If both Theresa May and Boris Johnson had not refused formal requests for a S30 agreement for an Independence referendum, Scotland would already be independent. Alex Salmond was absolutely right yesterday to insist that other paths of democratic legitimacy are open to Scotland, as a referendum is being unreasonably refused. The start of such alternative pathways is this very election and the chance to vote for Alba and demonstrate commitment to this view.
Indeed, the tactical stupidity of the SNP, in accepting in terms that Westminster has a veto, cannot be overstated. To accept a Westminster veto is logically incompatible with the claim to be a people with the right of self-determination under the UN charter. It thus undermines the argument we need to make to the international community to be recognised as a state. The notion that the Tories will give way and grant an S30, for a referendum they know they will lose, is entirely fanciful. I find it remarkable that some people purport to believe that London will relinquish Scotland’s resources without a tremendous struggle and in the spirit of fair play.
Here is Alex Salmond’s speech yesterday, on the anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath, setting out alternative routes to Independence. You will see no fair reflection of this in mainstream media, so I am unapologetic about hosting it on my blog. Alex starts talking about seven minutes in.
Salmond’s key proposition is that immediately after these elections, the Scottish government should open Independence negotiations with Westminster as a result of an electoral mandate of a pro-Independence majority. He continues:
A standing Independence Convention can then be established, drawn from all of Scotland’s elected representatives, to give support and substance to the Scottish Government’s independence negotiating position.
A section 30 referendum could be part of that, as could a plebiscite, or another democratic test, as could domestic legal action or international and diplomatic initiatives, as could peaceful and popular demonstration.
The tactics will inevitably evolve with the negotiations but the strategy is to make the achievement of Independence a real and overriding priority.
Be clear- if we don’t make it ours, Boris Johnson certainly won’t make it his.
This is precisely the energy and determination which has been needed in the push for Independence and which has been so sadly lacking.
I would add that I have never held that the 2014 referendum was fair. A truly astonishing level of media bias, particularly from the state broadcaster, made a fair vote impossible. I maintain that Gavin Esler’s massive BBC News puff piece for the entirely fake “Vote No Borders” organisation was as bad as any “journalism” I have ever witnessed, anywhere in the world. If you have never seen it, do watch this great documentary by Alan Knight, which documents numerous examples of BBC bias in the campaign.
So I utterly reject the notion that the 2014 referendum was a free and fair expression of the will of the people of Scotland. Any replication of that referendum would need to be very different, with official international monitors to oversee issues like media bias and the security of postal ballots.
Let me finish with the Declaration put forward by Alex Salmond yesterday:
A NEW DECLARATION FOR SCOTLAND
“We hereby proclaim the sovereign right of the Scottish people to determine the form of Government best suited to their needs, and declare and pledge that in all our actions their interests shall be paramount.
We further declare and pledge that our deliberations shall be directed to the following ends:
To assert the sovereign right of the Scottish people acting through their Parliament to secure independence.
To mobilise Scottish and international opinion to ensure that this right is respected and acted upon.
“For in truth it is not glory, or riches, or honours for which we are fighting but for liberty – for that alone, which no honest person gives up but with life itself”
Delivered by ALBA this 6th day of April 2021”
—————————————————–
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Even Nicola’s most ardent support bloggers are leaving the fray but I see today Stewart McDonald accuses Salmond of spinning for Russia Today… is this a follow to his recent meeting in London?
It seems to me that Alba should target both List votes and specific seats where supposed Independence MSPs hold seats.
More importantly I cant quite understood why MPs can comment in their capacities as MPs on elections specific to the Scottish parliament surely that’s illegal. They have no relevancy whatsoever in this vote.
…
There was a referendum.
You lost.
Accept democracy.
There was a referendum, Remain won (in 1975), shouldn’t we have accepted democracy and not had another vote?
We had democracy once, never needed it again.
No we didn’t lose.
The referendum was fiddled. Just like the recent USA presidential election.
It’s so easy to do.
I said this before the referendum of 2014…..that it should be a PUBLIC ballot, not a private one, and that every voter ought to appear with a recent photograph, proof of residence (recent gas/electricity bill) and a signed certificate of good citizenship from the local police station ( basically certifying that the recipient had conducted themselves in a public-spirited manner and committed no criminal offence in the last five years)……and had never played or encouraged in any shape or form, the bizarre English game of cricket.
ALL votes, be they yea or nay should be recorded and published, for all to see without restriction, for all posterity………Like the Solemn League and Covenant.
