Monday, 11 August 2014
Spectator: If Scots Vote NO, Blame Alex Salmond.
Spectator: If Scots Vote NO, Blame Alex Salmond.: There were numerous critics, many of them quite vociferous, of the early part of the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games, which was l...
Operation Sealion by Leo McKinstry: A new look at why the Nazis didn't invade Britain, Daily Express
THE
Daily Express columnist argues that British ruthlessness, political nous and an
uncompromising spirit forced Hitler to dither and finally fail in his planned
invasion
England
faced one of its tensest ever periods in the summer of 1940. Much of Europe had
fallen to Hitler, and it was believed that invasion by the Nazis was imminent.
While
Churchill was a popular figure as Prime Minister, there had been several
difficult periods, not least the near-annihilation of the British Expeditionary
Force at Dunkirk and the loss of virtually all of their equipment.
By
rights, Britain should have been invaded and conquered as its neighbours were
and German plans were drawn up for such an assault, codenamed Operation
Sealion. And yet, standing alone against the German threat, it remained
impregnable, and Operation Sealion never took place. Why was this?
In
his immaculately researched and gripping work, Leo McKinstry paints a vivid
picture of what was happening in England. After the outbreak of hostilities the
previous year, an uneasy state of tension had existed, namely the so-called
“Phoney War”, in which the country sat ready for action but nothing seemed to
happen. All the while, Hitler planned his campaign.
Crisis in Iraq - five things you can ACTUALLY do to help, Published 08 August 2014 | Martin Saunders Christianity Today
A
few weeks ago, I changed my social media profile photo. Like many others, I was
responding to the awful situation in Mosul, Iraq, where my fellow Christians
are reportedly being forced to convert to Islam, or otherwise being threatened
with execution. It was a vague attempt to do something - anything - to help. I
was standing in solidarity, if nothing else, and hopefully encouraging others
to do the same.
The
trouble of standing in solidarity however, is that when it's done from being a
laptop screen in a cosy branch of Costa Coffee, it achieves pretty much
nothing.
Fast
forward a few weeks, and the situation is worse than ever. I don't need to
recount here the horrible stories of forced conversions, people starving up
mountains and beheaded children.
Here's
the thing: we can't stand by while this happens. We just can't. If we call
ourselves Christians - or even just human beings - we have to care enough to
put down whatever we're doing and take a few minutes to engage.
So
what, practically, can we do? I've spent a little while thinking, praying and
asking others about that question, and here is a start.
Further
Reading
Brian Monteith: Rushing towards fiscal uncertainty, The Scotsman
IT’S
difficult to trust Salmond’s economic judgment after his previous
prevarications and u-turns, writes Brian Monteith
WHILE
pundits and spin doctors seek to suggest who won the first referendum debate
between Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling, what is self-evident is that the
debate helped to distil the question down to one single issue. In the event
that Alex Salmond cannot get the currency option of his choice (a formal
currency union using sterling) what is his Plan B? The answer, there was none.
As
we hurtle at break-neck speed to the vote on 18 September I am sure we can
expect more of the same; the personal but small distractions will be tossed
aside and we shall focus more on what for the majority of us are the big
issues. Such as what will be the new more expensive price for Scotland
remaining a member of the European Union, or how will Scotland pay for the cost
of its pension liabilities when our workforce will be shrinking and our pension
bill rising (before even considering Nicola Sturgeon’s promise of a lower
pensionable age in some parallel universe that only she inhabits).
There
may be others, such as the pick-and-mix sweetie shop of freebies and goodies
that nationalists have been dreaming up to be paid for by the munificence of
oil revenues – while at the same time telling us we can have a sovereign oil
fund that by implication requires a more austere approach to public welfare.
We
shall see what matters most, but for all that, the one crucial issue that Scots
residents (as opposed to the broader body of Scots that would more usually have
a say in the future of their country) are already well tuned into is how our
economy might or might not work if we secede from the United Kingdom and choose
the SNP’s offer of independence without independence. (For those of you not
used to reading my column let me recap that there will be no referendum on the
new price of EU membership and its tighter straightjacket, there will be less
influence than present with any formal currency union and even less still with
any unofficial use of sterling, while many other institutions that we shall
seek to keep access to such as the BBC we shall have no say in).
Further
reading:
“An independent Scotland would keep the pound because it’s our currency
and it would be in the interests of the rest of the UK to agree to currency
sharing. But if the rest of the UK won’t agree, an independent Scotland would
punish it by repudiating its pro rata share of UK debt…..Yes, it would remove a hefty burden from our shoulders. But an
independent country that began life with debt repudiation would find it could
not raise money in international markets without lenders demanding
substantially higher interest rates. Scotland’s
credit rating would be rock bottom.”
This Experience Must Come, My Uttermost for His Highest, Daily Devotionals Oswald Chambers
Elijah
went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha . . . saw him no more —2 Kings
2:11-12
It
is not wrong for you to depend on your “Elijah” for as long as God gives him to
you. But remember that the time will come when he must leave and will no longer
be your guide and your leader, because God does not intend for him to stay.
