It’s time to stop the blame game and look to ourselves for the solution.

Why are we so afraid to take the leap?……is it because we are afraid that we also will make mistakes?

The problem with our present crop of Politicians is that when they make mistakes their preferred way out is the blame game! There is no such thing as individual accountability let alone collective accountability.

They see admissions as a weakness, not as an opportunity for positive change. Thinking time is critical for success in the long term.

In this new world of ours, instant is what makes the world go round!

…..but ‘instant’ has no foundations and comes with a short shelf life. A very good example is how they fix potholes these days, no prep just chuck some tar mix in the hole and flatten it….job done! Next morning the pothole is back…..well I’m done with the sticky plaster approach to problems, aren’t you?

We need to look beyond the sticky plasters to a long-term approach, which will bring about our Liberation. This will happen when we see ourselves as the new road builders.

The plans have been drawn with just a few ‘i’s’ and ‘t’s to be crossed, therefore plans to go forward need to be put in place before lift-off.

Disappointments put on the shelf, including my own!

If nothing else, we are family so lets get under the family tree!

Many think that the alternative still lies with the SNP but with the intended changes to its own constitution what we see is more of the same. A party not to be led by its members but one that seeks to wield its power from the top down and a figurehead almost impossible to remove. Translate that kind of dictatorship to how they would run the country…..another iron fist approach!

Do we really need more poison running through the veins of government than we already have?

We in Scotland have choices but that doesn’t necessarily mean the choice would be easier during its immediate execution. There are no quick fixes, no silver bullets. What it would bring if we have to courage to leap, is a country that believes in its people, cares for its people and is run by the people. It is called Direct Democracy and it will clear out the poison that is within our present system.

All system changes have short-term turbulence and anyone telling you anything different is deluding themselves and you!

We must not let Fear rob us of this opportunity.

It must be fight not flight!

Nothing and no one is perfect so let’s not pretend we are. Mistakes will be made, but tell me something, what kind of person do you want to take this country forward? The person who when they make a mistake, hold their hands up and apologises, or someone whose ego demands they blame others, hide and lie to cover up their errors…..and where will the lying end?

Which one has integrity?

The Scottish alternative to Westminster could be so different.

2026 is the year we can make it so.

Joan McDowall

When companies with the aid of Politicians start to build a web of deceit, things can quickly get out of control.

https://northeastbylines.co.uk/news/environment/teesworks-the-largest-brownfield-site-in-europe-part-3/

…..and what a web they weave.

Systems upon systems that once broken down can…..well…..amount to almost nothing. Deceit and obstruction at every turn. No wonder they call them Shell companies!!

….and it now appears a company can list its business address as a hotel room!!!!

https://metro.co.uk/2021/03/08/hancocks-department-did-90m-ppe-deal-with-firm-listed-at-hotel-room-14210310/

….Hancock fell for it!…and you wonder why the UK is skint.

Scotland’s wealth is pouring southwards to fill Westminster’s black hole dug by them and it’s getting deeper.

Labours’ way out of this disaster is not to tax the wealthy who have no doubt been part of the decision-making, but to rob the disabled and the elderly… easy pickings…..always squeeze the people….nothing ever changes until we are prepared to change it.

Rachel from accounts is so far out of her depth and drowning, not because the money has dried up but because her boss’s priorities are not those in line with the country needs. His ego demands he looks good on the international stage…the reality is very different. I have little time for Musk or Farage but occasionally their words resonate with an air of truth.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/elon-musk-has-a-point-about-free-speech-in-britain/

Any government’s priority surely must be to put its people first, pre-election manifestos are full of promises as they lure us into their nets. A future Scotland needs to ensure that laws are made to protect its people and a penalty for broken promises….no more excuses of ‘we didn’t know’……when everyone knew!!!

Integrity is important, rules are important but rules for the sake of rules can cancel out integrity and free-thinking….. let’s get it right.

Joan McDowall.

As Kier Starmer fiddles with Democracy down South by cancelling Local Elections to build mini-kingdoms. I thought maybe it was worthwhile reminding ourselves of the biggest failure in Scotland’s Local Authority history, that being the Unitary Authority (UA) of Strathclyde.

Many will have forgotten about it but Labour have form when it comes to running these UAs. Strathclyde was once the biggest UA in Europe…..which dramatically failed in its objectives. Some say it was good….. it’s all a matter of perspective…..political perspective as well as lived experience.

So knowing this why is Starmer so hell-bent on changing the system South of the Border when the Tories ditched the idea? Some say its because he’s about to get thrashed by Reform at next years Council Elections.

