For episode 24 of the Popcast, I learned about the new "Get Counted" campaign, which is asking Yessers to register their support for independence via the IndyApp. I was joined by Jason Baird of the National Yes Registry, Andy Oliver of Yes Stonehaven & Mearns, Lynn Hastie of Yes Haddington & District and Sheena Jardine of Yes Pentlands, who explained the thinking behind the campaign. A few of the questions I asked were:
* Is the IndyApp free? (Spoiler: yes, it is.)
* Is the campaign a sort of "referendum substitute" to demonstrate a mandate for independence, and if so, won't it have to go insanely viral to achieve its goals?
* Is the campaign a sort of high-tech version of John MacCormick's Scottish Convention & Covenant Association from the 1950s, which was wildly successful in terms of getting people to register their support for a Scottish Parliament, but wasn't able to translate that support into political action?
* Won't a non-party network open to all Yes supporters and groups run into problems with political parties that have a 'no-platforming' culture?
You can watch the video version of the Popcast via the YouTube embedded player below, or at this link.
Massive thanks from the #GetCounted campaign team to James for being such a generous host. Looking forward to hearing what Scot Goes Pop viewers have to say about the topics being discussed.
ReplyDeleteyou can #GetCounted for YES from the app stores here for Android https://rb.gy/kb4j85 and iOS https://rb.gy/zrq7j2
DeleteI get that this is essentially a petition. As an app, however, it does tingle my personal data collection alarm bells a little; and this is from someone who’s quite in favour of taking things into our own hands for Yes. It might be a hard sell to ordinary punters that they should register for an app, presumably requiring their real name and address. Folk fear getting doxed in this day and age, like they never did in the days of petitions past.
ReplyDeleteI get excited by petitions. I might scream. Or whisper the word "succulent".
DeleteI understand what you are saying, but firstly you only need name, email and postcode and secondly it is more secure being on an App than it would have been on a website. Many of us sign petitions all the time so it is the same information as that. You can even delete the App after adding your name.
DeleteHi Anonymous (12.02pm). I hear you, and we have done everything we can to allay those fears. The IndyApp is completely GDPR compliant and all data is stored in our secure severs. Your details are not shared with anyone and in fact we only ask for your email in order to allow you to securely access your IndyApp to make changes to your registration details or remove yourself should you ever change your mind and no longer support Independence. Our privacy policy can be read on our website here https://www.nationalyesregistry.scot/copy-of-terms-conditions
DeleteI understand though, and in the final analysis it always comes down to trust. So, the more folk who #GetCounted with none of the issues you fear happening, the more trusted we will become. As I say, at any point you feel the platform is somehow untrustworthy , you can remove yourself at any time.
Just to add, NYR has been around since 2014 and held many national Gatherings, Workshops and face to face meetings with the YES Groups and Indy supporters over the last 10 years, so we are pretty well known among many long term grassroots activists. We have a short wee film on our website called `Our Story' that explains our origins etc. https://www.nationalyesregistry.scot/copy-of-app-our-story
DeleteHope this helps
Will David Francis be giving his real name ?
ReplyDeleteTA MUCHO
Deletewho is David Francis?
DeletePope David Francis
ReplyDeleteGreat idea.
ReplyDeleteWill definirely register for the IndyApp.
On a different note - I see Starmer and his Labour Yoon colleagues have just told English People to be 'proud to fly the English Flag from their cars and houses'
Would thst be the same Starmer and his Labour Yoon colleagues who slated Indy Supporters for doing exactly that in 2014, saying "You can't eat flags"???
Yep, it is.
English flags must be tastier.
New study also shows that the majority of English voters no longer care about maintaining their Precious Yoonion any more.
Get the flags out.
We were better together in 2014
DeleteWe’re still better together
We’ll always be better together
Rule Britannia.
That's great David, thanks and please spread the word of the YesCount to all your Independence supporting friends, family and workmates. That is how we hope to reach outside the activist bubble into the 56% of ordinary YES supporting voters. Cheers!
DeleteWill do.
DeleteDone.
DeleteOnwards and upwards. The cap doffing dullards can stay or go. Matters not.
DeleteFool Britannia !
DeleteNew study also shows that Reform UK Voters are the DUMBEST in Britain.
ReplyDeleteNo great surprise there, then 😂😂😂
Personally I’d say it’s SNP voters who are dumbest. How some still back these charlatans is beyond belief!
DeleteAnon at 10.03. Yet here you are sufficiently worried to be posting negative comment and lies. Silly billy boy. Back to drum practice for you.
