Sunday 23 February 2014

There Really is Only One Answer to BBC Bias

I can't even be bothered to fisk this litany of disproven indyref canards penned by Roger Scruton for the BBC. Even on a dreich day like today, there are better uses for my time.



There is only one response to this and its predecessors in the long list of BBC bias in lead up to the independence referendum, and any Yes Scotland supporter who has not clicked this link and followed through should really question their commitment to the cause.
TV Licensing: How to tell us you don't watch TV
You can still watch catch-up services and you can get free TV content from the likes of CouchTuner, so what is there to lose other than the nauseous feeling of paying £145 for the privilege of funding a constant stream of Unionist propaganda?

Thursday 13 February 2014

Raw Power understands only one thing: Raw Power.

The Mainstream Media, the Blogosphere and Twitter have been fixated on George Osborne today, to a lesser extent Edward Balls and, rightly, the pipsqueak Danny Alexander was ignored. They were merely the bit players. The BBC focussed on the wrong Old Etonian. It was relatively late in the day that the main man, Sir Nicholas Macpherson, Permanent Secretary at the Treasury piped up.

Before we get to the meat, let's consider what else happened today. Better Together and Alistair Carmichael were wholly ignored. Today was London's day. Osborne and Balls blew the self-styled Project Fear's strategy out of the water. Alistair Darling appeared on TV looking like he was suffering from facial palsy, he was twitching so much.


All their talk of Scotland having "A strong voice in a Strong United Kingdom" was blown out of the water. Any advice they (rightly) gave that such a power play as ruling out a currency union before the referendum and without any negotiation would be seen as Tory bullying North of the border was wholeheartedly ignored by their metropolitan masters.  By sucking up to and siding with Osborne, Balls has effectively signed the death warrant of Scottish Labour and proved that ye cannae squeeze a fag paper between Tory and Labour nowadays.

Now to the meat. The Westminster politicians fulfilled their roles treading the boards today, reading the script prepared by Sir Nicholas Macpherson at the behest of his masters in the City.  Sir Nicholas likes to play power games.  

Below I quote from a very fairly good (it still propounds the Euro myth) article on the Financial Times Blog: The Treasury Power Play:

When the Treasury said it would assume full responsibility for Britain’s debts in the event of Scottish independence, some viewed it as a needless concession to the SNP. But it was a clever precursor to ruling out a currency union, as Joseph Cotterill argues. Not that Sir Nicholas believes the SNP’s claim that the party would leave the rest of the UK “shouldering” Britain’s debt. In his letter to the chancellor, the permanent secretary writes [my emphasis]:
If you follow Treasury advice and this week rule out a currency union in the event of Scottish independence, you can expect the Scottish Government to threaten not to take on its share of the United Kingdom’s debt. I do not believe this is a credible threat. First, the sooner an independent Scotland established economic credibility, the better it would be for its economic performance. An extensive wrangle about its share of the debt would increase uncertainty and hence its funding costs. Secondly, the debt is one of a number of issues which would have to be settled post independence, where the new Scottish state would require the cooperation of the international community including the continuing UK.

One of the problems with being  turned on by power and of getting used to it is the hubris that comes with such a position.  Who says there would be an extensive wrangle about Scotland's share of the debt? As reported in The Herald's round-up of international reaction to Osborne's speech:
"France's La Tribune: "Edinburgh," it concluded, "could declare the British currency as the only legal tender in Scotland." And London, it added, could do nothing about it."
If the gloves are to come off then there need be no protracted wrangle about debt. Scotland can easily tell London where to shove its debt. Scotland cannot "default" or "renege" on debt it doesn't owe. Indeed estimates of rUK's debt to GDP ratio without Scotland of 94% may be well short of the mark because of the jiggery-pokery in allocation of debt and debt repayments thus far.

The money markets couldn't care a fig what has happened in the past. They are looking for safe bets and a return. Scotland in the black with zero debt, over £1.5Tn in oil reserves; waves, gales, turbines and tides of renewable energy assets and a a positive trade balance will be a far better bet than a UK drowning in debt and having to purchase energy from abroad (including Scotland).

Protracted wrangle over debt? Like Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Ireland et al before us, we can continue to use Sterling until we decide to do something different and there's nothing Osborne or Balls can do about it. We can also call Sir Nicholas' bluff and tell him in short order where to shove the UK's debt.

If the UK wants to play silly beggars about other things, I'm sure the good folk of Rosneath would enjoy the economic benefits of a shovel-ready causeway from Rhu.




