While a large chunk of the independence movement gets stuck into the tiresome business of pointing fingers at other independence supporters and sneering, all is not at all well with our real opposition. Both the Labour branch office in Scotland and the Scottish Let’s Have Our Democratically Elected Leader Overthrown By London Tories are currently embroiled in existential crises.
Jackson Carlaw was elected by the membership of the Scottish Tories in a ballot just a few months ago. As we all know, the real leadership of the party however decided that Scottish people had voted wrongly, and so got rid of him. And in the process also got rid of any right not to be laughed at when they complain about other parties not respecting the outcome of democratic votes. Sadly for the Tories, their new branch office misleader DRoss is living down to his name.
DRoss has already been caught out this week lying in a radio interview about how he’d voted when he claimed that he’d stand up against imports of chlorinated chicken and hormone injected beef. He then managed to infuriate the Farmers Union after he falsely claimed that they supported what he’d done. Then yesterday in an interview with the BBC he decided that he’d enjoyed the experience so much that he was going to do it again. Not being content to aver that his support for the union was “staunch”, a dog whistle word whose implications any West of Scotland person will fully appreciate, DRoss asserted that the Edinburgh Agreement contains a proviso that the referendum of 2014 should be “once in a generation”. Of course the Edinburgh Agreement says no such thing. Naturally he was immediately corrected by the BBC interviewer. Oh wait. No.
Then in response to a tweet from the SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford calling out DRoss for lying, struggling children’s entertainer Annie Wells tweeted : “Come on Ian….. you must remember the Edinburgh agreement that Nicola and Alex signed. I can jog your memory if you like?” Please do Annie. We’d like nothing more than for you to jog on. Please show us the section in the Edinburgh Agreement where it says that the referendum was a once in a generation event. Annie then attempted to praise her own tweet, only she’d forgotten to log out of her main account to her troll account. Then she tweeted from her Women2Win account the exact same thing presumably believing that no one had noticed.
She was later joined by Jackson Carlaw in her insistence that the Edinburgh Agreement contains a piece of text that we can all see isn’t there. We’re now in some bizarre mirror universe where the Conservatives in Scotland are reduced to blatantly lying about something that is easily shown to be false, yet they insist on doubling down on their lie. This is a special sort of desperation that you only find amongst people who have realised that the game is up. The Conservatives in Scotland are now officially on a lower level than a small child whose face is covered in chocolate and who is sitting amidst empty packaging and crumbs yet who is insisting that it hasn’t eaten all the biscuits.
But they weren’t yet done. In a transparent attempt to garner some sympathy and throw up a distraction, because there’s nothing more energetic than a British nationalist in search of victimhood, resident Tory smugness Andrew Bowie tweeted a list of insults that he’d received in response to tweeting out a photo of his dinner, a plate of fish and chips. Unfortunately for Andrew this was not a plate of fish and chips as you or I would understand a plate of fish and chips. This was a twattishly designer plate of fish and chips of the sort you get in expensive Commons restaurants which are performing heavily subsidised riffs on working class food. One of the insults he received in response was the supremely poetic “Scottish Tory 6 chip twat”, and if that doesn’t end up as an song track title on the next album of a Scottish band there is no justice in this world. Personally I want to know whoever it was who came up with that quote and vote them the queen or king of the Yes movement.
So to recap, just in this week DRoss has managed to enrage the Farmers Union, lied on the BBC not once but twice, announced a Trumpian Scotland First programme which when you read the small print says that it won’t put Scotland first at all, claimed that causing traffic chaos with roadworks on the M8 will save the Union, engaged in a light spot of dog whistle sectarianism, and has seen “Scottish Tory 6 chip twat” trend on Twitter. So yeah, this is looking very like a party which is totally confident in its ability to resist another referendum.
Meanwhile in London, the real bosses of the Scottish Conservatives continue to inspire confidence. Health Secretary Matt Hancock was asked by Kay Burley of Sky News why the British Government wanted to offer a senior post to former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott. “He’s a homophobe and a misogynist,” Kay pointed out. “Well he’s also an expert on trade”, replied Matt. Also Rolf Harris is pretty good at painting. Jimmy Savile was an expert at fundraising. Harold Shipman was a family doctor. And Peter Sutcliffe was a great lorry driver. Tory apologists have now been reduced to claiming that Kay Burley, yes that Kay Burley, is nothing more than a spokesperson for the woke left.
Looking at this chaos, the Scottish Labour party sent out an official press release saying “Haud ma coat”. The party’s dwindling band of MSPs are getting fed up with a branch office manager whose name they can never remember. And let’s be honest here, when James Kelly MSP manages to write a more eloquent resignation letter than anything that Rigomundo Lumpsqueezer has ever managed to say during his entire time in office, you should realise that you’ve got a bit of a problem. That’s a “bit of a problem” in the same way that a dinosaur in the Yucatan circa 66 million years ago thought that the rapidly growing fireball in the sky above it might just end up spoiling its afternoon.
So far no less than four Labour MSPs have publicly demanded the resignation of Randulph Lightluncher. But it’s going to take rather more than a change in leadership to save the Labour party in Scotland. Labour has lost its way in Scotland. It has devoted all its time and energy to attacking the SNP and to nurturing its grudges against a party which has proven considerably more successful in appealing to working class Scottish communities that it has forgotten that it was supposed to act to defend Scotland against the Conservatives. They now find themselves on the same side of the constitutional issue as the Tories, and moreover show every sign of wanting to double down on it. They’re like a poisoned man who thinks that the cure is to drink more poison.
There is a strong faction within the party which wants it to take a much harder line against independence, however over 40% of the party’s remaining voters want independence. Even worse than that according to an opinion poll that was published today a whopping 62% of Labour voters in Scotland believe that if there is an independence referendum in 2021, Scotland will vote for independence. The same poll also found that 63% of people in Scotland believe that Scotland will vote yes to independence if there’s a referendum next year. That means that a large and significant block of no voters already believe that independence is inevitable.
We are now close to, or maybe even already at, the tipping point where Scotland becomes a country where independence is the settled will of the people of Scotland. The British nationalist parties are in chaos. Labour has utterly lost its way and is facing extinction. The Conservatives are mired in confusion and incompetence and the cracks are already showing in their determination to resist another referendum. The momentum is ours. The future is ours. Our biggest danger is division amongst ourselves.
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Wee Ginger Dug 
Its unlikely that Richard…wha’ts his name will be replaced, his boss in London the millionaire Knight of the Realm Sir Keir Starmer has said he gets on with Richard..so and so, like a house on fire, mind you support like that usually means yer jakit is oan a shaky nail.
As for Walter Mitty aka the angry Linesman aka Douglas Ross he’s been told to stop the lying on the once in a generation claim. As for Tony Abbott, he’s a nasty piece of work, he’ll fit right in as a trade advisor for the empire.
Reblogged this on Ramblings of a now 60+ Female.
Laughed all the way through, priceless… One typo “Kat”
Yep a comedy of errors, and unforced ones at that… Game on…
Another prescient post. Thanks!
Did anyone see this morning on BBC Breakfast (I was testing a new remote, I wasn’t actually watching it!) the presenter asked a Scottish man if he thought it was a good idea to have separate quarantine measures in place across the four nations. No, he replied, we should be as one country, I’ve got a British passport. Devolution was also mentioned (or rather shoehorned in).
Apparently this man later said that he thought different parts of Greece should have different measures, but I’d completed my testing by then and didn’t see that bit. Can anyone confirm?
‘A Scottish man’…love that! He probs said we’d be ‘just like Greece’ if we vote for independence, lol!
Haven’t they replaced DRoss yet?
Thanks for the chuckles, a commodity in short supply these days. Well summed up as to the state of the oppostion.
Keep it up you are the finger on the pulse 🏴🏴
Boris made his “reputation” lying for the Toadygraf.
