Monday, August 24, 2009

Not a good time to be Scottish.

Before I write another word I must point out that while I am not Scottish, many of my best friends are, and I can never remember a time when they are less proud of the fact.

As one of them said to me this weekend, "I am surprised you will even still talk to us, much less want to keep us in the Union. First we demanded and got extra MP's, then special treatment by way of devolution and then extra money from you so that our old people get care your old people do not. Then we foisted on England a Scottish Chancellor and Scottish Prime Minister who between them have ruined a perfectly good economy and run up debts you English will be paying back for 100 years, then our greedy and stupid bankers bought out your Nat West and the Halifax and promptly bust them, too; requiring an expensive bail-out by another Scottish company, Lloyds TSB which then also needed billions from English taxpayers to avoid going bust."

"Then, if all that were not enough, at a time when the 'war on terror' has enabled the Scots run English Government to take unprecedented levels of invasion into your private lives, take record amounts from you in tax to pay for it and caused the death of nearly 500 soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan we decide to release the highest profile terrorist ever convicted, making British justice a laughing stock."

"I think you could fairly call us the neighbour from hell actually."

What is clear is that the Union is under strain because the English are indeed beginning to resent the privileges and extra benefits their neighbour is granted, especially when the net result is to embarrass and humiliate the whole country.

If Al Megrahi was innocent he should have been freed on appeal, if he was guilty he should not have been freed at all. Any British prisoner found guilty of multiple murder would have been left in prison to die, that was certainly the fate of the Moors Murderers, for example, why should he have special status?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

With all due respect, and that is very little after reading the title, please refrain from assuming that it is not a good time to be Scottish.

I am even more proud to be Scottish after this event and the bandwagon you have all jumped on after it shows you up for what you are, not the Scots for what they are.

The stand and decision that was made by the Scottish government was a truly great one, one that the UK government would not have had the guts to make, no matter which party was in government.

Marcus Wood said...

If you had read my piece properly you would have noticed that the opinion I was sharing was not mine, but that of a very close friend who is a Scot.

You are entitled to be proud of the actions of your Government if you want. I wonder if the next time there is a terrorist outrage in Scotland, you will still feel as proud.

This was a deal done with money and oil in mind. That is not 'great' it is, in my view, pretty shabby.