The truth of the matter
The last few days have not been proud ones for the Scottish media. Following the Daily Record’s humiliation at the hands of the independent press standards body over the Smith Commission, we don’t see this letter from the chair of the Scottish Prison Officers Association in today’s Scotsman (and the article in question doesn’t appear to have been corrected), so it looks like we’re going to have to print it here.
23 February 2015
The Editor , The Scotsman
Dear Sir
As the Chair of the Prison Officers Association in Scotland I feel compelled to respond to your sister paper’s article (Scotland on Sunday 22nd Feb) “SNP signs no-strike deal with prison staff”, given how wide of the mark the piece is.
The first thing to say is that there is no “no strike agreement” in place, either with the Scottish Government or in fact the Scottish Prison Service. What is in place is a recognition that there is no longer a need for the POA to continue with a ballot for industrial action, due to the issue that led to the ballot in the first place having been resolved by the introduction of an interim solution.
The interim payment was balloted on and some 83.4% of the members voted to accept the offer, with a ballot return of 84%.What was made crystal clear to the members in the ballot was that acceptance of the deal would mean our dispute would be resolved, and we would not be balloting for strike action on this issue through the existing pay deal period. It was also made clear that should they reject the offer, we would continue with our ballot for industrial action.
That is not a no strike deal, it is simply a reflection of the issue under dispute having now been resolved, and therefore no legitimate reason for a union to continue on the path it had set out on. At no time were we as a union asked by either the Chief Executive of the SPS, or by Scottish Government to sign up to a no strike deal as a condition of the offer made.
As a union we are both dismayed and disappointed to see some of the comments attributed to people in your article who have felt well enough informed to both comment and criticise, having not personally come near us at any time to check their understanding of this deal.
We will be formally contacting some of them for an explanation of the quotes attributed to them, in particular the STUC given that we are an affiliated member and should be able to expect better from them.
Particularly galling is the concern expressed by the Labour party over the loss of prison officers “fundamental right to withdraw their labour”. Our colleagues in England and Wales have no such right, due to a Labour government using previous Tory anti trade union legislation against them to remove it.
The great irony in all of this is that the only prison officers in the UK with the right to strike are here in Scotland, due to the present Scottish government declining the invite from Jack Straw, Labour Home Secretary at the time, to use the same legislation against Scottish prison officers.
I am at a loss in understanding why a trade unions dispute being resolved without strike action is a problem for some. Importantly from our point of view, it is not a problem for our members going by the overwhelming support for this deal through the ballot box.
As trade unionists and democrats, that should be a good news story for us all.
Yours sincerely
PHIL FAIRLIE
Chair POA Scotland
It’s quite extraordinary that the Scotsman should have declined to either amend the article or publish Mr Fairlie’s letter – particularly having made the report quite so political – but then we know from personal experience that it often takes legal action to get Scottish newspapers to tell the truth. If the POA wants the phone number of our solicitor, they need only get in touch.
cough splutter.. What, the Scottish Press Print the truth..
LOL
Just as well there are sites like this to spread the word.
[…] The last few days have not been proud ones for the Scottish media. Following the Daily Record’s humiliation at the hands of the independent press standards body over “The Vow”, we don’t see this letter from the chair of the Scottish Prison Officers Association in today’s Scotsman (and the article in question doesn’t appear to have been corrected), so it looks like we’re going to have to print it here. […]
What a brilliant, GIRFUY letter from Mr Fairlie.
“The great irony in all of this is that the only prison officers in the UK with the right to strike are here in Scotland, due to the present Scottish government declining the invite from Jack Straw, Labour Home Secretary at the time, to use the same legislation against Scottish prison officers”
To all Labour supporters; it is your right to withdraw your Labour (support)…and back the SNP.
And it looks like The Scotsman is at it again with its highly distorted spin on an Audit Commission Scotland report concerning the Scottish Government’s purchase of Prestwick Airport – link to archive.today.
The Scottish Government has responded noting the positive nature of the report which could not be deduced from the way it was portrayed by The Scotsman.
link to snp.org
Very cowardly of the Scotsman.
Wonder if Jack Straw was lobbying for G4S or some other private prison provider?
Ooft…
… with knobs on. 🙂
Gaun yursell, Phil Fairlie.
SNP the wan, 7th May 2015.
Why would he send it to the Scotsman? God knows,there are an unlimited number of other barely literate rags to chose from.
Thank you for your blog and this post. Without websites like yours, Scotland would truly be the nation where no bird sings.
Ah Yes, The Straw Man. I first came across this guy when he was the ‘left’ President of the NUS in the seventies. A man for all seasons is Mr Straw. Naturally, when required, he removed the right to strike from workers. There’s Nothing he wouldn’t do.
A fully accredited war criminal – up to his neck in illegal rendition. It is fitting indeed the the squalid end to this nefarious career should be a scene where he lays down the going rate for his bribe. Fitting.
Apparently he’s now bound for the House of Lords; his proper destination should be the jail, along with his co-conspiritors Bliar and Bottler Broon.
