Reporter, The Times and Sunday Times I no longer use X. Try me at @Leaskyd.bsky.social or on david.leask@thetimes.co.uk
Scotland
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I think people who use X for work do need to let people know they won’t be readily available on this platform. I’m still here if you need to DM. But *obviously* this site is rapidly losing its usefulness for reporters and, like many others, I’m no longer spending much time here.
Rumour has it you don’t have tell everyone you’re leaving twitter. Like apparently you don’t need an official statement. You can just simply not log on.
Breaking news, more as we have it.
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Musk was effectively paying a fascist troll to a salary to spread race hate and abuse. At what point is twitter, as a publisher which financially incentivises incitement to violent crime, held legally responsible?
The bloke behind this account was jailed for 3 years today. Came out in interview he was making £1400 per month from X.
Yip, he was being paid to post his vile filfh.
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The Times, in a leader column, is suggesting readers stop donating to Amnesty.
thetimes.co.uk/article/1a05d…
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“I do my own research online” are literally the most terrifying and dangerous words of the 21st century.
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Read an interview with Nicola Sturgeon. Or don’t. Agree with her. Or don’t. But take your naff & misogynist wee Jimmy Krankie memes & your “boycott the press” threats and fuck right off. The comments below this tweet are honkin. This bile is shaming. It lowers all of us.
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Amid all the daft patter about “one party states” and “dictatorships”, we should take a moment to remember we live in a country whose leader can be grilled all day by her opponents on live TV and under oath.
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Scottish visitors to Spain, of course, are all culture-vulture cosmopolitans who shun the fried breakfasts, burned beer bellies and bar brawls of the unlettered Saxons in favour of Lorca readings, pintxo sampling and binge-watching Cuéntame cómo pasó .
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The fact this one Britain one nation mob didn’t know (or care) that Scottish kids are heading off on their summer holidays somewhat undermines their premise.
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Hello!!! It’s Orkney, Shetland and Faroe. Not Orkneys, Shetlands and Faroes. We don’t call your islands Britains.
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U.K. schools are being asked to celebrate “one Britain one nation” day on an actual day when Scottish schools are either already shut for the summer holidays or preparing to do so. That’s a metaphor for British nationalism if ever there was one.
We're encouraging schools across the UK to celebrate One Britain One Nation Day on 25 June, when children can learn about our shared values of tolerance, kindness, pride and respect.
#OBONDAY21 @1Britain1Nation
For more information:
onebritainonenation.com/
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A Russian tried and failed to lure Scottish nationalists to Moscow. He has now been formally linked to Putin’s secret police. It’s, well, a big deal. heraldscotland.com/politics/….
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If GB News was a normal, functioning news organisation, a kind older exec, probably in a grey cardigan, would be taking Tom aside and explaining to him why his career is over.
EXCL: I have obtained an image of Sue Gray - whose report criticised the Downing Street drinking culture - singing karaoke at a boozy Whitehall pre-pandemic bash.
The picture reveals the senior civil servant enjoying the same karaoke machine cited in her own report.
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.@alisonthewliss worked across parties to try to close mass money-laundering loopholes in UK corporate law. Most people, not least abusive hyper-partisan online knuckleheads, never achieve anything like that. Being an MP is a real job.
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GB News gets just a fifth as many viewers as kids’ cartoon Paw Patrol……in Welsh. nation.cymru/news/gb-news-tr…
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Trump said the news media are 'enemies of the American people'. He said: "It is frankly disgusting the press is able to write whatever it wants to write. People should look in to it.' He called journalists 'dishonest people'. Keep your thoughts and prayers to yourself, Donald.
Prior to departing Wisconsin, I was briefed on the shooting at Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. Thank you to all of the First Responders who are currently on the scene.
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This is a massive endorsement for independence and a remarkable end to usually fractious and difficult GERS week.
