Yesterday, the issue of attack blogs took up the first ten minutes of First Minister's Questions in the Scottish Parliament. Your humble servant even got a mention by Alex Salmond. There's clearly not a lot of love lost between the new Labour leader in Scotland Iain Gray and and the First Minister. First Minister's Questions almost makes PMQs edifying. I have to say, though, that Alex Salmond is rather impressive in this forum.
19 comments:
Oh Iain, I'm surprised at you. Don't you feel the lurve between labour and the SNP?
Every week I do a wee post about FMQs but I think this week it fell to new lows.
All because a blogger called Jim Murphy a c*nt!
The Labour dirty tricks department along with their press lap-dogs have had a field day recently with the nat blogs.
Oh, and another thing.
I mentioned the other week on here about what was going on in the Scottish blogosphere. Not a peep from you.
You get a name check in the Scottish toon council parliament and you do a blog post about it.
I love me, who do you love?
Iain Gray, housewives' favourite and 40th most important politician in the mythical Scottish Labour Party, appeared on BBC Radio Scotland earlier informing the nation that cybernats are a blot on the political landscape and that he wants their bloggers dealt with. His rant was borderline fascist to be honest, but intensely boring at the same time. Annoyingly, Mr Gray didn't define what a cybernat is, so I can only assume he means anyone who votes SNP and has an internet connection.
If point scoring is the name of the game. Why have they not responded with Megrahi. Three weeks past his due by date, has he been treated by the Ernest Saunders home for the incurables? There is a critical report waiting in the wings.
You can be forgiven the slight exaggeration Mr Dale, Iain Gray has actually been the Labour leader in Scotland for over a year. Although a week is usually deemed to be a long time in politics, Iain Gray has not exactly set the heather on fire since defeating thingummy and whatsisname in the leadership election last year.
labour are really getting their knickers in a twizzle, aren't they? have you heard any more on this story about david lammy grooming cameron for obama?
Labour has no policies, is still in denial about losing power in Scotland, and thus focuses on side issues like this.
It's all designed to distract from the financial crisis caused by Brown (whose views Gray has to ascertain before he opens his mouth on any subject.
Rab, not true. I have linked to it several times in various Daley Dozens.
Some goos knockabout stuff if you enjoy watching overweight people annoying one another, but why the clapping? Could this be the pilot for the political X factor?
It's a mark of Labour's slight recovery that they have the balls to bang on about this after they were themselves caught conducting a libel campaign in Downing Street. Their electoral slogan seems to be "the SNP: almost as bad as us".
Iain,
For the world at large the 'cybernats' are the face of Scottish nationalism. There are some erudite and detached figures but too many are self-righteous and even fanatical. They throw a protective cloak around Alex salmond whose 'no prisoners style of debate' is actually pale version of their internet persona.
It is intriguing that whenever bad news for the Scttish government crops up, they fill up the comment section of the Scottish press with shrill defences of whatever the SNP position is.
Are some of them organized from on high? I speculated about this in my book, The Illusion of Freedom: Scotland Under Nationalism (Hurst & co ,paperback, 2009). Perhaps the Mark Maclachlan affair will bring us nearer to the truth.
(They've gone quiet this week which strengthens my view that some of them are by no means freelance).
Kevin Pringle, Salmond's media czar, runs a determined operation from which New labour in its prime could learn a thing or two. I'm just one SNP critic who has been 'monstered' by him because of op.ed articles that he's taken exception to.
What I find perplexing iain is why you have thrown so much rope to Alex Salmond? Do you envisage yourself being David cameron's envoy to the SNP, if in the event of a hung parliament, Alex's 15 or so MPs will be needed to prop up an interim Tory administration?
Or do you hope he will lead Scotland out of the Union to usher in perpetual Tory rule in England?
If that happens, to your north will be the equivalent of a trendy left inner London borough which happens to have a seat at the United Nations.
Not a prospect anyone on either side of Hadrians wall who wishes good relations to endure between the Scots and the English should necessarilly relish.
Tom Gallagher
The old adage "it's not the crime which does the damage, it's the cover-up" is proved again.
Nobody can remember what the original sin of the "Cheese" blog was, but we now have a cabinet minister's ex-office manager calling him a liar in public.
http://the-universality-of-cheese.blogspot.com/2009/12/ding-dong-merrily-on-high.html
http://nat-mythbusting.blogspot.com/2009/12/bloggergate-now-it-gets-interesting.html
Scottish politics is the equivalent of a parochial parish council. Full of self-important narcissists incapable of making important decisions in the national interest.
Andrew @ 2:50pm. And tell me how that does not apply to the Westminster Parly.
Tom Gallagher: Good relations between the Scots and the English are probably a lost cause. These days a Scottish accent from a public figure to the south of the Tweed (Hadrian's Wall is within England) evokes a strong feeling of warmth and respect towards the French.
Tom,
I am no SNP supporter but I wager you are in the employ of Labour and I claim my £5.
Rab,
If you really think I'm working for Scottish Labour, it might do no harm to check out my article in teh current POLITICAL QUARTERLY, Vol. 80,No 4, 2009.
It's entitled 'Labour and the SNP: The Triumph of continuity in a Changing Scotland'.
Tom, I would have checked out your article but the dog ate my copy when it landed on the doormat the other day.
He's not been the same since.
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