A Strong Voice in a Strong United Kingdom

Osborne, Alexander & Balls,
Found the writing was up on the walls.
Indyref polls nosediving,
Yes Scotland is thriving,
So a fearbomb's let out of the stalls.

(A Proud Cybernat badge to the best Osborne Limerick starting "Ireland made use of the Punt ...")


It must be heartening for Prof. Jim Gallagher, Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Carmichael and self-styled Project Fear Chief Alistair Darling that their advice is wholeheartedly ignored in this Union in which they believe Scotland has a "strong voice".

Meanwhile, from the man himself, George Osborne in his categorical, cast-iron negation of a post-indyref currency union with enough get-out clauses for a double decker bus to drive through: "And why wouldn’t we keep the UK together? The UK works. In good times, and also in bad."

Aye, right. Occasionally the BBC does get it right:


Former First Minister and unionist Henry McLeish sees through it, so do we.


George seems to be courting the female vote for Yes Scotland. Lovebombs last week, fearbombs this week. Forget splitting up the CD collection, women know that when you're in a relationship with someone who begs you to stay one week and bullies and beats you up the next, the only sensible solution is to leave.



See also:

Derek Bateman: We Love You, You Bastards.


Wednesday 12 February 2014

The Art of the Possible

As the self-styled Project Fear's Lovebombs give way to bullying tactics after just one week, cheer yourself up with Jack Foster and Chris Silver's ticketybootastic new video for Yes Scotland, "What if can't do became can do?"


Tuesday 11 February 2014

Miss Streisand is clearing her throat ...

I was interested today to read that Wings Over Scotland had been subjected to a sustained attempted Denial of Service attack in the week after it had passed 1,000,000 unique readers. I was particularly interested because this morning Google took down the second of my articles exposing the EDL origins of the British Unity erstwhile website and Facebook page which was later morphed into Vote No to Scottish Independence and Protect the Union, including some of the delightful creatures who were administrators of the Facebook Page in the past.

As yet, I have no details as to why Google has taken the pages down. The first article, Daily Mail's Witchfinder-General Graham Grant in Cahoots with Nazi Thug, was taken down at the behest of "VoteNo2014", presumably the remaining Vote No... Facebook Page administrator and Twitter Troll, @ASkinner2011.



The second takedown is far more intriguing. The article So who are British Unity? was taken down this morning at the behest of Glasgow Caledonian University. The University is already in trouble for apparently joining the No Campaign, quite why Vice-Chancellor Professor Pamela Gillies should wish to further court controversy by seeking to gag a pro-independence blog article which makes no reference whatsover to Glasgow Caledonian University is beyond me. I shall be in touch with the Vice-Chancellor to try to ascertain how I've managed to upset her.

While Miss Streisand clears her throat, I thought born again, Poof and Jew-hating former British Unity and Vote No 2014 administrator Billy Muir might particularly appreciate Miss Streisand singing the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur prayer, Avinu Malkeinu.



I'll keep you posted as to developments.

Postscript 12 Feb 13. As indicated above, I queried the Cease and Desist notice with Prof. Pamela Gillies, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of GCU. To her credit, I received the following prompt response:

Dear Mr Macdonald 
Thank you for your email and for drawing the Cease and Desist letter, which appears to come from the University, to my attention. We are not aware of any Cease and Desist letter emanating from the University. Please be assured that we are investigating the matter. 
Professor Pamela Gillies CBE
Principal and Vice-Chancellor
Glasgow Caledonian University

Saturday 8 February 2014

An auld ane but a good ane from Beau Bo D'Or

I found out last night the magnificent Beau Bo D'Or is back blogging and on Twitter. Here's an example of his brilliant work:




First Minister wipes the floor with condescending Metropolitan Twat

Jon Snow, please come back soon.  Have your haggis and eat it? Oh my sides! I'll bet this is one Porage Wog that Matt Frei wishes he never messed with.


Friday 7 February 2014

Better Together not feeling the Cameron Lurve?

You'd think Better Together would be cock-a-hoop. The First Lord of the Treasury, David Cameron, Prime Minister of these Sceptered Isles, delivering a rousing call for an Olympian Lovebomb from the Citizenry of RumpUK to their Scottish cousins.

Let's see:


What about Alistair Darling?


And Blair McDougall?


And what about the splitters in United With Labour? Don't be silly - they haven't done anything since their launch and relaunch. They don't even have a twitter account and their website remains nigh-on unchanged since it first appeared.

So, this much-heralded intervention in the independence referendum debate by the UK Prime Minister BT & UWL would like to see continue to govern Scotland in the future is met with tumbleweed all round from the official Unionist campaigns.

