The following exchange on McWhirters letter in todays Herald caught my attentions as I browsed todays press.It is a classic example of the utter fuckwittery we are seeing time and again from unionists who when trying to debate Scottish Independece and run out of positive ideas for the Union just resort to "AHH BUT" like schoolboys smoking and bickering behind the bikesheds.

It really has come down to "ah but whose going to cut the grass in an Independent Scotland." That is what these poor sods are left with. You can almost feel sorry for these poor unionists. They know the games up they just cannot find the way to save face and admit it.


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QUESTION: Tony Lewis

What we actually need in Scotland are some clear answers to some very clear questions.

Are we to keep the pound?

Are we to be part of the EU?

How are we to defend our interests abroad?

How are we to defend ourselves?

How do we fund our Health Service?

Do we honour existing benefits such as pensions?

Please add your own list of "things we need to know before the referendum"


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REPLY FROM: Doug Daniel, Aberdeen

Do you mean "things we need to know before the referendum in order to satisfy us enough to vote Yes" or "things we can claim not to know to try and scare other folk into voting No"? Because unless you're asking these questions for constructive purposes, then there's little point in people engaging with you.

"Are we to keep the pound?" The Scottish Government's position is that we will continue with the pound, yes. This has been stated countless times, so to suggest you don't know the answer means you've either not been paying attention, or you're just stirring.

"Are we to be part of the EU?" This isn't even the argument, so read Iain's article again. Even die-hard unionists like Lord McFall refuse to suggest Scotland will not be in the EU. This stooshie is about how we will get there, nothing more.

"How are we to defend our interests abroad?" With foreign policies that are tailored towards Scotland, that's how. In fact, one very good way of defending our interests is in having a direct voice in the EU, rather than having to go through London. The Scottish fishing industry has never been anything more than a pawn for the UK government, and the UK's CAP arrangements are unsuitable for Scottish farmers, who will be better off with Scotland as an independent member of the EU.

"How are we to defend ourselves?" Well, we'll remove that huge target sign from the Clyde that is Trident for a start. From there, we'll have defence policies that fit Scotland. We'll build ships that serve some sort of purpose, rather than wasting billions on unneeded aircraft carriers. We'll have a defence policy that befits a nation with a large coastline. Most importantly, it'll cost significantly less than the amount Westminster currently spends on defence "on our behalf", and it'll go towards Scottish jobs.

"How do we fund our Health Service?" Devolution passed you by, eh?

"Do we honour existing benefits such as pensions?" Obviously. You realise we already pay tax, yeah? So we already pay for these things, it's just we pay it to London rather than Edinburgh.

Simple answers. But as I say, I suspect you're not asking questions to get answers - you're just asking them for the sake of asking questions.
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An excellent and perceptive response from Doug Daniel.

Entertain your man for Christmas. PDBBTW