I keep getting asked about my views on Scottish independence. So are it is. I'm for it. Why? Because the UK growth model is unsustainable and Scotland can do better than simply subsist on inter-regional transfers. This piece tipped me over the edge: thetimes.co.uk/article/scotl…
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Your periodic reminder that there are more Scots speakers than SNP voters and that Ian Smart - in a very strong field - is one of the least credible trolls on Scottish Twitter.
This woman can speak perfectly good English. She is speaking this parody of a dialect in a conscious effort to make incomers feel unwelcome. But then, as a nationalist that is hardly surprising.
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Pogrom. There is a a holiday let owner in Edinburgh who thinks this is an appropriate word to use to describe regulation of airbnbs. And this gets quoted as if it’s not a batshit thing to say? What an unserious country we are becoming.
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Scots trust Holyrood to stop new virus wave, but not Westminster heraldscotland.com/news/1845…
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Adam Boulton on Sky yesterday suggested devolved nations had “refused to follow the lead” of No 10 on Covid. I know the pile-on right now is directed at Sarah Smith for getting in a guddle but Sky’s mistaken assumption U.K. has a “lead” suggests a deeper knowledge deficit on devo
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Colleagues at @Scotnational have been denied access to the Prime Minister today. I hope @nujscotland and London colleagues can show some solidarity with our paper on this. It's not OK. thenational.scot/news/172597…
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MI5 chiefs ‘do not trust’ Priti Patel with their secrets
thetimes.co.uk/article/mi5-c…
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Alexei Navalny faces ten years in prison ‘as world looks away’
thetimes.co.uk/article/802db…
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Here is page 1 of The Herald. We don't threaten judges or demean them. We report what they rule and how others respond to this.
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Don’t have sex with locals or livestock, Wagner Group tells recruits
thetimes.co.uk/article/69757…
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I see some U.K. commentators are once again declaring that Orkney and Shetland will break away from an Indy Scotland because they are somehow not Scottish. This is fantasy. Let’s look at why.
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Britain? Is that still a thing? Cos the noises you hear from some middle-class Scots who voted “head over heart” for the union in 2014 suggests it might not be.
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One of the weirdest things about central belt/ English patter about Highlands/Islands is the idea that it is a “wilderness” where you can disappear rather than communities where every granny will know what you had for breakfast by lunchtime. Want to vanish? Go to London/Glasgow.
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Mr Raab attended a 400-year-old selective grammar school in Buckinghamshire followed by both Oxford and Cambridge universities.
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Advice to young journalists: It’s OK not to have a hot take on stuff in the news about things, people or countries you don’t know anything about.
Reminder: the Union held a conclusive and growing lead in Scottish polls through 2017.
Things began to turn south when Remain campaigners legitimised the idea of re-running referendums.
telegraph.co.uk/politics/202…
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Your periodic reminder that attacking linguistic minority isn’t any different to attacking any other minority. This patter is straight from European far-right central casting - even down to the cliche-ridden assault on the (unionist-inspired) policies on road signs.
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So many politicians and political staffers on here clearly shaken by another of their number murdered. I think this is a good time to remind them that we appreciate them and the work they do for our democracy and that we wish them both safety and peace.
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Neil Oliver has resigned from Scotland’s national academy after being told his TV rants lwere at odds with scientific and academic values. heraldscotland.com/news/2377…
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Journalism. Please don’t do it if you think Wikipedia is a source. Just give up. It’s not a career for you.
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I know it’s fun dunking on this contrarian, rightist gobshite but isn’t it still fascinating that Scotland, in the imaginations some English people, is just an extension of “it’s grim up north”?
I grew up in Scotland. I trained as a tabloid reporter in Glasgow. Don’t tell me what tough looks like.
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I was at the fanzone in Glasgow last night talking to folk.. 1/ Most everybody was supporting Italy. 2/ Most everybody said they liked Southgate and his players but didn’t like arrogant TV commentators. 3/ Nobody seemed remotely interested in indyref politics. 4/ It was fun.