Dross lying? I would guess following a script–he isn’t clever enough to think up his own porkies.
Ruthless has more faces than the Toon Clock.
As we saw in 2014 lies and snake oil are all they have.
Stick together–dont follow those who would split us.
Egomaniacs, stooges and “plants” will be encouraged by the British State.
We will have enough to do combating Gove et al.
Absolutely correct.
Prior to Douglas Ross’s car-crash experience over the Farmer’s Union, both Yes Dumfries and SNP MSP Emma Harper confirmed to me that they are seeing more farmers – in SW Scotland anyway – warming to the idea of Independence as a way to safeguard the high food standards which underpin their businesses.
If this is happening across Scotland, it is the most likely explanation for Douglas Ross’s recent attempt to schmooze with them in the media. If the Tories are now losing more and more Scottish farmer’s votes, then that is a serious problem for them. Rural Tory List MSP’s will be in real threat if enough farmer’s abandon them next May.
In reality, Ross is probably the intended sacrificial lamb if the Tories get thumped next May. He likely knows this, or if he doesn’t, many of his MSP’s and bosses in London do. He’ll be forced to resign if the Tories get crushed in May 2021, and their crisis will only worsen……
Meanwhile, South of the Border, there are growing signs that Boris Johnson’s halo is slipping among Tory MP’s, Tory media backers and voters. Fraser Nelson, Rod Liddle, and Isabel Oakeshott have all savaged Johnson’s government in the past 2 weeks as the Summer of U-Turns extends into the Autumn. The Daily Telegraph’s letters page has recently included entries from Tory voters voicing their disappointment, disillusion and outright hostility at Johnson, and similar views are now being expressed in comments on Conservative Home. Then, today, we had Tory MP Sir Christopher Chope actually standing up in the House of Commons and reading out a list of quotes from his constituents emails and letters expressing their disgust and disappointment at Johnson’s conduct as PM.
The perception is growing that Boris Johnson is simply not up to the job of being PM. Which, given the Tory party’s ruthlessness towards failing leaders, makes his future prospects look a bit less secure.
As a sample of this, read Andrew Gimson’s article on Johnson’s car-crash PMQ’s performance yesterday:
“Andrew Gimson’s PMQs sketch: Johnson has a bad first day back, with no plausible excuses for not doing his homework.
Boris Johnson had a bad first day back. While Sir Keir Starmer conveyed genuine moral indignation, the Prime Minister sounded like a schoolboy who has not merely failed to do his homework, but has not taken the trouble to think up any plausible excuses for failing to do it.
There was no good answer, because as Starmer remarked, either the PM knew and did nothing, or did not know but should have known.
Johnson accused Starmer of “going round undermining confidence…spreading doubts…gloom and dubitation”. But this counter- attack was mounted in a lacklustre way.
Starmer proceeded to accuse Johnson of “making it up as he goes along” and “just playing games”, but there was in fact something oddly unplayful in the PM’s demeanour. He was not enjoying himself, and in the socially distanced Chamber, less than a tenth as full as it would be in normal times for PMQs, lacked the audience which might have spurred him into performing with brio.
The Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, was not amused: “We do need to have the answers.”
Johnson didn’t have them. He tried to dub Starmer “Captain Hindsight”, and accused him of having for years supported an IRA sympathiser, i.e. Jeremy Corbyn. Starmer retorted that “the problem is the PM is governing in hindsight”, and waxed wrathful at the slur that he had somehow supported the IRA, when actually he had spent years prosecuting it.
He demanded that Johnson have the “decency” to withdraw the IRA comment, but added that “doing the decent thing and the Prime Minister don’t go together”.
The PM was unrepentant. His hooliganism is reminiscent of Lord Randolph Churchill, father of Winston, who in the 1880s was almost unbelievably rude about Gladstone, but in a wittier way than Johnson today achieved.
So this was not a glorious half-hour. It showed instead the profound incompatibility between the PM and the Leader of the Opposition.
Starmer is bound to find Johnson disreputable, and was today successful in showing him up. Johnson is bound to find Starmer prosy and negative, and was today unable to make those charges stick.
Ian Blackford, for the Scots Nats, said on a point of order that Downing Street had accused the SNP of revealing the whereabouts of Johnson’s holiday cottage in Scotland: “this allegation and briefing was entirely and deliberately false”, “the worst kind of political smear”, should not have been engaged in by “the apparatus of the British Government”, and had led to threats against Blackford as the local MP.
Johnson replied in a light-hearted manner, whereupon the Speaker reminded the House in a grave tone of the “security implications”. So we see Johnson, by his impenitence, infuriating those who think life is real and life is earnest.”
And here, is a sample of the comments by Conservative Home members:
“David McD 1 day ago
Boris was useless. So useless that I wonder if he has lost his marbles. Anyway, it does not matter why he is so awful, he just has to go.
Report
Reply18 replies · active 6 hours ago”
“Mr_Sam · 1 day ago
Maybe he just never had any, maybe the Coronavirus did more danage than has bern admitted, maybe he’s lost the will to be PM. But yes, he has to go, and better now before the serious problems arise with the end of trandition.”
“johnharris66b· 1 day ago
Yes, Johnson was embarrassingly bad.
He should resign at the end of the transition period. But that would give him an excuse to extend transition indefinitely, of course.”
“LLifeless· 1 day ago
Are you sure that is not his aim also?
He is in the difficult position of thinking that nothing can occur to negate the failures. He looks resigned to resigning.”
“KidwellyCastle· 19 hours ago
Fully agree. Whats worse is presumably this was to be a new start after a dreadful summer. He can’t look forward to this experience every week, perhaps he will wilt under the pressure and just go. Presumably, he meets with advisors to prepare for PMQ, its a poor reflection on them too. His whole team need to go and a completely fresh start with a new leader.”
“KGain· 1 day ago
If even Andrew Gimson couldn’t cheerlead this PMQ performance, then Johnson will have to pull up his socks and invest in extra thick pants for his next parliamentary excursion.”
“Keith_N· 1 day ago
I heard a rumour (note: only a rumour – it could be nonsense) that Johnson was beginning to get bored of being PM (after all, it has not been much fun for him, has it?) and, still recovering from his illness and with a new baby, is thinking of standing down and going back to writing.
I did not see PMQs but the various reports seem to indicate an unhappy Prime Minister.
It would be interesting if he did step down, as it is very hard to predict his successor, and would be the fourth PM in five years.”
“Impertinent_Cad· 1 day ago
Brexit will see the back of Johnson’s unhappy time as PM. He will either enrage the ERG by capitulating to the EU or he’ll enrage everyone by failing to prevent a disastrous No Deal scenario before ultimately capitulating to the EU.”
“Impertinent_Cad· 1 day ago
It’s instructive to read the comments on this site from a year ago whereby those who warned that Johnson wasn’t up to the job were shouted down. The reason he doesn’t prepare for PMQs is that he doesn’t care enough to do so. Johnson’s ambition was always to become Prime Minister, rather than to be Prime Minister, and it shows. Give him a sports centre to open and he’s in his element. Making day to day decisions is boring and evidently he considers it beneath him.
He won’t make it to next Spring because Brexit will put the Johnson regime out of its misery. Of course there’s no suggestion that Cummings would follow him out of the door. The question is who will Cummings choose to be his next PM?”
“Walsallbob· 1 day ago
BJ was awful today and I think he will have to go in the New Year unless he can can find some way of running a competent centre right government. Most of us don’t ask for much more than that. As for his successor we have lots of candidates who could do a better job.”
“Servalan1· 1 day ago
It not about a failure to do homework, being up to speed about core policies of your own Government should be the day job.
As PM, he won’t answer the questions because he doesn’t have any answers that don’t show up his inadequacies as PM.
He is fortunate that PMQ’s don’t matter much, but he gives the impression that nothing matter much to him, particularly not truth, consistency or good governance.”
