The Ship Song
Ten years ago this month I was in a pub called The Porter in Bath with my girlfriend and her family, buying everyone whiskies and gabbling deliriously (I’d been up for over 40 hours at that point) about the significance of what had just happened.
Alex Salmond’s SNP had just broken the Scottish electoral system, winning an absolute majority of seats in a Parliament designed expressly to stop that from ever happening. A total of 72 pro-independence MSPs had been elected, and it was already clear that an independence referendum was going to happen despite the Labour Party’s best efforts. It was impossibly exciting.
This month I sat and watched 72 ostensibly pro-indy MSPs be elected again, but this time with my heart breaking, knowing that they would achieve nothing and indeed had no real intention to even try.
And I’ve had enough of feeling that way.
I’m not going to rehash all the blindingly obvious reasons why there isn’t going to be independence referendum in the life of this Parliament, because we’ve explained them a dozen times and anyone who was ever going to listen already knows. Boris Johnson – or any other Tory leader – has absolutely no reason to allow one and nothing to fear from refusing.
Scotland has no influence over him whatsoever. The mad fantasy of him bowing to pressure from an international community that stood back and watched Spain beat up and imprison peaceful democratic campaigners doesn’t deserve the dignity of a moment’s consideration from anyone even halfway sane. We told you in May 2016 that the election result took an indyref off the table for five years and we were proved right. We’re telling you again.
The only time in history the independence movement has ever held any meaningful leverage over a UK government (Theresa May’s lame-duck minority administration of 2017-19) Nicola Sturgeon squandered it on a futile and immoral attempt to deny England and Wales the Brexit that they voted for of their own free democratic will, and then helpfully handed Johnson the election that gave him the 80-seat majority which now renders him totally invulnerable on the constitution.
So what’s coming now is five miserable years of deja vu. A Holyrood with a pro-indy majority but no will to do anything with it, just like the one we’ve had since 2016 when Sturgeon lost Salmond’s majority and became beholden to the foul, racist, misogynist paedophilia sympathisers and enablers of the Scottish Greens – a situation that it’s now possible with hindsight to see absolutely delights her.
I want no part of the lie they’re going to foist on indy supporters for the next few years. I want no responsibility for how people are going to feel as it slowly, gradually dawns on them that they’ve been conned and taken for fools in exactly the same way Tony Blair did to Labour voters 20 years ago.
Blair won three elections, but burned Labour and all its values to the ground in the process, leaving the party an unelectable, bitterly factional mess that still trails even the current monstrous, farcical atrocity of a Tory government in the opinion polls, 13 years after Blair left office to concentrate on building his colossal personal wealth.
That day is coming down the line for the New SNP, make no mistake about it. Given the ludicrously inept state of the opposition parties in Scotland it looks a while off yet. But the Tories under William Hague and Michael Howard and Iain Duncan Smith were a joke of a party that looked like it was dead and buried forever, but politics abhors a vacuum and eventually someone came along capable of reviving it.
The price that’ll be paid for Nicola Sturgeon’s betrayal of the SNP for the sake of her personal career will be years and years in the wilderness for the independence movement. The 80 years of work by her predecessors leading to the high water mark of 2011-14 have been turned to ashes and it takes a while for anything to grow back from ashes.
I’m already 53 and the men in my family rarely get much past 70. I don’t intend to waste the rest of my life waiting for that to happen, and unlike some I’m not prepared to lie to people in the meantime for the sake of a paycheque or a cosy wee country cottage or a pathetic delusion of relevance like some broken-record bloggers or media pundits who should have been pensioned off a decade ago.
Nor am I willing to destroy my health and happiness by putting myself through the fury of being lied to every day, never mind all the accompanying abuse.
I could spend the next decade documenting that alone, but a few weeks ago Paul “Wee Ginger Dug” Kavanagh did something so indescribably despicable I can barely bring myself to refer to it even obliquely. Out of sheer demented hatred of me and loyalty to Nicola Sturgeon, and based on a complete falsehood, he harassed a friend of mine so grievously and so disgustingly (he was trying to get them to help him have me put in prison) that they ended up in hospital in intensive care and very nearly lost their life – something for which he’s shown no remorse whatsoever.
I’m not willing to be a catalyst for that. I’m not willing to see other people dead because of how much somebody hates me.
(I have my friend’s permission to publish the above paragraphs.)
Kavanagh and I are both fortunate that lockdown restrictions prevented me from going to the nice new home he’s bought with Yes voters’ donations and doing something I’d have regretted. (I’ve calmed down enough not to do it now.) The repulsive, wretched piece of slime can also consider himself very lucky that to spare my friend any more trauma I didn’t call the police over what he did.
But he’s only, and by a distressingly narrow margin, the very lowest of the grotesque, grifting, self-serving sewer scum that now infests every level of the independence movement. I said a few weeks ago on Wings that in the highly unlikely event of another indyref Yes would need to start with a clean slate of new faces, so irretrievably toxic are the relationships between those who campaigned in 2014, so as one of them I’m taking my own advice and setting an example in vacating the stage.
(Can you imagine going into a second referendum with nothing to offer as persuasion to undecided voters but Pat Kane, Lesley Riddoch, Gerry Hassan and Elaine C Smith again? Christ have mercy on our accursed souls.)
To be honest, the thought of those people celebrating Wings’ demise was the only thing that nearly stopped me from walking away. But carrying on to spite them would be letting them control my life just as much as if I’d let them shut it down before now, and I won’t give them that power.
In truth this would have happened weeks ago, over Kavanagh and when two crooked and hopelessly hamstrung inquiries whitewashed Sturgeon and her government over their criminal attempt to put Alex Salmond in prison with false sexual-harassment allegations. It was only the creation of the Alba Party that offered Scotland one last-ditch chance of salvation.
But an unholy alliance of the SNP and the Unionist media – sweetened by a tasty £3m bribe from the former to the latter – successfully managed to smear and silence Alba and ensure it had no voice in Parliament, and most crucially no base from which to build an alternative.
The party intends to carry on, which with the deepest respect and regret I consider a futility. We learned last week that Sturgeon has simply done too effective a job of poisoning its name and in particular that of its leader. Alex Salmond has been in the form of his life in 2021 – rejuvenated and ebullient, eloquent and fearless, despite the ordeal he’s endured in the last couple of years which would have crushed a lesser man to whimpering dust – but all to no avail.
The absolute hatred with which Alba was treated by brainwashed, goldfish-memoried SNP members under Sturgeon’s direction was jaw-dropping and horrifying. Even six months ago I would never have believed a pro-indy party led by the man who took the SNP from a nutter-fringe irrelevance to the all-conquering behemoth of Scottish politics could have secured less than 10% of the list votes of SNP supporters (especially when the alternative was completely wasting those votes), but in the end it never even got close to that figure because Sturgeon has turned the SNP into a hyper-obedient Stalinist personality cult.
(On the rare occasions the membership does try to summon up some courage, as with last year’s NEC elections, Sturgeon and her husband simply steamroller it, slashing and burning their way through all the party’s procedures and rules until they get the result they want.)
No matter how much passion, energy, reason, decency and dignity Alba continue to campaign with, I don’t think they can overcome that ugly collaboration of smearing between the SNP and the Unionist media. The defining characteristic of Sturgeon’s reign as First Minister, and just about the only thing she’s done with any competence or efficiency, has been the ruthless crushing of anyone and anything she considers a threat to her personal power.
So, since I haven’t actually spelled it out yet: Wings is over. We’ve said everything there is to say and I’m not going to spend the next five years pointlessly repeating myself while Nicola Sturgeon busily turns Scotland into a vicious, spiteful, intolerant, authoritarian and misogynist country I’ll be ashamed to come from and am already afraid to live in. The tragedy is just going to have to play out and the pieces be picked up afterwards, whenever that is and whoever’s left to do it.
So unfortunately you’ll have to wait for someone else to report on Bella Caledonia’s links (via its “poetry collective”) to the British Council, an organisation identified by the Sunday Herald a few years earlier as a wing of the British security services.
(The Herald is/was the paper of David Leask and Neil Mackay, so who’d know better about the activities of the British security services, right?)
And someone else will have to take you through the Scottish Government’s disturbing new Stonewall-driven “diversity curriculum”, including its now somewhat off-message and probably transphobic suggestion that there are in fact only two sexes.
And perhaps most upsettingly of all, it looks like we’ll tragically have to go before we find out from James Kelly what our dastardly masterplan was.
Wings would have been 10 years old this November. At that point, for the sake of one last straw-clutching chance to be proved wrong (or if Police Scotland finally do their job and arrest Sturgeon and Murrell for stealing the ringfenced fundraiser money) I’ll reassess the state of play and make a finally-final decision, but in truth I can’t imagine anything will have changed, and certainly not for the better. It’s time to find something else to do with my life, and having not done a Wings fundraiser in two years I need to pay the bills too.
The Titanic was irretrievably doomed two hours before it actually slid beneath the icy waters of the Atlantic, and as far as the campaign for Scottish independence goes this Parliament is simply going to be a more drawn-out recreation of those strange, surreal moments as the lights went out and hope drowned.
In our version of the band playing on, the site will remain live and you’ll even still get weekly cartoons until that point. Comments will be open for people to chat, but the actions of trolls have already ended the approval of new commenters and that will continue (along with any comments that get caught in the filters, so watch what you say). But we’re not going to spend thousands of pounds a year keeping it online indefinitely, so use the time to archive anything you want to preserve.
There also remains the question of what should be done with the money left in the Wings Fighting Fund (still a not-insignificant sum) and we’ll address that then. In the meantime I’ll resist the temptation to stuff it all into a rucksack and bugger off to Rio forever, and hope that Britain manages to come up with a nice summer to enjoy. After the last 14 months you’d think we’d all earned one.
The last nine and a half years have been an incredible honour. Thanks for everything. Between us, readers, we scared the living daylights out of the bad guys – the true measure of anything’s worth is how much its opponents attack it, and by that metric Wings was beyond price. Like the Spartans at Thermopylae, though, our true enemies wore our own colours and we didn’t see what they were doing until it was too late.
But I’ll remain proud of what we achieved until my dying day, and of the fact that we tried our best to warn everyone about the looming iceberg when it would have been a lot easier and more lucrative to stay silent and play along with the charade like the rest of Sturgeon’s tame shills.
(The honourable exceptions remain listed in the Wings links bar. Treasure them.)
David Baddiel used to do a routine – based on real events, he told me – about how much worse it is to be beaten up by the police than by a bunch of skinheads. (The word “skinheads” gives you an idea of how long ago the routine was.) Because when you’re getting beaten up by skinheads you can always hope the police come along, but when the police are beating you up in the back of a van it’s no good hoping for a load of skinheads to appear. If 19 September 2014 was getting beaten up by skinheads, last week was getting beaten up by the police. No saviours are coming.
Sometimes the odds are so stacked against you that you simply have no chance of winning. But there’s no shame in losing if you left everything on the pitch. The shame belongs to the betrayers, who threw the game for some ministerial baubles and a few more years of nice fat pension contributions from the taxpayer.
We’re entering a long period of darkness for the Yes movement. I hope we get through it. Goodnight, readers, and may your god and your guardian angel go with you.
Like most, I could see this coming. Sorely disappounting, but somehow feels right. In the rancid swamp that passes for journalism in Scotland, nobody comes close.
To see people like drysdale upthread (who links to Yes Scotland & slurs fellow Yessers on here as sycophants), as usual, fling mud at the man rather than fairly or robustly present an alternative view is typical of Wings detractors. All I ask you drysdale is “When?”. When will your queen set the date. You be fooled if you like. The answer is she wont. It is not in her interests or on her radar. Keep drinking the koolaid you imbecile. To see an SNP MP hahahaha at Alex Salmond after the orchestrated criminal campaign he’s had to endure & defeat was astounding. The foundations AS built for these cunts (no apologies) to piss on is galling. To see that new SNP MSP actually post in public that she’d have to survive a whole month before her gravy was delivered exposed what the SNP has become more starkly than any MI5 black ops could achieve.
Last Saturday was a watershed for me. My vote alone is no longer enough. I have never been a member of a party. I have never marched. I have never donated.
The Rev is correct. Now is a time for a change in direction. A new generation. New faces. New tactics. I have already begun to be more pro-active. Someone has to do something. If we all agree and all start we become a new movement.
Scottish independence is inevitable. It clearly will not be easy. It will only come when enough of us work hard enough. And once its achieved, there will be no going back. No matter how low it gets, we only need to win once. Thats all. Its why the british Nationalists are so petrified. So shrill. Aside from a few orangemen, nobody would be daft enough to campaign to give it all away again.
So thanks for everything Rev. One hundred million thanks. I doubt we’ve seen the last of you, but you’re use will come in a different form in another time. We all need to regroup, reset and re-align. As long as a disgusting criminal sits in Bute House, I will not rest.
Louise Hogg says:
13 May, 2021 at 12:11 am
The SNP’s financial difficulties have been highlighted. And is not possible fraud now being investigated? Unless the SNP can morph VERY rapidly into a Brexit Party style business, funded by big pharma, then it may collapse soon.
I think their laziness and financial incompetence has made them a very attractive option for ruling class support.
The charlotte street charlatan is mirroring mandelson’s role in ensuring the party can be relieved of democratic meddling.
Their depravity will save the party, for themselves.
I wish you well for a rest and other ventures just now. And hope that by November, in some way, we will ALL be looking at a happier future.
Happy roosting Rev!
All to that happy note!
Stuart,
Fully respect your decision. You must always look after the safety of you, your family and friends.
What you have done in Wings has shone a light in the darkest corners of political life in Scotland and boy did you frighten some people and the skeletons they hide.
Their day of reckoning will come and hopefully the Murrell cult will be ended soon.
( we can but hope)
For all your amazing effort, and truthful, incisive reporting.
THANK YOU.
There aren’t words. Thank you for everything.
Sorry to see you step back, as this site is the most significant of a severely shrinking number of trustworthy sources of information on Scottish politics. The rags, Twatter, Reddit and the mainstream media are simply a cabal of liars, deluded fantasists and ruthless propagandists.
However, I totally understand that this is the real world, and in the real world the good fight is often lost to forces of evil, and the will of good men to fight on is finite and can be diminished by the attrition of the psychological warfare waged by cowards.
