Scotland to secede?

[kevyn]

detailbear will appreciate the ramifications of this:

Scottish Voters to Whitehall: ‘Let My People Go!’
“Scottish nationalists committed to independence from Britain became the biggest party in the Scottish parliament on Friday in elections which left a political headache for Prime Minister Tony Blair’s successor.”

After watching the U.S.S.R. collapse and the independence movement in Québec come within a hair's breadth of breaking up Canada, I began to realize that most large countries weren't as solid as I had been raised to believe. I've long argued that the Civil War didn't end the question of secession in the United States, just postponed it a few generations. (For instance, I believe the secession movement in Hawai'i will probably succeed if the economic conditions are right.)

And now, the Scottish are threatening the unity of the U.K.

Fascinating times we live in indeed.

Comments

[gmjambear]

I cannot remember where I saw this headline:

Scotland to the UK: "I want a divorce!"

[bluebear2.livejournal.com]

Hawaii? I suppose it's possible but unlikely. It's too important strategically for the U.S. How it became part of the U.S. was pretty sneaky. Just a tiny harmless free trade agreement and after a number of years of that it was easy to take it over. They're now trying it with Canada and possibly Mexico.
On the other hand, if the USSR basically went bankrupt to dissolve, how much of a debt does a country need to break up?

Also if Scotland is separate, would it even mean much since they probably would join or have no choice but to join the EU and therefore be part of that plot.

[kevynjacobs.livejournal.com]

Ahhhh, the EU. The one hegemonic counter to the tide of breakups. On the surface, a good idea...

[detailbear.livejournal.com]

The government only cares about the military bases. Pearl Harbour and Midway would be kept, but the rest is negotiable. It would be like the US bases set up in Manilla: not in the US, but not going anywhere.

As for Scotland, you can never underestimate how far people will go for their concept of "freedom". Scotland already has some separate political institutions and a separate culture. It's integration into the UK is greater than Northern Ireland, but much less than Wales, and if history were properly recorded, England should have been absorbed into the Kingdom of Scotland, not the other way around when James VI of Scotland became James I of England. An overlooked sticking point would be the return of the Stone of Scone if Scotland chose to be a Monarchy.

[kevynjacobs.livejournal.com]

Interesting. I've never heard about the stone before. Just read the Wikipedia article. Says it was handed over by the British to the Scottish in 1996? But will return to Westminster for coronations.

[detailbear.livejournal.com]

Ahh. I'm behind on my recent British history.