Personally, I would have no objection to those wishing to make their mark in blood(Homosexuals and AIDS sufferers excepted)…..and indeed would encourage the practice, for it’s permitting of forensic verification in the event of any doubt as to authenticity.
Y
Uh the recent general presidential election wasn’t fiddled. the democratic primaries were absolutely fiddled. just like the 2016 election wasn’t fiddled; clinton lost it. Trump had this one in the bag, then he screwed up massively on the virus response. BTW, the virus is still not a cold, still not the flu, and still killing people. see Brazil.
you aren’t Robert Heinlein by any chance are you? You’ve given a synopsis of the society in Starship Troopers, so memorably sent up by the Grand Vulgarian, Paul Verhoeven.
you obviously don’t believe deception and cheating ever happen … and certainly the british empire couldn’t ever be accused of such a thing… we just have to erase a lot of history, don’t we??
So no, I don’t accept the “democracy” of which you speak, mostly because I don’t believe it is democracy at all.
The “democracy” of a referendum consists of asking the people to confirm a decision you have already made. If you don’t think the people are going to confirm your decision, you don’t ask them. Brexit was a cockup, because the people gave the wrong answer, but that was entirely due to the way the government handled the referendum campaign. They thought people would vote according to whether they wanted to leave or stay in the EU, not that a large number of people would vote the opposite way to that which the government wanted, just to stick two fingers up to the government.
“people would vote the opposite way to that which the government wanted, just to stick two fingers up to the government.”
That’s me, that is. ;O)
Democracy and the state is an oxymoron, you can’t have both.
I’m not convinced having an unlit fag in ones ear is a vote winner. Deftly caught though 🙂
Seriously though, the absolute refusal I’m seeing from generally left leaning, indi supporting people to even countenance listening to anything Alex has to say is a huge problem. Too much mud has stuck it would seem, any suggestions for a way round this most welcome.
it is true that by and large many people are brainwashed very successfully by the msm – uk in particular seem to have a knack for it… must be nice knowing all these rags are good tools for m15 when they aren’t getting hand outs from integrity initiative and such… what’s not to like about the drivel dished out regularly in these channels??
If that’s true, why hide behind a fascist electoral system?
not sure who came up with the electoral system.. bring me up to speed here.. the whole thing looks extremely convoluted to me as a canuck..
Yes, it’s pretty convoluted but there are some useful guides available.
Here’s Jeremy Vine’s BBC D’Hondt explainer video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CU3F3ToIIg
Rev Stu outlined the kind of rationale adopted by the Alba Party when he proposed to do the same with Wings. He lays out different scenarios, showing how the parties with a lot of constituency seats get penalised in the regional list elections: https://wingsoverscotland.com/flying-with-wings/
All you need to know is that in Britain, First Past the Post guarantees minority rule and that in Scotland, the d’Hondt method is supposed to guarantee that the Snats have to form a coalition, which mean that two parteis combine to sell out independence.
thank you dawg and squeeth…. i need to understand it better.. hopefully this helps some..
It’s half the mud, half the fact Salmond has support of rabidly transphobic individuals and organizations like WoS and their (borrowed from far right) strawman “any sort of trans rights means all rapists will identify as women to stalk toilets” even though every single part of this smear had been debunked thousands of times. It’s the same language frothing racists in US deep south in the 50s used to defend segregation of buses, toilets and even whole establishments – “Just think of N-WORD rapists stalking our poor, white, weak girls!”. It’s disgusting.
If I were voting for Scottish independence, I’d probably vote Alba to help kick tories out but I’d do so with very heavy heart because I despise trans haters and TERFs almost as much as I do tories – because attacking possibly THE most oppressed and weakest minority right now is revolting. I am not saying Salmond is one of them, but enthusiastic support he got from these groups certainly doesn’t help…
In the name of the wee man
” even though every single part of this smear had been debunked thousands of times.”
I must have missed that.
“half the fact Salmond has support of rabidly transphobic individuals and organizations like WoS and their (borrowed from far right) strawman”
Yes, that’s a good electioneering tactic to use on people who don’t think things through, like you. You get some of your supporters to express their support for the candidates on the other side and the non-thinkers all say, I’m not voting for him, he’s supported by X,Y and Z and they support the other side.
If the central government always has a veto, then there will never be a successful independence movement. That’s not only in Scotland, that’s the world. Since when has any central government agreed to a portion of its power leaving in an independence movement. If that isn’t unique in history, its sure must be damned rare.
If America had to wait for King George to agree to independence, we’d all still be sucking up to Royal Princes and Princesses and the Premier League would be on American telly. 🙂
The U.S.S.R did, though I’m not sure how many individual independence movements were involved. It wasn’t forced to dissolve.