SOMETHING must replace Wings though, and I think the effectiveness of the replacement would be well-served by your input. Use the fighting fund to transform Wings from one man’s blog into a crack team of investigative journalists trained in your methods and operating under your mission. Then you can leave the fight in good hands while taking yourself out of any direct role.
Independence may be dead, but that’s not all Wings was about, it was also about truth, and there is plenty more hidden truths to be extracted from the vaults of of Scotland’s liars.
Stu, you raised the bar high and the rats had to crawl under it. They always did. They attacked because they fear you. What will the rats write about now that they have no copy from you.
You need a rest, take a long holiday. Keep your eye on what’s going on or even better ALBA need a press guy. Think about it.
Look after the foxes, have a good few months under your belt. Don’t take down the site. WE NEED IT.
See you in Nov
K
A glimmer of hope is that the Salmond affair has a couple of twists and turns to come yet.
Without hope? I know.
Nothing.
Cheers for all the fish Stu, you’re a legend.
Defo.
I think I said on the John Masson article I wouldn’t be commenting and would only check in occasionally, not because of you or the blog just because I feel a sense of utter hopelessness re Indy. We aren’t getting another referendum Stu I agree. I’m done matching with AUOB as well, I’ve marched miles and miles for nowt so no more. Independence is still my dream but I’m not letting it consume my thoughts or time any longer. One last comment to wish you well is the least you deserve.
You’ve been truly amazing Stuart, I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done. I totally understand your decision, you have to do what’s best for you in this life. I hope your skies are blue whatever you do next. I’m certain whatever you do next will be a huge success, a cleverer man I e never known.
As for WGD, I was never keen on him, far too much arse kissing of NS. I truly hope your friend makes a full recovery, I’m so very sad to read what has happened to them.
You’ll be missed greatly but deserve to be happy and free from all the crap that has come with this.
To all other supporters on this page, let’s send a huge message to the SNP. Cancel your memberships on mass (I cancelled mine), stop tweeting about Indy, stop marching for Indy, stop waving flags at the side of roads and bridges for Indy. Let’s all just stop and give NS and the other seat warmers something to worry about. No memberships means no money to pay Mr Murrel his fantastic wage.
Goodbye all, thanks for all the comments/interaction and friendships throughout the last 10 years or so. Love and best wishes to you all, extra big love and wishes to you Stu.
A McMaster says:
13 May, 2021 at 12:17 am
I think the Yes movement need to drastically change tact. Other countries that have won independence have done so by rejecting their rulers and taken to the streets. Using those tactics we would grind the whole of the UK to a halt.
No, but Yes.
No. Street parties are probably a self-defeating move (I sympathise with the Yellow Vests, but theirs is a tactic born of desperation and civil disobedience only works in certain circumstances which don’t include the entire establishment hating your guts and having means, motive and opportunities to crush you)
But Yes. Yes needs to evolve.
The first thing it needs to learn (or relearn) is confidence. Confidence is a preference. By confidence, I mean projecting positive energy outwards, towards tangible goals. The 45 have spent the last few years refighting the 2014 referendum. Basically talking to ourselves. AUOB was a lot of fun, and I admire Manny Singh. But what did it achieve? Who did it convince? What measurable results can we point to? Apart from Manny Singh being victimised and scunnered by the SNP regime. And Alistair Mcconnachie airing out his jacket.
If the plan is:
1) Hold rallies / vote SNP
2) ???
3) Independence!
That’s not a very good plan.
The second thing it should learn is that political change doesn’t move in a straight line. It is easy to be disheartened by this, but there’s no need to be. The trick to that is remaining flexible, like a well cooked asparagus. Fighting on multiple fronts. Offset setbacks in one area with new pushes into another. Keep the opposition reacting to you – not the other way.
The third thing is messaging. There’s no centre ground, that’s a myth. But there is a broad mass of normal people, with normal concerns. These concerns don’t necessarily include constitutional issues, unless you can successfully link the constitutional issues to things they already care about.
Yes doesn’t need to change its beliefs to suit the 55, but it does need to change its message to address their concerns.
And tone. How you communicate is part of what you communicate. The world has changed a lot in the past year, let alone the past seven. Why was Vote Leave successful where Vote Yes was not? Has anybody actually put some serious thought into this, instead of crying about Brexit, and buses, and Brexit buses?
There’s lots of reasons, but on messaging, Vote Leave tapped into the zeitgeist in a way Yes didn’t quite. It was psychologically on point. Cyber to the max (I feel sure that’s how the young people speak when they’re not using their Walkmans and Sega Megadrives). Irreverent. Anti-establishment. Punk rock.
Yes doesn’t have that mojo in 2021. But we can learn.
So sad it has come to this. I have followed Wings through the highs and lows of the last 8 years and have always appreciated your honesty and above all your ability to call a spade a spade. You have outed massive corruption and criminality in those who govern us but ultimately it seems that the corruption has spread to all organs of government and media to the point where honest people such as Craig Murray, who printed nothing but truth, can be imprisoned on ridiculous charges. We now live in a fascist state.
Until the last Holyrood election I have been a staunch SNP voter. I can never vote for them again, even if they clean out their stable, as there is now a stench of corruption associated with the SNP which will never be dissipated for me. My wife and I had hoped to end our days in an independent Scotland but now realise that is unlikely. We are now actively considering selling up and moving south of the border. We might then be governed by a corrupt lying buffoon but one whose escapades are exposed by the media and will ultimately lead to his demise. Contrast that with Scotland which is governed by a corrupt, criminal elite who control the judiciary, the police and the media who will never allow criticism let alone free speech. Life south of the border is the lesser of two evils for us.
If there is any justice in this world the lies and corruption of the Murrells will be exposed, as will their theft of £600,000 of donations to Indyref2. Sturgeon, Swinney, Evans, Loyd, Wolffe and a few of the Alphabetties will do time for their criminal attempt to stitch up Alex Salmond and their lies and suppression of evidence to the Scottish Parliament. There is much more but that would do for a start. That now seems unlikely so my wife and I will probably follow on the heels of so many decent Scots who quit their country to find a better life.
I sincerely hope that a well earned spell away from your keyboard will convince you to return. Your country does really need you as does Alex Salmond who will fight on for justice. Finance will not be an issue as so many of us will consider it a privilege to support you. Whatever you decide I can only thank you for what you have done over the years to expose the Britnat media, and latterly the SNP, for their lies and propaganda.
a Quote by Maya Angelou. a black American woman writer. Quote
” People forget what I write, people forget what i say, but people Never forget , How I made them Feel ”
Will never forget how Stuart made us all feel, over these 10 years. Thank you Stuart, you deserve a break and much more.
The dream will never die. Greeting from the USA
Rarely comment – just wanted to say massive thanks for your integrity and brilliant journalism. Have learnt so much from you.
Enjoy the release from being a shield for the lies and hope your friend makes a speedy and complete recovery.
Best for your new life whatever you decide to do.
What can I say to add anything to the above? Except a huge, huge thank you. You spoke the truth, Stuart, and only the truth sets free. So you helped to set us free too.
All the lies surrounding us, and all the liars shouting these lies out, can never drown the truth, or suppress it. Leave the liars to it: let them wail and wallow, and shout and cry in their own inner emptiness. What a place to live – in their own empty hollowed out echo-chamber. What a way to be – such a wasted, vacuous existence. You are quite right, Stuart, to walk away from the lot of them.
We know you are not leaving us. We know that, wherever you go, you are not walking away from us. Wherever life takes you next, it won’t be a lonely path you travel. Truth and freedom – and gratitude – belong together, remain together, march on together, somehow, no matter what happens next. Thank you for everything – every single thing.
Ian Lawson above nicely and kindly told us about the Berlin Wall coming down so much faster than anyone in West Germany, even those in the know, had imagined. Here is something else, in the same line, further away in time but closer to home.
At the beginning of 1304, the whole of Scotland submitted to Edward I of England. Not just gave up, but actually surrendered. Including many who had fought so bravely. They were not cowards in any way. There was really nothing else they could do. It must have been a strange feeling for so many of the ordinary people. Everything was finished. There was no hope anywhere.
Think also what Edward must have felt: at last, he had the whole thing in his hand. It was his. He had won. The land lay still, as James Robertson might have said. And he owned it, and all of them. That was his hour of complete triumph.
What Edward didn’t know at the time – and neither did anyone else – was that there was already a secret plan afoot, a new idea, something no one was thinking of. A Scottish bishop – funny that it was a clergyman – was returning, just at that very time, from Paris, where he had learned this new idea, secretly, moreover from another Scot, who happened to be teaching there. That Scottish bishop had thought this new idea through, and taken it on board, and now he would act. Also secretly.
Two years later, Robert Bruce was enthroned at Scone as the Scots’ legitimate king. Not because of the hereditary right which he always claimed, for his family as rightful. That was secondary, very secondary. He was actually, specifically, explicitly enthroned on the basis of the sovereignty of the people.
That was the new idea. Already known, perhaps, but inchoately, and never before acted upon. Not in this precise way. When all was lost – utterly lost – everything, at that very same moment, was in fact being reborn. It would not all go smoothly, Bruce and the Scottish people would have much to suffer, and many a setback to endure. But the re-birth would not be in vain.
Like all of us, I feel sad, very sad at your post, Stuart, though I also fully understand, and fully sympathise. You have done a marvellous and astounding job. No one else could have done it. And no one else did do it – not like you did. I can’t thank you enough.
Yet, strangely, sad as I be, I don’t feel despondent. And certainly not depressed. I even feel glad. Sadness tinged with gladness; gladness with sadness.
Gratitude is actually a grand emotion, and it also carries gladness with it.
Liars don’t know either of these two things. They have no gratitude, and they are complete strangers to joy. Truth not only sets you free. In the end, no matter how much trouble arises for you by staying with it, it makes you happy. Deep down very, very happy.
Thank you, Stuart. And all the very best. Everyone here is very, very proud of you. And grateful for all you’ve done for us, and for allowing us to be part of your journey all these years. It has been great. Wonderful. A’ the best. And may your God go with you, as do we.
The best journalist writing on Scottish politics this past decade.
You’ve given it your all, Stuart. Now it’s time for a few others of us to carry some of the strain of holding the Sturgeonistas to account. I’ve started to do that through my new Scottish political website:
link to jaggy.blog
I know. Another shameless plug. But I do believe many of your followers and subscribers might like how it’s shaping up – even though I can never possibly replicate the Reverend’s savage and scatological sermons!
Stuart Campbell I am truly gutted to read your words , I can only imagine the personal cost your endeavours for Scotland’s independence has had on your physical and mental health but be assured for every single arsehole wishing you ill there are thousands more of us who have appreciated your tireless efforts,honesty and integrity
As many have commented we have become so used to being spoon fed your explosive exposures that your site WOS has become the hub of information and education for THE TRUE INDEPENDENCE SUPPORTING COMMUNITY which is proven by your visitor numbers , so many people have been educated and informed by your comments and articles that it has enabled them to make choices and decisions based on truth and facts
TBQH I believe you removing yourself from the independence arena will be catastrophic for the independence community and will only bolster sturgeons chances of lying with impunity
As a selfish 70yr old bast**d (me) I would love for you to take a break , a real break and come back invigorated to partner with Alex Salmond and ALBA and stand as a candidate for ALBA and show these fraudsters what a real honest politician looks like
Whatever you decide Stuart you will have the love and best wishes from a very grateful WINGS COMMUNITY
Been a long time – nearly met in Edinburgh to get a wings badge but you forgot to give direction where you were. But got the other two; along wie a pkt of sweeties. Sat here feeling gutted 2nite reading the comments and hoping like f*ck to live long enough to see justice served, if not independence.
Not for the first time I’ve agreed with what he said, but its the first time I’ve ever pointed to any other comment and simply said;
THIS: Al-Stuart 12:15 am
(tho mibbe not his first line as theres no other source I trust)
THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING Stuart…sad day!
Hope you stay in touch with us all somehow.
Stuart, this is really painful to read and, although I fully understand your reasons, I’m going to miss you. You’re an honest man and I’ve been right to trust in your analysis and facts since the day I first interacted with you and started following you. You’re right to want a life without abuse, vilification and anxious days waiting for the next attack. I wish you all the happiness in the world. I can’t thank you enough. Take care. xx
Cheer up everyone. Stu will be back in the fight one day I am sure, though in what precise manner nobody yet knows, including him. Meantime, remember John Paul Jones (who people forget was a Scot) “Surrender? We have not yet begun to fight”. Remember, “for as long as a hundred of us remain alive”. Well, Stu is still alive, so am I, so is Alex and so are you (or this is getting a bit scary). Let’s fight on.
Rev Stuart ,
Thank you for everything that you’ve done for all of us and for Scotland .
.
This may be the best tweet that I’ve seen so far regarding Wings , LOL .
.
“ Now that Wings is calling it a day, I wonder what they’ll talk about now at the NEC meetings.
#NoRegrets “
link to twitter.com
Correct Craig Murray, although, folk just giving the boy his due for the most part. Good luck
Kingu – you said “I’m done matching with AUOB as well, I’ve marched miles and miles for nowt so no more”. However, you may have noticed AUOB (who were pro-supermajority) have shifted the focus – the rally is going to be held outside Holyrood to pressure the Scottish Government, not Westminster as the focus was before. I think we should let them know we are breathing down their necks.
I will miss your acerbic wit and incisive commentary. Find something that you enjoy doing and live the rest of your life, in the knowledge that you have made a valuable contribution to Scottish political discourse. As to that other blogger you mention, lower than the shit on a miner’s shoe.
I voted Labour/Alba and if more of us did that, then you would still be marching. I don’t usually vote at-all, but I made an exception this time.
I also read Guido Fawkes, but this is better. Probably the number-one journalist of our time. On a par with the Washinton Post. It’s just a shame that our government are so shite.
Returnofthebodysnatchers @ 2.54 am ,
“” However, you may have noticed AUOB (who were pro-supermajority) have shifted the focus – the rally is going to be held outside Holyrood to pressure the Scottish Government, not Westminster as the focus was before. I think we should let them know we are breathing down their necks. “
The only problem is that the rally will be held on a Saturday when there’s no bloody Msps in the Parliament building .
Not much I can add to the heartfelt tributes here, but as a reader & occasional contributor since summer 2014, I’ll really miss Wings.
Thank you for all your work – maybe put some of the funds towards maintaining a site archive?
