Homecoming 2009 A Waste?

Highland Games and Golf

OK so some people reading this might think well she is Labour (therefore anti Scottish) and we don't expect her to get on board, but I have spoken to friends who are of the nationalist persuasion and they agree, showing the Homecoming advert in Scotland (almost on loop round about Burns anniversary) is a complete waste of money and time.

I honestly could put my foot through the television when it comes on, Eddie Reader who has a fantastic voice (and sounds good in the advert cause the song is fab) but who seems to think that being Scottish means that you must love Burns poetry and appreciate it's beauty (sick of getting it forced down my throat) or two random rugby players (who no one I have spoken to knows), it took me while to work out who some of the others were too, but the biggest insult has to be Shir Sean and Lulu. Shir Sean who couldnt even be bothered to attempt to sing - come on do it with some gusto mate- and Lulu who has decided she has a Scottish accent after all, or at least she has it this week.

The whole campaign is an insult to normal Scottish people a lot of whom are struggling to cope in the current climate, the worlds biggest Highland games are we being serious? What about a massive rock concert twinned with the Celtic connections and leading onto a massive investment in town twinning and exchange trips for young Scottish students? What about an unprecedented investment in Scottish Schools and Scottish Home Care for the Edlerly show the world that the homecoming is not just about those overseas coming home but about social justice and caring for each other, guess that is too much to expect.

The SNP locally have slashed home care budgets, slashed the wardens service in the elderly homes and slashed the budgets for education closing educational establishments, they have let the Roads in Paisley go to the dogs and are singularly uninterested in the people of Renfrewshire, but then what more could we expect?

Scottish Budget Crisis

Dishonorable SNP

The SNP budget has been voted down and immediately Alex Salmond decided that the best idea would be to try the same tactic as last year and threaten to resign if they did not get it through next time.

To be honest I am getting sick of his idle threats, the fact that he is willing to jeopardize the stability of the Scottish system by even hinting at this gives you a measure of how dishonorable the man is. Most if not all of the news reports that I have seen so far have called this a crisis for the SNP, the Greens are furious at the idea that the SNP would think that coming up to them minutes before the vote and saying yeah we change change it if you like after knowing for months exactly what the greens want would actually work.

This episode has shown the audacity and sheer arogance of the SNP and in particular Mr Salmond who must take the blame for this fiasco.

Alex 'Thatcher' Salmond

On Yer Bike

On Margaret Thatcher and her policies Alex Salmond apparently thinks that Scotland and I quote "didn't mind the economic side so much. But we didn't like the social side at all." Of Course the problem we had with the Poll Tax wasn't the economics it had nothing to do with the fact that we were down and beaten by years of recession and unemployment with the decimation of our national industries, it was because well it just wasn't very nice!!

Does anyone else see the problem here? The fact that the First Minister of Scotland decided that in order to clarify his position had to call a radio call in show shows a level of desperation that no other leader of our country has ever even considered displaying, the scary thing is that the SNP will try and spin this as being in touch with 'the people'.

While talking to a few friends -a few of whom are SNP members- even they agreed that this made them look stupid, although on the back of the SNP locally awarding the directors of service a 16.7% pay rise and then having the bear faced cheek to write to the strikers that 2.5% was not enough, it kind of pales in comparison. I believe (and this is from sources actually present) the question put was if all of the workers and the directors are all in the same team will they be suggesting 16.7% for the ordinary worker?

I loved the fact that the SNP think that laughing in the face of Unison members when they ask the above is the done thing, it shows an incredible level of political naiveté from Cllr's Lawson, Mitchell and Adam who apparently think that the Unison members are beneath contempt.

Unlike the self proclaimed 'Tartan Tory' Salmond, I understand why Mrs Thatchers economics were bad for Scotland and I did mind them, as did the Coal miners, the small businesses and those of us affected by the Poll Tax. I wonder if Mr Salmond would consider this as a social or economic policy?

Watch his space for the next 'Salmondism' you know something like a 'Bushism' only not quite as politically articulate.