The Scottish Independence Podcast

Withheld

I'm delighted to announce that for this first episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast of 2016, a party that used to be quite big in Scotland asked me if they could come on the show and explain how they have changed and talk about their big motivations.

I'll say no more...

Hope you enjoy…

For the 117th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I invited Pat Kane, Kathleen Caskie of Women For Indy and journalist James Maxwell to come on and have a chat about some of the major events of 2015.

We managed to get through a fair few, including the difficult year experienced by the Labour party in Scotland and the UK, the House of Lords, the continuing rise of the SNP, the "delivery" of the vow, Corbyn, Sturgeon, Indyref 2 and much more.

We also included a look at some newcomers on the scene, specifically the RISE coalition, The Ferret, The National and Common Space. And as we unfortunately lost two major figures on the Scottish scene in 2015, William McIlvanney and Ian Bell, we also discussed what sort of a hole will be left by their absence.

To finish up on a lighter note we had a holiday season quiz, True or Foulkes.

Hope you enjoy…

For the 116th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I spoke with Craig Paterson from RISE.

We talked about the motivation behind the RISE movement, what they realistically hope to achieve over the long-term and how they hope to provide a real left alternative in Scottish politics.

We also got on to general scene in Scottish politics at the moment, the woes of the Labour party, the prospective make-up of the next Scottish parliament and, unfortunately, we talked about Willie Rennie for some as yet uknown reason.

In the latter part of the discussion we had a look at something that decent people of any colour in Scottish politics should be worried about, which is Dungavel Detention Centre (or if you prefer, prison for people who haven't done anything wrong).

All that and more in the new episode.

Hope you enjoy…

For the 115th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I spoke with Jordan Daly and Liam Stevenson from the TIE Campaign.

The campaign started in June, and they've already been in to The Scottish Parliament and what they had to say met with support from all corners.

I asked them how they got started and what they hope the campaign will achieve. Jordan recounts a very moving personal story and some alarming statistics and Liam explains why, even as someone who is not a part of the LGBT community himself, he decided to get involved in the campaign.

Finally, what the hell are referendum babies?

All that and more in the new episode.

Hope you enjoy…

"The Land Reform Bill we have in front of us at the moment is just a start, and a pretty tentative one at that. It needs beefed up." - Lesley Riddoch

When it comes to land ownership and distribution it must be said that Scotland is an international oddball.

A number of factors have contributed to the unusual situation we find ourselves in and in this episode I spoke with Lesley Riddoch about what those are and what can be done about the situation, both in the countryside and in the cities.

Furthermore, is the Scottish Government in a compromised position or does the it lack the power, or indeed, the will.

How do the local and city councils come into the story?

We talked about all this and about some of the groups and people involved in trying to do something about the situation (links below).

Hope you enjoy
http://www.ourland.scot/
http://www.scottishlandactionmovement.org/
http://whoownsscotland.org.uk/
https://twitter.com/LesleyRiddoch
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell

For the 113th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast (I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it), I spoke with Jason Baird who is trying to organise the new National Yes Registry, a grassroots organisation that would like to help the various pro-independence groups around the country to help each other.

I spoke with Jason about the vacuum the official Yes Scotland campaign left when they seemed to disappear, what he is trying to do about it and why it is necessary to have a grassroots collective.

Have a listen and see if you'd like to sign up. After you've listened to the podcast you could also watch their explanatory film.

Hope you enjoy…

And when I am in the boards
my words will be a prophecy.
They will return, the stock of the crofters
Who were driven over the sea.

And the aristocratic 'beggars'
will be routed as they (the crofters) were.
Deer and sheep will be carted away
and the glens will be tilled;

A time of sowing and a time of reaping,
and a time to reward the robbers.
And the cold ruined houses
will be built up by our kin

Over the years I have had many conversations in which there has been the complaint that large chunks of Scottish history, both events and people, have been left out of our education.

I therefore thought that, in addition to our other shows, it was about time that some of these stories and people should get some more publicity, and so here is the second in a new series of podcasts- Scotland’s Missing Histories.

For the second episode I spoke with author Liz MacRae Shaw about the life of a woman so remarkable that they named her several times - Mairi Mhor nan Oran, Mairi Mhor, Big Mary of the Songs, Mary MacPherson and others.

Liz wrote a biography of a woman who lived through and fought against, and then to reverse the highland clearances. Mary also went to prison despite very possibly being innocent, and did something that Beyoncè et al tend to do these days long before it was normal, Mhairi's was not a normal life.

Hope you enjoy…

LINKS
https://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/category/scotlands-missing-histories/
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell
http://www.theislandsbooktrust.com/store/books/love-and-music-will-endure/
http://lizmacraeshaw.com/

Over the years I have had many conversations in which there has been the complaint that large chunks of Scottish history, both events and people, have been left out of our education.

I therefore thought that it was about time that some of these stories and people should get some more publicity, and so here is the first in a new series - Scotland's Missing Histories.

For the first episode I am throwing you all right in at the deep end too, with the story of James Connolly, one of Scotland and Ireland's most thoroughgoing revolutionaries.

Connolly, born in Edinburgh, was involved in worker's and revolutionary movements in Scotland, Ireland and the USA and there are enough similarities that it is possible to begin drawing comparisons with Thomas Paine.

I asked Jim Slaven of the James Connolly Society to take us through the story of his life, and give his opinion on why the life and writings of James Connolly are still relevant today.

Who or what would you like to hear about in this series? Let me know and I will try to put a show together.

For the 112th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I spoke with former MP, activist and writer Jim Sillars, and I am sure I didn't really need to write that little biography there.

We spoke about his new book In Place Of Failure - why did he feel it needed to be written?

Almost immeditately we got into the premise of the book, what did we do wrong during the referendum, and going forward, what can we do to right those wrongs the next time around? This included discussions on how the Yes movement should evolve, and suggestions on what to do about currency, the EU and the media.

We also talked about when that next time round might come up and the fact that the older generations in Scottish society were, and still are, the most likely to support the continuation of the Union. What can be done about that?

Finally, as ever, I asked Jim his reasons for supporting Scottish Independence.

Hope you enjoy…