DeleteAnd here you are still posting 'silly billy' insults.Back to the dictionary for you.
DeleteI do not need a dictionary for such simple language. You apparently do. Off you go silly billy. I use the term again because it means does seem to resonate with you.
Delete"It means does seem to resonate"? You're right, it's not a dictionary you need, it's a book on grammar. Try using English next time, you silly billy.🤣
DeleteInteresting finding from latest More in Common UK-Wide poll -
ReplyDeleteOnly a tiny 28% of UK Citizens consider Trump as an 'ally of the UK' and just 43% see America itself as 'an ally'.
Whereas a massive 70% consider both Canada and its PM Carney as 'UK Allies'.
Trump is about as popular as a dose of Ebola.
Don't know if there is a Scottish Subset in the resuts, but if there is, I would safely bet that Trump/Amerca's 'ally-score' would be even lower and Canada/Carney's would be even higher.
And REMEMBER - Reform UK are just Trump-Clones and just as Dumb.
MSM today -
ReplyDelete"On Tuesday, Tesla reported a 20% drop in car sales for the first three months of the year, compared with the same period last year, while profits fell more than 70%."
"Shares in the company had shed about 37% of their value this year as of market close on Tuesday."
Musk getting what he deserves.
Most folk do not like buying cars from a Nazi.
David….I agree that Musk gets what he deserves along with the rest of the Nazi’s across the world but at one point most folk did like buying cars from Nazi’s, the Volkswagen Beetle….not trying to disagree with you, just pointing out an historical fact…sorry!!!
DeleteI will correct myself slightly…it wasn’t until 1968 that it was officially named “Beetle” before that it was Volkswagen Type 1, still the same car though!!!
Deleteyeah but the nazis make the best stuff - they even put men on the moon (oh yes they did)
Deleteoperation paperclip was the massive tech transfer post-war, we all benefit from it
Correct…doesn’t stop Nazis being scum though!!!
DeleteIsn't Musk Ash Reagan's pal?
ReplyDeleteChapman has to go. Please e mail your MSP and register your disgust at her support for extremism within the trans movement. She has overtly broken the law, regulations and code of practice of Holyrood. She should not be getting paid from public funds.
ReplyDeleteI agree.
DeleteSorry, off-topic, but I've just watched pmqs where Kenneth Stevenson, Labour MP for Airdrie and Shotts, almost soiled himself shouting out his hatred of Scotland, surrounded by English labour MPs braying and nodding vigorously. Truly disgusting. Dave Doogan, SNP MP, was almost shouted down later on. We've got to escape from this prison of a union. Cue the inane comments ....
ReplyDeleteAnyone know how Swinney's open-goal for his opponents talking shop is going?
ReplyDeleteNo open goal despite the SNP enemies repeating their same message. He is exposing labours unwillingness to fight the right wing- as they become more right wing. Labour are more Tory than Ted Heath or John Majors Tory government of the day. The tories are now in bed with ukip types who are close to Reform as you can get. Ex BNP must Be smiling. The FM is right to expose this.
DeleteIf we cut through the nonsense: the summit may have inadvertently handed Reform UK more publicity and a platform to promote their views, ultimately boosting their profile in Scottish politics. Nigel Farage even expressed a preference for an SNP-led Holyrood over Labour, completely undermining Swinney’s strategy.
DeleteIt’s all the more frustrating because he had a far better option: he could have held a Constitutional Convention on independence. The only effective way to combat Reform is to offer a genuine, positive alternative—and what better way to do that than by amplifying the message that the only reform Scotland truly needs is independence?
So many halfwits on here playing down just how atrocious Reform UK are.
DeleteThey are extreme right zealots who will go down a Trumpist path leading to the poorest getting even more hammered, the rich getting even richer, the NHS getting more privatised and being more interested in shareholder dividends and profits than patients and sucking up to the corrupt fascists in Washington.
Swinney is definitely correct in trying to expose that political garbage for all decent Scots to see.
Calm down. No one here is defending Reform UK—what’s being criticised is Swinney’s strategy, not his intent. Screaming “fascist!” into the void might feel righteous, but it’s politically useless if you’re not offering people a real alternative.
DeleteSwinney didn’t “expose” anything—he gave Reform a platform and made it look like they’re worth debating. That’s not leadership, that’s playing into their hands. If you're serious about stopping them, stop reacting and start leading.
