[Jim Nugent]

Though the bookmakers have a No vote 4/1 on.
[/quote]

I think the bookies had Germany/Brazil just about even up on the eve of their WC semifinal. 

[Michael Tamburrini]

It is interesting that the vote is too close to call at this point. Never expected that.....

Though the bookmakers have a No vote 4/1 on.

Hmm, that is pretty obvious then

The odds have been skewed because of the large bets placed on no earlier in the campaign. 

So you're saying that, being exposed to a big loss in the event of a NO vote the bookies are doubling their exposure by risking a big loss in the event of a Yes vote?  I'm not sure they're that genertous.

Yeah, they play the sides off against each other to minimise loss, no??  If a big bet comes in for no, they raise the odds on yes so that - in the event of a no vote - they're minimising their loss.

[Ed Tilley]

Wow! Niall Ferguson is either a moron or a total Shill. for the New world order Fabians.

I don't believe he is a moron. Harvard would be ashamed that this guy actually teaches history there in light that he, despite being a Scot by birth, is a complete ignoramus regarding Scottish History. Could Niall truly be unaware of the Darien Scheme and ,yet, lecture us on Scottish history and also the students at Harvard?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/15/opinion/scots-must-vote-nae.html?ref=opinion&_r=0

I would guess he is a shill for the "New World Order" Fabian agenda.  The NY Times Editorial Page has been banging the "No" drum all week. They , along with the Council on Foreign Relations" must be terrified by the non- world government votes taking place in Scotland and Catalonia. No historian from Harvard could lie so outrageously right on the NY Times editorial page and get away with it in a just and normal world. Sad how the western media has fallen.

What an embarrassment that they would lie to us so blatantly with such credentials. They must think that we are idiots.

As far As I am concerned the NY Times and the rest of the mainstream media have absolutely zero credibility.

Malcolm

This is a bit of a "British history for dummies" article. It is a much edited version of an article that was in last week's Sunday Times and leaves a lot out - including obviously reference to the Darien scheme which was the catalyst for union.

Interestingly, I think the Sunday Times article does not have the quote about the union between England and Scotland being a merger between equals. This is clearly not so - a union between countries with vastly different populations is not one between equals, just like California and Connecticut are not "equals", nor are Germany and Sweden. This was probably edited out of the Sunday Times article as it was predominately for an English audience.

[David_Tepper]

Here is a question to ponder, if Labor had won the last UK election and Gordon Brown was still Prime Minister, would any of this be happening?

[Ed Tilley]

Here is a question to ponder, if Labor had won the last UK election and Gordon Brown was still Prime Minister, would any of this be happening?

Gordon Brown still PM - I've just broken out in a cold sweat!

This is happening because the SNP won an outright majority in the Scottish elections (after the last UK general election). This was a stunning result under the proportional representation system which was pretty much designed to prevent this. As a result, they had an undeniable democratic mandate for a referendum. Whether the SNP would have won a majority if Labour was in power is another question but we will never know. Just as we will never know whether the polls would be different if Labour were still in power.

[Mark Chaplin]

We'd be bankrupt!

[Malcolm Mckinnon]

Jon,

Sorry to respond so late to your comment regarding the English flag, "Union Jack" being the only English flag.

You are are dead wrong! St. George's Cross was the original English Flag.

The " Union Jack" is an amalgamation of the Saltire aka St. Andrews Cross from Scotland, St. George's Cross from England and St. Patrick's Cross from Ireland.

Sorry to correct you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Jack

All the Best,

Malcolm

[Jon Wiggett]

Jon,

Sorry to respond so late to your comment regarding the English flag, "Union Jack" being the only English flag.

You are are dead wrong! St. George's Cross was the original English Flag.

The " Union Jack" is an amalgamation of the Saltire aka St. Andrews Cross from Scotland, St. George's Cross from England and St. Patrick's Cross from Ireland.

Sorry to correct you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Jack

All the Best,

Malcolm

Carl,

The Scottish flag is called the Saltire or Saint Andrews Cross. Do you belong to a McConnell golf property?

The English have the red and white Saint George's Cross in addition to the Union Jack.

Malcolm,

the English have only the one flag. The Union Jack (or Flag) is the flag of the UK.


Jon

Malcolm,

I wouldn't worry as much about the lateness as the content if I were you. I think you need to read before saying who said what. The English only have one flag the Cross of St. George. The Union Jack (Flag) is the UK flag not the second English flag which you were claiming.
Jon

[David_Tepper]

Anyone expecting the North Sea oil fields to fund sustained prosperity for Scotland should read these rather sobering comments from Ian Wood, founder of the Wood Group, one of Scotland's largest energy companies.

