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Scotland goes to the polls on May 6, in the sixth general election since the Scottish Parliament was reconvened in 1999.

At the last election in 2016, the SNP lost their parliamentary majority, but were able to rule as a minority government, with the help of the pro-independence Scottish Green Party.

Of the unionist parties, the Conservatives overtook Labour into second place, while the Liberal Democrats finished fifth.

No representatives of minor parties were elected to the Holyrood in 2016, but this time Alex Salmonds newly-founded Alba Party is looking to win seats by contesting the regional list elections.

There are 73 constituency seats up for grabs, under a first-past-the-post voting system, and 56 regional list seats, which are filled using the DHondt voting system.

Using the DHondt system, Mr Salmonds party is aiming to create a pro-independence super-majority, as in previous elections the number of constituency seats the SNP has won has limited the number of list MSPs the party has returned.

Meanwhile, from the unionist side of the political spectrum, George Galloways All For Unity Party is also attempting to use tactical voting to maximise the number of pro-union seats, by urging voters to pick pro-union parties like the Conservatives or Labour in the constituency elections, and to select his party in the regional list.

Eight candidates will contest Edinburgh Central, the most marginal of the Lothian seats, where UKIP, the Scottish Libertarian Party and video artist Bonnie Prince Bob, standing as an independent, join the five main parties.

The Scottish Libertarian Party is also standing in Edinburgh Western, the Scottish Family Party is standing in Edinburgh Pentlands and Edinburgh Southern, and the Scottish Freedom Alliance in Edinburgh Northern and Leith.

And a total of 18 parties and one independent are competing for votes on the Lothian list.

Bonnie Prince Bob - Independent

Scott Douglas Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Alison Johnstone Scottish Green Party

Maddy Kirkman Scottish Labour Party

Tam Laird Scottish Libertarian Party

Donald Murdo Mackay UK Independence Party (UKIP)

Angus Robertson Scottish National Party (SNP)

Bruce Roy Wilson Scottish Liberal Democrats

Bill Cook Scottish Labour Party

Ash Denham Scottish National Party (SNP)

Graham Hutchison Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Jill Reilly Scottish Liberal Democrats

Edinburgh Northern and Leith

Rebecca Bell Scottish Liberal Democrats

Katrina Faccenda Scottish Labour Party

Callum Laidlaw Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Ben Macpherson Scottish National Party (SNP)

Jon Pullman Scottish Freedom Alliance

Lorna Slater Scottish Green Party

Lezley Marion Cameron Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party

Fraser John Ashmore Graham Scottish Liberal Democrats

Gordon Lindhurst Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Richard Crewe Lucas Scottish Family Party

Gordon MacDonald Scottish National Party (SNP)

Miles Briggs Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Philip Holden Scottish Family Party

Daniel Johnson Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party

Catriona Mary Elizabeth MacDonald Scottish National Party (SNP)

Fred Mackintosh Scottish Liberal Democrats

Alex Cole-Hamilton Scottish Liberal Democrats

Daniel Fraser Scottish Libertarian Party

Margaret Arma Graham Scottish Labour Party

Sarah Masson Scottish National Party (SNP)

Sue Webber Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Euan Robert Davidson Scottish Liberal Democrats

Craig Hoy Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Paul Stewart McLennan Scottish National Party (SNP)

Martin David Whitfield Scottish Labour Party

Midlothian North & Musselburgh

Colin Beattie Scottish National Party (SNP)

Stephen Curran Scottish Labour Party

Charles Christopher Dundas Scottish Liberal Democrats

Iain Whyte Scottish Conservative

Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale

Dominic Ashmole - Scottish Green Party

Michael James Banks - Vanguard Party

Christine Grahame - Scottish National Party (SNP)

Shona Haslam - Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

AC May - Scottish Liberal Democrats

Katherine Sangster - Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party

Angela Constance Scottish National Party (SNP)

Damian Doran-Timson Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Caron Lindsay Scottish Liberal Democrats

Craig Smith Scottish Labour Party

Fiona Hyslop Scottish National Party (SNP)

Charles Kennedy Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Sally Pattle Scottish Liberal Democrats

Kirsteen Sullivan Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party

Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party: John Johnson Leckie; David Lindsay Nichol.

