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Kevin

The "Boycott Scotland" Nonsense

Here's a great article that addresses the "Boycott Scotland" crowd here in the U.S.

Quote:
"Web Campaign Calls on Americans to Boycott Scotland," The Guardian announced the other day. According to the campaigners, not just Scottish but all British products (including online newspapers one assumes) are tainted. Technically, I should have logged off the site and bleached my fingertips. Instead, I poured an Old Pulteney, put out some oatcakes, made a note to visit Scotland again as soon as possible, and went on reading.

The flap is over a decision made by the Scottish government to allow terminally ill Abdel Basset Al-Megrahi, better known as the Lockerbie bomber, to spend his last days with his family in Libya. Al-Megrahi went home to a warm welcome. This caused some hard feelings. As Eric Margolis put it: "A huge international furor erupted that was rich in hypocrisy and double standards." The United States was the source of much of the furor, not to mention much of the hypocrisy and many of the double standards.


http://www.lewrockwell.com/liechty/liechty28.1.html

I remember the news around that period kept asking "What should President Obama do?"  I thought it was an extremely bad question.  What right would the President of the United States have to do anything regarding Scottish affairs?
Stevie

French fries are curiously enough still called French fries.

The states and Europe might be better boycotting China.
Alasdair

I followed the Boycott Scotland group on facebook for a while ... it was hilarious!  It seemed to be mostly populated by people from Scotland and around the globe pointing out how hypcritical the stance was and how nonsensical and impossible a complete boycott would be.

It really was good stuff with lots of information on American sponsorship of the IRA and their involvement in brokering the Good Friday Agreement that saw unrepentant terrorists (who were absolutely guilty) being released.

It reached a critical mass when the admins closed the discussion boards and said there was no discussion, no debate to be had ... ah yes, land of the free where the freedom of speech is so greatly valued.

It's ashame the discussion boards were closed, it really was good stuff ... I was reduced to tears of laughter at least once.
Kevin

Stevie wrote:
French fries are curiously enough still called French fries.

The states and Europe might be better boycotting China.


I remember the "freedom fries" nonsense, all because the French had the sense not to support a war of aggression.  The U.S. has historically engaged in such propaganda, but it never sticks.  Sauerkraut was supposed to be called "liberty cabbage" during one of the world wars, I believe.

We can't boycott China.  If we do so they'd stop buying our debt and that would be bad, at least for our government.  In the long run it'd be good for America as a whole if China would stop buying our debt, as we'd have to start producing our own things and start saving rather than going into debt.  Though I still wouldn't advocate a boycott of China, as I believe in free trade.  I can't comment on Europe's position with China as I'm not overly familiar with it.
Kevin

Alasdair wrote:
I followed the Boycott Scotland group on facebook for a while ... it was hilarious!  It seemed to be mostly populated by people from Scotland and around the globe pointing out how hypcritical the stance was and how nonsensical and impossible a complete boycott would be.

It really was good stuff with lots of information on American sponsorship of the IRA and their involvement in brokering the Good Friday Agreement that saw unrepentant terrorists (who were absolutely guilty) being released.

It reached a critical mass when the admins closed the discussion boards and said there was no discussion, no debate to be had ... ah yes, land of the free where the freedom of speech is so greatly valued.

It's ashame the discussion boards were closed, it really was good stuff ... I was reduced to tears of laughter at least once.


Freedom of speech is greatly valued over here, at least by our citizens.  However, nobody likes to be made a fool of. Wink
landg

Alasdair wrote:
It reached a critical mass when the admins closed the discussion boards and said there was no discussion, no debate to be had ... ah yes, land of the free where the freedom of speech is so greatly valued.

It's ashame the discussion boards were closed, it really was good stuff ... I was reduced to tears of laughter at least once.


i know a forum just like that................
Fidget

Re: The "Boycott Scotland" Nonsense

Kevin wrote:


I remember the news around that period kept asking "What should President Obama do?"  I thought it was an extremely bad question.  What right would the President of the United States have to do anything regarding Scottish affairs?


Perhaps if you knew that Pan Am 103 blew up over Lockerbie by accident - ie it blew up early - it was supposed have exploded over the Atlantic and be nothing to do with Scotland, then that might answer your question.

As to the boycotting stuff.. Harris Tweed U.S outlets removed Scottish references and sales of shortbread were reported to be down too. Only a couple of things, but clearly there has been some effect.
Holebender

How does the fact it blew up over Scotland by accident answer the question? The question was what right would the President of the United States have to do anything regarding Scottish affairs? Your response does nothing to answer it.
Dave Coull

Re: The "Boycott Scotland" Nonsense

Fidget wrote:
Harris Tweed U.S outlets removed Scottish references and sales of shortbread were reported to be down too
Sales of SHORTBREAD down????   We're all  DOOMED  !!!!!!!
Fidget wrote:
clearly there has been some effect.
"Clearly"? It's about as clear as mud. My stepdaughter works in a prestigious big store in San Francisco. She tells me sales of lots of their goodies, from lots of different countries, are down. Her explanation for sales of many things being down is that there is a world wide recession and folk aren't spending as much money.
Fidget

She probably tells you that just to keep you quiet.  

