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Why do some
people fear independence? Fear of the unknown for a start; not just
fear of what things will be like, but fear of the whole process of
getting there. Ask a person to support independence and he panics to
think that he will have to be the one to work it all out. People don’t
pay proper attention to the Civil Service, which has shown itself well
able to make parties’ fantasies work in practice, and has enabled very
stupid and inadequate politicians to hold offices for which they lack
all relevant talents and knowledge. In forgetting this experienced
machine at the disposal of any government of the day; people can’t see
how the change we propose can be made. All they know is that they
couldn’t do it themselves and so they fear it can’t be done at all.
Then there is the good
old Scottish guilt complex - Calvinist or Catholic, it’s there - that
independence for Scots is somehow a slap in the face for the English,
and that they can be relied upon to retaliate. How we will be made to
suffer! Better not take such risks.
Then of course causes
other than national independence engage the emotional commitment of
many. For some it is an economic doctrine. For some it is class
rivalry merging into another kind of fear and hatred. For some it is
the fear of the loss of their childhood loyalties — the Empire,
Jubilees, Coronations, VE day, VJ day and above all The War. Britain,
in other words, is meaningful, even when it is pretty much England in
its Sunday suit.
It is obviously
difficult to eradicate all this fear. Better try to invite attention
to things as they will be if independence comes. Why on earth has it
seemed so difficult for us to give coherent and convincing
presentation of a situation which is perfectly simply to envisage?
No doubt money will be
mentioned early in any such discussion. Would you not feel pleased if
you had to send no money to the London Treasury any more? Or if you
had no obligation to contribute to any of the British government’s
many irrelevant and self-indulgent projects? Make out your own list to
illustrate the point and it will be more than sufficient to dwarf the
Holyrood construction costs which as you know, have become one more
excuse for fear.
There is more to our
case than pointless payments. The Union leads us to cling to the
notion that we are obliged to play an active role in any international
dispute or conflict which may arise. Show British leaders some such
crisis and they will throw money and service personnel at it, and the
wasted money and lives are ours. Have you ever wondered how the same
crisis is viewed in, say, Slovakia? Slovenia? Estonia? Finland?
Ireland? When you observe their balanced and detached calm what
emotion do you feel? Resentment? Envy?
England’s problem is
the folk memory of Britannia ruling the waves and the sun never
setting on the pink-coloured tracts on the map and Lord Palmerston
keeping foreigners in their place. It seems too much to hope that
England will ever fully accept its diminished importance, which should
long ago have been rewarded by greatly diminished obligations. No
doubt their obstinacy is encouraged by the fact that the French are as
daft as themselves. Let them punish their people in pursuit of
prestige and posturings at the Security Council. For Scotland,
independence whatever other benefits it may bring, will end automatic
involvement in wars. Only independence can guarantee such immunity. |