Holding a Constitutional Convention would’ve done more to undercut Reform’s appeal than any talking shop ever could. But instead of inspiring hope, he chose to validate fear. That’s not strategy—it’s panic dressed up as principle.
Perfectly calm.
DeleteAnd you are simply wrong with your perspective.
Whether folk like you admit it or not, Reform is an extreme right wing bunch of zealots who have happily cheered on fascists in Europe and the US.
They are funded by extreme right money and spout extreme right rhetoric straight out the Tufton Street, IEA, and the Bannon and Trump playbook.
The FM is ahead of the game In calling for a strong civic response to the rising tide of right wing extremism.
Maybe if Starmer had the same guts, the Reform rubbish would not be as strong in England at the moment.
Too late down there, but not too late in Scotland.
No one’s denying what Reform UK is or who funds them. The danger is real, and no one here has suggested otherwise.
DeleteBut calling them names and holding a summit isn't a strategy—it's a reaction. And the more oxygen you give them, the more “serious” they look to disillusioned voters. You don't kill off extremism by turning it into the headline—especially when you have no positive vision on offer as an alternative.
The FM might be ahead of the game rhetorically, but politically? He’s chasing headlines while missing the only winning message we have: independence. That’s the fight the movement needs to lead. Not another talking shop with zero impact outside the Holyrood bubble.
You don’t stop the far right by out-angrifying them—you beat them by showing people there’s something better. And right now, that’s what’s missing.
Wrong.
DeleteYou take far right garbage head on.
You do anything else and you end up like the pathetic state of affairs in present day England.
Yes, you offer Indy as the better long term alternative to Scots, but you have to deal with the present danger staring you right in the face, the up and coming Scottish Election next year and the dreadful possibility of Reform taking a good few seats.
Most decent Scots do not want to see our Scottish Parliament polluted with that crap.
You deal with that problem first
by consistently challenging and exposing their extremism in every way you can.
Swinney is perfectly correct in doing so.
Well said.
DeleteNo one’s saying ignore Reform or let them off the hook — but “taking them head on” isn’t the same as handing them a spotlight. Swinney’s summit gave them relevance they didn’t have before, and if anything, it made them look like they belong in the national conversation. That’s a gift to them.
DeleteYou’re right that most decent Scots don’t want Reform in Holyrood — so give them something better to vote for, not just someone louder shouting against. Right now, the SNP’s message is muddled, and independence is being treated like a footnote when it should be front and centre.
Challenge extremism? Absolutely. But don’t confuse visibility with victory. If all people see is fear and outrage, they tune out. If they see hope and a credible alternative, they start to believe again.
"far right" is a middle class dogwhistle for "working class"
Delete- the grifting freeloading class, with everything setup, just so - have always hated the people and will take any excuse to vent their rage on them
the working class can't afford luxury beliefs, but it is they who will pay for those of the middle class
Will there be a big yellow bus with Stop Right Wing Extremism written on it? A party somewhere did something like that once before and it went brilliantly, so I heard.
DeleteUtter garbage.
DeleteDavid Francis says Indy is “ the long term alternative “ Aye very very very long if the SNP are still in control. Next century is too soon for them.
DeleteSwinney is a complete waste of space.
DeleteLooks like Farage is all over the Scottish news absolutely loving the attention he & his Party are getting.
DeleteWouldn't be surprised if Swinney has just helped to give Reform a wee poll boost as people give a middle finger to the establishment. *Slow hand clap* 👏
Zzzzzzzzzz
DeleteThe anti SNP claiming to be independence supporters really need to rethink how they tactically suck up to the right wing
ReplyDeleteIt really is embarrassing just how much some Alba supporters seem to hate the SNP and constantly criticise them, while conspicuously not doing the same to Reform.
Deletethe SNP need to be removed from the independence movement
Deletethey are just blockers by now, done nothing since 2016 except pad the pension
the biggest asset the union ever had, which is why they will be protected and why Nikki was allowed to get away with her fraud, blaming, ridiculously, Murrell because "he had it all on his laptop and wouldnt show me"
once independent you need not worry about reform UK
Oh I hate Nicola brigade start up again. Mysogenist’s never change
DeleteAll these Alba loonys conveniently forget is that Alex Salmond wanted Devo Max, it was David Cameron who offered the Independence choice, he knew Salmond didn't want it
Delete5.22pm if you are going to bandy misogynist about learn to spell the word you moron.
Delete6.50pm posting shit to try and cover up the fact that the SNP is led by devolutionists.
DeleteThe fact remains that the only way out of the Union is through consent, SNP MP Seamus Logan writes.
