Scotland

Wednesday

Alex Massie

Dancing for the Queen of the Fairies

Appropriately enough – this being Halloween don’t you know- Slate has this week been running a series of dispatches from my own native heath (Part 1 here, Part 2 here and Part 3 here). Kate Bolick asks, essentially, why are there so many haunted castles and ghostly apparitions in Scotland? Think what you want. I’m not here to convert you. Either you believe in ghosts or you don’t, and if you don’t—well, it’s probably because you haven’t seen one. They say the best believers are those who began as skeptics. Take Bella Beck (not her real name; she asked that I not use it), a suitably matter-of-fact academic at the

Saturday

Alex Massie

Forget 42nd St, Rush to See the 42nd Highland Regiment

As someone who has, er, fond teenage memories of being barked at by NCOs from the Black Watch during hours of drill on the parade-ground and rather fonder recollections of cricket matches against the regiment, I’ve been looking forward for months to seeing Gregory Burke’s prize-winning play about the regiment’s experiences in Iraq during its current run in New York. Today’s good news then is that – hurrah! – I snagged one of the two remaining tickets for the shows’ final performance on, appropriately enough, Remembrance Sunday. So it’s really just a bonus that the New York reviews have been tremendous. Here’s Ben Brantley in the NYT: “Black Watch,” which

Thursday

Alex Massie

Scots wha hae with Cumberland bled…

James Fallows’ blog is normally a treat. But in the midst of slapping Congress for the supposed foolishness and self-indulgence of the Armenian genocide resolution he writes this (emphasis added): Why not go all the way? How about a resolution condemning China for the millions who suffered in the Cultural Revolution and the tens of millions starved during the Great Leap Forward – right as we’re seeking China’s help on Burma, North Korea, the environment, etc? I mean, for each Armenian the Ottoman Turks slaughtered, at least ten Chinese citizens perished at the hands of the regime whose successors still rule the country. And the government’s official stance of denial

Sunday

Alex Massie

Scotland 3 Ukraine 1

“For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.”

Tuesday

Alex Massie

The Belgian Conundrum

Ages ago – light years in blog terms in fact – Megan noticed The Economist pointing out that the euro has lessened the pressure that Belgian politicians might otherwise face to settle their differences and observes: Now that the European Union has taken over the currency, as well as many of the trade and customs functions of traditional federal governments, Belgium as a state suddenly looks a lot less necessary. One wonders if the current era of economic integration (assuming it continues) might not bring increasing political balkanization. Well, yes indeed. The same might be said of the United Kingdom. Moves towards greater regional autonymy across Europe are a direct

Sunday

Alex Massie

Argentina 19 Scotland 13

Bugger. Time to go and talk the game over with Mr John Walker and Mr Macallan. Mr Bruichladdich may also be asked his opinion. I’d consult Mr Highland Park but he’s exhausted.

Thursday

Alex Massie

From the White Cliffs of Dover to the Tweed (But No Further)?

Yes, I’d noticed this part of Cameron’s speech too: And those changes have brought us success, in local elections we have taken Plymouth, we have taken Lincoln, we took Chester, we took the council right here in Blackpool and as William reminded us in that great speech on Sunday we are back in the North of England, a force to be reckoned with in every part of our country. Daniel Larison raises an eyebrow and asks: Except Scotland.  Or maybe this was an intentional oversight? My sense is that it was an unintentional slip. It’s true that neither Scotland nor the Union were mentioned in Cameron’s speech but that’s understandable

Tuesday

Alex Massie

Fat Bastard Actually Accurate Characterisation of the Modern Scot

Oh great. Who knows, perhaps this is even true. I blame Glaswegians. Obesity levels in Scotland are the second highest in the developed world behind the USA, new statistics have revealed. The figures were published as the Scottish Government announced plans to  remove sweets and fizzy drinks from schools. Under new rules, the amount of chips served in school meals will also be cut and more fruit and vegetables provided. Children’s Minister Adam Ingram said he wanted to change young people’s habits. The figures , released by ISD Scotland, the statistical wing of the NHS, said the “obesity epidemic” in Scotland must be addressed and outlines the extent of the

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Gordon Brown’s Best of British

Earlier this year I wrote a piece for TNR’s website suggesting that Gordon Brown’s Scottishness might become a problem for him. Well, with Labour riding high in the polls and talk of an autumn election running rife you might think that this was overblown nonsense. Maybe so. But don’t take my word for it, have a gander at the speech Brown gave to the Labour party conference yesterday. For all the talk of change and renewal and driving the country forward, by far and away the most notable element of Brown’s speech was the way he wrapped himself in the Union Flag. He mentioned “Britain”, “British” or “the British people”

Thursday

Wednesday

Alex Massie

The Tyranny of Hope

Two questions: oh god, will it never end? And, how can winning be more fraught with terror than losing? I write, as you will have guessed, of Scottish football. Today’s remarkable, nay logic-defying, triumph in Paris – our first on French soil in, oh, 57 years – was unbearable stuff. I can cope with despair; it’s hope I can’t stand. Here’s the thing then. With three games left in our murderous Euro 2008 qualifying group, Scotland are – astonishingly – top of the table, ahead of France and Italy (last year’s World Cup finalists) and Ukraine (who reached the last eight in Germany). This is not the way the world

