The educational route that's destroying Scottish Labour

During indyref, I re-posted and re-tweeted a great number of things, many of which turned out not to be quite so factually correct as I thought (for example, there are foodbanks in Norway). At the time, I felt embarrassed by that.

But in hindsight, those posts were great because what they now represent to me was the growing political education of all of us. In short, Scotland turned itself into the world's largest college campus as we all struggled to search for facts and get our heads round what each fact meant in the wider context of Scotland's place within the Union.

I'm not claiming I got an A-grade in that "college course of the people" but I learned enough to have my perspective changed. If indyref had never happened, I would be voting Labour right now and I imagine there's many like me that would be the same.

I don't necessarily hate Labour - so what is it that is stopping me from voting for them?

Part of it is rightly because of the behaviour of Labour during indyref and there were some figures I grew to detest quite vehemently. But Scottish Labour doesn't hold the power in the House of Commons and my hatred for Scottish Labour figures doesn't necessarily extend to all of their English counterparts.

The main block, I think, to voting Labour is the realisation that, in Scotland, we have been voting for two English parties. We can either vote for English Tory or vote for English Labour. Yes, both are technically UK wide (or, rather, Great Britain wide) but, in practice, they are both English parties. And as soon as either gets into 10 Downing Street, they are quickly caught up in the mayhem and magic of London and its global status as an historic seat of real power & wealth and that's all they ever concentrate on.

You can't put both London and Scotland first: you have to choose one as your favourite and let the other fend for itself as best it can. During indyref, the three main Westminster parties showed quite clearly that they cared more for London's global standing than they did for Scotland's people.

That is the core reason why I'm not voting Labour. Yes, there are ancillary reasons such as the lies told and their adoption of Tory economic policy but, in the main, it's because they don't put Scotland first.

Is there anything they can do to win my vote back?

I doubt it. Labour should really change their name to the Labour and Unionist Party to reflect who and what they are. And as long as they advertise that the UK-wide Labour movement will always put London first, never Scotland, I can't see them winning back their so-called Scottish Labour heartlands.

They say education is a route out of poverty. Now Scotland is educating itself through the "college course of the people," I think it's only a matter of time before our political education bears fruit. In the meantime, I'm enjoying this unexpected student life.