Russell M. Middleton - Scotland's Independence

Russell M. Middleton - Scotland's Independence

This site originally published in MICHIGAN.

Russell M. Middleton
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Scotland's Independence

(Scotland) can still rise now,
And be the nation again,
That stood against him,
Proud Edward's Army,
And sent him homeward,
Tae think again.
from Flower of Scotland by Roy Williamson (1937 - 1990) of "The Corries"

Or can it?

"We're bought and sold for English gold,
Such a parcel of rogues in a nation!"
~ Robert Burns 1759 - 1796

It did not take very long as a historical re-enactor of highland Scotland before I knew more Scottish history than my mother who lived the first twenty two years of her life in Kilmarnock, Scotland. From her birth until she emigrated to Canada in 1947 she had been taught British History. A curriculum glaringly short on pre 1707 content.

The academic bias against Scotland's independence has continued long after 1947.

For example:

Euan Hague, Ph.D., (born in Edinburgh, Scotland) Assistant Professor; Nationalism, Cultural, Urban in the Department of Geography at DePaul University, Chicago, IL 60604 USA argues that for Scotland to pursue independence is to start down a slippery slope toward Fascism. His evidence: rightwing extremist groups in the US adopting Scottish symbolism.

The American right and Scottish nationalism
by Steve James

Staffordshire University research fellow, Dr. Euan Hague, spent four years in America researching the marketing of "Scottishness" by organisations such as the Scottish National Party and the Scottish Tourist Board. In a lecture delivered to the Royal Geographical Society, "The Production and Consumption of Scotland and Scottishness in the USA", he paid special attention to the celebration of "Scottish culture" and support for Scottish independence amongst America's right wing and fascist movements.

Hague noted the dramatic increase in cultural organisations such as St. Andrews Societies and Caledonian Groups, which celebrate Highland Games, Burns Nights, bagpipes, clan genealogy and tartan. In 1969, 20 groups across the US organised Highland Games. Now there are 200 such groups.

In part, these activities are harmless, if not to everyone's taste. At the same time Dr. Hague brought out the distinct militarism, the celebration of a muscular backwardness--drinking and throwing trees--and the distinctly all-white character of most of the proceedings.

World Socialist Web Site, 3 February 1999.

Nationalists deny US fund-raising operation
by Aisling Irwin and Jon Hibbs

Dr Euan Hague, of the University of Staffordshire in Stoke, said the ex-patriate nationalists were targeting the members of Scottish clubs, which have become increasingly popular in recent years and are thought to number more than 200 in the US.

Having spent a year researching American conceptions of Scottishness while at Syracuse University in New York State, he feared that such donors could exert undue influence on Scotland's political direction after independence. He said: "You could have ten million Scottish Americans saying 'hang on, we don't like the way things are going'."

His comments were seized on by Labour as evidence that the SNP was still actively seeking money from abroad in the run-up to the first elections for the Scottish Parliament in May. A spokesman said: "It proves that the SNP cannot be trusted to tell the Scottish people the truth on party funding. How can we believe anything else they say? It is high time the SNP came clean."

Dr Hague drew a contrast between the left-wing goals of the SNP and the generally conservative outlook of the nostalgic American movements. He said: "What concerns me is that the SNP in its blithe acceptance of American donations and Tartan Day needs to be a bit more wary and more concerned about what Scottishness is."

www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk ISSUE 1323 Friday 8 January 1999.

And this:

Howard Fienberg, Legislative Assistant to Congressman Christopher Cox (R-CA), (has a Master's Degree from the University of Essex in Great Britain and a Bachelor's Degree from Trent University in Canada. Howard has also studied in Scotland and Russia.) wrote in 1996 that nationalism "...came to be intellectually surpassed by the universalist ideologies of liberalism and socialism."

[All well and good for Messrs. Hague and Fienburg. Are they endowed with special insight because of their success in the global economy (note: they both are working in the States now) or could they be classic examples of what is wrong with Scotland as part of the UK? Could they be the real American influence we should watch for?]

[As we approach the three hundredth anniversary of the Union of the Parliaments (1707) a line from Braveheart comes to mind, "Lower your flags, and march straight back to England, stopping at every home to beg forgiveness for (three) hundred years of (intellectual) theft..."]

"Nationalism is not a dirty word. In fact, the attempt to suppress legitimate national feelings may lead to extreme manifestations of it." ~ SJackson

"Nationalism is fraught with dangers, of course, but so is the blind refusal to recognize that attachment to one's own culture, traditions, and history is a creative, normal, and healthy part of human experience. A democracy that stifles debate on such vital and difficult matters by means of speech codes, explicit or implicit, is asking for a genuinely fascist reaction." ~ Theodore Dalrymple, City Journal, (A quarterly magazine of urban affairs, published by The Manhattan Institute, edited by Myron Magnet.) 25 April 2002.

Another article by Theodore Dalrymple that bears reflection: (Oh, to be in England) "A Murderess's Tale"

Scotland is NOT part of England!!!

"England: A small, flat section of Scotland, to the south of Edinburgh somewhere."

"Great Britain: What England, Ireland and Wales became after their union with Scotland in 1707."

"Sassenach: Derisive Gaelic term used to describe the English, due, among other things, to their use of soda to dilute their whisky ("sasseh," stupid; "noch," twit)."

"Whisky: A "neat" gift given by the god Zeus to a beautiful Highland maiden he wanted to impress while on a Scottish vacation. Still consumed in its original, divine form among the natives of Scotland, and swilled down with various pollutants by the Sassenach."