USSR did dissolve partially because the corrupt crime lords who hijacked power in four biggest republics were scared shitless of the federal government smashing their crony circle and sending them to prison so they used recent putsch as an excuse to dissolve said government. Funnily enough, it was undemocratic dissolution because majorities in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine opposed it.
There is also an argument it was illegal because in the haste to break central government they just demolished it instead of following procedures in Soviet constitution (that is to say, for republics to petition to leave because that would be slower/unpopular and population could have stopped it before said four cronies could grab all the power for themselves).
“Any replication of that referendum would need to be very different, with official international monitors to oversee issues like media bias and the security of postal ballots.”
As I believe you remarked at the time, the unusual – perhaps unique – absence of exit polling at such a conspicuous event was also suspicious.
Some analysis of the postal ballot at the link below. Laymen will point to the result as being just possible, statisticians might agree but raise an eyebrow.
http://www.thescottishstandard.scot/scottish-politics/the-postal-ballot-at-the-scottish-independence-referendum-fraud
Somebody said people won’t vote for a divided Party.
Unless you do what Boris and Keith just did, rig the election and cut off the 3/4 part of the Party they didn’t like. Maybe that’s the reason people won’t vote for a divided Party. Because it’s totally unpredictable which direction the Party will go once they’ve got your vote.
Sturgeon will do a Starmer on previous Party leader Alex Salmond. Second try might not be so polite as the first. Sturgeon is completely unpredictable. If she likes Alastair Campbell, maybe she will add Starmer to her hareem by force.
” A truly astonishing level of media bias, particularly from the state broadcaster, made a fair vote impossible.”
This argument says people are too stupid to have votes.
I found Salmond’s presentation to be strangely hesitant and unsure. For a man used to the Westminster stage, Holyrood and his TV show it was disconcerting.
Muscleguy
Being tortured and scapegoated, publicly pilloried for things I haven’t done and hounded by a wall.of MSM venom always makes one feel so much more confident , I find. Gravielli in particular enjoyed sticking in her stilettos, along with many others. Age helps as well, because if you allow your emotions to take over, palpitations follow, breathlessness and death ensues.
Should he be as spunky as the many actor liars in the SNP, when the public believe he is a rapist? That would surely convey the impression that he was unrepentant as well.
There is very little a man can do to protect his reputation when the agents of the deep state, the succubi politicians of the local cock sucker Partys, the false evidence of the deep state’s newsprint and TV fake news, and the addicts of Eastenders and Coronation Street are all having their chew on your integrity, all at the same time.
You threw your toys out the pram over on wings re Alba/Salmond.
This just sounds like sour grapes, because your lot stood down after Alba was announced.
Right so my impression is baseless because you think I’m bitter. I am however a scientist trained to objectively analyse phenomena. When the idea first occurred when playing it I tested the hypothesis in the rest before coming to that conclusion.
This is in contrast to his performances on his shows, which I subscribe to. A strange thing to do if I’m as bitter as you seem to think. I want him to do well. I’m worried by this and other signs.
If I am not convinced by Salmond/Alba I will be left disenfranchised on the List so I have an incentive to want to vote for Alba. Thus far I find myself ambivalent.
Scotland was at the centre of the British Empire and one of its greatest beneficiaries, yet here we are pretending that Scotland was a colony that now seeks independence.
Skye Mull
The British Empire oppressed Africa, India, China, Burma, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Middle East with the main aim of subjugating their superior ideologies to the cocktail of anglo-saxon and Norse predatory violence.
Recently , parts of the down-trodden oppressed have dared to re-group, finding oil wealth and technical superiority,. For the last 40 years they have been ruthlessly crushed, and two world wars to boot.
Some people have objected to the revival of the Anglo-saxon pagan in all but name ruthless violence. Others anticipate a new round of swinging their bommy-knockers on the superior faiths of the world.
Including some from those superior faiths who wannabit of bommy-knocking too please, like he of the Hate Crime Bill.
Pagan violence is never far beneath the surface of civilisation, ready to bend your tent pegs.
Just in case Wikikettle or some such doesn’t show up today, may I be the one to say this Giyane fellow is a remarkable intellect who has greatly expanded my mind and knowledge.
Jay
Starting to sweat?
Jay
I also forgot Hiroshima and Vietnam. Both bommy- knockered by the Wanko-Sucks to warn any autres.
Better than a Turkish bath , isn’t it?
