Utter nonsense, what is your agenda Chirpy? I've seen and heard some ridiculous stuff during this campaign but someone who sounds less bitter than Nicola is hard to imagine. I'm trying to work out why you hold the position you do Chirpy, if as you say you live in London, what is your issue with Scottish Independence?
To be honest Spurf I could see pros and cons for an independent Scotland. As fascinating as the campaign was, (and it really was something the like of which we have never seen before,) I thought the No's campaign was half-assed and complacent, the yeses actually did a cracking job and thousands of people like you gave the "Westminster Elite" a bigger scare than they ever thought possible.
A couple of things don't sit well with me. Firstly the cynical use of the 16-18 year old vote as attempted counter to the over 65's demographic,(and only a 16-18 year old would believe it was anything other than that,) and the fact that although the yeses would expect the nos to wrap themselves in the Scottish flag and embrace a new independent Scotland, had the result been reversed, the yeses if you are anything to go by, believe we should run the whole thing again in very short order and have another crack.
A significant proportion of Scots' opinions have been duly noted; The West Lothian question will be answered at long last, along with more devolved powers being given to the Scottish Parliament (it would be be political suicide for any party not to tie these two together as anybody not aware of the imbalance sure as hell is is now.) But the point is, you lost. As is generally the nature with all things British, the victory was muddled, ill-planned and with a fair amount of luck and the defeat gallant and something to be celebrated for the most part, as a demonstration of the power of us ordinary folk to very nearly bring about real change; Something that seems a remote prospect to us South of the border.
You have been an eloquent advocate for independence Spurf, but I honestly feel that this the one moment when it could have happened. An ageing population, which is averse to change and made even more so by scare tactics from both sides and a sackful of constitutional goodies, plus hopefully a brighter economic outlook, will make the task even harder if there is a next time. Also I have the feeling that thanks to people like you, it is not a question that will be taken for granted should it ever arise again and the No's campaign would be a much better prepared one.
That's where I stand really. Scotland is part of the United Kingdom and looks set to stay so for quite some time. If half the energy of the campaign could be focussed on attracting investment and creating jobs there though, the results could be startling.
