unlikely there is a monster

May 26, 2018 3:13 AM

Scottish independence is back in the news... and the hunt is back on for an illusive Scottish icon, Nessie (or may be just its dandruff)
posted by fearfulsymmetry (15 comments total)

I think you mean elusive.
posted by The Seeds of Autumn at 5:19 AM on May 26, 2018 [5 favorites]

For all that it sounds like a "for all intensive purposes" mistake, illusive is, frustratingly, a real word.
posted by Pope Guilty at 5:24 AM on May 26, 2018 [3 favorites]

illusive and elusive (though obliviously I still believe)
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 6:04 AM on May 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

Back to the Loch witchya, Nessie!
posted by Brocktoon at 6:24 AM on May 26, 2018 [2 favorites]

Scottish independence is back in the news

*Checks calendar*

Yup. SNP Convention is coming up.

It's like how Arsenal announce they have a "significant war-chest for transfers" every year, coincidentally just before the season ticket renewal letters go out.
posted by garius at 6:48 AM on May 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

I've always wondered what Loch Ness Monster tastes like. Especially the neck meat.
posted by sexyrobot at 7:00 AM on May 26, 2018 [3 favorites]

Fishy.
posted by Segundus at 7:02 AM on May 26, 2018 [2 favorites]

Elusive/Illusive: ¿por qué no los dos?

As for independence, I think the new Yes campaign is already making a significant mistake by saying (as far as I can tell) that they're going to keep the Sterling for what will in practice be a long time rather than join the EU and move to the Euro quickly. The Sterling is going to be a millstone around the neck of the whole UK, and I expect what we've seen so far is a picnic compared to what's coming after 2019.
posted by tclark at 7:52 AM on May 26, 2018

I remember my mother getting a little emotional at the end of a Nessie documentary we saw when I was maybe five. "Why can't they just leave the poor thing in peace instead of hunting it down? Some people just have to destroy everything.'
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:17 AM on May 26, 2018 [2 favorites]

To me it seems obvious that an independent Scotland should have its own currency. OK, using a currency run for the benefit of ROTUK may not be too bad in the medium term, and Scots may well feel their interests have never been much regarded anyway.

But there’s something weird about nationalists saying they still want a London currency, they just don’t want any say in it any more. It points up a basic flaw in the independence argument. England and London don’t have a big impact on Scotland because of political union, they have that because their economies are big, and close. Political union is actually a way of mitigating the downsides of that impact.
posted by Segundus at 10:19 AM on May 26, 2018

This seems like an extremely clever way to get funding for research you really want to do. Connect it to Nessie!
posted by wittgenstein at 10:44 AM on May 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

It would certainly remove a lot of the attraction if the monster WAS discovered !!!!
posted by Burn_IT at 10:54 AM on May 26, 2018

> This seems like an extremely clever way to get funding for research you really want to do.

See also: How NASA continues to survive in a Republican-dominant political landscape.
"We'd like three billion dollars to send a robot to explore Mars..."
"Haha, get lost, dweeb."
"...and also see whether Martian rocks can be refined to create ultra-plutonium for super missiles."
"How many zeroes should I write on this check?"
posted by ardgedee at 11:01 AM on May 26, 2018 [3 favorites]

Politico interview with Nicola Sturgeon
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 7:20 AM on May 28, 2018

Viewers blast GMB hosts over 'cringeworthy' interview with Nicola Sturgeon on Loch Ness monster More of the interview here (it's not much better)
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 8:13 AM on June 8, 2018