Jay, I always liked Gore Vidal’s responses to William F Buckley’s insults. I am sure he would greatly help you expand your knowledge and intelect.
He triggered buckley into assaulting him, buckley knew he had lost the argument.
Buckley threatened to assault him, it was Norman Mailer who stuck one on him.
Vidal – ” Once again Norman Mailer is stuck for words”
Skye Mull
Sorry, I left out North and South America, Europe, Australia and Greenland.
Craig joined the Foreign Office in the short interlude created by Hitler when pagan Britain was having a little think , after nearly being defeated by its Germanic origins.
We thought peace might take root, but it lasted only 30 years, between 1948 and 1978.
Not sure of your point there…. Scotland was at the centre of things and not a colony. Of course the Highland Clearances might be the exception.
Skye Mull
After our near-defeat to Hitler we gave up our empire so harking back to the days of Empire is to me irrelevant.
Modern Britain is completely out of step with a Party selected by 120,000 Tory die-hards on a proposal to create a second Empire using the leverage of the UN and US diplomatically and the military of the Saudi backed jihadists.
We English don’t want another 40 years of illegal war in the Far East launched by politicians on the false pretext of Brexit. I don’t imagine the Scots want it either, on the false pretext of Independence.
The last UK election was rigged by Idox who are also running the May election in Scotland. Therefore in order to to get Blaired or Cameroned into new bloodshed and violence, it is necessary to read between the lines of corrupt politicians.
The Tories bought up Old Labour, and they appear to have bought up the SNP. Either the SNP opposes England’s illegal wars or it doesn’t supporting England as a neo – colonial power does not make Scotland a colony, it makes it a coloniser as it used to be in Empire 1.
That’s the point. If you become under sweet Nicola Sturgeon a joint coloniser, in exchange for a blind eye turned on SNP embezzlement of Devolution funds, you turn Scotland and its people into a colony of English destruction, because your name is on the blood shed.
If you’re happy to be colonised for a few quid not in your pocket, do it.
thanks for mentioning the highland clearances exception… my ancestors are a result of that… i am sure many in scotland were okay with cozying up to britian, but not all were… maybe many recognize there isn’t a lot attractive in it at this point??
Britain wasn’t “nearly defeated” by Germany in the Big Two, the defeats in the Far East 1941-1942 were far worse. Germany was defeated by the diplomatic reorientations after the Munich Agreement of 1938 and the failure to knock Britain out of the war in 1940. The failures in the USSR spelt Germany’s doom by September 1941.
Indonesia? That was a Netherlands gig.
Skye Mull
A parasitic wasp lays its eggs in the larva of another insect. You see the eggs in outbuildings. The Anglo-saxons with their Beowulf code of honour engage smaller tribes to assist them in their war mongering.
But after that tribe has been parasitised, it isn’t its original self, is it? It’s the slave of the parasitic wasp.
Para means money in many Muslim languages.
Britain conquered India and Arabia by the ladder system of the evil Lawrence spy, starting with the lowest tribes and working up to the top.
In England’s empire2 , Scotland, and all other tribes that the Anglo Saxons want to parasitise, don’t want to make the same mistake they made in England’s empire1, get drawn in to do the donkey work and take much of the blame.
Unless of course one wants to be the slave of the British Empire in perpetuity. Which I believe Nicola Sturgeon is dumb enough to agree to do. Do I underestimate her? Not on the basis of what she has done to AS, CM and others.
With the SNP campaign looking “Saatchi” and All for Unity’s campaign looking like some old rubbish scrawled by a 16-year-old politics student on the back of an envelope, you have to wonder whether the British elite’s plan may in fact be to wave goodbye to Scotland. To get a handle on how this could come about, consider that the nationalist party has run the local administration for 14 years and they have stolen everything they have been able to get their hands on. They stole so much that last year the Sturgeon government had to beg the central British government for another £500m of “borrowing rights”. They have had an absolutely amazing coronavirus – stealing from all sorts of grants. If Scotland were Liverpool, the criminality on the scale that it has occurred would already have resulted in “direct rule”. But that would be unlikely to be tried north of the border given that the local-versus-central brand is much stronger in Scotland than it is in Liverpool. It is possible that the British elite may shift to a “screw Scotland” position which is what the nationalist party nutters tell their moronic punters the position is anyway…as they continue to line their pockets from the offices they hold in the British state. That’s how f***ed up it is.
Seems to me that only big scandals can bring down the SNP in the four weeks that are left until the election. We shall see what materialises. Otherwise they will steal, steal, steal and bankrupt Scotland into the sewer. Countries can simply collapse … several have already. If the nationalist party (either with or without its Salmond front) wins a majority of votes and seats, Scotland is in serious trouble.