The Scotsman / Evening News has never changed since their infamous front page banner headline on the eve of the 1997 Scottish elections “Hold your nose and vote Labour”
The article below in yesterday’s Edinburgh Evening News purports to be an assessment of the General Election but is just a Labour attack on SNP. The article has quotes from Labour, Tory and Green but nothing from the SNP. Totally bizarre and an insult to 40% of their readers!
link to archive.today
Labour and the Media : The Union of the Snakes
I’m sure that BBC Scotland news outlets will redress the balance after they get through their agenda on…
Our Victorian railways
Missed targets for NHS waiting times
The Prestwick fiasco
Disastrous oil and gas sector
and what goes best with your fish supper
You would think the Scottish Prison Officers Union supported Independence the way these papers are reacting!
link to poauk.org.uk
On top of usual the pitiful biased coverage from the unionist papers in scotland, we also have the BBC making a fool of themselves as they bent over backwards trying to desperately downplay the corruption of the westminster eastablishment sleazebags Straw and Rifkind.
They don’t look too clever now as, despite their best efforts to gloss over the Labour/tory corruption scandal, Rifkind is out the door with the New Labour warmonger Jack Straw looking just as greedy and repulsive to ordinary voters.
Needless to say there is no chance whatsoever the Establishment poodles at the BBC would ever have uncovered this corruption scandal.
Much as there is no chance of the biased BBC or the unionist dominated papers ever portraying scottish politics without their usual lies and distortions.
Facebook, websites like Wings and social media are at least giving ordinary scots the opportunity to have their say and fight back against the establishment media bias and sleazy westminster corruption.
Curiously, the Scottish media seems delighted to feast of the carcass of Rifkind, but there’s not much attention being paid to Jack Straw. I wonder why.
GO MURPHY!, so far this year Slab have alienated every Woman’s group, all Scottish NHS staff, Scottish Prison staff aaand they want all Labour supporters outside the central belt to vote Tory! Keep it up Dim Jim, you’re doin a great job. X
The MSM are quite simply an affront to democracy. Why does this proud nation let these people walk all over us?
Scottish press….erm? Scotland doesn’t have any media, only London run propaganda services, where we get to kin everything anything, except the truth
just received labour leaflet thru door
SNP,s A&E CRISIS
GRAPH of Scotland waiting more than 4 hours A&E in DEC(not to bad considering time of year)
they only chose dec
An unholy alliance of EBC MSM SLAB HOL HMG have only one goal. To bring Scotland under the ESTABLISHMENTS HEEL and ensure we never again think for ourselves as being normal.
We will not be allowed to escape London’s control, easily!
BBC Bias – Protest march – The People’s Voice:
link to heyevent.com
Further to an item posted earlier today regarding Prestwick Airport, readers might be interested to compare a summary of Audit Scotland’s actual report* with the unrecognisable distortion offered by The Scotsman**.
Right away we note that the headline claim in The Scotsman piece is simply untrue. But first we should note that the sums referred to do not represent expenditure by the Scottish Government but loans which must be repaid at commercial rates of interest. (As noted by Audit Scotland.)
But the claim that loan funding has doubled is, quite simply, a lie. The Scottish Government is committed to providing loans totalling approximately £25 million to the end of March 2016. (Only £9 in loans has been provided to date.). The £40 million figure that The Scotsman has latched onto relates to estimated funding requirements up to 2022.
The funding to which the Scottish Government is actually committed has not changed at all. But it is worth pointing out that, even if there was any truth in The Scotsman story, an increase from £25 million to £40 million represents a rise of 60%, and not the 100% claimed.
I leave readers to draw their own conclusions as to the accuracy and veracity of the rest of the article noting only that the SNP administration’s prompt action to rescue Prestwick Airport has safeguarded 3200 jobs in the area. Surely any rational calculation of the “cost” of this rescue has to take account of the social and economic benefits.
* link to audit-scotland.gov.uk
** link to scotsman.com
If any Red Tory darkens my door they will be getting the bucket of shite. BOLT!
Great to have this debunked as per your usual Stu.
The Scotsman is simply a Unionist rag, the more it is brought to notice the more their sales will suffer.
link to peterabell.blogspot.co.uk
More good links highlighting the Scotsman again.
Respect Peter!
I’ve been around the block a few times and I cannot recall ever this feeling of sadness and despair at the amount of corruption and downright greed and lies from Westminster.
I had always thought of the media as unbiased. We now know that was never really true. The hostility and disrespect from presenters and guests on shows like Scotland tonight and that awful woman Sarah Smith is so apparent, they make no effort to disguise their hatred of the electorate who are driving this movement of people.
Thank goodness for sites like this.
Thank you WOS
BBC R Scotland’s interview with the Audit Scotland representative could pretty much summed up as:
BBC – ‘SNP Bad – tell us how bad’
AUDIT SCOTLAND – ‘We’re satisfied that the Scottish Government has handled the Prestwick issue correctly. Whilst estimates of passenger numbers may be optimistic it should be noted that these estimates were made BEFORE a major carrier revised IT’S business plan, taking flights away from Prestwick. Something that could not have been foreseen’
BBC – But can you not just say something nasty about’ the SNP. It’ll save us the effort of having to do it all the time.’