That might well be one reason but the other may be more sinister. These UAs have more powers and less hands-on from the Government which makes them ripe for more Privatisation, given most are already covered by Freeports, SEZs and City Deals you begin to get the picture……Democracy is no more…. Magna Carter no more, it’s called gerrymandering, moving the chess pieces around the board. Where a Political Party moves the boundaries in favour of their own Party and why not when you have put the kings in place through Privatisation. Labour are in love with Private conglomerates and keep company with some very questionable people….

The Deputy PM cosying up to the head of BlackRock. [BlackRock the largest shadow Bank in the world]

So, what went wrong in Strathclyde, this one-party State?

Well, there were some upsides, some things in some areas did improve but outer areas felt marginalized because the city folks didn’t appear to understand their specific problems or needs. I suppose the area was just too big with too many variations which the poor councillors in Glasgow just couldn’t get to grips with and the country folk up in Argyll began to feel aggrieved. So it all fell apart at the seams and things reverted back to a more manageable size.

The problem with government is they never ask the people what they want and we see a repetition of that today.

Do you remember being asked about Freeports and SEZs at the last Scottish Election…….I don’t!

If there is one thing we must learn before next year’s Election it is to Ask the Right QUESTIONS!

….. and remind our would-be Politicians that they will be held to account.

How long before Westminster interferes with our Local Authorities……have they already begun through Freeports etc?

Worth thinking about.

Joan McDowall.

If ever there was a ‘cold case’ to re-open it is that of Scotland……..or is it a ‘death by a thousand cuts’, where the pain is still being inflicted?

Our crime?…… we are too wealthy!

Of course, most in Westminster won’t admit that but over the years there have been a few honest men.

The secret is out yet there are plenty who don’t want to know, they want the ‘cold case’ to be kept closed.

…… And there’s a name for that…..premeditated ignorance!

For many their comfort zone, really is comfortable, but for how long? With the introduction of Freeports and SEZs, no one is secure not even those out in the sticks!

I wonder how many down in the Borders ever thought they would have a Battery storage facility on their doorstep, and another in Lanarkshire…

https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/construction-of-europes-biggest-battery-farm-on-former-scottish-coal-mine-to-begin-09-01-2025/

…… ‘but they are safe’!…..are they?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14295791/fire-moss-landing-California-evacuations.html

Within the glossy brochures promising jobs etc, do they point out the risks…..no! Were locals even asked for their opinion?

Seems odd to me that Scotland is the chosen venue for most of these things. Has our FM read the small print and who will be liable should anything go wrong?

Sometimes the past has a habit of creeping up on us and I would hate to think the younger generation of today will one day look back and say, ‘If only they had listened’!

As they say in Lidl…… ‘when it’s gone it’s gone’! ….. and that applies to our land.

One day these land sites and mines will give up their secrets and it won’t be pretty for the generation having to deal with it.

Doing nothing is not an option!

People power does work when enough people put their minds to it.

Joan McDowall

Rules are necessary, if for no other reason than they keep us safe. The problem these days is, they keep changing according to which political Party is in power.

One of the lame excuses for leaving the EU was that there were just too many silly rules but the problem since leaving is they are dispensing with too many important ones to allow Privatisation, food safety laws being one of them.

Of course, rules are always open to interpretation. One of the reasons why we have so many religious denominations is because clergy down through the ages have interpreted Biblical rules differently…..in my opinion and experience according to their agenda and need for power! Today the Kirk, as we know it in Scotland, bends the rules to the political whims of the day.

In America it’s the other way around, religion dictates political policy!

…..and in this particular case, this particular religion owns not only the world’s MSM but through Privatisation huge swathes of the planet one way or another!

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jan/15/la-california-fires-water-drought

…..and you wonder why I go on about Privatisation!

Listen to the warnings of the Salvo Freeport team and @EuropeanPowell

Forbes calls it ‘misinformation’ yet can’t or won’t rebutt any of it!…. I wonder why?

Good rules prevent chaos, bad rules cause chaos!

Perhaps Scotland got it right in the old days with The Convention of the Estates!

Old is sometimes better!

Joan McDowall

What exactly is meant when governments say they are funding projects etc with money from the government or using ‘government finances?

The perception being, it’s their money!…….but is it?

The Government raises around £1 trillion in revenue each year. Most comes from the three biggest taxes: income tax, NICs and VAT.

So, in truth it is our money but they are not accountable to us as to how they spend it apart from agreeing to a few promises made in their Manifestos, which to date nearly all have been reneged on.

People are getting angry, you can feel the rebellion in the air and it won’t take much more before someone or some group lights the blue touch paper.

