If you voting in the Scottish Elections(May 3rd)

[Gypsum_Fantastic]

Originally Posted by Scottish_Republican

Is that in the first or second ballot?

Er, both, IIRC.

Originally Posted by Scottish_Republican

Anyway, it is a nonsense to say "only 100,000". That is a lot in a population of five million, of whom hundreds of thousands don't vote to begin with. The Tories in Scotland have been saved by the two things they opposed - PR and devolution.

I think that they stand to gain though.

Well, let me put it another way. I'm sure the gap at the last election between Labour and the SNP was greater than that between the SNP and Conservatives. If SNP fancy their chances of closing their gap then so do we plucky little brothers and sisters.

Being opposed is, of course, not saying you can't subsequently use either system to your advantage. With devolution, it was the logical position for the Conservatives. Unionism is opposed to Scotish nationalism and devolution would encourage it rather than kill it - as Labour foolishly hoped. We're opposed to Scottish 'independence', S_R, but there will still be a Conservative party in Scotland should that scenario come to pass.

[Scottish_Republican]

I'm not convinced the Scottish Tories are really that opposed to independence anymore - they're just avoiding the question. And it's to their credit - they're not sounding like the bunch of anti-Scottish idiots that the Scottish Labour party are.

[NovaBritannia]

Originally Posted by Scottish_Republican

I'm not convinced the Scottish Tories are really that opposed to independence anymore - they're just avoiding the question. And it's to their credit - they're not sounding like the bunch of anti-Scottish idiots that the Scottish Labour party are.

To be fair, Annabel Goldie is avoiding it. I was at a constituency meeting recently, and the Nats and how to string 'em up was high on the agenda. The grassroots hate them.

Ms. Goldie her dear self ambled up my driveway a week or two ago as I was washing my car. I asked her about the constitutional issue and it really seems that she doesn't see the significance of the debate (not to be conflated with the issue itself) - personally I just don't think she's built for that sort of thing or thinks of politics in those ways. Since I'm something of a political cad, I do concentrate on grandiose matters such as the constitution, but I really believe the average older-generation Tory in Scotland doesn't even think in those terms. For them, politics is about local authorities, education, health and so forth.

Oh, and the SNP man 'called' - he slid this election newspaper through my door and made off quickly without knocking. I assume he guessed from the flag that he wouldn't be getting my vote.

[NaRvIcK DeViL]

When i started this post the point I was trying to make was that our political elite have taken our voting habits for granted and it shows .

The arrogance that now prevails is stifling and what I would like to happen is for the parties that are represented in Scotland which really are London based Torys , labour etc to be Humiliated and to show them ,that us Scots aren't as repressed as we are made out to be .

I'm really getting fed up with this attitude that comes from the south of the country that pats us on the head and says we subsidise you and then goes on about the 'Barnett formula' which we get as a trade off for subsidising the rest of the country with our offshore resources .
When Gorden Brown threatened us publicly that if we went down the road for Indpendence the Barnet formula would stop . I said to myself you "ase licking B#@@+*#d"

I now know where your top priority lies......

Please !! don't forget that off the west coast of Scotland and the north Irish coast new oil and gas has been found and as the price has gone up ,extraction of these resources is now taking place and increasing.

I would just like to add to anyone from northern Ireland please put all nationalistic attutudes to one side for a moment and go for Independence from the uk and become a Independent sovereign nation ,you do not want to be conned sorry ! 'screwed' is the only way to put it , in the sameway Scotland is.

Honest !! all that wealth you would have for a small nation at the top of Ireland wow !! you'd be rolling in it .

Scotlands chance for greatness has been drained and we've been slowing wiltering for decades . I just hope that this time around you'll stop listening to the waffle that comes out of our political elite and bring the real power closer to home so we can then , more easily (they would be closer to home )
kick our political elite up the backside and get them working 'for' the people of Scotland for a change instead of looking over their shoulder for the approval of their london based masters.

[Scottish_Republican]

Of course the Barnett formula omits many things, including one of your favourite topics - the licence fee we send south.

[NovaBritannia]

Originally Posted by NaRvIcK DeViL

looking over their shoulder for the approval of their london based masters.

There's only one campaign being run from London and that's the SNP's.

[Scottish_Republican]

Originally Posted by NovaBritannia

There's only one campaign being run from London and that's the SNP's.

Aye, right. The SNP's HQ is in Edinburgh. Unlike that of the other main parties, which only have regional branches up here.