Here’s another.
Jay
Up us, is something you will not withput.
The only solution is to get rid of the whole shebang. Unless you just want to replace the crooked Murrells with the equally crooked Sarwars. I really haven’t got the stomach for anything ‘Scottish Parliament’ any more. I have shredded my voting card. All I can see is a motley line-up of crooks, liars, thieves and criminals fighting over who can get their hands on the spoils. Scotland deserves better!
you do not need your voting card to vote, Maggie, your address and name is on the voters register which is checked when you ask for a ballot slip.
I would suggest that you vote Green and Alba on the list, I would if I’d live in Scotland, the only way to cast a vote for more action on sustainable living, less waste and pollution and the ravages of climate change. Mind, we can’t vote to stop volcanoes in Iceland sending us into winter for ‘some time’.
Nevermind
100% agreed
I’ve joined the Freedom Alliance party and shall be voting for them!
Is that you Baroness Davidson ?
Maggie
Voting in Scotland is run by a Tory privatised company called idox. If statistically a voter has not used their vote in recent elections they pinch your vote and put it automatically to who they want. Please use your vote, you don’t need the card, just your address. Voting Green puts pressure on whatever crook gets power to spend money on free renewable energy
Savanta ComRes prediction on basis of their poll (survey 2-7 April):
On the above prediction:
Assuming no rounding, and giving equal weight to constituency votes and list votes (sigh), that gives a narrow majority of votes for pro-independence candidates (50.75-49.25 assuming no votes for the Greens in the constituencies, or around 51.5-48.5 if they win 1.5%), and a pro-independence seat majority of 19 (74-55). If that happens, then I will support holding another independence referendum, because there would be a clear mandate for one.
Personally I think 10 seats for the Greens is unlikely, but…in the “roll up your sleeve for Big Pharma” atmosphere, who knows, there could be large numbers of people who will go to the polling stations and vote for a colour.
N_
You seem to have fallen into the same trap as the Scottish electorate. Independence under Nicola Sturgeon means Scotland supports England’s illegal wars and reaps the spoils of war . If NATO’s Erdogan attacks Myanmar under joint Scottish and English UN approval and China defeats NATO as Russia did in Syria, you face extinction or politival oblivion whichever you think’s nicer.
Nicola Sturgeon has only been in office during the Syrian struggle, which NATO lost. Russia did not accept the loss of its ports in both Libya and Syria. As we enter the reign of Joe Biden as POTUS China will be keen to send a message that US interference in its operational sphere will not be tolerated.
US Democrats got rich on Chinese imports, so they’ve got Britain involved in Far Eastern potential wars, wars that sweet pea Sturgeon already agrees with, but has not yet had a chance to participate in. Like Nancy and Starmer, Nicola Sturgeon thinks war is like bribing the Lord Advocate to lock up Salmond.
Let the Gavins, Prittis and Dominics taste war, sanctions and bodybags If they allow their empire2 fantasies to take over. I don’t want to see her weeping crocodile tears that so unfortunately and unforeseen, British troops have been killed by the Chinese.
I don’t want to listen to her mincing pleas that none of this could ever have been predicted.
No government that has Nicola Sturgeon in it in any position whatsoever should be entrusted with independence. At least under devolution she can claim she was just obeying Bojo’s orders.
Empire 2 is a red herring, British state policy is to creep up American Caesar’s arse and stay there. This isn’t empire, it’s an abdication, as abject as Corbyn’s.
Squeeth
Corbyn abdicated responsibility?
Wasn’t that Cameron, who said Michael Ashcroft had lost his reputation for reporting pig-gate?
If Corbyn was being constantly undermined by the Blairites, the Disintegrate Disincentive, Zion, and the Brexiteers, he didn’t abdicate responsibility. Same as the shit poured on Alex Salmond from the same quarters.
To understand is to forgive. To understand and not forgive is unacceptable. Left wing lives matter.
Corbyn should make a come-back like AS and Trump, but give the poor man a chance.
Worth a watch again Alex Salmond with Barrhead Boy, Alex has certainly breathed new life into the indy cause; his direct approach is a breath of fresh air.
https://www.barrheadboy.com/scottish-prism-8th-april-2021-alex-salmond/
Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross is encouraging voters to vote for whoever is strongest placed to beat the SNP candidate. That’s what he said when asked whether a person who would usually vote Tory should vote Labour in this election.
