Thursday, November 5, 2015

The Scot Goes Pop Hot Chocolate Fundraiser

Click here to go straight to the fundraising page.

Hi, I’m James Kelly. I write the pro-independence blog Scot Goes Pop, which over the years has carved out a niche for itself with its detailed coverage of opinion polls. During the independence referendum, it relentlessly challenged the agenda-driven misreporting of polls as showing that the Yes campaign were not even in the game. In the run-up to the general election, it picked up the extraordinary SNP surge a few weeks earlier than the mainstream media and most other polling websites, mainly because it didn’t shy away from the controversial approach of looking at the Scottish subsamples of Britain-wide polls. According to Google Analytics, an astonishing 210,000 unique visitors have read the blog over the last twelve months alone. Even if only half of those people are in Scotland (and the true figure is likely to be higher than that), it means that over 2% of the country’s population has been reached. Not bad for a one-person operation!

Throughout much of 2014 and 2015, writing Scot Goes Pop has been the equivalent of either a full-time job or a very time-consuming part-time job. It simply wouldn’t have been possible to put in that level of commitment if it hadn’t been for your incredibly generous contributions to two fundraisers – the first in May 2014, and the second in September 2014. Between them, they raised over £9000. For the avoidance of doubt, the fundraisers weren’t intended to cover the running costs of the blog – there aren’t really any running costs at all, and there won’t be any in future unless it becomes necessary to switch to a different platform. A small percentage of the money was spent on drawing in new readers via adverts on social media, but the bulk of it simply helped cover my own living expenses. I do have other sources of income, but obviously time spent blogging is time that I can’t spend earning money elsewhere.

The period covered by the second fundraiser ended with the general election in May. Since then, I’ve held off from running a third, because I wanted to take time to consider what its exact purpose might be. I’ve seriously toyed with the idea of following the example of a few fellow political bloggers, and scaling back on the blogging to concentrate on writing a book (for self-publication). At other times, I’ve thought I’ll probably continue blogging as regularly as I’ve been doing recently, and perhaps even look at the possibility of using crowdfunding to commission the occasional opinion poll myself. In all honesty, my plans are still very unclear, although I do know that I’d like to continue writing regularly in some form. Unfortunately, financial pressures have very suddenly come to a head, and I now realise that I can’t wait for the mists to clear in my mind before I attempt to raise some more funds.

When I first explained this dilemma in May, a number of you very kindly said that you appreciate the large amount of work I’ve put into the blog, and would be willing to make a donation in recognition of that. I believe the internet jargon is “buying me a coffee”. The only snag is that I detest the taste of coffee. Luckily, however, I do seem to spend a fair percentage of my life in Edinburgh or Glasgow coffee shops drinking hot chocolate, ideally with cream and chocolate sprinkles on top. So perhaps the best way of looking at this fundraiser is as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (and you know what that means) to buy me a hot chocolate or two if you’ve enjoyed the blog, and don’t want to see me go thirsty (sniff) as I endeavour to keep writing in the months to come.

In case you don’t know much about me, I’ve been blogging at Scot Goes Pop for seven-and-a-half years now. I’ve also written articles for The National newspaper, and for numerous websites including the International Business Times, Bella Caledonia, Wings Over Scotland, Political Betting, National Collective, Fair Observer, Scottish Roundup and the Eurovision Times. Many of my IBTimes articles have been syndicated on Yahoo News. I was interviewed twice on BBC Breakfast during the week of the referendum, and I’ve taken part in several alternative media podcasts and videos. Oh, and as I never let anyone forget, I was a runner-up in Fish Publishing’s Micro-fiction competition in May 2008 (which come to think of it was the same month I started the blog – I must have been on fire that month).

I’m going to make the same commitment that I made during the previous two fundraisers – if for any reason I can’t put the money to good use to support my writing, I’ll pass whatever is left onto other pro-independence causes. Or conceivably I might use it to run an opinion poll if there happens to be enough to cover that, but either way you can rest assured that nothing will go to waste.

