Posted on 06/15/2022 8:50:24 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
“They may take away our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom!”
– A fake quote from the movie Braveheart
Of course, the fake William Wallace (as played by Mel Gibson) turned out to be incorrect. The Scots were at war with their neighbors on and off ever since Scotland emerged as an independent kingdom up until 1707 when it became part of the United Kingdom. But is that going to change in the near future? Rather than having a wildman on a horse with blue paint on his face riding in to lead his people to independence, we have Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. The rather slight, 5’4″ leader of the Scottish National Party may not be a master of swinging a longsword from horseback (or maybe she is for all I know) but she has a plan. She is now pushing for a new vote on Scottish independence, seeking to lead her people out of the United Kingdom and into independent rule. The challenge before her is the fact that they’ve tried this before (most recently in 2014) and failed. But perhaps the post-Brexit world will prove more fertile for such an idea. (Associated Press)
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is starting her campaign for a second independence referendum on Tuesday, arguing that Scotland would be economically better off outside the United Kingdom.
Sturgeon, who leads the Scottish National Party as well as the devolved government in Scotland, says she will release the first in a series of papers laying out the case for independence.
Scotland rejected independence in a 2014 referendum, with 55% of voters saying they wanted to remain part of the United Kingdom. The U.K.-wide government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson opposes a new vote on independence, saying the issue was settled in that vote.
Sturgeon is confident that the loss in 2014 won’t be a factor in the next attempt and the reason for that is Brexit. She notes that the majority of Scottish voters opposed Brexit and if they had known nine years ago what they know now about the course Great Britian would take, they would have voted for independence at that time. Now that they are no longer in the EU, she feels the Scots will be far more willing to split off.
This would seem to imply that if a Scottish independence bid succeeds, they would likely apply to rejoin the EU as an independent entity, and perhaps NATO as well. I doubt that either organization would object to seeing Scotland join since the EU is still smarting a bit over the whole Brexit thing and the EU needs all of the economic partners it can get.
None of this may matter in the end. After the news had been given time to sink in, others began to step forward raising questions about Sturgeon’s plans. One of her own allies questioned how she would pull this off if British Prime Minister Boris Johnson refused to transfer the required authority for a new referendum. (Johnson has already indicated that he would not support such a plan at this time.) And then one of the leaders in the House of Commons pronounced that there shouldn’t be a referendum until 25 years had passed after the last one.
Yet Ms. Sturgeon’s former mentor Alex Salmond challenged her to spell out how she intends to achieve Scottish independence if Boris Johnson refuses to transfer the necessary legal powers for a referendum.
Mark Spencer, the Commons Leader, today suggested a second referendum should not take place until 25 years after the first vote.
Meanwhile, sterling slumped to its lowest level against the dollar since March 2020 as Ms Sturgeon’s renewed independence threats compounded recession fears.
Assuming that BoJo and the Parliament in London would just go along with and making such an announcement might have been a poor strategy. The 2014 referendum had to be approved in England, as would the next one, assuming it happens. If the leaders in Parliament want to draw the line in the sand at 25 years, that would put off the next attempt until almost 2040, assuming the world still exists by then as we know it today.
Of course, if everyone in London stands against her and the people of Scotland rally to her cause, Sturgeon might still have another option. But she’s going to need a horse and some practice with a longsword. She might also want to trade in her current preferred brand of blush for something a little more blue.
I don’t really care one way or another if they stay or go, but the whole “keep voting till we get the result we want” thing must be pretty grating to the non-Scottish part of the UK. Stay or go, but just pick one and stick with it.
I favor it. Scotland is much more leftist than England and separation would give rise to a more conservative remainder
If they go for it, they’ll see how long it takes for the EU to trample their rights like Edward Longshanks in his prime. As a part of the UK the Scots retain their own legal system and much other independence. Brussels won’t be so lenient, nor generous with subsidies.
Because the movers-and-shakers stand to lose more than they gain from independence but they don't want to be seen with blood on their hands.
Their Scottish Ancestors must be rolling over in their graves at a rate fast enough to generate a significant electrical current at this pathetic generation. The current generation of Scots has become a population of _ussies and gov’t welfare parasites.
They are Parasites. They wish to be peons in the EU so they can take advantage of the welfare programs the EU provides. They have descended as far from their ancestors as have the people of New England have departed from the Patriots that gave the USA her Independence,
Scotland wants freedom from England, so it can become an inconsequential member of the completely undemocratic and bureaucratic borg in Brussels.
Ha! They will take their own freedom. They have become wusseified..
It’ll also give the EU a beachhead on the island of Britain.
Not that England is all that much conservative these days.
Then you don’t understand what the EU is about.
It appears Scotland needs to be slapped down from time to time. It would be grossly insignificant if it became independent. I am aware of the North Sea oil, but it would undergo endless negotiation and revenue would be shared. Can you imagine Scottish foreign policy? Hysterical or sad as the case may be - like a SNL skit.
Unification with England allowed Scotland to become the country it is today. Now maybe it’s time to go - the Scots I know pretty much despise the English.
What you’re witnessing is the result of leftist brainwash.
Take note of the name “Scottish National Party”, which self-describes as a social democratic party. National socialism. It dates back to the 1930s, and held factions that were explicitly pro-Nazi.
At this point most folks in England will be happy to say, “Bye!”
Won’t be many Scots left in Scotland fairly soon.
As someone who supports the idea of secession....that government derives its legitimacy from the consent of the governed and if the people in a state or region no longer consent to be ruled by a national government they should have the right to leave in peace......Scotland was given the choice.
They had a vote. They chose to stay. Don’t give me any of this secession talk for at least a generation or so. Britons voted to join the EEC in the mid 70s and had to wait 40 years before they were given a choice as to whether or not to stay in the EU which was very different from the EEC. The Scots need to wait a lot longer than 5 years between independence referendums.
Some Scots want leave the UK. The English people want the Scots to leave. The EU doesn’t want Scotland as its a monetary sinkhole. The UK subsidises each Scot to the tune of £2,800. Free university and a plethora of benefits that the English don’t have but pay for, for the Scots. As usual it is the politicians who want to play empire builders. The avergage Englishman would dump the Scots, throw the Welsh out, and tell the Northern Irish to Piss-off back to Ireland. The English would be much beeter off for it.
More than a few Englishmen would be perfectly happy to see Scotland go. England is a net donor and Scotland a net recipient.
Also totally unfairly, Scottish members of parliament get to vote on matters that effect only England but English members of parliament do not get to vote on matters that effect only Scotland. I can see how this would piss English people off. I would be if I were in their shoes.
New Englanders were always Puritan scum. They still are. That’s what the Wokeratti are - NeoPuritans.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.