The Ugly Face of Scottish Nationalism.

No, I am not referring to Alex Salmond aka "the wee eck", although he would be unlikely to get into a list of the hundred most good looking Scots, but to what happened in Edinburgh when the leader of a United Kingdom political party visited the City for a press conference.
According to the Guardian, which is hardly pro-UKIP, Nigel Farrage was threatened  by "activists in the radical left pro-Scottish independence movement" when visiting Scotland to support a UKIP candidate who is standing at a by-election.
Note the Guardian's description, they were Nationalist and they were left wing, that is National Socialists otherwise known a Nazis. They used exactly the same tactics as Hitler's Brownshirts, which is violence against any opponents. These are Scotland's new Nazis, using similar tactics against the English that Hitler used against the Jews, tactics which were tacitly supported by the Wee Eck when he refused to condemn what had happened and suggested that it would be safer for UKIP not to enter into Scottish politics.

I would like to remind the Wee Eck that

• Scotland is still part of the United Kingdom, regardless of what some Scots seem to think.
• The Union Flag still remains the flag of the whole of the UK.
• Scotland elects a (disproportionately high) number of MPs who sit in the UK parliament and have equal rights with all other MPs.
• Any person or party may stand for UK elections in any part of the country, regardless of where the party originated or where they are born.

I would also remind BBC Scotland that they are funded by licence payers' money and have a duty to be impartial and objective, and their interview with Nigel Farrage hardly seemed to be either. The belief that the English should not get involved in Scottish politics is ludicrous whilst Scotland remains in the Union; on that basis will the BBC be campaigning for only English born candidates to stand for English seats? Of course not, that would be racist. Seemingly however that doesn't matter as far as BBC Scotland is concerned.

The Nationalists are having a problem as those who support the union slowly squeeze information out of the reluctant SNP.  Issues such as the EU, defence, currency, and pensions now have more questions than answers, and even those who support independence are beginning to question whether they would want Salmond to lead them in an independent country.

The Nationalists' problem with UKIP is not that it may be attracting that many votes, but that it is attracting attention to these questions and in particular that of the EU. Salmond has made it quite clear that he wants Scotland to be in the EU, although it is far from clear whether Scotland would be admitted automatically as a consequence of having been part of the UK, but one thing that is clear is that all new countries in the EU must sign up to the Euro.

UKIP is making many Scots seriously think about the hard facts of independence. Do they want to be in the EU as the Wee Eck proposes? Do they want the Euro? What happens if you believe as a Scot that the UKIP's vision of Britain outside the EU should also be that of an independent Scotland? Which is to be preferred, remaining part of the UK outside the EU, or being an "Independent" Scotland within the EU ? UKIP also seems to be attracting votes from both the Tory and the Labour parties, which could be attractive to many Scots.

In the past I have spent a lot of time in Scotland, both working and on holidays, and I have always enjoyed my time there. But ever since Scotland got its own parliament I have tended to feel that the English are becoming less welcome. Last year, after visiting the Wallace Monument, we returned to our car which has the Union Flag stuck over the EU symbol on its number plates and a Scot pointed to the flag and said they we don't want your bloody sort up here. Well after yesterday's Nazi display, he can be quite certain that we won't be visiting Edinburgh this year.  Southern Ireland is back on the agenda, we have found it very welcoming in the past in spite of out Union Flag, and more to the point I prefer Jameson Whiskey to the Scottish product. And there is the attraction of real Irish Guinness, not the English made substitute!