One of the most iniquitous parts of the Scottish independence debate is the rapidity with which multi-nationals say they will consider leaving Scotland if the Scots population, their workforce, has the temerity to vote to leave the UK.
Such businessmen speak only for themselves and their companies profits. They have no interest in the well being or happiness of the Scottish population as a whole. It is pure self interest from the fat cats.
But is it even relevant? If Scotland voted to remain in the UK these same companies could up sticks and relocate the day after the vote to other regimes where they can make higher profits, usually by paying their workers less and paying less tax. Yet these people are given huge amounts of TV time by the London based media which also has no interest in the welfare of the Scottish people.
I watched Niall Ferguson's outstanding programme on how the First World War started. He used a few well chosen statistics. One I did not know was that the percentage of the Scots killed and maimed in WWI was much higher than in England. I knew that was true of the ANZAC forces but not of the Scottish regiments. That alone is a strong reason for Scotland to leave the UK.
Worse was the way the British Liberal party political elite, Asquith (Balliol), Grey ( Balliol) & Churchill (Harrow). Although Llyod George came in as an articled clerk and son of a schoolmaster he was the one person who could have stopped the deployment of the BEF. He did not for pure party political reasons. It would have brought down the Liberal government and probaly brought the Tories to power in the subsequent election. Over a million UK citizens died to keep Llyod George's bum on a cabinet seat. The order of priorities for politicains does not change, me first, keep the opposition out second and who cares about the country.
Ferguson's telling counterfactual was that if we had kept out of WWI we would now be living in a Europe no different from today's EU and ruled by Germany as we have now.
Wars cannot stop the tide of history they only get more people killed more quickly.
Roll on Scottish independence.
4 comments:
The world is full of people who fear for their future, whether they be chief executives of multinational companies or workers on the Clyde.
Darwin's laws of nature prevail and the strongest survive.
The Elite of the world conspire together to butter their bread and maintain their place. Whether its Putin v Obama or Wee Eck v Cameron (see Ebay for Who's who of the Elite).
They are the strong men of politics supported by the strong men of business or the Armed Forces depending upon the culture they lead.
The Regionalisation of UK is explained by Lindsay Jenkins in her book Disappearing Britain (available now on Ebay). Who is pulling Wee Eck's strings so as to push Regionalisation of Scotland one step further ?
Asquith was MP for Paisley.
I dont see why you think English people should keep their bank deposits,pension funds or investments in another country and in another currency.
Prudence requires matching of assets and liabilities.
Bonar Law strongly wanted war even on behalf of Russia and France.
I think he lost at least one son
Hence the phrase keep your eye on Paisley.
A lot of UK pension funds in equity investments are held outside the UK. Historically such funds have performed far better than UK funds. Pension funds have been a captive market for UK gilts which right now with QE are looking a bit sick.
The idea that you can restrict funds to invest locallly leads to bad investment decisions. The only major funds that try to do this ar French money market funds where it actsw as a source of cheap finance for French industry. I would say it breaches EU rules but then so do many things the French do.
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