How much time do I have to answer this question and give all the reasons I can think of that makes me believe Scotland should be independent? Well, here goes.
At the beginning of the last century there were only 20 separate countries in Europe, mostly part of big empires like Russia, Turkey, Austria and Germany. Now there are about 40 independent countries in Europe, and none of them has ever asked to be taken back by their former ‘boss’. Nope, not one. Has Ireland asked Britain to take her back? No way! Has Poland asked to become part of Russia again? No! Has Norway rejoined Sweden? No! So all these countries have tasted independence and liked it. I don’t see why Scotland should be any different. You ask if we could cope. I presume you mean financially. Well, since I mentioned Norway, let’s consider that country. Like Scotland, they discovered oil off their coast, but instead of allowing it to be frittered away by their neighbours, (like Scottish oil has been on illegal wars to amke the British Prime Minister feel important) they invested it in an oil fund, which is now worth $400 billion! You do the maths. If there are 4 million people in Norway, that’s about $1 000 for everyone, isn’t it?
Ah, but the oil off the Scottish coast is nearly all gone, you might say. No, it’s not, and even if it is half gone, there’s still a heck of a lot of money left. And it’s not just the oil. We produce enough food to feed ourselves (unlike England) and then there’s the potential for renewable energy- wind and tide power. It’s estimated that we have about half of the renewable energy reserves for the whole of Europe! I could go on and on, but let me ask you one last question. If Scotland gets such a great deal from being part of the United Kingdom, how is it that of all the countries in Europe, Scotland is the only one in the past 60 years that has had its population stick at 5 and a bit million? In 1950, that was the population of Scotland. It was also roughly the population of Finland, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland. Now these countries’ populations have risen to 6, 6, 7 and 6. So why has that happened? It can’t be that Scottish people have stopped having children. It’s because people have had to leave Scotland to get better chances elsewhere, and that’s not a problem in other countries like Finland, Denmark, etc. Of course, some people will also leave because they want to explore the world, but the difference between Scotland and these other countries is that when they’re older a lot of Danes, Finns etc are able to come back and get good jobs. Obviously that’s not happening in Scotland. People leave and don’t come back, even if they want to. Oh yes, sometimes they come back to die, after they have spent their working life abroad. But that’s no good for Scotland. So next time someone tells you that Scotland is getting such a great deal out of being part of the United Kingdom, just say to them:’If it’s so great for Scotland, how are a large number of our people leaving and not coming back? That doesn’t happen in other countries.’
How much time do I have to answer this question and give all the reasons I can think of that makes me believe Scotland should be independent? Well, here goes.
At the beginning of the last century there were only 20 separate countries in Europe, mostly part of big empires like Russia, Turkey, Austria and Germany. Now there are about 40 independent countries in Europe, and none of them has ever asked to be taken back by their former ‘boss’. Nope, not one. Has Ireland asked Britain to take her back? No way! Has Poland asked to become part of Russia again? No! Has Norway rejoined Sweden? No! So all these countries have tasted independence and liked it. I don’t see why Scotland should be any different. You ask if we could cope. I presume you mean financially. Well, since I mentioned Norway, let’s consider that country. Like Scotland, they discovered oil off their coast, but instead of allowing it to be frittered away by their neighbours, (like Scottish oil has been on illegal wars to amke the British Prime Minister feel important) they invested it in an oil fund, which is now worth $400 billion! You do the maths. If there are 4 million people in Norway, that’s about $1 000 for everyone, isn’t it?
Ah, but the oil off the Scottish coast is nearly all gone, you might say. No, it’s not, and even if it is half gone, there’s still a heck of a lot of money left. And it’s not just the oil. We produce enough food to feed ourselves (unlike England) and then there’s the potential for renewable energy- wind and tide power. It’s estimated that we have about half of the renewable energy reserves for the whole of Europe! I could go on and on, but let me ask you one last question. If Scotland gets such a great deal from being part of the United Kingdom, how is it that of all the countries in Europe, Scotland is the only one in the past 60 years that has had its population stick at 5 and a bit million? In 1950, that was the population of Scotland. It was also roughly the population of Finland, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland. Now these countries’ populations have risen to 6, 6, 7 and 6. So why has that happened? It can’t be that Scottish people have stopped having children. It’s because people have had to leave Scotland to get better chances elsewhere, and that’s not a problem in other countries like Finland, Denmark, etc. Of course, some people will also leave because they want to explore the world, but the difference between Scotland and these other countries is that when they’re older a lot of Danes, Finns etc are able to come back and get good jobs. Obviously that’s not happening in Scotland. People leave and don’t come back, even if they want to. Oh yes, sometimes they come back to die, after they have spent their working life abroad. But that’s no good for Scotland. So next time someone tells you that Scotland is getting such a great deal out of being part of the United Kingdom, just say to them:’If it’s so great for Scotland, how are a large number of our people leaving and not coming back? That doesn’t happen in other countries.’
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