SO there we have it, the clocks have advanced and it is just a shame that some politicians and commentators along with the state propaganda unit are not so forward-thinking as to adjust themselves to the current situation.
A number of examples can be found in the recent weeks, including the awkward royal visit to the Caribbean with many “locals” seriously unimpressed with the whole antiquated and pointless pageantry put on by a minority, with it harking back to the dark days of colonial ownership.
The PM of Jamaica did use the visit to push forward with removing the Queen as head of state, this statement made in the presence of William and Kate. This prompted one royal correspondent to ask why the Governor General and royal aides had not done their jobs properly. He then went on to say “after all, they are a lovely couple who do so much good for Britain”! Which seems to be a stock answer, completely devoid of meaning or substance.
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The royals, despite what their PR gurus are saying, have not evolved with the times, not changed their set-up, not embraced the new era. I am very much now of the opinion that they cost more than they are worth. Any evidence as to money spent on them compared to money generated by having them is always greatly massaged by the very people wishing to see them remain in place. The bottom line is that tourists will still come and visit, they will still want to see the historic sites regardless of who the head of state is; one only need look at how much is gathered in at the Palace of Versailles annually.
The other argument used by those having no wish to change is that the reigning monarch provides continuity when governments come and go and the monarch is always there to offer good counsel at the weekly audience with the PM. So why then did it take a court judgement to throw out Johnson’s illegal closure of parliament? Should not the monarch have stepped in and let Johnson know what he was doing was illegal? That then leads to being told the monarch does not have that kind of power which, in turn leads to the counter-question: well, what use the monarch?
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It seems to my mind that a huge amount of public money is being sunk into that family for very little return. Indeed, as this decade unfolds that family have been a constant source of great embarrassment and at this point I would like to suggest that what we have in the public domain is only the tip of a very large, very dark iceberg.
We then of course have to contend with the Westminster political parties, and not one of them stand for any kind of meaningful shake-up of the way the UK is governed. They would love to see the back of the devolved governments but know that they are too far down that road to impose direct rule. Instead they are attempting to sabotage those very institutions, make them unworkable.
Here in Scotland the electorate have embraced the devolved power, we have voted time after time in our millions, since 2007 electing an SNP government much to the discomfort of the Unionists, the aristocracy and of course the so-called “elite” (all three are very interchangeable). It has not gone unnoticed that those who use every dirty trick to keep Scotland shackled are the very same that will lose their privileged position – their power base if you will – but yet they attempt to say that they have Scotland’s best interest at heart? The behaviour of the branch office membership here in Scotland is another source of hypocrisy and embarrassment, those that are quick enough to sing the virtue of independence in other countries yet want to see the powers In Holyrood curtailed?
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But no story would be complete without a mention of our very own fifth column – those within the independence movement that seem hell-bent on wrecking the chances of winning the referendum. They that advocate devo max, they that go behind the back of the elected government of Scotland to attempt to do deals with the Westminster, they that have so muddied the waters on gender issues. Having shared a platform with one of their MPs in recent weeks I will be in no rush to do so again. They honestly seem to be without a care in their attacks on the Scottish Government while claiming to want unity, it reeks of the hand of Whitehall. Mind you, they are scared to call a by-election and stand their two MPs on their own gang’s ticket. and that for me is the measure of them.
It is time for us to move out from the darkness and embrace the light of independence. It is time to say goodbye to all of the tricks and sneaks of Westminster.
Cliff Purvis
via email
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