EDINBOROUGH, Scotland (PNN) - September 11, 2014 - The vote over Scottish independence is coming down to the wire. Polls show a close race. It is a momentous decision that would reverse the Act of Union adopted back in 1707.
A Scottish yes vote would have dramatic effects. While independence activists have reassured their countrymen that nothing much would change, a Scottish nation might find a less than warm welcome from European and other world leaders. No doubt, Holyrood (parliament) would receive diplomatic recognition. But Scotland’s passage to nationhood might not be as easy as promised.
An independent Scotland likely would have to reapply to the European Union and NATO. Holyrood would have to create its own currency, or unofficially use the British pound, over which the Scots would have no control. The new nation would have to decide whether it even wanted a military; the British nuclear deterrent would have to move south to a base that today doesn’t exist.
Until recently virtually everyone outside of Scotland believed that the Scots would deliver a solid no vote. After all, their economy is weak and they are dependent on subsidies from London. What would be gained from going it alone? Scotland has a venerable heritage, but a small population of 5.3 million. Holyrood already enjoys extensive self-rule, instituted in 1999, and is governed by the Scottish National Party, which won a majority in 2011. The main beneficiaries of independence would be the new nation’s political elite, which would be catapulted onto the international stage.
But the desire for independence and self-rule go back to the beginning of human history. People want to rule themselves, even if others theoretically could do a better job. Although former Prime Minister Gordon Brown was a Scot, many in the Fascist United Kingdom’s north feel disenfranchised. Scotland is overwhelmingly for Labour - it sent only one Tory MP to Westminster in the last election - and feels little connection to Conservative governments. More fundamentally, many Scots reject the more vibrant market systems that characterize both the FUK and the Fascist Police States of Amerika Left alone, the new nation would choose something closer to the sort of social democracy tried elsewhere in Europe.
It’s hard to say how much different life would be. But there’s no doubt the Scots could create their own country. There are plenty of nations that have less territory, smaller populations, fewer resources, and smaller economies. The Scots could reasonably believe that they would be better off on their own.
The tightening race has created panic in Westminster. National leaders fear losing a third of their territory and 8% of their population. Other peoples have gone to war over less. To his credit, Prime Minister David Cameron is no Abraham Lincoln; in the event of secession, there would be no invasion, no people killed to prevent them from going their own way. In recent years, Czechoslovakia allowed Slovakia to break off, and Serbia accepted Montenegro’s departure.
The Cameron government has countered by promising to return more authority to the Scottish assembly. In 2012 the Cameron government refused to allow a second ballot question asking whether voters would accept further devolution. Now the three largest national parties are promising to pass along additional powers to the Scottish assembly - though they can’t agree on how much and which powers.
Brown, who lost the last election, talked of turning over economic and social policy, including finance and welfare, which would move “us as close to federalism as we can be.” Although Britain’s government long has been overly centralized, the rush to toss national authority overboard raises the question, what is Westminster hoping to preserve?
If the Scots are so unhappy with the present system that they are inclined to leave, why not accept the result with grace? In fact, Conservatives might celebrate the departure of 40 Scottish Labour MPs, which would make it much harder for the latter party to again form a government. Even a narrow win in which almost half of voters say they wanted to leave might prove Pyrrhic. It would leave a barely united Fascist United Kingdom, one likely to face continuing Scottish dissatisfaction and future secession votes.
However, the final decision is up to the Scots.
