RE: Leaving oil and gas in the ground was always a pipe dream23 Jun 2025 11:06
It's an interesting question Ron.
Traditionally, Scotland is a conservative country. My ancestors - German (Prussian), Yorkshire and Flemmish fitted into this well and I was always brought up with living within your means, savings/investing, not prying into other people's business, not talking politics or personal finance and the strength of family.
The initial billing of Scottish independence was billed on fiscal prudence, looking after people, developing the country, increasing investment etc. Salmond made this points and was quite sensible in a few ways - lack of detail in plans and possible deviancy notwithstanding.
The nu-SNP are the complete opposite. I don't really understand what they are supposed to be now, other than "Frreeeeeedumb", we'll tweak whatever Westminster does for the sake of it and operating like a unit that the KGB would have been envious of. They have shut down their independence unit, have a record of complete incompetence in government and harbour more distasteful individuals than the BNP.
Having seen one kid through school and another in the system, I think little of the values mentioned above remain. The general "curriculum for excellence" is *basically* sound, but the overlaid political and ideological spin on everything is absurd. The sexual questionnaires they sent out to secondary and then primary kids (though LBGT Youth Scotland reveal a wholly unsavoury obsession with children and their sexual proclivities, which of course, children shouldn't have, at least not until they are teens and certainly it is no business of the state. Then we have the amount of time spent by the Scotgov on the trans nonsense. Absolutely criminal. Not to mention that this overarches a lot of other organisations and the fact that organisations who are less than positive about the Scotgov are usually less likely to receive funding.
I clashed with a couple of our elder children's teachers regarding their overt politicisation of lessons, even having loads of single political emblems in their classroom - you can guess which party. The kids have been effectively growing up with "SNP good, others bad" messaging, specifically with some teachers who wholly aid and abet in this.
That's why the SNP want 16 year olds to be voting too, they are captured through the education system, through other activities whose parent orgs are very much pro SNP/Scotgov and the like.
I think in a generation, Scots (to an extent) have become financially illiterate, devoid of common sense, talk about nothing other than pish and politics and think Scotland is a special and magical rose garden. The Government add nothing of value and seem hellbent on bankruptcy just to spite Westminster. I have no idea what else we are trying to achieve.
It's clear to anyone with half a brain that an independent Scotland would now be probably worse than the classic "Skintland" economist article
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