The SNP and growing intimidation

captain cab · **Posted:** Mon Apr 20, 2015 10:37 pm

DOMINIC LAWSON: The Scottish Nasty Party and how its growing intimidation and intolerance of dissent reeks of fascism

The windows of the Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party offices in Aberdeen have been spray-painted with the word 'scum' and the unmistakable sign of the swastika.

The front door has been similarly defaced with a giant letter Q, for Quisling: that is, traitor. Labour Party offices half a mile away were also daubed with similar abuse.

A local Conservative councillor, Ross Thomson, described this as 'the ugly face of nationalism'. This showed restraint on his part.

In his place, I might have pointed out that the political party that actually used the swastika as its emblem was the **** party: short for National Socialist.

And I would have added that supporters of the Scottish National Party — which claims to be to the left of Labour and which is undeniably Nationalist — is increasingly engaged in the kind of street-by-street intimidation of opponents that we would more normally associate with fascists.

I gained some impression of this phenomenon when I spent time in Glasgow during the referendum campaign: but it has got much worse.

SNP activists openly describe how they have been 'hunting' Labour's shadow Scottish secretary, Margaret Curran, by stalking her and then yelling abuse as she tries to talk to electors on the doorstep.

When this was put to the rival SNP candidate in the constituency, Natalie McGarry, she claimed Mrs Curran was a 'fair target for community justice'.

This sinister phrase is nothing less than a defence of the mob.

Vicious

The BBC in Scotland is wearily familiar with similar intimidation — co-ordinated action by so-called cybernats has made the job of its journalists increasingly unenviable.

Its correspondent James Cook complained of the 'vicious abuse' he received, merely for reporting the civil service leak of a memo which had suggested that SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon would prefer David Cameron to Ed Miliband as prime minister.

And many other BBC reporters have been targeted, but not complained.

The head of the BBC in Scotland, Donalda MacKinnon, described the cybernat campaign of abuse as 'completely unacceptable'.

'Our journalists are entitled to carry on their work without the threat of unwarranted personal attacks online. The safety of our staff is of paramount concern to us and we are doing everything in our power to ensure they can carry out their work helping to inform our audiences without intimidation and abuse.'

Yet if the SNP had its way, there would be no political independence for the BBC — or any other broadcaster north of what it wants to make a real border.

During the referendum campaign, the then SNP leader Alex Salmond declared: 'I don't think the broadcasting issue in terms of how it treats Scotland will be properly resolved till we have broadcasting under the democratic parliament of Scotland.'

The political control of broadcasters is one of the hallmarks of a dictatorship, whether fascist or communist. Salmond is neither of those: just a consummate opportunist — the hallmark of ultra-nationalist politicians throughout the past century.

Down south, we have not seen Mr Salmond much lately on our TV screens. But he is at least standing for Parliament in the General Election. Not so his successor as First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon.

It is almost incredible how much broadcast airtime she is receiving — there can be no complaint by cybernats about the BBC on that score — given that she is not even standing in the election.

No one can vote for her on May 7 and yet she has been the dominant figure, by some accounts, in the various television leaders' debates in the past fortnight.

That, at least, was the praise accorded her performance by Conservative spin doctors and ministers, after her debating encounters with Ed Miliband.

I can see why Conservatives should want to describe Ms Sturgeon as the tail wagging the Labour Party dog — it fits in with their posters showing a large Ms Sturgeon dangling wires controlling the movements of a tiny Mr Miliband.

But the Tories are playing with fire — indeed, playing games with the Union itself — by making a giant out of someone who, even on the present opinion polls, speaks for barely 4 per cent of the total British electorate.

They could, instead, point out the many ways in which public services — such as education and health — under devolved SNP control in the Scottish parliament have been less successful than under the Conservative-led Government in Westminster.

But Cameron refused to make any such criticism in his one multi-party debating encounter with Ms Sturgeon, because he really wants as many SNP MPs as possible to replace Labour ones in Scotland.

What sort of MPs would they be?

On the current polls, which indicate an almost clean sweep by the SNP, the Labour election campaign co-ordinator and shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander will lose his Renfrewshire seat to a 20-year-old SNP candidate, Mhairi Black.

Ms Black seems an appropriate representative for the cybernats, at least. Among recent tweets she revealed how she fantasised about 'putting the nut' on Labour councillors and posted how she 'woke up beside half a can of Tennent's and a full pizza and more money than I came out with. I call that a success!'

Draconian

Perhaps with such candidates it is not so surprising that the SNP last month passed what has been described as a 'Stalinist' amendment to the party's standing orders.

It states: 'No Member shall, within or without Parliament, publicly criticise a Group decision, policy, or another member of the Group.'

Can you imagine what would be said if the Conservative or Labour Party imposed such a draconian code on its parliamentary candidates?

They would rightly be accused of the most outrageous constraints on the individual conscience of Members of Parliament and an assault on what it means to be a politician in a democracy.

Yet the SNP is not a normal political party. It is more like a cult — and intolerance is one of the chief characteristics of all cults. Naturally, it is as entitled as any other party to be respected for its support among the population: and it clearly has the backing of about 45 per cent of all voting Scots — mirroring the scale of the separatist vote in the referendum campaign.

