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MathCampbell

Listed below are comments made by MathCampbell between Friday, 25th July 2008 and Friday, 23rd October 2009.

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The picket and the postage stamp 4:33pm on 23 Oct 2009 The problem with the Royal Mail is, as many have said, the Government has tried to turn a service into a business.
The Royal Mail does not exist to make a profit. It's nice if it does, but that is not it's purpose. It's purpose is to deliver mail. The USPS is one of the best in the world, because their Government realised that if you allow private companies to come in and make money on the higher-profit services, who will pay for the expensive stuff, like universal service to some tiny island in the middle of nowhere?
In this country though, TNT can bid for a service, lacking the Royal Mail's huge overheads, win a contract to deliver, say, 20,000 leaflets to homes in x-town for Y-Company, then pickup said leaflets from the Y-company HQ and drive straight down to Royal Mail's sorting office, pay a nominal fee and have them delivered, reaping all the money between.

No, Royal Mail HAS to be re-granted it's monopoly. Sure, a company might have to pay more for it's letters to be mass-mailed, but for the Greater Good, tough.

The Post Office is one of the few UK establishments I have any lingering pride in, as a Scots nationalist. When (hopefully not if) we get independence, I fully intend to lobby the new Government to setup a new Scottish Mail Service, which will allow no competition, provide a service not a product, and even perhaps re-institute the post-ferries etc. in the isles.
It'd be cruel to do so, but if the ENglish at that point don't see the error of their ways and bring back the Royal Mail in a likewise fashion, perhaps we will bid on services in England to help bulk up profits a bit. One way or another, you'll learn.
Will he do it? 12:23pm on 02 Jun 2009 Oh dear oh dear...
Things aren't looking too rosy for the downing street duo, are they?
Mind you, I think we may be seeing the fall of Rome here.....
Letter from Texas 6:24pm on 24 May 2009 An interesting subplot you put in there Brian....

The People of Scotland have never had that choice. Scotland cannot, yet, leave the UK. To do so requires a referendum, and despite the People duly electing the SNP to be the Government, thanks to party politics by the English parties, we still cannot have our referendum, the first chance since 1707 for the good people of Scotland (and even the not so good; apparently MP's will still get a vote) that someone bothers to actually ask the people "Do you want to be run by the English-led parliament in London (and I say that given that of the 624 MP's, over 500 are from England), or do you wish to be an independent nation with the right to govern her own borders, decide on immigration, foreign policy, EU membership, the single currency, fisheries rights and all other sovereign duties without the interests of South-East England coming first?"

Granted I think the English parties may well have some trouble with the wording I've laid out there....
Can't think why though....
Regaining order in the Commons 8:57pm on 21 May 2009 Thanks to all those who liked my post...
Some follow ups:
1) Since I lived there for most of my early years before emigrating, I think I'd know if I were being "anti-English". I'm not. Just like anywhere, England has it's share of Genius and Imbecile. Just like Scotland.
England also has a rich and long culture, a lot of it assimilated from many other cultures. Who can say the Tikka Masala is not an intrinsic English recipe? Or that football and cricket would not exist in their current form without the English?
Scotland also has a rich culture; only one of the aforementioned imbecile's would dispute this.
What they also choose to dispute is that over the years, particularly in the last 50, those in power in England have treated Scotland, Wales and Ireland with disdain. The word "British" was used synonymously with "English" until about the 1950's.
The perception in many parts of Scotland (and I have to say I tend to agree) is that Scotland isn't ruled in a Union with the English, it is ruled *by* the English. I daresay the demand for devolution and independence would be noticeably less if the UK Parliament had 400 MP's, 100 from each country in it. But it does not (because we're a smaller country than England), thus no matter what is good for Scotland, democracy means that England will get the choice, and Scotland will get what it gets.
To those raging about "democracy", and how can Parliament be democratic if there's a Scottish PM..
In the 1980's, there was, for most of the decade only 1 MP in Government for Scotland. The rest were English. Yet nary so much as a murmur was raised. Even when Scotland was then used as a testbed for poll-tax and other "innovations".

Westminster might be good for London, and the rest of England. But it's bad for Scotland and the People deserve a say-so.

Why are the London parties so against letting the People decide?
I think it's because they're afraid of what the People will say.
Regaining order in the Commons 01:48am on 21 May 2009 To those accusing (again) the SNP of "anti-english racism", I'd like to address a few pertinent words.

