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
Setting aside for the moment the improbability of Patrick Harvie giving up the status he has long considered his just desert - a consideration which, to be fair, applies to many other MSPs as well - would the resignation of the SNP+SGP/Scottish Government actually "precipitate an emergency Holyrood election"? Not necessarily. The strategy is not … Continue reading Weighing the options
We should not simply dismiss George Galloway's talk of "partition" or Adam Tomkins' proposal to bind Scotland by law to England-as-Britain. We should, rather, regard their purposefully outrageous utterances as portents of the British state's intentions.
When a referendum is done - if it has been properly designed and managed - there will be absolutely do doubt about what the next step is. There will be no need of any discussion about what the vote means - with various factions all claiming it as a vote for their conflicting agendas.
I cannot help but be offended by the idea that the absolute acme of the independence campaign in the whole of the past year is a 21st century makeover of Larry Marshall's One O'Clock Gang interspersed with tantalising but ultimately disappointing glimpses of what BBC Scotland might be if it wasn't British and had some relevance to Scotland. Really? I can see why the SNP Conference wasn't even in the running for the biggest Scottish independence event of 2020. But White Heather Club for the Web? Really?
You may want to read this rousing article from George Kerevan. Although the unquestioning acceptance of the British state's veto on our right of self-determination sits rather uncomfortably amidst the generally radical tone. And while the criticism of the SNP and/or Scottish Government is entirely justified it must be borne in mind that the party … Continue reading YesAlba
It has to be stated that the influx to the SNP from the left of Scotland's politics had many positive effects. The magnitude and speed of the growth in membership caused the party problems that it is wrestling with to this day. Finding venues with enough capacity may be the least of it. The radicalism of the new intake was not universally welcomed. But in general people were glad of the fresh talent as well as the foot-soldier reinforcements and the subs.
The very first thing that George Kerevan and others must learn is to distinguish between the movement and the campaign. The things that work for a political movement are not necessarily the things that work for a political campaign. They are very different things. Diversity can be a very good thing for a political movement. … Continue reading Here we go again!
Scotland and NATO - A new alliance?Notwithstanding the mischief-making efforts of the BBC and others to turn the issue of SNP policy on NATO membership into a contrived controversy, there is unquestionably a genuine debate to be had. There seems little point in hoping that this debate will be advanced by those whose sole purpose … Continue reading Scotland & NATO: The real debate
Peter A Bell 