To wonder how you're voting in the Scottish Referendum and why?

[deeedeee]

a month away from the vote thought it would be interesting to ask

( no bunfighting , derision or soundbites please. just yes or no and why. feel free to post more than once with different reasons. No links unless independent fact or opinion, nothing from the official campaigns)

I'm a YES

because Westminster's failed to protect the vunerable and the UK's me first politics have taken us down a particularly nasty path. An independent Scotland leans towards to left and can potentially choose a better route. And if a change happens in scotland then I think that that could inspire a change in the direction of politics in the rest of the UK.

'Think tanks' on either side of the debate can use numbers and 'projections' to support their arguments.

And I dislike Alex Salmond only slightly less than Shiny Dave, but even as somebody who has only been resident in Scotland for 20+ years I can see how the sector of society who run Westminster have very little interest in looking after Scottish concerns.

I work in the NHS and am horrified what is going on in England - I know only too well that things are far from great, but at least we still have a service that is recognisable as what Bevan intended IMO.

Blackhandbag I haven't heard what he said, but was it that there isn't enough oil left to sustain the economy?

Oil revenue would be a bonus to iScotland, not the basis of the economy.

No certainties IMO which is why I shall be voting with my gut

The Scottish Giberbent, as is, does indeed have devolved powers over the NHS; aa far as tgey can with the money allocated from Westminster

Scotland's NHS gets almost 10% more spending per head of population than in England.

Woods comments on oil recently are totally at variance from his comments in February.

No one answers my question about oil. If better together are rubbing their hands together at the thought of Scotland not having as much oil as initially thought; how does that impact on the bank balance of the UK if there's a no vote?

As a much larger economy it's less of a blow to the UK as a whole.

Scotland's NHS gets almost 10% more spending per head of population than in England

Yes, the Scottish NHS also gets to look after a population that enjoys the worst health in the Western world.

But still a blow?

newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-economy/9630-sir-donald-mackay-challenges-sir-ian-woods-remarks-on-oil-and-gas

We need to look so hard at who says what and why - everyone has an agenda, even Iain Wood.

chubbyhez I've been to the Women For Independence stall and they're all lovely. :) Had a nice chat with one of them, and they gave me some stickers. How was George Galloway? Outside of the independence topic, I don't like him for some of his other views (e.g. the way he has been behaving re. Israel - Palestine conflict and saying that Israelis are not welcome in Bradford).

JohnCusacksWife That's fair enough. :)

I would expect so.

These new oil fields, and the billions that are being spent (by oil companies) are a terrible burden. We're too wee to support them, that's why thousands of oil workers in Shetland are having to be accommodated on massive ships.

How is Scotland NOT North Britain?! That's not an insult, it's just a fact(as it stands at the moment) - just as England is in the south of Britain and Wales is in the west of Britain. If it had been called North England that would surely be the insult...!

numanoid here is a link to telegraph article with quotes from Ian wood:

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/scottish-independence/11046740/Sir-Ian-Wood-15-years-of-oil-left-before-independent-Scotland-spending-cuts.html

I think the point that worried me was about the loss of jobs and impact on public sector in only 15 years.

LadyCordelia the fact that working class people are more likely to vote yes tells you all you need to know about the extent of poverty in Scotland. Deprivation makes people feel like they have nothing to lose. Your position of privilege is fortunate - I hope you don't ever find yourself in a position where you find out how the other half live first hand.

George put on a good show, revelling in his rebel reputation. I do question his motivation. As an English NO without a vote in the referendum he does seem to be spending a lot of time and money taking his message around Scotland.

I have no idea how to do proper links since the mobile site changed!!!!

It's absolutely an insult.

Surely part of the problem with disentangling all the claims about currency, oil etc is that there is no completely impartial information out there. Each side can wheel out some expert who will agree with their stance - which leaves Joe Public none the wiser.

So it then comes down to basics - do you believe, as a point of principle, that Scotland should be an independent country for better or for worse?

For me I don't see myself as fundamentally any different from my neighbours in England, Wales or NI and don't want to create a border across our small island for no good reason, as far as I can see, apart from a bit of flag waving and a dislike of the current government, who may very well be gone in a few years.

That NO was meant to be MP

affafantoosh thanks for that link, I'll have a read

I am a yes

its about having a more representative democracy, closer to the scottish people and their lives, with closer accountability - not to say anything bad about England and the English, (or indeed Wales or NI) but the countries do have different challenges, priorities and political cultures in my experience from the time Ive spent living and working in each. (might be fairer to England if we solve the West Lothian question too!)

Its about getting away from being used as safe seats and vote fodder for certain parties while nothing changes and we still face the same social/health problems we did 20, 30, 50 years ago. Its about looking at long term changes to try and tackle them, not the usual '5 year term/need reelected' short termism we get

Its about being one of the only countries in the world who had a natural resource like oil and somehow appears to have little benefit or legacy created from its exploitation (contrast the UK with Norway and how the resource was managed, and how things look 30 years along)

I cant see that 'No' offers any useful alternative other than same old politics, same old class issues, same old professional political class working for the 'haves' in our society and supported by the same old corrupt media system

I might even go into politics myself if the vote is for Independance

crikey ladycordelia, i absolutely think the opposite. I wonder if Noam Chomsky would agree with you.