Let me make it clear from the outset that I support Ash Regan's bid to become leader of the Scottish National Party and thence First Minister of Scotland. I have to clarify this because some of what I am about to say may be taken by some as an attempt to undermine her campaign. That … Continue reading Shoogly pillars
Tommy Sheridan makes a powerful point, which The National and most commenting on the report seem to have missed. This isn't about him personally joining the SNP if Ash Regan becomes leader. It is about the fact that Ash being leader will make the SNP once again the party of independence and so make it … Continue reading The healing properties of Ash
I have a question for all the candidates in the SNP leadership contest. How Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf respond to this question will give a clear indication of the strength of their commitment to the restoration of Scotland's independence. I do not, of course, expect any of them to respond directly to … Continue reading A question for the candidates
It is no secret that I deplore the Section 30 process. That is to say, the process by which the First Minister of Scotland, acting on behalf of the sovereign people of Scotland, petitions the British Prime Minister to grant conditional consent that the sovereign people of Scotland exercise their inalienable right to determine the … Continue reading We can be heroes!
The Sunday National's summary of the policies and positions set out by the three candidates in the SNP leadership contest is useful even if for no other reason than to illustrate how little is on offer to Scotland's independence movement. The total absence of any new ideas is incredible given that there has been an … Continue reading A glimmer of hope?
Two things strike me as perplexing about the question splashed across the front page of The National today. The first is that "how do we win the No voters over to Yes?" is still being asked in March 2023. The second is that in March 2023 the SNP still has no clear or persuasive answer … Continue reading A want of daring
To be honest ─ even at some risk to my 'feminist' credentials ─ I have some sympathy with the views on womanhood expressed by Kate Forbes back in 2014. Views which she has confirmed she continues to hold. I agree that women are different from men. I agree that nature (evolution) has 'designed' men and … Continue reading The word of God
There seems to be some kind of 'rule' in Scotland's independence movement that everything has to be done at least two years after it should have been done. In terms of a national campaigning organisation, that would be at least five years late. I wish the Scottish Independence Convention (SIC) success. But as very much … Continue reading No body! No voice! No power!
Trekking the highways and byways of social media this past few days I have gained the sense that I am the only one not swooning over Kate Forbes on account of her 'honesty'. Everybody seems mighty impressed with the fact that she came right out and told us something we already knew. Something she could … Continue reading Inconsistencies and contradictions
Scottish National Party leadership contender Ash Regan is among the latest people to deplore the divisions besetting the independence movement and issue a plea for unity. Nothing very surprising there. Everybody says the same thing. They all say we need solidarity. Which poses a bit of a conundrum. If everybody deplores the division and wants … Continue reading All the pieces
Peter A Bell 