Even the thought of that causes you to say, “I cannot continue without my
’Elijah.’ ” Yet God says you must continue.
Alone
at Your “Jordan” (2 Kings 2:14). The Jordan River represents the type of
separation where you have no fellowship with anyone else, and where no one else
can take your responsibility from you. You now have to put to the test what you
learned when you were with your “Elijah.” You have been to the Jordan over and
over again with Elijah, but now you are facing it alone. There is no use in
saying that you cannot go— the experience is here, and you must go. If you
truly want to know whether or not God is the God your faith believes Him to be,
then go through your “Jordan” alone.
Sunday, 10 August 2014
Alex Salmond has no tenable plan for currency, says expert | Better Together
Alex Salmond has no tenable plan for currency, says expert | Better Together
"The
only realistic way to avoid the above crises outcomes of Plans A and B is to
combine political union with remaining in the sterling zone. It is only with
political union and the fiscal sharing it allows that the sterling zone is a
credible currency arrangement for Scotland, and it is only by remaining with
the rest of the UK that such an arrangement can work.
only realistic way to avoid the above crises outcomes of Plans A and B is to
combine political union with remaining in the sterling zone. It is only with
political union and the fiscal sharing it allows that the sterling zone is a
credible currency arrangement for Scotland, and it is only by remaining with
the rest of the UK that such an arrangement can work.
By
sticking with his notion that that the sterling monetary union is absolutely
central to the economic well-being of Scotland, Mr Salmond is therefore
actually making the case for voting No in the referendum, because it is only be
staying part of the United Kingdom that the costs to both businesses and
households in terms of their day-to-day payments and transactions are minimized
and job stability, employment and economic growth are secured and maximized."
sticking with his notion that that the sterling monetary union is absolutely
central to the economic well-being of Scotland, Mr Salmond is therefore
actually making the case for voting No in the referendum, because it is only be
staying part of the United Kingdom that the costs to both businesses and
households in terms of their day-to-day payments and transactions are minimized
and job stability, employment and economic growth are secured and maximized."
An ill wind blows as the surge of turbines stirs fears of silent danger to our health, Daily Express
TENS
of thousands of Scots may be suffering from a hidden sickness epidemic caused
by wind farms, campaigners have warned.
The Sunday
Express can reveal that the Scottish Government has recently commissioned a
study into the potential ill effects of turbines at 10 sites across the
country.
More
than 33,500 families live within two miles of these 10 wind farms – which
represent just a fraction of the 2,300 turbines - already built north of the
Border.
Hundreds
of residents are now being asked to report back to Holyrood ministers about the
visual impacts, and effects of noise and shadow flickers from nearby wind
farms.
Campaigners
fear that many people do not realise they are suffering from ailments brought
on by infrasound – noise at such a low frequency that it cannot be heard but
can be felt.
One
such person is Andrew Vivers, an ex-Army captain who has suffered from
headaches, dizziness, tinnitus, raised blood pressure and disturbed sleep since
Ark Hill wind farm was built near his home in Glamis, Angus.
Mr
Vivers, who served almost 10 years in the military, said the authorities had so
far refused to accept the ill effects of infrasound despite it being a “known
military interrogation aid and weapon”.
He
said: “When white noise was disallowed they went on to infrasound. If it is
directed at you, you can feel your brain or your body vibrating. With wind
turbines, you don’t realise that is what’s
happening to you.
“It
is bonkers that infrasound low frequency noise monitoring is not included in
any environmental assessments. It should be mandatory before and after turbine
erection.”
Further
reading:
Scottish independence: FM stands firm on currency, The Scotsman, Updated
ALEX Salmond is standing his ground and
refusing to name a Plan B for Scotland’s currency after independence, despite
mounting criticism of his leadership and unprecedented pressure from his
opponents.
Amid growing unrest among his own supporters
and a slump in the polls, the First Minister is refusing to back down on his
policy, which will be given a final seal of approval by his hand-picked group
of economic advisers next week.
Last night there was no sign of the issue going
away when leaders of the three opposition parties at Holyrood wrote to Salmond
demanding that he sets out a Plan B, arguing that his proposal for a formal
currency union with the rest of the UK is “impossible”.
Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal
Democrats have said an independent Scotland will not be entitled to insist on a
formal currency union – sharing the pound and the Bank of England with the rest
of the UK.
Salmond’s failure to deal with Alistair
Darling’s criticisms of his currency plans during last week’s STV televised
debate has led to discontent within the Yes movement and support for
independence falling in the polls.
His display has also encouraged the No campaign
to concentrate even more of its efforts on attacking his currency plans,
sensing a fatal flaw.
Further Reading here:
The
Five Tests for a Currency Union
“An
independent Scotland would keep the pound because it’s our currency and it
would be in the interests of the rest of the UK to agree to currency sharing.
But if the rest of the UK won’t agree, an independent Scotland would punish it
by repudiating its pro rata share of UK debt.
For
the avoidance of doubt, Scotland’s Finance Secretary John Swinney told BBC
Radio Scotland last week that failure to agree a currency union would “absolve
the Scots of a £120 billion share of UK debt, which translates into an annual
cost of £5bn a year”.