AUDIT SCOTLAND – ‘NO’
BBC – ‘Awww but – ok listeners, remember to tune in to Scotland 2015 on BBC tonight where we will be relying on Sarah & Co to tell you all SNP Bad’
And now over to our Correspondent for SNP Badness.’
My advice for SLAB: Stop trying to score spurious points.
But they can’t, can they? Everything the Nats do must be bad, *because it is done by the Nats*.
This example is just another proof: As everyone in particular in the Labour should know, the way pay negotiations work is for the Union to threaten to strike if they don’t get a reasonable outcome and then not to strike if they get it. You have to be really have lost it if you miss this obvious point and instead see this as an opportunity to go raving at the Nats. Oh well, at least for me it’s entertaining, though Mr Fairlie may disagree…
Bookie from hell
Yes & if you look at the bottom it was printed in Essex.
So much for Labour supporting Scottish industries. That says it all.
Protest march against the BBC – 2pm – Glasgow – 15th March 2015
link to indyscot.info
Bring all your family and friends, bring your neighbours dug if you have to, lets get the numbers right up on this one and bring the worlds attention to the bias and corruption of the BBC.
They helped to ruin our referendum and they exist solely to spread Unionist propaganda and keep Scotland subservient to London.
C’mon folks, lets start cutting those chains, enough is enough!
Snode1965
I think they are shortly going to run out of specific groups of voters to alienate. Doing well aren’t they 🙂
As it was “Scotland on Sunday” that printed the original article, perhaps the POA letter will appear in next Sunday’s edition? I wont hold my breath for it but you never know.
Who penned the story in the Hootsmon?
Just received a letter from Ruth Davidson saying together we voted for a strong Scotland in a strong UK now only a vote for the Scottish Conservatives can safeguard it.
Voted YES
Ruth continues by talking about a Milliband SNP pact etc etc and concludes with a PS “Don’t just take my word for it_ turn to the back of this letter to see what the papers say”
I might even prefer Rifkind’s word or perhaps not!
Kaye Adams just called someone a “jungle bunny” on loose women. Sack her!
I don’t think Straw & Rifkind need to worry too much – I daresay they’ll get treatment to wean them off their ‘heroin’ of £5000 for half-a-day, onto a course of ‘methadone’ of £300 per day soon enough
I wonder how long after the election they’ll have to wait?
I don’t much look at BBC Pravda in Jockland website, except for the weather forecast.
Fortunately.
They really are excelling themselves today.
Oil Disaster Doom Despair
Health. Awful. Bad. SNP BAAAAAAD
Fewer firefighters. SNP VERY VERY BAAAAAAAAAAAAD
Sale of Prestwick could take years VERYVERYVERYBAD
There is a reason this website is so successful. More power to your keyboard
In my fight to retain the Edinburgh College of Art as an autonomous institution, out of the rapacious clutches of Edinburgh University and certain fate as a glorified industrial design college, the Scotsman published my first letter and spiked all others.
It printed every letter from Edinburgh University, and those in support of the take-over. And no, my subsequent letters were not slanderous or illiterate, but well considered replies to the University’s crapology.
The Scotsman lost the trust of its readership decades ago. Then again, it set its head, heart, and circulation dead against independence.
Isn’t it about time that ‘The National’ took the bull by the horns. They had a perfect opportunity with the vow lie story. A big front cover splash – Whether you read the paper or not, an eye catching headline and picture jumps out at you from the news stand and you are tempted to read.
Instead they featured the House of Lords. Everybody knows they are corrupt so don’t really give a toss. The prison officers letter and the Prestwick audit report are opportunities to expose the dross that is being disseminated by these junk rags (and I include the Scotsman).
You would think that they would jump at the chance to put one over on their rivals. Sometimes I wonder.
Unionist hysteria and lies only seem to consolidate support for the SNP. I suppose they have no alternative (to coin a phrase). They have absolutely nothing positive to offer.
Seeing it is raining stair rods outside I thought I would recommend link to WWW.UsVsTh3m Where you can hammer the bejessus out of the Tories for some light relief.I liked chicken run and Jeremy Hunts A & E crises simulator.
Charlie Pride the country and western singer has some aptly named songs to consider for Westminster . The snakes come out at night.
Crystal Chandeliers[against expenses]
The so called Scottish Media are a joke worldwide. Most of them would happily fit into Mugabe’s regime or some banana republic basking in the Caribbean sunshine.
The POA should do democracy a favour and take the Scotsman to court.
I think your example of pursuing the Record on their outright lies is an exemplar of the kind of reaction needed. That said, The Scotsman is of course well aware of the crap it has peddled but has no doubt calculated:
a) Any complaint will take months to process
b) Won’t report until well after the General Election
c) Any apology required will be qualified and buried well away from the front page, and
d) The public will never cotton on to the detail so the desired impact of characterising the SNP as anti-union / authoritarian is what will stick.
And they’re right on a, b and c but since the rise of social media, Wings, Newsnet, Bella, The National and general savvyness following the Referendum, I suspect (d) may well rebound so badly as to more than nullify the desired effect.
