26-05-2025
Be on side of politics that's about what you are for, not against
That is, that I believe everyone associated with The National is here for one very good reason. We believe in what this paper has to say.
We believe in Scottish independence. We believe in this paper's stance on Gaza.
We believe in this paper's desire to hold Scottish politicians, whoever they are, to account. We want to talk about what matters.
I believe we do this based on a simple, mutual understanding, which is that we think a better world is possible for the people of Scotland. We are, therefore, 'for' something. We work, we write, we edit, we photograph, we make social media, we agonise and we sweat tears, all because it is our hope that at the end of the day there will be something to show for all this.
You could, of course, argue that given the current state of Scotland – its politics, its economy, and the denial of its freedom – it would be hard for us to think otherwise. But again, I am making the point for a very good reason.
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What I see all around me, in Scotland, in the UK, in the United States and beyond, is politics which is, at best, 'against' something and, at worst, based on hate. Labour, like the Tories before them, seem to hate the young; the vulnerable; those with disabilities; people who are without work through no fault of their own; homeless people; children in poverty and their parents; hard-up pensioners; migrants; civil servants and all public-sector employees; anyone who has the temerity to ask for a pay rise; people who raise their voice; anyone who protests, someone who thinks that the future of our planet matters; and a great many others besides.
The list appears to be endless.
Unless you are wealthy, have a very high income, have power and influence, are probably male as a result, and can make a very large donation to a political party of your choice, then it seems that you really do not matter in the world in which the Tories and Labour reside.
They believe in a politics of division, where the vast majority of people are placed by them on the losing side and they then have no intention of helping them.
When it comes to Reform, matters just get worse. They don't just seek to divide society between the ultra-wealthy – who are the only people that the far right ever seeks to serve (as Trump's Big Beautiful Budget Act in the US proves) – and everyone else, they actively hate everyone else except when they might put them into power.
After that, who knows whether they will follow Trump's precedent, which looks very likely to lead to the end of democracy, and so voting, in the US?
These English parties are not defined by what they are for. They are defined by what they are against. Worse, what they are against is most of us. I will be candid, the rise of fascism is scaring me. In time, I suspect it will scare most people, but by then it might be too late. It took seven centuries from the time of Magna Carta until we got a universal franchise in the UK for every man and woman of adult age.
The positive processes of democracy took a very long time to build. I, among others, have related that the process of democracy is being destroyed in the US, is almost over, and all in a matter of months.
This is not a moment for sitting on the side. This is not a moment when waiting to make up your mind is an option. This is a moment when you have to decide whose side you are on, which voices you wish to hear, and what causes you wish to promote.
This is a moment to reject the politics of division, and the politics of hate. This is a moment to be for things.
In that case, it may be just one small gesture among many you might need to take, but might I suggest that if you have not already done so, you might subscribe to The National?
This is a moment when it needs your support. This is a moment when you need to express that support . This is a way of doing just that.
Freedom requires a free press.
The National has shown its capacity to offer opinion free from fear.
That, surely, is a cause worth supporting at this very precarious moment?
