This last few weeks has seen both parties up the ante in a last ditch effort to get the Yes or No votes on Scottish independence. My personal view is that they should stay as part of the union, but the polls last sunday had the yes vote in front for the first time. A big influence is that people can vote from 16 plus the Scottish people who live and work outside of Scotland cannot vote - very clever Mr Salmond. The vote is this coming Thursday.
Many of the big banking and pension institutions that are based in Scotland have said that if there is a Yes vote then they will move their headquarters to London. Another main issue is of currency when the uk govt have told the scots that they will not be able to keep our currency should they decide to leave - I agree with that too.
Seems like Mr salmon wants to have his cake and eat it, to coin a phrase - coin being the important word lol.
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Dear Mr. Liverton ~
I'll tell you one thing: Mr. Salmond better hope he never meets ME, in a dark alley ;-)
From my perspective, as a Scots-Canadian, this referendum is a ridiculous proposition. In terms of both process, and substance.
Regarding process: Why is it that 16-year-olds can vote in the referendum, and new immigrants to Scotland can vote in the referendum, but Scots abroad who are simply expatriates, or who have dual citizenship (and I have several friends in this situation)
CANNOT? If memory serves me correctly, in every U.S. general election, expatriates get mailed ballots, and are able to vote for the next President.
Why shouldn't Scots who've gone abroad - - - and they are some of the most accomplished and successful ones, of all - - - be denied the opportunity, to vote for the FUTURE of their COUNTRY?
Regarding substance: Are you
kidding me??? In this wicked, complex world, to venture the proposition that you will relinquish the reality of being part of a larger, stronger, country, to become a WEAK and WEE and TINY ONE - propped up solely on dwindling oil revenues, with NO national defence, while Russian submarines are prowling in increasing schools off the coast - seems like MADNESS, to me.
National finance, currency, health-care, welfare, and defence - will ALL suffer if Scotland secedes from the Union. Not to mention, there are THOUSANDS of Scots pursuing marvelous careers in English universities, and English companies. Just about every Scotsman, or woman, has family living across the border - should there now be passports, for them to see their loved-ones?
Should Scotland keep the pound sterling, without having any say in the management of the pound sterling - risking becoming a second Panama (which made the U.S. dollar its currency, without having any control over it): subject to inflation or deflation or running out of currency altogether? Should Scotland try to join the Euro, and wind up another Portugal, at the mercy of Mrs. Merkel's monetary policy?
ONCE Scotland has seceded from the U.K., and robbed the U.K. of its only viable nuclear submarine base - jeopardizing the U.K.'s national defence, and its position in NATO, and its seat on the U.N. Security Council. . . and Salmond is clearly on record as wanting to dispense with the Trident deterrent programme. . . how is Scotland going to DEFEND its last bit of remaining oil? How will Scotland DEFEND itself from Russian espionage? Will they scare Mr. Putin's minions away, with BAGPIPES?
And - as imperfect as it is - how will Scotland keep up the NHS, with such a tiny, wee little tax-base, anymore? How will they afford social welfare, and child protection services, and all those things???
Mr. Salmond (and I use the term "Mister", ironically) hasn't been able to answer ANY of these questions. He says, "Oh, it will be a new era of confidence, and optimism." Well, that's a lovely sentiment, but a pretty silly one, too. Because if there is one thing ANY REAL SCOTSMAN should know, it is that you need MONEY, to do ANYTHING. (As you all English lads will all know, the BANK of ENGLAND was founded by a Scotsman, William Paterson - who was an advocate of Union, too.)
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To my mind, this is a horror-show. All of it. And of course MY mind might be clouded by romantic notions - because, in days of yore, it was Scots who were in the vanguard of the Empire, and who were the first to settle countries like Canada, and Australia. Scottish families like mine feel a strong attachment to the U.K., because it was
our means to prosperity and happiness.
But, again, even from a current-day, cold-hearted, practical point of view: Scotland has so much to lose, if it exits the union. As Jeffrey Simpson - another Canadian of Scots descent - said in the
Globe, last week: If Scotland votes for this, it is voting for "a poorer, and less significant future."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/a-separated-scotland-pound-foolish/article20566276/
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Mr. Liverton, the latest polls suggest that the "no" side of the referendum is pulling ahead
slightly, again - after last week's tremor, indicating that the separatists would win.
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/sep/13/alex-salmond-scotland-needs-undecided-voters-poll
Even this is damned outrageous, however. It's scandalous that the fraudulent, kilted, Salmondeers should have gained such traction in this debate - and it SHAMES ME, as someone of Scottish descent, that Scots could actually BELIEVE HIM. It's utterly horrible.
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And, if the Salmondeers WIN, next week, I suppose I will have a BIG DECISION to make. I think I will have to revise my family history, and tell the world that my Mother's family came. . . from
NORWAY.
Sero sed serio
"A", from Kilwinning :-((((((
"The Tartan":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UABathL6QHg
"Amazing Grace" ~ The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8AeV8Jbx6M