The referendum result is the loss of a chance to dispute the hegemony of the neo-con corporate elite in the international world. My heart is still bursting with pride that 45% of Scots – a people devoid of political autonomy for three hundred years – had the nerve, intellect and will to see through the avalanche of propaganda from the entire mainstream media, political establishment, banking sector and corporate world. I met numerous voters who had received letters from their employers – including Diageo, BP, RNS and many others – telling them to vote No or their job was in danger. I met the old lady in Dundee who was told by the Labour Party that independent Scotland would flood the country with immigrants, and a Romanian building worker in Edinburgh who had been told by the Labour Party that Independent Scotland would deport all East Europeans.
Yesterday the Daily Telegraph, Daily Express and Daily Mirror in Scotland all had precisely the same full page photo on their front cover – not a startling news snap, but an arty concoction of male silhouettes and union and Scottish flags. The Mirror had photoshopped it to remove the blue from the union jack, but it was the same distinctive photo. There could be no more stark example of the fake diversity of the mainstream media.
Just as the Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem parties have been startlingly shown up as precisely the same creatures of corporate masters offering no policy differences whatsoever, merely a false tribalism. As they partied together at Better Together last night – the only party in the whole of Scotland, at which everybody present lives very, very well at taxpayers’ expense – it was impossible to tell which brand of Tory was which.
Keeping the popular momentum going, keeping all those wonderful people I met and spoke to engaged in trying to engineer a different society, is going to be a hard struggle. But we always knew that. The goal of independence must remain as a powerful unifying factor.
Through media onslaught people were convinced that a No vote was a vote for Devo Max. Actually after a fortnight of pontificating it will fall off the news agenda of the mainstream. Nothing significant will happen. The Westminster view is that we can have any powers we want at our glorified council in Scotland as long as we still don’t get the revenue from oil or whisky – and still provide cannon fodder for neo-con wars abroad, house Trident and are subject to draconian Westminster imposed attacks on civil liberties.
Anyway the dress rehearsal is over. At the next referendum – which is only five years away, after the UK has voted to leave the EU – we will not be putting forward Salmond’s Independence Lite, (I am not criticising, he carried it superhumanly far). We will be proposing a fully independent Scottish Republic, out of NATO, with its own currency, sweeping land reform to give Scotland’s land back to its people, nationalisation of railways and public utilities, a genuine minimum wage you can live on, a humane benefits system and strict regulation and controls on banks and bankers.
I am eating an excellent lunch and looking forward to it.
(And green energy!)
Imagine the result had there been a level playing field.
A la Québécoise – keep them voting until they give you the right answer
NSA feeds intel to Israel with prejudice.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/17/opinion/israels-nsa-scandal.html?_r=0
Great spirit but next time plug the holes where the spooks can manipulate i.e. run exit polls and have the postal votes counted separately
Holocaust survivors want to boycott Israel.
http://ijsn.net/gaza/survivors-and-descendants-letter/
Shouldn’t that be ‘different society’ in para 4?
Also very disappointed at the result.
The UK will not leave the EU – the referendum game plan has been laid bare.
Fear, uncertainty and doubt. The corporate owners of the big three parties will do their bit: multi-national businesses will threaten you with unemployment, too-big-to-fail banks will threaten to make you penniless and giant pension corps will threaten to turn your future retirement claims to dust.
Meanwhile as the population is distracted by another referendum kabuki, TTIP will be sneaked in through the back-door, with barely a whimper from Parliament and the ignorance of the majority of the citizens.
The last shred of national sovereignty will be surrendered to closed-door tribunals run by corporate lawyers.
Oh, “genine” should be “genuine” in the penultimate paragraph.
I will join you there pal, sick and tired of being lied to! I was looking for a reasoned, intelligent alternative from the No side about 6 months ago. All I got was project fear, scaremongering, falsehoods, exaggerations and sneering patronising, “too weak, too poor stupid” homilies. Well, the old woman next door may believe this hogwash, but I certainly won’t swallow it! And please drop the sentimental blackmail, the war, the family connections blah blah.
I was always looking for a devo-max compromise and a fair debate but I was amazed at how strongly the establishment closed ranks, of course the BBC but also newspapers I thought were more open e.g. Guardian and the Ipaper. Only the Sunday Herald was for Yes, disgraceful in a so-called modern democracy.
