The Scottish National Party is a popular, mainstream, democratic, left-of-centre European political group which has managed the devolved government of Scotland since 2007. It’s current leader, Nicola Sturgeon, is a well-regarded politician with broadly centralist and progressive policies, certainly nothing that would overly-scare the conservative horses of the all important “business community” or offend the liberal sensibilities of the urban intelligentsia. She is everything that most left-leaning news media in most countries would adulate. However the rise of the SNP in the polls ahead of the UK’s forthcoming general election has led to some extraordinary attacks both on her party and on her in particular from across the political and journalistic spectrum in Britain. She has become the bête noire of the “Greater England” parties of the centre-right Conservatives and centre-left Labour (not to mention right-wing UKIP or the right-left Lib Dems). A majority of the metropolitan press in London, regardless of where they sit on the ideological see-saw, have ran story after story criticising Sturgeon, her colleagues and indeed the people of Scotland as a whole while seeking to defend the interests of the British (aka. English) people.
Boris Johnson, the bumptious mayor of London and Tory aspirant for the office of prime minister, has described Nicola Sturgeon as a “scorpion” while also comparing her to King Herod, the king of Judea who ordered the slaughter of all the baby boys in the town of Bethlehem (or so Christian mythology would claim). Meanwhile John Major, an actual prime minister – or at at least former one – has waded in with similar dire predictions resulting from an SNP electoral land-slide in Scotland. These claims have simply added to the mountain of insults and sub-racist allegations thrown against the Scottish nationalists in recent months, each attempting to out-do the other in terms of their egregiousness or incitement to animosity. Some people it seems won’t be happy until they actually have to wade through “rivers of blood“; or to paraphrase the more militant demagogues of the British Unionist minority in the north-east of Ireland, “We are the Tommy Boys and we are up to our knees in Caledonian blood!“.
Of course, none of these politicos – or the journalists and newspapers who have given such prominence to their utterances – have raised so much as an eyebrow at the thoughts of either the Conservatives or Labour entering into a coalition or partnership with the far right parties of the DUP, UUP or TUV, should these fringe groupings gain enough MPs in the general election to have some influence at Westminster. It seems that British ultra-nationalists from one of the last remnants of the old empire, complete with their xenophobic, homophobic, sectarian-advocating, climate-denying, evolutionary-criticising, bible-teaching, secular-hating, equality-decrying, feminist-disliking, militarist-loving, fundamentalist-practising beliefs are far preferable to anything offered by a party from the moderate mainstream of European politics.
Such is the nature of British and English nationalism when the hegemony of Greater England must be maintained – and at all costs.
AN SIONNACH FIONN 
Well written You covered a great deal in this item Like the photo!! Primates looking at this might be upset at what they might evolve towards .Am not up to date on how Plaid Cymru are faring but I would imagine them being abit of a thorn in the side for Greater England
LikeLike
Unfortunately there has been no major surge in support for Plaid Cymru equivalent to that which developed in Scotland immediately following the referendum result, the backpeddling on the Vow etc. You’d think the Welsh would see the parallels, and hopefully they will in the future, but probably not in time for this election.
Their support at present is mainly in rural Welsh-speaking areas which will get them only 2-4 seats at Westminster. The (post-)industrial areas are still apparently full of “Labour till I die” types. The growing concept of a “Progressive Alliance” across the UK (e.g. the powerful image of the three ladies embracing) may change things eventually, but has a mountain to climb in much of Wales.
PC has a lot of cultural baggage that the SNP has generally long since shed. Another problem is that they may be competing with the Greens. There is no separate Green Party in Wales as there is in Scotland, just an extension of the English party, largely appealing to English incomers, the sort who will fundraise to save an Amazon tribe, but happily move into the middle of a Welsh-speaking area oblivious to the cultural damage they cause.
LikeLike
Thanks for the update.My impressions of Plaid Cymru way back in the 1980s were that they were rather militant especially when it came to English people buying properties especially holiday homes in Wales.It seems so that in their evolution that they’ve lost a little spark .Pity about the absence of an independent green forum
LikeLike
Unfortunately, Eileen, Plaid seems to be stuck in the polls, unable to make any big break-through. The lost vitality of Welsh political nationalism puzzles many observers. The commonest explanation is the power of Welsh cultural nationalism, though it seems a contradiction.
