If part of the US, the UK would be 2nd poorest state

You'rea tally 100% right. If we hadn't made the decision to go our own way, we would be still part of the UK. You're right economics should nt come into it.

I don't know how many people belonging to me work in England, but 3 of my uncles live there now! In excess of 30 of my classmates from school and university are living and working in England and if I'm honest i would move with my family to somewhere like the Lake District for a better quality of life.

I like your comment re Yorkshire, that would go down well alright

 

Another post that is so much better than anything you could read in any newspaper here. Thanks.

 

Tell the other side of the story Grumpy. After all, England is not exactly looking for ways to dump Scotland. Or N. Ireland for that matter.

 

I tell my view or experience. The UK London based Government has it's own agenda. London is the center of their universe in their eyes. Their view is probably what is widely reported. They want Scotland to remain part of the UK. They'd probably still want Ireland too.

 

Are there regional English political parties agitating to get rid of Scotland ? Is there a 'kick Scotland out' bloc in Parliament ? Or is England just playing the role of the jilted lover ?

 

Opinion polls are that the English people generally think that Scotland should go. There is a (perceived?) opinion that the Scottish just whinge and moan and cost more than their tax revenue and take more Government jobs.

Vote yes, Scots – and set the English free » The Spectator (right wing paper)

The Scottish say they pay more and deserve more. The Scottish have historically got more and have more influence despite being only 10% of the population.

West Lothian question - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The above link really needs to be read and read in full to understand.

Why don't the English vote to get rid of Scotland? Because in the scheme of things and list of priorities it's way way down the list. The Scottish only got the vote because they voted for a party who wanted the question asked and well as other reasons. I guess it's like being a US Democrat voter but not being keen on ObamaCare. You wouldn't vote Republican just because you didn't agree with one part of your normal political lean. I guess the same happened with the Scottish Independence vote. But not being Scottish I couldn't really say.

These two links give two sides to the story. Might be wise to read them both in full to get a better understanding of a quite complicated issue;

BBC News - A Point of View: Should the English have a say on Scottish independence?

Scots MUST vote for independence! It'll save the rest of us a fortune, says SIMON HEFFER | Mail Online

 

lol that's what all Americans say. Believe me, the Southern Irish Government DO NOT want the hot potato that is Northern Ireland. We're not keeping NI to support an old Empire. We're doing it because the majority voted to remain part of the UK. Thing is NI is expensive and you just can't win with this situation. Give them to Ireland and the 'loyalists' will just do to Dublin what the IRA did to London, keep NI part of the UK and people say we're imperialist invaders. There is no easy answer as many well respected politicians from all over the World have found out. Remember Hilary Clinton tried her hand too.

My personal view is we should give the peoples of NI a referendum and let them become part of Ireland, but you might want to ask someone from the Irish Government what they think. It's not an easy problem to find a solution for. It's effectively been a civil war dragging on for at least 100 years. It's also got significant religious involvement. The South is mainly Catholic and the North Protestant.

Ask Tony D on his views. It's a very tricky situation, but a beautiful part of the World with friendly people. I don't know the answer as I don't live there. Washing my/our hands of the situation whilst simplistic, can't really be the answer. Trouble is, the greatest minds don't know either, and many have tried

United Ireland - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Northern Ireland peace process - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

lol as I was saying earlier. Then I saw this link. Check out section 5

BBC News - Scottish independence: How might a currency change affect the rest of the UK?

"Have you ever tried to pay a London taxi driver with a Scottish £20 note?" she wanted to know.


As of 2013, there were just under 298 million Scottish notes - produced by Scottish banks, RBS, HBOS and Clydesdale - in circulation around the UK. Presumably if the two nations did not share a currency, the Scottish note really would become foreign tender.


Some people wouldn't mourn their passing.


It would be "slightly more convenient with no more Scottish notes", says Steve McNamara of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, who says although they are rare, "drivers are not especially keen on them as you can't always get people to accept them when you pass them on".

That's an understatement. They're a Royal pita to get rid of. My bank would accept them but some don't and most customers don't either. I guess it would be like trying to pay for a Chicago taxi ride with Canadian dollars.

 

Grumpy is very well informed and surprising accurate and impartial ( fir an Englishman! Lol)

You're right, we ( the South) don't want the North, except a few who continue to stir sh1t. We're quite happy with what we have.

