Alyn Smith MP would have to talk a huge amount of sense about the constitutional issue to get his credibility account back in the black after his oft-repeated inanity about Scotland never having been closer to independence. His column in The National today doesn't even make a dent in his overdraft. Admittedly, he is not … Continue reading All pain and no gain!
I am not picking on Kirsty Strickland. I have selected her column in today's National only because it so neatly exemplifies the fallacy that has gripped a substantial part of the Yes movement. I could have taken the First Minister's appearance on Sophy Ridge on Sunday and her conclusions regarding the latest anti-democratic pronouncements from … Continue reading Fallacy and folly
My first reaction on seeing a headline such as this in today's Sunday National ─ UK Government considering legislation that would require 50 per cent of entire electorate to vote Yes in indyref2 ─ is to wonder why readers might be taken aback by being thus informed of the British state's intentions towards Scotland. It's … Continue reading The long night
Today marks the fifteenth anniversary of what I regard as a highly significant day in Scotland's history. 15 years ago today, Scotland got its first government of the democratic era. On Monday 3 September 2007 the Scottish Executive became the Scottish Government ─ officially even if not legally. Some dismiss this as a mere cosmetic … Continue reading On my calendar
I started to write an article today, only to find that I'd already written it ─ more than two years ago. (Our nation! Our rules!) The piece I had in mind was prompted by something Richard Walker wrote in his National column today. I was thinking in terms of starting my article with something about … Continue reading I’ve said it before…
I can honestly say that I have never seen a better example of righteous radical posturing. The pontificating latte-sippers of the Scottish left have ever been adept at putting a veil of saintly reasonableness over craven retreat. They're well practiced in applying a varnish of sensibleness to the turd of abject surrender. They've always been … Continue reading Feeding the crocodile!
When you encounter people who denigrate and deride The National, try rattling off a list of the columnists who write for the paper ─ Stuart Cosgrove, David Pratt, Kirsty Strickland, Joanna Cherry, Andrew Tickell, Ruth Wishart, Lesley Riddoch and the rest. My guess is that you'll draw blank stares at most of the names you … Continue reading Faceless forces
Two stories in The National today got me thinking about attitudes to Nicola Sturgeon ─ how she is perceived and presented and how people feel about her. One is the report that Unionists are fuming. How come that gets to be news, I hear you ask. Well, more specifically the more or less constant state … Continue reading The good the bad and the numpty
Mike Fenwick The upcoming decisions of the Supreme Court will prove important, but might it be the decisions of a new UK Prime Minister that matter even more? In boxing, the knockout punch, the killer blow, is often the one nobody ever saw coming! This wasn't a killer blow, but it has a very important … Continue reading It’s a knockout!
Yesterday, I received a number of messages drawing my attention to Lord Frost's rant in the Telegraph and asking if I would be commenting on it. I was already aware of the article. It was difficult to avoid given the unfavourable attention it was getting from the independence movement. Given that Yes activists make up … Continue reading The ugly face of British Nationalism
Peter A Bell 