Alba Party: Kenneth Wright MacAskill; Alexander Arthur; Christina Mary Hendry; Irshad Ahmed.

All for Unity: Charlotte Morley; Parvinder Singh; Alan Hogg; Andy Macaulay; David Hamilton; Mike Knox; Derek Clark.

Animal Welfare Party: Vivienne Moir; Gavin Ridley.

Communist Party of Britain: Matthew Finlay Waddell.

Freedom Alliance - Integrity, Society, Economy: Jon Pullman; Cara Patricia Wase; Patricia McCann.

Reform UK: Derek Steven Winton; Mev Brown; Iain Murray Morse; Lesley MacDonald.

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party: Miles Briggs; Sue Webber; Jeremy Balfour; Rebecca Fraser; Malcolm Offord; Scott Douglas; Gordon Lindhurst; Marie-Clair Munro; Graham Hutchison; Iain Whyte; Callum Laidlaw; Charles Kennedy.

Scottish Family Party: Richard Crewe Lucas; Philip Holden; Norman David Colville; Gareth Kirk; Amy Ireland.

Scottish Greens: Alison Johnstone; Lorna Slater; Kate Nevens; Chas Booth; Steve Burgess; Alys Mumford; Emily Frood; Ben Parker; Elaine Taylor; Bill Wilson; Evelyn Weston; Alex Staniforth.

Scottish Labour Party: Daniel Johnson; Sarah Boyack; Foysol Choudhury; Madelaine Kirkman; Kirsteen Sullivan; Nicholas Ward; Frederick Hessler; Stephen Robert Curran.

Scottish Liberal Democrats: Alex Cole-Hamilton; Fred Mackintosh; Jill Reilly; Rebecca Louise Bell; Sally Pattle; Fraser John Ashmore Graham; Caron Marianne Lindsay; Bruce Roy Wilson; Charles Christopher Dundas.

Scottish Libertarian Party: Tam Laird; Cameron Paul Paterson.

Scottish National Party: Graham Campbell; Angus Robertson; Fiona Hyslop; Ben Macpherson; Catriona MacDonald; Sarah Masson; Greg McCarra; Alison Dickie; Alex Orr; Andrew Ewen; Rob Connell.

Scottish Renew: Heather Jane Astbury; Anna Freemantle-Zee.

Scottish Women's Equality Party: Emma Jane Watt; David Malcolm Alexander Renton; Lucy Hammond.

Social Democratic Party: Alasdair James Young; Neil Peter Manson; Lawrence Sebastian Edwards.

UK Independence Party (UKIP): Donald MacKay; John Laurence Mumford; Steve Hollis; Kenneth Lowry.

Independent: Ashley Graczyk.

Originally posted here:
Scottish election 2021: Full list of candidates in Edinburgh and the Lothians - Edinburgh News

EDITORIAL

By ohtadmin | on April 01, 2021

Those with knowledge of our history understand the individualism that characterizes our society. In Rhode Island, a colony born of political dissent and religious tolerance, this libertarian idealism is in our DNA.

But as much as the individual strives for self-rule and expressive freedom, they can never lose sight that they operate within a greater community, connected through not only social and economic ties, but physical tethers, given the finite space within which we must live.

The coronavirus pandemic has laid bare this seeming historical contradiction. The virus respects no geographic boundaries, pays allegiance to no political party. It simply moves from one person to another, killing in its travels. As of this writing, there have been over a half-million fatalities in the United States and 2,618 in Rhode Island.