It’s dying as a paper anyway. The Barclay Boys only keep it on for its subliminal but waning influence from its headlines on the newsstands and excuse for more popular media to strengthen the anti-SNP narrative.
What is the point of a Press Complaints commission when
these distorted harbingers of doom are allowed to get away with blatant Lies on a daily basis.
How do we advise the masses who do not access social media sites of the Lies and Corruption they support by reading these works of elitist fiction.
Could we crowd fund a mobile Banner for the streets of Edinburgh proudly proclaiming the paper has been caught blatantly lying, yet again.
If Not a Fact, take us to Court “Scotsman”.
Didn’t think so!
Fresh Lies and Distortion available again tomorrow!
It is getting beyond a joke
As others have pointed out, it would seem that the (English owned) so called ‘scottishy’ media have decided, that Rifkind discussing prostituting himself to the highest bidder is bad – because he is a blue Tory, but that neoliberal capitalist Jack Straw is just great, as he is a red Tory, despite exhibiting the same amoral behaviour.
How many people around the UK must fume, when they hear MP’s such as Labour’s Jack Straw in London whinging that 68k a year, plus full expenses, plus free flights for them and their family, plus access to the most subsidised bar and restaurant in the UK, plus free second home in London, plus genuine gold plated pension, is simply not enough.
My message to ANY MP who thinks that way is simple, resign immediately, and go find a job outside in the REAL world that will offer you the same salary, pension, perks and privileges.
There are many talented people in this country who will happily take 68k plus perks each year for doing absolutely b*gger all every day of the week.
Whatever intelligence the readers of these newspapers have
thats what’s being insulted
NHS
Labour and the Daily Record going with, (Woman has no pillow in some hospital)
This is definitely an outrage and Shona Robison should be called into the BBC and a complete and total apology will not be enough to save her job
Resign i say Resign
Of course if Labour were in charge the woman would’nt have had a Hospital to be in
Some folk should have a wee think maybe before shouting
Not pointing stethoscopes you understand
@Koenig
What is a “jungle bunny”?
@Peter A Bell @12:49
“Surely any rational calculation…”
Rationality and SLab are contradictions in terms. McTernans doing his best to undo Murphy’s worst.
@ Derick fae Yll
No need to go to the BBC for the weather forecast. They use the Met Office anyway so you can just go there direct.
link to metoffice.gov.uk
Call me an optimist but I think the exposure of the MSM’s lies is probably getting through to a few people who didn’t see it before. We do have to get it clear in our minds, however, that the media are and have always been a pillar of the British State. We don’t have the means to blow it away, we can only chip away at it. Once individuals understand that it is corrupt they are less susceptible but not immune to its malign influence. Active participation in the alternative media may be necessary to achieve immunity.
@joemcg
What is a “jungle bunny”?
Well done to Wings and Peter a. Bell for highlighting such half truths err .
Who at the BBC is related to Jack Straw
Let me think……Hmmm?
I think jackie the burd will be in full flow shortly airport nhs ect ect
O/T,
Just had a Labour leaflet , delivered by the postie telling me the SNHS is in crisis and only Labour can save it. Glossy had map showing waiting times in A&E
Do people really believe this shite ?
How can politicians get away with lies when everyone else is brought to hand. This is typical using the ” Project Fear” tactics.
Get out there and make sure the pensioners and anyone NOT online know this is a scare made up for votes when labour intend bringing our NHS in line with the English . And they are selling that off to all comers .
These bastards are a disgrace and we must surely have laws which can be used to stop this constant drivel . This is worse than North Korea.
When are the media going to pull them ?
If Murphy, Curren etc are voted in on May , i will give up.
After all the crap during the referendum and the constant anti-Scots shit now , people should know labour are a mouthpiece for WM. fuck the Scots.#
We’ll see 🙁
Thank God you’re here Rev. Without you these liars would get away with it, just like in the “good old days”. I think you have a job for life now, shining a light into the dark corners of the Unionist press.
The Scotsman is a ‘tory’ rag, which represents the interests of the ‘City’ of London and its Edinburgh based financial sector satellites. Its title is a complete misnomer as it does not give an honest or accurate report on any aspect of Scottish life. It should be retitled ‘The North British Propaganda Newsheet’.
Excellent rebuttal.
Once upon a time, the laughingly titled ‘Scotsman’ newspaper had one of the most prestigious and impressive addresses in Edinburgh, commanding views across the heart of auld reekie. Over the last few years their operations have been scaled down and scaled down, yet still they stick by their anti Scottish, pro London editorial line.
Now that they have the equivalent of 3 journalists in a single rented room of a non descript commercial office block on the edge of Edinburgh, you might think their would be a collective ‘sniffing of strong coffee’ going on, but there isn’t.
Same old, same old from the London loving, unionist hootsmon. Who cares if nobody reads it, who cares if it has failed to realise the sea change in Scottish political discourse and voting patterns? Who cares if it is now the ‘Gordon Brown’ of Scottish ‘journalism’ – Should it be laughed at or pitied?