Your name will be high on the roll of honour when Sturgeon DOES fall. Could this be the first wobble?
WHAT ABOUT THESE SEX ALLEGATIONS?
link to yoursforscotlandcom.wordpress.com
Well since it’s the last post I should make my last comment.
I’m disgusted and deflated, knowing what a bunch of rogues and idiots comprise my homeland. Scotland will not become independent, because it was true all along – we cannae dee it on oor ain. It’s over for me, there’s no point in creating a country of losers. Half the voting population too stupid to use their list vote effectively. Sheer ignorance up and down the country. Insufferable incompetence in Holyrood. Seeing David Davis stand up in Westminster was a turning point for me; the clarity of what he said, the integrity, it contrasted so sharply against anything that I hear from any Scottish minister. It’s a joke. It’s a glorified regional council with powers beyond its operational competence. It’s a sham, and a scam.
The rich exploited Scotland long ago, enslaved its uprooted and culturally untethered people into a compliant self hating drudge, and ethnic cleansed the proud Gaelic remainder who would not be slaves. You have to get out of Scotland to see it for what it is. Miserable. Pessimistic. Judgemental. Comparative. Ashamed. Intolerant. Petty. Devoid of a sense of identity and cohesion. Individualist. Unkind. Greedy.
Independence and national glory was a folly. This is a pacified backwater firmly under English control. What remains of its people can make but token reference to tartan and whisky, and call it a nation while they cringe.
It’s been entertaining to follow Wings, I’ll miss it, but I’m glad it’s coming to an end. I think it’s the right decision. The exposure of this much hypocrisy and stupidity by those meant to be leading a cause I believed in has taken its toll on me, it must have driven Stu mad. It’s a lost cause, and not worth the mental energy. Life is too short. Time to accept that my country is a non country, my people are a non people, and focus on reality.
Thanks Stu.
If there is a an AUOB march on holyrood,will anyone be selling
bags of shit? (not the smoking kind)…the throwing kind!
It’ll be just like them olden day’s…Aaaah!
Thanks for all your hard work Stuart, I for one will miss Wings. At least I can live with disappointment, its hope that kills you.
Sad news indeed.
Sometimes the odds are just stacked too heavily against you. You can’t say that you haven’t tried.
The Establishment conspired to create an atmosphere of fear and doubt to wreck the positive message of the referendum in 2014.
In 2021 the Establishment conspired to destroy the career and reputation of the only person capable of pushing the indy movement forward. First a failed attempt to jail Alex Salmond, then a more successful plan to ruin his reputation and finally a very successful campaign to prevent his flegdling party from getting any media air time.
In 2014 the Establishment was Westminster.
In 2021, the Establishment is the SNP hierarchy.
It’s not how I imagined the new Scotland to be.
Totally gutted to hear this news, but definitely can’t blame you.
I hope the true pro-indy bloggers pick up the slack to continue real forensic journalism (not just opinion pieces), ps: WGD that comment doesn’t apply to you!!!!
I’m with others on the indy fighting fund – can’t remember how much is there but I’d happily tell you to go live in the sunshine or open a squirrel sanctuary.
Adios amigo, hope something happens in the next 5 years that makes you want to get back on the horse.
ps: I agree that all the Wings articles should be preserved and published, if nothing else to document the fall from grace of the SNP in 7 short years.
I think my finest memory of being a Scot is going to be invading the pitch at Wembley in 1977 and taking their goalposts.
And it looks like it was all downhill after that.
This just shows you where Sturgeon’s priorities lie.
She brought down the ALBA Party at the election, and then is a major factor in bringing down the mighty Rev Stu.
Those two were probably Scotland’s best chance of winning her Independence.
Maybe if we had concentrated on bringing down Sturgeon at the last election, the Rev Stu might still be around.
But there were those on Wings who had their own selfish agenda and decided to get fully behind keeping Sturgeon and her SNP in government.
Oh how you must be regretting that inexplicable action.
And now, the rest is history, as they say.
Stuart Campbell, To my regret I only discovered Wings in March 2020. You have helped me make sense of what I was thinking. You have my utmost respect.
Stuart, thank you.
Very sad… But this time they slaughtered us…
Your talent as a writer is through the roof. I count you and by the finest writers I ever read. A kind of a political hip-hop that was mostly rap and worked with inescapable logic sitting on facts. And occasional tempers… Maybe a book would be a good thing. It would sell and it would be brilliant to see you at the Edinburgh Book Festival. Or Haye.
It’s a miserable morning, here in Edinburgh. It will provide the right setting for the sadness of processing what you have just written.
The truth is, this new reality is going to have to be lived. And the other side has just gubbed us
Don’t stop using your talent with words Stu. It was right there from the beginning of your gaming reviews. Here’s something I love from Samuel Beckett… Another hero of mine. Take care and respect.
“I don’t know: perhaps it’s a dream, all a dream. (That would surprise me.) I’ll wake, in the silence, and never sleep again. (It will be I?) Or dream (dream again), dream of a silence, a dream silence, full of murmurs (I don’t know, that’s all words), never wake (all words, there’s nothing else).
You must go on, that’s all I know.
They’re going to stop, I know that well: I can feel it. They’re going to abandon me. It will be the silence, for a moment (a good few moments). Or it will be mine? The lasting one, that didn’t last, that still lasts? It will be I?
You must go on.
I can’t go on.
You must go on.
I’ll go on. You must say words, as long as there are any – until they find me, until they say me. (Strange pain, strange sin!) You must go on. Perhaps it’s done already. Perhaps they have said me already. Perhaps they have carried me to the threshold of my story, before the door that opens on my story. (That would surprise me, if it opens.)
It will be I? It will be the silence, where I am? I don’t know, I’ll never know: in the silence you don’t know.
You must go on.
I can’t go on.
I’ll go on.”
Sorry Stu… Very sad.
Predictive text changes things… I wrote
I count you among the finest writers I have read.
It’s been a privilege.
What a loony. Once I considered this the best indy site. I am now questioning everything it ever reported that I believed.
Elaine says:
13 May, 2021 at 7:58 am
“What a loony. Once I considered this the best indy site. I am now questioning everything it ever reported that I believed.”
Why?
Gutted!!!
There has to be a book Rev.
With final chapter dedicated to every thread and comment ever made on Wings.
Stu, free speech on the internet will soon be eliminated ,
`Liberal` Canada in the process of regulating the internet,
…called the Trudeau Liberals the most “anti-internet government in Canadian history,”
a group hellbent on erecting what he calls the “great Canadian internet firewall.”
The government wants to be able to block websites it determines Canadians should not see, remove content posted in Canada without any independent review, and to regulate your video postings using the CRTC (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission),
This is all part of super woke Justin Trudeau`s intention of shutting down any free speech criticising the self id cult,
if super woke Trudeau is doing it then super woke She/Her will be doing it,
i`m sure She/Her and her nose ringed gestapo had closing you down in their sights anyway.
I said my fond farewells last night and never slept a wink since.
Should we worry about the job losses due to Stuart’s announcement?
All those creepy 77th Brigade Soldiers and MI5 Spooks now redundant that
they can’t monitor this site and troll their well polished boots off.
What will so many fake journalist do without the Rev to do all the spade work for them?
Boris will ensure they eventually get starvation welfare from universal discredit
special ones may well get a PPE contract if they don’t know enough about it.
Al-Stuart…You seem a tad obsessed..with this so called Troll..lol
Thanks for the last 10 years Stuart. Wings IS the real mainstream media for the independence movement, we’ll have to try to reinvent it. All the best to you.
Got me wondering Rev Stu…
We have so many talents in the YES movement which are either dormant already, going dormant or are actually debunked.
I have a notion in my head that maybe ALBA might be the answer.
Yes, ALBA the political Party, the one and the same, but not just a political party.
What if ALBA didn’t just grow as a political entity, but diversified into crossover areas which we’re almost doing already, but not quite.
I’m thinking, what if ALBA maintained a discussion forum, with Wings type topicality, but a team running the theme more like the Corrections and Disclaimer service we were meant to be getting from the SNP.
I’m thinking we have your spectacular Wee Blue Book digitised and supported with Phantom Power video inserts, and maintained and updated as an online resource… perhaps linked to Zarkwan graphics, car stickers and posters output. Almost to the extent there’s a Campaign package literally sitting there on standby and ready to go.
An archive too would be a great boon to us. An online database of all the relevant documents and sources relevant to Scotland’s predicament. Not just the big ones like the Declaration of Arbroath etc, but the nitty gritty things, like the UN documents and standards which will dictate where the finishing line for Independence actually is. And if these documents are heavyweight legalese, have them explained in layman’s terms accessible to all.
That database would address too the issues of Scottish currency, defence etc… Not presented as finite objectives, but maybe as a discussion forum where Economists present their own proposals and cross examine those people with differing opinions.
What we should be doing is hosting the live Leaders debate Scotland should be having, but not as a fickle broadcast, but a structured, minuted debate where an online resource is developed so that non-economists can tune in, research, and go away much better informed. Done well, this ALBA Hub could easily I think become a definitive voice informing the Independence process.
We might have the economy discussed and debated by Economists.
We might have the Constitution discussed and debated by Constitutionalists.
We might have Governmental Reform discussed by Civil Service and Administration people.
NOT discussed by politicians and charlatans, but arguments structured to produce more light and less heat.
We could literally go through every portfolio of Independent Scottish Government and the salient arguments drawn out and made available for scrutiny and education. If issues are contentious, then present both sides dispassionately so that people can debate rationally and perhaps find compromise. No trolling, or acrimonious criticism, but rigorous scrutiny so that people can follow a train of thought as it evolves.
ALBA could then perhaps produce an annual book, like a Wee Blue Book, but taking this “living” online resource and community out of people’s computers and in through their letterboxes and shared around like the Wee Blue Book was.
We don’t stop with ALBA just being a political party, we build, build, build… We build an ALBA community, and ALBA archive and library, an ALBA research body, and ALBA communication hub, and ALBA vocabulary for our flags, leaflets, car stickers and billboards.
We turn ALBA into a living time capsule, so that Archeologists in 1000 years could did up an ALBA Wee Book and never need to look further to know what the Nation of Scotland was all about.
Let us work together and do a thing that has never been done before. That is when Scotland is at it’s best.
Let’s work towards getting the Scottish population the best informed, the most literate and well briefed population we can possibly manage. That might sound pie in the sky, but it was happening back in 2014. Scots people who had never voted before were waking up and clamouring for information. YES 2014 had the Heineken factor, it was reaching people nobody else had ever reached.
Don’t go dormant on us Rev Stu. Change. Evolve. Find a way to do what you do well and enjoy, but ditch the stress loadings which get to you, and find a way to isolate yourself fromnegativity which turns a constructive joy into an ordeal when idiots want to shoot the messenger, or trolls who just want to create more pus in a wound.
We need to turn ALBA into a much bigger project than just a political party.
Speak to Alex Salmond Rev Stu. Have another pint in that beer garden with the wee Robin. See how we can turn ALBA into a YES monster which puts the fear of god into Westminster Government and Unionism.
Fk the SNP. Fk their crooks. Fk their liars. Fk their carpetbaggers. Fk their pervy weirdos and Jack booted monumental imbeciles. They are not the next chapter in Scotland’s evolution.
My eternal thanks for all you have done for Scotlands cause.
You will be a hard act to follow.
Very sorry to hear you’re calling it a day, Stu, but totally understand. I’ve been reading your blog since about 2013 and greatly admire your forensic journalism and forthright manner (smiley face). I will miss my daily reading of Wings, both your articles and the contributions of others btl. I’m pretty depressed about the future of Scotland at the moment. Like others who comment here, I’m old enough to think I might never see my country free from colonial rule. It angers and saddens me that the reason for that lies with fellow Scots, especially those who are in thrall of the Nicola cult. Thank you very much for all your hard work. It has been greatly appreciated by many and the Little Blue Book was beyond brilliant. I hope there will be a reason for you to return in the future. Best wishes and take care.
Breeks @ 8.20 Just posted my message to Stu, feeling a bit depressed, then read your post and there’s a chink of light on the darkness. Thank you! Think these are great ideas.
Try to keep your archives Rev if you do jack it. That would be a real tragedy if all that was lost.
Not just for the articles themselves but the hundreds of thousands of comments. Lots of really insightful comments flowered in there between the usual weeds.
Well I found you late in the day, but am very glad to have done so eventually. I will miss my first thing in the morning read. Congratulations on your workmanlike journalism. When I moved to Scotland it was still running under Alex Salmond’s influence and I was overjoyed to find it. Sadness now as I’ve watched the rot set in over the years, unmistakable after living through Thatcher’s destruction of the Conservative Party and Blair’s destruction of Labour. So no doubt Boris and Nicola will forge their way through the decency and caring that characterised Scotland and come out richer the other side (well maybe not Boris). Good luck my acerbic friend, thank you. Be safe. Really.
Au revoir Super Hero of the Scottish people…but not adieu!
May ALBA take wings and ride the wind of change.
May the torrent of freedom wash clean our streets.
«Our eternal message of hope is that dawn will come.»
Martin Luther King, Jr.
The hottest summer on record?…here’s hopin.
Stu, thanks for all you’ve done – it’s been a good journey!
All the best.
Been following you since you started back in 2011. Thank you for all you have done, even the unpalatable stuff. Rarely do you get anything wrong and you back up your opinions with facts. I hope we will see you back in the game towards the end of this year as that would mean progress is occurring. Awrabest.
link to youtube.com
If you’re going go with a big bang! In my view your biggest impact was through the ‘Wee Blue Book’. How about an expose of the current SNP in ‘Wee Blue Book’ form? I’m sure you’ll have plenty of people to share it once events such as AUOB get going again.
Thank you for everything. It’s been quite a journey and your impeccable journalism has helped it make sense.
Best I can say for now is – even the word hopeless has hope in it (sorry Red Dwarf). Dark times ahead but the only way is onwards.
Regarding the 45,000 votes for ALBA.
If that is not the true result then it only confirms what I have always suspected about the veracity of the vote in 2014.
In which case even when we win, we lose. Rigged game.
If that is the true result and only 45,000 people out of the entire wings readership voted ALBA2 on the list (and it does sound very implausible when I write that out) then the game really is over anyway.