Ross may also have told Boris Johnson to stay the f*** out of it. (Good move if so.)
Many Tory voters take their unionism very seriously. A fair number will follow Ross’s advice I reckon.
Interestingly in the constituencies where the SNP got its six smallest majorities in 2016 it was the Tory candidate who finished in second place. The smallest majority that the SNP is defending against Labour is 10.2% in Cowdenbeath. If the SNP loses Cowdenbeath they are surely f*cked.
Could it be that the SNP are about to receive the electorate’s hobnailed boot up the coccyx that they so richly deserve, after 14 years of stealing money and insulting everyone’s intelligence? Has there finally come a time when the people of Scotland will stop tolerating these crooks and liars taking the p*ss out of them?
Here are the smallest SNP constituency majorities, with the second-placed parties in each case:
* Top Unionist candidate was Labour in 3rd place
Incidentally in the most recent Edinburgh council election, held in 2017, the Tories got more votes than the SNP, achieving first place (28% to the SNP’s 27% and Labour’s 18%.)
How else are they going to stop the supermajority?
The only way is to commit kamikaze and return these old ‘Labour & Tory’ seats. Thus being able to say that the election proves that there is less support and Independence must not be pressed NOW!
The sure sign will be in the reduction of canvassing and electioneering posters etc , with some gaffs by the incumbents, aided by a piss poor National campaign ‘we got no money! Boo hoo.’
That and an attempt to minimise turnout. You need that to hide these Postal votes.
These CA/AIQ/FB algos will be whirring and the PV ballot computers running through their scenarios.
This looks like it could be even dirtier than the ops in the general elections in the U.K. and US.
Wonder if Curtice will be able to fabricate enough dodgy poll smoke to cover this one!
Craig, you’re obsess with Alex Salmond, a brown nose on the street language. He is not a saint ( Murdoch and Trump friend), why do you keep on and on with him?
Change your approach mate
“He is not a saint “
and a good thing that is, too. Jeremy Corbyn was the closest thing we had as a saint in UK politics for decades and look what happened to him. We need people who can deal with the Tories, not saints.
“We need people who can deal with the Tories, not saints.”
Like Kier Starmmer perhaps?
It was not the Tories who did for Mr Corbyn, it was the faux left: the Centrists, the Moderates, the Red Tories etc. And they still line up with the neoliberals, neo cons, free market capitalists, the libertarians etc against the Left.
It was the supporters of Israel who ruined Jeremy Corbyn and Labour’s electoral effort in 2019, because of 3 promises in the Labour manifesto regarding Israel.
Meanwhile, the royal-decorated Keir Starmer is going to put his Union Jack underpants on today, as he says what a great man Prince Philip was, without mentioning the murder of Princess Diana or the Profumo case and the “Headless Man” photo.
Yes, Lieutenant Commander Michael Parker and how the ‘Duke’ became ‘Prince.’ The book ‘Step Aside for Royalty’ by Eileen Parker is an interesting read.
You mean it wasn’t the Blue Tories that did for Corbyn? I agree, it was the Red ones. The faux left, they are all Red Tories, AFAIAC.
Lyin’ Mike Pompeo and his postal ballots did for Corbyn. He said you weren’t allowed to have Corbyn as PM.
Louis Celine. Craig is actually, as you state “obsess with Nicola Sturgeon” not AS. She is not a Saint. ( Hillary Clinton and Alistair Campbell friends ) he keeps on and on with her, as no one in the Media does “”Mate””
Indeed the game has changed, they are incapable of defending so they have decided to keep the ball to themselves and stop attacking.
Just checked the Guardian to see what Scottish news they have today – none and the only article they have under Scotland is a story on the Brazil Covid variants. Nope not a single mention of Scotland in it! I guess I’ll have to look at the bloggers for anything News.
??
@Dungroanin – Can you explain what you’re saying about attack and defence please? The SNP is in the unusual position of having to sell the message “Vote for the sitting government – with 14 years in office – to bring about CHANGE; don’t vote for the opposition, because then you’ll only get more of the SAME.” That is a rare message to have to sell in any country. It is as ludicrous as it sounds, like any other party they don’t want to be laughed at, and the question is whether they will successfully distract from the “contradiction” by shouting their brand values, i.e. flagwaving and telling people that “Westminster” doesn’t care for them. That kind of distraction may work with many 16-year-olds, but it doesn’t work so well with those aged over about 23.
They – are the Unionist Establishments and their global money masters who have been long hidden somewhere over the rainbow.