“BobSymons· 21 hours ago
What an embarrassment Johnson is. That was a proper meltdown during pmq’s today.
And what is the man who put Clair Fox in the house of lords doing accusing anyone of being Pro IRA? Mystifying…
I strongly suspect the dark lords of brexit will keep Johnson in charge long enough to take the blame for a calamitous end to the transition period before kicking him out and trying another rebrand of the party.”
“pandaroja· 19 hours ago
“So we see Johnson, by his impenitence, infuriating those who think life is real and life is earnest.”
Good closing line, but why do you make such allowances for Johnson? He’s the frigging PM. Starmer hasn’t got a crowd of cheering supporters behind him either, but he just gets on with it.
Let’s face it: Johnson is not up to the job. Cummings is doing most of the work (badly – not such a genius after all), Boris just does the figure-head stuff, but he’s not even any good at that.
I look at how worn and deflated Johnson looks now compared to a couple of years ago. He’s the perfect advert for , “Be careful what you wish for.””
Why do I get the feeling that Tory knives are being sharpened, especially by Michael Gove who has been dining with the Murdoch’s recently, and will soon be joined by Cummings in the Cabinet Office? Factor in the fact that Johnson is a threat to the Union, something which Gove – a fiercely pro-Union, anti-Devolution Scot with his national identity at stake – will care about much more than him.
Is Gove about to stab Boris in the back/front for the 2nd time?
Good grief that was a long post. As someone prone to the odd “chapter or two” myself, I take my hat off to you (or I would if I wore one).
However, it is bad news if Boris is toppled. Some one competent may take his place (stop sniggering) and that would be ….. disappointing.
That then would have to be someone from outside their particular gene pool that already has all the depth of a saucer
Christopher Rosendale
Who are the Scots Nats?
Just interested in your terminology.
Is not how I would refer to Independence supporters of the SNP.
Hamish100,
He’s quoting Andrew Gimson’s review of PMQ’s in yesterday’s Torygraph. Par for the course in such a newspaper.
I don’t think CR would refer to us as Scots Nats.
(Quite illuminating however that ‘Boris’s Own Paper’ is attacking him so vehemently …)
It’s staggering that anyone thought Johnson competent in the first place.
Thanks for your post Christopher, so who’s next in line? Gove? Let’s hope not as Gove seems to have an IQ somewhat higher than Johnson’s and the ability to articulate. As Me Bungo Pony says it would be bad news (for us) if Boris was toppled, but not the end of the world however. We’d deal with it 😀.
I suspect it is Gove, who is either being lined up or is on manoeuvres (more likely).
He knifed Johnson in 2016, and may well do so again. The growing threat to the Union directly impacts him as a Scot, and Johnson is making it worse by being toxic up here.
He also has a longer relationship with Cummings, as they worked together at the Department of Education long before Vote Leave. The fact that they are now going to be working together at the Cabinet Office seems ominous, as it is likely that Cummings would stay with Gove if he became PM. Cummings expertise at referendum campaigning strongly suggests that, given the stakes for Gove, he would work on a future pro-UK campaign. I also fear that Cummings learned from Vote Yes in 2014 – as it significantly raised support for Scottish Independence and re-aligned Scottish politics afterwards – and used some of their tactics in Vote Leave, so he may not be able to resist the challenge of taking on a renewed Vote Yes just to see if he could beat them. Cummings clearly has an ego.
However, Rishi Sunak is another potential threat to Johnson, although I would not rule-out Jeremy Hunt either. Hunt said today that he “dodged a bullet” by not winning the Tory leadership last summer, which may mean that he is quite happy to watch Johnson get the blame for the COVID-19 debacle South of the border, then try and unseat him in a future leadership challenge. Having been outside Johnson’s government, he would not have any baggage from it and may be able to present himself as the man capable of cleaning-up Johnson’s mess, and present a stronger opponent to Keir Starmer who is taking Johnson apart at every PMQ’s.
Nah….Gove will never be leader of the Conservative party or PM , he is a britnat but he was born in Scotland so England will never allow him to have those posts , not in the current climate.
Some other calamity will take over from B.Johnston.
Thanks for that Christopher, very interesting.
And very important I think too, that we get to know about this stuff, links from Petra here (Ann on Indyref2.space), used to be Nana.
There’s so much out there, we can’t every one of us do it all ourselves!
My money’s on Sunak by the way, but not neccessarily the next PM, maybe the one after – after the Union is lost and it wasn’t his fault.
Scottish independence will allow Scotland’s people for the first time in hundreds of years to decide how Scotland will be as a country.
Scotland will be able give people a good state retirement pension
instead of the worst state retirement pension in Europe which is what England’s Westminster gives us
Scotland won’t have to waste billions of pounds on nuclear submarines like England’s Westminster does Scotland won’t send nuclear submarines around the world as a threat to other countries to keep on our good side the way England’s Westminster does
Scotland will be able to become a nuclear free country
Scotland will be able to claim for the first time since it was discovered
that Scottish oil and gas really does exist in the seas around Scotland’s coast and Scotland will be able to decide how the money from it is spent unbelievably that’s never ever happened because England’s Westminster has always decided how it’s spent
Scotland will for the first time ever be able to sell Scotch Whisky around the world as a product of this beautiful country called Scotland rather than see it sold as a product of U.K. with Union Jack flags all over it
Maps across the world will show the top half of this island as Scotland instead of having England plastered across the whole island as it often is
When Scotland has people who win or excel they will be described as Scottish a win for Scotland instead of a British win
and when Scotland loses ……well nothing will change we will still be described as Scottish
We won’t have our successes highjacked as being British
Scotland will have programmes on tv and radio ……about Scotland wow we won’t have to watch things about England ninety five percent of the time as we do at present , we will get our football team live on tv rather than England matches wow how did we ever allow that to happen anyway you know what I mean ….when Scotland are playing an away match in the World Cup we only get recorded highlights but when England are playing at home or away we get live tv of both in Scotland !!
And on and on it goes
So looking forward to getting our country back ,I’ve never lived in my own country really , I’m 64 and my whole life England’s Westminster has controlled my country
I’m sick of it as are most people in Scotland
We are taking control of our country back and will have elections afterwards to decide how we will run our country , you can rest assured that we will run it a lot differently to the way England’s Westminster has done it
Well said Terence. I can’t wait for that day to come either.
I’m getting worried!
I find it easier to remember the names you give the current (any second now) leader of the Labour Branch Office than I do recalling his real name.
Oh that’s easy. His real name is Rupert Losevoter. Or was it Reinhard Looselipper?
Ragnald Listwriter? It will come to me in a minute.
Got it!
Ringbinder Leverarch
🙂
Reinhardt Lencepticon?
🤣
🤣
How about Reginald Leafblower?
More woe for Johnson.
Boris Johnson is floundering, and his majority may not save him
https://archive.vn/wkAQ6
The Tories might need to find somebody else that will continually refuse a Section 30 order.
It’s almost certain to be that slippery slimeball Gove.
Christopher Rosindale upthread makes the interesting suggestion that DRoss is merely a convenient sacrificial lamb for the drubbing that the Tories might well get come next May. But just like the NorthBritish branch of Labour, it’s hard to see who could possibly follow. They are both running out of Bugginses!
(Oops – sorry for the escaped italics.)
If it is Gove we won’t have to bother with a referendum.
After 6 months of him in charge I’m pretty sure that the English, in a desperate effort to rid themselves of all things Scottish (which Gove is, at least notionally) will defenestrate him (possibly literally) and expel us from the U.K.
It’s not accidental , this continual quick change of leadership is planned it allows them to come in do idiotic things and then leave never to be remembered for anything good whatsoever , they don’t mind that because it’s job done their reward is already banked.
