A parcel of prorogues

It is official. The construct which is the United Kingdom is eating itself from the inside out.

It’s difficult to even try to be whimsical, and it would be inappropriately unkind to take any form of wry satisfaction in being able to say that the fine folk of England may have learned a wee bit over the last few days about how it feels to be Scottish, when it comes to politics, as the veil of the pretence of democracy in Britain slips completely away, falling uselessly into the gutter,to be replaced by the fluttering symbols of increasingly further right-wing English nationalism. 

It is no accident that that the country that John Bright once described thus “England is the Mother of Parliaments” does not have a codified Constitution, leaning instead on the passage of law through changing times, tradition, ritual and political convention. 

This arrangement has helped to allow those with the power within the established order to continue to accumulate vast wealth and influence whilst giving the rest of us some sort of belief, mistaken as it is, that we live in a democracy where we are all equal, have rights, and a say in major decisions that impact our society, via the ballot box. 

Whomever it is that Boris Johnson is the front man for, has just made a massive mistake by revealing to the people of the British Isles the true picture. The perceived convention of left versus right acting as political counterweights, pulling each other back towards the central ground, disavowing extremism, has blown away. Democracy does not matter, is being denied a voice, and this will not end well. 

The government of the independent Scotland-in-waiting must now act. Signing petitions is pointless. A government in London which is prepared to shut down its parliament to stop the majority of its members, representing the majority of voters, from putting an end to potentially the most financially, economically, culturally and socially damaging political step taken by a western country since WW2, is not going to grant a section 30 order (Scotland Act 1998) to allow a referendum in Scotland on self-government, no matter how politely you ask them, or how many cast iron democratic mandates you have to hold such a referendum. 

However a request must formally be made, and this time with a required timescale for response attached, unlike last time when Theresa May simply, and arrogantly, ignored and then dismissed the request out of hand. 

When the inevitable refusal arrives, via a boyish buffoon-like statement from Johnson or a nervy twitchy sound bite from the new Viceroy, who has started as he means to go on by comparing at least half of the population of Scotland to fascists, (I never thought I would compare David Mundell favourably to someone but even he never had the nerve or the inclination to insult his fellow Scots in such a way) the road ahead is clear. 

There is a General Election coming, and it is coming very soon, as sure as day follows night. Amidst the massive turmoil of Brexit, and the breakdown of democracy at Westminster the party of Scotland’s government must make their campaign about one issue, and one issue alone, self-government,and the significant benefits of being an independent outward looking, citizen focused social democratic country.

The eyes of the people of Scotland are now fully opened. The lights are coming on all over our country. No amount of British state biased propaganda will change that. We’ve heard it all before. We are sick of being lied to, manipulated and belittled. There is a change coming and I trust in those people to make the right decision, the best decision as an electorate that they will ever make. 

Who makes the decisions?

The annual propaganda spin of GERS in the British media in Scotland is just about to kick in.

The BBC will be telling you, yet again, that Scotland spent several billion pounds more on its public services than it took in as public revenue. The thing to look out for there is the phrase ‘Scotland spent’ because this is misleading and not true.

The Scottish Government website describes the annual GERS report as “GERS estimates the level of public revenue raised in Scotland and the level of public spending for the residents of Scotland, under the current constitutional arrangements.”

Under the current constitutional arrangements the majority of the financial control of public spending is retained at Westminster. Scotland has some control but mainly the decisions about how public money is spent for Scotland, supposedly to benefit you, are still made in London.

This is spend made by the government of the UK based on decisions about its priorities in Scotland, not yours, like Trident, subsidising tax relief for oil companies, and maintaining a portion of the civil service in London, apparently working for Scotland, but not in Scotland and not contributing to the Scottish economy.

Presumably too the spondooliks for the shiny new 3,000 civil servant-sized Scotland Office (the British government in Scotland) hub being commissioned near Waverley Station in Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth House, which was going to be wee Davey the ermine-chaser’s bolthole until he got the hook, will have been factored into Scotland’s debt too, just to make sure that you are paying for the rainforest -sized propaganda that the UK will be feeding you from that venue, as well as from the other hubs they are apparently planning to build. Neat trick that eh.

The Scottish government has no real control over the financial levers which impact GERS or the ability to borrow. How can you have a debt if the borrowing that created a debt has been done by some other entity to suit their requirements, not yours? GERS is an apportionment to Scotland of the UK’s debt.

