I wonder if Keith Brown is as nostalgic as I am for the days when speeches such as the one he's reportedly addressing to the SNP conference-like-thing sparked enthusiasm rather than soporific ennui. I wonder if he's even aware of the negative effect the "rallying cry" now has on those who were once positively affected. … Continue reading Reading the room?
One of the more cheering developments of the past decade is the greater prominence now being given to Scotland’s official national day – St Andrew’s Day. It’s the day of the year – 30 November – set aside for a celebration of all that is Scotland and all that Scotland is. A celebration in which … Continue reading St Andrew’s Day March for Independence
My intention this morning was to write an article prompted by the headline over Richard Walker's column in The National - Yes movement has to come together and recapture the spirit of 2014. It's one of those very sensible-sounding things that people tend to agree with having given the matter little or no thought. It … Continue reading No way back
The National's headline over its report of some positive press for Nicola Sturgeon in an American newspaper (Washington Post hails Nicola Sturgeon making a role for herself at COP26) seems designed to prompt shrill allegations of a 'personality cult' from the dunces' corner of the Yes movement and mindless British Nationalist fanatics alike. So let's … Continue reading A very Scottish personality cult
To be a Unionist in Scotland, one must be prepared to accept humiliation, not as an insult to be stoically borne or desperately rationalised, but as a natural part of one's condition as a subject of the British state. To be a Unionist in Scotland, one must be so persuaded of the superiority of the … Continue reading To be…
I am sure we're all grateful to Dr David Patrick for his insights reported in The National. But did anyone seriously doubt that the British propaganda machine's principal line of attack would be some variation on the old 'Too wee! Too poor! Too stupid!' (TW!TP!TS!) argument? It is, after all, the whole reason for framing … Continue reading Too wee! Too poor! Too stupid!
Sometimes I envy the fantasists I so often criticise. I occasionally wish I could enjoy the Panglossian perspective of the Sturgeon/SNP loyalists who see the protracted dithering and supine inaction of the SNP/Scottish Government in the face of an accelerating British Nationalist onslaught as part of Nicola's Great Secret Plan to "win" Scotland's independence. I … Continue reading Oh, to be stupid!
I confess to being rather concerned on seeing the reference to "the rules" in the headline over the latest contribution from Scott Crichton Styles in the Sunday National. What rules are those, I wondered. I fervently hoped Scott Crichton Styles wasn't in the business of lending credibility to the idea that Scotland must be bound … Continue reading Lawyers or politicians
I didn't hear Ian Blackford's address to the crowd gathered on Glasgow Green at the end of the Yes march in Glasgow on Saturday (9 October) and I have been unable to find a full transcript of his speech. It might be more accurate to say that I couldn't hear Mr Blackford's address. My hearing … Continue reading Multiple failures of leadership
Time for another teaser, Nicola? A wee shillin' in the meter tae keep the independence pot warm on that back burner? Something 'fresh' that the faithful can point to as they shout down the doubters and the dissenters and the folk in the cheap seats who just want this pantomime to end? Behold! Verily Nicola … Continue reading Big boots!
Thinker. Listener. Talker. Reader. Writer. No attitude immutable. No conclusion final. No opinion humble.
The people's campaign against the Union
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A blog by Iain Lawson
Peter A Bell 