Must say it was a corker of an election, and from this perspective, most
instructive. Condolences and congrats on a hard fought campaign that brought
out voters in numbers we in this country can only dream of pulling out.
FWIW, I’m flying the Cross of St. Andrew outside my home today, as I did
yesterday, and may for some time to come. There is something about Scottish
liberalism that I find hugely appealing, and I must confess I would not have
been disappointed in a YES vote because I would like to have seen how this
political/economic philosophy would have been applied. Sure, it could have been
disastrous, but it could have been something wonderful, too. More likely
something in between, but still. (And yes, I live way far away, and the effects
of disaster would not have hit as hard here.)
Seems to me that here in the west, materialism is god, and we justify what we
do by saying that god gave us dominion over everything. Personally, I think
there were some typos in there somewhere and all the stuff about proper
stewardship got left out. Our practices and policies are unsustainable, and
eventually we will pay the price. We are a part of nature, and our hubris at
trying to be the master of nature will be our undoing. The world is littered
with the bones of dead empires, and ours will join them soon enough. Such is
life.
It’s not that Scottish independence could have forestalled this. I’m not _that_
naive, but any non-wacko political/economic thinking that questions the
ultimate goals our mutual capitalist societies are currently worshiping
deserves some kind of chance. My sense of Scottish liberalism is that it owes
more to Scandinavian roots than we are accustomed to in more southerly climes.
I happen to like the way Scandinavians govern themselves, but then I’m viewing
from afar. I do know that the UK or the US are highly unlikely to move toward a
more people-centered rather than profit-centered economy any time soon. Just
this morning I read that 91 percent of U.S. corporate profits in this country
las year went to shareholders, not employees. That’s a much higher percentage
than in the past, when a decent portion of profits were likely to be translated
into higher wages.
Oh, well. I guess I’m revealing myself as a real pollyanna, but a guy can
dream, can’t he?
Slainte!
--Bob Whitmire
Certified Neanderthal
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