I MET Alex Salmond once at the Edinburgh book festival and shook his hand out of respect. He seemed to thrive on the situation, when he chatted amicably with renowned Scots author Iain Banks. He was there for a photo shoot and to host a talk with Iain, as he did each year. He also attended the Edinburgh festival each year, often giving a series of interviews. He was clearly a man of robust intellect, charisma and character. He thrived on good debate and was also greatly respected at Westminster.
While he appreciated the significance of Scots history and culture, he believed it was the economic arguments that would sway those Scots yet to be persuaded, that our freedom was the best way forward – not a backward step but a progressive one, not about any “Braveheart” imagining, but about a modern state. Perhaps he realised he didn’t go far enough in 2014, basically advocating home rule for Scotland, with a shared currency rather than full independence.
READ MORE: Alex Salmond's private funeral date confirmed
Even Labour recognise that the present UK system isn’t working. The UK needs to move to a modern state. One thing we can be sure of is that there are bad actors, disrupters and spies causing chaos among our Scottish politics.
I experienced this at the indyref in 2014, with shouting at voters as they walked into the polling stations. I’ve heard that people were also intimated at work – with town hall meetings where employees where asked to raise their hands to show how they intended to vote! I assume all these acts of aggression are illegal and anti-democratic.
I always enjoyed when Salmond came on TV debate shows. He was eloquent and forceful with sound arguments. He thrived on debates, because he had an informed hinterland. Unlike so many of the fake, ill-informed present day politicians, who appear shallow. Perhaps it was his grounding at St Andrews University.
READ MORE: Appetite for Alba was very limited even with Salmond as leader
Many advocate that philosophy and history should be taught to all children throughout school, and not only for a couple of years. Critical thought and analysis is essential for a future modern state. Education is the key for our future, as Salmond recognised, and he was rightly very proud of Scotland’s free university tuition. Scotland boasts four leading and ancient universities.
Sadly, a major weakness in Scotland is our lack of press, media and broadcasting. There’s the constant barrage in the mainstream British press of negativity to put Scotland down.
But Salmond showed Scots how to stand tall and proud, on the world stage – as we once did before. Scotland gave the world innovations, scholarship, and enlightened thought.
Salmond leaves a profound and deep legacy. Will we ever see his like again? “The dream will never die.” Thank you, Alex, for raising us up again.
P Keightley
Glasgow
“THERE is a big hole in Scottish politics for a pugnacious, militant, campaigning, left-wing party that puts independence first,” writes George Kerevan in Monday’s National. There is no room for another left-wing party in Scotland. We already have the SNP, Greens, and Scottish Socialist Party.
Alex Salmond’s stand against Sturgeon’s gender opportunism was principled but was clearly more an old-style liberal position than a left-wing stance. If there is any space for Alba in the Scottish political firmament, which I doubt even more after the passing of Alex Salmond, that space lies to the right of the SNP’s centralist managerial social democratic positions.
Even classical feminists are now finding their natural home on the liberal centre-right.
Mark Robertson
via thenational.scot
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