On a note more pertinent to the rest of us, does this mean that the price of a glass bottle of Irn Bru is going to come down in January? After all, that 30p deposit is included in the £1 price. (A pound, for God's sake. I remember when it was 8p for it and 2p back on the bottle!) No doubt the price will remain the same, even though it's sheer robbery. Another lot that'll miss the deposit money are Glasgow bus drivers. At the terminus there were always weans around asking if they could 'look for gingies' on the bus. Those days will soon be gone and drivers will have to either go round with bottles rolling up and down the aisle of the top deck or clean the buses themselves.
Back to Sevco and it looks like the future greatest footballer of all time, Gedion Zelalem, might be going elsewhere. There are three English Championship clubs looking to take him on loan as well and he and his dad have gone back to London to think it over. What's to think about? The lad claims to be ambitious and wants to develop himself to be as good as Zinedine Zidane. Now, what's the best way to go about that? A) Play among the big boys in the English Championship. B) Play against teachers, social workers and firemen in the Scottish second tier. Obviously the boy's got a lot to consider. Warburton sells playing for Sevco by claiming that loan players will get to play in front of 50,000 crowds; he fails to mention what the crowds will be at the likes of Recreation Park! But you take your time, son and think hard.
A rather strange article in today's Record. Steven Naismith, who now plays at Everton, apparently buys match tickets out of his own pocket and gives them away to the unemployed. Now that is certainly to be applauded and is a great story by itself. Weirdly, though, this is tacked on almost as an afterthought. The headline, and main point of the article, is that Naismith would rather leave Everton than spend most of the season on the bench, which could put his chances of being picked for Scotland in jeopardy. Well...duh! It's hardly news, is it? Unless, of course, there's an ulterior motive behind this article. Can you think of any recently-signed player that the sports hacks in Scotland are claiming has given up the chance of a first-team place week-in, week-out, in order just to warm the bench at another club?
Meanwhile, in politics, the Record has decided to throw in its lot with Jeremy Corbyn. They support his stance on fighting austerity, eliminating the need for food banks, getting rid of Trident...Wait a wee minute here; we seem to have heard all these policies before somewhere. That's right - they're all policies advocated by the SNP, a party that the Record told us not to vote for; we were meant to stick with the Blairite Labour Party to save us all. The two-facedness of this paper is unbelievable, especially when it comes to other reasons for supporting Corbyn.
"In Scotland, they’ve allowed the SNP to practically exterminate them (Labour) – despite a record of talking left but failing to deliver left-wing policies." Eh? Gordon Brown, the erstwhile hero of the Record, anyone? "Tony Blair’s Labour government achieved many great things, including for Scotland." Like what, for instance? Devolution - I'll give you that one, but there are also the massive debts left for NHS trusts to pay off for the next century because of involving the private sector. But Corbyn, apparently is going to fix everything.
That fact is that the Labour Party has been veering to the right ever since Neil Kinnock refused to support the miners in 1984. The reason for this is plain; the party had become unelectable in the south of England, where most voters live. This is still the case with a left-leaning Labour Party. The Record might point to the crowds flocking to Corbyn's meetings, but the same was true back in the days of Michael Foot. The crowds, however, didn't translate into votes come election time and the same will be true in 2020.
Scotland and the south of England have been drifting further and further apart for over thirty years and Scotland has been voting for the traditional Labour Party for most of that time. The Record, and others, still don't seem to understand that what appeals to Scotland does not appeal to London and the Home Counties. Corbyn would probably do well in Scotland, and in the north of England and Wales for that matter, but he will be complete anathema to the southerners. Unfortunately, a political party can't be all things to all people so Labour would have to choose between success in its traditional heartlands or success in Westminster; the last thirty-odd years have shown that it can't have both. Since the party will go with the majority of voters then the Blairite creed is here to stay. With Corbyn as leader there will be a much bigger split than there was when the Gang of Four went off to form the SDP. The political landscape has changed and the only way Scotland will get the government it wants, and needs, is to go it alone.
Finally, Annie Brown is usually one of my favourite columnists. She has a down-to-earth, no-nonsense approach that takes no prisoners. Today, however, I feel let down. She attacks the Catholic Church in Scotland, calling its apology to the victims of abuse 'too little, too late'. She then goes on to blame the Church for a rape victim not getting an abortion in Paraguay and for not dishing out condoms in parts of Africa to stop the spread of HIV and AIDS. Now I don't want to indulge in 'Whatabootery' here, but the Catholic Church is not the only religious institution facing allegations of child abuse. The Jehovah's Witnesses, among others, are facing investigations as well. This, however, seems to escape everyone's notice in Scotland, as is the fact that the Catholic Church seems to be the only religious institution facing up to the problem. As for the rape victim in Paraguay, that was a matter for that nation to decide, not the Church. Other countries can be equally draconian when it comes to abortion; Northern Ireland is a prime example. As for the situation in Africa, the Catholic Church, just like every other church, faces the dilemma of not wanting to be seen to be encouraging sexual permissiveness. I doubt that any other church is advocating the use of condoms; but only one church is demonised.
Isn't it funny how when it comes to sectarianism and bigotry our media always go out of their way to show that they're balanced in their views? 'One side's as bad as the other' is the mantra and they can never condemn organisations like the Orange Order without dragging other folk into it. And yet, when it comes to attacking the Catholic Church it's a free-for-all, even though other churches are just as 'guilty' of the accusations hurled at it. Homophobia, being anti-contraception, being anti-abortion and even child abuse are all portrayed as 'Catholic diseases'. Perhaps our society, and especially its media, hasn't moved on as much as it seems to think!
"Please ensure you get your gingies in before the cut-off date!"
And lest ye forget:
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P.S. Can I recommend a film to everyone that I hadn't seen in years, but have found on YouTube. If you've never seen it, don't let the name put you off. My old man wouldn't watch it and missed one of the best comedies ever!
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