Good afternoon everyone. How are we all doing?
I guess I should start by apologising in advance, for I am indeed about to bore you with a politically related piece (I’m not sure which you’d prefer: politics or religion?). Click ‘back’ on your browser now if you’d prefer to return to reading about what [enter random chav’s name] got up to last night, and how far they got with the ‘hottest guy’ in the club because you won’t find such trivial nonsense here. I’ve been inspired to write about something that actually matters, something that should matter to every British citizen out there. As you’ve probably guessed by the snazzy little image to the left, I am talking about Scottish independence.
I’m spending my Sunday afternoon, waiting for my lunch consisting of cheesy waffles and fish fingers, listening to my sister talk about A-level coursework marking and the cats continuously ‘meowing’ at the back door so they may experience they freedoms of the back garden and surrounding maze of terraced houses and car parking spaces – I can’t help but think to myself, how wonderfully British; all the simple little things that make up our great nation and make it was it is – a great thing to be a part of.
But clearly the sense of importance surrounding this issue isn’t shared by many people, as even on the BBC news homepage there is no trace of any Scotland-related stories, except if one is took very closely towards the bottom of the page under the seldom-read (I imagine) ‘Politics’ section. So, why is it that I feel the importance to talk about it but the media seem to have forgotten the pressing matter? I’ll you why. The vast majority of English people have taken the attitude of, “Well, if they want independence let them have it. We don’t want them” – let’s just think about this for a second. Indeed, we live in a liberal democratic society (well, supposedly) so if Scotland wish to devolve then they should be granted the rights to do so, but we, as ‘English’ citizens need to have a long hard look at ourselves and ask what the hell we’ve done so wrong, that would encourage the Scots to break apart from the union that was formed more than 300 years ago.
You might start to wonder as to what exactly my stance is on this issue. Well as far as I can see, the United Kingdom hasn’t existed for a long time, what with the emergence of the Scottish National Party and now the Welsh Plaid Cymru all vying for the ability to make independent political decisions, the UK already has cracks in her foundations. We’re already seeing inequality within the UK; free Scottish tuition; free Welsh prescriptions; English students charged astronomical amounts for degrees that are becoming decreasingly more worthless (thanks to the Labour government – but let’s not get into that now) – so what exactly is the point in keeping this Kingdom united, if she isn’t united in the first place?
And why shouldn’t the Scots want to be independent? After all, why would they want to be seen to be involved with a government that wasn’t even democratically elected? A government that, in the past, has commissioned the illegal invasion of Iraq and has reneged on its promises to thousands across the country – the British government has little to be proud of in recent years and the Scots do right to want out. There were no riots in Scotland last summer, there was no mass protests, no news of Alex Salmond being referred as a ‘blithering idiot’ in terms of the economy; I think I’d prefer to be part of Scotland after all this!
Let’s not forget though, that the decision ultimately rests with the Toff-man and his pet at Westminster. Obviously enough Cameron, Clegg and Miliband are all fighting for the Scots to stay with us and to remain a part of this union – a very different scene from ages past, William Wallace would be laughing in his grave! The only reason though, I think the Toff-man is trying so desperately to keep Britain together, is so that he doesn’t have to add yet another failure to his resume; not that it really matters, the EU or UN don’t seem to mind hiring failed em-PMs. Cameron wants to keep his claws grasped tightly on the land which he controls, he could not possibly be seen dead to loose to a Scot. Oh how mummy Thatcher would be disappointed.
As much as I may criticise the British government and appear to be in favour of Scottish devolution, I am in fact opposed to the splitting of the United Kingdom. It’s not the St George’s Cross that I think of when I imagine home, but the Union Jack that inspires my patriotism. This small island nation has accomplished great things together, not apart. Together we share great history, power, wealth and prosperity. I do believe however, if we are to remain united, a lot of things have to change. There must be equality across the UK; students get charged the same whether they live in Scotland, England, Wales or Northern Ireland for example. If such changes are not made, I fear the battle to keep Britain united has already been lost, and it matters not whether Scotland devolve or otherwise. As it stands, Britain is divided already and if Cameron wants to gain back some of the reputation he’s lost through his poor decision-making and management of the economy, then he should fight bloody hard to keep our small island together and make the changes that will really mean that we are, a United Kingdom of a great, Great Britain.