Friday the 25th of January 2013

I don't often comment on political stuff, other folk (specifically those in the links section) do it with more elan and incisiveness than I ever could. This week however, has contained a bit of howler from the Unionist Better Together crowd.

Usually you need to be a bit of a political anorak to truly understand the unionist v. nationalist argument, what the average person in the street gets in terms of news is strained through a highly biased media which ironically, you need to be a bit of a political anorak to appreciate.

This week however was a wee bit different. For months we've been told by Better Together and a panoply of unionist politicians that the referendum on Scottish Independence introduces an unacceptable level of uncertainty on the subject of EU membership. It has been the main plank of criticism for the independence argument.

So, you don't need to be a political nerd to understand when David Cameron came out with plans for an in/out referendum on EU membership earlier this week; this highlighted a significant (in fact, glaring) double standard by unionist politicians.

For a start, the Indy Ref is happening in the Autumn of 2014, if successful (and I hope we are) no one really knows what will happen with EU membership, if precedent is anything to go by, we'll still be EU citizens (there is no vehicle within the EU to revoke citizenship) so the chances are, while we will have to renegotiate terms of membership; we'd do it from the inside and so for that matter would the remainder of the UK.

While Better Together and the 'No' mob have been extolling (at great length) the years of uncertainty for business our referendum presents, Cameron is talking about having the EU referendum in five years time, an even longer period of time. Their argument is, the UK isn't susceptible to the same forces other countries are, apparently the UK is special.

One other thing which needs to be mentioned; the day Cameron's speech was reported in the press was the same day a 'poll' result was released stating support for independence had sunk to an all time low of 23%. Except it wasn't a poll, it was part of the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey which is an on going exercise where different households are 'scientifically' chosen to answer the same question on a regular basis through-out the year, between 1200 -1500 people take the survey, on its own website, it even claims not to be an opinion poll, political nerds also point out the method by which 23% was arrived at was flawed and as a 'poll' measuring support for independence or any other political settlement, due to the wording of the questions asked, it is seriously flawed. Crucially though, the figure was gleaned from survey responses from the middle of last year, why mention it now instead of back then if its such big news? Oh, hold on...

As usual, it did the job, news papers and current affairs programs on the radio and television had something other than the huge double standard dropped by unionists to report. A double whammy, they got to do down the Nationalist side with some more dodgy figures and bury a unionist turd at the same time.

When things like this go down, I really have no idea how people can still think independence from Westminster is anything other than the obvious choice.

(For what its worth, David Cameron will never have his referendum, when/if Scotland goes it's own way, both countries will have to renegotiate terms. The notion England Wales and Northern Ireland will continue within the EU minus 10% of its GDP, 30% of its land mass and vast swathes of farmland & fisheries is just daft, which coincidentally is what the Unionist side think you are when they're spooning out their nonsense.)