Neb's Scottish Dreams

By Nebulous (James West)

Let me take you on a brief journey through Scottish Culture. No, on second thoughts, let's summon some guides for our journey. So settle back and close your eyes, you are about to have a visitation.

I am the Ghost of Scotland's Past ~ let me take you back to the 1950s.

We had a Scotland where men were men and the majority of them were employed in mining, engineering or heavy industry and a culture where women stopped working after they got married.

This was a Scotland that was proud of the role it had played in fighting fascism alongside their brothers and sisters from the South. A Scotland that was proud to be British and had a greater understanding about other parts of these islands than ever before because of all the mixing of cultures that was forced on them during the war.

Food was rationed, children were regarded as precious, the baby boom was in full swing and re-building and patching-up was going on apace. People were determined that their children would never again see war and that they would have opportunities that their parents never dreamed of. Authority was respected.

The dream fades, but here is another.

I am the Ghost of Scotland's Present ~ I show you a wasteland.

Many people have left, the heavy industry has gone and office jobs predominate, most women work, even if only part-time. Many men don't. We have pumped billions of pounds out of the North Sea and we have been pissed on in return, with pensioners paying 20% of their income in Council Tax.

Our relationship with those to the South is now embittered and mistrusting. The Red Rose has faded and has been replaced with sleaze and noses in the trough. Long fought arguments which we thought were won, such as those of the risks of, and dangerous waste from, Nuclear Power, are resurfacing.

We have beautiful scenery and some of the most unspoiled country in Europe but we seem unaware of how to use it best. But look here is a promise of something better . . . Alas no, it's not, it's only Visit Scotland - whose advisors don't seem to know where most of our attractions are, who advertise winter sports in a country without snow, who advertise surfing in a country where the sea is so cold that you would be lucky if you ever saw your genitals again afterwards.

Scotland is a country that can't make up its mind what it is. Is it the land of Harry Lauder, kilts, haggis, the Scottish Cringe and Britclones ? Is it the land of Train-Spotting complete with drugs and Buckfast ? Is it the land of heart attacks, poor health and deep-fried mars Bars ?

Or is it the land of new technologies, bio-technology companies, financial service providers and developers of computer games ? Is it a land offering good education, an unrivalled quality of life, unspoiled countryside and great opportunities ? A small but growing band of people, often our artists and musicians, have kept the faith.

This dream too fades, but another takes its place.

I am the Ghost of Scotland's Future.

A land which is proud, independent and free.

A land where everyone is welcome.

A land where people do not fear growing old.

A land which has taken great steps to help people move out of poverty.

A land with a mature and sensible relationship with our neighbours who live to the South.

A land whose people have at last found confidence and trust in themselves and who are not constantly looking over their shoulder to see what others think of them.

A land with a surfeit of energy, food and water in a time when all of these are scarce.

A land which is vibrant with a mix of cultures, where Country Dancing, Morris Dancing, Belly Dancing and Pipe Bands compete for space in the local hall.

This dream too fades. This dream is still in the future and it will remain in the future . . . unless we take the first few steps towards it . . . and then the next few and then another few and then break into a jog . . . BUT IT IS THERE AND IT IS ATTAINABLE.

(OK, the bit about the Morris Dancing was a lie.)