When the laughingly titled ‘Scotsman’ newspaper dies a death (coming soon), it will be a day of celebration. It will also be a day of lament for the craven, self serving individuals who over successive years have allowed REAL Scottish journalism to die.
@liz g
“Jungle Bunny” is (or was) a “non-pc” term referring to non-caucasian persons whose countries of origin generally have jungles in them.
Same story on no-strike deal reported as fact on the glorious BBC radio yesterday. It really is beyond it.
The Hootsmon has replaced the ‘News of the Screws’ in obnoxiousness.
The Labour EBC has done its best to airbrush Jack Straw and concentate on his sameness, Malkie Rifkind, who did as much for Scotland as every other Toom Tbard in Dover Hoose, Lomndon, Engerland. Zero Zilch and theft.
liz g says:
24 February, 2015 at 1:19 pm@Koenig
What is a “jungle bunny”?
Its like a Jive Bunny only more drum and bass!
liz g says:
@Koenig
What is a “jungle bunny”?
____
liz,
It is a disgraceful derogatory 1970s racist insult aimed at someone of colour, usually aimed at people of African origin.
If she called someone that name, she should be sacked on the spot.
Anyone got accurate figures about the circulation performance of The Hootsman?
@Liz G
What is a “jungle bunny”?
It is a very old racist insult around colour. i.e. someone who comes from the jungle. It went out of use after the time of ‘Bless thy neighbour’ when they also though ‘NigNog’ and ‘White Honky’ was funny.
[…] The truth of the matter […]
Also part of a set
sand bunny
bed bunny
etc
It is to be hoped that by their blatant displays of greed Messrs. Rifkind & Straw have scuppered any chance of their elevation to The Lords.
If, however, as I suspect will be the case, the WM Old Pals Act runs true to form and they are indeed elevated I would hope that there will be a massive outbreak of rage both from the public and the media.
Incidentally, for those who haven’t yet done the simple sum £5k per day is the equivalent of £1.2 Million per annum – nearly up to Tony Blair’s obscene ‘earnings’.
Have given up reading or seeing the truth in our so called Free Press and media. (I had written just about given, who am I kidding).
I have to reiterate that Democracy is suffering in this country because of their actions.
The fact the BBC repeated the story without checking with the Union demonstrates, if any demonstration were needed, that the Biased Broadcasting Corp are either liars or simply incompetent journalists.
Thought some of you might enjoy a peek at unionist fear – a few prime commentators all at once, you can almost smell it.
The stand out comment is a Labour peer saying “many of us would prefer a coalition with the Tories”
link to twitter.com
The last few days??????????
Re Kaye Adams and Jungle Bunnies, was she by any chance referring to a contestant on I`m a Celebrity?
She has used that phrase before.
Vote UKIP get SNP
link to telegraph.co.uk
My only surprise, bearing in ming the complete gullibility of the pair, is the the Telegraph didn’t send in the “Fake Sheik” to do the business.
Oh, I forgot, is he not due up in front of the Beaks soon himself.
Maybe we just move Westminster and Fleet Street to a new purpose built maximum security prison. It would be woth it, financially, even in the medium term alone.
The level of misrepresentation of the facts by the BBC as presented by that appalling woman Bird and todays invisible attack dog Bradford has now exceeded the limits of even the BBCs own LIEOMETER to then be subjected to Apprentice Politician Marra with even more complete and utter drivel can only lead us to one definite conclusion
They’re Shitting Themselves
But probably worse than that is the contempt they so obviously have for our country that for money, their jobs and power they are prepared to collude with The British Government to plunge Scotland into poverty and depression to keep democracy from flourishing
Win or lose Scotland will not forget or forgive
We will find you and we will…oh that’s a movie isn’t it
But…..
Just like Project Fear 1. Why change a winning game!
Liars one and all. If this farce union set up is such a great thing, why the relentless vote SLab bullshit pouring out of every news room across teamGB, bar one.
@ MajorBloodnok says:
24 February, 2015 at 1:28 pm
“Jungle Bunny” is (or was) a “non-pc” term referring to non-caucasian persons whose countries of origin generally have jungles in them.
Like supporters of Sellick?
A wee explanation to those of you who are lost here, the Jungle is an area of Celtic Park. I know that there may be some people on this thread who don’t give a monkey’s about football, especially the “auld firm.”
Just like Project Fear 1. Why change a winning game!
Because YES doubled during their “winning” campaign. Support for independence now at 50% and still rising. SNP membership approaching 100,000 and other independence parties also continue to grow. SNP riding high in the opinion polls. Unionist parties in complete disarray and turning against each other. Labour’s Scottish branch in meltdown. MSM have abandoned half-truths and spin and now resorting to blatant lies to attack the SG. Half the population of Scotland completely alienated by WM (the other half not exactly very happy either). More than 50% of Scottish voters now want another referendum within 10 years.
What did Project Fear win?
A stay of execution, perhaps?
It was an I’m a celebrity non-entity she referred to but I still spat my tea out!
Those getting the Labour propaganda on the NHS through their post, remember this if it ever comes up on the doorstep.
link to wingsoverscotland.com
Murphy was caught red-handed (much like his Blairite chum Jack Straw) lying through his teeth about the scottish NHS.
