Train crazy
3 hours ago
22 November 2008
20 November 2008
Thanks to ‘SW’ for highlighting a Courier letter by Fraser MacRae of the Clan MacRae which notes that, at the Battle of Sheriffmuir commemoration earlier this month, a Union Flag was “symbolically burnt”. Mr MacRae says that the clan is apolitical and wishes to “completely disassociate itself”. Describing the action as “nothing short of a disgrace”, he then says: “Over the past two centuries, hundreds of thousands of Scottish soldiers have fought under the Union Flag and many have died for it. The symbolic burning of the flag was an insult to their memory.” Quite.
Thanks to ‘SW’ for highlighting a Courier letter by Fraser MacRae of the Clan MacRae which notes that, at the Battle of Sheriffmuir commemoration earlier this month, a Union Flag was “symbolically burnt”. Mr MacRae says that the clan is apolitical and wishes to “completely disassociate itself”. Describing the action as “nothing short of a disgrace”, he then says: “Over the past two centuries, hundreds of thousands of Scottish soldiers have fought under the Union Flag and many have died for it. The symbolic burning of the flag was an insult to their memory.” Quite.
Via Toque, this is from a mass email allegedly sent by Donald Anderson, a Glasgow SNP activist:
The entire membership of the BNP has been leaked. While this is illegal (it couldn’t happen to nicer people), it gives us the opportunity to vet our own membership from this list.Apart from why BNP members might also be in the SNP, two obvious questions arise: why the exclusive focus on ‘non-English’ parts of Britain, and what organisations (plural) could he mean?
There are a large number of BNP members listed in Scotland , Wales , Cornwall and the north of Ireland . I don’t think we want any of them near any of the organisations we are in…
With thanks to correspondent ‘SW’, an extract from an article in Tuesday's Inverness Courier:“Extreme Scottish nationalism is being suggested as a possible reason for a 72.9 per cent rise in racist incidents in Inverness this year.Inverness South councillor Jim Crawford reportedly believes that “a combination of lack of education and publicity of the SNP's pro-independence stance may be fuelling anti-English feeling”. He is quoted as saying: “You find when nationalism in any country increases, this happens”.
English people are bearing the brunt of racially aggravated crimes, including serious and minor assaults...”
15 November 2008
The SNP’s Pete Wishart, speaking in the Commons on 12 November 2008, claimed that the British Social Attitudes survey found that only 3 per cent of Scots “now recognise themselves as British”.
But the survey actually suggests only that “3% of people born and living in Scotland, describe themselves as ‘only’ or ‘mainly’ British”, which is of course both completely different and entirely natural. Indeed, the survey’s co-author noted that “for most people it is still a question of being both English (or Scottish) and British, rather than a choice between them”. The Scottish Social Attitudes surveys have gone into greater depth, the 2007 edition finding that only 27% of people, fewer than even tend to vote SNP, define themselves monochromatically as “Scottish not British”.
But the survey actually suggests only that “3% of people born and living in Scotland, describe themselves as ‘only’ or ‘mainly’ British”, which is of course both completely different and entirely natural. Indeed, the survey’s co-author noted that “for most people it is still a question of being both English (or Scottish) and British, rather than a choice between them”. The Scottish Social Attitudes surveys have gone into greater depth, the 2007 edition finding that only 27% of people, fewer than even tend to vote SNP, define themselves monochromatically as “Scottish not British”.
SNP MP Pete Wishart, speaking in the House of Commons last Wednesday:
I have never felt British in my life. There are occasional pangs when you see Team GB in the Olympics and you are bombarded with Britishness, Britishness, Britishness by the BBC, but I have never felt British in my life. I do not even know what Britishness is.
14 November 2008
Earlier this year, over 70 nationalist cyberactivists, led by Joe Middleton (yes, him!) signed up to a Bin the Scotsman boycott pledge, claiming that the newspaper was “hopelessly biased” against nationalism and “obviously controlled by the British Government”.
And now the self-confessed Juan Kerr has started a similar Bin the Herald pledge, this time insisting that the Glasgow paper’s recent move to a pre-moderated comments forum, within which the vicious personal abuse which had become endemic on the political threads could be eliminated, represents “ministerial bullying”, an infringement of “freedom of speech” rights, and that the publishers are “lickspittle's [sic] and yes men for their governmental masters in westminster”.
The CyberNats are obviously delusional, but worse than that: they’re hypocritical. The stated motives for the two pledges are incompatible. Press freedom is a key part of freedom of speech.
And now the self-confessed Juan Kerr has started a similar Bin the Herald pledge, this time insisting that the Glasgow paper’s recent move to a pre-moderated comments forum, within which the vicious personal abuse which had become endemic on the political threads could be eliminated, represents “ministerial bullying”, an infringement of “freedom of speech” rights, and that the publishers are “lickspittle's [sic] and yes men for their governmental masters in westminster”.