Britnats’ weave in tangles:
“We tell lies when we are afraid… afraid of what we don’t know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be found out about us. But every time we tell a lie, the thing that we fear grows stronger.”
Tad Williams
Another great post Paul. Keep them coming
The Tories have devolved into Trumpesque fantasy tactics suggesting they don’t have any other cards left to play. SLAB’s ongoing slow motion suicide is a joy to behold. In particular, I cannot wait for Jenny “I’m married to a millionaire publisher whose family owns a Tory supporting newspaper” Marra’s leadership bid. Who says its only the Americans who don’t do irony?
Ah, so Jen is to be SLab’s eventual new “new start” Kez, then?
How many more leaders will they have to go through before they realise that it’s not the face that’s the problem, but the policy?
Marra has always been worth a watching. It will be fawning all the way by An ex Daily record journalist. You know the one that leaked information about a guy found not guilty. I hope he will be interviewed in the Hollywood inquiry?
Sorry , holyrood.
Even the right wing Johnson supporting website Guido Fawkes is having a dig at him now LOL.
“Less generous backbenchers are admitting that’s not the only recent area of comms cock-up Boris needs to sort out…”
https://archive.vn/pH1ex
A parable for all seasons – feel free to share with your farming folk friends (FFF), especially if they are ‘Soft Noes’:
21.(of 60.
Farmer MacDonald
Old Farmer MacDonald had a farm, and on that farm he had a pair of wellington boots. They were a red, white and blue pair and they were well past their best. They were old and starting to split along their seams. They leaked water very badly, so that every time Farmer MacDonald strode around his farm he would as often as not return home with sodden feet. The wellies were often caked in mud and grime too, picked up by Farmer MacDonald as he went about his farm business. Additionally, his feet had started to swell in these wellies – or maybe the wellies themselves had got a little tighter; no one was too sure which. In any case, Farmer MacDonald started to feel distinctly uncomfortable and to suffer some degree of pain when he wore the red, white and blue wellies.
Farmer MacDonald’s wife had long ago given up on these wellies and it was her intention to throw them away at the earliest possible opportunity. His wife then was a highly practical woman. She also wanted the best for her husband and wanted him to appear smart in front of all the other farmers. So she bought some new wellies for her husband. These were bright and shiny- blue and white – and had, as yet, to be tried out on the farm.
Farmer MacDonald loved his wife and always respected her decisions when it came to deciding things that were good for him. Indeed, being a far-sighted woman, his wife knew that what was good for Farmer MacDonald was not only good for her, but good for the farm as a whole. With these factors in mind, Farmer MacDonald got hold of the tatty, muck covered, painful old red, white and blue wellingtons and threw them into the rubbish bin.
Then, with a smile and a wink to his wife, he slipped on the comfortable, new and shiny blue and white wellies and strode off to new pastures on his farm. His work was much more enjoyable as a result.
_______
Parables for the New Politics
2012-2020
Paul ,Once again thanks. I laughed aloud at the Rolf Harris et al section. DRoss well named. CRap must be a Conservative ,somewhere. I hope WGD has good meds for his arthritis. 👍
From your very own ‘Daily Racked’, from earlier this year, Scotland:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/poundstretcher-bosses-slammed-sending-scots-21846944
Martin Crapper? Says it all 😀.
Are all the Tories staunch:
Murdo is a staunch Queen’s eleven supporter
Tompkins a staunch republican (lapsed)
Davidson a staunch parent (children grow up in 6 months, don’t they?).
Wells a staunch idiot (can’t even remember to change twitter accounts to promote her own tweet.
Galloway (new Tory) a staunch socialist, independence supporter, unionist, Ronald Villiers impersonator, you name it, he’s been it.
We could go on but what’s the point.
You could start a bet or a poll on whos next to get the boot is it bojo the clown dicky leonard willlie rennie or douglas ross oh wait ive most likely predicted the finalists for this years britians biggest idoit competition.
heh, heh. You may say that but I couldn’t possibly comment…
I think you have Georgeous down to a tee. His latest mark is evidently the religiously fastidious.
A great post there.
grizebard et al,
You may well recall – political anagrams:
Annie Wells
– – – well insane
I forgot to add the time gorgeous was Rula Lenska’s pussy (1970’s comedy is back in fashion isn’t it, it was good enough for prime time BBC then).
I never realised the Independence Party for Scotland has a policy.
Not to be in the EU but EFTA. Who voted for this as a policy. 3 folk?
Their policies? Pretty basic stuff and not a mention of the number one threat … climate change. I’ll stick with SNP/SNP or SNP/Greens thank you very much.
http://www.isp.scot/policies/
“EFTA as an initial step”, nothing about not joining EEA or not joining EU.
So far as it goes, I find that sensible, as it should be a relatively easy join.
The Nordic council seems daft, as EEA would seem more sensible, placing us in the Single Market, and granting the “4 freedoms”. It is what the UK should have chosen as an exit method.
So personally I’d then add EEA, rather than EU; then stick there for a decade or two until our economy is suitably realigned. Then only after that consider if we should join the EU. The idea being to use the extra flexibility to gradually disentangle from the UK and realign, rather than suffer the wrench of an abrupt disconnect.
Something like be partially in the Single Market initially (say for food), and add other portions over time. So the overseas border will gradually loosen wrt goods, as the land border gradually hardens.
Learn from the UK mistake. The mess of disconnecting a 40 year relationship will be as nothing compared to the 300 year one.
Given that EFTA/EEA is a framework customised to each member, and that it gives greater flexibility than being in the EU, I’d be inclined to stick with that rather than join the EU.
“The mess of disconnecting a 40 year relationship will be as nothing compared to the 300 year one”
I found myself in agreement with much of what you said regarding EFTA, EEA, and EU. However “the mess” you describe in my opinion is exactly the trope currently being used by those that oppose Independence. Of course, they want people to believe that Brexit has been a mess and Independence negotiations will be an ever bigger mess!
I take a different view entirely, yes there will be serious negotiations to be done but why should 40 years be any different from 313 years? That really doesn’t make any sense to me, in fact, I suspect it may be a lot simpler for Scotland to extricate itself from the UK than many will argue, especially those on the side of Westminster who really really want to make us think it will “just be too difficult” so why bother?.
To be entirely honest, who cares if it is difficult? There can be nothing worse than accepting that Scotland will be governed by a parliament not supported by the electorate in Scotland that have shown themselves to be totally against the interests of our country.
We should be realigned with the EU . We have been eu citizens until recently.
Leaving the EU has to settle arrangements between the interests of 28 countries the Independence negotiations are only between two!
The oh no it’s too difficult argument also leads to Scotland can never leave ,no one can….. well that’s no what the Good Friday agreement says and that’s an arrangement that’s a few hundred years old too.
The bloody usual Westminster arguments that don’t make any sense
The EFTA+EEA first, then EU membership approach is one I would favour as well, and for another key reason:
As things stand, we do most of our trade with the rest of the UK. If we leave, during the divorce negotiations the rUK will likely use that reality as leverage to get what they want.
One scenario in particular may happen. The rUK says “we’ll let you trade freely with us if you let us keep Faslane and Coulport. If you will not agree to this, we will walk out of these talks right now.”
Given the tremendous psychological shock of losing their only submarine base, which would cripple Trident in the short to medium term, placing the rUK’s status as world power at risk (we must remember here that England still has not realised what losing the British Empire has meant for it – it is now just a small country yearning for its imagined, lost past, and the romance attached to the Royal Navy is a big part of that yearning), they will play real hardball to avoid such a painful, global humiliation, for which they will surely blame us.
To avoid this, we must get ourselves into a position where we can walk away from the rUK single market if we have to, Ditching it, we move back into the European single market instead, and re-focus our economy away from the rUK, as the Irish are now doing. That way, we can counter them with:
“Fine, we will drop your market of 60million for one of over 400million, with better opportunities, for both business and people, and we’ll see you at the border. Remember to bring your passports, valid for at least 6 months, or you will be denied entry. Bye.”
