Britain is on Borrowed Time: The Future of Scottish Independence
Britain is on Borrowed Time: The Future of Scottish Independence Gerry Hassan Open Democracy, September 19th 2014 Scotland voted No to independence. In answer to the question, ‘Should Scotland be an independent country?’, 1,617,989 voted Yes (44.7%) and 2,001,926 voted No (55.3%) in a massively impressive turnout of 84.6%: the highest ever anywhere in the UK in post-war times. The result, and campaign, will be rightly mulled over and analysed for years, but in the fast moving aftermath it is important to lay down some thoughts and calm-headed thinking. Scotland has changed and shifted in how it sees itself
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A Hopeful Guide to Scotland
A Hopeful Guide to Scotland Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, September 17th 2014 This week, depending on the building US-UK government clamour for more military action in Iraq, Scotland will be the biggest story on the planet. News crews and journalists from all over the world are covering this. Glasgow and Edinburgh hotels are enjoying an unexpected bonanza with high occupancy rates. For at least one week, James Robertson’s famous dictum about ‘The News Where You Are’ will be met by the shock that for a short while, ‘The News Where We Are’ will be the same! It has,
Scotland: On the Eve of a Historic Choice
Scotland: On the Eve of a Historic Choice Gerry Hassan, Caledonian Dreaming: The Quest for a Different Scotland, Luath Press £11.99 Reviewed by Joe Lafferty On the eve of a historic referendum on Scottish independence in September 2014, Gerry Hassan’s Caledonian Dreaming is a landmark book. He articulates, with incisive political and historical analysis, the landscape of what has taken the UK and Scotland to where they are today. And at the same time, this is a profoundly human book. Hassan is no stranger to serious and heavyweight political analysis with a number of books under his belt from The
The Glasgow Games, the Great War and A Requiem for the Post-War Dream
The Glasgow Games, the Great War and A Requiem for the Post-War Dream Gerry Hassan National Collective, August 4th 2014 Two very different tales of a city and a country - Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games followed by the Glasgow Cathedral commemoration of the outbreak of World War One when the UK declared war on Germany. The Commonwealth Games showcased Glasgow on a Scottish, UK and global stage, aided by ‘Team Scotland’s’ best ever haul of medals. The games profiled Glasgow as an international city and tourist destination – a transition which has been underway for at least the last 30 years.
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The Strange Death of Liberal England Continued
The Strange Death of Liberal England Continued Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, July 30th 2014 Liberal England is in a state of confusion. There is the challenge of the Scottish independence referendum, the continued right wing drift of UK politics, and the slow detachment of the UK from the European Union. All of the above cause apoplexy and dismay to the thinking elements of the English left. One response to this from people such as Labour MP John Cruddas and Billy Bragg is to try to re-ignite the English radical imagination and challenge the increasingly English nationalist overtones of Nigel
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What do we do about the United Kingdom? And Why Federalism isn’t the Answer
What do we do we do about the United Kingdom? And Why Federalism isn’t the Answer Gerry Hassan Open Democracy, July 4th 2014 In the last few weeks political debate has become filled with talk of the possibility of a federal United Kingdom. This has come not surprisingly exclusively from pro-union voices. There was Tory MSP Murdo Fraser’s recent thoughtful speech, David Torrance’s short book on British wide federalism, and even former Prime Minister Gordon Brown mulling over the subject. Murdo Fraser in his Reform Scotland talk said that ‘federalism within the UK, if it were workable and could be
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A Scotland Beyond Yes and No: My Journey to Yes
A Scotland Beyond Yes and No: My Journey to Yes Gerry Hassan National Collective, June 26th 2014 I want to live in a Scotland which is not defined by Yes and No - a world of ‘us’ and ‘them’ - of politics, families and friendships reduced to the emotions of football supporters and tribalism. I want to live in a world of one Scotland and many, multiple, diverse Scotlands. This is a time of many different debates in our nation; about the nature of our constitutional status and the meaning of independence, about who has power and authority in an
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Why the Nazis and 1930s are alive and kicking in the independence debate?
Why the Nazis and 1930s are alive and kicking in the independence debate? Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, June 11th 2014 The Nazis are on the rise everywhere. They are cited on both sides of the bitter Ukrainian conflict, in places such as Greece and Hungary with neo-Nazi and fascist parties, and in some of the outrageous comments of the French Front National and even Ukip’s more extreme fringe. The spectre of the Nazis and fascism have become increasingly omnipotent over the last twenty years to become a defining set of historical and cultural references in the UK, and England in
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The Age of Rage and the Importance of Opposition – in Europe, UK and Scotland
The Age of Rage and the Importance of Opposition - in Europe, UK and Scotland Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, May 21st 2014 This week will see from Thursday onward the Euro-elections which will witness the emergence of a host of populists, mavericks and independent voices being elected across the continent. The mainstream political class is in crisis across Europe. Conventional politicians and political parties are held in widespread and open contempt, often invoking more deep-seated and angry reactions. There are huge questions for the continent – on the economic front about jobs, growth and the role of markets,
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What does the rise of Ukip mean for Scotland?
What does the rise of Ukip mean for Scotland? Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, May 7th 2014 A new national pastime now exists thanks to the existence and rise of Ukip. This is the round the clock coverage of the party: often mocking, filled with condescension and a barely concealed incredulity that sane citizens will consider supporting such a party. So far all this has seemed to do is feed the appeal that is the Teflon-like Ukip. The media of course love and hate Ukip in equal measure. Nigel Farage is the joint most frequent panelist on ‘BBC Question Time’ over
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