So blatant were his lies Murphy had to delete videos and tweets of himself lying about the NHS when he was caught.
So remind voters of that on the doorstep if they raise the bullshit on the ‘scotish’ Labour election pamphlet.
I’m in agreement with many on this thread, that Scotland has no mainstream media representative of it’s people. It’s a sham, run by establishment figures and the “I’m entitled crew.”
Such a state of affairs likens Scotland to a “Fascist State” that’s soul purpose is to look after the interests of Business over all other areas, including the people that live here.
It’s like a bad dream that is slowly building into a full scale nightmare. Some like those on this site and others are fully aware of the ongoing scenario and have been awake for some time, however there are way to many good people of Scotland sleepwalking into a predictable Orwellian state of affairs.
In the grand scheme of things this is not a Scotland only issue, looking around the world there are countless countries or (regions) suffering the same behaviour from the ruling classes. This is all a game to them, nothing more and nothing less than a nightmarish game, who’s whole purpose is to subjugate the “common” soul.
Everyday in 99% of the media we are cascaded with images and stories that are hand picked by a few and repeated by the rest. Stories and images that constantly run out conquer and divide mantra that is designed to keep us scared and obedient.
They make the agenda, they keep the agenda and no fucking way will they change it.
The difficulty we in Scotland face is the same difficulty that hundreds of millions even billions face across the world. Clear manipulation of so called news. It’s no coincidence, It’s a very real strategy.
Going back to local level in Scotland, what to do? How to fight this? Well its going to be a major challenge. We can all do our individual thing, inform friends, family etc of the ongoing nightmare. That’s fine, though will take many years and generations to completely tackle the entrenched bullshit out there.
In my opinion there HAS to be a concerted proactive collective movement from all sectors of the awakened ones. The status quo NEEDS to be treated like a chess game, use of strategy and best use of certain roles MUST be the way ahead to give ourselves a fighting chance.
If we look at recent opinion polls, clearly showing huge numbers of Scottish voters intent on voting for change i.e not Tory or Red Tory, then there must be within this number, individuals who could team up and begin a movement who’s soul purpose is to address the utter lack of democratic media in Scotland.
From, top lawyers, P.R. and marketing, politicians, principled journalists, interested funders, media gurus, professional business people, top professors, modern writers of all subjects, sports people, footsoldiers etc…..
If there was a central point and group like above who could give themselves the roles required, it will make more of an impact than individuals doing the same thing only in a more sporadic way.
If we could take the success of social media and websites like Wings, Belle, W.G.D etc.. as a starter for ten and then look at a long term strategy to make the same inroads into the MSM then I for one would gladly be a footsoldier for the cause.
Anyone know if the Scottish Parliament/Government have any kind of pressure group that is tackling “Democratic Media?”
Hi Julie Webster from Greater Maryhill Foodbank here. Just wanted to thank Briandoonthetoon and Pete the Camera for the fantastic badges they made and donated to GMF. They will be circulating around Maryhill in no time.
Thanks again Julie Webster
The National issue with the House of Lords front page & highlighting the Willie MacRae scandal was first class.
As for Rifkind “needing” more money to suppost his lifestyle, the man is a barefaced charlatan. A pensioner can only eat one dinner & sleep in one bed and thanks to his generous expenses will have no out-goings on the housing front.
Reminds one of one 18th century Scots lord whose greed for gold was such that it was suggested that it be melted and poured down his throat.
Re Jungle Bunny, a terrible racist term, though im sure a distant relative was mentioned in the Jeremey Thorpe trial ? Bite the Pillow Bunny!
Even if she never said it , sack her anyway.
Capella, Derrick fae Yell – instead of the Met Office, you could use the Norwegian service.
link to yr.no
What could I do with over £67k+ expenses+ ‘consultancy’ fees?
Maybe live in accommodation that’s not rented for the first time in ma puff. The odd holiday for Mrs Macart an me wouldn’t be out of the question either. Drive a car that’s younger than twenty fucking years old perhaps and hasn’t had half a dozen not so careful owners. Not worry in the slightest about my kids futures in higher ed…
What I wouldn’t do in a country where the growing concern is foodbank culture, is bitch and whine about how hard it is to get by on such an amount.
What an arrogant arsewipe.
Hmm! Never heard that ‘Call me Kaye’ expression said in the circles I inhabit but my mother always said I was a bit naive.
Anyhoo! Her programme in Scotland ‘Morning Call’ is to be extended to a full three hours daily when the dreadful Fred MacAulay gets the boot soon.
Kaye of course only drops in on Fridays to make sure it continues to be the ‘wrist slashing depression in Scotland’ show aptly named by another sufferer who described it.
Funny old world init!
PS: Whot! No Murphy or Straw today?
@ joemcg 2.45, thought that might be the connection, don`t watch Kaye or Celebrity. The context gives her an argument if not an excuse, the phrase is horrendous.
Kaye, like many in MSM is Teflon coated, nothing much sticks in a system designed to support the system rather than the public.
