Wannabe Scot

[Aggie]

I came away from this thread totally exhausted. The back and forth wore me out, but I didn't come away empty handed. Daz, your description of Scotland (good and bad) was the kind of view which I'll never get from being a tourist. I'll never see Scotland even as a tourist. I'm too busy saving my little piece of the world. I love history. I'm the son of a history teacher and I guess I inherited his love for it. But what happened in a 18th or 19th century battle doesn't give me a better picture of what Scotland is today. Perhaps from time to time you might consent to describe a portion of the people, politics or places which the tourist or someone like myself will not experience. The kind of view only someone who lives in Scotland can give. If we get the ancient history along with the new...fine. I like that. And it will keep the moderators from falling asleep.
Cliff

[Valencian Kilted]

Yesterday I downloaded from the internet a documentary called "Great Battles: CULODEN, The last Highander's Charge" from Cromwell productions.


I was amazed!!! it was horribly altered and considered to be just acceptable from a extreme english point of view! At the end of the documentary they try to convince me that what happened there was almost like making a favor to Scotland! ... Obviously I erased the file as soon as I finished it. It was vomitive!!!!

After saying this, I thought what should have been for scots to tolerate these kind of things for centuries, but, anyway, I still consider that even with all those silly people trying to justify what has not any justification, there's no place for a new "rebellion". Scotland, at least nowadays, is UK, and it's Europe. We're in the 21st century and there are not Cumberlands nor Stuarts to lead a brotherly war.

....mmmm.... still thinking too much!

¡Salud!

T O N O

[highlander_Daz]

If you look at Culloden, it was a battle for the British crown, Stuart decided he wanted it, and the jacobites supported him, as an Italian born Catholic with a Polish mother he would not have had the support of all Scots, indeed at Culloden many Scots fought for the British (not English) because they didnt want to see a Stuart king and a return to Catholicism, Indeed I was talking to one of the tour guides at Culloden and many tourists with Scots names ask "where would my ancesters have been during the battle?" and the guide will often point to the British side much to their dismay.

Many modern "countries" are based on Murder ,deciet, land grabs etc not just Scotland, I hesitate to mention modern America and the plight of Native Americans and Australia and the Aborigine, however raking over the past and wringing our hands does no good.


the real threat to Scotland doesnt come from England it comes from Europe thats where Wallace would be looking now.

[bubba]

I recall a big fuss when the EU insisted kilts be listed as womens skirts on trade forms. I understand the Scots won that little fight.

[Valencian Kilted]

If you look at Culloden, it was a battle for the British crown, Stuart decided he wanted it, and the jacobites supported him, as an Italian born Catholic with a Polish mother he would not have had the support of all Scots, indeed at Culloden many Scots fought for the British (not English) because they didnt want to see a Stuart king and a return to Catholicism, Indeed I was talking to one of the tour guides at Culloden and many tourists with Scots names ask "where would my ancesters have been during the battle?" and the guide will often point to the British side much to their dismay.

Many modern "countries" are based on Murder ,deciet, land grabs etc not just Scotland, I hesitate to mention modern America and the plight of Native Americans and Australia and the Aborigine, however raking over the past and wringing our hands does no good.


the real threat to Scotland doesnt come from England it comes from Europe thats where Wallace would be looking now.

C'mon, do you really mean that Europe's aim is to destroy Scotland, the scottish spirit and the scottish economy? ... uff,... well, from a spaniard's eye, after confessing my love for your land, and planning to buy some scottish seafood for xmas eve dinner (you sell ur crabs and lobsters here and it's cheaper than the spanish ones), even after filling my car's depot at a BP station, (surely my diesel came from a North Sea plant) and after buying a wanderful bottle of Glenmorangie 12 years with Madeira finishing for this frozing evenings at side of the chimney, and even when I'm planning to make my next trip in easter from Alicante airport to Glasgow and the flights were FULL,... :-(

...well,... from a spanish eye is hard to believe that you consider us, the rest of europeans, as deservers of a new Wallace rage and anger

Anyway, u'll be welcome here at my home,... kilted if it's possible!

¡Salud!

T O N O

[highlander_Daz]

I apologise, I didnt mean the european people I meant the european parlement, only yesterday Blair surrended billions of our rebate, how do you feel about losing the pesata and haveing a euro instead is Juan carlos on the Euro?

I apologise to my european friends -you know what i meant.

[bubba]

Daz, there's alot to be said in favor of the EU, but there are going to be alot of problems too. The biggest danger is that the bureacrats will work more toward destroying the individual flavor of the different countries in the name of union. That very thing is happening to the US, the individuality of the separate States is being buried in a stiffling uniformity of culture to the point where far too much is lost.

