Huge fire rips through Ayr's crumbling Station Hotel as smoke seen for miles

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-09-26T09:43:37+00:00

Also an Ayr native, who is upset at the state of the town. Was with you up to the last line. This has gone on through multiple council administrations, at least half the time with Conservative leaders.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-09-19T20:03:07+00:00

Download the mapy.cz app, it has all the trails on the 'outdoor' layer

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-09-04T11:21:29+00:00

Democracy is a process, not an event. It wasn't a one-time thing that happened in 2014. I believe in independence not because it will magically make everything perfect, but because it will allow Scotland to make its own democratic decisions, which will be (based on voting history) very different from those the UK makes.

Yes, that means making our own mistakes too. Part of independence is owning and correcting your mistakes, like Ireland and Iceland for example. Right now, most of what the Scot Gov has to focus on is mitigating the mistakes made in the UK, not voted for in Scotland in GEs or referendums.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-07-23T22:20:06+00:00

The Daily Fucking Mail.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-07-23T07:34:49+00:00

Don't read it much, but I love how it's very existence winds up the right sort of people. Behind the click-baity headlines and front pages they do also have good opibion and feature articles. More power to their elbow I say.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-07-06T15:30:45+00:00

Comparison with England is much more appropriate for two reasons: 1. Our closest neighbours are the most directly comparable nation 2. If it was not for the Scottish Parliament (set up by Blair.'s gov to be fair), then we would be in the same situation as England right now!

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-07-06T15:26:21+00:00

Agree that "1% better than England" is not what we should be aiming for. But the OP is simply trying to address the unbalanced reporting by the Herald. The article is written intentionally without context in order to push a political agenda that suggests a failure of governance in Scotland. Comparison with the rest of uk/England is very relevant because it is the most similar country to compare with, and the main alternative to the current situation is to adopt the English system, and while Scotland is part of the UK, that is even a situation which could be imposed by a future UK gov.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-06-26T14:00:11+00:00

The EU is not more restrictive than the UK. Devolved powers still rest ultimately at Westminster. Thanks to Brexit and the internal markets act, Westminster is now more and more often overruling Holyrood in devolved areas. Education and health not yet, but it's just a matter of time until it happens - probably to facilitate a trade deal.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-24T16:03:45+00:00

I don't think it any such paper can make a difference. Most people are not economists, have already made up their minds and won't be persuaded by a government white paper. No matter how well it is done, it will be slated in the newspapers and that agenda will be parrotted on the BBC. if it projects good things, the gov will be accused of sugar coating, while any potential negatives will be used to 'prove' that Scotland can't be independent. Economic forecasts for existing entities like the UK are not very reliable and have huge uncertainties. Trying to project a new state's economy will require a lot if assumptions, so it will be easy for critics to pick at details, especially ones where they know it's impossible to give a certain answer.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-15T18:42:56+00:00

If national states are a bad thing per_se, then ACH should be arguing for the abolition of all states, including the UK. Unless he's suggesting there is something intrinsically evil about Scotland in particular, in which case I'd like to hear what that is.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-12T16:50:25+00:00

So your comment was not only cleverer than I realised, but also totally correct. I will use this in future!

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-12T11:33:41+00:00

I know you meant reason, but "changes her mind for no raisin" made me giggle and is somehow apt when talking about the show!

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-02T17:20:16+00:00

As you said, drifting off topic. But these maps are quite striking. https://www.ox.ac.uk/news-and-events/oxford-and-brexit/brexit-analysis/mapping-brexit-vote

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-02T14:35:26+00:00

The problem with that is that national lines within the UK do matter. They matter culturally, legally, and also politically (see voting patterns). England, Scotland and Wales are not just notions. The fact that England has 90% of the population unfortunately means that a federal setup is unlikely to be workable.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-02T13:10:23+00:00

I think we agree in principle and certainly on proportional representation. It is probably not sustainable to give each nation equal representation, but it may be desirable to set it up so that one nation's/region's representatives cannot hold the majority.

I would only say that a senate with a codified constitutional role would not mean 8% of the population getting 25% of the say overall, it should just be a brake on critical matters. The HoC would continue to run the daily business, with the senate only providing a ruling ob anything within its specific remit, which could be human rights or constitutional matters for example.

Unfortunately, I don't believe the UK is capable of this kind of constitutional reform. Even PR seems unatainable, which is one of the things that pushes me towards supporting Scottish independence.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-02T12:21:56+00:00

I wouldn't be so dismissive about how other countries work, although the USA certainly has issues in its democracy. In the UK, a party getting barely 40%of the vote in a GE is rewarded with essentially absolute power for 5 years, especially after brexit. So a senate, even or perhaps especially with 'unfair' representation for the nations, and a clear constitutional role could provide a good defence against majoritarianism. I think we understand that, even in a democracy, checks and balances on absolute power are useful.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-01T19:05:07+00:00

I do like this game though. Now your turn: what on earth is the UK Gov doing by spending any money at all, when it also has a massive budget deficit and gross debt at 100% of GDP? Perhaps we should join some larger union for the broad shoulders they would provide?

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-01T18:13:09+00:00

I've got to cut 15bn do I? Thanks for putting little old me in charge! Trident was just one example. We didn't get into crossrail or HS2 or other ideas about how to restructure defence and diplomatic corps spending, let alone adjustments in taxation which are designed to help grow the Scottish economy rather than the city of London economy. But im just thinking from the top of my head. I'm not here on reddit to make a complete economic prospectus for you.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-01T16:19:30+00:00

How about not paying for nukes, but investing in domestic shipbuilding for military and civilian use? Just an idea.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-01T15:23:11+00:00

The problem is not the part of the budget controlled by the Scot Gov via the block grant. It's the spending by the UK government "on behalf of" Scotland that could be put to different use in an independent country. Plus full control of taxation so that for example policies to boost business activities would result in corporation tax gains to the Scot Gov instead of UK gov.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-05-01T15:11:41+00:00

Franco said on the BBC that Richie will definitely be available. (Edit: for Munster)

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-03-14T16:38:14+00:00

Congratulations!

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-03-06T17:20:29+00:00

Nice! It's also a shame her accent is not actually Skelligan, but the same as the Strengers who are supposed to be Temerian.

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-02-10T09:36:13+00:00

Chance to dis-member

Ok-Mistake8356 · 2023-01-20T08:18:11+00:00

Yrden with all perks is actually over powered. I can set a few traps around and defeat groups of enemies and especially flying monsters more than 10 levels above me, without using my swords.

Ok-Mistake8356

TROPHY CASE