“I have been growing increasingly angry at the party politicisation of Scotland’s national flag. As a proud and patriotic Scot I wish to make today the day when we reclaim the Saltire from the SNP and give it back to Scotland, all of Scotland.True, but easier said than done. Nationalists’ efforts to create such an association spring from their wish to send the signal that they are true patriots and more Scottish than the rest of us.
I was struck how, during the recent by-elections, the SNP wandered around shopping centres, stood at street corners handing out the Saltire as if they owned the flag, as if it was their exclusive property, as if they had a monopoly on the Saltire and it was their symbol.
Well let me say this loud and clear: The Saltire is our national flag of Scotland - not the SNP nationalist flag. It is a symbol of patriotism, not partition. It is the property of us all, not the campaigning prop of one party.”
Take, for example, this revolting comment on today’s Scotsman forum, in which a CyberNat describes Annabel Goldie as “a traitor and not a patriot” and twists the definitions of those two words to argue that “the Nationalists are entitled to wave and carry the Saltire and she is NOT”.
Annabel Goldie is too restrained. Just being “angry” in the face of such fascism isn’t enough.
Was this the same speech to the CF Scotland conference that was mentioned a few posts ago, where Ms Goldie was expected to tear the First Minister a new one?
She's really going for it anyway. Perhaps they've got the message, that the grassroots don't much care for their party leadership (the "Vichy Tories" as Gerald Warner would put it) for cosying up to nationalists.
Everyone's favourite auntie?
hmmmmmm
Auntie Annabel and her dwindling flock use the Union tack just in the same way Alex Salmond uses the Saltire. It,s funny because any time i think Conservative i think of the Union tack!!, why is that SU ?
Sorry Jim. You can put that down to my calculated efforts not to be in any way partisan. So if I leverage a post off something Annabel says I'll try to feature a Labour or Liberal politician soon thereafter, or perhaps to say something a little offhand at the same time. Hope that wasn't too disparaging.
AMW: A question. What makes you think it's reasonable to use insulting names for countries' flags? "Union tack" isn't quite "butcher's apron" but many would find it distasteful nonetheless. Would you take kindly to someone coining a term like "Sillytire" or "Saltired", for example?
AMW: Conservatives in Scotland have by no means adopted the Union Jack as a political symbol. We don't go around handing out Union flags, or waving them at meetings or conferences. We simply treat it as the national flag - just as Labour and, presumably, the Liberals do.
That said, a lot of Nats do seem to see it as political. But I rather think that's their problem rather than that of the pro-Union political parties.
As for the saltire issue, as I've said before it already flies from government buildings and is widely used - I don't particularly associate it with the SNP: there's something in Annabel's argument, but she's over-egging the pudding.
I certainly have no interest in 'reclaiming' it. I'm quite happy with my present relationship with it. What I am slightly concerned about is that the Saltire gets preferential use over the Union Jack on Scottish Exec buildings (a policy instituted by Jack McConnell, of course) for no reason whatsoever.
SU
When ever i see a flag draped over a British bull dog and used by sectarian thugs, then that flag becomes little more than tack.
Yes it might upset some people by calling the Union tack, er tack but me? not going to lose sleep over it. BTW im sure most Scots don,t whinge when they are refferd to as "Scotch" by some quaters of the UK!!!!
Sorry for spamming your blog SU but i think Auntie Annabel is only "lambasting" the SNP becouse the of the Con,s 13% poll lead over labour, i rather think when Labour is creeping back up the polls big DC will tell her to cool her snarling towards the SNP incase the SNP fail to make inroads into the Labour held seats in Scotland. More Scottish labour MP,s means less likly to have DC as PM...
A great many flags have been pressed into service by extreme and even terrorist groups. Why single out the flag of the United Kingdom on such a basis?
Because it's the one that we have flying over our heads?
And don't want to?
Scottish Unionist said...
A great many flags have been pressed into service by extreme and even terrorist groups. Why single out the flag of the United Kingdom on such a basis"
Oh just in the same way you direct any anti English sentiments at the SNP
When ever i see a flag draped over a British bull dog and used by sectarian thugs,
How often is this?
I had avoided commenting on this but really it is too ridiculous.
There is absolutely nothing to stop the Tories, Lib Dems, Labour or any other political party using the saltire in their campaigning.
Absolutely nothing. They are just as free to use the image of the saltire as the SNP is. There is no copyright.
If a criticism could be made about using the saltire it could be that the SNP has become somewhat Americanised in their campaigning techniques. I have heard that criticism made although I don't agree with it. However it is a valid observation if not (in my view) a valid criticism.
Google images of Barack Obama and the chances are there will be an American flag somewhere in the background. Google images of McCain and the same will be true.
I don't recall anyone accusing them of appropriating the American flag though. So why the big deal about the saltire?
If the Tories want to use the saltire go ahead and use it. They don't need permission. If they don't want to use it stop whinging on about it.
AMW: No, I don't. Why say that?
Indy: Are you serious? The SNP use the Saltire almost as if it's their logo. Did you read this story about Nicola Sturgeon approaching a Labour activist in Glenrothes who happened to have a saltire and "thanking him for all he does with the SNP"?
The SNP uses the saltire almost as though it is their logo. So what? So could the Tories or any other party if they wanted to. Like I said it's not copyrighted. Do you seriously not see the absurdity in people accusing the SNP of monopolising the saltire because other parties don't use it? Or are you saying it is wrong to use flags full stop?
As for the story you link to - Jeezo we can all come up with 'a friend of mine told me that such and such a thing happened to him'. If someone said 'this happened to me' it might be different. But if you are reduced to citing shaggy by-election stories to support your case you don't have much of a case.
Considering that the other well blogged on Nicola Sturgeon at by-election story was a load of rubbish (the Kezia Dugdale one) you might want to think twice before posting these kinds of things as though they were hard evidence.
It's a bit like the Sarah Brown, armed police story - also a load of rubbish. By-elections abound with these types of tales, nost of them are made up.