If you want to deny that a fair swathe of people are reviled at scotland's decision over megrahi then that's up to you. It doesn't stop it going on.
Dave Coull

Fidget wrote:
If you want to deny that a fair swathe of people are reviled at scotland's decision over megrahi
Of course the decision wasn't universally popular. But that's not what we were disagreeing about. What we were disagreeing about was whether or not there has been an effective "boycott Scotland" campaign. You claim there has, and I say your claim is rubbish.
Stevie

Quote:
Actually, I would be interested in discussing the proof or lack of proof of Megrahi's guilt.


Thre is no boycott but Magrahi, the proof might be interesting.
Stevie

Re: The "Boycott Scotland" Nonsense

Dave Coull wrote:
Sales of SHORTBREAD down????   We're all  DOOMED  !!!!!!!


God help us all.
Fidget

Dave Coull wrote:
Fidget wrote:
If you want to deny that a fair swathe of people are reviled at scotland's decision over megrahi
Of course the decision wasn't universally popular. But that's not what we were disagreeing about. What we were disagreeing about was whether or not there has been an effective "boycott Scotland" campaign. You claim there has, and I say your claim is rubbish.


What I have given is reported instances of the boycott in action, nothing more, nothing less. At no point have I instisted otherwise about any "effectiveness".  So don't be putting words into my mouth old man.
Holebender

The Harris Tweed story was denied by the folk who make and market the stuff, so that just leaves the shortbread famine.
Dave Coull

Fidget wrote:
What I have given is reported instances of the boycott in action
No, you gave just ONE instance of something which looked like actual "boycott"
Quote:
Harris Tweed U.S outlets removed Scottish references
and you also mentioned one example, out of thousands of such examples pertaining to products from countries all over the world as a result of the recession, of sales of a product being down.
Holebender wrote:
The Harris Tweed story was denied by the folk who make and market the stuff
So, that leaves   -   no evidence of boycott whatsoever?
George

May I refer you to this blog where the Harris Tweed fabrication is dealt with as is the lie that there is any damage or indeed a boycott caused by the Megrahi release.

Read all of the articles, it is worth it.

Click Here
Fidget

Dave Coull wrote:
Fidget wrote:
What I have given is reported instances of the boycott in action
No, you gave just ONE instance of something which looked like actual "boycott"
Quote:
Harris Tweed U.S outlets removed Scottish references
and you also mentioned one example, out of thousands of such examples pertaining to products from countries all over the world as a result of the recession, of sales of a product being down.
Holebender wrote:
The Harris Tweed story was denied by the folk who make and market the stuff
So, that leaves   -   no evidence of boycott whatsoever?


http://news.scotsman.com/lockerbi...elease-takes-Scots-out.5643200.jp

Make of it what you will.
Kevin

I can say that any attempt to boycott Scottish goods in the U.S. has no foothold where I live.  I agree with those that say everyone is simply saving more due to the recession.
Fidget

And pubs haven't been closing because of the smoking ban either, eh? It's all purely been down to people penny pinching in recessionary times. "Recession":  What a fantastic excuse for the Ostrich syndrome.  Laughing
Kevin

Fidget wrote:
And pubs aren't closing because of the smoking ban either, eh? It's all purely down to the recession.  Laughing


I can't say I've heard of any bars, pubs, or restaurants closing due to the smoking ban in the U.S.  People just ignore the ban in a lot of cases or simply go outside in others.
Holebender

Fidget wrote:
Dave Coull wrote:
Fidget wrote:
What I have given is reported instances of the boycott in action
No, you gave just ONE instance of something which looked like actual "boycott"
Quote:
Harris Tweed U.S outlets removed Scottish references
and you also mentioned one example, out of thousands of such examples pertaining to products from countries all over the world as a result of the recession, of sales of a product being down.
Holebender wrote:
The Harris Tweed story was denied by the folk who make and market the stuff
So, that leaves   -   no evidence of boycott whatsoever?


http://news.scotsman.com/lockerbi...elease-takes-Scots-out.5643200.jp

Make of it what you will.


http://www.heraldscotland.com/new...rand-for-american-market-1.919845
That's what I make of it.
Fidget

"dismissed claims.."

Well it's hardly likely to substantiate them, is it?  Laughing
Holebender

Not only dismissed the claims, but laughed about them. Why would he deny it if it helped his business?
Fidget

Holebender wrote:
Not only dismissed the claims, but laughed about them.



But laughed about them? Well that'll be that then.
Dave Coull

Fidget wrote:
And pubs haven't been closing because of the smoking ban either, eh?
Completely separate issue. Yes, I think the smoking ban (first introduced by the unionist Labour/LibDem administration, then taken up by the SNP with cross-party support) probably has hit a lot of pubs, and probably has contributed (as well as the general lack of spending money) to some pubs having to close. But that has nothing at all to do with the topic we were discussing.
Fidget

Bearing in mind Kevin's reply of it all being down to "recession", I think it's more than appropriate to mention factors other, and directly affecting, than a sweeping "recession" statement aimed at catching nothing in particular.
Kevin

Fidget wrote:
Bearing in mind Kevin's reply of it all being down to "recession", I think it's more than appropriate to mention factors other, and directly affecting, than a sweeping "recession" statement aimed at catching nothing in particular.


I said everyone is saving more due to the recession, which is true.
Holebender

You have to realise that fidget have never knowingly let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Fidget

Holebender wrote:
You have to realise that Fidget has never knowingly let the facts get in the way of a good story.


Says he still celebrating Christmas.
Holebender

Oh... and don't expect his responses to be relevant either.

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