Guilt Free Railing 20

[WouldBeGood]

The curtain call.

May this thread be empty 😃

All good news welcome too, to go along with railing, guilt free

Ditto. We have already discussed where we'd move to.

I’m applying for my Irish passport (Irish born grandmother) as my get out plan (because there is ZERO chance of Scotland being accepted into the EU)…doubtful we’d move to Ireland but at least it opens the door to the rest of Europe. In higher tax band…already paying more than my English counterpart and being rewarded with a poorer health and education system. It’s a no brainer really. If they could be trusted to use taxes appropriately and invest in the right things, I wouldn’t mind…but it all gets pissed up the wall on jaunts to America, baby boxes and ceaseless neverendums while the country crumbles

Railing about having to sit on the floor for ages at my GP surgery, where the waiting-room chairs are still spaced 10 feet apart Because Covid and I was there with a stressed child who needed me closer than that. What is the actual POINT.

I’ve always been pretty ambivalent on independence as a theory, so I’d need way more convincing on what it’s practically going to look like before I’d vote for it. “It’ll work out in the end, look at Ireland and Iceland!” Yeah they’re ok now but they were pretty poor for a few decades, weren’t they - going to need a better case for going through that than “but we get to be independent while we’re poor yay!”

Cherry picking 10 countries that perform better than the UK on selected metrics was another thing that made my teeth itch as a scientist! You could just as easily pick 10 countries that perform worse. That’s without even considering what they have to do to achieve those metrics, or whether there are other aspects of life there we wouldn’t accept (some are very high tax for instance, and health care often isn’t ‘free’ like it is here). Or even the fact that we’re not starting from a clean slate - an independent Scotland would have massive economic and social problems to sort out (not to mention political divisions that have been amplified massively in the last decade or so) before you could even start to build this ‘new vision’, and I wouldn’t trust the SNP with any of that given their record. And despite callers this morning claiming that the SNP would cease to exist after a vote (yeah right, because they’re so keen to give up power they’ll just disband I suppose?), in the initial critical years they’ll be in charge so their record is very relevant. I just don’t think it’s worth it, especially as Labour will be in again in a few years.

Yes @GoldenOmber I always look at Ireland.
They are fine now but for the 1st 50 years after independence their biggest export was their people. Because there were no jobs!

I'm old enough to have started work at the end of the 80s and I remember right through the 90s working with loads of Irish people at various times who had had to come here for decent jobs.

Even if there's only 20 years of an economic dip and no jobs that would mean my (now teen) children having to leave Scotland for the first half of their working lives. In which case they would probably never return. Just look around at all the Irish folk who came here for work and settled and had families here and never returned.

Why on earth would I risk voting for a country that my children then couldn't live in🤷🏼‍♀️

And that's shit about you GP surgery! I thought they'd announced social distancing had now ceased in nhs to allow clinics to run more normally but mask wearing remained?

@GoldenOmber thats really rubbish about the surgery. It’s like it’s 2920! Hope you got do sorted

I agree with you in that I would have considered independence if they spelled out exactly what would happen, but it’s all so vague, and Brexit has shown how badly that goes.

We can't be Ireland because Ireland has already cornered the market in FDI due to low corporation tax.

Remember the savage cut backs in a Ireland 2007-2013 and we were all phew, thank goodness we didn't join the euro?

From wiki on Ireland's economy:

'Foreign-owned multinationals continue to contribute significantly to Ireland's economy, making up 14 of the top 20 Irish firms (by turnover),[36] employing 23% of the private sector labour-force[37] and paying 80% of the collected corporation tax.[38][39]'

It looks good for now.

Random tangent - we've got bumble bees nesting in the roof over a window - any ideas who to call?

Can't open the window as there are lots of bees back and forth above it.

Hoping they'll vacate the nest of their own accord, but will they?

We've had those types of bees a couple of times, if they haven't got a hive as such then they are mortar bees or white tailed something. Ours only stayed a week or so and then disappeared. I believe they are harmless and don't cause damage but maybe have a google and see if you can identify the species?

They're tree bumble bees - a fair few have come in. I'm thinking to hopefully wait then out but if they don't leave....

www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/tree-bumblebee

Seems to suggest that they are just hanging about for a shag and have no stingers

Today my railing is about that shitty piece of tech - the "app" which they threw ££££ for the covid passport and which you still need to get into certain countries.

We are off to Spain a week on Saturday, 17 year old DD spent 2 hours trying to get it to recognise her face this morning and the thing just won't work. So now she has to get on the phone and get a paper copy.

Total shite.

We managed to go onto the website and print it off but you'd need to remember how to get into the appointment thingy and also have access to a printer or get a decent screen shot maybe onto your phone. All they do is scan the QR code when you get there.

But yes, it's shite, I've never had the app.

@BinBandit shagging bees 🤣

thars very annoying @Stroopwaffels

I don't think DD ever registered for the appointment app - hers were allocated automatically and came through the post. it's such a faff.

Ah thanks @BinBandit so probably in a week or two more they'll naturally move on hopefully!

If she still has any of her appointment letters with her ID number on, she could probably do that now and would be easier than the app. Not trying to justify the shit show btw, just trying to see if she can get it herself rather than relying on it being sent out.

fingers crossed! At least it's not wasps.

No they're confused and slow - we've rescued 4 of them so far who've wondered aimlessly into various rooms

Luckily my dd hasn't noticed as she absolutely freaks out about at flying insect however harmless!

Yep and the international pass only lasts 3 days before you have to refresh the damn thing and hope it's not having problems
We find having paper copies far easier as others said if you can log in to the booking system you can request paper copies

@Stroopwaffels
DH had same problem a few months ago. We switched to the iPad to set up his account and then he logged in on his phone.
iPad recognised his face no problem but for some reason his phone wouldn't 🤷🏼‍♀️

I'm going to have to stay off Twitter I think for the sake of my mental health. After the Indyref2 announcement a few days ago my Twitter feed is just full of vitriol and hatred, from both sides I should add but I follow unionists so I see more hatred from SNP supporters. I feel sick to the pit of my stomach that the next few years are going to be like this with division and grievance being stirred up. It's difficult as two of my longest, closest friends are staunch nationalists so it feels even more personal for me and I'm continually second guessing myself and can't quite believe my intelligent friends think the case for Scottish independence is strong.
It couldn't come at a worse time I think as I feel we are just coming out of two years of hell with covid. I work in ICU so think I've bottled all the trauma up for the last two years and am ready to breathe and relax again and now this!

I hear you @imstilljenny2

Have 💐