FEAR WILL COST US DEAR

THE ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL IMPACT OF FEAR

I am afraid the economy is heading off a cliff. The catalyst for this looming disaster is the huge hike in energy, fuel and food prices which are sufficiently serious enough to pull many middle class families either into, or close to, the poverty trap. For the many already in that trap these are increasingly desperate times.

I am not sure how long this will take to show up in statistical analysis but I can say with certainty it is happening now. We can argue about why this is happening and there is no doubt some of the reasons are truly global, but what is equally true is that the appalling, idiotic behaviour of Westminster has played a dominant role as well.

Folk are scared about rising inflation. As someone who got married in the late seventies and lived through crises like the three day week, in the industrial mayhem of the seventies and early eighties I believe they are right to be fearful. Inflation is a very destructive and disrupting factor, many younger readers will know nothing of just how damaging rampant inflation is. You are about to find out! We are already seeing the first stirrings of industrial unrest and in my opinion this can only grow as breadwinners NEED their wages to keep up just to put food on the table and heat in their homes. Those on fixed incomes are in a dreadful position, facing the certainty that their income will not keep up with prices AND any pension or savings they have will devalue daily as growing inflation runs rampant.

Brexit could not have happened at a worse time, despite the UK media working overtime to avoid the topic it has caused tens of billions to be lost to the UK economy, has caused significant disruption across virtually every aspect of business and has led to labour shortages in many key industries. 

The politics are no better. Despite all these mistakes by the Tory Government, the obvious mismanagement and self serving policies, many designed to enrich and reward their supporters, and themselves later down the road, there is no sign of any great upsurge in support for Labour, or indeed in Scotland, any big rise in support for Independence.

The reason for this is because neither Labour or the SNP currently offer a credible alternative narrative to the Tories. The media continue to hide the true impact of Brexit, no doubt because many in the media backed Brexit and are reluctant to admit they sold their readers a pup. 

The SNP on the other hand have chosen to keep Independence out the frontline choosing to concentrate on issues like GRA and Hate Crime legislation. Add in the super controversial sex survey for children that is backed by the Education Minister Shirley Anne Shambles and you have the perfect agenda to divide the Yes Movement while alienating women, parents and grandparents from any thoughts of Independence. Added to that the sheer incompetence of the ferry debacle, train disputes and growing wage pressures from the rest of the public sector in Scotland we had better all be hoping that Nicola is not serious about any referendum in 2023…because if she is she is setting us up for failure. A final coup de grace that will postpone Independence for decades. Any thoughts of demonstrating how an Independent Scottish Government could be much superior to Westminster has been destroyed by the incompetence being shown at Holyrood in recent times. A travesty when so much great work had been accomplished by previous SNP Governments! That is what happens when the FM appoints her pals rather than those with more ability than just nodding their heads when told to do so.

To win Independence people need to be confident about the future. The SNP suffered from the mid 1970’s onwards until the nineties because the UK was in the economic doldrums, hampered by widespread industrial unrest, factory closures and rampant inflation. The more confident people became the higher the SNP vote. Voters can be visionary when they have money in their pocket and future confidence is high. Empty pockets and low confidence is not a recipe for IndyRef success!

Another big danger is that Labour finally gets its act together and starts selling the tale that what voters need, and what can be delivered relatively quickly, is a Labour Government. If that gains any traction in England it will spread to Scotland, perhaps at a lower rate, but it would not take a lot to threaten a lot of SNP seats. What a tragedy it would be if the many years of SNP dominance only resulted in jobs and pensions for those elected instead of achieving the Independence of our nation?. Yet that is increasingly a possibility.

Tactically they have been hopelessly inept. No work has been done to build the case for Independence. Nothing on pensions, nothing on currency, nothing on Europe, nothing on EFTA. Just a litany of inaction and spurious woke inspired policy priorities. The SNP  has been performing as the Stonewall Nutters Party for the last few years. It is their priorities, not Scotland’s that have been the driving force.

The problem we have now is that big problems like inflation and the cost of living crisis have emerged and are at the top of the electorate’s priorities BUT these are issues that are outwith the competence and powers of the Scottish Government. We can provide no answers and are therefore at the mercy of a Tory Chancellor who has no interest in helping Scotland free ourself from his clutches. It is the perfect example of the lost opportunity by thinking your options improve the longer you wait. The SNP have spurned opportunity after golden opportunity and now find events happening all around them that weakens and exposes the full cost of those wasted years.

I forecast a period of growing uncertainty and unrest. Real panic spreading as people  find it impossible to feed their kids or heat their homes this winter. As foodbanks run out of food. I think in England there will be widespread riots. In Scotland I just don’t know. What will apathetic Scots do? Will they finally wake up to how they are being screwed every day? How their assets are taken away for pennies and sold back to us at extortionate rates? How we are being intentionally cut off from the rest of the World with our only access being through an unwanted middle man working the control centre in England and taking an ever increasingly bigger cut?

There seems little point in hoping unless they first recognise they need a much better leader than our current FM to lead the fight. That we need fighting leaders not snowflakes who have lost total touch with the plight and challenges so many people now face to just carry out the basics of raising their families. It is not a selfie leader we need but a selfless one!

I tell you this, they better catch on quick because when it all kicks off up here it will not be the Westminster crowd in London that will be their target it will be those up here in Holyrood who promised them “we will not sit here and allow Scotland to be dragged out the EU against our will”, who promised to defend Scotland as a priority, who have lived off promising so much and delivering hee haw! 

Difficult times ahead for the cult. If you got the feeling that I was angry when I wrote this….then you would be right!

I am, as always

Yours for Scotland.

BEAT THE CENSORS

Sadly some websites that claim to be pro Indy have turned out to be only Pro SNP sites and have sought to ban any websites that dare to question SNP Policy or tactics. They seek to avoid the public being aware that alternatives to waiting for Westminster to “grant” Scotland a Section 30 to hold a referendum exist. Issues like the flawed franchise, the Claim of Right route, the work of the SSRG and Salvo fill them with dread. As this blog promotes all routes, including alternatives I am banned from these sites and am therefore very grateful to my readers, who knowing about these efforts to ban and suppress go out of their way to subscribe and to share my articles far and wide. It is a good thing that attempts to restrict free speech and censor are defeated in this way.

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