billy connley said it best years ago. the racism that has allowed to fester towards the english due to the SNP isn't opinion, it's fact. I'm not saying all nationalists or snp supports are racist towards the english. But to deny that their message and blame game for the last 20+ years hasn't caused racism, is absurd. Salmond blame game is a key example. He even switched using the term westminster politicians towards the end of his political career because he even realised what an idiot he was.
No idea why you're bringing up brexit and anti immigrant rhetoric. Scots and English can be racist to each other you know.
The point is by large
the SNP don't campaign on bigotry or racism. Saying they want to stand up for Scotland, or put Scotland first, isn't racism. This gets bees in the bonnets as unionists would understandably wish they rattled off about standing up for the UK (ironically that
was their message in 2015, trying to be progressive for
all of the UK). Unfortunately though due to political divisions, what the SNP want for Scotland doesn't seem to be what the majority of the rUK want. As in the majority voted for Brexit and seem to fully back the Tories and austerity. Even when the SNP has tried to form allegiances with Labour, as I said above Labour get skittish and don't want to be seen colluding with a pro-independence party. Dare I remind you of the BetterTogether smearing that tried to say Labour were in the SNPs pockets? The SNP are largely toxic by default for nearly any British political party as the hysteria around anyone daring to stand with a party who wants to breakup the union trumps even being able to work together on individual issues. Which is sad, but hey, it's precisely what leads to political divides, and the Labour 'red wedding' in 2015. The rule Britania saber rattling that cannot even be put down for 10 minutes to work together on important issues is precisely what is dividing Scotland from the rUK. Yes, there are a healthy dose of pro-independence rattlers up here, but things like austerity and Brexit piss off even non-independence voters. That explains precisely why Labour was wiped out right after a country voted no to independence (2014 vs 2015). Labour were still going on about austerity and being Tory-lite, so their Scottish seats got nuked.
Bringing up Brexit and anti-immigration sentiment was to show you how a party, largely UKIP, actually
campaign on bigotry. The Tories and Labour veered somewhat into this as well, with unclear immigration messages, and somewhat pandering to Daily Mail readers. Conservatives because they don't care and/or truly supported Brexit, Labour because they are shooting in the dark trying to pickup seats and votes and selling their morals/principles out in the process.
By in large the actual politics and shifts/divisions have fuck all to do with idiots up here/football hooligans and any other potty mouths. As earlier in this topic putting up a student calling Cameron an 'English Twat' as some
important piece to reflect on 5.25m people is short-sighted at best. It's why Khan trying to be a little loose with his words to negatively paint a whole nation, if not a large part of the nation got blown back in his face. You're trying to smear the nation that voted the majority against Brexit, and has been voting pretty damn progressive for a while now. That's not going to help if your political end game is actually wanting to keep the union together. Imagine that, somewhat smearing people who are largely progressive, and in favour of multiculturism does not get received well. Are there pretty noisy, almost insufferable SNP voters on social media? Yeah, sure. You know what though? When you actually have some evidence and backing to show you stand on the side of tolerance and progressive thinking, maybe just maybe you have a little breathing room to be rather noisy and veering on insufferable at times. Especially when the alternative can often be around being a smug elite, talking about your private education, private health insurance and distaste around poor people, disabled, immigrants and wanting to be a mini-America (as in some of the negative aspects of America ~ Notably private health care and war/army spending). Politics will always provide some heated, verging on insufferable debates at times. The more important question for everyone is what side of tolerance, acceptance and progressive thinking are you standing on? Simply pointing a finger at a group of people and stating what a bunch of noisy insufferable twats, doesn't always correlate with what your party of choice, or you yourself, actually vote for/back.
Us vs them/tribalistic mentalities are often a net negative, but they happen in politics, and will continue to. As I just said though when they do the more important question to ask yourself is what is the 'team' I'm supporting actually standing for? What are their actual policies? How can humanity be benefited? Are we caring adequately about the worst off? What are the actual negatives and positives within policy to what the party I align myself is backing? Opposed to, I must just crush my enemies! Which is what the SNP are to many unionists.
Simply an enemy who want to breakup the UK. The further Labour continue to spin that narrative the further they'll get to that last Labour seat in Scotland being nuked. Maybe Labour are content to just write off ever getting Scottish seats again, but you know what, they are actually pissing off some Labour voters in England as well. Even on GAF you see some English Labour voters almost begrudginly saying cut yourself away from the rUK Scotland. Even with the challenges Scotland would face on its own. That's probably more to do with huge discontent with Labour/Corbyn, than it is actually wanting the UK to be broken up. It is where we are though, people actually uttering such statements in 2017 and they aren't even Scottish.
Edit: I should probably add a final disclaimer after this long rant that no its not a hit piece against everyone who votes Conservative (or Labour). Nor am I even suggesting everything the Tory party stands for is rotten. It's more to try and show how people who fundamentally disagree with Scottish independence can still vote SNP in a general election because the net gain of the party can appear to be socially progressive. Or at least more so than what the opposition offers. Too many observers still seem to see a vote for the SNP as toxic by nature because the union might be under threat. The ideological and political issues around the union being under threat are far deeper than just a sole party wanting independence, or a student calling Cameron some unflattering name. It's a nation also feeling at a loss because something like Brexit comes along and only adds fuel to the fire that political divisions are at an all time high. They are, and simply calling for unity isn't cutting the mustard anymore, in the same way people telling Americans they must now unify with Trump gets met with blowback. Democracy is all about
legally fighting back/protesting/making your voice heard. Independence from a union might be the
shotgun approach, but if done correctly and above board it is both democratic and legal. If more and more people feel backed into a corner and disillusioned at the way the union is going, sympathy to independence is going to somewhat be stimulated. Brexit cannot just be voted 'out' in 4 years time at the next GE. It's a huge shift for where this union is heading.
There's a rather humorous quote that I can't quite think of off the top of my head about the blame placed on the English for the clearances. On the other hand, though I think this declined over the course of the 20th century. The English tended to blame the Scots as a whole if anything went wrong with anything besides military matters involving even a single Scot.