~ from: The Devil's Dictionary, www.britannia.org

Alba gu bràth,
Russ

Contact Me about this page. All rights reserved. © Rm² 2003

Scotland's Independence
(Scotland) can still rise now, And be the nation again, That stood against him, Proud Edward's Army, And sent him homeward, Tae think again. from Flower of Scotland by Roy Williamson (1937 - 1990) of "The Corries"
Or can it?
"We're bought and sold for English gold, Such a parcel of rogues in a nation!" ~ Robert Burns 1759 - 1796
It did not take very long as a historical re-enactor of highland Scotland before I knew more Scottish history than my mother who lived the first twenty two years of her life in Kilmarnock, Scotland. From her birth until she emigrated to Canada in 1947 she had been taught British History. A curriculum glaringly short on pre 1707 content. The academic bias against Scotland's independence has continued long after 1947. For example: Euan Hague, Ph.D., (born in Edinburgh, Scotland) Assistant Professor; Nationalism, Cultural, Urban in the Department of Geography at DePaul University, Chicago, IL 60604 USA argues that for Scotland to pursue independence is to start down a slippery slope toward Fascism. His evidence: rightwing extremist groups in the US adopting Scottish symbolism. The American right and Scottish nationalism by Steve James Staffordshire University research fellow, Dr. Euan Hague, spent four years in America researching the marketing of "Scottishness" by organisations such as the Scottish National Party and the Scottish Tourist Board. In a lecture delivered to the Royal Geographical Society, "The Production and Consumption of Scotland and Scottishness in the USA", he paid special attention to the celebration of "Scottish culture" and support for Scottish independence amongst America's right wing and fascist movements. Hague noted the dramatic increase in cultural organisations such as St. Andrews Societies and Caledonian Groups, which celebrate Highland Games, Burns Nights, bagpipes, clan genealogy and tartan. In 1969, 20 groups across the US organised Highland Games. Now there are 200 such groups. In part, these activities are harmless, if not to everyone's taste. At the same time Dr. Hague brought out the distinct militarism, the celebration of a muscular backwardness--drinking and throwing trees--and the distinctly all-white character of most of the proceedings. World Socialist Web Site, 3 February 1999. Nationalists deny US fund-raising operation by Aisling Irwin and Jon Hibbs Dr Euan Hague, of the University of Staffordshire in Stoke, said the ex-patriate nationalists were targeting the members of Scottish clubs, which have become increasingly popular in recent years and are thought to number more than 200 in the US. Having spent a year researching American conceptions of Scottishness while at Syracuse University in New York State, he feared that such donors could exert undue influence on Scotland's political direction after independence. He said: "You could have ten million Scottish Americans saying 'hang on, we don't like the way things are going'." His comments were seized on by Labour as evidence that the SNP was still actively seeking money from abroad in the run-up to the first elections for the Scottish Parliament in May. A spokesman said: "It proves that the SNP cannot be trusted to tell the Scottish people the truth on party funding. How can we believe anything else they say? It is high time the SNP came clean." Dr Hague drew a contrast between the left-wing goals of the SNP and the generally conservative outlook of the nostalgic American movements. He said: "What concerns me is that the SNP in its blithe acceptance of American donations and Tartan Day needs to be a bit more wary and more concerned about what Scottishness is." www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk ISSUE 1323 Friday 8 January 1999. And this: Howard Fienberg, Legislative Assistant to Congressman Christopher Cox (R-CA), (has a Master's Degree from the University of Essex in Great Britain and a Bachelor's Degree from Trent University in Canada. Howard has also studied in Scotland and Russia.) wrote in 1996 that nationalism "...came to be intellectually surpassed by the universalist ideologies of liberalism and socialism." [All well and good for Messrs. Hague and Fienburg. Are they endowed with special insight because of their success in the global economy (note: they both are working in the States now) or could they be classic examples of what is wrong with Scotland as part of the UK? Could they be the real American influence we should watch for?] [As we approach the three hundredth anniversary of the Union of the Parliaments (1707) a line from Braveheart comes to mind, "Lower your flags, and march straight back to England, stopping at every home to beg forgiveness for (three) hundred years of (intellectual) theft..."]
"Nationalism is not a dirty word. In fact, the attempt to suppress legitimate national feelings may lead to extreme manifestations of it." ~ SJackson "Nationalism is fraught with dangers, of course, but so is the blind refusal to recognize that attachment to one's own culture, traditions, and history is a creative, normal, and healthy part of human experience. A democracy that stifles debate on such vital and difficult matters by means of speech codes, explicit or implicit, is asking for a genuinely fascist reaction." ~ Theodore Dalrymple, City Journal, (A quarterly magazine of urban affairs, published by The Manhattan Institute, edited by Myron Magnet.) 25 April 2002. Another article by Theodore Dalrymple that bears reflection: (Oh, to be in England) "A Murderess's Tale"
Scotland is NOT part of England!!!
"England: A small, flat section of Scotland, to the south of Edinburgh somewhere." "Great Britain: What England, Ireland and Wales became after their union with Scotland in 1707." "Sassenach: Derisive Gaelic term used to describe the English, due, among other things, to their use of soda to dilute their whisky ("sasseh," stupid; "noch," twit)." "Whisky: A "neat" gift given by the god Zeus to a beautiful Highland maiden he wanted to impress while on a Scottish vacation. Still consumed in its original, divine form among the natives of Scotland, and swilled down with various pollutants by the Sassenach." ~ from: The Devil's Dictionary, www.britannia.org

Alba gu bràth, Russ