Far from improving our fiscal position, Rachel, from accounts is deepening the crisis and a crisis for them spells disaster for us!

They believe that the magic wand of Private investment is the answer when the reality is it is a short-term get-out-of-jail card that will lead down a road we will live to regret for the rest of our lives.

Private means profit, not to us but to shareholders, private also means that when the project is finished or goes arry they can walk away and leave us the taxpayers to clean up the mess…….or as Thames Water has done, demand we put billions in to fix their mess whilst they receive the big bonuses.

Where are the tipping scales set at, what number must die from cold or hunger before we say, thus far and no further?

The more money they divert to Private companies the greater the risk of loss of life as our infrastructure crumbles and our Health system collapses.

At the moment in Scotland, we fare a little better than our counterparts down South….but it’s coming and sooner than you think.

Our future is in our hands, use them wisely.

Joan McDowall.

They say half a truth is still a lie or as the church puts it, ‘the sin of omission’!

…..and one has to wonder why a certain government would be a party to such deeds.

https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2024/04/28/ardrossan-to-arran-ferry-manchester-billionaire-tax-exiles-company-is-to-blame-for-reduced-services-and-safety-risks/

The reason of course is the Scottish Government whilst hailing the new ship Glen Sannox doesn’t want you to know about the story surrounding Ardrossan Harbour. This story reveals the truth about Privatisation.

Will Ardrossan become Scotlands Teeside?

Up and down the country the chickens are coming home to roost but don’t expect to hear about it on the MSM, thankfully there are still a few local journalists willing to speak up.

The truth is out there and needs to be told.

https://youtu.be/z36eRTt7zJo?si=jyN9UDnEVkNxPK6M

Thankfully in Scotland, we have our own group of Truthsayers and starting up again next month they will be travelling up and down the country sharing the real truths with you.

The truths the Scottish Government don’t want you to hear, the ones hidden in the small print that you are not allowed to read.

So watch out on SM for more information regarding times and venues.

I suppose the big question on my mind regarding Freeports and SEZs is what exactly do we as a country get out of it all? Nearly every promise made is reduced within months especially when it comes to jobs and houses. It also appears most of these jobs go to foreign workers. This all sounds like a very poor return on our capital when instead it could improve our vital local services.

So no, I wont keep mummm!

Joan McDowall.

There has been a discussion of late about the public ownership of the BBC. The public pay for the BBC but it is in fact the mouthpiece of the Government and censorship is the name of the game.

When it comes to the news they dictate what we see and don’t see, live journalism is dead.

Every tv station and every newspaper is owned by foreign companies, I would go so far as to say Britain if that’s what you want to call it, is already in the hands of foreign conglomerates.

Censorship in most cases is a threat to society and is to be rightfully challenged when misused.

But how do we fair in Scotland….well not much better actually?

Ask for anything under FOI and more than likely it will come back heavily redacted…secrecy abounds as does stupidity!

A warning to groups and Parties in Scotland, censorship will lose good people when those with influence use non-existent lists of words or phrases to censor freedom of speech!

Free speech is the cornerstone of Direct Democracy anything else is not acceptable. We are all responsible for our actions and the consequences thereof but we cannot dictate what others do and say, that is not democratic!

“In order to be able to think, you have to risk being offensive.”
― Jordan B. Peterson

Take that freedom away and we add another link in the chain around our necks.

We cannot condemn our government for censorship if we practice it ourselves albeit in a lesser way.

So let us be careful when judging others because we will lose good people along the way.

Joan McDowall.

For those of us who seek Liberation [Independence] the challenges ahead are not for the faint-hearted.

Every means of communication will be required, every rebuttal made and every fence broken down!

Can we do this……yes we can!

The upside of all this is not only in reaching the goal but also the making of new friends, good friends along the way.

There are a lot of folk sitting on the fence just now, not sure about anything because the ground beneath is shifting on many fronts. If there is one thing I have learned in my many years of life and trauma, sitting and doing nothing is never the answer.

We know in our heads where the answer to Scotland’s woes lies, what we need now is for that message to drop down to our hearts and reignite the love we have for our Country.

Love is a powerful motivator! I am sure we have all experienced how powerful it can be, we will do anything for the people we ❤️.

If you love Scotland, let that love motivate you into action because our politicians are, under the guise of Freeports and SEZs slowly dismantling our country piece by piece and once it’s gone it’s gone!

Now is the time to get off the fence, now is the time to join your fellow Scots in the fight for Liberation, taking everything we have learned through Salvo and putting it into action via.…..

Can the love for our country be greater than our disagreements? Can we work with others to accomplish the dream……if we can’t I question how great our love for Scotland is.