Tuesday

Alex Massie

Iraq as cause of Scottish independence? Hmmmm…

Ben Crair has a piece at TNR today headlined, The Iraq War is Responsible for Scottish Independence. Really. Well, up to a point Lord Copper. The “Really” is an unfortunate indication that this pudding may be a little over-egged. Few people would deny that discontent with the war played a part in the SNP’s victory in this year’s elections. But other factors were at least as, and probably more, important. Among them: 1. Alex Salmond’s return from his Westminster exile. Salmond brings a heavyweight presence that trumped anything the SNP could put up in his absence; it trumped Jack McConnell’s pretensions to statesman status too. You wouldn’t feel embarrassed being

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We’ll have all the Tunes of Glory…

It all depends where you are coming from I suppose. Tyler Cowen flags up this Observer survey of forgotten, under-rated or generally neglected novels. And we’re immediately in an odd, odd place. Will Self selects Alasdair Gray’s Lanark. Well, you can call Lanark many things but given that Anthony Burgess (albeit absurdly) said it was the best novel to come out of Scotland since Sir Walter Scott was in his pomp, under-rated hardly seems to be the most apt description. That’s not the only odd Caledonian contribution however. Iain Rankin nominates James Hogg’s The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner. Rankin claims only writers read it, yet –

Thursday

Alex Massie

An Edinburgh August

Iain McWhirter at The Guardian reminds one why Edinburgh is perhaps the world’s best city every August: Now, here’s a cultural success story of truly epic proportions. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe alone has sold 1.7m tickets this year – that’s more than twice the number sold by the Manchester Commonwealth Games. It does this every year. And the official Edinburgh International Festival hasn’t even finished yet, so its figures are still to come. The Edinburgh Book Festival has attracted 200,000 to its Charlotte Square tent city, which means that the Edinburgh culture-fest’s final score will be well over 2 million… This is an astonishing achievement and gives the lie to

Monday

Alex Massie

Secretary of State for Scotland delivers message to Scotland: sod off

Interesting, though unsurprising, interview in today’s Scotsman. Des Browne, the Secretary of State for Scotland, tells the paper’s political editor Hamish Macdonell that there’s no need for any talk about new powers for Holyrood. Move along now, please. Nothing to see here. Mr Browne delivers the standard Labour ministerial line: we’ll have a consultation and “listen” to all views but our mind is made up. So what’s the point? Score this as another victory for Alex Salmond. Wendy Alexander, the likely new leader of the Scottish Labour party, is understood to want a review of the devolution “settlement”. It would be a surprise if she were not. She is a

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The herring question: fishing for Britain’s future

Following on from this post on Des Browne’s interview with The Scotsman today, the Secretary of State for Scotland (who is also the Secretary of State for Defence, though you might think that ought to be a full-time job) also had this to say: Mr Browne also dealt a blow to the aspirations of the SNP Executive, which has started negotiations with Westminster in an attempt to get Scottish ministers to lead for the UK in European fishing talks. Mr Browne said the UK government would not agree to such a change. He said: “As far as fisheries is concerned, Scotland has a voice in the fisheries negotiations annually, but

Wednesday

Alex Massie

Salmond makes his move: l’audace, encore de l’audace, toujours de l’audace

UPDATE: Welcome, Ross’s readers. Feel free to have a poke around. Should you be so interested, other stuff I’ve written about Scottish politics and the like can easily be found by clicking on “Scotland” in the categories column on the right. Meanwhile, in Scotland… It’s been a startlingly successful first 100 days in office for Alex Salmond. His minority ministry has proved more stable – and more quietly effective – than many sceptics feared. That’s quite an achievement, even if Salmond did arrive in office with a degree of goodwill. Yes, many voters remain unconvinced by the SNP but many others who voted Tory or Lib Dem were relieved to

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Stop press: Labour numpty* stumbles upon truth!

So, as expected Jack McConnell has resigned as leader of the Scottish Labour Party. A friend emails me the best, most accurate (albeit unintentionally so) reaction to this news: “Let’s remember where he took this party from to where it is now and I think that’s a great contribution not just for the Labour party but also for Scotland.” Since McConnell inherited a party in power and leaves it in opposition, this is, for once, something Andy Kerr – Mr McConnell’s Finance Minister – and I can agree on. Of course, the proof that Scotland needed a political revolution is found in the words “Finance Minister Andy Kerr”. *A clown,

Tuesday

Alex Massie

Whatever happened to Robert Millar?

Naturally I should have mentioned this a month ago before the Tour de France began, not now that it’s finished – though thoughts on the Tour and the continued jackassery of much cycling coverage will be posted when my blood has recovered from a) boiling and b) my own EPO transfers (kidding). Anyway, sports buffs shouldn’t miss out on the best cycling book of the year. True, it’s written by a friend of mine but don’t hold that against Richard Moore. His In Search of Robert Millar is a terrific rendering of the rise, triumph, disappointment and eventual disappearance of Britain’s most successful Grand Tour cyclist. Like Richard and many

Monday

Alex Massie

While Smeaton watches, Scotland never sleeps…

Memo to terrorists: you’ve missed your opportunity. It’s too late now. Just pack up and go home. John Smeaton  – the Pride of the Clyde and scourge of terrorists everywhere – returns to work today. Mr Smeaton, sharp-brained readers will recall, is the baggage handler who famously “set aboot” the lunatics who tried to bomb Glasgow Airport last month, delivering a swift and punishing kicking to the would-be terrorists. Mr Smeaton became the embodiment of Glasgow’s image of itself: pawky but hard as nails, proud to live up to the old motto of Kings of Scotland, Nemo Me Impune Lacessit – roughly translated as Wha Daur Meddle Wi Me? or