ReplyDeletePlease sir, may we have our referendum? We know how much you respect democracy Mr Starmer. Did we mention how handsome you're looking today?
DeleteConsent indeed!
DeleteNo UK prime minister could ever afford to let Scotland go. Resource rich, renewables rich, tourism rich, and so cheap on the treasury with the shit infrastructure they foist on us and our governing class’s complicity. What a boon we are to them, and what a visceral shame it would be for them to lose the better half of “their country.”
So no. A thousand nos. Now is never the time. Never again.
And yet, somehow, permission be damned, the British empire still falls.
No UK Prime Minister wants to go down in history as the one who lost Scotland. The more likely a Yes vote becomes, the less likely we are to ever see a Section 30 Order approved referendum. That’s just political reality.
DeleteWhat world are these people living in who genuinely believe that if the SNP win a majority in 2026, or if Yes consistently polls above 60%, Westminster will just hand over the keys? It’s bonkers at best, disingenuous at worst.
Short of an armed struggle, give me your realistic alternative.
Deletekeep asking your jailer for the key
Deletethat will work
Your realistic alternative?
DeleteYou don’t need armed struggle. You need strategy, nerve, and a government that stops asking permission for things it already has a mandate to do.
Delete1. Convene a Constitutional Convention
Pull together pro-independence parties, civic groups, trade unions, legal experts. Not a talking shop—a national strategy summit. Agree the terms of Scotland’s right to self-determination without relying on Westminster's goodwill.
2. Define a Clear Mandate
No vague signals. Publish a roadmap: if a majority of votes or seats go to pro-indy parties in the 2026 election, that’s the mandate to begin the process. Not for another referendum—for independence itself.
3. Use the 2026 Election as a De Facto Referendum
Single issue. Single campaign. Every pro-indy party stands on the same ticket: a vote for us is a vote for independence negotiations to begin.
4. Set Up Institutions of Independence
Draft an interim constitution. Prepare a central bank framework. Create readiness in public services. Start behaving like a state in waiting—not a devolved administration running laps.
5. Launch an International Campaign
Use diplomacy, legal arguments, and media to build the case. Make Scotland’s democratic deficit visible. Engage with allies. You won’t get immediate recognition—but you’ll get global attention. That matters.
What Scotland needs is its own Ark of the Covenant to blast away all the English Philistines
DeleteSir, your medication
ReplyDeleteAnon at 4.22. Who is it exactly that believes what you claim they believe and when exactly did they say they believed it? I have heard no one say it. Please be specific.
ReplyDeleteThat's literally the two strategies SNP supporters are pushing: We need to win a majority in 2026 and/or we need to consistently get Yes support to 60% in the polls.
DeleteUnless I've missed something if that isn't the SNP's position? If it is what exactly do they expect to happen if either of those goals are achieved? The only implication suggested is that Westminster will cave without any reason to.
Vote the Trump Alba Reform Ash Regan whoever she joins next party if you're not happy
DeleteThink we need to stop with the deflection and nonsense if we ever want to progress tbh.
DeleteTo all the SNP diehards who think Maggie Chapman's fixation with promoting trans rights is a personal indulgence, wildly out of touch with common sense and public opinion, just remember that Chapman is saying the same things that Nicola Sturgeon was saying as First Minister.
ReplyDeleteMaggie Chapman. Nicola Sturgeon. Same person, frankly.
Both good people trying to prevent the kind of hatred that you are displaying
DeleteNeither of them have Scotland's independence at heart. Neither of them can tell us what a woman is.
DeleteThe more rabid members of the SNP and the Greens are very similar to the MAGA Republicans.
ReplyDeleteOnly in our mind
DeleteWell done to The National newspaper.
ReplyDelete£50,000 raised from its readers in just one week recently and over £200,000 raised in the last year for medical aid for Palestinians in Gaza.
Congratulations to all concerned.
Why do we even continue to give Alba supporters/SNP haters the time of day on here?
ReplyDeleteTheir party is imploding if not completely dead, they are restricted to the fringes of the Yes movement, they seem more attracted to the extreme right than centre left and outside their tiny bubble, no-one is remotely interested in what they think or their crackpot ideas.
Total wastes of space.
If we focus purely on the facts: The SNP won 47.7% of the Constituency vote in 2011. All current polling now puts them in the low to mid 30% range.
DeleteThe only silver lining has been Labour shooting themselves in the foot at Westminster and Reform UK splitting the unionist vote further. But the SNP isn't anywhere near the popularity levels they once enjoyed and there's a massive gap now between support for them and support for indy itself.
