BY ROGER WATSON I was born in rural Scotland where people from the next village, about three miles away, were considered foreigners. The Black gangstas of South London had nothing on our territoriality. In North East Scotland, anyone from a smaller town was referred to as a ‘teuchter’. Thus, people from Aberdeen referred to us as teuchters and we—who lived in Banchory—referred in turn to … Continue reading At Last, I Found the Courage to Come Out!
BY EFFIE DEANS Scottish nationalism depends on the idea that nothing much would change if Scotland left the UK. It would merely involve Scottish MPs ceasing to sit on green benches in Westminster, instead of which they would go to Holyrood. Instead of being First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon would be Prime Minster, perhaps President or even Tsarina of all the Scotlands. We would no longer … Continue reading Leaving Шотландия (Scotland) Defenceless
BY EFFIE DEANS I used to write something on the anniversary of the independence referendum as a sort of parody of Scott’s “Waverley; or, ‘tis sixty years since”. Indyref; or, ‘tis seven years since. The idea was to compare grieving Jacobites toasting their lost cause and their king oer the water with the Scottish nationalists celebrating the fact that they got 45 (actually 44.7) and … Continue reading Tis Seven Years Since
BY EFFIE DEANS The other day I wrote about my experience on a trip to the Highlands. I didn’t expect it to be particularly popular article, after all Gaelic is a minority language spoken on a daily basis by about eleven thousand people mostly in the Outer Hebrides. But suddenly my timeline was filled with raging Scottish Nationalists. Not one of them addressed the substantive … Continue reading Losing Our Way Part II
CSM EDITORIAL Brexiteers have no monopoly on Britishness. On paper Brexiteers are as British as Continuity Remain – they simply lack the same sense of loyalty to the EU that continuity remainers claim to have. The “Britishness” battle that goes on every day on social media is a dumb one – one that is best avoided in the interests of people just getting on. Similarly, … Continue reading Please, No Poppy Fights in 2019
CSM EDITORIAL Jean Claude Juncker, in an interview with CNN, slammed those he described as ‘stupid nationalists in love with their own countries’ in the run up to the European elections. It is hugely ironic that one of the men responsible for the anti-democratic European Union should be attacking those who take issue with the way the EU is run in this way. What is … Continue reading Nationalism is the New Democracy
