The language the Guardian and all other corporate media have been using about Syriza’s victory at the weekend against draconian EU-imposed austerity is revealing. Here are some examples of the subtle but effective framing from the paper’s front page today:
The polling booths have opened on Scotland’s Big Day and the world is watching, mesmerised, to see which way they jump. It’s too close to call, we’re told.
But the Scots weren’t always so evenly split over their desire for freedom. I’m staring at my breakfast tray which commemorates the Battle of Bannockburn, 1314 — the date indelibly etched on every Scotsman’s memory when Robert the Bruce trashed the English army of Edward II and won independence the hard way.
Scottish voters will go to the polls on September 18th to decide whether Scotland should become an independent country. As video blogger Ian R. Crane colorfully puts the issues and possibilities:
There’s one good reason for why Scotland should vote yes for independence: the breaking up of the United Kingdom would be an imminently good thing for the sake of world peace.
Anything that lessens the power of the London-centered United Kingdom is bound to be a good thing. So, if Scots walk away from the Union on September 18 by voting to establish their own separate, sovereign nation, that will deliver a positive blow to further weaken Britain’s legacy as an imperial power.
The debate over which way to vote in the Scottish Referendum is hotting up. The polls say that the gap between those voting to stay in the United Kingdom is now only a few points ahead of those planning to vote for independence.
With many still undecided, there has been a tidal wave of people registering to vote, particularly among the young. The norm for UK electoral turnout is poor. Fewer and fewer people bother to vote in local and general elections. Governments can come into power on less than a quarter of the electorate voting for them.
Three weeks to go and the debate over the Scottish Referendum gets no better. Reason goes down the drain. The large number of anti-independence people giving their views can do nothing but issue gloom and doom warnings for Scotland’s grim fate if it casts itself adrift from the United Kingdom.
When I wrote about the approaching Scottish Referendum on independence, I didn’t expect such a huge reaction. All I wanted was to make clear the shame and embarrassment I personally felt, caused by the heavy-handed and idiotic efforts of the “Better Together” camp to persuade, browbeat and in some cases bribe, the Scots to vote against independence. Also, as an Englishwoman I had taken no sides; I simply acknowledged how much Scotland has to be proud of, and the rest of us to be grateful for.
As if Prime Minister David Cameron hasn’t got enough problems, the promised referendum allowing Scotland to vote on whether people want independence from the rest of the United Kingdom looms ever closer, and some polls show that the gap between the Yes and No camps is closing. It will be a tight race come September.
The latest survey in Ukraine by the Pew Research Center, reveals 91% of Crimeans believe the recent referendum was free and fair and only 4% believe Ukraine is correct in not recognising the referendum results. The poll numbers underline that the official results of the Crimea referendum are a true reflection of the will of […]