Well I have researched enough, the UK is a mask for a moribund English empire, desperately hanging on to its Celtic brothers and enslaved to the corrupt corporate elite. I am disgusted at how they chew-up someone like Andy Murray, substitute hero to Middle England then a traitor for reminding them he has a mind of his own. This treatment reminds me of Negros in America trying to be “whitey”. I do not want to be part of a mass assimilation process where we all watch Eastenders and support the GB team! Please spare me this brainwashing, no more, yes, I am tired and guttted but I am not going to let this energy be wasted.
And frankly we owe it to the next generation of young, the older generation should not let them down ever again.
“The referendum result is the loss of a chance to dispute the hegemony of the neo-con corporate elite in the international world”
Doubt it somehow. An “independent” Scotland without its own currency would never had had the power to do anything of the sort. They’d have eaten you alive.
“Anyway the dress rehearsal is over. At the next referendum – which is only five years away, after the UK has voted to leave the EU – we will not be putting forward Salmond’s Independence Lite, (I am not criticising, he carried it superhumanly far). We will be proposing a fully independent Scottish Republic, out of NATO, with its own currency, sweeping land reform to give Scotland’s land back to its people, nationalisation of railways and public utilities, a genine minimum wage you can live on, a humane benefits system and strict regulation and controls on banks and bankers.”
That’s the spirit. Can you nationalise the banks and regulate them too please?
Sorry it did not work this time, Mr Murray.
It seems it all failed on economics. State propaganda picked economic side weaknesses of the SNP campaign and made Scots believe that their pockets will suffer at SNP expense. The greatest economist might have been Scotsman, but it seems most of his countrymen could be easily brainwashed on this subject.
On a separate note: I am afraid that Scotland you pictured above is one of those Utopia lands, like Lenin’s Soviet Republic or Mao’s China. Real Scottish Republic most likely be little different from current Scotland, only more powers/money in local hands. This is however; not the reason to scrap independence campaign.
Sorry I see you included that.
Hi Craig,
You owe me a hundred quid.
Cheers.
John; I get the ‘nationalize banks’ snark. What of this so-called ‘devolution’? Is this a back door for incremental independence, or just another sham designed to keep everything the same?
One would think the naysayers and the trolls would shut up having got the result they were seeking.
I left this comment on the previous thread.
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2014/09/31381/comment-page-2/#comment-481029
Glad anyway that Craig is sounding positive and optimistic. Best wishes.
And one of Lenin’s Utopian ideas have already been added here:
“Can you nationalise the banks and regulate them too please?”
I see many Scotsmen keeping their money in nationalised banks, run by incompetent economics graduates (who else will work on nationalised bank salary?). The whole essence of banking is making profit, and this is not something that nationalised enterprises are good at (proven by history).
I am not suggesting that current banks and their management are good, but poorly run banks must be allowed to go under. The problem is under-regulation and willingness of corrupt government to support failing baking system with public money. None of this is going to be solved by nationalisation.
The “yes” campaign fought a noble battle, but now we must set aside our disagreements. This is the best deal for Britain as a whole, and Scotland will come out of it ahead too. All in all, it is not a loss. Bad luck, but a very good try, to the “yes” campaign.
A shocking report in today’s Independent, page 6. Reports of intimidation, death threats, verbal and physical abuse, vandalism, people being spat at, and much more from the Yes camp in the run up to last night’s vote. You always knew from their ugly, scowling faces that they were a nasty bunch, intent on intimidation and disruption. Aggressive, humourless, bitter individuals, seething with hatred, like many of today’s radical left. I fully expect them to start reprisals over the next few days.
I am not suggesting that current banks and their management are good, but poorly run banks must be allowed to go under. The problem is under-regulation and willingness of corrupt government to support failing baking system with public money. None of this is going to be solved by nationalisation.
Just so. “can you supply big sticks as well as the existing giant carrots, to ensure that the banks don’t run amok?” would perhaps have been a better question.
As it implies, nationalizing some banks is like having two health-care systems; one for the wealthy and one for the rest. You have to do it across the board to keep the system healthy. Otherwise, the brain-drain and salary incentives to jump ship ruins the pudding.
Anon:
Link please. Maybe it was a letter from Fred?
While you’re finding it, some more articles from today’s Independent:
http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/scottish-referendum-the-people-of-my-country-have-brought-a-catastrophe-upon-themselves-by-voting-no-9743655.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/scottish-independence-referendum-piers-morgan-finally-honours-promise–to-leave-the-uk-now-scotland-has-voted-no-9743545.html
(the bright side of a No vote)
…and the pink condom promises the earth to Engerland.. For lulz.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/scottish-referendum-results-david-cameron-set-to-unveil-major-devolution-of-powers-to-england-9742679.html
This show of bravado from Craig is hilarious. He now wishes to portray the referendum as a “dress rehearsal”. In almost every blog he has written over the past few months he has confidently predicted a Yes victory, boasted and even gloated about it. He was completely wrong.