The people in the North are a different story. Most are content with the way it is, with the minority not being happy, hence the crap continues, albeit a lot better

I know that England sent too keen on having NI still as it costs them a bloody fortune and is troublesome, but cannot exactly "give it back".

It is a very tricky situation up there, but it really s a very small minority of people that are still involved in "the troubles" . Most people, from both sides, Catholics and Protestants live happily side by side, it's when the small majority distinguish themselves as Republicans and others as Loyalists, that's the issue.

A ve ry simple idea is for the Republicans to move down here and be republicans in the Republic and leave the North alone. The Loyalists then could move to England, namely near Buckingham Palace where they can be Loyal to their Queen! In doing so, 95% of the population in NI can carry out with their lives without being annoyed by people fighting for "the cause".

Irelands (all of it) history is very very long and NI is the residue of England trying to take another section of land, one which hasn't been fully resolved, unlike all the other former British colonies and parts of the Commonwealth. The stubborn Irish continue to argue over the small bit of land at the top of this little island, the 6 counties which are really really beautiful and which has so much to offer.

The south does very well in terms of tourism, especially from English and of course the Americans, but NI could be so busier if people realised that the crap that still continues is very very minor and really goes unknown to most. If anyone reading this has an opportunity to visit ths little island, make sure to get up North. There are no borders anymore, so you can move seamlessly between South and North without really noticing


Discover Northern Ireland, Official site of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board. Accommodation, events, things to see and do in Belfast, County Down, County Armagh, County Fermanagh, County Londonderry, County Tyrone and County Antrim

 

I told you earlier, I'm a Yorkshire man. Big difference

 

You can always tell a Yorkshireman...



...but you can't tell him much.

 

I say what I like, and I like what I say

 

I did it on purpose, just checking how observant you are!

 

Since we have agreement between the Irish and English, now all that is needed is a Scot to chime in.

 

... ... ... Nah

In a somewhat rational situation,
Two sides agree to marriage
It only takes one side to divorce

 

And your solution (where many many others have failed) is?

Pull out and give it back to the Irish? You've heard what Tony D said on that one. I too think we should but it just isn't that simplistic. But sitting 4,000 miles away makes it easier to understand I guess. I think the US should hand over Montana to the first nation peoples. Why not? They were there first. Perhaps it's not that simple eh?

 

You misunderstand me. I was saying that England is staying (for now) in NI out of it's own interests, not because of a sense of morality or whatever excuse the politicians spout.

So while NI in a referendum may choose to stay in the UK, it would not matter if England was also not in favor of them staying.

---
If you want a US example of this in action, look no further than American military involvement in say, the Middle East Vs Africa when genocides occur. The real difference is oil; the bullshit excuse is morality/"democracy"/religion.

 

I don't see any real advantage to England hanging on to NI. There's no oil or any natural resources worth thinking about

Have you any suggestions?

Anyway, some of the best minds in the works have been working on the NI issues for years and are yet to come to a resolution, so I doubt we will either. It doesn't matter hugely to me anyway, it's 100 times better there now, so I have no issue visiting, which, on a selfish note, is all that matters to me now. The people up there, by an large (both sides), are much happier the way things are and are happy to maintain the status quo

 

I don't understand why people get so defensive. The US government-run school system Sucks and I will agree with any British person who says it (because he's correct). But criticize the british health system, and suddenly they get all defensive. NO system is perfect. Every system has flaws, and to pretend the flaws don't exist..... well that seems kinda silly. (Like claiming the Prius or Civic hybrids has no flaws.)


And by the way: Chuck keeps saying "the moderators have taken care of troy" but I have received ZERO warnings from them. I'm fairly certain the mods would talk to me First rather than a random guy. (2) If you want to call me "---hole" or "troll" (note: neither Insult belongs in polite Adult conversation), next you'll have to start calling news reporters the same insult (that reporter is just a troll/---hole) because they are saying the same thing about UK poor health service. Also MPs:

MP demands Parliament debate over why patients are waiting hours for ambulances in Hartlepool and East Durham - Hartlepool Mail - If a member of parliament demands an investigation, I'd say there's a problem. I also found another article about Welsh patients unable to get care for their cancer:

Welsh patients are 'fleeing' across the border to England claim MPs as UK Government attacks record of NHS Wales - Wales Online

Man, 30 dies during 8 HOUR wait in an ER after going in for a rash | Mail Online