We leave the UK, apply to join EFTA and the EEA, then build upon that to create a deep, ambitious Association agreement, with Erasmus, Horizon, Galileo etc added on by request from us. Then, a few years down the line, once we have got settled into being an independent country and meet the accession criteria, we apply to join the EU in our own right.
No surprise whatever there. EFTA has long been part-and-parcel of the radical left position, and I suspect it may well be an (unstated) prime motive for those in the IP ranks who have split from the SNP, as well as for those others who are basically trying to revive RISE under a new identity.
To muddy the waters over future alignments is just another of those diversionary errors we need to avoid. If the crucial swing vote for indy is largely coming from those “former-no’s” who were Remain voters, deliberately creating a fog over this is basically cutting your own throat electorally and giving free ammunition to the opposition (a new “currency confusion” for them to push), all for purely ideological motives. (When will they ever learn?) Just one more reason to avoid lending them your vote, I guess.
The only position it is necessary to take on this is to say that whatever government is elected post-indy, it will be duty bound to engage with all the relevant blocs, make a considered recommendation for a way forward, and if need be, put it to a free people in a free vote.
One potential advantage, though, I suppose, of such a divisive policy being taken into the coming elections is that it will surely be “deep-sixed” without trace.
Yep, all that really matters is that the Scottish people will make that choice for themselves but can only do that when we are Independent. It’s a no brainer for me..
This is all completely wrong though about Robin Lepton the current Labour leader, only tonight he made an appearance on that trusted news information channel the Bringlish Broadly Corp where Ricardo Lamprey today’s spokesgit for Labour confirmed that his party were in fact winning in Scotland against the SNP because of all the policies that they have that the SNP are already implementing, he learned this politicky trick from Monica Lennon who is the actual original inventor of air, and if you didn’t know this she is available to tell people a lot of times
So the story of Ian Murray Labours last remaining MP from Scotland taking over the role of Scottish Labour leader must be completely wrong then, or perhaps Ian Murray’s rejection of such elevation to this position was so vitriolic that it took Sir Kier Starmer by surprise that old buddy and bonny fechter for the Union Ian Murray should reject such an accolade because it would further damage his own ermine prospects when Labour in Scotland disappear below the waves with only Reinhart Lubchenko’s arm holding the fiery Labour sword of socialism left stickin up surrounded by ducks getting a heat
How long are the Scots willing to put up with this? Being ruled over by one liar after another. So who’s next if we don’t get out of this land of liars, crooks and frauds?
”Captain SKA – Liar Liar Ge2019”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jPdxODhSJo
”Captain SKA – Liar Liar GE2017.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxN1STgQXW8
And before that liar, this liar:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQFwxw57NBI
And if you can be bothered ”Slipping Back In Time”:- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3yA7wiFqZ4
Mind boggling that some farmers, fishermen etc still voted for the Tories and actually believed that they wouldn’t try to lower food standards and sell them out. Never trust a Tory.
People from England Australia America and even Canada have taken to the FMs Twitter to tell Scotlands First Minister that she has no right to demand Independence for Scotland on behalf of the Scottish people, supported by the usual crop of staunch football supporters
Now if folk can’t see what’s wrong with that then there’s something wrong with them, because once again every damn country who is in charge of itself is telling us that we should not be allowed the same freedom that they enjoy
They’ll be taking us away on boats soon and flogging us off to other countries for a £tenner, oops wait, they already did that
Abbott, the new deal doer guru, is English, born in London, that’s what my memory is telling me from 2014. Former Australian Prime Minister, right wing, red white and blue right wing and just one of the foreign ( joke )dignitaries signed up by Cameron to piss on the people of Scotland. Whatever his faults, he’s the right sort as far Cummings is concerned, and past services have to be rewarded.
WGD has been in writing about the growing panic in the Tory ranks over increasing support for Independence. The political commentators in the likes of the supposedly left leaning New Statesman and the right wing Spectator are writing articles but still getting it all wrong.
James Forsyth tells us in the spectator that:
https://archive.vn/cwlrX
In between those two paragraphs is mostly a load of typical garbage that tries very hard to be relevant and completely misses the target.
On the other hand, a writer that I generally like also shoots wide and misses the goal by a mile. Stephen Bush in the New Statesman with a rare foray in Scottish politics has these observations to make:
https://archive.vn/GJOMC
He then goes on to quote from the earlier piece from the Spectator. From what I can see it looks to me like the rhetoric is being ratcheted up, they now know that it’s game on for a second Independence referendum. They also know, that as things stand they will lose that referendum so will fight tooth and nail to prevent that becoming a reality.
Our job is to stand firm, refuse to be divided and continue to persuade people one by one that Independence is the best future for Scotland and for them no matter what lies Westminster tells them.
Isn’t it funny that some commentators see the Tories as looking for a “Plan B” to stop Independence since just saying No doesn’t cut it? I think it’s funny anyway and that we’re now in the end game with a very strong position on the board. Just need to hold our nerve and checkmate will be ours.
To use a football analogy for the punters here: would Nicola Sturgeon as a central defender wish to face Lionel Messi each week or Davy from the pub on the corner.
We better be careful what we wish for and how much humble pie Sturgeon makes the opposition leaders eat each week with her faux brilliance, already they are stirring.
We’re all quaking in our boots at the strength of the opposition that the SNP face Mbiyd hahaha
I think what he means is that at some point Nicola Sturgeon could find herself up against a far more formidable opponent. Although to be honest it’s difficult to see any candidate on either the Conservative or Labour benches.
I don’t think he means that at all he just copied it from another website, and anyway how many of the opposition does the FM have to see off before folk decide she comes up to scratch
Remember we were told by the British and its media that Ruth Davidson was the most effective and smartiest politician in Scotlands known universe, so much so they even wanted her in that revered house of horrors Westminster, or Rudyard Corpling who was anointed as the chosen one for his party and has been as effective as the previous bunch
Could it possibly be that those who wish to denigrate Scotlands FM can now only find the way to do it is to assert that everyone is so rubbish that they make her look good, because if they are then they are insulting the entire population of the British Isles for voting for them thus asserting that they are cleverer than all of the people of Scotland and indeed the entire UK
Now what sort of person believes that of themself
Looks as though, to your mind, Nicola Sturgeon can’t win no matter what approach she adopts, Mbiyd. Remain docile or fight back? That crowd of BritNats can “stir” as much as they like as the Scots are “stirring” too now and are known to be extremely cantankerous when their dander is up. You’ll know that being Scottish of course.
Not at all sure why the dig at the FM’s ‘ brilliance was necessary, Lionel Messi is not deemed any less brilliant because he’s up against shite opposition, he just emphasises their shiteness.
By the way, have you ever seen Nicola with a baw at her feet.
The absolute no marks who line up to criticise Nicola Sturgeon is astounding. She is an absolute star and she proves it day after day. No histrionics, no affectation, no artificiality, just a superb control of a task that is more difficult than her conceited critics have ever undertaken
She is literally hated by the Brits because she is a star.
She is also hated by a collection of people who expected her, a mere woman ffs, to acknowledge and be guided by their exceptionalism and to reward it unconditionally. How very dare she? She dares.
I am grateful every day that we have the good fortune to have her.
My favourite messi video with a great backing track from 12 years ago. This is class.
He scores against both Celtic and Rangers in the video, no favourites, as I said class LOL
Won’t play embedded, no great loss but if you would like to see it you just need click the “Watch on Youtube” link.
Thanks for the video, Ill watch it later.
Who was Scotland’s ‘ Messi ‘ ?
I hope you’ll enjoy it. It’s hard to believe that he was just still 21 years old when that was made.
