Scotland’s First Minister, engine of the campaign for an independent Scotland, gave a startling and revelatory pledge to a public audience in Arbroath yesterday, 19th August, during the cabinet’s day trip to the Angus town and his own ‘Declaration of Opportunity’ in the shadow of Arbroath Abbey and the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath.
Mr Salmond is quoted first as telling his audience: ‘If the Brahan Seer said to me, “Listen, you retire from politics tomorrow and I guarantee you Scotland will be an independent country in the Spring of 2016″, I would shake hands on that right away, absolutely’.
The Brahan Seer, whether he existed or was a mythical construct, was a 17th diviner of future events. Mr Salmond’s first pledge invoking the Seer asserted his lack of personal ambition against his overriding drive to see Scotland into independence.
His second pledge however, while superficially it may have seemed similar, was of a very different order.
He is quoted as saying: ‘if the Brahan Seer said to me the other cost of independence is the SNP has to be abolished, I’d agree to that as well,’ going on to explain: ‘It’s the choice of the people of Scotland that’s the important thing, not which political party or which First Minster.’
This betrays the depth of an obsession that has driven and riven Scotland and the United Kingdom.
What Mr Salmond is saying here is that he doesn’t care what happens to Scotland after a vote for independence. All that matters to him is that, at all costs, he persuades the country to sign up for it on 18th September. Like any door-to-door salesman who walks away with a signed order after a successful pitch, he has no concern whether what is delivered is serviceable or not.
Nothing could be more irresponsible than to put a personal obsession above the future of a nation, to drive and deceive it to an irrevocable decision – and then leave it to itself, or to anyone – no matter whom, to sort out the aftermath.
A responsible politician, on a campaign of the gravity of this one, would be focused on the really hard job – staying around when the media has left town, the fireworks are spent, the job is a reality and rolling up his sleeves to do whatever it takes to make sure that the future works for those he has encouraged to take the punt of their lives on it.
For Mr Salmond, the great gambler, it is simply about the win.
Zealots are always trouble. Nothing matters but the cause.
This is seriously crackpot stuff.
