THE British state is in a bit of a state these days. It has been for longer than I care to remember. So maybe Labour’s unspoken but implied message of “we’re not the Tories” has worked for them, in the short-term: short enough to win the recent election. And there it is again, reactionary, binary politics.
Democracy is a great concept, but hard to implement democratically. We know that from our years of experiences: our votes cast only to be followed by the imposition of someone else’s government of choice. Or the Brexit divorce, or the most recent: a 174-seat majority, first-past-the-post, on 33.7% of the vote. We’re seeing the further distrust and disengagement between people and politicians. Overall, this doesn’t augur well.
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There is no denying the surge of reactionary right-wing populism, here and elsewhere. Governments in Italy, Austria and the USA, or wannabes like Reform, say they will solve everything at a stroke if only we’d let them: woke is bad, immigrants more so. Why worry about climate change when we can exploit the world’s resources: dig up, blast out, there’s plenty more. Building real walls is job creation, building like-minded alliances with hedge funds can make health services more efficient (ie profitable). Universal benefits helps everyone including the well-offs, so let’s target where really needed: means-testing by any other name.
Ultimately we’re told there will be more money at the end of month along with job security: the illegals have been removed. So, the old tactic of divide and rule, exploit and exploited, is being massaged into a utopia there for the taking,as the offerings of populism, cheap jingoism, gain traction.
But what do we stand for, as we believe in independence? It’s the vision thing again, isn’t it? Is it how we believe in public services, and don’t want them sold off? Is it how we recognise and accept we’re “small state”, not the dying embers of an empire clouded with memories of imperialism and all its trappings? Or that we accept small states can and do thrive? Would we decide to carry on with kingship and coronations? I think we know already that when asked, Scotland will vote NOT to be a small nuclear state.
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Labour can’t forever wrap itself in the blanket-like mantra that they use. The black-hole economic argument that Labour will rectify Tory failure. They offer nothing of substance beyond more dark austerity minus the word. What vision, what hope? Tories will pander to their far right if there is any hint of “recovery”. LibDems will continue to slosh around the peripheries, never making a first-past-the-post breakthrough into government.
Yes, it’s dreich and I don’t just mean the weather. We know from election failures that having a vision for our indy future isn’t enough! So a healthy application of “as if”, thank you Neal Ascherson, maybe some cheeky flash-mobbing, and a national coming together, that citizens’ convention, has to be employed as we head to 2026.
Selma Rahman
Edinburgh
I HAVE just read Neal Ascherson’s resoundingly apt article “Scotland needs ‘As If’ approach” in Sunday’s National and my immediate reaction was of course total agreement with all he postulates regarding reinvigoration and resurgence in self-determination.
The Scottish Government should of course acquire a long overdue posture of “As If” for an already independent Scotland; allied to a much bolder attitude when the essential groundwork is already well established.
READ MORE: Inspiring essay by Neal Ascherson must serve as a rallying call
Political lethargy is inevitably contagious in its stealthy influence amongst the voting fraternity; the majority of which desire viable vigorous leadership. After all, Scotland was an independent nation for 1161 years prior to Act of Union and will be again.
Roderick MacSween
Stornoway
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