Bugger (the Panda) says:
24 February, 2015 at 2:41 pm@ MajorBloodnok says:
24 February, 2015 at 1:28 pm
“Jungle Bunny” is (or was) a “non-pc” term referring to non-caucasian persons whose countries of origin generally have jungles in them.
Like supporters of Sellick?
HOW DARE YOU!!!
Tom Sellick as Magnum P.I lived in Hawaii which has Rainforests rather than Jungles 🙂
@Fred
What did the National say about Willie McRae?
Meanwhile another day and another SLAB representative, this time Baron Moonie, saying he would rather do a deal with the Tories than the SNP. I cannot help but think that if SLAB do as the polls suggest in May and the SNP do as well as they suggest, we could end up with the dissolution of Scottish Labour, and the formation of a unionist party in Scotland (with or without the Liberal Democrats). You know 20 years ago, or even 10 years ago the suggestion of a merger between the Tories and Labour in Scotland into a single unionist party would have been unthinkable. Now, in post-independence referendum Scotland (albeit with a No vote), I am not so sure at all.
That’s the sort of reply to the ” Scotsman”, which “The National”ought to pick up on, and , with authorisation of course, print it in full.
Yes, we do need the only “daily” on the side of independance for Scotland, to go head to head with the unionist press.
Stew’s doing a great job, but it needs to get to the man/woman in the street, and that can only be done via the printed press, t.v.?, certainly not the b.b.c. In Scotland.
As gus1940 says
“Incidentally, for those who haven’t yet done the simple sum £5k per day is the equivalent of £1.2 Million per annum “–
For any career politician at Westminster – is there any other –
the deal that Rifkind and Straw were offered,
is precisely what these MP’s are hoping for.
Serious money, on the side, probably tax free and leaving them
well able to fund the luxury lifestyle that careerists aspire to.
As for their MP’s salary and expenses, this is chicken feed.
The MP’s look across the road at the banksters in Canary Wharf,
with their 2 or 3 million pound salaries and then million pound bonuses
and share options on top,
and the MP’s think ‘why not me?’
The Voters? What about them.
Sorry for goinjg O/T and apologies if someone has already highlighted this. 😉
Apparently everyone’s favourite member of the Labour branch office policy forum has *ahem* resigned from said forum and also resigned as vice chair of East Lothian constituency Labour party.
link to 2.bp.blogspot.com
Meanwhile over in the old age retirement home, a.k.a. the House of Lord’s, a certain Labour Lord has apparently been found out calling for a Tory – Labour coalition!
Baron Moonie, a Labour MP between 1987 and 2005, and a former Defence Minister, tweeted that a coalition with the Tories “would be better than one with the SNP”.
link to snp.org
Personally I’m confused. Why are we even getting Labour AND Tory candidates in every seat in Scotland?
I mean surely, as is now clearly evident that they are both undeniably both parts of the same BIG party,there should be only ONE candidate not TWO in each constituency! 😛
Re. the Barclay brothers and their approach to truthful, accurate reporting.
link to opendemocracy.net
@Macart 3.06pm
Well said, couldn’t agree more. Not only do they whine about it, they also call for constant pay rises as well, makes you sick.
I have a question. I was listening to the radio the other day and a guy was having a discussion with Lembit Opik. The guy mentioned that MPs have access to another fund that they usually give to their families. I think he called it a research fund, although I’m not certain.
I can’t seem to find any info on it though, do you have any idea what this is?
@manandboy 3.41pm
That’s what I was thinking. It’s an inferiority complex isn’t it. The salary doesn’t match the ego.
Surely the Scottish government should be taking these newspapers and the bbc to court for slander I mean it,is there for all to see and read it should not be up individuals to raise these matters ,I say to the SNP you have the power for gods sake use it ,i left the SNP after 20years membership because I thought they were to soft and I still think that they are to soft there is no good mr., nice guy and getting beat by lies better to be mr ., bad guy and win by holding these liars to account in court
Fed:
Rifkind “needs” more money to support his lifestyle, the man is a barefaced charlatan
Not quite, but he’s working on it. 🙂 The Straw That Broke Rifkind’s Back.’
link to grousebeater.wordpress.com
I wonder if there will be any foreign media (not British) at BBC demo in March. ?
@ KennyG
Sorry, that’s a new one on me too, though the general umbrella of MPs expenses is pretty wide. It may be a specific claim within that area.
If Kay(E) used that then there should be a deluge of complaints to ?ITV.
They can’t ignore allegedly ‘racial slurs’ like they do with political ones.
Although the Hootsmon and BBC are lying about this and the NHS, let’s hope they annoy enough potential Lab supporters who will start to notice other lies.
Sorry by ‘lying about this’, I meant the prison officer’s story.
The lies are coming so thick and fast, it’s hard to keep up
@ Pam McMahon at 12.16
Since no-one has explicitly answered your question:
He sent it to the Scotsman because he was responding to a factually inaccurate (I’m being polite here) article in the previous day’s Scotland on Sunday, which has the same publisher as the Scotsman.
Unfortunately, the opportunity for a prompt correction has been passed up.