Making matters worse is the dark practice of exploitation, perpetuated by those who have used the crisis for their own political or ideological ends. We now have citizens who insist the virus was purposefully released as a means for population control, and that it is not as deadly as they are being led to believe. Many think the virus is a hoax.

The proliferation of harmful misinformation on social media has created conspiracy theories about the origins of the virus and the secret agendas of those tasked with eradicating it.

But the data is clear. Millions of Americans have already received a vaccine. The side effects are negligible, especially in relation to the possible alternatives. Perhaps the best approach to those who are still on the fence is to point out that the freedom is in getting the shots.

We do not need to take up arms; we just need to take a shot in one. Lets do our part to finish this once-in-a-century nightmare.

See the original post here:
Free To Be Vaxed - Newport This Week

Opinion writers tackle these Covid and vaccine issues.

Bloomberg:Global Covid Cases Rapidly Rise As The World Fears A Fourth WaveWith vaccines spreading through rich countries at gathering speed and lockdown restrictions weakening with thespring sunshine, its tempting to believe that the long nightmare of Covid-19 is finally ending. In the U.K., 58% of the adult population hasreceived at least one dose of vaccine. In the U.S., President Joe Biden has doubled an original goal of administering 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office, which would bring the total to 200 million by the end of April. On Google, the search term after Covid has been getting more interest than Covid symptoms for the past month, suggesting the world is thinking more about what life will be like when things returnto normal. (David Fickling, 3/31)

The New York Times:Are We Way Too Timid In The Way We Fight Covid-19?Heres a question Ive been mulling in recent months: Is Alex Tabarrok right? Are people dying because our coronavirus response is far too conservative? I dont mean conservative in the politicized, left-right sense. Tabarrok, an economist at George Mason University and a blogger at Marginal Revolution, is a libertarian, and I am very much not. But over the past year, he has emerged as a relentless critic of Americas coronavirus response, in ways that left me feeling like a Burkean in our conversations. (Ezra Klein, 4/1)

Los Angeles Times:Ending COVID For Good Will Be A War. U.S. Should Lead FightThe steadily increasing pace of COVID-19 vaccinations in the U.S. more than 2.5 million shots a day at the moment has given hope to many Americans that the pandemic will be over in a few months and life can return to normal. Sorry to burst that bubble, but even if enough Americans are vaccinated to reach herd immunity, the pandemic wont be over until every nation on Earth has equal protection. And under current projections, that wont happen for three years from now, maybe longer. (4/1)

CNN:America's Next Covid-19 Culture War Is HereIt's America's next Covid-19 culture war. Growing numbers of businesses, hospitality industries, and even sports teams are considering requiring proof of vaccination for customers, once the world begins to open up. For both patrons and staff, such a system might offer peace of mind -- and could stop a cruise voyage around the Caribbean, for example, from turning into a floating super spreader. (Stephen Collinson and Richard Greene, 3/31)

Bay Area News Group:COVID-19 Recovery Requires Restoring Public Health InvestmentOne year after Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an unprecedented statewide stay-at-home order in response to COVID-19, optimism for Californias recovery is growing. Its been a rough year, which was many years in the making. Our states COVID-19 experience confirmed the worst fears of public health officials who have long warned California was ill-prepared for such a crisis. We did not have to endure such incredible suffering and loss, and it did not have to be inflicted so unequally onto communities of color. (Colleen Chawla and Dr. Karen Relucio, 3/30)

Also

The Washington Post:Dysfunctional Websites Are Making It Harder For Americans To Get Vaccinated. Heres How To Fix That.The covid-19 vaccine supply is improving and vaccine confidence is growing, but there is a weak link in the U.S. distribution chain: the websites. To make appointments to get vaccinated, millions of Americans are using sites that are often dysfunctional. This is not only slowing vaccination rates but also deterring some eligible Americans from getting the shot altogether. (Drew Altman, 3/31)

