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Below are some of the articles printed in Democracy Now:

BROWN BRITISHNESS BELLOW BOMBS

By Brian Nugent

Great Britain, what is great about being British? They had a fine sense of irony when they named Britain. Scotland trapped in the UK is not allowed to make any decisions for itself with the devolved parliament in Edinburgh aping Westminster and Mr Brown's Treasury controlling the budget.

Scotland does get to supply all our resources to maintain Britain. Scotland's Oil revenues funded Mrs Thatcher's mass unemployment policies and are now funding Blair's Iraq war. Scotland's Oil, a one off benefit, has been dissipated as quickly as possible with no oil fund for future generations and a lack of downstream activities in oil industry, leading to wasteful exploitation of oil and gas, without any thought for future.

Scotland discovered oil and got poorer as report after report indicates with lists of major social problems, Norway discovered oil and is now one of the richest countries in the world, does no one ever wonder why? Scots have been cannon fodder for the British Empire, our war losses are higher than you would expect as a percentage share of Britain's population, does no one ever wonder why?

Despite a Treaty of Union that stated that there would not be different tax systems in different parts of the union, the Poll tax experiment was imposed in Scotland. Scotland has had its Steel and Fishing industries sacrificed, Steel by Mrs Thatcher when the EU needed a cut in production and Fishing with an ongoing death by a thousand cuts with the major fishing effort in Scotland but our fishermen represented in EU negotiations by a British minister.

Why did Mr Brown not speak out when England stole 6,000 square miles of Scotland's coastal waters in the North Sea? What of a London centric attitude to tourism that leads to a lack of proper exploitation of Scotland as tourist attraction? The Anglicization of Scotland continues apace with the devolved parliament unable to deal with the Scottish Six issue, the Labour and Lib Dems afraid to grant a separate holiday in Scotland for St Andrews Day and the destruction of the culture of the Gaelic and Scots languages.

"Everyone suspects that Gordon Brown is trying to sell out to England's South East voters, it is very important for him to project Britishness when he might be competing against a very plausible English Tory in David Cameron in a General Election. He does not want to be identified as part of the Scottish Raj or a playing the dour Scottish accountant but he does give the impression of an ambitious Scot on the make and this may yet thwart his ambition to become British Prime Minister."

Brian Nugent is a founding member of the Free Scotland Party.

UNITED WE SHALL GOVERN

By Dr Bill Wilson

That year of infamy looms. Almost 300 years ago the people stormed the parliament and ‘a parcel of rogues’ was obliged to flee by the back door. Regrettably, they were not obliged to flee prior to signing away our people’s liberty. That they were so cheaply bought can hardly be of great surprise; a cursory examination of history does not suggest a disinterested nobility. On the whole it was not the nobility that died on Falkirk field. It was not the nobility that marched in 1820. It is not the Scottish establishment which is calling for independence today. Almost 300 years, what better time to strengthen the struggle, to seek new ways of uniting the people of Scotland in a campaign for independence. The great advantage of organisations such as Independence First or the Independence convention is that they can be cross-party and non-party.

The launch went well. True the original plan to keep the speakers to ten minutes or so each did not work, but with three politicians on the stage who the heck thought it would? What it did do, however, was show that we can act together, that we can, if only for short periods, bury the political hatchet in the Union rather than each other’s backs. The political speeches went well, but who was not impressed by the complete change in pace offered by Joyce Falconer, freedom in song and poetry. You never know, it might just catch on? She was followed by Elaine C. Smith, calling for the artistic voice of Scotland to be heard, and added her voice to the demands for a ‘Scottish Six’. There was also a fine speech from Mike Danson of Paisley University presenting the economic arguments and parallels with Scandinavia. Yes, I appreciate that this is ground covered before, but it can never be covered enough (and frequently not as well). We hear far more from the Unionists on how Scotland is too poor/small/stupid to be independent than we do from those of Prof. Danson’s calibre, reminding us that what Norway or Sweden can achieve, so too can we. The evening ended with the signing of a declaration in support of independence, a declaration which I trust will travel furth of the hall. The launch of a new covenant for independence on the day of the signing of the declaration of Arbroath should help build the convention nicely. The general mood of cooperation and friendliness was confirmed in the impromptu social gathering later that evening. For future events the organisers might consider recommending an informal gathering point to the meeting – the importance of the social aspect of bringing pro-independence Scotland together should not be underestimated.

