THIS Saturday two events are taking place: one in London, spending millions of public money on an event a recent poll showed nearly 75% of people in Scotland don’t care about in the form of the coronation of King Charles; and one in Glasgow fundraised through supporters’ donations to a cause a steady 45-50% of Scots support in the form of the All Under One Banner march and rally for Scottish independence.
The contrast of the two could not be clearer, indeed the first is a good example of why the second is taking place.
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In a cost-of-living crisis, or to be more precise, a cost of Union crisis, many Scots are shivering in their homes unable to afford the heating, while we continue to produce six times the amount of energy we need but don’t see the benefits as majority of our energy is cabled down south with very little coming back north.
As if this wasn’t insulting enough, we now have to watch millions of that public money being squandered on a parade, for nothing short of a celebration of a man being born into the right family.
We would almost expect this of the Westminster parliament, but a recent freedom of information request by the Alba Party revealed that councils in Scotland are spending more than £6.5 million giving workers a day off for the coronation celebrations.
So while we are told council budgets have been cut and there’s not enough money for this, not enough money for that, it would seem that a day celebrating something majority of Scots oppose is a higher priority than the vital public services that continue to face cuts after cuts.
I for one know which event I will be attending this Saturday.
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I will be speaking alongside our Alba Party chair Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh on behalf of the Alba Party in demanding Scotland’s independence from this un-equal Union, as well as calling for our Alba Party policy of abolishing the monarchy and moving to an elected head of state in which sovereign Scots decide who represents them rather than the luck of a draw of being born into royalty.
There will be representatives from all independence-supporting parties, (apart from the Greens, who rejected the invite) as well as speakers from independence-supporting groups and organisations.
So if you don’t want to watch the circus parade in London, join us in Glasgow in demonstrating that we do not swear allegiance to the king, he swears his allegiance to us, and we sovereign Scots demand our voices be heard.
Hector Macleod (Alba Highland Organiser)
Isle Of Skye
APRIL is over but it seems the foolery continues. We are all expected to put out a “great cry” of allegiance to King Charles as part of the “modernisation” of the coronation service. It seems the words and actions of the service have been decided by the Archbishop of Canterbury, in close consultation with the King and our good friends the UK Government.
They will ask “all persons of goodwill in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and of the other realms and the territories, to make their homage, in heart and voice, to their undoubted King, defender of all”. The Archbishop of Canterbury will then proclaim “God Save The King”, with all asked to respond: “God save King Charles. Long live King Charles. May the King live forever.”
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Clearly the King will not be living forever despite the wishes of the Archbishop. The vast majority of the persons of goodwill in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and of the other realms and the territories, will not be daft enough to participate in this collective madness.
Apart from the crazy leader of North Korea, the last tin-pot dictator who was fond of oaths of allegiance being sworn to him was an Austrian corporal with a wee black moustache who, almost a hundred years ago, presided over the virtual destruction of the nation of King Charles’s ancestors.
Brian Lawson
Paisley
WHAT craven bilge is being peddled by Canterbury, the Unionist press and colonialists at Westminster in a cowardly attempt to convince the unthinking, oppressed, downtrodden serfs that crowns, coronets and ermine, underpinned by fatuous oaths of loyalty, can confirm that we are all in this pantomime together, failing to mention that legally we are all subjects, not citizens at all.
Trying desperately to shore up the rotting pillars of a UK concocted state (well past its sell-by date) via aggrandisement of the unelected head of that moribund state underlines the Unionists’ hatred of democracy and their clear intent to eliminate it.
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My allegiance, and that of all free-thinkers, will ever remain yoked to the democratic norms and conventions of Scotland’s sovereignty and inalienable democratic rights, not to feudalistic unelected overlords who euphemistically refer to the Stone of Destiny as having been “removed” by the English King Edward I – no mention that it was purloined by him in a clumsy attempt to undermine Scotland’s sovereignty.
Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose!
Séamas Ó Dálaigh
Cala Nan Clach
AS the great day looms, as the country hauds its breath, the words of the late, great bard of Dundee Michael Marra, from his song Chain Up The Swings, came into my mind:
Let them gather up their brows and their old wives’ tales,
Tweed and dashes and the spikes and flails,
Let them bow down in homage to the Prince of Wales,
Me, I’m going to get pished.
Les Mackay
Dundee
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