LikeLike
There may now be a slight increase in support for PC, following their leader’s exposure on UK national TV, but if they get six Westminster seats that will be considered an excellent result. One possible explanation is that Welsh Labour (or rather the Welsh branch of UK Labour) has to some extent made itself look Welsh and created its own personality, at least in the Welsh Assembly. And remember Wales has fewer devolved powers than Scotland and the nearest PC has come to power there was a few years as the junior partner in coalition with Labour. Whereas in Scotland the SNP has been in charge for the past seven years or so, lately with an absolute majority, so they have a track record in government. This I’m sure adds greatly to their credibility.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/general-election-2015-plaid-cymru-9092877
http://oclmenai.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/beth-wnawn-ni-o-electionforecastcouk.html
LikeLike
I think this policy is a sign of Tory desperation – the majority of British-English are reasonable people and will not go along on instinct with it – not just on the sentiment but also because they can see it is negative campaigning- and the polls suggest it does not seem to be working for Davey.
LikeLike
Re your caption. The monkeys are greatly relieved to hear that.
LikeLike
Greater England is at ease with anything that keeps Greater England in a position of power.
LikeLike
What you have to understand is that Westminster politics for almost as long as anyone can remember has been a somewhat ritualised battle between two main parties with increasingly similar policies. It’s all a game. A jolly old team game of the sort our overgrown public schoolboys thrive on. The few minor party members, independents etc. are treated as comic relief, akin to the occasional streaker at Lords.
But now the SNP may arrive in numbers and upset the applecart. With luck they’ll win support from some of the more left-wing Labour members, or those from traditional Labour constituencies in the North and S. Wales. This would really put the Labour party on the spot. Do they jump to the right and work with the Tories or to the left and accept the SNP’s radical agenda? Either choice could spell disaster for many career politicians.
You see fellows, this just isn’t on, it’s just not cricket!
LikeLike
SNP is a regional party that markets itself to “true Scots” – it’s in their damn name.
They can’t really upset anything.
Non-Scots can’t vote for them even if they like their policies.
LikeLike
wrote about something similar yesterday – showing a poster of the vilification in store for anyone who wants to leave the union – it’s considered a malevolent aim. It has gone on throughout time
https://eurofree3.wordpress.com/2015/04/22/leaving-the-union-a-malevolent-aim/
The Irish have been there and done that (remember 19th century Punch cartoons?) – but it’s still on-going in the North where non-Unionist people have to listen to a non-stop drip-drip feed of petty accusations and grievances that are blown out of all proportion
LikeLike
Yes Good points.
Another point of so called “britishness” is the great LIE that you can be Irish, Scottish, English or Welsh..but also “so called “British”. at the same time.
A stark reminder of why this is such a great LIE came about with the Jeremy Clarkson so called “fracas”
Here was a Unionist who was completely happy to use the racial slur “irish c**t”
Now, How does that fit into the “britishness ” Lie ?
It doesn’t other than to expose it as a lie.
The Britishards are very quick to adopt degroatory terms to the Celtic Nations.
You could say the mask slips.
Only that the Oirish media is So west BRitish and the English media are liars at best..That this Lie goes unchallenged.
I am curious about how
many people in the 6 Counties are aware of this. lie.
About the election!
I am almost hoping for a Tory/ UKIP coalition..And a Brexit from the EU.
As an Irish Nationalist this would be the one thing that will get soft Nationalists and also convert Soft unionists into supporting a UI.
Who knows..Europe might try and break up the so called Britain as “revenge” for the so called Uk leaving.
They might pour gold into the SNP..Sinn Fein and Plaid Cymru
I see the EU as an empire; and like all Empires it’s loves to expand into new terrorities.
Ergo..they might make noises toward the Celtic nations.
I also see Sinn Fein have stolen the SNP idea over the Brexit.
Nicola Sturgeon says she only wants to leave the EU if a Majority of the Scottish vote in any referendum.She wants a veto for Scotland.
As they say..May you live in interesting times.
The only interesting thing for me is whether the bRits get a vote/ referendum on the EU membership.
I have heard that various pollsters have crunched the numbers and in 10 possible results ..8 Of them resulted in Labour been in government..So it’s most likely labour will “win” it Ergo no Brexit. Pity.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on pictishbeastie.
LikeLike