Are we about to see another split off from the laughable "togetherness and unity" of Better Together and United With Labour? Have they received a smacked botty from the real leader of Better Together? Will Ruth Davidson take her Tory toys and dosh away from Better Together and embark on a Feel the Lurrve strategy to replace the failed, self-styled Project Fear?

Here's at least one Englishman who won't be heeding the Lovebomb call (some fruity language):




Monday 3 February 2014

Just read what the Governor of the UK's Central Bank actually said


OK, so this is a pro-independence blog. That said, I'm not going to try to influence you one way or the other.

All I ask you to do is think. Did any of the mainstream media, including the the BBC, in all their "commentary" of Mark (Canadian Governor of the UK's Central Bank) Carney's speech give you a link to what the man actually said?

Well, here's the link. Actually, while he goes in to a lot of technical detail, you don't need to have a postgraduate degree in economics to understand what he is saying.

I'm not going to try to influence you one way or the other. Just read what the man said and make up your own mind. I think every Scottish person who will cast a vote on 18th September 2014 has a duty to make the effort to read this and make up their own mind.

http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Documents/speeches/2014/speech706.pdf



Saturday 1 February 2014

"Proud Cybernat" badges on sale now - As advertised in the Scottish Daily Mail!

They're here! You too can now have the distinguished honour of being hated by the Daily Mail in real life as well as in Cyberspace. Cybernat Witch-hunt month in the Scottish Daily Mail has seen the Cybernat Army grow by at least 2 Battalions and pro-indy bloggers featured in the Daily Hate reporting record traffic stats and hundreds, thousands in the bigger blogs, of new readers.

The daily Cybernat Watch feature appears to have come to an end. Perhaps Allan Roden, Scottish Political Editor, found himself drinking too much Hooch. The stress of scouring Twitter daily, hunting for anything remotely slightly derogatory written by a Cybernat, may have taken its toll.
Allan Roden

Proud Cybernat badges are really useful. Are you a pro-indy artist at Celtic Connections wanting to get round the BBC's ban on artists wearing Yes badges during televised performances? A Proud Cybernat badge makes for a striking alternative.

Are you worried about Daily Mail-reading perverts leering at your daughter as you walk her to school? Wear a Proud Cybernat badge and they will run a mile.

So, if you'd like the world to know that you are pro-indy, prefer not to get your political journalism from a hooch-swilling ned, don't crack one off leering at under-age girls described as "beyond their years" and don't like having your home-affairs news filtered though a Tory-boy nyaff who needs to get back at the world for his years of being bullied at school by bullying any potential 'out-group' he can identify, and is content to work hand-in-glove with fascist thugs to do it, then a Proud Cybernat badge is for you.

We now have 2 Cybernat songs, and fine songs they are too. The first by Hazel Lewry:


And a newer one by Yew Choob:



One of the "vile" Cybernats confronted and photographed by the Daily Mail was in the street walking home with her young son. I've decided that it may not be politic to flog off the badges in support of Yes Scotland. Pro-indy artist Peter Howson (left) launched their fundraising drive this week so I've decided to spread some love instead of Daily Hate by giving any surplus from the sale of the badges to Scottish Autism, who do great work with autistic children and their families.



If you want to join the serried ranks of Cybernats, buy a Proud Cybernat badge below and await your daily orders from the First Minister (that was a joke for any Britnats for whom irony is just a ferric adjective).

As Dick Gaughan, the man who had the idea for the badges on a Wings over Scotland comment thread has said:
"This is how we can really get them on the run - mockery. Every insult like this we can turn around and use to our advantage and turn their own weapons back on them is superb."
On that subject, Better Together (2012) Ltd, the official name of Better Together obviously whined to Facebook about my Better Together Scotland Facebook page. If you want to see Better Together's tripe turned against themselves, please give Project Fear Scotland a 'like' on Facebook as I'm operating from there now. Let's see them try and claim proprietary rights to that title.

Get your Proud Cybernat badge(s) here!



Sorry, sold out - wow, what a whirlwind!


Many thanks to everyone who bought one, 5 or 10.  Overall 459 were sold in only 6 hours. I sold some of the early ones too cheaply as I'd forgotten how long it was since I last sold anything through PayPal and boy have their transaction charges gone up. However, overall they should have washed their face with a bit left over for Scottish Autism. Thanks also to Wings Over Scotland, from whose site many of the purchasers came.

If you missed the boat, please comment below with how many you'd like and I'll see if it's worthwhile ordering some more.

Click here to donate direct to Scottish Autism.