Free Scotland


Book Description

..".not because we didn't like the British, but we love Freedom better. I think all of us have the right to be free." Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a political prisoner of 15 years in her homeland of Myanmar, said these beautiful words to a very privileged audience of British Army Officer Cadets, and staff, at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) on Friday 26th October 2013. This lady had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991, "for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights." Her message was very well understood, and received. She delivered an inspirational speech praising the concept of freedom which was eagerly heard by those present, who serve to lead, in a non-political army which defends the right to freedom. A noble cause, indeed. Many have, and will, serve in United Nations missions, under UN Charter which enshrines self-determination. In the audience were many young Scots, some from our Universities Officer Training Corps based in Glasgow, Edinburgh, St Andrews, Dundee, Stirling and Aberdeen. The location and audience were at the very heart of the British Empire, and her opening words above, weren't lost on me during the months before Scotland's first Independence Referendum in 2014. The thought percolated in my mind afterwards, "What if Scotland votes yes to freedom which London then rejects? Would this military audience enforce a political decision from their Westminster government to suppress freedom?" This book, of fiction, was born In June 2017, extremely disturbingly, the UK government appointed the leader of the reactionary right-wing British nationalists in Scotland to a military role with the rank of colonel cancelling immediately the status of a non-political UK army which Daw Aung San Suu Kyi admired. Aung San, father of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, formed a revolutionary army in December 1941 to overthrow imperial British rule in their colony of Burma. His paymasters were the Imperial Japanese Army but in 1944, ..".the British Government announced its intention to grant self-government to Burma within the British Commonwealth... [we discussed] the best method of throwing the Japanese out of the country as the next step toward self-government." Burma became independent on 4 January 1948, but not before the exploited Aung San was murdered by British weapons fired by Burmese collaborators, manipulated by the British, in July 1947 when it became apparent that he wanted full independence for his country, not merely dominion status. La perfide Albion. The inspiration for the fictitious Lieutenant Colonel Sean McAlpin in Free Scotland was found. The ethnic cleansing currently taking place against Rohingyas (in former Burma, now Myanmar) is being carried out by Myanmar military. After 2016 elections parliamentarian, "Than Aung Soe opined: "We will try step by step to reduce the military percentage." Yet doing so will require either the military's consent or a true revolution. And no one should count on the former: ...military commander-in-chief Gen. Min Aung Hlaing emphasized the importance of the Tatmadaw [army] retaining its "leading role in national politics."Are Rohingyans entitled to self-determination from military rule? This book of fiction states all peoples are entitled to self-determination, especially, in the face of military dictatorship.




The Scotland Bill


Book Description

The Scottish Affairs Committee report on the Scotland Bill, states that the Bill achieves its stated purpose of increasing the financial accountability of the Scottish Parliament, but identifies a number of areas for improvement. The committee stresses the need for transparency and calls for the figures used to calculate all parts of the financial arrangements of the Scotland Bill to be opened up for scrutiny, in order to enhance decision-making. It says it intends to keep this area under review and requests regular reports on progress. At the heart of the Government's proposals are the provisions to give the Scottish Parliament the powers to raise a single rate of Scottish income tax, and to reduce the block grant accordingly. The committee says it is a major omission that neither the Bill nor the Command Paper provides an adequate explanation as to how the balance between income tax and the reduction to the block grant will be calculated. The Government should have put forward a considered proposal on the principles and methodology of this system, and detailed consideration should be given, as a matter of urgency, to how the reduction in the block grant will be calculated. Provisions in the Bill for both capital and revenue borrowing powers are to be welcomed, but the committee notes the concern of witnesses that the limits are too low. It recommends that the Government, in close consultation with the Scottish Parliament and with the committee, reconsiders the proposed limits, and it suggests as a starting point for discussion the amount of £1bn, with a limit of £500 million in any one year.The report also highlights the committee's intention to continue its scrutiny role as the proposals are implemented. In particular, it intends to closely monitor the roles of the UK Government, HMRC and the Office for Budget Responsibility.




Scotland is Not for the Squeamish


Book Description

Continuing from where "A Celtic Childhood" left off, "Scotland Is Not for the Squeamish" reflects on the events that transpired through Bill's early twenties and shaped him as a man. After realizing his childhood dream of becoming a wireless operator at seas, Watkins narrates his amazing predicaments. Whether it's a hurricane on a trawler, sinking docked warships, or hunting for gold in the mountains of Scotland, the tales of the ever-vibrant Bill Watkins capture his adventures with glorious effect.