“Young people voting this week must be aware that by the time they’re in their 40s, Scotland will have little offshore oil and gas production, and this will severely hit our economy, jobs and public services,” Mr. Wood wrote on Energy Voice, an industry website. “I have been shocked by the amount of misinformation and spin.”

The whole of the article is here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/17/business/international/scottish-independence-movements-wager-on-energy-could-prove-risky.html?hpw&rref=business&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=0

[Colin Macqueen]

Gentlemen,

24 hours to go before voting day so here is my  prediction from far off Oz!

55% NO - 45%YES.   The nays have it. Undecided and silent lads and lassies will go with the status quo.

I also think that this issue has rendered Scotland a disservice no matter what the result. Nationalism seems to have crept out from under the carpet and SNP history over the last fifty years is a dark history to my way of thinking with their national socialist tendencies.

My siblings here are in fear and trepidation!!

Cheers Colin

[Tim_Cronin]

For those in the U.S., live BBC News coverage is on C-Span 3 beginning 5:35 p.m. ET Thursday.

[Mark Chaplin]

Colin there appears to have been a nasty, spiteful, threatening and intimidating element appear from the SNP camp in the last few days.

[Malcolm Mckinnon]

Looks like NO wins with a fair margin.

[Rich Goodale]

True, Malcolm, but the turnout was huge and givein the commitment of the No's to radical and massive transfers of powers to Scotland, the mandate for change is clear.  A great day for democracy.

[Malcolm Mckinnon]

Rich,

I have been glued to SKY News since 5:00 PM USA time.

A non win for "O Scotia! My dear, My Native Soil!" twas no matter.

Best!

Malcolm

[Jon Wiggett]

Well sanity prevailed and its a no by a bigger margin than most people thought.

Looks like we should know quite soon when the scope of the new powers promised for a while now will come into effect. What is possibly the biggest impact of this vote is the possible restructuring of the English political system.

Jon

[Ed Tilley]

Finally, after 2 years of acrimony, the English can soon get back to normal and ignore the Scots again.

[Jon Wiggett]

Finally, after 2 years of acrimony, the English can soon get back to normal and ignore the Scots again.

I think this vote will have repercussions in England in a major way. Either there will be a an English parliament with all the difficulties this will present and the Westminster becoming more a house where the four national parliaments send representatives or England will become a group of regions with devolved powers similar to Scotland, Wales and NI.

Jon

[Mark Pearce]

The last thing we in the North East want is an English parliament, which would be even more London-centric than Westminster.  An upside of the No vote is that the Tories can't, as I'm sure they'd love to, ignore the North East.

[Bill_McBride]

Gentlemen,

24 hours to go before voting day so here is my  prediction from far off Oz!

55% NO - 45%YES.   The nays have it. Undecided and silent lads and lassies will go with the status quo.

I also think that this issue has rendered Scotland a disservice no matter what the result. Nationalism seems to have crept out from under the carpet and SNP history over the last fifty years is a dark history to my way of thinking with their national socialist tendencies.

My siblings here are in fear and trepidation!!

Cheers Colin

On the money, Colin.  You should go to the track and pick some more winners. 

[Thomas Dai]

There are 65.1m people in the Union Kingdom of England, Wales, N.Ireland and Scotland.

If only 2.2m had voted 'yes' yesterday then that would have broken up a Union Kingdom of 65.1m people.

Democracy, or what appertains to be democracy, can be a strange beast.

atb

[Mark Bourgeois]

Does this mean Scotland can't put Castle Stuart in the division of assets going to England?

[Wayne_Kozun]

What's the rationale for Edinburgh voting No so strongly and Glasgow voting yes?  I would have thought that Edinburgh would have a lot to gain as it would be the capital of a sovereign nation and would gain lots of government jobs and prestige. Whereas from Glasgow's perspective they will be ruled by toffs from Edinburgh rather than toffs from London - from my visits to Scotland it seems like Edinburghers look down on Glaswegians and there is no love lost between the two cities.

Or is it that Glaswegians identify themselves much more as Scots and Edinburgh is more commercially focussed and risk averse?

[Mark Bourgeois]

For starters, Edinburgh's economy is more closely tied to England's than is Glasgow's. Financial services and tourism are two examples.

[Adam Lawrence]

Edinburgh is a much more middle class, Anglo city than Glasgow. The message we've been getting of late is that the Yes message had been hitting home in traditional working class, Labour leaning households. So that would make Glasgow more fertile ground in that sense. But who really knows?

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