Ach, hoots mon, ah cannae bide wi' these sassenach bastards!
 

Alright, so someone reminded me of this earlier today and I figured that seeing as we have a few British/Scottish members here it might be worth a discussion. What do you all thing of the quickly approaching referendum for Scotland to declare complete independence from the United Kingdom and go off as its own country retaining strong ties and a monarch with its southern neighbour? Do you feel that a nation with its own strong social and cultural identity as well as a solid economy should be able to choose self-determination over its mother state? Or do you think that nationalism has no place in the modern world and that separation would only serve to make both Scotland and the UK weaker? I'll express my opinions on it when I've sized up the views of the Scots here so I don't get them into some vicious Glaswegian rage.

Links if you're not from the UK and want to know more:

The Wiki article

A guide that's a bit more daring than Wikipedia

Vice on why it would be good & Vice on why it would be bad

Why a lot of Scots don't like being British

Best of luck to Scotland if they want to go down that road. As long as they go it alone, no half way measures. Rebuilding Hadrians wall, and resurrecting the Mosstroopers, will follow.

:)

I guess an independent Scotland would have some kind of a socialist economy? Nationalism in the fervent sense of 19th / early 20th century Europe wouldn't be the case (although literally speaking, SNP + Socialism would be National Socialism :eek:). Any majority in the referendum counts? After reading through these links, an independent Scotland sounds very plausible and palatable to me.

Wow i read the title of this and had 0 idea what this thread was about. Leaving only slightly satisfied.

I think it would be a bad decision if the Scots choose to go it alone, and I think Alex Salmond is just trying to get himself in the history books. He might make sense to a few people in Scotland but he looks and sounds like a fool to everyone else.

Which currency would they use?

How long would it take before they could become members of the EU, and would they all starve to death as they wait?

Scotland already has a massive unemployment problem and if they leave the UK they'll have an even bigger problem with unemployment.

I think the wisest move would be to wait and see what the UK choose to do about being in the EU, I cant see the UK being in the EU in 20 years time and I cant see the EU being anything like it is now in 20 years time.

England and Scotland are joined at the hip and i have a feeling they always will be, and they're both stronger for it.

I don't know too much about him, but I guess he's out to get in the history books.

The Euro.

If that is the case, it's strange that they are constantly looking to encourage more people to emigrate there, they offer all kinds of work permits for foreign graduates there.

I can't see any of this being decided anytime soon. Personally I don't think Scotland will vote to leave the UK.

I'm voting no. There is no reason for us to go independent. Likely it will mean we switch to the euro (if we're able to stay in the EU at all) which will devalue our already weakening currency. Taxation will undoubtedly rise as we will have to fund our own health service, education, public servants, military, etc.
As for reasons to go independent, the only two reasons I can see are a foolish sense of patriotism and more control over the revenue for oil - a finite resource, one which we will run dry 30 years from now.
Also the thought of having Alex Salmond as President, which I am sure would be his job title as he would be our head of state is frightening.

Actually, I'm almost certain the plan would be to keep the Royal Family as the Scottish heads of state in the same way the Commonwealth countries do, so hey, that'll be 20p or so off your annual income tax at least.

Mar fear na hÉireann, tá mé sásta é Éire neamhspleách ó na Sasanach. Ach níl a fhios agam go leor mar gheall ar an cheist na hAlban.



I wish I knew enough on the subject and the implications of it. But I would like to see an independent Scotland,my second name is campbell, so I have ancestral connections with the Dal Riada and Scotti(a Northern Irish Gael tribe) so I guess I kind of romanticise the Gaelic connection between Scotland and Ireland, I would like to see them both independant. Although I am not entirely sure on what they would gain necessarily. I know that when Ireland broke free it was out of necessity, desperation, revolution. However the people of Scotland are not being oppressed by an empire. I think the Union benefits Scotland, and I am worried about them isolating themselves by breaking off.

In today's world breaking off to go independent is not really a very good option. Countries are stronger when being part of a greater whole.