Is Scottish independence a 'good or bad' thing?

I'm not a Scottish resident but I have Scots ancestry and a Scottish surname, so what are these SNP fools saying?.. suddenly I'm no longer a Scot because some big fat, self important, dour faced Machiavellian bastard says so? Think not

First of all look back at the stupidity of your original comment.

Ethnically, a Scot is a Scot wherever in the world he/she lives and will continue to do so after Scotland's independence.

Oh ok, so only people of a certain ethnicity are Scottish?

#TrueNationalistColours

So how will they determine Scots from non-Scots then? "Ethnic" profiling?

You're either being incredibly stupid of incredibly disingenous. Can't decide which.

Miliband is called a socialist if he opposes things like the nuclear option and a sell out if he backs it.

How can a millionaire ever be a 'socialist'?

How can Johann Lamont, with a household income of £150,000 per year ever be a 'socialist'?

I haven't called any of them socialists.

You can call yourself whatever you identify with, but I think this idea of blood-and-soil ethnicity is frankly nonsense in the same category as racial theory.

What do you think of 'Better Together's Margaret Curran's claim that her son living in England will become a 'foreigner' if Scotland becomes independent?

Scotland could not be expelled before whenever in 2016. It is part of a member-state and there is no provision in the treaties for expulsion of any member-state. However if Scotland became a separate state from the UK, it would not be a member. It wouldn't 'cease' to be a member, or be 'expelled' - it would never have been a member.

That is simple, straightforward international law. Anyone who tries to pretend otherwise is feeding you internet pseudolegal nonsense.

What do you think of 'Better Together's Margaret Curran's claim that her son living in England will become a 'foreigner' if Scotland becomes independent?

Could you specify which "straightforward international law" you are referring to?

Any actual examples?

More or less a fact. There is a good chance we will no longer share the bonds of citizenship with people in the rest of our country if Scotland votes to break away. Even if by a legal quirk we all retain British citizenship, we are no longer part of the same civic project. That, to me, is a thoroughly backward move.

More or less a fact. There is a good chance we will no longer share the bonds of citizenship with people in the rest of our country if Scotland votes to break away. Even if by a legal quirk we all retain British citizenship, we are no longer part of the same civic project. That, to me, is a thoroughly backward move.

You know what they say, the bonds of citizenship are thicker than blood.

Of course 'blood and soil' ethnicity is a load of nonsense in a sense. Although clearly some people, like Foo, take it seriously enough and that's up to them. But it's equally disgraceful to suggest that somehow being citizens of or even just living in dfferent countries somehow diminishes relationships between people. How very internationalist of Margaret Curran.

Backward move? I'd say economically suicidal move.

Or Margaret Curran is living in the real world.

I hardly saw people running to the aid of Portugal, Italy, Iceland, Greece or Ireland when they hit serious economic problems. Assistance was given but at what price? Nationality is no different to business. Other nations are competitors. Sometimes in in your interest to help them out, most of the time it's a dog eats dog world where help and friendship comes at a price.

Backward move? I'd say economically suicidal move.

What do you think of 'Better Together's Margaret Curran's claim that her son living in England will become a 'foreigner' if Scotland becomes independent?

More or less a fact. There is a good chance we will no longer share the bonds of citizenship with people in the rest of our country if Scotland votes to break away. Even if by a legal quirk we all retain British citizenship, we are no longer part of the same civic project. That, to me, is a thoroughly backward move.

Or Margaret Curran is living in the real world.

I hardly saw people running to the aid of Portugal, Italy, Iceland, Greece or Ireland when they hit serious economic problems. Assistance was given but at what price? Nationality is no different to business. Other nations are competitors. Sometimes in in your interest to help them out, most of the time it's a dog eats dog world where help and friendship comes at a price.

Could you specify which "straightforward international law" you are referring to?

Any actual examples?

You know what they say, the bonds of citizenship are thicker than blood.

Of course 'blood and soil' ethnicity is a load of nonsense in a sense. Although clearly some people, like Foo, take it seriously enough and that's up to them. But it's equally disgraceful to suggest that somehow being citizens of or even just living in dfferent countries somehow diminishes relationships between people. How very internationalist of Margaret Curran.

The straightforward international legal principle is that new states emerging from a larger state have to apply for entry to international organisations.

Examples include Ireland, Singapore, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the non-Russian former Soviet states, Montenegro, East Timor, South Sudan. The list is enormous.

Family 'bonds' have absolutely nothing to do with 'citizenship' anyway.

Of course it diminishes the bonds between people. The greatest bond which can exist between any significantly sized group of people is to be co-operating in a polity, working together in a common civic project.