As always, please don’t feel under any pressure to make a donation. Scot Goes Pop isn’t a newspaper or a magazine – it’s a blog, and there’s absolutely no charge to read it. The option to donate is there if you want to, but it’s only an option. And, of course, if you have a spare minute or two you can always pass on the word to others – every tweet or Facebook share helps enormously!

Click here if you'd like to donate.

43 comments:

  1. I enjoy your blog and I will be making a donation.
    Wee Sandy

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  2. Just made a donation, keep up the good work.

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  3. Donated. Enjoy reading your page. Thanks.

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    Replies
    1. Glasgow Working ClassNovember 5, 2015 at 8:10 PM

      Hiv ye donated a tin of spam tae a food bank tae ease yer Nat si conscience.

      Delete
    2. Eat your cereal.

      Delete
  4. You deserve it as much as Wings does. I hope you raise more than last time. Thank you for all your effort and insight.

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  5. I wonder if Glasgow Working Class will make a donation? lol.

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  6. Contribution made. Chris Cairns pointed out how essential the work you people do is. He is right. You provide me with hours of entertainment which has to be paid for. When we are independent, and our own history is taught, I hope the children realise how the spontaneous efforts of people like yourselves advanced the cause of independence.

    Without SGP and Wings and many of those on your blogroll, we would have only the Unionist propaganda drip fed to us to go on. You help to open our eyes. So hang in there, and keep up the good work. You are needed, and what you do is invaluable.

    GWC seems to have found the cornflakes. He's giving us peace for now.

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  7. Keep up the good work James - I made a donation a little earlier.

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  8. the Indiegogo page tells me that £5 isn't a valid number...
    Neither is £5.00,
    Nor £ 5.00...
    8=(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brian, you don't need the £ sign.

      James, it's a pleasure to make a contribution. Small recompense for all the info you provide us with.

      Delete
  9. Glasgow Working ClassNovember 5, 2015 at 8:07 PM

    Paul, I only donate to winners not right wing Nat sis off the tartan shortbreid tin variety. So what will wee Nicola dae wie aw ra new tax raising powers. Will the Nat sis tax the rich or keep blaming the English?

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    Replies
    1. The grown-ups are talking. Eat your cereal.

      Delete
    2. Pay the piper or piss off, you cheapskate troll bastard.

      Delete
  10. Virtually only two sites I now go to every day. Wings and here. Like D. Bateman but his defence of the EBC puts me off a bit.
    Hot chocolate with cream and chocy sprinkles. MMMM.
    Just a thought, do Labour Uncut and Labour Hame etc. get persons like Aldo and GWC, but from our perspective dirtying the columns. Would'nt think so.
    They do make it trying when reading comments.
    Echo Tris on contributing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think it's fair, personally. He may be considerably more articulate than GWC and manages to project an air of reasonableness (at least some of the time), but his goal here -- to disrupt the conversation, to insult people, and to spread FUD -- is exactly the same.

      Delete
  11. Hi "Glasgow Working Class".
    Is your comment not a tad out of place on a page dedicated to raising funds for one of the best pro-indy blogs? "Class" doesn't even come into it - and as soon as I re-read your comment, with its reference to "blaming the English", I realised that you are a rather inept troll.
    Go away.

    Hi Tris.
    Thanks. What threw me was the suggestions in the box before I clicked in it; ie, £5 £10 £100. So, of course, I included the pound sign. Sorted now.

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  12. £5 for the good value I get reading your blogg,Dont know the price of a hot chocolate these days but there might be enough left for a wee bit shortbread to go with it!
    BH

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  13. Excellent blog, analysis and info.

    Will put some cash in the kitty. For a moment I thought that was Gary Robertson on the fundraiser website

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  14. Although your blogs are heavily blinkered and biased in favour of theSNP and independence I must admit they are not abusive. At times they are even handed so keep up the good work.
    Obviously as someone who is proud to be Scottish and British I can't make a donation.

