Talking for Scotland



Margo MacDonald could talk for Scotland that's for sure and made more sense than most politicians, but what would motivate someone to write such a vile note to her husband, Jim Sillars, is beyond me - and good for him in responding in such a robust fashion. 

I've listened to a good deal of the political debate around Scottish independence and it's not unusual to hear people disparaging politicians by questioning their integrity or honesty - in fact it happens at First Minister's Questions in the Scottish Parliament on a regular basis, and it's a quite different thing to voicing a political disagreement or good natured heckling.
  
Another unpleasant tactic I've noticed recently is the organised 'booing' of political opponents in an effort to catch the headlines and portray the other side or even a particular individual as unpopular and out of touch.

Now while politics can be a rough old business there are unwritten rules about fair play, respect and decency and if these are not upheld it gives licence to these pathetic bullies to ply their pathetic trade.

Police probe threats sent to Jim Sillars

Jim Sillars described the threats as 'water off a duck's back'. Picture: Julie Bull

POLICE are investigating after Jim Sillars, husband of the late MSP Margo Macdonald, was the target of sinister threats in Fife.

A handwritten note posted through the door of a Yes Scotland campaign office in Rosyth warned: “Tell Sillars to stay out of West Fife if he values his health.”

The scrawled note went on to say: “Thank f*** Margo the mouth is dead”.

Another message written on a Scottish Government pro-independence leaflet said: “We want you b******* out of Fife. Watch your backs”.

The note on the leaflet was signed “Scots Vets anti-SNP group”.

Mr Sillars described whoever was behind the threat as “nutcases” and said he had “no intention of staying out of any part of Scotland”.

He added: “I never worry about what people say about Margo and me. It’s water off a duck’s back.”

The notes were posted through the door of the Yes campaign office in Admiralty Road in Rosyth on Tuesday evening.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We can confirm we received a complaint and we are in the very early stages of investigating.”



Dog Whistle Politics (23 March 2013)




I've noticed a rather unpleasant trend in political circles these days - a 'dog whistle' invite to party supporters and sympathisers to 'monster' their political rivals at public events.

I heard Johann Lamont - the Scottish Labour leader - try this out last year against Scotland's First Minister - Alex Salmond - by suggesting that the SNP leader couldn't appear in public without getting booed and shouted down.

In fact I wrote about it at the time which was on the day Scotland's proud Olympic champions paraded their medals in Glasgow - accompanied by the First Minister on an open-top bus.

Now I was there and I didn't hear any heckling or boorish behaviour on the day - though that was hardly the point - the point was to create the impression that Alex Salmond inspired a hostile reaction from people on the streets.

I heard the Labour leader - Ed Miliband - say something very similar the other day in the House of Commons during the budget debate.

When he 'warned' the Chancellor (George Osborne) not to go to the FA Cup Final - that is if  Chelsea get through, of course - because of the hostile reception that he would receive from football fans.

Now if that's not a self-fulfilling prophecy - I don't know what is - because it's really all about encouraging people to behave in a particular way - while dressed up as an innocent comment, an observation from the sidelines.

But to my mind it's a 'dog whistle' invitation to your own supporters - to act like yobbos and hooligans whenever political opponents make a public appearance.

Not my cup of tea - thank you very much - more like cynical bullying behaviour by people who are only brave when hidden away amongst a crowd.

Now the reason people behave this way is quite obvious - it's to create a hounded image of a person that denies reason and brooks no debate - yet it strikes me as strange that a Labour politician should actually join in and play this nasty game.

Because Tony Blair who won three successive elections for Labour as party leader - suffers more than most from these self-appointed nutters - who dog his every step in the UK and try to make it impossible for him to appear in public without massive and costly security.

For sure politics is a rough old game at times - but trying to turn politicians into hate figures is a very dangerous game - which can get out of hand all too easily.

As can be seen in Greece and Cyprus, for example, where the German Chancellor - Angela Merkel - is regularly depicted wearing a Nazi uniform and sporting an Adolf  Hitler moustache.


'I Am Not Spartacus' (30 September 2011)



The Times ran an excellent editorial yesterday on a small but significant event at the Labour party conference - the booing of Tony Blair.

The delegates responsible for this foolish and bullying behaviour could only be what they turned out to be - a) mainly men and b) mainly union delegates - 'led' by Unite's general secretary, Len McCluskey.

Now Len McCluskey and his chums would never have dared to be so bold with Tony Blair at the rostrum - because Blair would have responded to their boorish behaviour by telling them all a few home truths.

Now dealing with hecklers is a godsend for most platform speakers - an opportunity to shoot from the hip - and speak with real passion..

Remember Neil Kinnock's famous put-down of  'a Labour council - a Labour council - scuttling around Liverpool serving redundancy notices on its own workers'.

Ah yes, them were the days.

But sadly Ed Miliband missed his chance and all we got to know is that the new Labour leader is definitely not Spartacus. 


The Booing of Blair

"To those unaccustomed to the idiosyncracies of political parties, it would be reasonable to assume that they seek to attrarct the largest possible vote in their favour at a general election. Indeed, when a party is hungry for victory, that is precisely what it will do. It will postpone its arrival into New Jerusalem and settle for the prospect of pwoer in the here and now.

Nothing illustarted more clearly that this is not the mood of the Labour party that the applause that accompanied Ed Miliband's unecessary claim that he was not Tony Blair. It is extraordinary that a section of the audience, from the Unite union, should cheer the new leader's difference from the only Labour politician who has manged to secure two let alone three, successive electoral victories. It was a moment in which an influential part of the official Opposition revealed itself to be fundamentally not serious.

It was a bad moment for Mr Miliband too. It is probable that the moment was the result of very poor speech drafting rather than a deliberate attempt to conjure dissent. It was inept to leave such a pause after the name of Mr Blair when he must know that his party conference is home to some malcontents all too willing to make fools of themselves, and of the party they share, live on national television.

But having got himself into a tangle with some third-rate craftsmanship, Mr Miliband failed to seize the opportunity that appeared. A more instinctive politician would have rounded on the applause. Had Mr Miliband addressed the contingent directly and issued them with a withering put-down, to the effect that a party conference that cannot stomach its own greatest winner is a party conference not worth attending, he would have electrified the other delegates, the overwhelming majority of whom take priode in what they see as Labour's achievements in power.

Instead Mr Miliband grinned in gauche fashion and carried on. While he has made it clear in interviews since that he does not agree with the hecklling, it was obvious that the idiotic rudeness did not anger him."

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