Excellent letter in todays Guardian Living as a Scotsman in Ireland I am following the referendum debate as best I can (Report, 1 September). However, one thing strikes me about the whole debate. The argument, for or against, seems to revolve around money and finance in one form or another. Here in Ireland, as the country gears up to celebrate its failed attempt at independence in 1916, where its leaders are near martyrs, it got me thinking what their take on our selfish debate would be. Perhaps one of them might have penned a letter such as this from his prison cell the night before his execution … “Dear voter, So, how have you woken up the morning after? Have you woken in shame? Have you followed Alistair Darling? Did you put yourself first? Justifying your treasonous act by wanting to believe that independence would come at a personal cost. A cost in blood and tears, in splattered brains and torn sinew, crushed bone and broken hearts, like nearly every other country on the face of the Earth had to endure for independence. No? At what cost then? At best a few pounds in your pocket. Shame on you. “Listen to them starting to turn, creaking slowly, before starting to spin- in their graves – all those heroes over all those centuries, from all those countries who had to wage war to raise their own flag, sing their own song. My God, all you had to do was get out your warm bed, and make a cross on a piece of paper. Shame on you if you voted no. It’s not about money. It’s about being us, standing on our own two feet, being in charge of our own destiny, making our own decisions. Who knows we might even take to the sports field with pride for once. It’s about being bloody Scottish not British. So how will you waken up the next morning? With your head held high, I hope.” Martin Loomes Galway, Ireland
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 07:37:49 +0000
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