The Edinburgh History of the Book in Scotland: Enlightenment and expansion 1707-1800


Book Description

The first thorough study of the book trade during the age of Fergusson and Burns. The eighteenth century saw Scotland become a global leader in publishing, both through landmark challenges to the early copyright legislation and through the development of intricate overseas markets that extended across Europe, Asia and the Americas. Scots in Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Dublin and Philadelphia amassed fortunes while bringing to international markets classics in medicine and economics by Scottish authors, as well as such enduring works of reference as the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Entrepreneurship and a vigorous sense of nationalism brought Scotland from financial destitution at the time of the 1707 Union to extraordinary wealth by the 1790s. Publishing was one of the country's elite new industries. Over forty leading scholars come together in this volume to examine the development of Scotland's book trade from 1707 to 1800. Printing, binding, bookselling, libraries, textbooks, distribution and international trade, copyright, piracy, literacy, music publication, women readers, children's books and cookery books are among the many aspects of print culture that they scrutinize. Key Features* Discusses copyright and piracy with new data at a time when intellectual property laws are returning to eighteenth-century precedents* Provides new understandings of Scotland's early modern readerships, including women's libraries, music literacy, and the way in which Scots found in the growth of literacy an international marketplace for intellectual property* Original scholarship and previously unpublished source material on secular Gaelic print* 16 exclusive full colour images of rare Scottish bindings from private collections, 25 additional colour plates + 60 b & w illustrations.




The Oxford Handbook of Scottish Politics


Book Description

The Handbook of Scottish Politics provides a detailed overview of politics in Scotland, looking at areas such as elections and electoral behaviour, public policy, political parties, and Scotland's relationship with the EU and the wider world. The contributors to this volume are some of the leading experts on politics in Scotland.




Scotland Analysis


Book Description

The UK Government is undertaking a major cross-government programme of analysis prior to the referendum on Scottish independence in 2014. The aim is to provide a comprehensive and detailed analysis of Scotland's place in the UK. This paper, the first of a series to be published in 2013 and 2014, examines the UK's constitutional set-up and the legal implications of independence. The UK Government is convinced that the current devolution offers the best for Scotland: the Scottish Parliament and Government are empowered to take decisions on a range of domestic policy areas - such as health, education, policing - while Scotland continues to benefit from decisions made for the UK as a whole - defence and security, foreign representation, economic affairs. Independence is very different to devolution. Based on independent expert opinion (published as Annex A), the paper concludes that if there were to be a vote in favour of leaving the UK, Scotland would become an entirely new state whilst the remainder of the UK would continue as before, retaining the rights and obligations of the UK as it currently stands. Any separation would have to be negotiated between both governments. Legal and practical implications of independence, both at home and abroad, are addressed. An independent Scotland would have to apply to and/or negotiate to become a member of whichever international organisations it wished to join, including the EU and NATO. Scotland would also have to work through its positions on thousands of international treaties to which the UK is currently party.




The Wee Book of Calvin


Book Description

A collection of essays and aphorisms about Scottish Calvinism. This is Scottish literary humour at its finest. 'A work of contemporary shamanism, with all the bluff, poetry, deranged humour, sleight-of-hand and real magic that implies.' Don Paterson. This is the first (and maybe the last) self-help guide that promises to make you feel a lot worse after you read it. A hilarious satire on freeze-dried mysticism and off-the-shelf enlightenment, it is also a haunting and lyrical reflection on places, voices and memories -- a literary journey into the heart of North-East darkness. 'A perfect evocation of Scotland's mysterious love affair with loss and sorrow. A powerful dram of Zen Calvinism.' Richard Holloway




The Old Firm


Book Description

This text is an account of the interaction of sport, politics and society from the formation of Rangers and Celtic at the end of the 19th century, detailing the changes and rivalry of these two clubs.




The Scottish Parliament


Book Description

Jim Johnston and James Mitchell bring authors from various backgrounds together to discuss the Parliament's future. These voices include a feminist and equalities campaigner, the chairman of Brodies LLP and the President of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, among many others. This short series of think pieces discusses vital issues such as the increased complexity of devolution, the Parliament's new fiscal and welfare powers and the need to respond to public expectations and demands. Interspersed throughout the book are a number of Dear Scottish Parliament... letters from young people across Scotland articulating their hopes and dreams for Scotland for the next 20 years. The Parliament has established itself as an accepted feature in Scotland's political landscape and there is little, if any, debate about its legitimacy as a representative body. At the same time, however, the goodwill towards the Parliament is likely to be tested as MSPs are faced with significant challenges over the next 20 years. This book explores some of these challenges and signposts key priorities in response.




Practising Self-Government


Book Description

An examination of how the constitutional frameworks for autonomies around the world really work.