Attacking – is their attack against the Independence psyche. For instance to remove AS from the war and have a controlled FM in a woke coalition with a he Greens that will shelve Indy for another generation. Hoping the kids will be more into the fakegarsmic Green elfin led monetisation of the remaining natural resources of the planet.
Defending – is their failure to succeed with their attacks and see them turned back on them – as again Salmond ; CM, etc.
Keeping the ball – is them stopping trying negative coverage in the MSM because it is being rebounded and hurting their cause. They went into the ‘Ghandian gambit’ – ignore him phase , having failed with ridicule/monstering and attack with the attempt to railroad people into prison.
That was why I noted the Groans Scottish coverage yesterday.
Slithering ssssSeverin and the ii mob having failed to land any of their punches .
All efforts will be made to stop him debating on TV.
Including using today’s expected demise of the Greek.
Alex Salmond in discussion now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1Xjc3EE8zU
[ The recorded video is available at the same URL ]
Okay.
Trident – If an independent Scotland retained the nukes would they automatically replace the England/UK on the UN security council?
Currency – Would pegging a new currency (the scottia? Scottie) to the median between Stirling and euro work?
Westminster – Should Alba MPs withdraw, boycott and start to attend (observer) Scottish parly? Is it a Republic party? Contrast with SNP’s comfort living it up down south while achieving nothing.
Answer to your first question is no.
You want to retain the nukes ? Are you a psychopath ?
Alec Lomax
One university student where I used to work had a naked young lady riding through the sky on a sausage ( the building has now been knocked down to make way for HS2 ). Which is how my imagination sees Sturgeon and nukes. With
Scotland flattened to make way for English Empire2.
I always thought that the English political establishment in London/ Westminster would never accept Scottish independence. In spite of having a Tory government (under David Cameron) a Scottish born person called Gordon Brown (from Labour !!!) was sent to Scotland in a (successful??) attempt to talk the scots into voting against Scottish independence. What was standing out for me like a sore thumb was this move showed that both major English parties were very “reluctant” to see Scotland leave the UK. Again, the Tories sending a person from Labour to Scotland ? But I also see more parts of the UK leaving the same UK. Parts like Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland (rejoining the Irish Republic).
“If both Theresa May and Boris Johnson had not refused formal requests for a S30 agreement for an Independence referendum, Scotland would already be independent.“
Crazy talk, equivalent to “We don’t need no stinking mandate”.
When added to “We won in 2014” the true flavour comes through.
Since 2014 there has been no mandate for a s30 request. By what right should a nationalist Partei that has never won a majority for shee-yit, not even in low-turnout Holyrood elections, be able to impose its will on the population?
If there are majorities of votes and seats for pro-referendum candidates in a month’s time, Johnson will announce that a s30 order if requested will be granted. (He’ll have no choice.)
That’s a big “if”. I’m increasingly optimistic that the criminal Partei and its “Green” front will get whacked in the election. It’s pretty obvious that the “Alba” play failed completely in the focus groups.
But Sturgeon has a few cards left to play in respect of the border, saying it’s a hygiene issue.
Which is not to say that the British government isn’t also building racism. I heard a Britgov minister this morning, probably Grant Shapps, say that a third of British children have at least one parent who was “born outside of the UK” and they will want to “see their loved ones”. Obvious where that is going.
N_
Census fluff. They asked the stupid questions and they got their stupid answers. Everybody with just a British passport is British, unlike Abu BoJi who is also French. And the rest.
Tories always manage to look down their noses at everybody else.
As to the Scottish election, whatever makes you think Idox means Ayedox? The result will be absolutely nothing to do with what the electorate want.imho.
Is it any wonder that I have encountered the most wicked people in Britain?
The country just breeds the most horrifying kinds of wickedness, and I am now hearing about ‘secure schools’, and I really just want to give up.
Of all the places I have lived.
I have to say that part of the reason I come to this site is because I want to still feel that there are decent people in this country.
If anyone can point me to me to some kind of support group, I’d be grateful.
How do you deal with this?
Ever since coming to Britain, my mental health has been really on the descent.
Marmite
‘ And hold onto the rope of Allah, and do not become divided.’ Qur’an.
Not a group, but the best help I know.
WoS seems to be back online after a little local difficulty with pet rats – some readers failing to notice the PET part and advocating cats to murder these pets… but that is what happens when people are presented with images and react instinctively… ?
Anyway, that aside, the Rev reports NS saying that under no circumstances, even if Independence relied on it , she would not put Scotland above HER personal (union preserving orders!) feelings, to finally deliver the decades long goal of Indy, by even considering to work with actual declared Indy foremost party ALBA!