I was born in England. I was brought up there, although I have very close links with South Wales (and family there too), I would be considered "English" by most.
I don't identify with that, since I moved to Scotland when I was 18.
I am a member of the SNP. I could be described as an "activist". I take part in party activities, I've even put myself up for selection in local Government elections. I've not been successful (yet), but I would be happy, nae proud to stand as an SNP candidate, and if elected as an SNP councillor. One day, I hope to be an MSP.

I have *never* once detected any form of anti-englishness in any SNP member. I'm not denying there aren't any SNP members that hold such feelings, but if there are, I've never met them, and indeed the other night at a Branch meeting, we were discussing the fact Unionist supporters always seem to talk about this supposed "anti-englishness", and that no-one present had met anyone (and some of our Branch members have well-worn bus-passes) who had this supposedly common attribute.
It is a pathetic lie that is often used against the SNP, in order to try and sully them into the same boat as the downright disgusting and evil BNP.
There is however a goodly amount of "anti-Westminster" attitudes present. Probably because at virtually every opportunity, Westminster favours the South of England over Scotland.
It's nothing ideological or patriotic for me. It's sheer practicality. Westminster will ALWAYS favour the South-East of England over Scotland, hands-down. Scotland is *not* the same country as England. it is a completely separate culture. It doesn't even really share a language, something I can attest since it took me a good 2-3 years to learn Scots (in particular Glaswegian dialect). Scotland has never, and can never be practically and well governed from London. It's just too far away and too different in both culture and needs.

The parties in Holyrood NOT in favour of Independence are not Scottish parties. They're Westminster parties. They're predominately English parties. They answer to London, not to Scotland. And they're against Scotland, with all her mineral and natural resources going off on her own.
But no, no bias there at all, is there? I'm sure they *really* have the best interests of Scotland and her people at heart, don't they.
The question keeps coming up "Can Scotland afford independence?". I think the real question is "Can England afford Scotland to be independent?", and I think the answer from the London mob is "We don't know, so why risk it".
Well tough.
Strict neutrality 12:43pm on 02 Nov 2008 @#148
Sir, whilst I recognise the importance of defence contracts for the various employers we have in Scotland, nonetheless I feel that in an independent Scotland, assisting in the manufacture of nuclear weaponry, or the outfitting of vessels that are used for such purposes is a moral and ethical wrong. There are more important things than money.

On an aside, since it has been official UK Govt. policy since at least the 1950's o deny contracts to the Scottish shipyards in preference to the English ones, because "We don't want Glasgow being the Empire's second city, now do we?", I think with the freshness of thinking that inevitably will arrive with independence, we can rebuild the industries to a degree, taking on contracts that previously would have gone elsewhere due to the UK Govt's "help".

On a further note, I personally see nothing wrong with participating in nuclear-powered vessel outfiting/building. Whilst I don't think we should have nuclear power here in Scotland (the costs & risks outweigh the benefits since we're already an energy exporter), if another nation wants a dinghy that glows, good for them, we can help them build it. Just as long as they don't carry nuclear weaponry.
Sooner or later 8:34pm on 01 Sep 2008 Hmmm, an interesting by-election this could turn out to be.

As anyone who has read any of my previous comments will be aware, I am a (proud) member of the SNP, so please bear my bias in mind.

That being said, I feel the SNP will probably win this one. I say that not out of political loyalty, merely because I honestly believe that whilst Labour have managed to turn things around a teensy bit since the summer when constant think pieces on Gordon being given the boot were circulating, they still haven't managed to really come back all that much.

The SNP on the other hand keep going from strength to strength. Wee Eck is untouchable. Nothing short of a major sex scandal involving at least 5 sheep, a corruption scandal (involving him selling arms nukes to Iran) or reports that he's really an activist for the BNP can rattle him now (I hasten to add none of these are true. That I know of.) Moreover the general mood of the country seems to be far more positive than before the SNP got in, with feelings that despite the economic situation being grim, at least we've got Holyrood there to try and defend us from the Wombles of Westminster.

All the polls show the SNP in a pretty strong position with Peter Grant being well respected in the area, and Labour either pulling another teacher out of school to play in the Big Boy's Playground (and the some-time future Ambassador to Malawi will tell you how well that ends), or some unknown fruit-in-a-suit that'll get slaughtered in any debates they enter into with Grant.

Wonder if they'll hold a General Election in the spring or if we'll get a snap one in January. I'm guessing January to try and hold the "festive" spirit. You know, "season of Goodwill" and all that, rather than "season of Give Labour a Well Deserved Shafting".
If the new PM actually holds one that is. Odds are about equal they'll try and hold out till 2010. 'Course, as someone else pointed out, GB might well go to Lizzie before he can get pushed...
Fifer through and through 10:37pm on 13 Aug 2008 I too did not not know the man; I only moved to Scotland a few years ago, and would have had little chance to get to know the man, being that I have never visited Fife (apparently it is lovely; time has meant I have yet to experience it!).

