually permit them more freedom? Let them…” Mar 13, 22:37
    • Geri on Looking up at the stars: “House Jock implies someone who still lives here who suffers an identity crisis. Pet Jock is about right, the token…” Mar 13, 20:41
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Monarchy is the default for humanity, TURABDIN. It’s wired into our DNA, almost certainly because over the long term, it…” Mar 13, 20:31
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Sure, Alf, these arguments go round and round with such depressing regularity that we can now all predict where they…” Mar 13, 20:30
    • Scot Finlayson on Looking up at the stars: “Lord Byron penned the song, Dark Lochnagar,about his youth in the highlands, Ah ! there my young footsteps in infancy…” Mar 13, 20:30
    • Alf Baird on Looking up at the stars: ““as if their Scottish Sovereignty is superior to the Scottish Sovereignty of other Scots” You appear to misunderstand the colonial…” Mar 13, 20:00
    • TURABDIN on Looking up at the stars: “«The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike…” Mar 13, 19:43
    • 100%Yes on Looking up at the stars: “What is there to talk about that hasn’t already been said. Looking at the Rag today I had to look…” Mar 13, 19:20
    • TURABDIN on Looking up at the stars: “The MASSIVE elephant in the room is the US and its emerging absolutist «monarchy». If the sun sets on the…” Mar 13, 18:52
    • sarah on Looking up at the stars: “O/T Does anyone know what is happening with the Voices for Independence site? There has been no entry for today…” Mar 13, 18:41
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: ““the case with most of” What’s this, Alf? Are Cesaire’s ideological foundations starting to crumble? That “most” permits some doubt…” Mar 13, 18:09
    • twathater on Looking up at the stars: “WOW John boy Main is getting more unhinged by the day, he is now telling Geri that her views could…” Mar 13, 17:58
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Drink! Haha, just my wee joke, Alf. Obviously the only option open to us is to buy a copy of…” Mar 13, 17:53
    • Alf Baird on Looking up at the stars: ““I see a few are waking from the ways that were taught them, will the all wake up or will…” Mar 13, 16:23
    • Alf Baird on Looking up at the stars: ““pet-Jock moon howlers” Ah, and there’s plenty of them, each following Mannoni’s “dependency complex…that these groups are psychologically made for…” Mar 13, 15:56
    • sam on Looking up at the stars: “I know, Sven. It is impossible to know anything with certainty about illegal immigration numbers. You can get some idea…” Mar 13, 15:55
    • agentx on Looking up at the stars: “Following the Union St fire the demolition company is Burnfield Demolition. Ironic.” Mar 13, 15:54
    • Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “Police Scotland refused a request under the freedom of information to reveal the criminal numbers connected to immigrant hotels. Their…” Mar 13, 15:29
    • Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “That has been the elite establishments plan all along. The socialist post-colonial ideology. Get into bed with the death cult.…” Mar 13, 15:23
    • Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “That would be the exact Nasty Nats answer just get to one over the English bastards. Then they would staple…” Mar 13, 15:14
    • Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “@ Sam How many illegal immigrants came into Scotland? I don’t know They don’t know. You don’t know. Did they…” Mar 13, 15:03
    • Sven on Looking up at the stars: “Sam @ 14.26. I’m guessing that would be legal immigrants, Sam. As I doubt asylum seekers awaiting classification, illegals or…” Mar 13, 14:50
    • Sven on Looking up at the stars: “Mark Beggan @ 14.12. I do, Mark. And if they don’t, I believe the full power of the state will…” Mar 13, 14:31
    • sam on Looking up at the stars: “Jist fir til let ye know, ken? https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/2022-reports/scotland-s-census-2022-ethnic-group-national-identity-language-and-religion/ The largest group of immigrants in 2022 was from the category, “Other…” Mar 13, 14:26
    • Hatey McHateface on Looking up at the stars: “Careful you dinna scuff the covers of your holy book, Geri. If you do, some meditative, focussed cant will have…” Mar 13, 14:15
    • Mark Beggan on Looking up at the stars: “I think you mean the government. The country is fit and able. This summer is going to be the crunch…” Mar 13, 14:12

  • A tall tale



↑ Top