WAY back about a year ago there was a strong feeling amongst your readers that the circumstances with which we were having to cope were akin to those prevailing during the years of World War Two. I did a series of contributions which you kindly published in these pages; can I go back there for a couple of comparisons?
Way back in the seventies I recall standing on the edges of a crowd of voters in Tay Street in Perth, one Friday afternoon, awaiting the announcement of the results of the previous day’s vote on the future of Scottish politics. I found myself standing, quite by chance, next to the gentleman who was the county councillor for the area where I lived. He had held his seat on the council for more than 40 years and was what would now be looked upon as a “True Blue Tory Unionist”. He leaned over to me and said, “We [meaning Scotland] are not going to make it, are we?”
The point of all this of course is that here were two people of diametrically opposed political views who could talk to each other with total respect for the other person’s point of view, without the aggro and lack of integrity which pollutes the activities of too many of the people involved in politics today. I would never have doubted his sincerity in any political argument which might have arisen between us.
We go from that to the present day. I have watched with increasing despair and anger the considerable efforts which the representatives of the three Unionist parties at Holyrood have made to try and score points against the First Minister and the Scottish Government.
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The big difference between wartime and now is that during the conflict we were fighting against a foe which had the ability, should it prevail, to inflict monstrous damage on our lives. At that time we had a coalition government in which all parties took part and did their bit on the same side.
This pandemic has the capability to do similar damage to our lives and wellbeing. What do we have? A rat-bag of pro-Union spokespeople doing nothing but a disservice to the Scottish people. The Green party alone comes over as a responsible organisation, able to make points, where relevant, in its dealings with the Scottish Government. Scotland deserves better than this.
George M Mitchell
Dunblane
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