So the way I see it 45,000 tells its own story one way or the other and we are wasting our time playing this game. At least for the next few years…
I also echo the warnings to the Rev. Watch your back. It is when you leave the public eye that they think you are vulnerable. Just ask Alex.
If you had dipped your toes into middle eastern politics in the same way Alex Salmond did, Jeremy Corbyn did, Craig Murray does, George Galloway does and Julian Assange did I am sure you’d be warming a prison cell somewhere.
You are well out of this Rev. This is a very dirty game it seems.
Don’t see any comments/condolences/thanks from the likes of AUOB.
Don’t tell me this lot are one of the Rev’s non-believers?
The Yes Movement is now split into a thousand factions.
In 2014 we were as one.
That is the big difference from today’s Yes Movement.
And Sturgeon says, “The more splits, the better.”
Divide and Conquer!!!
I remember reading wingsland, before Wings over Scotland had started! When was that??? I still come here every day to read even though I left Scotland a good while ago. Yes, this is one of the best news sources there is.
I think that the community is greater than one person, or it should be. The movement is too fragile if it depends on irreplaceable individuals. No-one is irreplaceable. Think about sustainability, sharing the load, but in a way that is organised and structured in a resilient way that it can manage key players being lost; that prevents entryism and poisoning.
Rev Stu has set the bar high for logical dissection of the facts; for scientific and rational principles; for giving references that actually back up the point being made; for having the confidence to state “prove me wrong if you can” and then listening if new information is presented. These are powerful tools to fight against corruption, lies, manipulation, ignorance, vested interests. But he’s not the only person in Scotland who can do that, I hope!
Thank you Stu for starting something off… I look forward to seeing how it grows and develops now the training wheels have been taken off!
Good luck everyone.
Rev
Reading Breeks post @ 13 May, 2021 at 8:20 am, he’s touched on something that I was thinking about.
I don’t entirely understand what Breeks is proposing but Wings is more that a political blog it’s almost become an institution it’s a huge resource with a massive readership, it would be a tragedy to throw it away,
I completely understand how you’re feeling, but maybe it can be repurposed into something else such as what Breeks is suggesting, I’m not really smart enough to put forward any viable proposals but there are some on here who are.
Thia is a sad day. I don’t think anyone will be able to fill the gap you’ll leave. I hope you find some way to continue commenting on the state of things. Many thanks for all you have done and I hope you can now have a chance to find time for yourself. But please find some way of keeping the channels open. You are still the best guy on the blocks. xx
Well Stu, take that holiday, to Rio or anywhere of your choice cos you’ve definitely earned it.
I hope you get your Mo Jo back and feel it is worth kick starting the whole battle for our Independence come November.
I am sure the whole cause would recognize how invaluable your contribution has been and would be in any future campaign.
Stay SAFE and look after yourself and your loved ones.
I am regretful of the fact that I gave money to the WGD, after his first husband died, when he needed money to move house, after his stroke, and for his new house…
I would appreciate it if you could hold a fairwell fundraiser – and donate a proportion of it to your friend – who was so upset by the actions of WGD.
Sometimes actions speak louder than words, and this particular action would be very positive, and positively piss off certain – as it turns out – deeply poisonous individuals, at the same time.
Cheers Stu. I was more than happy to have contributed to Wings – great value! In a way, Wings shutting shop and Alba not securing any seats (still can’t get my head round that one) is making me feel even more determined to keep going. All the very best and good luck.
Lets see if Alba can provide some hope for the future.
Step one – stop focusing on the pronounciation of Alba as a start point. 99.999% will pronounce it as Alba. Americans pronounce Edinburgh as Edinburg. No big deal. Alalpa? Stop wasting time looking petty. Ghlaschu?
Rev
Sorry that you have decided to call it a day. I’ve had an unusual relationship with Wings over the years but I have always found your posts and comments to be interesting, relevant and sometimes provocative. Which is exactly what a blog should be.
Good luck to you in whatever you decide to do with your time now -and thank you.
Sad news. Best wishes from Pixie wine aka Dog biscuit.
It’s really starting to sink in now 🙁
This is a sad day, but I can understand Stu wishing to step back from the site. I’ve been visiting the site since 2015 & It’s where I go to first each day. I’m going to miss it.
Stu, I wish you all the the best in whatever you decide to do in the future. Stay safe, be happy & enjoy the free time you will now have.
Cheers Lisa
I have long been of the opinion that the SNP, or at any rate, the controlling clique that make up the Scottish government have no intention of securing independence. The expression “independence” is a useful slogan, like “Persil washes whiter”. It attracts the support of those who truly do think that being independent again is worth the trouble. For the clique however, independence and its supporters, and voters, is a means of staying in power. In some ways that is just as well. For that clique have shown themselves to be self-serving, corrupt, incompetent and financially promiscuous. None of which would serve the people in a banana republic, let alone our beloved country.
Thank you, Breeks @8.20am, for some glimpses of a possible constructive way forward. Some great ideas there.
And the entire Wings content has to be saved, kept available for future reference, and deposited in the National Archives as essential documentary insight into what happened before and after the 2014 referendum. Some of it will need to be used in evidence when the crimes of NewSNP are finally subjected to scrutiny and untainted justice.
Some of the fighting fund could be used to assist with archiving, although plenty of us would happily pay an annual subscription to maintain access in future. And, goodness knows, the Rev deserves far more financial reward than he has ever taken or been offered — especially in these last two years without a fundraiser. So different from those who shamelessly hold out the begging bowl to their hypnotised followers.
And just ask, Rev, if there’s a new project that would pay the bills, give your skills the audience they continue to deserve and be satisfying, without all the stress and misery.
Meanwhile, have a good holiday away from it all, but please don’t allow WoS to vanish down the memory hole. For as long as a hundred of us remain, we refuse to love Big Sister.
Breeks like what you’re saying turn the negative into a positive
Thinking about the archive more.
It is not just obviously an archive of your posts.
It is an archive of what happened.
It is a factual, journalistic ‘diary’ of events leading up to 2014 and events after 2014. It documents it all over nearly a decade.
The rise and fall (to be) of the SNP and the colossal betrayal and stitch-up of the man who took us to within a whisker of YES in 2014 (and very probably did).
It is all there for anyone who wants to read it. Not just the articles but all the responses of the time…
And then you consider how many links the Rev put into EVERY article… wow.
It is a historical treasure trove.
I say you should keep it.
Saw this coming as have been feeling the same way myself about Scottish politics. Almost a decade of avid engagement and nothing but a bleak wasteland ahead. Agree with your sentiments, Wings has a lot to be proud of and has left nothing out there to second guess about in the twilight years. Thanks for your integrity and tireless work, I hope your read through these comments and see your efforts rightly heralded. Wings typified all that is good about alternative media, hopefully a blueprint others will follow in the future.
I had my doubts for a while, in the early days of Stu’s revelation that Sturgeon was not the messiah and we were all being duped
But you were right Stu, so terribly right. And I apologise for my doubts.
I’ve set up a FB group called ALBA RISING for anyone looking for a FB home, it was all I could think to do. Maybe see a few of you there.
Otherwise… well, the Indy movement is fucked for now. Hope something, anything, happens and Stu is inspired to return to the fray in the Autumn.
This is another state sponsored «initiative» on behalf of BigPharma (MegaBucks) inc that needs fixing.
link to thenational.scot
What next, the Dreghorn variant?
ENOUGH!
Stu-I sympathise and understand the position you now find yourself in.
You can only bang your head against a brick wall for a certain length of time before it simply gets too painful.
Independence is now dead in the water. No sane, educated Scot will vote for it under the leadership!! of Sturgeon and her incompetent acolytes. Other than the brain dead 30% of Scots of course who are unable to see what has happened and is happening. Eventually the penny will drop and Sturgeon will depart but I fear that, by that time, the damage will be irreparable for 20 years or so. The London establishment and media have enough dirt on the Murrells to use when it is required.
I must admit I have never been that bothered about ‘politics’ for most of my life as have been too busy forging a career, bringing up the weans and getting a game of golf when I could, but I have taken an interest in the last 5 years. Like you, this has now passed as I understand that you can’t ‘beat the system’. Some may view our actions as defeatist but life is too short and I intend enjoying time with the ‘grandweans’ whilst I can.
All the very best to you and thanks for your efforts.
If someone said to me I am studying the rise and fall of the Scottish Independence movement in the years before and after 2014 you cold quite safely say to them just go read this blog chronologically from start to now.
Not only would it capture all the key events and far more it would let you actually live it at the time and what it felt like and feels like now.
I would be very happy / proud to put my name to a body of work like this blog.
.
Dandee/Rock/Gordon,
You write that I am “a tad obsessed” with Trolls like you.
I disagree. I am fucking furious with you and your ilk. You are deliberate website disrupters.
If you READ my concerns about your disgusting Troll tactics of calling SNP1/Alba2 voters PEDOS and their wives WHORES, you dishonest creeps might care to answer that point rather than invariable follow your 77th script and distract, distract, distract. Admit you have been rumbled. Apologise for the BENT way in which you operate? Then fuck right off.
If this were normal real-world society you and your lot would have been arrested. Indeed you may well end up in the same crap as the squaddies yesterday who murdered innocent civilians in Ireland and for whom Boris Johnson offered a limp apology.
The same squaddies that end up arrested and charged with murder, the same applies to BENT undercover cops, the unlawful activity of whom the Met has to pay £425,0000 in compensation for institutionalised police lawbreaking. Rev Stuart Campbell hit that nail right on its head with his valedictory post at the top of this thread.
But worst of all “Dandee”, you and your squaddie Trolls have obstructed/distracted/debased legitimate debate on this site. Your are as bad as the BENT and CORRUPT Sturgeonite crooks.
Wings BTL used to be a great PLACE TO GET CAMPAIGN IDEAS AND OTHER INITIATIVES STARTED.
Yet for a year now you and your lot do your level best to kill off Indy progress.
You have been found out and CALLED OUT. “Dandee” – your lot of Dad’s Army 77th Brigade DON’T LIKE IT UP ‘EM. 🙂
Now you can fuckity fuck right off. YOU will get called out for what you are, what you do and why you do it. The more folk who read Wings, especially the next 6 months of Wings owner being OFF DUTY and the site becoming a dormant research facility, the more it will become apparent what slithering reptiles like you really did for keeping SCOTLAND’s resources locked into the British State.
Many of us cannot do much about the BENT BBC or corrupt MSM who blacked out and blocked any mention of the Alba Party and the BBC MSM corruption of Scottish politics – keeping a legitimate party out of parliament.
But some of us can SURE DO SOMETHING when BritNat disruptors walk into the virtual Wings Living Room, sit down, uninvited, on the metaphorical couch and call everyone here PEDOS and WHORES. Irony overload when you lot own the closeted bunch of dishonest sex pests such as Nicola’s heir-apparent Derek Mackay, the 40 year old MSP caught chatting up straight, 16 year old school boys.
The fact Craig Murray is sentenced to jail, yet Derek MacKay has NO criminal charges for grooming young boys is such an obvious example of why chief constable Iain Livingstone is unfit to hold office and the Clown Office needs absolute overhaul.
Instead of discussing and actioning real issues of importance like the collapse of institutional leadership as highlighted by Alex Salmond at the Fabiani Witewash, we have “Dandee” aka Rock, aka Labour4Indy in duty to distract. When you come of here with your amateur and relatively obvious sock-puppet FAKE-ID accounts, it is a pleasure to warn everyone of who and what you are.
What you won’t have realised is that for some, each time you do your Troll crap…
A). Alba gets a donation.
B). Former police colleagues engage in further action to unmask your illegality,
C). Efforts are made to get back on topic.
I conclude this post by demonstrating an ON-TOPIC matter. The fact that certain events will get Wings back on track in November.
One example to relieve the pain-in-the-arseness of you and your ilk is to RECOMMEND Winger read Breeks excellent post…
link to wingsoverscotland.com
For old times sake
And in the spirit of WOS
One last post from me
This is for all those reading with pleasure of the end of Wings
And we know you are here
Here’s your leader talking about HAVING A MANDATE for an independence referendum
In 2017
link to twitter.com
At what point will you get it, dumbfecks?
The political lights are going out all over Scotland
And at 69 they may not be lit again in my lifetime
Enjoy the rest of your lives, folks
Me
I’m off to start Ian Rankin’s latest
“A Song For The Dark Times”
Stu. Take Care and good luck with whatever you do next. We’re going to miss you, but we do understand.
I remember reading Wingsland, before Wings over Scotland had started! When was that??? I still come here every day to read even though I left Scotland a good while ago. Yes, this is one of the best news sources there is.
I think that the community is greater than one person, or it should be. The movement is too fragile if it depends on irreplaceable individuals. No-one is irreplaceable. Think about sustainability, sharing the load, but in a way that is organised and structured in a resilient way that it can manage key players being lost; that prevents entryism and poisoning.
Rev Stu has set the bar high for logical dissection of the facts; for scientific and rational principles; for giving references that actually back up the point being made; for having the confidence to state “prove me wrong if you can” and then listening if new information is presented. These are powerful tools to fight against corruption, lies, manipulation, ignorance, vested interests. But he’s not the only person in Scotland who can do that, I hope!
Thank you Stu for starting something off… I look forward to seeing how it grows and develops now the training wheels have been taken off!
Good luck everyone.
Ian says:
13 May, 2021 at 9:20 am
Lets see if Alba can provide some hope for the future.
“Step one – stop focusing on the pronounciation of Alba as a start point. 99.999% will pronounce it as Alba.”
Aye, and incomers and snobs pronounce our local gala “Guid Nychburris” as Good Neighbours, stating that “geed neeburs” is slang – it’s a way to erase our native language. Who calls the Arc de Triomphe The Arch of Triumph? Surely if other countries can keep their language, we can keep ours – all of them.
Any intelligent person realises the rarity and feels the deep value of truth. They also understand how scarce integrity is,in positions of influence.
You have long lived and displayed the highest human values and have my respect for that.
I would hope that everyone would encourage you to keep any remaining money to support that life of a most honest man.
Like many I’m sure…..I would hope to meet you some day.
Scot Finlayson says:
13 May, 2021 at 8:13 am
I believe it is referred to as “Tranada” these days.
Wings is the real opposition in Scottish politics. Enjoy your break, but we need you to return and hold the new SNP to account.
So very sorry to hear this news. With your departure the dream of Independence goes into hibernation for a very long time. Probably more years than I have left to me.