It’s over, Craig, for as long as you or I are alive.
so when does northern ireland have its referendum?
Komodo, it’s in the paper version (page 6, doh!).
“The referendum result is the loss of a chance to dispute the hegemony of the neo-con corporate elite in the international world.”
I thought last night would have been a sufficient reality check, but evidently not.
Not enough Scottish people are interested in your bleating self-pity.
I suppose it’s our fault that we aren’t worthy of your lofty ideals.
NEXT TIME
THE VOTE _WAS_ RIGGED
Don’t believe for a nano-second that the vote was not rigged. It was. Whether by a lying, conniving Muppet Stream Media (MSM), or by tampered-with postal votes, the result was not free or fair.
Based on visible Yes support on the ground – and an utter dirth of No support – a massive Yes vote was forecast.
Internet analytics also forecast a massive Yes win. Were they both wrong? Unlikely. _Very_ unlikely.
SO. How was the result fixed?
What did the exit polls (official or unofficial) forecast? Did the supposed vote count match them within the bounds of probability.
How did invigilators see the postal ballots change the direction of the count on a local level?
What does analysis say about how the vote could have been easily fixed, by manipulating the postal vote – which is the usual Labour technique in the North of England. Why would anyone imagine that Perfidious Albion would not use that technique on an infinitely more important vote than a general election.
Why did the Muppet Stream Media – and the bookies and financial market – appear to know that the result was going to be No _before_ the vote count.
Why was social media saturated with sock-puppets either crowing about a No result, or suggesting that they were depressed by a No outcome and/or hated their fellow Scots – ‘too stupid, too poor, too fearful’ – _before_ the vote count was done? Just how much social media manipulation was in evidence during the vote count? (Estimate – Lots and LOTS.)
SO. Do not believe for a nano-second that the fix was not in. And act accordingly.
Certainly not until the analysis of the vote has been thoroughly completed to the satisfaction of the Yes side.
You were up against fascists – UK catamites of a fascist US Empire that uses the methods of the Nazis, including illegal war, torture to death, genocide and the disappearance of 27,000 Muslims – on brown people abroad. Stealing an election is in the nicking sweets category for such people.
NEXT TIME
A temporary set-back is to be expected. The question is next time and how to avoid the same tricks next time, or the time after that, if that is what it takes. See you on social media.
Furthermore, how can you chuck a (very large) spanner in the works of the UK satraps of the US Empire? The UK’s very own Quislings – Tory, Labour, Liberal Democrat and UKIP?
‘A donf!’ – ‘Let’s go!’ – Ellen Macarthur
PS.
Strangely enough the article ‘The Country that Wasn’t’ at Wings Over Scotland appeared for a minute but disappeared on refresh. Funny how that works, eh? You are familiar with Snowden’s internet-fixing information aren’t you? Whether or not that was a case in point, many many others certainly are.
It would be good if someone could look into incidents in the last two or three weeks, where pensioners who collect their pensions using post office card accounts, found that their cards and/or their pin numbers did not work and they had to have new ones issued, taking up to a week and a half more, many just receiving operative pin numbers by post early this week, and many had to borrow or go without and were in acute fear. Having heard of someone to whom this happened, I thought it was just a fluke, but now have heard others had the same problems at the same time. Not only was there a media-trumpeted threat to their pensions, there was an actual interruption.
Ruth 19 Sep, 2014 – 2:50 pm You have hit it on the head. Next time VIDEOED exit polls, streamed so they can’t be confiscated. Teams in several cars ( harder for the Rozzers to intercept multiple cars) following the boxes as they are moved from polling booths to counting halls. Plans on how to confront/deal with what to do if the “old-fire-alarm-at-the-counting-hall” trick is deployed. Multiple Video recorders at EVERY counting table. Postal ballots to be opened and counted separately and perhaps even before the main count is done. It has to be made so difficult that the risks of being caught out are too great for effective fraud to be rolled out. No doubt they will try to draft laws that will make the job harder for you guys – these must also be challenged as to their veracity.
I’m sorry that it didn’t go the way most wanted – but chins up . . . . 5 years isn’t that far away. And what this has done is to expose to the world (to anyone awake enough to see it) the machinations of the PTB, and how they are all just subsets of a bigger whole that sure ain’t got the man-in-the-street’s interests at heart