Chicago Tribune:7 Concerns About The COVID-19 Vaccines, ExplainedWhy do people refuse to get vaccinated for COVID-19? Those who do fall into two basic categories: anti-vaxxers who are opposed to vaccines on general principles, and the vaccine hesitant who believe they have valid reasons to avoid vaccination. Among the two groups there is a mutual bond of shared skepticism about authority as well as a strong inclination toward personal liberty. This desire for personal liberty makes their vaccine reluctance all the more ironic, since the perceived curtailments of personal freedoms in the form of lockdowns and mask mandates will end much sooner once most or all of the population is vaccinated. (Cory Franklin and Robert Weinstein, 3/31)

Dallas Morning News:A Voluntary COVID Vaccine Passport Is Not A Slippery Slope To TyrannyAs COVID-19 vaccinations spread across the land, vaccine hesitancy seems to be waning. Curiously, many who have resisted the shots are conservatives, constituting pushback against the availability made possible by the president they very likely voted for. But theres no Trump-flavored Operation Warp Speed singing the praises of the next phase of vaccine policy, the COVID vaccine passports, and pockets of resistance are getting loud. But why? If the vaccines are earning trust after months of rollout, what could be the objections to technology enabling vaccinated people to gather with greater security in environments offering the certainty of others similarly protected? (Mark Davis, 4/1)

Read this article:
Viewpoints: Will Fourth Wave of Covid Be The Worst Yet?; Pandemic Fight Has Been Too Cautious - Kaiser Health News

SARATOGA SPRINGS At the conclusion of his eight two-year term as City Accounts Commissioner, John Franck will not be seeking reelection, the longtime councilmember announced this week in a statement.

It has been my honor to serve the city I love, said Franck, citing an ongoing family medical concern as the reason.

All five seats on the City Council, as well as both supervisor positions, are up for vote in November. Franck is the third of five current council members who have announced they will not be running in the fall. City Mayor Meg Kelly who has served two, two-year terms, and Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan who has served five terms - each said they will not seek re-election.

Additionally, current Public Safety Commissioner Robin Dalton recently announced she will seek re-election, but that she will do so as a no party member, after changing her party registration to no longer being an active member of the GOP.

Recent changes in election law have altered the landscape regarding the involvement of the number of political parties. Voters previously registered with the Green, Libertarian, Independence, or SAM party, are now considered No Party (NOP).

The four political parties that now remain in New York State are Democratic, Republican, Conservative, and Working Families.

While all registered voters are eligible to vote in the November General Election, No Party voters are not eligible to vote in any Primary Elections, which takes place June 22.

Prior to the February 14 deadline that allowed registered voters to change their party affiliation - and therefore be eligible to vote in primaries of that new party they joined - 71 Saratoga Springs residents previously registered with other parties or unaffiliated with any party, switched their affiliation to the Working Families Party, according to voter enrollment documents secured from the Saratoga County Board of Elections.

The Working Families party line in Saratoga Springs now counts 107 voters. Those 71 new members of the Working Families Party line came from various previous affiliations: 30 were previously registered Republicans, 17 Democrats, 7 Independence Party members, and a combined 5 members previously enrolled with the Conservative, Libertarian and Green party lines. Twelve had no previous party affiliation. The shift in enrollments may have ramifications leading up to the election season.

Potential candidate interested in running for a city position who does not have the endorsement of any of the four existing parties may do so independently, via independent nominating petitions. The number of petition signatures required varies according to municipality.

In Saratoga Springs specifically, potential candidates interested in running for the City Council would need 305 signatures. The timing-window to secure those signatures begins April 13, and they must be filed the week of May 18-25.

Excerpt from:
Longtime City Councilmember John Franck Will Not Seek Re-Election; Signature Petition Process for Candidates Independent of Party to Begin April 18,...

WASHINGTON Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) and a member of the US Holocaust Memorial Council compare the idea of vaccine passports to Nazi Germany, with the Libertarian Party of Kentucky invoking the yellow Stars of David that Nazis forced Jews to wear during the Holocaust.