The people I feel sympathy for are not the English, who might resent the influence of a triumphalist SNP contingent at Westminster. No, the real victims are the majority of Scots who don't agree with them, but are increasingly intimidated into silence by the Scottish Nasty Party.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/artic ... z3Xt5sfTYI

bloodnock · **Joined:** Thu May 03, 2007 8:15 pm **Posts:** 9170

Intolerance of Dissent and Intimidation are the Hallmarks of a party that should never be allowed into a position of power...do we never learn?

Nidge2 · **Posted:** Tue Apr 21, 2015 3:04 pm

bloodnock wrote:

Intolerance of Dissent and Intimidation are the Hallmarks of a party that should never be allowed into a position of power...do we never learn?

Like I've said in previous posts, she's a dangerous woman and is only in it for herself.

Thatcher was dangerous, Sturgeon is on another level.

gusmac · **Posted:** Tue Apr 21, 2015 9:48 pm

I'm all for recycling but you've done this one before. So has the local unionist fraternity. :lol:

viewtopic.php?f=22&t=26672&p=327193#p327193CC

Are you running out of manufactured SNP Nazi stories to post?
Surely not, there are some real howlers around at the moment. :badgrin:

bloodnock · **Joined:** Thu May 03, 2007 8:15 pm **Posts:** 9170

She's like Medusa..avert your gaze before it's to late Gus.

Cabby John 1 · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 11:48 am

All you have is a theoretic situation.

What is there to say that they did not deface their own premises in order to point the finger and garner support. As it stands everyone is now pointing the finger at the SNP = job done for the cost of a drop of paint #-o

Hmmm nice one.....not.

gusmac · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 12:50 pm

Cabby John 1 wrote:

All you have is a theoretic situation.

What is there to say that they did not deface their own premises in order to point the finger and garner support. As it stands everyone is now pointing the finger at the SNP = job done for the cost of a drop of paint #-o

Hmmm nice one.....not.

And to do practically the same thing to both premises, on two separate occasions, just when a bit of "nasty nat" news is required :roll:

Bloodnock, do you have a tin of white spray paint? :lol:

Nidge2 · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 3:45 pm

bloodnock wrote:

She's like Medusa..avert your gaze before it's to late Gus.

She's worse than that.

gusmac · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 4:08 pm

Nidge2 wrote:

bloodnock wrote:

She's like Medusa..avert your gaze before it's to late Gus.

She's worse than that.

She's gonna have more MPs than Farage will in his wettest dream :badgrin:

gusmac · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 4:11 pm

Saw this on FB and wondered if it was you?

Just in case you've ever wondered how one becomes a nobby nae mates, virgin your entire life, this fella's nailed it.

Private Reggie · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 5:19 pm

The fear of pulling England to the Left is the driving force behind the Tory attacks on the SNP, there's also the fear from both Labour and Conservative of running a minority government, it's seems they don't want to go down this road especially as the party that is predicted to have the balance of power is the SNP, a party of the left, they're moving too far right to be pulled in by the power of the left.

Question though, why fear running a minority government? The SNP ran one and very successfully, the outcome at the next Scottish election was an outstanding overall majority, why? The SNP embraced the challenge, they focused on the priorities, they won over public opinion.

The time is right for either Labour or Conservative too run a minority government but they won't, a minority government means being more accountable and transparent and not only the voters but to the other political parties that they will rely on for support, running a government where it has to prove the policy of the day is acting in the best interests of the UK is the way ahead, it worked in Scotland it can work at Westminster.

If the minority government get it wrong they won't last 5 years but if they get it right as the SNP did, at the next GE I can see that minority government getting a massive overall majority again just like the SNP got.

Don't fear it Embrace it :wink:

bloodnock · **Joined:** Thu May 03, 2007 8:15 pm **Posts:** 9170

gusmac wrote:

Cabby John 1 wrote:

All you have is a theoretic situation.

What is there to say that they did not deface their own premises in order to point the finger and garner support. As it stands everyone is now pointing the finger at the SNP = job done for the cost of a drop of paint #-o

Hmmm nice one.....not.

And to do practically the same thing to both premises, on two separate occasions, just when a bit of "nasty nat" news is required :roll:

Bloodnock, do you have a tin of white spray paint? :lol:

Can't afford the Paint mate and Tippex does'nt really stand out :sad:

gusmac · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 6:05 pm

bloodnock wrote:

Can't afford the Paint

Not a problem the average Tory around here would have :wink:

wannabeeahack · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 7:17 pm

The SNP wanted Scottish independence not a few months ago, now they are happy to form a coalition?

She will have Milly Band in a nipple cripple grip, he will need her to get into No 10, she will the want not SCOTTISH rule but UK rule by her minority Non-English party.....if he goes for that just to take government he should be burned at the stake....

gusmac · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 7:45 pm

wannabeeahack wrote:

The SNP wanted Scottish independence not a few months ago, now they are happy to form a coalition?

The SNP already ruled out a coalition before Labour did.

Barely 6 months ago we had the spectacle of Cameron, Milliband and Clegg begging us not to leave the union as we are valued and equal partners in the British family. They got their way didn't they?
Now we are portrayed as some kind of enemy within because we dare vote for someone other than their Westminster Austerity Troika. It seems their equality only applies if we do what they want.

I mean what a frightening thought it must be for the poor English. For people you didn't want and didn't vote for to have any say in the running of OUR country. :shock:

Its been that way up here for decades BTW. Long time since Scotland voted Tory.

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