The CyberNats are obviously delusional, but worse than that: they’re hypocritical. The stated motives for the two pledges are incompatible. Press freedom is a key part of freedom of speech.
Quote of the day, perhaps improbably for this blog by Sean Connery:“It has been one of my greatest joys to see Scotland walking tall in recent years. The spirit of the Scottish people - innovation, drive, entrepreneurialism, fairness, global responsibility and, yes, the sense of independence - has long predated the 1997 referendum and the 2007 result. And now, I believe our elected officials are starting to catch up with that spirit.”We’ve always walked tall, but it’s refreshing that at least one prominent nationalist is able to acknowledge that Scotland within the United Kingdom isn’t powerless, cringing and downtrodden but creative, vibrant and forward-looking.
• Herald: “Glenrothes: the end of the SNP honeymoon?”• Scotsman: “Analysis: PM slams the brakes on Salmond's momentum”
• Courier: “Defeated SNP are down but not out”
• Press and Journal: “Honeymoon is over for SNP after Glenrothes defeat”
• BBC: “Has the SNP bubble finally burst?”
• Sky News: “Glenrothes: SNP’s ‘Kinnock moment’”
• Telegraph: “Alex Salmond denies ... end of the SNP honeymoon”
• Independent: “After Glenrothes, the SNP honeymoon may be over”
• Times: “Honeymoon is over, but SNP may now forge a real marriage”
• Guardian: “It’s all my fault, Salmond admits as extent of defeat sinks in”
• Daily Mail: “Humiliated Alex Salmond admits faltering SNP strategy”
From a long and typically vituperative Scotsman thread about the SNP’s by-election defeat:
More than a hint of goading there, but this reply from a regular CyberNat really crossed the line:
More than a hint of goading there, but this reply from a regular CyberNat really crossed the line:
07 November 2008
Harry Wills: “The SNP juggernaut has been stopped in its tracks. Alex Salmond promised us an earthquake but by November the 5th and 6th, it has turned into a damp squib.”
Jim Sillars: “Since Glasgow East, the leadership of the party has been infected by hubris.”
Jon Craig: “The SNP bubble appears to have burst.”
Jim Murphy: “When we lost the Glasgow East byelection I was honest enough to say it was a dreadful result, but yesterday is a remarkable result and the SNP should have the honesty to acknowledge that this morning.”
Alex Salmond: “I was wrong about the by-election. We’re disappointed with the result.”
Nicola Sturgeon: “I readily concede that this was a disappointing result for the SNP. We are very disappointed not to have won the seat.”
David Cameron: “The real loser is the SNP and as they want to break up our country, to destroy the Union that I’m passionate about, then maybe it's no bad thing that the ‘Salmond bounce’ has disappeared.”
Iain Gray: “Alex Salmond didn’t claim he could win, he said he would win. That’s typical of his empty bluster. People have seen the difference between what the SNP say and what they actually do.”
Simon Johnson: “The huge margin of the SNP defeat is the first sign that the prolonged Nationalists’ honeymoon, that began when the party took power in Holyrood last year, is finally over.”
Robbie Dinwoodie: “The Brown bounce turned into a Salmond headache as the SNP’s progress since July’s victory in Glasgow East hit the buffers, emphatically ending the Scottish Government’s honeymoon.”
Torcuil Crighton: “All honeymoons come to an end ... Salmond does obey the rules of political gravity.”
Brian Taylor: “This is a substantial setback for Alex Salmond. Politics is not in stasis. It is about momentum, about progress. The SNP's momentum has stalled in Glenrothes.”
Richard Thomson: “I don’t like talking of honeymoons in politics, but it’s clear that the charmed existence which the SNP has enjoyed since 2007 is probably at an end.”
Iain Gray: “Alex Salmond is now a diminished figure. His erratic judgment during the banking crisis proved he is not a serious man for serious times.”
Maurice Golden: “It is clear that people are rejecting Alex Salmond. The bubble has well and truly burst.”
Hamish Macdonell: “It is official. As of this morning, the honeymoon is over.”
Tricia Marwick: “Our SNP vote came out today, and I saw people coming out to vote for Labour who haven’t voted for 20 years. I need to think about that.”
Tavish Scott: “The First Minister made a great virtue of visiting Glenrothes regularly. Perhaps if he spent more time being First Minister rather than leader of the SNP, there would have been a different result. Alex Salmond predicted the SNP would win - he got it spectacularly wrong. Scottish politics has changed - the honeymoon is over.”
Alex Salmond: “Perhaps I should’ve spent more time on the doorstep to see how the temperature was changing. I think I would’ve benefited from more time on the doorstep.”
Lindsay Roy: “Although he [Salmond] is welcome to come to Glenrothes, I would much prefer him to be in London or Edinburgh helping deal with this major economic crisis. I think he has been found wanting when the chips were down.”
Gordon Brown: “People are prepared to give support to governments who are prepared to take the action, and less willing to support people who have no idea about how they can solve the problems we’ve got.”