A man in a mask stands near a banner depicting a Holocaust-era yellow Star of David in Tel Aviv on April 21, 2020. (Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images)

Vaccine passports refer to documentation that would allow those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 to access public spaces such as gyms, malls, museums or theaters that would require such proof in the future.

The Biden administration is working on creating a vaccine passport system as vaccination numbers ramp up, according to the Washington Post.

Israel, which has inoculated the majority of its population of nine million, has been implementing a vaccine passport system for about a month.

Supporters of the idea say it will allow vaccinated people to enjoy a relative return to normalcy while encouraging others to get the vaccine.

Some opponents have implied that the idea of opening recreational spaces to those who arent at risk of COVID is similar to the Nazis persecution Europes Jews.

Proposals like these smack of 1940s Nazi Germany. We must make every effort to keep America from becoming a show your papers society, said Cawthorn, a freshman Republican congressman from North Carolina, according to Fox News.

The Constitution and our founding principles decry this type of totalitarianism.

Earlier this year, Cawthorn sparked concern among some Jewish leaders in his district when he tweeted an adaptation of a popular poem about the Holocaust, apparently to advertise his online campaign store.

Others tweeted that vaccine passports are comparable to the yellow stars that the Nazis forced Jews to wear in public that were inscribed with the word Jew.

Are the vaccine passports going to be yellow, shaped like a star, and sewn on our clothes? the Libertarian Party of Kentucky tweeted on March 29.

Defending the comparison, the party tweeted later that day that vaccine passports are a complete and total violation of human liberty. This is the stuff of totalitarian dictatorships.

In a March 30 tweet that has since been deleted, the Libertarians also condemned banksters and politicians and displayed a quote, ostensibly by a member of the Rothschild family, about how being able to issue and control a nations money is more important than being able to write laws.

The false notion that the Jewish Rothschild family controls international finance is an age-old anti-Semitic stereotype.

Richard Grenell, former President Donald Trumps ambassador to Germany and a member of the US Holocaust Memorial Council, tweeted a meme showing a Nazi Gestapo officer in the Quentin Tarantino film Inglorious Basterds saying, Youre hiding unvaccinated people under your floorboards, arent you? The original line from the movie uses similar wording in referring to Jews.

Speak up now. #slipperyslope, Grenell wrote.

In Britain, conservative pundit James Delingpole tweeted, Wouldnt it be better just to cut to the chase and give unvaccinated people yellow stars to sew prominently onto their clothes?

The trend is the latest instance of people equating public health mandates they dont like to the Holocaust a practice that anti-Semitism watchdogs and Holocaust scholars condemn.

Anti-lockdown activists have compared COVID-related public health restrictions to the Holocaust.

In 2019, before the pandemic, some anti-vaccine activists compared themselves to Jews suffering under the Nazis, also by appropriating yellow stars.

To compare COVID-19 rules to the slaughter of millions in the Holocaust is disgusting, wrong and has no place in our society, ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt tweeted last year.

On March 30, the ADL and others noted that in 2019, Grenell tweeted, Never compare the Holocaust to anything. Ever. At the time, Grenell was referring to a Holocaust comparison coming mostly from the political left that gained prominence when Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called immigrant detention camps on the Southern border concentration camps and invoked the phrase Never again, terms most commonly associated with the Holocaust.

Following the Ocasio-Cortez statement, several Jewish organizations either urged caution in using Holocaust analogies or came out against the comparison.

Some of the cautioning groups, including the ADL, have also come out against other comparisons of Trump or his policies to Nazis or the Holocaust.

The US Holocaust Memorial and Museum said that it rejects efforts to create analogies between the Holocaust and other events, whether historical or contemporary.

Related

View original post here:
Vaccine passports and reaction to them critiqued | IJN - Intermountain Jewish News