SNP MP Wishart's Twitter tirade against Moore and Swinson

One of the problems faced by the SNP is the army of so called cybernats who spew nasty, insulting bile across the internet at anyone who dares to question SNP policy or independence - which, of course, are one and the same thing. Alan Cochrane from the Telegraph wrote earlier this year about these toxic, often anonymous individuals.

Those who cannot take part in this great debate without questioning the patriotism, and often the parentage, of those who don't agree with them are much more accurately described as Cyberscum. As such they are, of course, a legitimate target for those who hope that the debate over the SNP's plans to break-up Britain can be conducted in a reasonably decent fashion.

Willie Rennie challenged the SNP leadership to deal with these people in his keynote speech to the Scottish Liberal Democrat conference.

If they are not careful they will cause Scotland to become a divided country, setting Scot against Scot for a generation.My message to the SNP is simple: please don’t question my loyalty to my nation just because I don’t agree with your policy. It’s not all of those in the nationalist camp. There are many sincere, generous, liberal-minded people in the SNP. But it is their behind-the-scenes stalkers and abusers who need to be tackled. The SNP leadership needs to rein them in, to tackle the abuse, to overcome the division-creators. Their leaders need to act. And act now.

You would think, then, knowing the problems that they have with loose cannon online, that SNP parliamentarians would be extra careful to be positive at all times. They would take care not to fire cheap, gratuitous insults around.

Sure they would. Just like MP Pete Wishart did last night while speculating on the reshuffle.

And when I challenged him for being nasty:

I can't find that tweet on his timeline this morning so it appears he thought better of it.

Now, maybe, if he was in the House of Commons cafeteria indulging in some full fat Irn Bru and suffering the effects of sugar high, we might find it within our hearts to forgive a momentary indiscretion.

Except this is the way he does business. Last week he put out an extraordinary press release, accusing Michael Moore of attention seeking behaviour and making a pointless speech. All Moore was doing was talking in his usual ultra reasonable tone about how important it was to reach agreement on the process for the independence referendum - and expressing confidence that he and the SNP Government would do so - by the end of October. For his pains, he attracted this tirade via the SNP press office:

The only reason for Michael Moore’s speech is that he is desperately trying to get noticed and save his job in the reshuffle – it was pointless otherwise.....
...These cost increases show that the £8 million Scotland Office is simply a propaganda arm for Westminster to use in their Tory-led anti-independence campaign. It has no other role, and Michael Moore’s recent pronouncements are just indicative of an attention-seeking exercise with a UK Cabinet reshuffle in the offing.

So, will Alex Salmond rebuke his MP for such a tirade? I won't be holding my breath.

Joan McAlpine does it again - compares Scotland to an abused wife

It's not that long since SNP MSP and senior aide to Alex Salmond Joan McAlpine suggested that the unionist parties were acting in an anti Scottish manner. Their crime? Not agreeing with SNP policy on the referendum.

Now, courtesy of a lucrative new deal with the Record (I have no idea what she's being paid, but I can't imagine she's doing it for free), she's published her first weekly column for them. 

Now, why would a Labour supporting paper sign up a Nationalist prone to fairly poisonous comments? They clearly feel her particular sort of vitriol needs an airing, but what do you think their motive is?

Joan certainly didn't disappoint them today, with her column comparing Scotland to a wife trapped in an abusive relationship. 

This is wrong on so many levels. It insults genuine victims of domestic abuse for a start. 

Joan doesn't seem to get the concept of partnership. She also seems to think that independence would automatically create this dream world where there was no poverty or unemployment. And what a cheek to suggest that they were responsible for free university tuition. She might have a degree in Scottish History, but she's a bit hazy in that period after the 1999 elections when the Liberal Democrats stopped Labour from introducing fees in the first coalition.

If an independent Scotland were going to meet its international obligations on climate change, I suspect it wouldn't be cutting taxes on petrol by that much, either. The thing is, none of the problems she mentions are guaranteed to be resolved by independence, sadly. 

I'm glad to see Jo Swinson has called McAlpine out, saying she should apologise or resign for her remarks. Jo holds a similar role as McAlpine to Nick Clegg and I'm fairly certain that he would have something to say about it if she came out with such poisonous language.

Jo said:

“There should be an immediate and unreserved apology from Joan McAlpine and if one is not forthcoming Alex Salmond should sack her as his parliamentary aide. “This is a deeply offensive comment that shows profound disrespect for the many victims of domestic violence which is an appalling crime.
 “The relationship between England and Scotland within the wider United Kingdom is a successful partnership; one based on mutual respect and shared values. “To imply otherwise and compare it to domestic abuse for partisan political ends is abhorrent.”

McAlpine's words bring to mind what Willie Rennie said in his speech to Conference the other day about cybernats, the people who are not one nation nationalists.

That’s us. Constructive in opposition and delivering in office.I think it’s positive politics.It is an approach that accepts that you have to work with other people.It’s a generous approach, that recognises that people may have different ideas.And it poses a massive challenge to parts of the SNP.The SNP ‘heavies’.
The cyber-nats.
The people who attack personally anyone who disagrees with them.It’s ugly politics.
And they will hunt down one-by-one on the internet those who stand in their way.Faking letters from academics, telling cross-party groups they can’t criticise the government; telling airlines to downgrade Jim Wallace.They talk-down Scotland’s place in Britain and cause division between people.They are not one-nation nationalists.
If they are not careful they will cause Scotland to become a divided country, setting Scot against Scot for a generation.My message to the SNP is simple: please don’t question my loyalty to my nation just because I don’t agree with your policy.It’s not all of those in the nationalist camp.There are many sincere, generous, liberal-minded people in the SNP.But it is their behind-the-scenes stalkers and abusers who need to be tackled.The SNP leadership needs to rein them in, to tackle the abuse, to overcome the division-creators.Their leaders need to act. And act now.

He's right. I want the progressive forces in Scotland to unite against independence and win in a positive campaign. I don't want us to win because people like Joan McAlpine have spent 1000, or 500 or however many days spreading a message of hatred. Like I've said before, we have to wake up the day after the referendum and all live with each other, to get on.