Did you gag on the sickening hypocrisy of Jackson Carlaw talking about respecting democratic votes and honouring promises? This coming from someone in thrall to a British Nationalist ideology which says that democratic votes are only to be respected when doing so doesn’t compromise the Union or threaten the structures of entrenched power, unearned privilege and corrupt patronage which define the British state. An ideology which insists that the democratic choices of the people of Scotland are only valid when they happen to coincided with the choices of voters in England-as-Britain.
To compound this sickening hypocrisy, a man closely associated with the false promises of the anti-independence campaign presumes to lecture us about the importance of good faith. And even as he does so he lies. He trots out the threadbare falsehood about an undertaking that the 2014 referendum would be a “once in a generation” occurrence. Of course, no such undertaking was ever made. Indeed, no such undertaking could be made. Jackson Carlaw exhibits the British Nationalists’ characteristic ignorance of and contempt for democracy when he imagines any politician might have the authority to impose constraints or conditions on a nation’s right of self-determination.
Scour the Edinburgh Agreement as you may, you will find no mention of any ‘once in a generation” promise. Nor will you find it in the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013. Or in any other agreement, act or formal accord associated with the 2014 referendum. The “once in a generation” thing simply doesn’t exist. It never existed. Carlaw is a liar.
Carlaw is also a craven coward. Had he the courage of his British Nationalist convictions then he would take responsibility for his own anti-democratic dogma rather than trying to rationalise it by reference to an entirely mythical promise.
Hypocritical, duplicitous, mendacious and cowardly. Such are the ‘qualities’ British Nationalists bring to our politics. Scotland can do better.
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Peter A Bell 
https://tinyurl.com/wzok9tz
Was never in legislation, but is mentioned twice in the guide “Scotland’s Future” issued by Scottish Government.
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Scotland’s Future contains two mentions of a “once in a generation opportunity”. This document is NOT legislation and nowhere is there any mention of a “once in a lifetime/generation event”.
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Yes, but it says “this government considers it a once in a generation event” ( or some such), but Eck resigned and we now have a completely different government. Anyway, it was a threat, not a promise.
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What says?
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There was a comment about “once in a generation” in amongst many thousands of words.
But it was clearly an opinion, and nothing more, and also, when you think about it, a truthful statement, in that this was a once off chance, in 20144.
The comments by Salmond towards the end of the campaign, were indeed, very clearly,and obviously, a warning to those who thought they might wait and see.
He was warning them, they might not get this chance again.
The tories and and Lib Dems are simply lying their treacherous wee faces off, when they come out with this Once in generation/lifetime “guarantee”.
There was no such thing. No such promise, or commitment.
But they are hoping to fool some folks into believing otherwise.
But we did get absolute guarantees, commitments, and promises, and “Vows”, about all the wonderful things that would come to Scotland, and of Scotland being safe within EU, if we stayed with UK.
Carlaw, really must to be held to account on all of the lies his lot told back then.
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2014, that was meant to be!
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Alex Salmond said that, meaning it was the first time in a generation that Scotland had a chance to vote on our future since the 1979 fiasco when our devolution referendum was stolen from us by Labour introduction of an anti-democratic stipulation of 40% of the vote. When we actually made 44% they counted dead people as no voters. They will always go as low as they have to in order to deny Scotland’s natural destiny of Independence. It was the same in 2014 Independence referendum, it was hijacked by Westminster and their media lackeys and was decided by Westminster not “A decision for the people of Scotland” as David Cameron was so fond of quoting, but when they saw we were going to take Independence they applied every pressure, every dirty trick, every low act, every threat, every lie, every bit of false information, and every bit of tampering, to achieve their decision.
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Once in a generation is a figure of speech for a rare event. It has no other standing legal or otherwise. In any case the political landscape has undergone “a material change” and a mandate exists for a new referendum. End of debate!
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Reblogged this on Ramblings of a 50+ Female.
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Also the Smith Commission said “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.” Agreed by all parties including the Tories.
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“Once in a generation opportunity” was an off-the-cuff remark that Alex Salmond used during the independence campaign to try and prompt undecided voters, “Don’t miss this opportunity presented to you” he could have said (and probably did). Unfortunately the phrase has been used ad-nauseum by the bitter together brigade. It just makes you wan’t to angrily throw things at the british nationalist politicians as they trot it out again and again – oh how Alex must be regretting that lapsed moment.
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