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I’m fascinated by internationalist rhetoric about “nationalism” from politicians whose internationalism doesn’t extend to being curious about what drives independence movements in other counties. Can you be internationalist If you’re so obviously not interested in other nations?
Lisa Nandy's comments about Catalonia are of course appalling but symptomatic of a wider/deeper ignorance on the Brit left, which is ironic as they are always framed as "internationalist" - solidarity seems completely absent ...
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I’m still trying to figure out why Penny thinks her being im the navy (or pretending to be) will save the union. I mean, the deputy leader of the snp was a commando in the falklands and that hasn’t delivered independence.
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Upbeat Election summary. 1. Democrats like Sturgeon, Sarwar and others personally stood up to fascists and racists. 2. Fascists, racists and other bigots humiliated at polls. 3. Fringe chauvinistic yoon/nat parties fronted by Putin TV hosts “bomb”. Not bad, Scotland.
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Ah, the old "Your nationalism is bad, my nationalism is patriotism" line.
Nationalism and patriotism very different, says Ruth Davidson in attack on SNP heraldscotland.com/news/1528…
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Poet, Len Pennie, leaves Twitter after hate campaign
thetimes.co.uk/article/cdadf…
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It’s funny, isn’t it, how nobody ever complains about giant road signs covered in, say, information about attractions? It’s almost as if it’s something else that triggers internet bigots.
He’s quite right. I’ve just spent a week driving in the Highlands, on roads long since unfamiliar to me, and the split second extra it takes to find the placename in English, especially approaching a roundabout, takes your eye off the road for longer and potentially dangerously.
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Mancunians burst in to spontaneous applause as city's Sikh community march through centre carrying "we love Manchester" banners.
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I try to avoid technical terms but these men are, in political argot, what is known as complete fannies.
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Poll: Clear majority of Scots say independence better than Brexit heraldscotland.com/news/1728…
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Scotland nearing 'total elimination' of new Covid infections heraldscotland.com/news/1857…
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The Greens are against an unelected head of state, want independence and to challenge the rich? Is poor auld Andrew Neil writing a party political broadcast for them in the Mail?
I feel I need to salute, stand to an anthem, SOMETHING. I also feel deeply seen: dailymail.co.uk/news/article…
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It’s hard to overstate how much shite Douglas Murray spouts about Scotland. He suggests there wound be an “uproar” if a Christian leader was photographed observing their faith. Yet, in fact, this is routine in Holyrood and passes by un-noticed. parliament.scot/-/media/file…
Another deranged clip of Douglas Murray where he again attacks former First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf for being a practising Muslim
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"I'm not racist but [insert name of minority here] are getting something while [insert unrelated problem here]"
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We are today naming a Scottish accountant who set up firms used to launder $7 billion of dirty money out of Russia. Thread.heraldscotland.com/news/1623…
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Lennie Pennie: I'm so bored of unsolicited sexual comments heraldscotland.com/politics/…
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Ardern began her victory speech in Maori. What would happen if a victorious Scottish politician did the same in Gaelic? Signposts and police cars logos might be free and easy but substantive linguistic inclusion remains elusive in this country compared with others.
"Tonight's result has been strong and it is clear that Labour will lead the government for the next three years."
Labour leader Jacinda Ardern has delivered her victory speech to a rapturous audience.
More updates here: rnz.co.nz/news/national/4285…
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The Majority is basically a sort of unionist Wings Over Scotland for sectarian football thugs who are now too fat to fight and get red-faced online instead.
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There really are no-go areas in Scotland, so that Tory MSP fella is right. Private school no-go areas, gents-only golf no-go areas etc etc.
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Just happened upon some carers helping their charges on public transport. Watching them was like a getting a free master class in emotional intelligence and practical teaching. Low skilled? Pffft.