[Valencian Kilted]

I apologise, I didnt mean the european people I meant the european parlement, only yesterday Blair surrended billions of our rebate, how do you feel about losing the pesata and haveing a euro instead is Juan carlos on the Euro?

I apologise to my european friends -you know what i meant.

One of the things that I like from being pro-european, is that wherever I go through the whole union, I feel as if I could forget the differences that made us all fight for centuries one against the others. It's now difficult to imagine that a war could start between France, Germany, UK or Spain,.... even for Gibraltar! As you say, it seems that the european parliament is sooo far from all of us, that it remembers us the image of an absolute king ruling over europe and "asking the menu for us", but you must remember that at the parliament are represented the people we voted to be there, (and that an abstention is not useful at all at the time of protesting!)

You are afraid of the possibility of loosing your "national heritage" or your national feeling in order to be absorbed by an european tutti-frutti, but Europe is much more similar to Spain than to France. I mean: in France the only language you can find usually on the streets or at schools is the french, and the national feeling is strongly french, except for a real minority of nationalist feeling on the French Baskian Country, Corsica and quite slightly in Brittany. In Spain we have 5 languages, with 17 regional parliaments (the same kind as Scotland, but with more power I must say), and at schools and on the street of those 5 authonomic communities where you can find a language different from spanish, it will be easy to find speakers of galego, baskian, catalan or valencian. At my hometown maybe a 90% of population speaks daily in valencian, and it's even promoted. We are spaniards, but more or less, we all feel strongly our different roots. There's not any european more individualistic than a spaniard, believe me. We can easily be happy acting as stupids but doing it at our own.

I'm not afraid of being european, and yes, I know that maybe Spain will loose part of its power of decission, but starting from the point that UK has a right that any other nation has (and that's the "British Check" as we call it here, I mean, that your country plays with different cards, but it was accepted by the rest of nations...) I think that you cannot be afraid at all regarding which be the scottish euro-future. Our main richness in Europe is our plurality, and the chance we have to share it.

I am spanish and proud of being it, but I'm also a "scottish wannabe", and I'd love to share my ideas and thoughts with you, as well as with all these wanderful tribe that we are all here. It would be a pleasure for me if you could feel the same.

ah! and here's our king Juan Carlos on our euro-coin:


[IMG][/IMG]

The spanish euros are dedicated to spanish monuments and different personalities, from the royal family or not, as the 10 cents coin, with Cervantes on it, etc,...I can say that I'm spanish because I'm valencian, and Valencia is part of Spain. On the same way I can say that I'm european because I'm a valencian spanish, and Spain is in Europe. And be sure that feeling european will not make me loose a portion of my roots fixation. The idea is not to put a wall against the loss of identity,... the idea is to offer and spread that identity and share it with you all,... even being a scottish "wannabe"!

.... and yes, I thought too much again! sorry to all!

¡Salud!

T O N O

[Southern Breeze]

I've been following this thread and it's been great. As I read,I can't help but think of the following joke. No offense is intended toward anyone.


A Scotsman & a Englishman are strolling along the beach when they find a lamp. They clean it up and out pops a genie.

"I'll give you each one wish for freeing me" says the genie.

The Englishman thinks then wishes. "I believe in an England for the English, I'm sick and tired of all these Scots coming into MY country. I wish for a huge wall around England - to keep the English in and the Scots out."

POOF and it's done.

The Scotsman thinks. "Genie?" he says "tell me about this wall". "Well" says the genie "it's 500 feet high, a third of a mile thick, nothing can get in and nothing can get out".

"OK" says the Scotsman "Fill it with water".

[Valencian Kilted]

I've been following this thread and it's been great. As I read,I can't help but think of the following joke. No offense is intended toward anyone.


A Scotsman & a Englishman are strolling along the beach when they find a lamp. They clean it up and out pops a genie.

"I'll give you each one wish for freeing me" says the genie.

The Englishman thinks then wishes. "I believe in an England for the English, I'm sick and tired of all these Scots coming into MY country. I wish for a huge wall around England - to keep the English in and the Scots out."

POOF and it's done.

The Scotsman thinks. "Genie?" he says "tell me about this wall". "Well" says the genie "it's 500 feet high, a third of a mile thick, nothing can get in and nothing can get out".

"OK" says the Scotsman "Fill it with water".

lol,.... but now it comes the second part,... because now the english would say smthg like: and the genie filled the scottish side! (sooorry, I didn't wanted to say it but it was the joke!!! :mrgreen: )

omg,.... that was me defending the red coats? I must be spending too much time with my english friends here! I need to wear my kilt before it is too late!

¡Salud!

T O N O