The convention, after lengthy discussion and negotiation, has finally left the starting blocks. The opportunities it offers are endless. It might seek to hold debates on a future Scottish constitution, it could identify ways in which we might tackle poverty or social exclusion, or routes to a better environment. It need not make decisions; holding the debates, seeking new possibilities, raising the issues in public profile, can be ends in themselves. The convention might seek to launch a new petition for an independence referendum. It may do no more than act as a social forum bringing the disparate supporters of independence together. If the convention can manage this alone, uniting independence supporters for all parties and none, then it will have achieved something singular. Aside from the call for independence we will, in our myriad forms, not reach agreement on all things, nor should we seek to do so. But we must find common ground, we must learn to live and work with each other.

Divided we shall be ruled, united we shall govern.

Dr Bill Wilson is an SNP activist.

LETTERS TO THE CAMPAIGN

Scottish and British?

Gordon Brown has clumsily attempted to wrap himself in the Union Jack. While he talks about "Britishness", all of the historical examples he gives as matters for are from ENGLISH history. For instance, no mention of the Arbroath Declaration, or of the influence it had on the wording of the American Declaration of Independence. Gordon Brown is running scared by the new youngish Tory leader. Broon is well aware that every time he opens his mouth, what folk in marginal constituencies all over England hear is "Scottish". That is the reason for his clumsy exercise in Brit flag waving.

Meanwhile, Sandra White has come in for some criticism for calling the Union Jack the "Butcher's Apron". I can understand Sandra's view, and regret that her party appears to have sought to silence her. Personally, I can't stand the sight of the Union Jack. However, I am a member of Independence First, the single-issue, non-party-political, campaign for a referendum on Independence for Scotland. This campaign has, from it's foundation in February/March last year, included people who consider themselves Scottish Nationalists, and people who do not.

What some of our more Nationalist-minded members sometimes forget is that you don't have to be a Nationalist in order to be in favour of Independence for Scotland. Various opinion polls have suggested that a very large percentage of Labour voters, somewhere between forty and fifty percent of them, actually favour Independence for Scotland. Some estimates put the percentage of Liberal Democrat voters who favour Independence for Scotland at between thirty and thirty five percent, while the percentage of Tory voters who favour Independence is put at between twenty and twenty five percent.

It was to win the support of these NON-NATIONALIST supporters of independence that our campaign was formed, because we believed it would never be possible to get all of them to support one single political party, but, in a straightforward referendum on Independence, they would ensure a clear and significant majority in favour.

But what we have to understand is that this majority for independence includes some folk who would nevertheless accept some sort of "British" identity, and yet are in favour of Independence for Scotland. My own son, a member of Independence First, says that he is Scottish first, and British second. In fact, a huge percentage of the population of Scotland would say that.

I personally consider myself Scottish, full stop. But what matters, so far as our independence campaign is concerned, is not to try to stamp out every last vestige of "British" feeling, but to get a referendum, and to win that referendum for Independence by a decisive margin. In doing that, we need the support of many folk for whom "British" is not quite such a dirty word as it is for Sandra White etc.

Here in Angus, our local group of Independence First has just recruited its first active member of the Labour Party. She will not be the last. As the campaign progresses, we will win support from other members of unionist parties who are nevertheless in favour of Independence.

We will win this campaign. But in doing so we have to focus on the thing that we all agree on – Independence for Scotland. If some folk still have some residual "British" feelings, yet are willing to campaign for independence, that's what matters. We should not reject converts to independence. We need the Johnny-Come-Latelys, even if they do have mixed feelings. After all, even the second biggest landowner in England, the Earl of Huntingdon, belatedly converted to Independence for Scotland. He even went on to win the Battle of Bannockburn.

DAVE COULL - ANGUS BRANCH

Keep Up The Good Work

The Scotland we want is obviously an open and inclusive society, confident in its national culture, future, and role in the wider world -- and a major part of that is breaking free of the Anglocentric British state with its multiple media tentacles that promote its own national agenda on a daily basis -- to the offence and detriment of every free-thinking Scot.

To do that, we have to emphasise the positivity of Independence, and the values we must hold dear as an aspiring free society, to as wide a cross-section of the Scottish nation as possible.

People will be democratically free to define the specifics of the country's political direction after Independence is won -- but that direction must broadly reflect the social and democratic principles we have traditionally held as a people, and promoted as a movement for freedom and justice.

That is something we should all be proud to sign up for.

Our challenge is to raise the profile of Independence as a public issue, and promote its values in the hearts and minds of our people.

Keep up the good work.

DOUGIE BLACKIE

ABERDEEN

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