September 22, 2014|7:49 am  
    It is a good thing the Scots voted against independence from    England. The movement was not about freedom, but about    increasing socialism. Both the UK Socialist and Green Parties,    along with other left-wing parties, supported the referendum;    the Conservative Party (Tories) and right wing UKIP opposed it.    Here is an analogy that makes it easy to understand: if    California secedes from the U.S. to become a communist state,    is it really about freedom and independence?  
    What has been disturbing about the movement is a lack of    informed analysis. Most supporters vaguely claimed it was about    independence and freedom, but didn't get into specifics. There    have been plenty of clichs and colorful flags, but little    substance. "Yes Scotland" and "Better Together," the names of    the two competing sides, were frequently bandied about with    little more.  
    Reading deeper into the referendum, it becomes clear that    proponents wanted to leave the UK in order to implement more    socialism than currently exists there. One of the biggest    reasons was so Scotland could keep its vast oil reserves all to    itself - 90 percent of UK oil reserves are located in Scotland    - and use the money to pay for even larger government welfare    programs. Another reason was to ditch the current austerity    measures being imposed across the UK as a result of too much    government spending, and avoid the privatization of government    functions. Additionally, proponents want to spend more money on    childcare, which they proposeto fund by putting 100,000    more women in the workforce, who will then pay more taxes. A    final key reason for leaving the UK is to eliminate nuclear    weapons. A Trident nuclear missile base is located in Scotland,    and seceding would force it to relocate - of course many jobs    would go with it.  
    Scotland is more left wing than the rest of the UK. Its two    dominant parties are both on the left; the Scottish Labor Party    and the Scottish National Party (SNP). Scotland has only    elected one Conservative to Parliament since 2001, out of 59    Scottish seats. The recent surge of the SNP in 2011 led to the    referendum. The Scottish left is irritated at being governed    nationally by the Conservative Party in recent years.  
    Tellingly, one Scot tweeted on the night of the referendum, "If    we go independent, we will no longer have to go to war for    American interests and do things the Tory way!" Scotland's    First Minister Alex Salmond, who headed the independence    effort, declared, ''A Yes means Scotland's future    in the hands of people who live here - so no more Tory    governments we didn't vote for.''  
    The pro-referendum side outspent the opposition by more than    two to one, but it was defeated 55 percent to 45 percent, with    a whopping 85 percent turnout. In contrast, only 50 percent of    Scots voted in the last Scottish Parliament elections, and 63    percent in the last UK election. The areas with the highest    turnout voted the strongest against the referendum.  
    This is evidence the Scots aren't quite as left as its leaders    are. Less than half of Scots oppose nuclear weapons. Support    for independence has been decreasing since 2007. The liberal    Boston Globe admittedthe shakiness of the    referendum, "The educated and middle-class Scots trended toward    keeping the union, while the poorer, working-class Scots, who    saw heavy industry collapse take their jobs away, tended to    prefer a role of the dice to see if their condition might not    be made better by going it alone."  
    Scotland merged with England in 1707, when the Scottish    Parliament voted in favor of joining by 110 to 69. Ireland    joined the union in 1801, however, most of Ireland except the    Northern portion left in 1922. In 1934, the Scottish National    Party was formed. In 1999, a separate Scottish Parliament was    formed, in addition to the UK Parliament.  
    Some are comparingthe Scottish independence    movement to separatist movements in Quebec, Northern Ireland,    Catalonia, Ukrainian nationalists, and others. But support for    Quebec's withdrawal from Canada has also been decreasing over    the years. Like the Scottish independence movement, the Quebec    separatist movement also calls for an even more left-wing    platform than the existing regime. For example, on its website,    the French Canadian party declares, "The Parti Qubcois had the    courage to take up the issue of religious accommodation and    secularism, neglected for so long by the Liberal Party of    Quebec." Another area is free legal aid, "The Parti Qubcois    has made a historic rise in eligibility thresholds for legal    aid on or after 1 January 2014 - This increase will provide    free coverage for elderly people living alone and mostly    benefiting from GIS."  
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Misleading 'Freedom' Referendum Goes Down in Flames in Scotland