On Wilson's witterings

So even Gordon Wilson, SNP leader from 1979 to 1990, thinks Wee Eck has bottled it over his referendum. Writing in today's Sunday Mail, he says "As yet, Alex Salmond and the Scottish Government have not agreed a second question on the ballot paper. There is only one reason why they would do so – defeatism, stemming from a belief that they can’t deliver a Yes vote." Yet another senior nationalist pooh-poohs the Second Question. Are there any left (apart from El Presidente of course) who haven't?

However it is interesting to note what this grandee of the SNP has to say today in favour of separation:

The “Great British” hullabaloo over the Jubilee and the Olympics will ebb to disclose the real picture of Britain today – in decline, riddled with corruption and scandal over MPs’ expenses, phone hacking, out-of-control banks and failure to reform the House of Lords.

So corruption and scandal are exclusive to British politics? I think the Irish would give us a good run for our money there. Phone hacking? How would Scottish separation stop that? Out-of-control banks? Just like the ones in Ireland or Iceland, for instance? Failure to reform the House of Lords? Is that really the worst of our problems?

He goes on:

This will go on till the end of time if Scotland votes No. Of course, southern England votes in Conservative governments.

Ahah, an excellent example of the SNP's Thousand-Year Tory Reich bogeyman. Perhaps Mr Wilson needs to be reminded that, regardless of the political leanings of southern England, a Conservative government wasn't voted in in 1997, 2001 or 2005. Strictly speaking, it didn't happen in 2010 either, or else they wouldn't have had to resort to a LibDem coalition.

But is it not odd that Scottish Labour support a Britain dominated by Home Counties Tories?

No, of course they support a Britain dominated by Labour, something they have the chance to achieve every 4 or 5 years. And of course, without Scottish Labour MPs at Westminster, being able to do that becomes much harder. So not odd at all really.

Thirty years ago, Scotland voted Yes in the first devolution referendum and got nothing. None of the fancy promises were kept.

Actually, only 32.9% of the electorate of Scotland voted yes. And the second time around, 44.9% voted yes, and I believe they got a brand new, shiny, no-expenses-spared Scottish Parliament as a result.

Sounds like Mr Wilson is playing the same old broken record. Time for a remix surely?