Far from GERS showing that Scotland should remain in the U.K. It demonstrates clearly that if Scotland is ever to thrive it is an imperative that it returns to the status of self-government, and soon.

Beyond foolishness

It’s all coming apart at the seams. The plot has been well and truly lost. The last fantasies of a long gone Empire are unravelling, and In the stark light of day the leaked government document to The Times outlining the probable consequences of Westminster’s government plans to run headlong into a solid granite wall which is hurtling towards them from the opposite direction faster than they will be able to get out of the way, without ending many of their own political careers, is just the opening moments of perhaps the biggest self-inflicted clusterbollock ever dropped.

Dismissed by Michael Gove, an individual who frankly I wouldn’t trust to be able to look after the remnants of a partially solidified rabbit jobby if I put it in a jar and said ‘ here you, haud this’, as scaremongering and “bumps in the road” the report on Operation Yellow Submarine spells out the expected disruption you can look forward to once a no-deal Brexit kicks in.

Yes, the Blue Meanies of Whitehall, after three years of planning, or avoiding planning, for a number of eventualities which are so complex that no one but the seance-summoned spirit of Albert Einstein can understand them fully, are really setting residents of the UK up for some fun times ahead.

Don’t, whatever you do, fall sick. If you’ve an existing medical condition requiring any form of regular medication, or you work in a chemist shop, get ready for a bit of an upheaval or two to your daily routine.

If you are fond of some fresh fruit or really just any food that takes a wee bit longer tae cook than heating up a steak bake in the microwave you are in for shortages and price hikes. Jamie Oliver will just need tae start sprinkling rice crispies on his pukka culinary efforts instead of pomegranate seeds. Innit.

If you are going anywhere that involves leaving the UK for somewhere in Europe, and coming back, it’s probably wise to buy yourself a foldaway sleeping bag and a good book or five.

Lorry drivers in the haulage industry, ooft, the pressure these folk are going to be under, they are anyway at the best of times, will be incredible. Look out for a newly discovered medical condition known as Port-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder.

Worst, possibly, and something that doesn’t bear jesting about, on the island of Ireland in this scenario there is likely to be significant pressure brought to bear to create a hard border between the EU and British territory, breaching the Good Friday Agreement, and possibly returning Northern Ireland to chaotic times no one ever wants to see again. That would be unforgivable.

Johnson and his gang of chancers are playing a very dangerous game, with peoples lives and livelihoods.

All of this is happening against the will of the democratic majority of Scotland’s people who at the ballot box have expressed their wish to remain a part of the wide European community of nations.

Scotland, and it’s government, has a choice to make, and it needs to be made soon.

Chancers

What is it that troubles them?

What is it about asking the people of Scotland to consider, for a second time, whether they wish to have their own government, that unionist politicians and their media cannot come to terms with?

This week we’ve seen stramashes breaking out all over the place as factions of the local office in Scotland of the British Labour Party get torn in about each other when their Deputy Leader, up
north of the border to be interviewed at an Edinburgh Festival event, decided to mention that democracy should be respected in what is supposed to be a democratic political union.

His words in reality mean nothing because Labour, and he, can easily weasel out of any future commitment to let Scotland’s people have their say, words are cheap, but what this incident highlighted is the blatant disrespect some unionist politicians have for the views of the wider communities in the country they represent.

Ian Murray was ready to burst the seam under the oxter of his union flagged jaiket at the very thought of anyone in the Labour Party agreeing that democracy should have its way, wee Jackie Baillie, taking a brief break from chewing a wasp, keyboarded a strongly worded email to her wee gang of blairites, those still dreaming of the halcyon day’s of long lunches and longer wine lists, denouncing a possible referendum, whilst bizarrely doing the political equivalent of shoving a broken irn bru bottle betwixt the shooder blades of her local office manager.

What are these folk all about?

Mainly Remainers when it comes to the EU divorce debacle, it needs to be pointed out to The Hague dodger’s fan club that they don’t get to strongly advocate that voters (mainly from the English side of the border) should get a chance to change their minds on a second vote for a referendum that happened three years ago but the people of Scotland shouldn’t get the chance to do the same thing for a referendum that happened five years ago. Especially seeing as the polls are more than suggesting that electorally they are an irrelevance.

They talk constantly about the 2014 referendum being a once in a generation event. Democracy doesn’t work that way, particularly when all of the promises made to those that voted No turned out to be wind & pish.