There are not many consolation in this, but every day I know I read the truth from a guy who really cares about Scottish Independance. You disturbed people’s comfort and tried to open their eyes to truths they were not ready to hear.
I walk away from the battlefield, disconsolate but not defeated . After all In still breathing.
I won’t say goodbye Stu. Just cheerio.
Hold your head high.The independence movement is on life support for now but it will need help in future however small that contribution may be from yourself.
I will never forget the part you played. A giant then. A giant now. May the God of your understanding go with you.
For freedom.
As mentioned by others utterly sad to hear but was inevitable.
Take care Rev and all the best in your future endeavours.
In terms of Mr Kavanagh, WOS has driven and pushed forward the indy blogosphere which has filtered down even to it’s detractors. Without the Revs work, most of them would be just vapid echo chambers.
Without the Rev, the WGD site just going to keep churning out article about wheeshting for indy and his readership is going to turn into a bunch of toothless old hens clucking to each other. With such banality, the readership will slowly fall away and he’ll be forced to leave the blogosphere himself.
Al stuart..I dont know who you think your speaking to, I just said your a bit obsessed, so please dont label me the same as the Troll.
I might speculate that Alba failed because Alex began far too late.
Too late for our internal network to spread the word.
We don’t rely on the established media to message indy supporters.
We rely on some other, as I said…internal movement networking.
And I suspect it works a bit more slowly than online anoraks expect.
Another reason was Alex’ failure to stand with the true message, however unpalatable to some, that we are against Sturgeon leadership.
Pandering to SNP voters. Almost afraid of any onslaught for such a position. But that should have been the real position.
Truth and/or clarity were missing from the start. Replaced my muddled ideas of supermajority which failed to address the reality of Sturgeon’s resistance.
I read on twitter yesterday evening that you were calling it a day and I can tell you last night was the worst night’s sleep I’ve had since September 2014 after returning from the count in Buckie as one of WoS count agents.
Thank you for everything you’ve done and always remember this blog and the WBB turned more people from NO to YES than any of the mealy mouthed nonsense from our so current so called Indy politicians and leaders.
As for any money left in the coffers I’ve donated to every crowd funder and i think you should keep the money. I don’t care how much it is, what you’ve done has been more valuable to the Indy cause than the green bench warmers we’ve sent to WM for the past 6 years on £70K plus expenses.
Jim McIntosh, Forres
Al stuart.If you check I’m very rarely on here,and your as bad as the Troll your obsessed with, defamation of character comes to mind.
Never going gently into that good night, never shuffling to doom – but skidding in sideways saying “What a helluva ride!”
That’s the way to live right enough and Wings Over Scotland covered everyone in its rooster tail – it’ll take a long time for that dust to settle – what an education.
It’s a sair dunt, but I’m glad I was on board for the maddest backie I ever had – I don’t mind the skint nose and elbows – I’m wanting another go.
My sincere thanks to you and the best of luck! 10-10
Sad to see you go, Rev, very best wishes to you for the future.
So when do you start working full time for Alba , they must be aware that they too need a full time Ross Colquhoun ? And you would get to call yourself a “Strategist” instead of something far less savoury. Don’t let them just pay you minimum wage.
@Dandee 13 May, 2021 at 10:25 am
“If you check I’m very rarely on here,and your as bad as the Troll your obsessed with, defamation of character comes to mind.”
Sadly there are a whole lot of unhinged people on this page, it seems to be all they have in their lives, don’t get sucked in by their obsession by continuing to feed the Trolls by giving them the attention they crave.
Red/Al Stuart
If you are going to accuse me of certain childish allegations, then surely I am due a right of reply, am I not?
Rev Stu is calling it a day, and the ONLY thing you can think about is your pathetic childish “list”.
Grow up.
You sad little man.
Your obsession with being the Wings gatekeeper is really worrying.
Try thanking the Rev for all his efforts, instead of posting the nonsense that inhabits your sad imagination.
You are actually disrupting the flow of the incoming comments regarding the closing down of Wings Over Scotland.
Red/Al Stuart,
No one is interested in your baby talk anymore. The days of you posting childish nonsense are well and truly over.
So either post something of relevance, or don’t post at all.
Thanks ever so much old chap.
Quite right Stu, you’ve done your bit, and as I said a few days back, the only way some are going to learn is the hard way, no matter how much you warn them what lies on the other side of the horizon.
Let Scottish nationalism reap the fruits of its ill gotten labours under the cult of Sturgeon and her Wokeratti allies, “consultants” and other Uriah Heaps with an eye for the main chance.
A nation gets the politics and politicians it deserves (see Northern Ireland for details) and since half a century of being screwed by Labour didn’t seem to get the message over, let Scotland fester in the mire of its own making.
Eventually they’ll realise – as Ireland did eventually (sort of) – that bleating “It’s all England’s fault!” or some other scapegoat no longer fools even themselves anymore – that if they want to know who bears the greatest responsibility for the state of affairs of their country, they need only look into a mirror.
Rarely a poster but have been reading for most of those 10 years.
Just want to say Thank-you for everything you have done.
Stu. I know I have had my moments with you (mainly due to my own drunken behaviour and being a bit of an arse) but, I am truly saddened by your departure. I completely understand your reasons for doing so however.
You have been a beacon of political truth in a world filled with deceit and your analysis will be sorely missed. You have taken grief from all comers and yet still you persevered. I can only hope that that raw grit, determination and dare I say, stubbornness drives you to change your mind and return renewed after taking a break from it all.
You will be missed. Take care and all the very best of health to you and yours. Haste ye back.
I personally have a lot in common with the Rev.
The two of us campaigned to bring down Sturgeon and her SNP, and we both want an independent Scotland.
So I will miss him dearly.
From personal experience, letting go as Stuart is wisely doing for all the best reasons, can be the necessary trigger to enable and define the next step.
Wings has been such a tremendous target and has focalised so much hatred. Its sudden absence could well expose the unmitigated, unethical spurious bile of this dictatorial minefield that has become the Scottish Government.
I am struggling to keep myself motivated. My consolation is that we have all become part of Scotland’s troubled history, so carefully documented by Stuart Campbell to whom we are all indebted. Our struggle and suffering is the continuation of the thorny road to self determination. At nearly 78, my dream of seeing Scotland raise the quaich in our free country (none of this devolution nonsense) is shattered but let us not forget our ancestors and the Declaration of Arbroath. As long as a hundred of us remain…. We must keep fighting on ???????
Sorry, I put the Saltire up, not all those question marks!
Just a thought.
It would be ironic that Mr Kavanagh, being Nicola Sturgeons number one cheerleader, gets a call from the Police under the Hate Crime Bill for inciting violence against the Rev by stating in this blog that he himself would stab him?
.
You were right Stu.
I see PayPal Paul Kavanagh has risen like Lazarus in preparation for his next fundraiser.
Wee Ginger seems to have quite regular fundraisers. Are his two years apart like Wings? Or are his readers fundraisers directly related to the Kavanagh blogs need to buy a conservatory?
Stu., did you buy a house from PayPal Paul type fundraisers?
In the Wee Ginger Dagger’s latest twisting of HIS truth, at his comments section, a brave soul swims through the river of sympathy-milking excrumentum and posts this question to PayPal-Paul…
Mungo Armstrong says:
May 12, 2021 at 7:55 pm
Can I ask you Paul why you decided to take it upon yourself to play detective rather than tell the person to contact the police with their concerns?
The answer from Paul?
Here are my Paypal details.
————————–
Stuart, you are doing absolutely the right thing. Who needs this shit? (You are not buying a conservatory soon are you?)
The SNP vote-fodder public will realise that Cosy Feet Pete and Nicola McWoke with her heir-apparent Derek “I thought the schoolboy was 21” MacKay are the careerist troughers and sex deviant charlatans we know them to be. All with their noses in a huge trough.
The SNP voting public can sort out their own mess. It will be interesting seeing the nightmare truth dawn on them as they slowly realise IndyRef2 is fucked and Derek MacKay wants to play pretend proctologists with those staunch Nicola worshippers as supported by her tribute act, the Wee Ginger Dagger in chief, Mr PayPal Paul.
Meanwhile Stuart, you will have a much nicer job back writing for the computer industry and we will have a four year sabbatical. Well those of us who make it that far. Unlike Wee Ginger Dagger, I don’t put a Paypal sign up when having to consider palliative care. Some of us compete the final furlong with our principles in tact. Not our words prostitued to the highest bidder. Eeuchh, that sympathy-signaling money-grabbing fleabag makes me want to have a shower.
A four year break with peace and quiet from Rock/tnuC/Andy/Franky/Labour4Sindy/Eugene Feckless/PoulticeJomes/Stainless Stools/Market Farces ad nauseum
Four years is the length of time it takes for these sheep fodder SNP voters to get their synapses to understand Wings was right and the SNP FM was a betrayer all along.
Mega popcorn sales time.
Thank you for all you have done. I wish you good health and a good life going forward.
Red,
If only some people on here would take some notice of your comments your movement could and probably would be further forward.
Rev Stu,
What you have done , even though we are at polar opposites on the question of Independance, actually was polar till I came here and read some of the more, how can I say it “sensible and realistic ” comments btl, is provide proof to me that proper investigative journalism rather than click bait harvesting does still exist.
Appreciate it’ll sound bizarre but in some ways you remind me of Glen Greenwald, who they are trying to cancel in the States for telling truths which are inconvenient to his overall argument, which kinda sums up how I feel about you. The notion nowadays seems to me if you agree with the ultimate goal you must not deviate in the slightest from the party whip and support unconditionally the party line in everything.
Anyway thank you sincerely for what you’ve done and I’m sure will doing the future. Away and get refreshed, live, love and laugh. Take Care.
Best Regards
Stuart
While seeking circulation figures I came upon this wee ad for the NUJ
National Union of Journalist
Working for a Healthy Scottish Media
I wondered for whom it was healthy.
Brent Crude near the $70 per barrel,
1,000,000 barrels from Scottish waters evey day,
that`s $70,000,000 every fricken day that should be contributing to Scotland`s social and economic well being,
Aberdeen should be the Houston of Western Europe , instead it is all siphoned dan saff to the ugly maw of London.
Yes its a very sad day but thank you Stu for all your truths on Scottish politics. I am 71 and probably won’t now see an independent Scotland in my lifetime which makes me so sad for my fellow Scots and those who have chosen to make Scotland their home. I don’t suppose anything will come out of the court case regarding Salmond against Evans and the Scottish gov. that will bring down the Murrels as I suppose it will be corrupted to save them and Evans as well. Never thought I would despise Sturgeon as much as I did Thatcher but there you go. Thank you again and enjoy the rest of your life, bye for now.
Stu
Spare a thought for us unlucky bastards who are going to be left behind in this shit hole they call Scotland.
Being here is no longer the living of a life, it is merely an existence.
At least you Stu will be out of it.
This is one of the worst countries in Europe to live in.
Bonnie Scotland, where have you gone to?
Optimism is getting scarcer but I think there will be an upswing from below, eventually. link to informationclearinghouse.info
@Breeks says 8.20am
“We need to turn ALBA into a much bigger project than just a political party.
Speak to Alex Salmond Rev Stu. Have another pint in that beer garden with the wee Robin. See how we can turn ALBA into a YES monster which puts the fear of god into Westminster Government and Unionism”
Great idea. Openness and transparency.
Your horses for courses points are so true. And as you say, there have been many outstanding comments made on this site over the years that should be stand-alone reference points for further discussion but tend to be lost in the myriad of (mostly) well-intentioned views expressed on each of Rev’s posts.
If a discussion forum could be set up and endorsed by ALBA, it would go a long way to fill the void that would be left by Wings – perhaps even encourage the Rev to continue in a less demanding role?
On the issue of an “archive”. In the UK a copy of every book published goes to the British Library for posterity. Newspapers are kept in library archives for ever and used for research. I’ve done a bit of that myself in the past. There is an issue in the digital world where valuable work, not in paper form can be lost.
I know nothing about how one would do this but the work of Wings needs to be saved and protected. It is a chronicle of one of the most momentous periods in Scottish history. Because we lived it means we probably don’t see it that way, but it is.
If you’re still reading this in Rio, Rev, organise it and send it to
National Library? People’s Palace? Mitchell Library? Bathgate Echo?
Anybody know how this works these days?
@Al-Stuart
PayPal Kavanagh. Classic.
Seriously though, it looks like Mr Kavanagh has been setup. He thought he would emulate his Mistress when he fitted up Alex Salmond and try to do the same with the Rev. Unfortunately it back fired and an individual has been severely hurt because of his arrogance and stupidity.
The problem is that while Mistress S has the power of the state behind her, all he has is his Fin Slaves. The seeds of doubt will be placed in their minds with this and with the steady stream of utterly banal and boring articles, these Fin Slaves will disappear a lot quicker than I had predicted in my previous post.
He won’t last long.
Wait a minute, I’m playing catch-up here.
What’s this about Kavanagh? Has he just tried to pull on RevStu another Salmond type sexual impropriety smear that is nothing more than gratuitous malicious fiction?
After all that’s gone on??? What a lowlife piece of shit.
Well Stuart, I’m very sad to read this, but not at all surprised. I don’t blame you one little bit for stopping. When you’ve been banging your head off a brick wall, ( and it has felt like that at times) it’s good to stop.
I feel the same as you, sad, disgusted, scunnered, was angry but past that now. Like some of the other posters, I’ve been here since 2012. We had a great community fighting for the same cause, we didn’t all agree, but there was a great deal of humour. Education as well from Robert Peffers. I’ve often wondered how he is doing as he was in his eighties and not in the best of health. Some have given up posting, some have passed away. Like some of the others, I’m in my seventies and sadly don’t think that I’ll see independence before I too shuffle off this mortal coil.
It’s so sad to see what’s happened to our country because of the Sturgeon cabal, who now will stop all this corruption.
I reckon that’s it for me as well. We’ve marched, given out leaflets, talked to people, but in the end, if they won’t listen and actually use their brains, what can we do.
Stuart, I wish you all the very best and wish you good health and good luck whatever you decide to do. Life is indeed too short. Thank you for all your hard work over the years. I hope that your friend recovers their health, must say I was shocked at the WGD, what the hell happened, I thought we were all n the same side.
Just print bind and get an ISBN number on the articles and you legally have to send them to NLS and NL – I think I had to send to a couple of others too – but don’t remember. Hard copies are always good to have.
