Readers respond on the Independence debate
from John Inglis
Douglas Hamilton obviously feels deeply his opposition to a “yes” vote and makes a whole range of assertions about Scottish history, Scots’ relations with England, the behaviour of people in the “yes” campaign, the economy and the EU but without supporting evidence. Not many Scots would dismiss their history with “why bother with this piece of ancient history ?” when the orthodox view of history is that we are shaped by it and that it forms part of our psyche. When Douglas uses the term “UK family” I quibble. The Second World War apart, the history of the Twentieth and Twenty- first century, Imperialism, General strike, the struggle for women’s suffrage, the pointless slaughter of World War 1, hunger marches, the Troubles in Ireland, the riots in the cities, the miners’ strike, the Poll Tax, the war in Iraqi, in Afghanistan, robbery of the mass of the population to pay off the banks and austerity for the majority does not bring the word “family” to mind unless a very dysfunctional one. In his frenzy of distaste for the “Yes” campaign he offers up the “Nazis”, surely a distasteful hyperbole?
I give little credence to doom-laden predictions about the economy and likewise to promises of huge economic success and Douglas should take note that the public sector provides services and facilities which had to be fought for over generations while, at the same time, supplying business to the private sector. Revulsion at windfarms may moderate when foreign sources of power are blighted by war or withheld by dictatorships who seek to blackmail us. In my opinion membership of the EU should not be critical to a”Yes” vote and nor should the issue of the shared currency. The economy is not a static entity and is determined by work, enterprise and decision making close to the workface. Like thousands of others in the “Yes” campaign who are not members of the SNP, Salmond is not central to our thinking. What a “YES” vote offers is the opportunity to elect a government of our choice not simply to continue as victims of a UK parliament which the Scots did not choose, whose three main parties are coalescing on the political right with implications for increased austerity and diminished public services including the NHS. Worse may be in the offing if the Mayor of London and his Bullingdon club colleagues win power, a scenario that very few in Scotland would welcome. I’d expect this referendum to register the largest percentage turnout ever because there is the possibility of change but a “no” vote would mean ‘more of the same’ with worse to come.
From Gerry Callan
Just a brief comment on Douglas Hamilton’s recent contribution. 90% of his caveat-filled tome appeared to have been lifted directly from the Better Together how-to-scare-the-horses manual. Douglas, even BT doesn’t believe most of this stuff, so don’t take it so seriously! Clearly carried away by his own rhetoric, Douglas then goes on to compare the Yes campaign to Nazi Germany. This would be laughable if it weren’t so downright offensive. The Yes campaign is the latest manifestation of a fiercely democratic 80-year-old movement to re-establish self-governance and political fairness in this country. Just because Scotland wants to grow up and join the rest of the world, that doesn’t mean we’re about to invade Poland!
From James Gourlay
Would we want to go back 800 years? Surely the point is for Scotland to move forward from our present position of being under London control and to look after our future for ourselves in a country where the people are sovereign.
We pay more tax per head, we have lots of oil, we have an abundance of hydro-power – are these not convincing economic cases?
A small independent country like Scotland wouldn’t have had the banking crisis precipitated by the Westminster government, which was under the control of the banks.