Menzies Campbell: “Smart Alec has had his comeuppance. Once again an extravagant prediction from Mr Salmond has proved worthless.”
John Curtice: “It [the by-election] is a warning the honeymoon could be over. It’s in Mr Salmond’s nature to be confident but what he has to watch is if you start making too many predictions that don’t come true then people begin to doubt what you are saying.”
Iain Gray: “The honeymoon is over. The SNP’s broken promises and empty bluster are now coming home to roost. Their arguments for breaking up Britain have been exposed by the economic crisis, which has demonstrated that Scotland’s best future lies in partnership with the rest of the UK.”
Alex Salmond: “I hope to extend the honeymoon a bit yet, but we had a setback yesterday and while it’s certainly true we’ve had virtually untrammelled political success for 18 months, nothing in political life continues in that vein forever.”
Peter Grant, seemingly in denial: “There was never an SNP bubble.”
Harry Wills: “The SNP juggernaut has been stopped in its tracks. Alex Salmond promised us an earthquake but by November the 5th and 6th, it has turned into a damp squib.”Jim Sillars: “Since Glasgow East, the leadership of the party has been infected by hubris.”
Jon Craig: “The SNP bubble appears to have burst.”
Jim Murphy: “When we lost the Glasgow East byelection I was honest enough to say it was a dreadful result, but yesterday is a remarkable result and the SNP should have the honesty to acknowledge that this morning.”
Alex Salmond: “I was wrong about the by-election. We’re disappointed with the result.”
Nicola Sturgeon: “I readily concede that this was a disappointing result for the SNP. We are very disappointed not to have won the seat.”
David Cameron: “The real loser is the SNP and as they want to break up our country, to destroy the Union that I’m passionate about, then maybe it's no bad thing that the ‘Salmond bounce’ has disappeared.”
Iain Gray: “Alex Salmond didn’t claim he could win, he said he would win. That’s typical of his empty bluster. People have seen the difference between what the SNP say and what they actually do.”
Simon Johnson: “The huge margin of the SNP defeat is the first sign that the prolonged Nationalists’ honeymoon, that began when the party took power in Holyrood last year, is finally over.”
Robbie Dinwoodie: “The Brown bounce turned into a Salmond headache as the SNP’s progress since July’s victory in Glasgow East hit the buffers, emphatically ending the Scottish Government’s honeymoon.”
Torcuil Crighton: “All honeymoons come to an end ... Salmond does obey the rules of political gravity.”
Brian Taylor: “This is a substantial setback for Alex Salmond. Politics is not in stasis. It is about momentum, about progress. The SNP's momentum has stalled in Glenrothes.”
Richard Thomson: “I don’t like talking of honeymoons in politics, but it’s clear that the charmed existence which the SNP has enjoyed since 2007 is probably at an end.”
Iain Gray: “Alex Salmond is now a diminished figure. His erratic judgment during the banking crisis proved he is not a serious man for serious times.”
Maurice Golden: “It is clear that people are rejecting Alex Salmond. The bubble has well and truly burst.”
Hamish Macdonell: “It is official. As of this morning, the honeymoon is over.”
Tricia Marwick: “Our SNP vote came out today, and I saw people coming out to vote for Labour who haven’t voted for 20 years. I need to think about that.”
Tavish Scott: “The First Minister made a great virtue of visiting Glenrothes regularly. Perhaps if he spent more time being First Minister rather than leader of the SNP, there would have been a different result. Alex Salmond predicted the SNP would win - he got it spectacularly wrong. Scottish politics has changed - the honeymoon is over.”
Alex Salmond: “Perhaps I should’ve spent more time on the doorstep to see how the temperature was changing. I think I would’ve benefited from more time on the doorstep.”
Lindsay Roy: “Although he [Salmond] is welcome to come to Glenrothes, I would much prefer him to be in London or Edinburgh helping deal with this major economic crisis. I think he has been found wanting when the chips were down.”
Gordon Brown: “People are prepared to give support to governments who are prepared to take the action, and less willing to support people who have no idea about how they can solve the problems we’ve got.”
Menzies Campbell: “Smart Alec has had his comeuppance. Once again an extravagant prediction from Mr Salmond has proved worthless.”
John Curtice: “It [the by-election] is a warning the honeymoon could be over. It’s in Mr Salmond’s nature to be confident but what he has to watch is if you start making too many predictions that don’t come true then people begin to doubt what you are saying.”
Iain Gray: “The honeymoon is over. The SNP’s broken promises and empty bluster are now coming home to roost. Their arguments for breaking up Britain have been exposed by the economic crisis, which has demonstrated that Scotland’s best future lies in partnership with the rest of the UK.”
Alex Salmond: “I hope to extend the honeymoon a bit yet, but we had a setback yesterday and while it’s certainly true we’ve had virtually untrammelled political success for 18 months, nothing in political life continues in that vein forever.”
Peter Grant, seemingly in denial: “There was never an SNP bubble.”
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