Self-Determination and the Union

Scottish nationalists may have hoped that Scotland would be the next independent country in Europe, but another independence movement has recently come to prominence, threatening to beat them to it. While in Edinburgh five thousand people turned out for a march for independence, reports suggest that one and half million Catalans marched in Barcelona seeking secession from Spain. It may surprise nationalists, but this unionist has a certain amount of sympathy with the Catalans, for the simple reason that I have always believed in the right to self-determination.

Why Independence Is Not a Matter for Children

Recently I came across an old friend of mine from the Aberdeenshire village where I grew up and we got to reminiscing and somehow or other she mentioned a story about the 1979 General Election. She had been a teacher in the primary school and told the story of how an English family arrived in the village, no doubt because of the oil industry. There were very few incomers in those days and the people there universally spoke Doric. Well, it seems one of the children of this family attended the primary school and initially found it quite tough, not only was he mocked for being English, but he could barely understand the language in which he was being mocked.

Did Joe Biden Make a Misstatement About Training of the Afghanistan Forces?

The concept for US and NATO exit of Afghanistan is to train the Afghans themselves to police their country and have their own military to keep out the Taliban and prevent re-infiltration of Al Qaeda as a place of refuge. That won't be so easy even if some claim it is a mission in progress and will be completed in time for troop withdrawal. Not likely, but let's talk about this shall we?

Labor Unions and Ground Game Political Plays for the Obama Campaign Considered

Everyone knows that the Democrats have a very strong get out the vote strategy, they always have. In this way they can amass large numbers of precinct voter drives, or protests when they are needed. Many political pundits and media reporters are wondering if this will be enough to get President Obama reelected on November 1, 2012. Will it be enough, will people get out in mass as they did before to go vote for the Teleprompting Prince? Well, let's discuss this shall we?

What If Scotland Had Voted for Independence in 1997?

Scotland voted for its own parliament in 1997. But what if we had instead voted for independence? This is, of course, what the SNP wanted at the time. How would Scotland's history up until the present day be different if we had made such a choice back then?

Scottish Independence: A Question of Identity

It is becoming clearer, as Scots debate about the independence referendum, that in Scotland there exist different identities. Some people feel wholly Scottish, while some, though very few, feel wholly British. Many people feel both Scottish and British, with a difference in emphasis often depending on context. Watching Scotland attempting to win the Grand Slam in rugby a Scottish spectator may feel entirely Scottish. On the other hand while watching Mo Farah entering the final 100 metres of the Olympic 5000 metres, that same Scot may feel mainly British. Similarly while reflecting on history and literature each Scot's identity may have differences in emphasis. While reflecting on D-Day or the Battle of Britain, a Scot may find the British side of his identity coming to the fore, on the other hand that same Scot could feel especially Scottish when attending a Burns night or listening to traditional Scottish music or reflecting on the tragedy that occurred at Flodden.

The Power of The Powerless - Peace Education for the World

The Power of the Powerless is a unique political essay written in October 1978 by the Czech dissident and politician, Václav Havel. The essay was written during a time of communist oppression, which used various methods to pressure citizens into compliance. In the essay Havel exposes the inner workings of the communist regime at that time and reveals how by nature the regime turns ordinary citizens into dissidents.