Vermonters split on Scottish independence vote By Chris Garofolo | Sep 23, 2014 Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on emailShare on printMore Sharing Services0While some Vermonters with strong ties to Scotland breathed a sigh of relief after Scottish voters rejected independence from the United Kingdom last week, others expressed disappointment that the homeland of their ancestors would not move forward as an autonomous country. News from the British Isles flowed into the Green Mountain State in the early morning hours of Sept. 19 after Scots voted by a 55 to 45 percent margin to remain part of their shared union with England, Wales and Northern Ireland. If the referendum was successful, it would have split Scotland from its union that has lasted more than three centuries. Bellows Falls resident Cass Wright, who said he is “of deep Scottish descent” and has connections to the Clan MacIntyre, supported the movement toward independence. “It’s really rough. I think the thing that bothers me the most to hear is what an extremely high voter turnout they had. I mean, initially that’s a good thing, but I can see the ‘No’ camp using that fact to keep the referendum off the ballot for the next decade or so,” Wright said. “All things considered, it would have been a little less jarring if it had been a lower turnout. But ultimately, it’s democracy; it is the will of the people and democracy is one of the gifts that our Scottish forebears gave us 200 years ago,” he continued. “Scotch-Americans were very impassioned patriots in our fight for independence. This was something different, this was a vote and the people spoke.” Wright discussed the fight for independence during the New Hampshire Highland Games over the weekend, the largest celebration of Scottish culture in the Northeast. He hosted the MacIntyre tent, one of approximately 70 sites representing different Scottish clans. An estimated 20,000 people flocked to Loon Mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire, to listen to traditional Scottish music, observe some of the heavy athletic and strength competitions and sample the region’s renowned whisky. It was not uncommon for participants to spark a debate about the merits of a free Scotland during the event. According to Wright, an independent Scotland would have the natural resources to stand on its own and become a wealthy, stable nation with its solid fishing, petroleum and renewable energy industries. He cited the oil production in the North Sea, a majority comes from Scottish waters with little of the revenue getting back to the Scottish people. “That is something that would change immediately with independence. Scotland would have control of 68 percent of that revenue, and we’re talking about billions and billions of pounds of sterling,” he added. The campaign against independence won approximately 55.3 percent of the votes cast in the Sept. 18 referendum, a margin wider than anticipated given most opinion polls on the eve of the vote showed a virtual split. Alan Brown, a Scotland native who operates MacLaomainn’s Scottish Pub in Chester, overheard dozens of conversations in his tavern pertaining to independence during the weeks leading up to the vote. A self-described “proud Scot and U.S. citizen,” Brown said there were too many unanswered questions and contradictions in the “Yes” campaign and from Alex Salmond, the leader of the Scottish National Party. “[Salmond] wanted to become a new member of [the European Union], which one of the stipulations of joining the European community is that you take on the Euro, but he didn’t want to take on the Euro,” Brown told the Eagle Times. “And then just weeks ago, it was announced that he wanted Scotland to be a member of NATO, but he didn’t want any armed forces or nuclear missiles in Scotland. It just wasn’t adding up at all.” Despite the loss, pro-independence voters hope there is a silver lining to their campaign and the massive push toward a sovereign nation will prompt the British government to give Scotland more authority. U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron even prior to the vote pledged to grant more autonomy to Scotland. Thomas MacPhee, a Bellows Falls resident of Scottish heritage, did not favor independence but said the vote could spur greater freedoms without impairing the United Kingdom. “I think you’ll find that Parliament [the legislative branch of the United Kingdom] and whoever is in charge over there will probably be a little more lenient and give them more power in the operation of the U.K., but that’s yet to be determined,” said MacPhee, who with his son-in-law Brown also attended the Highland Games over the weekend. “Everyone in my family would have voted no if we had the option to. There are a lot of big organizations that were going to pull out of Scotland if the vote went yes, including some major banks.” Wright, on the other hand, worried about a possible backlash because of the “immense turnout for independence.” He said any measure that would return power to Scotland would have to be voted through the British Parliament and, given the legislative track record, is not likely to pass because “there’s very little Scottish sentiment in either the House of Commons or the House of Lords.”
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 13:51:18 +0000