Not only would she reject cooperation but she wouldn’t pick up the phone to initiate cooperation!
As the Rev says – you must be blind or deaf to NOT see that you have been had by NS and her current SNP – as much as AS was by her and the infiltration of carpetbaggers when he walked away precipitously in 2014. Thinking she was safe and genuine and would tip the balance towards Indy! She has done exactly the opposite.
At least AS has the gumption to attempt to put right that error of judgment and being taken in by the agent of the unionists, nurtured as a lilly white infiltrator from nearly her teens, and bring the monster that he unleashed, suffering all the slings and arrows as he does, it is an immense mental and physical effort that most couldn’t bear.
It is clear that this follows my opinion of the path to max damage to the possibility of the Supermajority, as is the fake polls from ‘Brains’ Curtice – busy generating smoke to hide the PV fixing getting its latest Gauntlet outing polishing.
So what are the confused and gaslighted SNP supporters to do instead of being forced to spoil their ballots or not turn out because of the public humiliation they feel by NS deceit?
Well – I suggest that psychologically they must understand that a vote for the constituency SNP candidate – is just a vote for THAT candidate- it is NOT a vote for NS.
If they don’t like that candidate then of course vote for the person you want regardless of the consequences overall.
As for the List , vote for the party that will fight hardest for what you want – if you think that is the SNP then that is what you must do. If you think Alba is more determined to deliver Indy in YOUR lifetime , then that is what you must do.
Obviously if you are a staunch unionist and don’t want to see Scotland freed of its servitude to the ancient Aristos and have its resources plundered forevermore by them – vote for the most Unionist petals that you want – doesn’t matter which Con/Lab/Lib…or cough cough SNP.
If you really really are paused off enough with NS don’t vote for her at constituency and SNP in the list in case she tries to barge in through that back door.
Have I got that right?
What a great day for democracy today is.
If there are any republicans in the SNP, today would be a good day for them to come out loud and strong. The same is also true about Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
Let’s not forget where “Prince” Philip was “duke” of. I’d love to see window banners in Edinburgh saying “Good riddance! Edinburgh says no to dukedoms and the monarchy.”
The BBC is surpassing its awful worst with its sycophantic hagiography of the blessed Prince. “He’ll be deeply missed all around the world.” Yes, if “the world” comprises the English ruling class, the lumpen white bourgeois and working class who aspire to tug their forelocks in subjugation and a few white arse-licking subjects in Australia, Canada and the USA.
All those people who’ve washed their hands, worn masks and kept the NHS safe whilst missing their cardiology and cancer screenings and treatments, will mourn the passing of the 99 year old who had major coronary surgery, without delay and first-rate after care at our expense. Good fucking riddance.
I see that Greta Thunberg is once again showing us who the adults are, boycotting assinine summits on the basis of global health inequality. There are some nice people in the world, and we need to rejoice for that. The question is how to multiply them, and figure out how to help all the morally lost souls from the Tory-voting farmers to the silver-spoon leeches.
On another topic, and sorry to change the subject, but I am starting to wonder if my identity is secure on this site. The British police state is starting to look really terrifying indeed, and I really don’t have time to be arrested simply for expressing my beliefs. This is no longer a facetious question, at a time when terms like extremist can be applied to anyone from a tree-hugger and an animal-lover to an anti-nukes campaigner.
And so the second quarter finally begins after someone got taken ill in the crowd, who are getting restless with the negative attack/defence tactics. So here goes the positivity attack!
She is now a woo woo mind reader and thinks that Bozo will grant a referendum immediately that the lectionary are over!
Uri-effing-Gellar!
Oh an about that ‘positive’ change that the crowd is demanding? She is quoted in a most formulated paragraph that stars of as a supposed question but ends without a single question mark in the whole paragraph. See for yourselves. From the Groaniads Liippy Brooks ‘Exclusive’
“In my opinion, are there questions about the appropriateness of the return to public office of somebody who was accused of serious inappropriate behaviour towards women – who was acquitted of any criminality and I will never question that – who in the course of a criminal trial seemed to suggest that he had behaved in ways that were not always appropriate, admitted something to me that I believe was deeply inappropriate, and has never really reckoned with that, has never reflected and been prepared to say, ‘I regret that and wouldn’t do that again in the future’.”
Gosh I wonder when Libby’s going to give Salmond an equal Exclusive? You know to be fair and balanced? Yup the crowds are certainly not going to be impressed by that projection.
When’s the next debate? Is it cancelled because of a funeral of someone who declared himself a Duke in Scotland?