Disappointed by the Scottish Independence debate?

By | November 9, 2013

Am I disappointed by that? Well, yes & no. Should Scotland revert back to its status before 1707? Not really, because Europe is a much stronger force, much more unified, and much more cohesive part of our lives. A democratic and independent Scotland within the Eurozone (inc. Euros) would probably be how many Scots see their society. The Anglo-American vision of capitalism is somewhat at odds with Scottish views on society, and individual roles in society.

Unfortunately, the Conservative party has ignored those views to the detriment of its own internal debate, and pushed our debate to be sidelines of their national body. The accident of Thatcherism meant that for the Tory party, Scotland became an exclusionist zone; and oddly, helped to foment the independence debate within Scotland by allowing first the Labour party, then the SNP to play local roles of government and opposition, while largely staying silent or muttering under its breath about things it thought were important. They lost Scotland’s heart, then they lost its mind, then they finally realized that they might lose Scotland entirely.

Having chatted to some N. English friends, I see that any possible independence on Scotland’s soil, would lead to a major political realignment in England & Wales. The Labour party would become unelectable, the Tory party would face increased infighting with the UKIP and other local voices; and the Lib-Dems would increase their appeal to traditional labour party supporters. Our parliamentary lives and political views would diverge even further, too.