Everything bad that has dropped into Scotland is of course the responsibility of Westminster, whilst everything that is good is conveniently ignored, well that's the preferred option of the separatist agenda in Scotland, a similar programme of attrition is a constant state in Wales, our First Minister must cry into his cocoa at night trying to juggle his loyalty to both the Welsh Assembly and Westminster, because for sure, Westminster has been at the birthing of many good attempts to level society. The scorn Hassan throws at Westminster is equal to the scorn thrown by those opposed to separation, and the upshot is, both campaigns are in fact negative despite attempts by the SNP to project a brave new world that would surely follow separation.
There should be no doubt that Scotland could separate, and, from day one, function as a new state; at a domestic level pensions would be paid, people would continue to work and pay taxes, oil revenue would underpin a proportion of government spending, just as it does today.
Internationally there is no certainty, no guarantee the early entry to the EU would happen, no automatic invitation to join NATO, in fact it is only politicians that wish to belong to such clubs, for sure, they are political clubs for political animals, the reality is it wouldn't matter, not on day one, not for many years, so discourse on international matters are blue smoke and mirrors, to what end only the SNP and the separatist agenda understands.
So if everything functions domestically, what will change for the little people, the people with little influence except maybe on polling day ?
Alex Salmond speaks of taking decisions for Scotland in Scotland by people who only consider Scottish issues (international and domestic), a clever tack for a stumbling campaign, but will the outcomes be any different.
Nothing will change, real decisions will be taken by people beyond the reach of Holyrood; do the cogs of Holyrood know exactly who the decision makers effecting Scotland are? When Scotland votes next year, many people will hope for a "yes" result, myself included, because a "no" vote will be nothing but a postponement for a future separation.
In the grand scheme of things ...
Two individuals may both believe that many of those around them are poor and deserve help, but this knowledge may lead only one of them to decide to actually help the poor (Kierkegaard).... in the world today politics has created the "deserving poor" and the "undeserving poor", next September nothing will change, except a yes vote will empower Scottish politicians to decide who are deserving poor (or otherwise) in Scotland.
Actually there is more certainty about the international obligations of a Yes vote than there is of domestic arrangements.
ReplyDeleteIf Scotland votes for independence "what happens next" with regard to international obligations is set in stone in the "Vienna Convention on Succession of States in respect of Treaties".
The "Vienna Convention" contains bad news for both sides, which is why both sides continue to ignore it and talk rubbish about the international obligations of independence.
A couple of years ago the SNP Scottish Parliamentary party split on the issue of NATO membership, the SNP doesn't like NATO but knows that under Vienna it has to negotiate its way OUT of NATO rather than in, and it will be easier to negotiating getting rid of nuclear weapons from within NATO than without and NATO won't let Scotland go without Nuclear certainty.
When the UK joined the EEC, changes were made to the Acts of Union, which make no doubt that Scotland will be a successor State to the EU and that England (and Wales) will be a successor state, but it leaves the north of Ireland in the lurch. Neither side wants to bring the Irish Question into the debate, but it remains the intangible issue not covered by international law in the independence debate!
Domestically what happens to the nationalist vote when nationalism is no longer needed after a Yes vote for independence, is a bigger intangible. If Scotland votes YES which party will negotiate the separation agreement? It may well NOT be the SNP!