The video editing choreographed with the music track by Pearl Jam is brilliant in my opinion. Watch it and you’ss exactly what i mean. Some light hearted relief from the stress of being an Independence supporter LOL
Paul Sturrock 🙂
Ha,ha. Good one. Jimmy Johnstone. 1967 Real Madrid was an eye opener for Europe.
😦 Renaldo is an anagram of Leonard !
👏👏👏
If you enter ANY competition thinking that “the opposition is too good for me” then you are already beaten.
Football, Sport in general, an election or a Referendum.
The other truth of all competitive events is that strong opponents actually improve your skills. It is weak opponents who dull your skills.
While most of the article contains your usual poetic segues please note that Rolf Harris is a victim of a gross miscarriage of justice, and as such really doesn’t fit with the other people mentioned in that paragraph.
Gavin ,what you say about Rolf Harris being a victim of a miscarriage of justice is incorrect.
Rolf Harris was found guilty of sexual assault of four young girls he was imprisoned.
Later, one of those four convictions was reversed.
The other three remain to this day a guilty verdict.
In fact a further seven charges were brought and he was found guilty of them too.
When he got the one charge dropped that I mentioned earlier he also tried to have the other eleven dropped but the appeal court threw his attempt out the convictions stand.
He is guilty
He’s now been put under house arrest by his own family members for entering school grounds and waving to school children. The Head of School had him removed. To do so following years of being in prison for the sexual assault of children is to say at the very least crazy or is it just sheer arrogance?
Given his age he may well be losing his marbles in which case he really should be kept indoors. And certainly well away from a school playground !!!
When the justice of a legal system is called into question referring to said system’s judgement in the matter seems a rebuttal that rather misses the point.
Your comment qualifies as the most stupid one I have ever read here
I have no idea whether Harris is a dangerous man or not but in defence of Gavin’s point of view I would point you to
Its an interesting read from a top English Law barrister if nothing else about the Harris case and the important indirect ramifications associated with the reversed conviction.
It is possible he truly is guilty, but not on the majority of the charges levelled against him. By the facts admitted by him he is at least somewhat sleazy and disreputable, and at worst a criminal. Only one accuser’s allegations held any water however, the others were entirely absurd when studied. The jury’s decision would have been far more credible if it had only returned a guilty verdict on some of the charges rather than all.
The trick is, as you say, not fracture and get split up into factions.
We have plenty of time for that after independence.
Independence first, squabbles later.
In fact, Labour and Tories should want independence more than anyone else, as they will be able to have proper in-fighting and back stabbing without UK participation after our freedom is gained.
And, well, “Scottish Tory 6 chip twat” should headline at the Fringe, minimum.
The many possible uses of the phrase boggles the mind…….
Aye,’ Scottish Tory 6 chip twat’ has got to be the best line in a very long time! It really is LOl.
Yet to read most comments, but thanks so much even though this is about serious stuff I enjoyed the humour and wit loads, need to laugh every now and again. Brilliant Paul.
It’s good to put a smile on people’s faces now and again, we could all do with a bit of that happy-clappy stuff now and then. Not everything has to be all doom and gloom and it sure beats being miserable all the time 🙂
Wouldn’t it be great if we could have a repeat of the summer of 2014 when there was dancing and singing in the streets. What a time. What a buzz. Never to be forgotten. Meanwhile we plod on again and find inspiration and a load of laughs from Paul’s blogs. What a guy saving us all from forking out for therapist’s fees 😀. Yeah we owe you Paul in more ways than one. In fact I’ve got no idea what we’d do without you. You’re the glue that’s holding this altogether right now, imo.
…………….
Meanwhile the dafties think that they’re going to get away with this.
http://www.thenational.scot/news/18696326.leaked-memo-prompts-fresh-fears-power-grab-internal-market-plans/
Had the misfortune to turn on Newsnight a wee while ago to be met by the sight of Jamie Greene Tory twat MSP who was so red faced I could not make up my mind as to whether he had exceptionally high blood pressure or had taken a leaf out of Donald Trumps book and spent to much time on a sun bed. Jamie certainly does talk a load of bollocks and brought on my usual reaction to Tories with me shouting liar at the Tv and turning the sound off. Did listen to Philippa Whitford’s response and she certainly put the wee nyaff in his place. Presenter Emma Barnett gave the usual arrogant BBC propaganda interjections but it was clear the Tories are rattled. Good!!
Phillipa Whitford handed him his proverbial on a plate.
All he had in return was the same old tired…”We had a referendum in 2014…..We were told it was to be a once in a generation referendum….What about the 15billion black-hole”…..As Phillipa shredded his arguments one by one ..his face got progressively redder….quite a wee tomato man in fact.
If SNP politicians got half a chance to have their say they would open the eyes of millions across the UK to the absolute reality of this stinking Union. For them and us. Just as Nicola Sturgeon has been doing albeit confined to briefing on CV19. As it is they, the SNP, get a few minutes and still manage to make the opposition look like a bunch of ignorant clowns. And by the way, Dr Jim, Philippa Whitford mentions the point that you have been making for years now about the five political parties signing the Smith Committee document that highlights that there would be no opposition whatsoever presented to us holding Indyref2 at a later date. If she knows it and we know it Nicola Sturgeon knows it which makes Boris Johnson’s response to her request for a S30 order null and void. If not it makes him and Lord Smith look like a couple of lying erseh*les.
Philippa Whitford: https://mobile.twitter.com/BBCNewsnight/status/1301647918064119811
That was a fun watch Petra.
They really are quite desperate now to know what “Plan B” is eh! Keep them guessing, they’ll be shocked when they find out that plan B is not needed as “Plan A” is surely working 🙂
Paragraph 18 from memory I think Petra, my computer crashed a couple of weeks ago and I had to reboot to original settings and lost everything so don’t have the exact wording but it does state quite clearly that Scotland had the right to a referendum and was signed off by all parties and their own chosen Lord Smith of Kelvin, of course those are facts and the UK doesn’t do facts, they do assertions or off the cuff murmurings and state them as facts, but only if spoken by SNP politicians, Unionist politicians can say what they like and it’s never to be mentioned again like when are we getting the £350 million a week for our NHSJ
Not quite:
webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20151202171029/http://www.smith-commission.scot/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/The_Smith_Commission_Report-1.pdf
“18. It is agreed that nothing in this report prevents Scotland becoming an independent country in the future should the people of Scotland so choose.”
Shame you lost stuff Dr Jim. Mine did that very recently, so my son managed to save and copy everything then do the reboot stuff.
If you can, get someone to copy your files etc onto external hard drive or USB stick. Saves a lot of trouble if it crashes again. Not sure I trust my virus protector against really high end gremlins! Especially now.
I stand ashamed and guilty of lazyitis
Slightly off topic: In my opinion Tony Abbott has been employed as an advisor not on trade deals but as an advisor on how to stop refugee boats crossing the English Channel. His Australian government assisted by the navy were ruthless in turning boats back on the high seas to Indonesia. Those that did make it through were sent to detention centres on a an Independent island state called Naru in the Pacific. Naru is a blistering hot former phosphate mine made of millions of years of accumulated bird shit and ain’t no pacific island paradise. Abbot has had meetings with Priti Patel not about any trade deals but how to implement a similar refugee policy to Australia’s internationally condemned system. The first thing thing Patel will announce is that that the UK are going to build a new detention centre in a remote wind swept uninhabited Scottish island as far from civilisation as possible. All new refugee arrivals will be sent to this island and held in detention as a warning to any others who are yet to attempt the channel crossing. It worked for Australia and Abbott was the PM who instigated it hand in hand with the current PM Scott Morrison. Abbott knows nothing about trade deals but he knows how to stop boats. He is every bit as nasty as any Tory.
Yep and they will use Scotland as a prison for refugees. Many people even in Scotland still do not know that immigration is a reserved power to Westminster, the Government in England.
