Scotland's democratic deficit

The UK has big flaws built into its system of democratic representation - and within the UK, Scotland's is worse. Should the two countries separate, it will have to be addressed, if Labour is not to have a permanent unfair advantage - see the graph below:

(Based on data from the BBC)

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A response to Craig Murray

"A win for UKIP will not only remind Scots that England remains in thrall to very right wing politics tinged with racism. It will also make plain to Scots that the only way to be sure to stay in the EU is to be part of an independent Scotland.. 

"A massively greater risk is the crazed Little Englanders dragging the UK into leaving the EU. UKIP are rampant. The Tories are terrified of them, and have a risible position that after the next election they will renegotiate Britain’s membership, then have an in-out referendum. In fact there really is no chance that all the other member states will unanimously agree to Cameron’s demand for changes in treaties that were excruciatingly difficult to gain unanimity for in the first place. In several instances EU states would be unable to agree without a referendum, a can of worms nobody wants to open. Cameron’s renegotiated settlement can never happen, so the Tories’ European figleaf only has a couple more years to go before expiry date. Then the English will want to leave. A majority of English voters already do want to leave."

http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2014/04/farage-boost-to-yes/

Granted, UKIP has its Looneytune element, but it's not alone and as I said in an earlier post*, outsiders who have little in common will group together simply because they are excluded; it's one of the challenges for a fringe party trying to become mainstream.

In the meantime, I don't care to be tarred with Mr Murray's carelessly-swung brush, so I say:

"Little Englander" - if readers would kindly look up the origin of this phrase, there would be more LEs, since it was used to label those who opposed empire-building and colonialism.

I am not a racist. Besides, there are and have been racists in the Labour and Conservative parties also; as to Liberals, I don't know, though they have to contend with other historic shames, as we now see.

Nor would I describe myself as remotely "right wing".

I am in favour of an EU referendum on democratic grounds. So were Margaret Thatcher, Douglas Jay, Tony Benn and Lord Blake; so was Lord Rees-Mogg, who challenged the legality of Maastricht in the courts. Ask Dennis Skinner what he thinks of the EU, though with his heart condition it would be better not to.

A little nuancing in your thoughts re UKIP would be most welcome. If Prof Alan Sked's New Deal Party gathered momentum I'd certainly be prepared to consider; until then, when the three largest parties in the UK have agreed a stitch-up on EU membership, which appears to be more in the interests of big business, bureaucracy and careerist politicians like Tony Blair who want to sell their contact book for millions after public office, don't be surprised by the popularity of an underfunded and heavily top-directed newbie like UKIP. Among the ruins of democracy in Britain, si monumentum requiris, circumspice.
_______________________________________

* See the section  headed "The madness of minorities" in "Stretching the Rainbow" (April 23rd)

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Could a free Scotland manage economically?

I've already suggested that if it secedes from the UK, Scotland might seize the opportunity to remain outside the EU (rather than suffer the boom and bust of, say, Ireland and Greece) - and maybe should be looking to forge closer cooperation with other "semi-detached" European nations such as Norway and Iceland.

For example, look at the sea areas controlled by these three:



Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) & Fisheries Protection Zones (FPZ), Iceland and Norway (Jan Mayen & Svalbard are Norwegian) Source: Bates

 

Scottish Sea Areas (from Scotland's Marine Atlas)

Save for a couple of loopholes, there is a vast contiguous sea area under the control of the "SIN" countries.

Indeed, if Scotland is to join with anyone, Norway would be far better than the corrupt, undemocratic economic shambles of the EU. Their population sizes are similar (c. five million) but Scotland clearly has a lot to learn from the Norwegians: GDP per capita c. $40k for the former, c. $100k for the latter (and a big sovereign wealth fund that will provide financial security for the foreseeable future). Further, Norway has claims to the Arctic shelf that could result in still more oil and gas:

Arctic territorial claims and potential for oil and gas
(Source: The Economist, 16 June 2012)

I'm not suggesting that Scotland would roll up to the banquet with knife and fork to eat Norway's pie; I'm saying that the three countries might have a synergy based not only on geographical position but on their potential for joint economic and technological development.

For example, one reason Norway is so prosperous is that she can sell a lot of her oil abroad, since most of the country's domestic electricity comes from hydroelectric installations. Similarly, Scotland has 85% of the UK's hydroelectric resources and has great potential for other renewables (she provided 36% of the UK's renewables output in 2012). Some of the hydro power is used for aluminium smelting - just as Iceland uses geothermal energy for the same purpose.

Then there is the shared expertise of Norway and Scotland in shipbuilding and marine engineering.

And Scotland has fishing, tourism, brewing, the arts...

What if Scotland picked up the Treasury's gauntlet, dropped the British pound and floated its own currency to protect and develop its industries, maybe with some initial financial/investment support from her neighbours to the north-east?

Perhaps independence, with the help of carefully-chosen partners, is not such a romantic pipe-dream, after all.

