damn you independence. damn you william wallace.
The vote on Scotland’s independence is the single most important vote for half a century and yet the majority of those it will affect cannot queue outside the polling stations, nor tick a box or cast a vote. Instead we are nothing more than spectators with verbal say so, bystanders on the most influential topic in modern peacetime, a topic that will transform Europe and alter the course of history.
This vote should be a landslide no. There should be ironic laughter pouring out the balloting booths as the realities of a yes vote shake each individual with sense and wisdom, however I fear this will not be the case, I fear the actual vote will be a far cry from any ease. I fear the vote may be lost. As it stands, I fear the Scots and I fear what they will do to our history. I fear they will try and stab the English during the peace talks, their seldom limelight influencing their decisions as they look back at the long shadow England has cast throughout our history. But whilst a vote for independence would indeed be a flesh wound for England, it will see Scotland fall on their sword in the process.
A lean toward a yes is irresponsible and foolish and self-centred, and independence will fail them like our political elite has failed us. I yearn for a Churchill or a Thatcher to be in place right now, politics aside, we need and deserve fearless decision makers, not pseudo-leaders with wishbones where backbones once were, my finger is pointing at you Miliband and Clegg, but its lingering on you Mr Prime Minister, the leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party who is about to be responsible for the break up of the Union.
No one with logic or the power to perform research can deny Scotland’s current stability with regards to wealth and revenue, and as it stands the nation’s exports would make it prosperous, but with businesses, big and small, as well as banks all putting exit strategies into place, Scottish commerce looks more ominous than ever, and will be knocked to the canvas again and again without a currency to call it’s own. There is also no refuting Mr Salmond’s superiority as an orator in this twisted referendum, and compared to the three pathetic excuses we sent to defend the alliance he is probably the more advanced of the politician’s too. But whilst he distracts with a spectacular plume of feathers, Salmond’s preaching is without substance and is instead limited to toxic shortsightedness and an outlook that lacks any respect or recognition to Scotland’s imminent volatility and England’s unsympathetic strength, both of which provide a bright and brilliant silver lining where it concerns continued unionisation.
As the vote draws closer, more and more big businesses are raising their voices in open opposition to independence. The oil rich isles of northern Scotland have clenched their fists and raised them high into the sky in the name of an unceasing union. BP Oil has risen to its feet and is making strides south, as have the majority of big British banks, their bags packed and eyes focussed on the stronghold of London, a move toward the winning team so to speak. Now I am not one to show adoration, or even neutrality, toward corporations, conglomerates or the finance sector in general, but as the type of small figure they usually beat down on, I am patronisingly proud of them this time around for they are finally using their brains and not just flexing their mega-muscles or stomping the ground with usual greed, but in this hour of need they are making a point, and a strong one.
However it will take more than just the legal departments of a few known firms to halt history from deviating. It will take political presence and point and power, in other words what we no supporters are lacking most. So let’s show them we have it. If Scotland wants to lock horns and fight, then why don’t we get down in the muck and fight, because without a union it will take two shakes of a lamb’s tail for Scotland to realise both its highlands and cities are built on instable rock with view over the volatile and bleak, misery rising high as far as the eyes can see like plumes of black smokes. Sure, I don’t qualify in any part as an expert opinion, but it doesn’t take an economics academic or man of magic to understand why Scotland would be in such immediate trouble.
Scotland’s currency is a grace given by England, and in the absence of monetary unification, Scotland’s costs will become incomprehensible in every sense of the term. There will be no money for the Scots, no currency for the people to trade at any level, no certainty for businesses big or small, and only a growing debt for the foreseeable future if a sovereign state is voted in. There would be no Euro to adopt and no way for them to gain acceptance into the European Union, not for years, maybe even decades according to EU regulations. The repercussions of this are substantial for without EU standing there will be no jobs available in the south, nor any education, instead the Scottish population in England would be immigrants, and the furthest down on the pecking order.
It would be anarchy beyond what their devolved form of governance could handle. That isn’t fear mongering; that is fact.
There would be no NHS care for Scottish people living in England, no passports for the Scots to travel outside their own borders, new tax rules for those with business the other side of their parameters, no privilege or sway over the decision making in Westminster, an absence of Labour resurgence for a very extended period, a housing crash that would force many to leave, a business abyss with no tradable funds, an uproar of university students that have had their job prospects denied, an influx of immigrants being sent back to its shores and an almost inevitable imploding of an entire nation, a nation who would’ve single-handily ripped apart the unionised countries without foresight or plan, with an organised and bloodthirsty nation sat right on their doorstep.
With chaos on the rise and mayhem muddying the Scottish system, where do they think England would stand? Does Scotland think we would help, because I struggle to believe any mercy would be shown to such vigilantism, but rather scenes of mass epicaricacy would roar loud over Hadrian’s Wall as an insurmountable bill was pushed through the blue letterbox of Scotland along with an exceptionally long legal letter. England would have no choice but to bill Scotland for any costs incurred simply because no one could expect England’s taxpayers to foot the costs of a decision made by Scotland. England is currently a population of unfortunate bystanders given no option to vote despite being victims of the outcome, and I don’t believe we would take to kindly to the segregation, never mind hiked taxes on the rear end of it.
There is just too much left to chance now for England, and only so much a nation can stand back and watch, but given how close this vote is predicted to be, maybe it’s time England stopped with its pitiful peace attempts and showed some brute strength. Maybe it’s time to cast some light onto the more than likely realities of what’s to come, and throw some very real threats into the gauntlet to see whether Scotland likes its chances amongst the bleak prospect of nothingness, because if it decides to be sovereign then it will be locked in an impossible struggle that would see regret ripple under the surface of their ill-planned bitterness.
Goddamn it, patriotism should be held in the highest regards, but done so as a united people not as predetermined territories. I truly hope independence fails to fight its way to fruition and I only wish I could have a more direct impact on the outcome. But to hope and wish makes me better than England’s politicians currently leading what is a feeble charge. So here it is. Scotland, I urge you to use your sensibilities and sagacity to vote no, to know and believe that we are healthier when knitted together. We are both nations with a colourful history and rooted tenacity, nations where war and hostility has been rife throughout our ride, but nations that have prevailed together above so much, nations that have used our history to be sturdier and used our pride to succeed. Whatever the political reasons, we live on one planet, we share the same world and the same environment, and to have Scotland break away from the union would be an almighty step back for progression and civilisation. It would be devastating. I beg you, please vote no.