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The politics of glass houses. Glasgow Tory leader apologises for Covid rule breach hours after criticising SNP council leader (who it turns out hadn’t actually broken rules) for same. heraldscotland.com/news/1870…
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I’ve never even been to a bookies to place a bet but we seem determined to to conflate folk having a legal flutter with illegal or unethical exploitation of inside information. Which means we miss the point of the actual scandal.
BREAKING: Alex Cole-Hamilton has said he placed bets on LibDem General Election candidates.
He said none were to do with election timing and that he's broken no rules.
Story to follow.
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Trial to insulate Glasgow tenement block led to 'astounding' drop in fuel bills heraldscotland.com/news/2380…
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"We are all Scots; the world is becoming a good place". One of Italy's most influential commentators Giuliano Ferrara getting behind Indy.
Siamo tutti olandesi, hawaiani, scozzesi. Il mondo torna a essere un bel posto. Però vado a Parigi. Vediamo se maggio sarà radioso #vediamo
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Opinion: Neil Mackay: No matter how much Sturgeon denies it, the
Edinburgh outbreak looks like a cover-up heraldscotland.com/news/1844…
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Scottish Government backs the right of the Catalan people to determine their own future thenational.scot/news/156250…
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Too many people think the problem with bloggers like Wings etc is the “abuse”. Sure, the abuse is bad. But we should be much more worried by the development of an alternative reality in which, as an eg, you can lose a court case but somehow convince your online fans you won it.
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Tech guy who spews Putin talking points keeps saying he is “paying attention” on Ukraine
Same tech guy reveals he can’t even be bothered googling the meaning, origin and spelling of one of the most ubiquitous bits of jargon in the xUSSR.
Another gobshite.
Case in point. Apparently “vatnick” is some kind of Ukrainian slur. Since I’m an American, I could care less what they call me. But by all means keep attacking Americans on social media, it will really endear us to your cause.
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'Without slavery Glasgow wouldn't exist': The brutal truth about Scotland's slaving past heraldscotland.com/news/1850…
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New British plane carefully camouflaged for stealth flights during Orange Walks, Royal Wedding street parties and Rangers matches.
The new colour scheme for the Eurofighter Typhoons @RAFConingsby is being revealed
bbc.in/LincolnshireNews
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I just googled the speeds of Tour de France racers. If this Tory MSP is right, Scotland has a mahoosive drugs cheating issue among cycle commuters.
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Putin’s Sputnik is pulling out of Scotland. Moscow bosses have axed the Edinburgh-HQed operation, we reveal in The Times today, amid a “hostile” environment. Looks like to failed to make an impact. thetimes.co.uk/article/russi…
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The chap indicted is called Alexander Ionov. He is accused of recruiting separatists from us states - California, Texas and Florida - and using them in the interests of Russia. He and they deny this. bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-cana…
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Record level of independence support in major annual survey heraldscotland.com/politics/…
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A lesson from Catalonia for Scotland & its minority languages? Bilingually taught Catalan kids score higher than Castillian ones in Spanish.
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In today's "no shit, Sherlock' news: 'No reason' independent Scotland would fail to join EU heraldscotland.com/news/1508…
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So there was no kid who identified as a cat in this English case. Just as there was no kid who identified as a cat in Scotland earlier this year. Or in any other place where this weird viral lie has been told.
For a week now the combined forces of media, Government and press plus a baroness and a comedian.... have been going after a child who "claims she's a cat."
Only it's not true. Its a lie and a cover for hate and transphobia.
Our exclusive story here bylinetimes.com/2023/06/22/d…
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Lib Dem MP: I would rather no-deal Brexit than Jeremy Corbyn as PM heraldscotland.com/news/1794…
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The deeply prejudiced and stunningly ignorant subset of unionists abusing @Lenniesaurus & disparaging the speech of their neighbours are not new but they appear to be growing in confidence. It’s time mainstream unionists stood up to knuckle-dragging linguaphobic thugs. 1/
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Last year I called the blog @themajorityscot “British nationalists” in a column. Following a an investigation by the independent newspaper watchdog, I wish to amend my description. 1/- ipso.co.uk/rulings-and-resol…
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Spain investigating Catalan president for illegally trying to organise an indyref? Yup. In the EU. In 2015.