So instead of having a 'How dare you criticise the SNP' attitude, maybe those who do have a point?
Dream on
DeleteAlba has never had anything to do with the Yes movement, they were just for Salmond's use, hence the takeover of AUOB to use against the SNP in his death to Sturgeon campaign
DeleteYeah.
DeleteThe more James has exposed the inner shambles of Alba and the idiots who run it, the more obvious it has become that they only really had one aim in life: to destroy the SNP.
And the swarm of their supporters on here also have that same aim.
Of course, it isn't going to happen and the SNP will continue to form the next Scottish government after 2026, because Scots actually vote for them, unlike Alba.
Which means that their hatred for the SNP Scottish government will only grow even deeper.
Sad, irrelevant wee bunch of misfits.
Dr Jim at 6.42pm - you are posting here more often than on WGD. Why not post as Dr Jim? What are you scared about?
DeleteJimbo says: " In his death to Sturgeon campaign" . Now I know why you post as anon - you are embarrassed posting these lies.
It’s entertaining to come on here from time to time and see what’s being said about independence, in the wee Nat bubble. Something the average man in the street or pub has little or zero interest in.
ReplyDeleteOnly in Aberdeen son
DeleteMeanwhile back here in Scotland ...
DeleteTrump's new 'ceasefire plan' has told Ukraine to give up Crimea to Putin and agree that he can keep the Ukranian territory up to his front line.
ReplyDeleteA total betrayal of Ukraine.
Wee prediction - Trump will 'invade' Greenland militarily before end of 2024.
Whether Greenlanders agree, or not.
USA is a Fascist, Failed State.
Trump invading Greenland before end of 2024 is a non starter David. Surprised you are not aware of that.
DeleteI get excited by 2024. I might scream.
DeleteWhat year is it again?
DeleteI've a funny feeling the invasion might not happen before the end of 2024.
DeleteYou never know, Trump might have confiscated the Tardis or have Doc Brown on speed dial.
DeleteI can't believe the National would print such extreme anti-English junk:
ReplyDeletehttps://archive.is/Hh61H
"St George is the perfect patron saint for far-right Reform UK"
That's disgraceful :-(
It is not anti-English.
DeleteIt is anti-extreme English Nationalists and their support for Reform UK and it is true -
"St George is the perfect patron saint for the angry far-right English nationalists who support Reform UK.
Without a care for biodiversity, St George reinforced the misogynistic “helpless princess” trope by slaughtering an endangered species culturally appropriated from Asia, in pursuit of the colonialist imposition of Christianity upon a Middle Eastern city. That's all very on brand for right-wing English nationalism."
Don't be daft. St George is the patron saint of ENGLAND, and all English. Same as St David for Wales, St Andrew for Scotland and St Patrick for Ireland.
DeleteYi2 slip is showing
DeleteYou're slavering
DeleteTo all the English people living and working in Scotland (and elsewhere), including English Scots for YES, many English people I know in Scotland who support Independence, AND those who don't (yet perhaps), a belated (I've been busy):
ReplyDeleteHappy St George's Day :-)
Most english in Scotland are vicious bigoted ethno-nationalist supremacists aka little englanders, who believe Scotland is their possession. Civic nationalism is not for an invasive alien species. They are taking over Scotland, all the nice bits, and the natives are going to be left their own "bit", a gaza like strip along the M8 corridor.
DeleteThe Anglo is a thief with a genetic desire to steal everything he can. When Scotland leaves, the pound drops to 80 cents, and they lose their seat on the security council.
OK Adolf.
DeleteOK Paul
DeleteHideous post from anon at 9:21pm.
Delete'Top Tesla investor Ross Gerber has today officially called for Elon Musk to step down as the head of Tesla.'
ReplyDeleteCould not happen to a nicer bloke.
Been away from here for a while and cannot believe what I see now I am back.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who says they are backing what is best for Scotland who honestly believes it is the Scottish National Party who are the real enemy to be constantly vilified and criticised, when you look at the realistic unionist alternatives to be in power in Edinburgh, is really not backing what is best for Scotland at all.
Just look at the absolute shambles in England and Wales under the unionist parties not to even mention the prospect of a Farage PM!
There are too many folk posting on here who are only pretending to want what is best for Scotland, when their real agenda is to get rid of one particular Scottish party.
They aren't even subtle about it either.
Ignore them.
Jolly good then, I'll ignore you in future.
DeleteYou say something?
Delete