Then there’s the Labour Party’s answer to the Tory Member for SNP Gain in Aberdeen, Paul Sweeney’s, car running onto a train line just as a high speed Class 800 train comes hurtling along the track unfortunately not avoiding the 747 airliner which suddenly fell out of the sky, crash interview trying to dilute John McDonnell’s comments and the SNP’s mandate to hold a second referendum on the state broadcasters ‘Good Morning Scotland’.

Talk about random. Apparently there is absolutely no call for independence in Scotland at all, naebdy’s interested, it’s a figment of the now Ashcroft polled 52% of Scots imaginations. Yer all barmy, let’s get back to weighing Labour votes, and oh by the way we’ve got a great new idea that’s never been mentioned before, a Federal Britain! It’ll be magic, Scotland will be a turbocharged powerhouse, like Mansfield or Burnley. Right on comrade!

Also, according to our hero, the Deputy Leader from head office in London didnae really mean tae say that Scotland should have a referendum again if the expressed democratic will of the people of Scotland is to give their elected representatives a mandate to do so, because they don’t em em… have a mandate, and probably won’t ever have one. Simples! Delusional but simple.

We hear all the time members of the media, when conversing with these heidbangers, saying things like “ The SNP say that they have a mandate” or “ according to the SNP they think they have a mandate”. What a load of falsehood and misdirecting of the public nonsense that is.

There can be no debate, no doubt, no uncertainty, no differing opinions, the SNP do have a cast iron mandate from the people of Scotland to canvass them once more about their views on their future governance.

The Scottish National Party fundamentally exists to promote and facilitate Scotland’s rightful return to an independent sovereign state. For politicians and media representatives involved in politics to act like they are not entirely aware of that fact is disingenuous.

That political party won the last Scottish parliamentary elections on a manifesto promise that they would seek a second referendum should Scotland be forced out of the EU against its will. Scotland’s people agreed with them.

That political party then held a vote in Scotland’s parliament of all of the people of Scotland’s elected representatives seeking authority to hold a second referendum. Scotland’s people, via their representatives agreed with them.

That political party then fought the British Parliament General Election on a manifesto promise to protect Scotland from the madness of Brexit by holding a second independence referendum. Scotland’s people agreed with them, giving them a majority of 35 seats, way in excess of the political parties represented in Scotland but originating, and fundamentally favouring, English interests.

That is democracy. These chancers are not democrats, they are mouthpieces of another state.

When the lights go out

It seemed somewhat more than ironic as I stopped off for my morning coffee today that the background music playing in the little coffee shop I frequent happened bizarrely to be Vera Lynn singing ‘When the Lights Go on Again.”

A song of the past inspiring hope and thoughts of a better future for a generation under dire threat from extremist fanatics almost 80 years ago it’s hard to believe that Britain is the same place that Vera Lynn sang about then.

Half the population of England, having suffered years of withering policies of austerity inflicted on them by their governments, stirred up by increasingly far right-wing politicians, unchallenged by the media, into fearing and blaming immigrants for their plight, mistrusting foreigners and somehow being convinced by exaggeration that the European Union has control and influence over the sovereign affairs of its member nations, does makes it seem a bit like 80 years ago. But this time the lights are going out only in Britain, heralding a self-inflicted era of unhealthy, inward looking sinister English nationalism.

Somehow or other, how it happened will be the lifetime research of a future historian, the patriotism and pride in defeating far-right extremism of Britain’s past has been spun on its head by the likes of Farage, UKIP, and their like, and has found a fertile breeding ground.

The robotic speech-by-rote Prime Minister put in place by those with the real power, to stabilise the ship, and absorb the political flak of withdrawing from the largest free trading club that exists anywhere, has been removed and replaced by a posh chancer, a dreamer of no substance, a power craver, explicitly there to appeal to that same fertile breeding ground which the far-right have cultivated.

Britain’s choice to leave the EU and the dire consequences of doing so are now being portrayed as the EU’s fault. The blame for what is to come has been transferred from those who are actually at fault to those who refuse to compromise on protecting their membership, a privilege that Britain is about to give up.

Boris Johnson and his team have have no magic bullet policies to solve the divorce from the EU in a way which satisfies his government and the elite ‘wealth creators’, which is, to have all of the benefits of being a member of the EU without also having the responsibilities of being a member, that’s the simple version, the reality. It’s all a front.