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Online extremists orchestrated a mass write-in opposing Police Scotland’s modest Gaelic Plan, a legal obligation under unionist legislation. It’s time for pro-U.K. parties to act on this prejudice in the ranks of their online supporters.
thetimes.co.uk/article/74676…
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Just heard convo between OAP couple. Woman: "Labour are sticking by this Sturgeon thing." Man: "That's them finished then."
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Nearly two-thirds of Scots think our country will be independent one day - with 59% expecting an #indyref2 within five years , according to a new poll. heraldscotland.com/news/1753…
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Twitter should disable the accounts of people who falsely claim the complainers in unsuccessful sex crime prosecutions are “proven false witnesses” or “liars” or “conspirators” unless these complainers are convicted of perjury or another crime in relation to their testimony. 1/
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Scotland is one weird news market. It has national press, parly, govt & footy team but a one-hour national telly bulletin is somehow OTT?
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A Scottish newspaper has channeled direct Kremlin messaging right on to its front, page, including key buzzwords. This is an absolutely fascinating case study in how - every now and again - propaganda talking points from authoritarian regimes break in to the mainstream. Thread.
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That time when the new MP for Rochdale denied well documented war crimes carried out by the authoritarian regime whose propaganda TV station paid his bills. And, of course, he got the name of the site of the crimes wrong.
"So I don't believe that Bucha was a war crime I believe it belongs in the long line of false flag operations used to trigger war."
George Galloway probably the next MP for Rochdale 1/2
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Severin is quite right. A number of reporters, writers and editors are leaving The Herald at the end of the year. I’m one of them - I’m going freelance and will still be doing some work for The Herald.
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A reminder: you can always just say Scots isn’t your personal cup of tea and nobody will bat an eyelid. Denying its lingo status is tedious but meaningless. Denying its existence is a bit weird. Saying it’s nationalist or a racist plot makes you look like a drooling fanatic.
Scots language deniers, anti-vaxxers, climate change “skeptics”. At what point do professional bodies and political parties have to take action against those who ignore science and scholarship? Because judgment this flawed requires consequences.
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Scots language deniers, anti-vaxxers, climate change “skeptics”. At what point do professional bodies and political parties have to take action against those who ignore science and scholarship? Because judgment this flawed requires consequences.
New blog: We need to talk about "Scots". About an overtly racist project hiding in plain view. ianssmart.blogspot.com/2022/…
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I can’t summon up any outrage against Boris Johnson. He’s just a another inadequate, lying gobshite. What we should be angry about is a system that tolerates and sometimes even promotes men of his calibre. We knew what he was. And still he got elected.
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Some Scots are dunking on this exchange about our tedious politics. But is it worth reflecting then on how well British punditry covers places further afield, perhaps outside the English-speaking world? If you can’t get Scotland, what hope do you have to understand, eg, Ukraine?
Nominations have opened for the next leader of the SNP after the resignation of the First Minister Humza Yousaf.
@susannareid100 asks @Kevin_Maguire and @toryboypierce about what this means for Scottish independence.
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That's the Tories topping the polls on Motherwell West with a young woman in Union Jack high heels.
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Iain Macwhirter: It's clear – the Catalans have international law on their side heraldscotland.com/news/home…
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Hi Gordon, Scotland has none of the hallmarks of a totalitarian state. It’s not even a state. So Please don’t say things like this. It spreads ignorance about tyranny, disrespects the victims of real despots, lowers the level of political discourse and “others” opponents. David
Scotland isn’t, however the way @theSNP are governing and the way this enquiry has been treated has all the hallmarks of a totalitarian state.
Remember, Scotland is not the SNP and the SNP is most definitely not Scotland
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