A wee message to other Alba supporters and members out there to look up the Alba Rising page on Facebook. Things may look pretty bleak right now, but we have a five year struggle ahead and need alternative forums to regroup, organise and socialise.
See some of you there I hope?
Stuart, I started slipping away from activism about two years ago. I, along with you, could see the lumbering trolls with their misogynist cudgels battering their way into the SNP. It took the appearance of the Alba party for me to finally relinquish my membership – after reducing my monthly fee down to minimum.
I joined the SNP at the behest of Philippa Whitford so that I could be part of her 2015 campaign team and since then have attended most of the conferences. They were rapidly becoming gatherings of sheeple. It wasn’t long before it was blindingly obvious to anyone not blinkered to the front of the auditoria that the spads and other paid members of the SNP were being ushered in to votes whenever there was a marginal vote to be won for the top table.
I was a very active member of the Wings Stall team, for which Ronnie needs a huge pat on the back, and managed to be at most of them from 2013 onwards when work and health permitted. That was always a huge magnet at rallies and we spent a lot of time talking to “undecided” as well as the “definitely no” visitors and managed to turn more than a few to yes, as well as provide food for thought for the remaining haverers.
Great friendships have been made and there are now, sadly, a few who will not be with us IF we ever gain indy.
I’ll be waiting patiently for the 10 year anniversary and forlornly hoping for a glimmer of (that awful SNP word) hope that you will still be able to grit your teeth and gird your loins for a continuation of a standard of journalistic excellence that REALLY should be envied by those who claim to be “journalists” in the MSM.
Take care, stay safe and, most of all, keep Bath safe from those effing bears.
@ Breeks.
It looks like it and his latest entry could fall under the HCB of inciting violence with the following:
It is intended as a play on a well known saying and any normal person can see it is the same.
However, seeing how for example how the Rev got taken to court over comments he made that were taken out of context, could the same be done here where some may take the above comment literally and feel justified in actually doing it?
The HCB can have a lot of unintended consequences and people who thought they would never fall foul over it, will. Will Paypal Kavanagh be one of the first?
The real killer is not what you were led by the nose to believe.
link to thecritic.co.uk
«Throughout the overblown coronavirus “pandemic” narrative we’ve seen national governments all over the world use the phoney crisis to “temporarily” expand their powers.»
The temporary is likely to stay permanent…
link to off-guardian.org
Scotland, ahead of the crowd?
Stuart, I read your Farewell last evening and could not respond.
I am one of the many benevolent Lurkers to your many articles, occasionally putting my head above the parapet to help a Poster with Archiving and the occasional Link to any article relevant at that particular moment.
Fare Thee Well My Friend of the last eight years.
Jack
Breeks @ 11.35
read the article at the top of this thread.
To summarise, Dug heard a rumour about a friend of the Rev’s being in distress over something. He took it upon himself to phone a complete stranger to ‘find out if she was ok’ euphemism for ‘went digging dirt’ causing more distress and shock with serious consequences for Stu’s friend.
Dug is now digging a big hole with his blog trying to justify his sleazy actions but sleaze is sleaze and quite a few commentators are telling him that in no uncertain terms.
I’d call him a worm but it’s an insult to worms which are useful creatures.
PS loved your longer comment upthread – we have to take the Indy debate and try to steer it back on course and the reservoir of information in this website is a goldmine.
Kindle Desktop Publishing is the answer.
Convert every page on this site to a PDF file. Merge them, design a cover then upload to KDP.
The book will be print on demand so no surplus copies laying around and will be available 24/7 worldwide. There will be no whoring around and rejections from publishing houses.
It’s a 60/40 split. You get 60%, Amazon get 40% after all expenses have been met.
It can be done in a weekend.
Well Stu, I thank you for all the work you have put in over the years, and I have followed wings avidly since I was near you in the high street, in Edinburgh, when we all marched to Calton Hill. So I have really been with wings even before then.
So, I am going to miss you and all the many many articles you created over that time.It has been an huge effort in your part, and that is what people love from you, uncompromising and truthful.
There will be a big hole where you where. In our hearts and in our minds, it is going to feel much worse for us when we do not have you explaing events in the way you do.
However, I fully understand your reasons for this, it would get anyone down. So good luck and I hope good fortune follows you, in whatever path you take next.
Time for you to take care of your own interests and those around you. Again, I wish you good luck and a happy future.
I’ve read Wings from the beginning and only started commenting regularly a few weeks ago. Alas, no more. I supported the SNP for more than 55 years. Never again. Now It’s Alba all the way.
Will I see independence in my lifetime? Probably not, but I will continue the fight until my last breath.
With you by our side, Stu, it’s been an incredible journey. Thank you for everything and all the very best to you and your loved ones.
I’m glad Stuart has decided to do this.
I wouldn’t want to see another person being stitched up like Alex Salmond, Craig Murray etc. etc.
It seems the ‘She/Her cult’ are prepared to resort to very underhand methods to get rid of opponents.
Perhaps it’s time for opponents of the ‘She/Her Cult’ to go underground.
Something to research ‘Underground Press in the Digital Age’
Was it ever discovered who gave ‘The Wee Ginger Dug’ a donation of £20K?
To add to my previous comment, perhaps writing a book on your Wings experiences would be a good idea. Something we could all refer to.
Thank you for shining a light on the bits of Scottish politics that Holyrood and the media doesn’t want us to know about. The media here is a circus bought by the highest bidder. Is it any wonder trust in mainstream journalism has plummeted?
As a feminist, thank you also for your impassioned defence of common sense in the current, miserable gender wars. You didn’t have to say anything or stand up for the women being monstered all across social media and in real life, but you did, and you took enormous flack for doing so. Your principles make you one of the rare ones.
From the site’s recent increase in traffic, it’s clear that the content you write is sorely needed and necessary. No one else covers Scottish politics with wit and flair quite like you, so, selfishly, I hope your break won’t be permanent.
All the best, Stu, and enjoy your rest.
My respect and appreciation for all you have done in trying to further the cause of Scottish independence. In 2014 your Wee Blue Book actually helped me to switch my elderly mum and aunt from No to Yes. Hopefully, this is more of an Au Revoir than a goodbye forever, so ‘Haste ye back’ Stu. Until then, best wishes for the future.
Mist001, worth repeating that and maybe jumping up and down to get noticed!
katherine hamilton says:
13 May, 2021 at 11:29 am
On the issue of an “archive”. In the UK a copy of every book published goes to the British Library for posterity.
REPLY
I agree with you in your post. The information on this site needs to be archived for future generations.
I hope Rev Stu has backed up his site in full so that if it was ever to be taken down all information will be saved.
I don’t think the Rev Stu or many people here realize the historic relevance the information in this site will have in 10/20 years time. For the love of god. please preserve it.
It’s important that future generations have historical information of Scotland’s struggle for Independence.
The fact that there are so many Scots commentating adds to the history.
Generations to come will see the names of their fathers, mothers, grand parent & great grandparent.
It is imperative all contents of this 10 year blog is saved for prosperity.
Stu I hope you have this saved & the hard drive kept in a bank vault somewhere. This has been your life for 10 years. You are a legend, a true son of Scotland. Please for the sake of future generations keep this history safe.
Both you & Alex Salmond are true heroes in the fight for Scotland’s Independence.
All the best for you in whatever you decide to do. Be happy, enjoy the summer sun on your face this summer. Most of all enjoy more free time with the ones you love around you.
As a Scot living in NZ, I look on both you & Alex as Scotland’s heroes. History will be kind to you both. God Bless.
Can’t say I blame you Stu. I have never been more despondent about the prospects of independence than I am now. It’s highly unlikely I will see Scotland free from the control of Westminster in my lifetime. With your departure I can’t help feeling the bastards have won. You’ll be a huge loss to the cause.
Kindle Desktop Publishing – says Mist001 at 11.56. The whole Wings archive could be done in a weekend!
Rev, please consider this idea.
Mist001 says:
13 May, 2021 at 11:56 am
Kindle Desktop Publishing is the answer.
Convert every page on this site to a PDF file. Merge them, design a cover then upload to KDP.
The book will be print on demand so no surplus copies laying around and will be available 24/7 worldwide. There will be no whoring around and rejections from publishing houses.
It’s a 60/40 split. You get 60%, Amazon get 40% after all expenses have been met.
It can be done in a weekend
I doubt Stuart could archive everything in a weekend lol, but the share depends on pricing, formatting can be a bitch, but would be great to see , a timelined reference, just a pity if the comments couldn’t be added too, many contributors posted ones that opened my thinking, Robert Peffers was one, a man who if I remember right worked at Rosyth naval dockyards for many years, always had something worthwhile to say,
Mist001 says:
13 May, 2021 at 11:56 am
Kindle Desktop Publishing is the answer.
Convert every page on this site to a PDF file. Merge them, design a cover then upload to KDP.
The book will be print on demand so no surplus copies laying around and will be available 24/7 worldwide. There will be no whoring around and rejections from publishing houses.
It’s a 60/40 split. You get 60%, Amazon get 40% after all expenses have been met.
It can be done in a weekend.
Reply
Unlike you I don’t think Stu is looking to sell any pdfs on Amazon.
Stu has already produced ‘The Wee Blue Book’ so I’m sure he is aware of how to do it.
PS You don’t have to go to all the palaver of converting every page to a pdf file.
Save all files as .txt files and combine in Adobe Acrobat Pro to make a single PDF file.
Ian says:
13 May, 2021 at 9:20 am
Lets see if Alba can provide some hope for the future.
Step one – stop focusing on the pronounciation of Alba as a start point. 99.999% will pronounce it as Alba. Americans pronounce Edinburgh as Edinburg. No big deal. Alalpa? Stop wasting time looking petty. Ghlaschu
The only time I have heard it called Alapa was by Gaelic speakers from the outer isles, and we were force fed Gaelic in school and were never taught that pronounciation, I wonder if it came after Gaelic was standardised back in the 80s for teaching the same syllabus everywhere instead of differing dialects from different areas
Your reasons are understood.
The Scottish people will now have less protection from “arbitrary authority”.
We are less safe without Wings.
But you must look after yourself and owe no debt to anyone.
I am going to pront these words from AS:
“The competence and professionalism of the civil service matters. The independence of the Crown Office acting in the public interest matters. Acting in accordance with legal advice matters,” he said. “Concealing evidence from the courts matters. The duty of candour of public authorities matters. Democratic accountability through parliament matters. Suppressing evidence from parliamentary committees matters. And yes, ministers telling the truth to parliament matters.”
“However, the move to independence, which I’ve sought all my political life and continue to seek, must be accompanied by institutions whose leadership is strong and robust and capable of protecting each and every citizen from arbitrary authority.
“Such a principle is a central component of the rule of law that matters to every person in Scotland, as much as it always has done. It is the bedrock of our democracy of justice and fairness.”
You, Stuart, have performed a vital service and at great personal cost. I hope that you find some peace.
link to tns2019.org
They’ll be breaking open the champagne in Bute House.
Absolutely gutted.
You carried the flame for so long and against all the odds and in the teeth of the cruelest abuse.
You told the truth. The lemmings did not listen and are still not listening.
Thankyou Stu and good luck to you.
Ruby says:
You’re right of course Ruby. Mea culpa in interfering in this particular discussion.
I don’t know how many of you have Yes Cymru in your mailbox , I got their e-mail about their ‘tookit’ to enhance and promote the party and Welsh independence .
It looks like a good idea and certainly one which ALBA should check out.
Willie B says:
just a pity if the comments couldn’t be added too,
Reply
Bonjour Guillaume! 🙂
That would be easy!
Just highlight the whole page article & comments and save as .txt file
If you wanted hyper active links you would need to use text editor that preserved links
On a Mac it would be ‘Notes’
It would take time to archive all Wings files
Perhaps this would be something that should be divided up amongst Wings readers.
Stu mentions a 3 million pound bribe re media. Does anyone have a link to any info on this? Thanks
From Peter Bell: “I’m hardly the one to author a hagiography for Stu Campbell. And I reckon it’s not yet time for a eulogy. But if Wings Over Scotland is to be no more then that is a tragedy for the independence movement and for journalism. It is hard to imagine the Yes movement without Wings Over Scotland. There’s all too few places where you’ll find principled, responsible, forensic journalism such as Stu Campbell offered. Whatever else he may be, I believe Stu to be an honest and an honourable man. Perhaps not a likeable person. But I never wanted him as a friend. I wanted him as a voice. A voice that Scotland desperately needs. A voice that is in danger of being silenced entirely by the warring tribes. The voice of reasoned dissent.”
I am disappointed about losing your input as it has been a bit of sanity sadly lacking in Scotlant presently. However, I understand that there is no point going over the same old day after day only to attract the abuse you receive.
I do however your prediction about ALBA/ISP is wrong as we need an alternative to the SNP. It is really sickening when you critise the SNP to be told there is nobody (else) to vote for. It will be a tough battle as the ISP was critised for having no well known people and when ALBA came along it had the wrong well knbown people……………..
Anyway, Stu I wish you all the best in whatever you choose to do and hope someday the indy battle can be progressed.
Jim Bo says:
13 May, 2021 at 12:39 pm
Stu mentions a 3 million pound bribe re media. Does anyone have a link to any info on this? Thanks
Reply
Is it this?:
Scottish government announces £3m boost for newspapers
link to archive.is
Hopefully we can get some independence animation into Scottish politics and to put a twist on an earlier slogan;
Are You Alba Yet?
AYAY?
Stu don’t relinquish your rights to anyone to publish your material. Do it yourself. If you need financial help I would contribute.
Why should others benefit from your endeavours over 10 years?
This 60%/ 40% split is robbery. Stu kick this Idea to the kerb.
pixal says:
13 May, 2021 at 12:45 pm
afore ye go………
“what about all the money you crowd funded?”
Stu explained that this will be dealt with. Did you not read the article in full before commenting?
I woke up in the middle of the night Stuart feeling depressed. I think the enormity of your announcement yesterday had just started to sink in. The mine of information and the guidance which you provided will be sorely missed.
While you have a much deserved rest, the community which you have built here must not be allowed to die. I think that Breeks at 8.20am is on the right track. Expand ALBA into something much bigger and keep the flow of truthful information getting out to folk. Let’s build a base from which we can launch an independence campaign when the time comes.