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  15. A worthy cause Mr Kelly. Thanks for all the fish.

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  16. Glasgow Working ClassNovember 5, 2015 at 11:05 PM

    If James needs a few shekels tae survive then I will donate more to Scottish food banks. You Nat sis should hang your heads in shame when your fellow Scots are begging for help. This Nat si Government is worse than anything in Britain post WW2 and including Maggie Badface.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maybe if you eat your cereal like a good little troll, your Unionist overlords will give you permission to have a biscuit...

      Delete
  17. Will you no be telt, Glasgow Working Class?
    Your comments are crass.
    Once again, go away, and this time, spend some time self procreating.

    Oh, and BTW - "You Nat sis"? Jeez! Thuh huvnae taught yi, iye? As soon as you refer to Scots as "nats", you huv gied the guff awa.
    Yirra troll.
    Go away - or in an acronym you may understand, FO.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glasgow Working ClassNovember 6, 2015 at 1:12 AM

      Brian Troon ra Doon, geeze a break fae aw that procreation, I am tired.

      Delete
    2. Poor tired little troll. Eat your cereal.

      Delete
  18. The problem is, blogs like this one are clearly aimed at "keeping the dream alive" in the hope of a quick fire, early 2nd referendum. But what if there isn't another referendum for 10 years? Or 15 years?

    Or never?

    How long do you keep throwing money and time at this? And if you do hang around for years, you wont be the new media anymore - you'll be old media. And any pronouncements on here re independence will be a bit like "Daily Mail says Tories good". Same with Wings over Scotland, the National, and any other publication that arose during or after the referendum.

    Aldo

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    Replies
    1. Why, then, are you wasting your time and ours with your repeated snide comments? I'm sure you'll find plenty of like-minded souls BTL at the Torygraph and the Daily Wail.

      Delete
    2. Well, I think people should have stopped throwing time and money at the Scottish Tories in about 1986, Aldo, but I don't bang on about it.

      This blog started when there seemed to be little prospect of a quick first referendum, let alone a second.

      Delete
  19. Right, contributed hours ago, so where is the analysis of latest polls.

    And Tories trumpeting Huntly as a SNP 'defeat' when as far as I know, it was an SNP hold, but a LibDem defeat?

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  20. Great Blog James I will donate.

    Although you don't know what you are missing with a well made coffee and Danish! One of life's great vices.

    I think GWC should contribute the most as he spends more time on here than anyone else. He gets free therapy we listen to his incoherent psychobabble!

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  21. I suspect GWC is not in employment and therefore not able to contribute. I added five quid for him on to my donation. Welcome. :)

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  22. Glad to see the fundraiser has gone up another £100 since I started my transaction! Hope you smash your target with plenty to spare James.

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  23. Glad to contribute, James.

    Now 81% of target, with one day!

    Great stuff, son.

    Keep up the good work.

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  24. Glasgow Working ClassNovember 6, 2015 at 11:10 PM

    The only way you could win a referendum is to give the English a vote. They are well pissed aff listening to you moaning and hard dun tae stories.

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  25. GWC I think he should pay per letter he uses. Sometimes the letters are in strange places mind you. Don't think his Queens English is his strong point. Betty would be so proud of her subject.

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  26. James,

    Once I have some income in I will subscibe for GWC,

    Around the 15th.

    That child needs help. And you provide it when many do not.

    Can I consider it a charity donation, tax deductabe or summat?

    Just joking..

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  27. Enjoy your blog enormously James. Happy to buy you a hot chocolate :)

    Mowgli

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  28. 87% of target reached within just 2 days - amazing response!

    Should be 100% today/tomorrow.

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  29. Hi James. Long time reader since 2012, keep up the fine analysis. Another hot chocolate for you.

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