There
are other things into which this would “translate”, as Angus Armstrong of the
National Institute for Economic and Social Research pointed out last week. If
it is this easy to walk away from debt obligations, secessionist movements in
Europe would jump at the precedent. How might Scotland’s EU application stand
then?
Yes,
it would remove a hefty burden from our shoulders. But an independent country
that began life with debt repudiation would find it could not raise money in
international markets without lenders demanding substantially higher interest
rates. Scotland’s credit rating would be rock bottom.”
The
Fiscal sustainability of an independent Scotland
“Scottish politicians seem as unwilling as
Westminster to tell voters they must pay Scandinavian taxes if they genuinely
want a social democratic future…. Are the people of
Scotland genuinely willing to tax themselves towards social democracy?”
The cars with a certain 'je ne sais quoi' take to the track at Le Mans - French track hosts 2,500 Citroens, the ultimate Gallic vehicle.
Thousands of French car enthusiasts gathered
from around the world for an event to celebrate classic models produced by
automobile manufacturer Citroen.
These pictures show more than 200 2CVs during a
parade at 'Euro Citro 2014', on the circuit of Le Mans, western France, today.
In total, almost 2,500 Citroens took part in
the event, dedicated to French carmaker Citroen's fans and car owners.
When it was first manufactured in 1948, the
Citroen 2CV was launched to appeal to the large number of farmers in France.
Nicknamed the 'Tin Snail', it has now become a classic, known for being easy to
drive, cheap and simple to maintain.
Also on display are numerous Citroen DS,
manufactured from 1955 to 1975 and often named as the most beautiful car of all
time
When it was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in
October 1955, 743 orders were taken in the first 15 minutes of the show and
order for the first day reached 12,000.
The event also featured a museum of exceptional
models from the company's earliest days and an auction of Citroen cars.
Citroen was one of the first mass-production
car companies outside America and was founded in 1919 by French industrialist
André-Gustave Citroen.
We can have the best of both worlds for Scotland | Better Together
We can have the best of both worlds for Scotland | Better Together
In just 40 days we will know the result of the referendum which has put everything but the constitution on hold for the past three years in Scottish politics.
The choice we face on 18 September is not new. We are all experiencing surely the longest political campaign in British history. So what do the remaining 40 days hold?
The so-called game-changers for the Yes campaign: the White Paper; the European elections; the Bannockburn anniversary; the Commonwealth Games; this past week’s debate have come and gone, and yet the game remains largely unchanged.
Increasingly the nationalist narrative seems reduced to claims that their “grassroots movement” will be the key to success despite all objective evidence suggesting this largely consists of a hardy band of activists posing for differing “twitpics” wherever the location, whatever the special interest: Academics for Indy on a Tuesday; Farmers for Yes on a Wednesday; the Radical Independence Campaign on a Thursday. Most recently Sir George Mathewson: perhaps Former RBS Chairmen for Yes. Their “Labour for Independence” group still seems, on inspection, to consist primarily of “SNP Councillors pretending to be Labour for Independence”.
A glorious, flag-waving defence of our kingdom’s union: Whisper it - Britain would be nothing without Scotland... and Scotland will be nothing if conceited Salmond’s in charge Daily Mail
Imagine yourself at a very smart dinner
party and the conversation gets round to the issue of Scottish independence.
Suppose people whose intelligence and thoughtfulness you’ve long respected,
such as Sir David Attenborough and historians Simon Schama and Professor Mary
Beard, said they thought that it was in the best interests of Scotland to
remain within the United Kingdom rather than going it alone in the world.
Then people who were at the top of
their professions, such as the former chiefs of the Defence Staff, Marshal of
the Air Force ‘Jock’ Stirrup, Lord Stirrup, and Field Marshal Charles Guthrie,
Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, agreed with them, as did the former head of the
Royal Navy, Admiral Sir Alan West.
At the other end of the table, some of
the brainiest people in Europe, including Stephen Hawking and the former
Astronomer Royal, Martin Rees, Baron Rees of Ludlow, wholeheartedly agree.
Wouldn’t you listen very carefully to
what they have to say? Especially if historians of the calibre of Margaret
MacMillan and Tom Holland, intellectuals of the experience of Melvyn Bragg and
Joan Bakewell, actors of the quality of Sir Patrick Stewart and Dame Judi Dench
also weighed in, saying exactly the same thing?
Wouldn’t these views be at least worth considering very profoundly? Not
if you’re someone of the vanity and self-regard – or perhaps by now the sheer
desperation – of Alex Salmond.
The Yes campaign has sneered at the
opinions of some of the most profound thinkers and intellectuals of our day who
have just written a joint letter opposing Scottish independence, simply because
they were joined on the page by a number of TV celebrities, comedians and
social gadflies who were asked to join the 200-strong list.
Further Reading
Beyond
the Scottish Independence Question, Looking at a Greater Devolution in The
United Kingdom, A Perspective
"Economists warned that a debt default would wreck the country’s
reputation for fiscal responsibility."
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