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Democracy Online

I suppose it's reasonable to believe that when you're browsing the comment sections of blogs, interactive media or Facebook that you are reading the thoughts and opinions of genuine readers. Naturally some of them may work for the state or be functionaries of political parties but would you actually expect them to be paid expressly with taxpayers money to post messages of a particular nature?

Welcome to the rise of the professional, tax-funded internet Troll.

Here's the job advert : http://www.w4mpjobs.org/JobDetails.aspx?jobid=45223

45223

10 April 2014

21 April 2014

Job Title:

Social Media Coordinator

Working For:

International Alert

Location:

London

Salary:

Negotiable

Job Details:

This is a short-term consultancy contract until the end of May 2014, with an immediate start. Job share or part-time considered.

Are you a social media enthusiast? Do you engage on a variety of different social channels? We’re looking for someone creative and dynamic that has a natural flair for social media engagement. You will work closely with International Alert’s Communications and Europe Teams, and be responsible for running a short-term social media campaign (#EUnify) to counter racist and xenophobic discourse in the UK in the run-up to the European elections.

You will be responsible for building and engaging with audiences on the project’s social media channels, which includes coming up with content ideas, creating new content, amplifying messages online, managing and starting community conversations and making sure the social campaign is in line with the project's goals.

Tasks include:

• Building and amplifying campaign messages online
• Updating the project’s social media platforms - publishing daily posts on Facebook, Twitter, blogs and any other relevant social media channels
• Increasing networks and expanding our reach across all social media channels
• Managing and moderating user generated content and posting responses including on-going conversations and private messages
• Working closely with internal teams and partners to respond to issues and co-ordinate content activity
• Disseminating messages and materials to partner networks and channels
• Setting appropriate targets on engagement and activity
• Compiling statistics and monitoring engagement on a regular basis

Skills required:

• Ability to create engaging and compelling written and visual content
• Proven ability to conceive, implement, and manage cutting-edge online strategies, including mobilisation campaigns
• Proficient in using and managing Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+, LinkedIn and blogs for marketing/campaigning purposes
• Ability to work to tight deadlines with a ‘can do’ attitude towards managing multiple tasks
• Expertise with online analytics
• Demonstrated ability to understand complex public policy and translate it into compelling digital content

For the full details please see the advertised post on our website: http://international-alert.org/jobs/social-media-coordinator.

Closing Date:

21 April 2014

I bring your attention to this section :

You will work closely with International Alert’s Communications and Europe Teams, and be responsible for running a short-term social media campaign (#EUnify) to counter racist and xenophobic discourse in the UK in the run-up to the European elections.

I think it's clear that they mean to target UKIP.

International Alert is an NGO, that means in reality a taxpayer funded, un-elected and permanent wing of the Labour Party.

This is the new face of democracy.

That's my vote decided. 

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Distraction

Why a duck? (pic source)

1. Hounded by the Daily Mail to explain why he resisted an enquiry into the Cyril Smith paedophile saga, Nick Clegg finally called for a police enquiry yesterday - into the possibility that the abuse and cover-up was a wider, cross-party affair - and on the same day, also called for the Queen to be relieved of her role as head of the Church of England. A good way to bury bad news? Nothing like insouciantly kiting a massive constitutional change to redirect the attention of the media goldfish..

2. The Cornish are to be recognised as a minority, with rights. I'm still waiting to hear someone in the MSM connect this with the EU's plan to split us into regions, before dismantling the UK altogether. Don't hold your breath waiting for the restoration of their fishing rights, though.

3. Following the 2009 "Smeargate" scandal, I have occasionally checked to see what actually happened to Damian McBride. At the time, after his sacking, he was said to have gone into teaching - something likely to soften the judgmental hearts of GROLIES - "don't hit me, I'm finally going to do something socially worthwhile" - but instead it seems he became "Business Liaison Officer" at his old school in Finchley, and two years later became Head of Media at CAFOD.

4. Speaking of burying bad news, I still can't quite establish what became of hapless spad Jo Moore. Like McBride, she too was said to be going into teaching, though the 2003 article in the Independent reported her working in the role of a "classroom assistant" as part of her teacher training, which certainly wasn't the route I took. I have personally known a teacher give up to become a learning mentor, though - half the pay but a quarter of the work and no responsibility, she told me. Perhaps Jo really did stick it out - the 60-hour weeks, endless paperwork, sometimes horrid children, worrying about classroom displays and water-bottles, dreading hidden-agenda visits by Ofsted; perhaps not.

We think we're a democracy, they think we're a ship of fools.


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Fly Greenways, the carbon-neutral airline!

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Waning sun to lead to new Little Ice Age?

A frozen windmill (pic source)

"Climate sceptics" may like to read the website of Habibullo I. Abdussamatov, a Russian astrophysicist specialising in the study of the Sun.

He says that it has long cycles of variation in sunspot activity and total radiance, and predicts a stable cooling period starting now and bottoming out late this century, with a drop in average temperature of 1 - 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Perhaps we should be building more coal-fired power stations, like the Chinese.


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