I have been reading quite a bit of ‘greengalloway’, Alistair Livingston’s very good historical writings. Sadly I see that Alistair, who I think some will know from the campaign for indy in 2014, died in Nov 2018, aged only 60, though his legacy lives on. His blogs are still available and very interesting. He mentioned this. I have yet to read it, or to see if it’s been updated at all.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/land-use-futures-making-the-most-of-land-in-the-21st-century
Thanks for that link ArtyHetty. Really interesting and I’ll delve into it when I get more time. I see right off that Scotland is a ”component” part of the UK now!
Alistair Livingston’s site is well worth delving into too. This is his little blog on ”from Gaelic to Scots.’
http://greengalloway.blogspot.com/2018/09/from-gaelic-to-scots.html
Here is Janey Godley on Tony Abbott 🤣
Hahaha! I often wonder if this is the kind of briefing that Nicola Sturgeon would like to make. No holding back, eh!
Thanks for that wee bit of insight into what could be going on with Abbot and Patel, Malky. The Scots, pre-Independence, better be ready to tell THEM where to go.
The St. Kilda group is available, and has the advantage that it is recognised as being habitable.
Its previous population only having left around 1930.
They would seem to fit the ticket, if that is what is planned.
I had to google “Tory Six Chips” to see a photae of the fish supper concerned and it looked as posy as it was described above……..but did anyone else think that the side dish of guacamole looked slightly tired and would have disappointed Peter Mandelson ?
Think it might be mushy peas?
Here’s another one I’ve been banging on about for years
Every document legal or otherwise that the UK produces is headed *Her Majesty’s Government*
That looks like an innocuous enough statement except when you consider that constitutionally the UK claims to be a democracy and not a Monarchy, so how can they claim to be two things simultaneously, so by claiming these two positions is the UK government acting in a constitutional manner or against the constitution, because as we all know the Monarchy has no constitutional authority so how can the UK government claim they work for *Her Majesty’s Government*
The Monarchy is a tourist attraction, a stick of Blackpool rock, a holiday picture postcard if you will,
is not claiming otherwise a fraud against the people
I’ve long hoped a lawyer would take this to court just for the embarrassment to the institution that is the UK and I’d bet money that the UK government would rather hand over Scotlands sovereignty on a plate damn quickly rather than have their elitist bubble burst asunder and their important voters of England lose respect for their betters which has been the basis of Englands control and sales pitch to the world for hundreds of years
People who observed Boris Johnson’s performance as London Mayor already knew what sort of PM he would make. He cannot simply balloon about anymore and face little scrutiny. Contracting Covid-19 has also taken more wind from his sails.
As previous comments have noted, he will more than likely be the fall guy, either for a no deal Brexit or caving in at the last minute to obtain a back of a cigarette packet trade deal.
It looks like the so called Conservative suits will come for Johnson at some point in early 2021.
Regarding opposition party leaders in Scotland, I personally would like to see someone who has some competence, it would hopefully keep the SNP on their toes and I would also argue that it is needed to shake away any complacency.
I also see the age old problem of any movement creeping in, in fighting amongst SOME independence supporters, it is unfortunately inevitable but hopefully can be kept to small numbers.
The problem for Johnson was actual governing was never a factor in his job description, he was brought in for one purpose, to sell Brexit and suppress the Farage and he did that, then along came government work and Johnson has no interest in any of that, and what made it 100 times worse Covid happened and that was that, he was exposed for the fraud he is so there was every attempt made at hiding him away
The Mandarins who are really in charge in head office already have made plans to rid themselves of him they just daren’t do it too quickly or the whole party becomes an even bigger laughing stock than it already is, but come the first available opportunity he will be gone with his heroic Covid 19 legacy and retire due to ill health because of his bravery to hold down the fort through the terrible ordeal that he suffered but he *got Brexit done* cue the spitfires and flags
Not quite. We certainly do want a competent opposition (of whatever complexion), but only after independence. Before then, we want indy-opponents to be as characteristically inept, incompetent and ineffective as possible.
I think they want rid of Boris, but happy to leave him be for the moment to take the blame for the Brexit mess next year.
Also no one will want to take his place until after indyref2 as they would rather Boris also gets the blame for breaking up the union.
Out of interest, what would it take for *any* Westminster government to persuade Scotland at large that the Union is still in Scotland’s best interests? Not that I am against independence for Scotland (I’m English, but would wish Scotland well, and would seriously consider emigrating there if independence happens). I’m curious to see if anyone could reverse the damage done to the Union.
If it was a union like the EU where the point of it was trade and the benefit of all the countries then it would be a union you could claim had some merit. What we have is a union more like India, where one countries wants to dictate all the rules for the benefit of a small area in the south east of the largest country, where the party that hasn’t won an election in 65 years has ruled a country for around 60% of this period.
We don’t have a union we have vassalage, and currently they are manoeuvring a large building in Edinburgh to become an effective colonial administration centre after they have removed the power of the Scottish government, elected by the people of Scotland.
So in conclusion there is nothing that can be done to save the union, the people of England don’t want it, they want total control. You may consider it harsh to blame the people but what have they done to persuade their government what they are doing is undemocratic.
Fair points. I suspect we’re programmed, to a certain degree, by years of talk about the ‘United Kingdom’ and ‘Great Britain’. The language frames this notion in a certain way.
Westminster is rigid in opposition to PR therefore it will remain polarised. This results in a “turns each” structure that leads to one party undoing whatever the other party starts.
Westminster ( including the HofLs) has developed into compromise politics that stifles progress. It is not about the people. It is about the Party winning a handful of swing seats.
e.g. A Tory hardline on Brexit can give an increase of 100 seats. The sacrifice of a fishing policy may cost them one seat.
The major concern is the Rightwing dominance using fear I.e. “Those others” such as Europeans, migrants etc
Darthtimon
We have seen Johnson’s view of Scotland in the past in his so called writings when he was a “journalist”. Racist, Anglo supremacist rants. His side kick Cummings doesn’t care about anyone and if you work your way through the cabinet who would persuade that they care about Scotland never mind Wales or Northern Ireland. Brexit, immigration and money are their God.
Scotland has a different approach to community, we have a different view of the world. We are a nation constrained in a political union with a malevolent force of English exceptionality.
Independence is our only way out for a future.
To your “…care about Scotland never mind Wales or Northern Ireland” I’d also add most of England. Resentment at being stuck with the choice between Red or Blue corrupt governments and continued impoverishment has worn patience thin everywhere, Cummings, Johnson, Patel and JRM are for many the final straw.
I’d suggest it is not just the Union which is disintegrating…
Darthtimon why not move to Scotland now and vote for independence in our referendum. I’m sure you would receive a warm welcome…..if you bring some English hobnobs or a cake, someone will have the kettle on.
Oh believe me, if Brexit is the clusterf**k I believe it will be, moving is certainly under consideration. Mind you, I’d have to persuade my entire family to come up, but if it becomes apparent Scotland is thriving and England floundering, I’ll buy up as many hobnobs as I can!
Well there you have it, the power grab bill is real and ready to implement.
https://www.thenational.scot/news/18696523.new-power-grab-row-emerges-internal-market-memo-leaked/
Meanwhile Westminster’s staging post the Scotland Office is hiding dark secrets from Holyrood.
https://www.thenational.scot/news/18696516.scotland-office-something-hide-donald-trump-meeting/
‘Nearing ‘go’ on the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB).’
”The Scottish National Investment Bank is due to launch before the end of 2020. The publication of its proposed missions last week brought us a step closer to the unveiling of the long-awaited development bank. This blog looks at some of the most recent developments around the Bank.”..
………………………………………………
”Brilliant, the unelected Lords & Ladies (Helen Liddell, Meta Ramsay, George Robertson and George Foulkes) call for the elected leader of their own party to stand aside in the interests of democracy”.. https://mobile.twitter.com/holyroodmandy/status/1301535721157787655
………………………………….