Sturgeon and her clique can’t last forever, and we must remain alert and ready.
Ruby said at 11:59 am:
“I’m glad Stuart has decided to do this.
I wouldn’t want to see another person being stitched up like Alex Salmond, Craig Murray etc. etc….”
This morning Craig Murray has published his Medical Records
“————–My Medical Records——————–
In sentencing remarks, Lady Dorrian stated specifically that the sentence took account of my medical conditions, including pulmonary hypertension. To be clear, the court was informed by two doctors, one extremely distinguished who has treated me for over twenty years, of my medical conditions which include:…”
Craig Murray’s Blog:
link to craigmurray.org.uk
Had a look at Paypaul Kavanagh’s article – not been over there for a year. Wow what a spiteful, contradictory, shitty article.
I’ve posted this, I doubt it will stay up for long. There are some deeply nasty individuals over there. And a good few good’uns, not letting paypaul away with it.
‘He need not worry about that, because if in future I ever receive information detailing a similar allegation against him, I will call the police myself’
To be clear, on speaking to the potential complainant – you confirmed the ‘allegation’ was false, and very likely malicious, I would question the wisdom of wasting Police time with malicious allegations, or in the circumstances you describe above – what would amount to third hand malicious gossip, particularly as you have pointed out, Mr Campbell has many enemies.
But just think what you are saying here. You’ve received maliscious gossip about a person, confirmed it is untrue and on that basis, ‘if in future I ever receive information detailing a similar allegation against him, I will call the police myself’.
That is deeply, deeply spiteful.
‘All did was to carry out a basic and entirely ethical journalistic practice upon receipt of information- which I did not solicit – making an allegation of misconduct. If someone had shared information with Campbell alleging that I or anyone else on his long and ever lengthening list of enemies was guilty of a form of personal misconduct, he would have done exactly the same.’
Mr Campbell is one of the finest investigative journalists in the UK, you write opinion pieces. Your ‘following up on a lead’ looks awfully like trawling for dirt.
‘His laughable bullying threat to call the police on anyone who dares to try and ascertain whether there is any truth in an allegation of misconduct made against him…’
The allegation was untrue, and therefore malicious. This is the guy who repeatedly supported you and your website. You have a very short memory.
‘… merely demonstrates that in Campbell’s eyes when a woman makes an allegation of misconduct against a powerful man, the allegation should be instantly dismissed without any scrutiny or investigation.’
Well, when its you who is being falsely and maliciously accused, I’d suggest that’s a reasonable position to take, but out of interest – who hired you to provide the scrutiny or investigation – your niche is in opinion pieces, and witty, cutting comments.
‘… I will leave you to draw your own conclusions about what this tells us about his much vaunted “standing up for women’s rights’.’
As a woman, or as you would classify it, cis woman (cause that’s not othering us in any way, is it!) and in the interests of equal opportunity, I have to disclose this to you – SOME WOMEN ARE MALICIOUS AND LIE.
I’d like to think if someone made false, malicious allegations against me, the people who I have helped, and who know me, would instantly dismiss them.
I donated money to help you multiple times. I no longer recognise the person I donated to. I hope he was not always the nasty piece of work he appears today.
Anyway, that’s the last time WGD gets my attention.
Taking a scroll through the comments it is unsurprising to note that a lot of people don’t get why the Rev has had enough or even realise that is their fanatical obsession with voting New SNP, despite everything he has said, that has led to this.
I also think some people’s obsession with turning this into a story for Alba (interestingly descended from the name for the whole island of Great Britain and not Scotland alone) completely misses the point. Rev Stu was writing about something bigger than mere nationalist party politics, it was about the total destruction of law, justice and freedom of speech by someone who has been allowed to act without consequence thanks to her fanatical blinkered supporters. Some of whom are posting on here expressing their sorrow that the Rev has packed it in even though it is they who are responsible for this turn of events.
Until the blinkered New SNP fanatics get a grip of themselves Scotland is lost and the “independence” the New SNP offer is nothing but a life sentence in an open prison. As someone who has supported independence for a long time but has never been one to comment until recently I am now starting to realise why I never used to bother. Some of you just don’t get it and maybe you never will. Open your eyes people, many of you are part of the problem and until you recognise that you will never be part of a solution.
link to craigmurray.org.uk
This country beggars belief
I don’t blame you Stu as all of this must have been heavy on your mental health and overall wellbeing.
I’ve been an on-off readers over the years since 2014 and enjoyed your lazer sharp, metrics driven approach to your analysis. You went places that the MSM were too lazy or scared to go.
I wish you well and hopefully we may see you return at some point as I know if you did go to Rio, you would only end up restless and miss at least a bit of the fight.
Best wishes,
Mike
I’d just like to say: Nicola Sturgeon is a dictator and she and her MSPs and MPs are deviant enablers. They need to own it.
” PayPal Kavanah” Hahaha hahaha….. Ha!
This Rev Stuart is a sad day for those of us concerned about the future of our wee country, and I hope you will have second thoughts and find a way back.
It will be clear to many who follow this blog that NS has to go. But how? She is at the triumphalist high point of her career and no frontal attack will be successful.But as Guderian and the panzer commanders realised there is always a weak point, a “schwachpunkt”. Find the schwachpunkt and pile everything into it and you can achieve a breakthrough. NS has a weak point and that is her and her husband’s control over the SNP. Curiously little has been made over the years in the MSM about the Ceausescu-like grip which the Murrells have over party and state. But never mind NS’s role right now. The schwachpunkt has to be Murrell himself, his stewardship of the party and the recent egregious events which have been well publicised in WoS and other blogs. If concerned party members pile relentlessly into Murrell over the next year he will have to go. And when he walks out of Gordon House with his personal effects in two black bin bags NS’s credibility will take a severe dunt, perhaps a fatal one.
Who will replace her? We can cross that plank over the burn in due course.
PS Take a look if you can at the cartoon in this week’s Spectator showing Nicola as the rear end of a pantomine stag.That Scots expatriate Fraser Nelson down in London who edits the Spectator (a successor to Boris) knows as well as WoS that she has no intention of delivering independence.
Good response, Daisy
Scot Finlayson
Your a genius!!! If only the Rev had seen your post before, or indeed Alex Salmond himself 2014 would have beena “no brainer”, incredible they missed it to be honest.
As this thread is about the Rev’s farewell, I’ll not go into detail,however just a few sums for you young laddie.
You say $70 million / day, now times that 365 days a year ( ignore any fluctuations in oil price as clearly OPEC would make Scotland a special case ), what figure do you get???
Now look at the Tax applied to this amount by the UK Treasury, and see what figure that is?
Now explain if you will the circa 24.5 Billion difference??
Have you thought about a career in economics, I understand the pays good, maybe somewhere like the WEF ( doesn’t have her haw to do with Elephants) or alternatively you could stop embarrassing yourself!!!
Now the Independence movement appears to be dying on its arse all those hustlers whores and chancers who rode into PayPal Heaven on the back of Alec Salmond and the Independence campaign will now wither on the vine.
Stuart Campbell has been a major player in the past 10 years of Scottish politics the demise of this site will make visitors to less successful blogsites take notice.
I haven’t posted very often recently, but this is a sad, if not unexpected, development. I totally understand your reasoning and agree that nothing is happening for many years now as regards independence.
I’ve felt for some time now that things will need to get a whole lot worse, perhaps even become too late to do anything about it, before enough people will actually see the solution.
Take care and enjoy whatever you decide to do next.
I just posted this on Craig Murray’s blog, which gives details of his medical conditions which are very serious indeed. Not to put too fine upon it, they are life-threatening without proper medical supervision.
Dear Mr Murray
This is a potential death sentence. With detailed knowledge of these medical conditions, with no advice as to whether prison conditions would take account of your serious medical needs, there is absolutely NO DOUBT in my mind that Lady Dorrian has all but put on the black cap. In fact, she doesn’t even have the decency to do that. She is beyond contempt.
And this is Scottish law! God preserve us all because the so-called guardians of the law have taken leave of their senses.
Why is this site costing £Thousands a year?
Is it the archive of thousands of articles?
Could it be a lot cheaper to have these files hosted on something like Dropbox.
Is it free to have a WordPress website?
How would if work if all archived files were uploaded to something like Dropbox and a new WordPress site was opened containing the links to the Dropbox files?
Pixal. Hello. Did you know that Onanism is bad for you and that you should never do it while posting online?
I don’t suppose the Murrells gave WGD the 20 grand to get him out of Glasgow.
Shocked. Well observed.
I’m not really up on computers, but cant Stu upload his site onto cloud to protect it?
Ruby,
As far as I am aware, Stu had to take precautions against numerous DDoS attacks and it certainly cost an ongoing amount of money.
Sorry to hear you’re ending your blog but not at all surprised, I came off Twitter after years on May 8th because I’d had enough. This past year has been horrendous and I believed we had a little hope with Alex and Alba. That was not to be, then came the dreadful Craig Murray sentence, I feel so bad for him.
I’d like to say thank you for all your hard work, you have been invaluable in revealing the true face of the SNP under Ms Sturgeon. I thought Scottish politics was a cut above WM but what a fool I was, it is just as corrupt and I fear for the future of our country. Good luck in all you do.
Kiwilassie says:
13 May, 2021 at 1:44 pm
I’m not really up on computers, but cant Stu upload his site onto cloud to protect it?
Reply
🙂
He can just save all the files on an external hard drive.
The problem with this site as it stands is the high cost otherwise he can just keep this ‘WordPress site’ without posting further articles.
Maybe he’ll have to log-in now & again to keep site active.
I’m not sure about T&Cs of WordPress.
Thank you for the light you shone on Scottish politics, stuff I never knew about. An absolute tour de force of forensic journalism
When politicians «go progressive» can the culture of the Gulag be far behind.
«Old left-wing values of equality and fighting oppression have given way to a desire to police other people’s behaviour and speech. The obvious consequence of this is the erosion of freedoms and civil liberties.»
link to spiked-online.com
«He was a tool of the boss, without brains or backbone»
Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis
Well I hope you keep blogging anyway, and that much of won’t be about football or pizza but video games or music would be ok 🙂
@Daisy Walker (1.03) –
Well said.
WGD can hit the delete button all the likes.
Won’t make a difference.
He’s finished and he knows it.
Whether he was acting out of sheer jealousy and hatred of Stu, or someone put him up to it, the end-result is the same – he got caught.
Stu has bowed out on a high, with record-breaking readership figures month-on-month. Paul now has to get his tail between his legs, slink away, and hope that he doesn’t get Police Scotland turning up at his door.
The main difference is that Stu could always make a comeback and be welcomed by many thousands. And even if he doesn’t, he’s made a vast contribution to Scotland’s fight for independence and it’ll never ever be forgotten. Whereas Paul must now slip back into the obscurity from which he emerged. And he only ever emerged from it thanks to this place and the regulars who got him the National gig and put up with his milquetoast pish for years.
Stu was, and is, a superb journalist and polemicist. Paul was a second-rate rhetorician who got lucky, spotted an opportunity, and milked it for all it was worth.
Judging by the comments under the tweet punting his latest post, I’d be surprised if the WGD blog is still there this time next week. It won’t be missed.
Margaret Eleftheriou @ 1:29
“And this is Scottish law!”
What we are witnessing seems more akin to colonial justice, in which there is no justice (for the native), as reflecting Scotland’s socio-political reality.
This from Aime Cesaire in his ‘Discourse on Colonialism’:
“The rule of law? I look around and wherever there are colonizers and colonized face to face, I see force, brutality, cruelty, sadism, conflict, and, in a parody of education, the hasty manufacture of a few thousand subordinate functionaries, “boys”, artisans, office clerks, and interpreters necessary for the smooth operation of business. Between colonizer and colonized there is room only for forced labor, intimidation, pressure, the police, taxation, theft, rape, compulsory crops, contempt, mistrust, arrogance, self-complacency, swinishness, brainless elites, degraded masses.”
Mike says:
13 May, 2021 at 1:07 pm
I don’t blame you Stu as all of this must have been heavy on your mental health and overall wellbeing.
REPLY
Personally I don’t see this as Stu being under mental pressure.
I see this as he is scunnered with the complete ignorance of many Scots.
I see where he is coming from. Looking in from overseas, I can’t believe the mentality of many Scots.
They aren’t very bright. They want independence, but voted in maximum WM parties into their government.
These Scots are as thick as a 4 by 2 piece of wood.
My heart goes out to you that have to live with these imbeciles.
I’m hurting here for you within NZ & my way of life as a Scot living here isn’t affected. I still hurt for those who see a bright future, Unfortunately it will never be under the present SNP.
No Doubt about it, all the other supposedly pro indy blogs will suffer now Stu has stepped back. It was mainly wings readers that visited these sites I’m sure.
Whats disgusting, is the way they turned a blind eye to the abuse and lies inflicted on other pro indy bloggers and activists.
staying silent whilst people were and are sent to prison for speaking the truth is utterly shocking and they should be ashamed!
supporting perjurers and corrupt government officials, politicians who care little about independence as long as the gravy train still rolled is sickening.
I can understand the frustration and situation that the REV is in at the moment because he’s a human being like the rest of us. It sounds very much like Burn-out to me. To be active at this level of journalism, even with help from the team, is extremely hard and nerve racking.
In spite of all the hammer blows of the last few years and despondency resulting from that, the acorn of hope is not dead.
ALBA has proven that when people take action something positive happens. Six weeks in the heat of a Holyrood election is just not enough time to establish a new party, miracles don’t happen.
It did however give birth and it’s now up to us to make it grow to adulthood.
It’s not a bad thing the REV taking a break, he should sit back and watch the SNP hang their selves.
Over the next few months the SNP is going to steamroller a lot of their hidden agenda forwards. They can’t hide the gender woowoo much longer, if they want it to be law then it will have to be brought into full view as well as debated in Holyrood and voted upon. The Greens included can’t just hide it in a Manifesto. It’s pay-up time for everyone.
The SNP also has a problem with Indyref-2. They had to ramp up the rhetoric about preparation for a new Ref., give dates and swear blindly to do it. They’ve ratcheted the expectations up to such a level that their followers/disciples really do expect a Ref. in the foreseeable future..!
More than enough fodder for the REV and ALBA.
Breeks (not forgetting Daisy) always comes up with good ideas for taking action, one of which I like:
“We need to turn ALBA into a much bigger project than just a political party.
