It has been great to live the referendum campaign from the
inside! The experience has almost been a sociological / political science
study. I has allowed me to notice that some well-known differences between
British (be them Scottish or from the rest of the UK) and their Mediterranean
European brethren also extend to politics. One of them is the rational V
emotional discourse.
As a Mediterranean, I would imagine that a campaign of this
kind would be very emotional. The separatists would be appealing to the
patriotic feeling of the Scots by showing how different their traditions and
character are from the rest of the British. They would appeal to the patriotic
history of wars against the English (and the Irish, by the way). Unionists
would be appealing for the same patriotic feeling but on the reverse, showing
how much the four nations that form the United Kingdom have in common. They
would be appealing to the sense of common history and heritage.
In this patriotic dialogue, both sides would have a lot to
present. In fact, Scots and the rest of the Brits do have differences and
similarities. However, instead of this emotional patriotic discourse, both
sides provide very rational and technical arguments: membership in the EU, the
common use of the pound sterling, petrol, gas and fish reserves in the Northern
Sea, the permanent seat in the UN Security Council, the education and social security
systems, the amount of contribution and benefits to the common budget, etc..
This is an interesting approach. It certainly helps us,
foreigners, better understand the technical issues at stake and get an overall view
of British political system. And it confirms our judgement that British prefer
not to show their emotions publicly (which is not to say, as many Southerners
think, that they don’t have them). But I certainly would prefer a more patriotic
campaign. So an appeal to both separatists and unionists: spice it up!