Just asking by the way who on earth are they going to get to replace Richard Leonard?
Daniel Johnson probably (thats my guess anyway).
Here’s £10.6 billion of our alleged black hole right there.
Johnson claims ” HS2 will bring economic growth across the land”
Yeah! What ‘Land’ are you talking about. It only goes to the west midlands.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/hs2-construction-of-106bn-high-speed-rail-line-officially-starts/ar-BB18GRZH?ocid=msedgdhp
Aberdonian tycoon to splash the cash to crush Scottish independence.
https://www.thenational.scot/news/18696499.unionist-property-developer-alan-massie-gives-michael-gove-20k-donation/
Grant Shapps on SKY News just now ” I understand the confusion caused by devolved Governments making their own travel restrictions”
Guess what’s coming next!
Guess what’s coming next!
____________
This? Also on Sky …
Welsh Secretary aka Minister Responsible for Western Colonies, Simon Hart responded to the suggestion that the pandemic had driven the UK further apart by suggesting that the first ministers of Wales and Scotland had been playing politics in some cases with coronavirus.
“The idea that Wales or Scotland or NI or England may do things differently because they can,” he said.
https://nation.cymru/news/drakeford-prime-minister-cant-stay-in-way-of-welsh-and-scottish-independence-referenda/
Maybe the UK Government should think of introducing polygraph tests for politicians, Ceo’s and journalists, for starters. What about it?
Humza Yousaf:- ”What’s worrying is UK Govt want to be able to bypass Scottish Parliament & Govt & have power to introduce polygraph tests (for potential terrorists) in our justice system without our consent – justice is devolved (hence why they would need an LCM). This policy has rightly been ridiculed by most.” https://mobile.twitter.com/HumzaYousaf/status/1301268779612155906
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Aamer Anwar:- ”Hysterical reaction & dangerous attempt by Tories to try & impose Pseudo-Science of “lie-detectors” on Scotland’s independent justice system – @HumzaYousaf is right to say no to the use of ‘Jeremy Kyle’ polygraph tests” – A thread on use of tests 1/22.” https://mobile.twitter.com/AamerAnwar/status/1301453156241625089
Phantom Power:- ”BEWARE OF VOTE THIEVES – Yes is at 55% and the British Establishment are determined to derail Scottish independence by any means necessary.” https://mobile.twitter.com/PhantomPower14/status/1301545457143943168
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Six years ago around 75% of people who had moved to Scotland from England voted No for Independence. Just wondering if that has changed now? Are they moving here because they are scunnered with Westminster and will vote Yes in a future IndyRef or are many still coming here, for example, due to our superior SNHS / Social Care services and the way that Nicola Sturgeon has been dealing with this Coronavirus?
”This independent report from the Expert Advisory Group on Migration & Population highlights that more people are moving to Scotland from the rest of the UK than are going in the other direction. The historical trend of being a nation of net population outflow has been reversed.” https://mobile.twitter.com/BenMacpherson/status/1301451049400709121
Professor John Robertson on Care homes.
https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/blog-feed/
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‘Reports: Foreign Aid Budget To Be Diverted To Cyber Weapons Amid Ongoing Whitehall Shakeup.’
http://www.politicshome.com/news/article/foreign-aid-budget-to-be-diverted-to-new-intelligence-tech-amid-ongoing-whitehall-shakeup
FGS! Still living in friggin cloud cuckoo land.
Richard Wheeler:- ”Yes, Jacob Rees-Mogg did play a snippet of Rule, Britannia! in the Commons chamber today…” https://mobile.twitter.com/richard_kaputt/status/1301478011007635456
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Boris is no very popular right enough 😀.
”Christopher Chope reads out quotes from his constituents about the Govt. Inept & incompetent… incoherent & indecisive.. authoritarian & arrogant… as these criticisms become increasingly difficult to rebut… it’s essential Boris Johnson gets a grip.”.. https://mobile.twitter.com/Haggis_UK/status/1301205691512877057
Since when did a member playing music in the chamber comply with the rules and ‘hallowed’ traditions of the Commons? unlike clapping for which the SNP were reprimanded by little Bercow.
Speaker tells SNP to stop clapping and ‘show some respect.’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npRPUyeAMKE
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But it’s alright if the Labour Party does it and in fact for them all, Tory, Labour and LibDems, to behave like a bunch of yobs in general.
‘UK: Boris Johnson attacked for ‘derogatory and racist remarks.’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzMxkqsuWKs
Ann’s links on the Indyref2 site include a tweet from Nicola Sturgeon.
Nicola Sturgeon:- ”I know it’s not deliberate – so not a criticism – but given my picture illustrates this headline, people might think it’s Scottish system being referred to. It’s not. NHS Scotland Test & Protect is currently reaching well over 90% of contacts https://t.co/yhhxVMWubK
September 3, 2020”
Then again maybe not? And I can’t find it elsewhere either!
https://mobile.twitter.com/NicolaSturgeon/status/1301518919744786433
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Check out all of Ann’s links.
https://indyref2.space/forum/topic/early-links-friday-4-september-2020/
Well, well.
Anyone pick this up from Sky News earlier – ‘my’ First Minister being interviewed?
Drakeford: Prime Minister can’t stand in way of Welsh and Scottish independence referenda
4th September 2020
First Minister Mark Drakeford has said that no UK Prime Minister has the right to stand in the way of an independence referendum in either Scotland or Wales if the people wanted one.
He also told Sky News that the UK had to prove that it worked practically for everyone and that “sentimental value” would not save it.
Wales would have to consider whether what remains of the United Kingdom worked if Scotland and perhaps Northern Ireland were to leave, he added.
“I am very clear that if a population in Scotland, or indeed in Wales, wanted to hold a referendum it is for the people of Wales and the people of Scotland to make that decision,” Mr Drakeford said.
[…]
Also …
Welsh Secretary Simon Hart responded to the suggestion that the pandemic had driven the UK further apart by suggesting that the first ministers of Wales and Scotland had been playing politics in some cases with coronavirus.
“The idea that Wales or Scotland or NI or England may do things differently because they can,” he said.
[…]
However, he did not rule out a second independence vote in Scotland, saying that he did not have a crystal ball.
https://nation.cymru/news/drakeford-prime-minister-cant-stay-in-way-of-welsh-and-scottish-independence-referenda/
Scotland, Wales and the North of Ireland are anathema to rabid britnats. But britnats will do their best to hold onto them only because they think it’s good for England’s stature. Yet it doesn’t stop britnats treating S, W & N of I with contempt. Rabid britnats are clueless, that’s why their so-called united kingdom is falling apart.
Scotland has no right to a referendum on Independence within the Union says Sky news in a blatant propaganda piece created by Tory journalist Sam Coates, Sam Coates goes on to say Northern Ireland do have a legal right to Independence or reunification if they choose that
The Welsh FM however although opposed to Independence for Wales agreed that if the people of Scotland or Wales wanted Independence they should be entitled to it
What the Unionists and Sky news are saying here is Scotland only has the rights that England allows it and it’s not allowing any referendum for Scotland, well that’s kind of not representational of a Union then is it, that brothers and sisters is a dictatorship
Sky news also added that the furlough scheme is a scheme where English taxpayers bail out Scotland, I know I don’t need to comment further on that but to say that Sky news has just produced clear propaganda on behalf of the UK government
I’ve heard of Unions you can’t join but never heard of a Union you can’t leave except for this one fabricated by Englands politicians, they keep this up they’ll pay dearly
Y’know, the more I think about it, the more I’m coming to realise that this continual Tory mantra of “England owns you” over S.30, Covid management, Brexit and the rest, the stronger become our chances of getting and winning IR2…
Our biggest danger is over-confidence. The current lead in the polls could disappear like snow off a dyke for all sorts of reasons.
There are certainly those working to undermine it , even independence supporters.