Speak to Alex Salmond Rev Stu. Have another pint in that beer garden with the wee Robin. See how we can turn ALBA into a YES monster which puts the fear of god into Westminster Government and Unionism.”
I’d go further than just a couple of beers, organise a meeting(s) of all the leading bloggers, MSPs, councillors, economists like Richard Murphy as well as others and start to coordinate a strategy, the tactics to use and of course get everyone singing from the same hymn sheet.
The MSN/SNP won’t give you a second of airtime or help in any way, so you have to circumvent it by using other forms of communication, internet, videos, print, ALBA demos etc. sing the song like a choir and sing it fkn LOUD.
There are targets galore and anyway who said getting Independence was going to be easy.
I won’t say goodbye to the REV, just “Auf Wiedersehen” in whatever form he thinks fit. He’s a Scot as well as a journalist and I sincerely hope that after a very well earned break his fingers will start to tingle and the adrenaline starts to flow… 🙂 🙂
As for the WGD… reduced to being Niclas shoe wiper.
the friendly sassenach says:
13 May, 2021 at 2:00 pm
Thank you for the light you shone on Scottish politics, stuff I never knew about. An absolute tour de force of forensic journalism
****
Agreed: thanks +1
Wishing you health and happiness, whatever the future holds.
What nationality is Bella Caledonia’s Mike Goddard?
He universitied at (now not-rated) Birkbeck and a second rate place in Vermont for 6 years.
It’s an odd backround
Leafy Bloomsbury and leafy Vermont
I’ve never bothered looking before.
What I can’t take in about the state Scotland is in, is the greater establishment. There doesn’t appear to be anyone in the judiciary, media, church,unions or universities who is prepared to speak out at the corruption and abuse of the rule of law.
I often wondered how the people of Germany let Hitler do what he did and become what he was. I do now.
Breastplate says:
13 May, 2021 at 1:53 pm
Ruby,
As far as I am aware, Stu had to take precautions against numerous DDoS attacks and it certainly cost an ongoing amount of money.
REPLY
Okay! Stu has the fighting fund at hand. Saving the information on this site for future generations is a fight against the attack.
Go Stu, spend the fighting fund to save the WOS history.
@Kiwilassie
This site is already hosted in the “cloud”. The issue is keeping it available to all who may wish to view it while keeping costs low. Due to the number of visits it gets and the amount of firewall and denial of service protection it needs, even to use cheaper archive cloud storage will still cost a significant sum every year.
I’d imagine Stu can check visitor stats after a few months of the site no longer being “current” and then make a call as to most efficient way to archive it.
@ Ruby
This is why the Rev has decided to call it a day. Scotland is populated by uneducated twats like yourself. Has editing and formatting never crossed your mind? ‘Duh, just save them as txt files and upload them’.
Brainless fucking idiot.
Are you care in the community or something? If not, you fucking well should be.
Good riddance to you, you inconsequential bigot . You’re a vile heinous wee man who’s used this platform to spew hateful, diurect bile and there will be many (including myself) glad to see the back of you. Scotland doesn’t need nor want filth like yourself so (in a) Bath is probably the best place for you. No doubt you’ll resurrect this place when the money runs out, rattling a can for “funds” from your cult followers.
Bye Felicia. And don’t let that door knob hit you on the way out.
@McDuff – With you there; even the Scotland Office are hopeless. One glimmer of hope is the professional institutions, but only if they are based in England. If they are based in Scotland, forget it.
Rev Stuart
I can only echo what most on here have been saying, “Thank you for everything that you’ve done for all of us and for Scotland”.
You inspired many of us to go out and do something about the situation in 2014, whether it was having discussions in pubs, setting up Yes groups, going on marches or linking to articles for friends and relatives you have been a breath of fresh air and a welcome antidote to the MSM lies and corruption.
I will be hanging up my boots too and only hope a younger generation can carry the baton forward in some form.
Enjoy your retirement and whatever you choose to do in the future. I know I am not alone when I say we will miss you.
Pixal (with an a)
Apparently a computer game of fighting ninjas.
Well that puts things into perspective.
A study of the true nature of Bushido would be more profitable.
I’ll save everyone some troll-feeding time by suggesting that Jon Mac could just fuck off.
My actual comment is: Thanks Rev for all you have done, tried to do and for your honesty and integrity.
Several years of time well spent for you as the writer and we as the readers.
All the best and look forward to November when you come back.
Enjoy a well-earned break.
Kiwilassie,
I was not offering an opinion, I was merely pointing out that protecting the site costs money, this is a fact.
I made no comment on how Stu should utilise the fighting fund but for the record I’m completely at ease with whatever Stu wants to do with the money, I trust his judgement.
If he wants to spend it in Rio, I’m all for that, speaking as someone who has donated systematically every year from the start, I say he has earned every penny of that fighting fund for himself if he wishes, and then some.
Graf Midgehunter says:
13 May, 2021 at 2:20 pm
I can understand the frustration and situation that the REV is in at the moment because he’s a human being like the rest of us. It sounds very much like Burn-out to me.
Reply
Now this is the sort of comment I really don’t understand.
Scots want Independence, but they don’t want to fight for it.
First it was Alex, then Stu to carry the baton.
Where in hells name is the men or women who are prepared to stand up & fight?
My God! You are like a lot of children looking for someone to fight the battles for you.
Breaking news Guys Neither Alex or Stuart are here to prop you up. If you want Independence, get off your computers & your arse & do something about it.
The world is watching & I have to say, as a Scot I’m starting to see you as mice not men. It’s not a good look.
Stu Is a true warrior for Scotland . He is not there to protect the men of Scotland who are really mice.
Time for men & women to stand up & be counted. Are you in the union or out?
If you’re in being a warrior behind a key board won’t cut it.
Jon Mac….. do you honestly think Stu or anyone else takes what you say seriously? of course not!
Im sure you will be welcome on WGD.
That should have be out of the union being a warrior behind a key board won’t cut it
The SNP Airdrie & Shotts by election candidate is Anum Javed. She looked vastly happy to be pictured with Sturgeon the other day. She can now head to Westminster, settle down not settle up, and join Pension Pete at the trough. Wishart btw, true to form has tweeted a thoroughly sneering message about Wings.
There they’ll all be, Javed, Wishart, Blackford and Oswald, doing nothing for indy, and getting their £81 000 a year salaries. In the new member’s case it’s Anum’s per annum.
Pixal
/
Quick.
Your game has started.
pixal
you misunderstood what I wrote you fucking idiot!!
Im saying that the other pro indy sites will get even less traffic now stu has stepped back, which is a good thing and a reflection on how poor they are in comparison to stu.
It was wings readers that gave them any significant numbers and now that will be shown.
No one could compete with the genius of Stu’s input, that’s the point.
You have my utmost respect Stuart for the integrity of your work and your dogged pursuit of the truth which lies at the heart of all good journalism. In these dangerous times, I don’t think anyone can blame you from taking a step back. Anyone who speaks out openly against the inherent corruption of our government has their card well and truly marked.
However, you have more than earned your place in the pantheon of Scottish heroes whatever you decide to do. A place that the Murrells can never aspire to. There is a special place in hell reserved for them.
I think we are all feeling despondent at the moment, but I believe the apparent success of the Neo-SNP is based on a Faustian pact. They have sold their souls to the highest bidder. “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
ah Pixal with an A…. Just realised you are such a sad CUNT! lol
own it and enjoy!! 🙂
Mist001 says:
13 May, 2021 at 2:28 pm
@ Ruby
This is why the Rev has decided to call it a day. Scotland is populated by uneducated twats like yourself. Has editing and formatting never crossed your mind? ‘Duh, just save them as txt files and upload them’.
Brainless fucking idiot.
Are you care in the community or something? If not, you fucking well should be.
Reply
“Duh, just save them as txt files and upload them’”
That is not what I posted!
I wrote
“PS You don’t have to go to all the palaver of converting every page to a pdf file.
Save all files as .txt files and combine in Adobe Acrobat Pro to make a single PDF file.”
What is it I’m supposed to be editing & formatting?
FYI I edit text files & format in InDesign.
I use Calibre to convert .txt and .pdf files to mobi & epub.
No need for you to worry about my editing, formatting & uploading.
Have to tracked down some ‘Flamebaiting Sites’
You can use when Wings finishes?
What would the people on:
link to tapatalk.com
think if they saw the abuse you post in this site?
I noticed today that some unionist radio stations took great delight in broadcasting Nicola Sturgeon oath to the Queen, heirs and successors. Also the votes still to take place, probably next week, on whether or not Sturgeon will be elected back as the head of the SNP, and I suppose by default head of the Scottish government .Radio news also indicating that the Greens might try and obtain the Presiding officers position.
Jon Mac and Pixal, what a pathetic pair of irrelevant little grubs you are.
Even this old unionist tory will miss Wings a great deal. Thank you, Mr. Campbell for your hard work, patience and ability to shine some much needed cleansing sunlight into the darkest and murkiest of corners. Thank you also for not killing me with hammers!
Scotland is poorer for your retirement. I hope you feel able to come back after a good long rest.
Best wishes to your friend, I hope they are recovering well.
Pixal.. with an A…. have a free swing, because the purpose of this thread is to pay tribute to the sheer brilliance and honesty of Stu’s writing, and to give thanks to him for that.
I wont let that be diminished by engaging in a feud with a nobody like you. not this time! so type away cunt.
Stu.. you are a genius man!
RepofScot @3:06
“…indicating that the Greens might try and obtain the Presiding Officer position.”
Ross Greer as PO would provide us with entertaining high farce.
Re my 3.06pm comment the Greens Allison Johnstone is the only MSP in the running for the Presiding Officers job, and come 5pm today it looks like the Greens will have their first Holyrood Presiding Officer.
Mist001 says:
13 May, 2021 at 2:28 pm
@ Ruby
This is why the Rev has decided to call it a day. Scotland is populated by uneducated twats like yourself. Has editing and formatting never crossed your mind? ‘Duh, just save them as txt files and upload them’.
REPLY
You think your smart talking down to Ruby. Well it seems you’re not smart at all. You have to archive what you save, If you don’t your link will be defective when the information is removed from the cloud..
Mist001, do me a favour & do one. You really are a nasty sort of chap. What the hell is your problem forby having a small dick.
RepofScot @3:15
Aw, too bad. Greer in the post would have been exquisitely funny.
Correction to earlier post to Michael Stimson
“Have you tracked down some ‘Flamebaiting Sites’
you can use when Wings finishes?”
I think for a number of posters like Mist “Flamebaiting Sites” would suit them better than ‘Wings’
It should be interesting to see what the likes of Pete Wishart, WGD & ‘The She/Her Cult’ do when they have nobody to flame against. They might have to face the truth.
Ian Brotherhood @ 2.07 pm ,
I agree with every word that you said and in the words of Joni Mitchell
“ Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
Till it’s gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot “
link to jonimitchell.com
Ian , When and if there’s a Wings get together in the future please let us know about it .
As an English Tory Unionist I will miss the honesty and clarity of the Rev’s writing. Brilliant journalism,brilliantly written. The exposé of the woke has been superb and much needed – it blights Scotland today, the rest of the UK tomorrow.
Kapelmeister @3.18pm.
We have suffered a triple whammy of late, Alba won no seats, Wings Over Scotland is powering down (hopefully only on a temporary basis), and, Craig Murray looks like he’s going to prison.
Now the Greens are going on to hold the Presiding officers job, its another blow for independence and our morale I think, well it is to those that really want independence.
CAN EVERYONE STOP ARGUING WITH EACH OTHER AND BEHAVE LIKE ADULTS .
Show a bit of respect to Rev Stuart and all that he’s done for all of us .
@MaggieC (3.20) –
Of course we’ll let you know. one way or another.
Until then, take care.
😉
Ian Brotherhood @ 3.25 pm ,
Thanks , I’m still in tears here at Rev Stuart calling it a day but his priority had to be his own health and well-being .
Me @ 3.34 pm
* has * to be
Excuse my ignorance folks but how big a hard-drive would be needed to save all this site? I haven’t a Scooby but any advice would be helpful & very much appreciated. External portable hard drives? Or 2TB Memory flash drive stick? What? What’s best?
“the alba part got less votes than the poxy scottish socialist party last week”
Prove it. Show us the exit poll that proves the results we were given as official are trustworthy and show us the uninterrupted footage from 9:30 pm on 6th May to the moment the ballot boxes (on both days) were handed to the counters that proves beyond reasonable doubt that those ballot boxes were not tampered with.
When you present such evidence and demonstrate the results were not fixed, then you can say “that the alba party got less votes than whatever”
Until the time we see the evidence, all what we have is the results the powers that be want us to see.
Jon Mac says:
13 May, 2021 at 2:29 pm
“Good riddance to you, you inconsequential bigot . You’re a vile heinous wee man who’s used this platform to spew hateful, diurect bile and there will be many (including myself) glad to see the back of you.”
Why did you bother ever visiting the site then? Is it not a bit stupid to waste your time doing something you don’t want to do?
Nobody forces you to search out and click on the site.
It’s like watching something on the telly that you don;t really want to watch – there is an off button.
Skullduggery in the SNP MSP candidate selection revealed.
link to msn.com
Jon Mac
Any relation to Juan Mac of the’ A Thousand Flowers’? You sound so similar.
And Pixal, that must have been a so good for you to just let it all out. Who hurt you Pixal?
Anyway, this is fun watching all those people who think they have seen the last of what ‘WoS’ is. This particular area of the independence movement is not going away. It is going quiet – for now.
Juan Mac, Pixal, petra – whatever you think you stand for. It certainly isn’t independence or a better Scotland. You like to be part of a group that gives you validation for your cowardly reprehensible views identity politics. The ones that allow to crybully people into denying the reality of their eyes and other senses. You think Scotland agrees with you when the SNP simply didn’t let the public know what they were voting for?
You think Nicola and her mealy mouthed grifters are even interested in you and your pathetic fawning? Look at her today in Kenmure Road. The UK govt are showing her they know she is useless and can’t do a thing. You think asylum seekers were anything more than campaign material and more voting fodder for her plan of 5 more years sitting on her arse?
You’ll see and then you’ll realise.
You were fooled because you are fools.
Wee Chid , it is always surprising to find those who only want to berate the writer and visit to post their own bile – I like the rhyming ‘shite and spite’ to describe them.