I HAVE always hated the term “cultural cringe” because I felt it was inadequate in describing a Scottish state of mind. It has a tinge of inferiority and apology when most Scots are fiercely proud of being Scottish. It seemed to me to be a construct from the “chattering classes”.

It was therefore a great delight to read the series of pieces from Professor Alf Baird from his book Doun-hauden. If readers have not followed the articles “Determinants of Independence”, publicised by bloggers Iain Lawson and Grousebeater, they should do so immediately.

What is on offer is a marvellous analysis of present-day Scotland examining key concepts that have hitherto been falsely measured, analysed and obscured by commentators and academics with little sense of what was being looked at. “Internal colonialism”, undue “settler influence” and the “petrification” of the national leadership in the independence struggle are a few of the concepts examined and expanded upon.

The great Alasdair Gray was wrongly attacked as racist when he attempted to address the phenomenon of the undue influence of “settler” views on Scottish intellectual life A dispassionate examination of the human rights issues of the current political impasse offers real possibilities of forward movement through approaches to respected international bodies like the United Nations.

READ MORE: Alasdair Gray: The closest Scotland had to our own Leonardo da Vinci

It is difficult in a dependent Scotland to decide who is a Scottish national. Those entitled to national citizenship will only be determined after independence.

An analysis of the problem of entitlement to vote in the 2014 independence referendum shows the inclusion of many people such as students, not born in Scotland and with a shallow understanding of Scottish culture and language and the exclusion of Scots overseas who do have that sense of “Scottishness”. Professor Baird points to the need to address such irregularities in future quoting a recent UN sponsored franchise in New Caledonia that included secondary qualifications such as “length of residence”.

Maggie Chetty
Glasgow

IN letters on August 17 (Scotland’s oil was stolen – we must act to protect our natural resources), Susan FG Forde made some very valid points, including the theft of Scottish oil, the removal of our natural energy surpluses in the form of wind, tidal and wave energies and the additional costs imposed on it to enter the grid. This won’t be mentioned at COP26 but will all be included as “Britain’s contribution to cutting global warming”!

But the one that stands out is Susan’s remarks on the potential future theft of Scotland’s water.

READ MORE: Scotland's oil was stolen – we must act to protect our natural resources

As we enter a period of global warming and world wide change in rainfall patterns, England is increasingly suffering from severe water shortages, especially in the heavily populated south east. An early example of their solution to this is found in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when they solved shortages in the industrial Midlands by “taking” water from Wales. However the lack of water and increasing frequency of water shortages in the southeast is going to lead to their need for far greater solutions – a water grid from which they can draw unlimited quantities.

Such a thought was promoted in the early 1990s. An outline grid was proposed at the convention of water engineers, and its source!? Yes, you’ve guessed –Scotland.

Yet no one in the Scottish Government seems to be aware of, or preparing for this. And do you think that England intends to pay the Scottish people? Dream on. When the need arises, which will be sooner than you think, such a scheme will go ahead exactly as in the early years of oil development with no thought as to how or what effect it will have on the local population and no payment will be made unless they are forced to by an independent Scotland.

Originally all hydrocarbon exploration, planning and production permissions within Scotland and Scottish waters were the responsibility of the then Scottish Office.

However once the presence of oil was detected, Westminster quickly transferred responsibility for licensing and extraction of oil to London. Only an independent Scotland can properly control her resources.

Paul Gillon
Leven

IN Scotland, who is winning the battle between magical thinking and reality? The scores are in. On August 19, Scotland recorded 3000 new Covid infections. The next day, another 3000, with nine new deaths. The day after that, another 3000, with three new deaths.

This is an increase of 134% since Friday 13th. Most restrictions ended two days before that. We are still supposed to wear masks in indoor public spaces, but many are not doing so. In shops, it is common to see customers and staff unmasked.

If we are frightened by these figures, we can make ourselves feel better by going to bars, getting rat-arsed, then going on to clubs where we can dance on a crowded dance floor, unmasked.

Greum Maol Stevenson
Glasgow