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!
Gerry Hassan aspires to a "shared, pooled, dispersed version of sovereignty which cascaded power throughout Scotland, rather than hoarding it to Edinburgh" and insists that it's a mistake to suppose we can't begin to realise the aspiration this side of Scotland's independence being restored. I fear it is he who is mistaken. And it's a … Continue reading Collective strength and effective power
It's been a confusing morning so far. First I read a piece by Pete Wishart in which he actually talks sense. Then, as if that wasn't bewildering enough, I encounter Gerry Hassan's column and some perplexingly shallow thinking that all the latte-sipping lefty pomposity in all the cafe districts in all the world can't rescue. … Continue reading Ends and ends
I tend to react very negatively to commentators speculating or pontificating about Scotland being independent while disregarding all but totally the not so very small matter of Scotland becoming independent. The headline over Gerry Hassan's column - "UK establishment’s contemplating life after indy, Scotland must do the same" - was always going to irk me. … Continue reading The big league
The following is from an article published on my blog nearly six months ago in response to Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh's column in The National (In the art of politics, being effective is all that matters – this is Scotland’s chance, 4th August 2021). Emphasis added. Johnson is much more effective than Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh supposes. He is … Continue reading A shift of emphasis?
Gerry Hassan's column in The National today offers an interesting analysis of the relationship between the SNP and the wider independence movement as he tries to answer the question posed in the headline, How do we resolve tensions between SNP and the wider Yes movement? It's an issue I've addressed repeatedly over the last few … Continue reading The meeting point
Judging by some of the things Gerry Hassan says in his National column, he appears to think the rest of us are a bit thick. We confuse independence with an independence referendum. We fail to recognise the portion of the electorate outside the Yes/No divide. We focus on process when we should be concentrating on … Continue reading Gerry Hassan’s list – 6 to 10
It is perhaps a sign of the general weariness which has beset Scotland's constitutional debate that a man of Gerry Hassan's great erudition can come up with a list of only 10 things to think about before our next indyref. Back in the day, a list from such a source could be expected to run … Continue reading Gerry Hassan’s list – 1 to 5
There must be something wrong with me. I cannot have somebody tell me what is what without wanting needing to whether it is. I cannot encounter a statement such as the one above without feeling the urge to query every aspect of it. The questions flow naturally and inevitably from the assertion. The questions are inescapable.
However hard Ian Blackford tries to persuade himself, and us, that democracy must surely prevail, we cannot long avoid the reality that Carlaw's ignorant, arrogant bluster represents the true attitude of the British establishment. And that includes Jeremy Corbyn
Peter A Bell 