However, what moved me to post was the remarkable courtesy shown by the other posters here in their lack of political remarks, and their genuine statements of condolences for a man whom many would have regarded as a bitter enemy.

From the accounts of all concerned, from all colours of the political spectrum, John MacDougall was a decent, honest, and honourable man; Fife, and I expect the wider world particularly Westminster, is a sadder place without him.

I too second the motion that another thread be started for the inevitable discourse from those not so enamoured with honour and courtesy as those who have already posted.
Out of the loop - into the noose 12:54pm on 05 Aug 2008 Ed (90): Get a good Bruichladdich, it'll see you right; tis the only Islay malt that's not owned by one of the London companies. Don't give more money to them scoundrels!

I find myself concurring with oldnat (61)'s post; we can all (mostly) agree on those principals.

Labour's main problem here is that despite being the ones that brought devolution to Scotland, the vast majority havenae yet woken up to the facts about what Devolution means.
I suspect the late lamented Dewar had an inkling but wisely kept shtum.

Devolution was a gamble by Labour; a way of turning aside the anti-westminster voices of the 80's who could say "How is this democratic? We've got no MP's in government at all".
It was also a way of killing Scottish Nationalism dead. After all, most Scots didn't want independence, and throw the dog a bone and it'll shut up.

Sadly (for them, not us dear reader) that's not the way things have gone. Having started to see what a real government can do from Holyrood, limited in powers though it is, the People's appetites have been whetted.

More and more people are realising that far from "we cannae dae it", we CAN do it. Just there's a couple of roadblocks in the path to success.

What Labour are not getting (although some might be waking up, well after the horse has bolted) is that a lot of people are saying "Here, hang on. We voted Labour for 50 years, and we're worse off now than ever; gangs, drugs, knives etc. are at their worst in decades. Why should we vote Labour again?". They're starting to say "hmm, these SNP aren't all raving mad power-hungry nazi's, and they won't just bend over when London says "now".".

In short, it is my belief that people are now seeing Labour as one of those roadblocks. And quite a few, growing daily, are seeing Westminster as another roadblock, one that needs wound-up and removed to get this country going.

It's pretty obvious to every man and his dog Cameron is the next PM; the odds the bookie will give you don't make it worth the bet.
And this will scare the "undecideds" away from a "NO" vote in the referendum. That vote might not have happened were it not for Bendy Wendy. But thanks to her blithering incompetence a referendum WILL happen; might not happen in 2010, but if it's 2012 then fair enough, the People have waited 301 years, then can wait 2 more. But it will happen. And thanks to Labour's incompetence stretching to the Thames, the Tories will be sitting in London with one, hell maybe even two Scottish MP's. And that'll scare the bejusus out of the core-labour voters in Glasgow and elsewhere; scare what few remain into voting SNP in 2011 and voting yes in the one that counts.

For fans of Red Dwarf out there: "SMUG MODE"!
Will they, won't they? 1:29pm on 25 Jul 2008 Excellent result, great for the SNP and great for Glasgow East; an SNP MP will actually try and help the area, not just swan off down to London and return to their South-side palace once a month.

Think Brown is a bit dead in the water. The only question now is when will a general election come? Will Labour hold it sooner, hoping to get in before the coming recession really makes things bad? Or will they "weather the storm", hoping to come out ahead in 2010?
Difficult to say.

I'm gonna take a guess that they'll try to "weather the storm", and as usual cock it up, falling sometime next year, possibly calling an election for May, more likely an October Revolution.

Oh, and No. 5 (GlasgowGooner):
I personally feel we have some very talented and charismatic politicians here in Scotland. Alex Salmond comes to mind, along with a lot of other SNP MSP's. But, as the old adage goes, either put up, or shut up. If you think you can do better, join the party of your choice, make a new one or become an "independent", and put your name on the ballot. Let the people decide if you're right, and you're the sole voice of care in an ocean of self-serving viperous politicians, or if they think you're just one more fruit for the cake.

I would rather someone voted BNP than not voted at all. Obviously I'd rather they voted for a real party instead of the British Nazi Party. But expressing a vote is better than not. People died for your right to vote. So even if it's for yourself, or the Monster Raving delegate, vote. It's the right thing to do.

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MathCampbell