Johnson’s cabal have two strategies, transfer blame and gamble.

‘We’re straining every sinew to get a good deal’ say his acolytes, before going back to the gin and the Test at Lords.

‘We’re preparing for a no-deal but we don’t expect one’ they say, with no plan on how to achieve a deal or real expectation of it happening.

‘The EU must remove the Irish backstop and come to the table’ they say, knowing full well that the European Union can only function on its fundamental ability to protect its members, and knowing that any impact on the current freedoms of movement at the Irish border is a breach of the Good Friday Agreement, with potential catastrophic consequences for the peace on the island of Ireland.

The intention is to create a tension, and misdirect voter anger towards Europe, and away from the real creators of the chaos and mayhem.

We can only hope that somehow better minds prevail, that the many millions of ordinary hardworking folk of England, just like ourselves, stuck in this nightmare, can win out again a minority who are manipulating their country for personal gain and wicked ideology.

Scotland is going another way. Taking another path. Internationalist, looking outwards, welcoming, progressive, inclusive, a maturing confident social democracy. Ashcroft’s recent poll supports what we have known for a while.

In the 21st century the democratic rights of a sovereign country cannot be denied for long. There is much work still to be done but independence is coming. Our lights may dim, but soon will burn bright.

(Hi folks, a personal plea again. If you are a regular reader of the blog on Facebook would you mind clicking on the blog site itisintruthnotforglory.wordpress.com and click on ‘follow’ from there. The reason being that every time I post on Facebook indy groups I seem to attract a 24 hr to 72 hr ban. The truth is hurting somebody somewhere.

Sincere thanks to the many who have recently started following via the blog site instead of through Facebook. By all means though please continue to post the blog on Facebook yourself if you wish to do so.)

Before a baw is kicked

As someone eminently more sagacious on the subject of independence for Scotland once said “Poles (sic) are for holding up washing lines.” However Lord Ashcroft’s on-line poll for the Conservative Home website and the Holyrood magazine will fairly put a draughty wind up the polished rear quarters of the denizens of White’s Club in St James and the dusty corridors of the Palace of Westminster.

With no official campaign in place, no date to aim at, no structured central support network to feed the grassroots groups who have been poised in the starting blocks at the ‘set’ position for some time now, and not including 16-17 year olds in the polling, Ashcroft has recorded a 52% to 48% turnover in favour of a self-governing Scotland in a poll covering 30 July-2 August.

It doesn’t raise the hair on the back of the neck of a normalist quite as much as the poll suggesting Yes was easing ahead in mid September 2014, and the Sunday Post front cover, that generated mayhem as trainloads of Westminster politicians abandoned their entrecôte de boeuf and mugs of Chateau Lafite in order to stalk the citizens of Scotland in their town centres, entreating them to repent and step away from the newfound scandalous confidence in their own ability to look after their own interests, and wander back towards the ever warming light and glorious loving arms of Union (or the spider monkeys and the plague of locusts will eat your noses),but before a baw is even kicked, (either of Boris Johnson’s will do) the results of the poll does induce a nice warm feeling.

Independence is normal, politically dominating neighbouring countries is not.

Lamentable

Just a short blog today folks.

It was the third anniversary of a very significant (if somewhat too late) event for Scotland yesterday, the end of the Right to Buy Scheme north of the border.

A lament to the past…..

Before the fences replaced nice hedges between properties, and then got higher, and higher. Before white stone chipped driveways. Before half a roof of a four in a block got replaced. Before double-glazing and central heating salesmen moved in and made a fortune out of new victims. Before the endowment mortgage scam… and before the compensation. Before cars, cars, cars, car-parking, ‘get off my verge’, Before key-blocking the front garden, for more cars. Before ASBO’s. Before Sitex security shutters. Before ‘Carbunkle of the Year” Awards. Before all of the best properties got cherry-picked. Before it disnae belong to me to so why should I care. Before shooting galleries. Before they stopped maintaining the parks well, and budget cuts and health & safety filled in the weans paddling pools. Before CCTV. Before satellite dishes, Before Rupert Murdoch and Sky News. Before poverty porn and benefit shaming. Before Food-banks. Before more Food-banks. Before record-breaking homelessness. Before alarming premature death rates due to drug abuse.

Before all of these there were great communities.

R.I.P. 494,000 Scottish social housing properties as a result of decisions made by a government from another country.