As a POA member for 30 yrs I find the contents of the letter misleading as not all the membership were included in the vote to accept the settlement but all the membership were asked to vote originally on whether to take strike action. The National Committee (NC) have decided to divide the membership and as such loose members to other Unions that will represent the views of all its membership. I personally am very disappointed in the way the NC has ignored its motto of `Unity is Strength`.
@liz g says: 24 February, 2015 at 1:20 pm:
“What is a “jungle bunny”?
Not going to soil my keyboard, Liz g, but when such terms are mentioned, and you wonder what they mean, just consult the on-line, “Urban Dictionary”, : –
link to urbandictionary.com
@HandandShrimp says: 24 February, 2015 at 1:48 pm:
” … that the Biased Broadcasting Corp are either liars or simply incompetent journal”
Whadda ya mean, Handandshrimp, “Either”?
Did you perhaps mean “and”</b??
Can I just set the, “Jungle Bunny”, definitions straight?
It is specific to African Americans with connotations of how they jump over fences in their efforts to avoid being legally shot and killed by armed white USA Police Officers.
@Grouse Beater, thanks for that insight on Rifkind, a first class carperbagger like Teddy Taylor who also bought a single ticket for the “saaf” when their particular brand of snake oil became toxic. Ruth Davidson could do worse than follow their example.
@Muttley, the Willie MacRae article is by the indefatigable Alasdair Gray (why are their a dozen ways to spell Alastair?) as part four of his “Toward Democracy?”
Who stole MacRae’s papers, his two bottles of whisky & cigarettes, who changed the wheel etc’ and what kind of man could shoot himself in the head then place the gun in a burn 60 yards away without leaving a fingerprint on it, despite the driver having no gloves?
What kind of Procurator Fiscal could dismiss this as suicide, saying “there are no suspicious circumstances.
Public Enquiry due when?
Lord Carmylie made sure there were no public enquiries and Brian Wilson, fellow Tory, assisted.
@Bugger (the Panda) says:24 February, 2015 at 2:41 pm:
“A wee explanation to those of you who are lost here, the Jungle is an area of Celtic Park … “
I’m of an age that may be more attuned to 1970s USA stuff, BTP.
The jungle in question is New York, a.k.a, “The Concrete Jungle”, and the term, “bunny”, an oblique reference to the innocent Afro-American’s frequent need to jump over fences to escape being legally shot to death by armed white Police offices often referred to as, “New York’s Finest”. I always thought it a USA equivalent to the Scottish Sporting Estate so beloved by English Hooray Henrys
Were none ot you guys ever, Hip”?
@Fred says:24 February, 2015 at 9:44 pm:
“Who stole MacRae’s papers, his two bottles of whisky & cigarettes, who changed the wheel etc’ and what kind of man could shoot himself in the head then place the gun in a burn 60 yards away without leaving a fingerprint on it, despite the driver having no gloves? “
Not to mention the statement by a nurse, ( present in the theatre when Willie was brought in), who said there were two bullets in Willie’s brain.
Now a guy might but one bullet in his own brain but two? Nah!
I’ve maintained, ever since the incident, that Willie was indeed murdered and I see no reason as yet to doubt he was. As to getting an enquiry – I’m glad I didn’t decide to hold my breath way back when it was first demanded.
Reply to Robert Peffers
Reminds me of the Irish priest found in the Shankill Road with 40 stab wounds in his back. The B Specials said it was the worst case of suicide they ever saw.
Re. “jungle bunny”. I hate to be a pedant, but it’s origins ain’t from white culture, if you get my drift. This one from the Fabulous Pearls, gives you an idea of it’s meaning i.e. another type of ‘specialist’ athletics Robert. Whatever, it ain’t cool to use if you ain’t part of the gang. Even then….
Fabulous Pearls – Jungle Bunny
link to youtube.com
Truth mongers? The MSM in Scotland? Don’t make me laugh…
What does one expect from a pig, if not a grunt?
Lazy journalism from scotsman and political opportunism from Neil Findlay putting foot in it. Expected better from STUC than this ill informed rant. As a POA prison officer can assure readers we do not have any no strike clauses unlike our colleagues in England ,which is supported by the labour party there. Yes we secured a better pay deal therefore would not have a mandate nor justification to strike on this issue. Besides SNP govt been decent to prison staff and understands and appreciates our role unlike labour party which would have turned the whole prison estate into the hands of profit making corporations milking the taxpayer for millions on PFI contracts.
The Scottish Gov (SNP) or otherwise, has no power over the Press, as it is not devolved. To sue the Press is an almost impossible task. Eg Tommy Sheridan/Murdoch.
No doubt there will a few lawyers letters flying about, that never get published. At £600 a time. The UK Gov has the ultimate weapon to support their corruption.The Official Secrets Act and ‘D’ Notices, along with unelected Civil Servants working against the public interest. The Chilcot verdict is being buried before the GE.
The Scottish Gv could implement the Leveson verdict, which could give the general public some redress against the unlawful Press.
The corrupt Press is not needed, when Rev Stu is there to put the record straight. Doing a better job. Thanks, once again.