To A More Equal Society

Today was a lovely day. A brief encounter with a fellow blipper, an early morning sangha and breakfast out at my favourite café - all good.

We went to The Meadows for a celebration of Yes. The Yes side should win due to the National Collective alone - such positivity and creativity! I wish there were something similar on the No side but I haven't seen it yet.

People were asked why they were voting Yes and to write their reasons on the tags. I feel most strongly allied with this statement but I almost blipped another saying "I wish for the chance to make our own mistakes."

Whatever side you are on, be in no doubt that the referendum has been good for Scotland. 97% of the electorate has registered to vote and a record turnout is expected. People will vote who have never voted before because they feel that their vote counts, that they can influence the outcome. That can only be a good thing. People across the land are discussing issues, not just personalities, and articulating what they want for the future of their country, their children and themselves.

Whatever the outcome, Scotland will gain a greater degree of devolved powers towards independence. Be in no doubt that this is due to the strength of the campaign for independence. It would have been easy for the major parties at Westminster to agree a DevoMax settlement but instead they joined forces to have that option taken off the ballot paper and have forced people into a Yes/No situation. All sorts of voters on either side would have voted for more powers over independence. The Westminster parties did so because they were confident the people of Scotland would vote No. They're not so confident anymore, thanks to the strength of the appetite for independence.

Of course there have been some people who haven't behaved as well as they could on both sides. We're not perfect; we're human. By and large, however, people have discussed the issues civilly and have become more active citizens. Again, that can only be a good thing. The next trick is to see how that momentum can be maintained, how people, who have been politically apathetic their entire lives because they felt that no one was listening to them, can remain engaged.

And now for Pizza!