Tories are out in force beforetheelection
We are now moving into a pre-election phase and, as back copies of the PA show, the Tories will be playing tricks to run the SNP down and shine themselves up.
For instance, we had the snowclearing episodes by Tory candidates some years ago (socially caring Tories – it was so daft that it was pub talk).
Then there was the Westminster meal expenses claim: four complaints popped into the PA’s (at that time) editor’s in-box complaining about our local MP over-doing his claims. The editor, herself, wrote a footnote saying this was nonsense – the PA had been monitoring MPs’ expenses and this was obviously a coordinated smear, since all the emails arrived within minutes of each other.
Then there was the letter with vague musings about a Perthshire family being wonderful over the generations (the son was standing for the Tories).
There are quite a few other tricks they tried: one I liked was from someone claiming to have been impressed by the Tories’ policies. I had never heard of him, but I responded in these columns, sure he would reappear. He did, as a Tory council candidate weeks later. There are plenty more examples of Tory trickery via the PA
Over the last few editions, we have had a unionist (read that as ‘Tories and pals’) onslaught in the letters column of the PA.
Some have been anonymous or under pseudonyms. Given the idiocy of some of them, this is no surprise.
A good example was in the letters columns of February 23 from some shy gentleman calling himself ‘Angry Joe Soap Taxpayer’. With insubstantial foamy claims like his, it is no wonder he has such a name.
Soapy Joe claims that infirm people were being asked to travel from
Crieff to Dewars Ice Rink to get their vaccination, otherwise they would have several weeks to wait.
This was because of ‘Scottish Government guidelines’. According to Joe, Nicola Sturgeon should be paying more attention to “disgraceful situations like this” instead of to her “obsession” with “another divisive independence referendum”. “Divisive independence referendum” is an oft-repeated phrase by indoctrinated Tories, obviously handed down from on high with the instruction to keep using it until people believe it .
Now, as anybody knows (and here Soapy Joe is trying to treat us like idiots), when a vaccine clinic is arranged people queue up, get a jag and get out, to make way for the next person.
It is comparatively fast. However, where home visits are required, people have to travel to the address, get protective clothing on, lay out their items, do the vaccination, clean up and pack up, then move on to their next location. This is obviously timeconsuming and – as there are only a limited number of these teams - people will have to wait their turn.
Nicola does not personally control this system, believe it or not. Things are split into health boards (I suppose Nicola should be blamed for not supergluing the splits) and these matters are controlled by the Tayside one around here.
I can speak from personal experience on this matter: being tight-fisted I avoided paying a fee to Dewars and turned my hand (well, my ankle) to pavement skating.
After a two-second career and a few days in Ninewells, I returned home to my top storey flat complete with a magnificent stookie.
I received an invite to drop in for a jag at my local surgery, but had to go on the visit list. It took a fortnight. About that I have no complaints whatsoever. The nurses and volunteers cannot somehow instantly appear at all addresses on the same night and Santa was apparently too busy to assist.
Perhaps if Soapy Joe is genuinely worried about the deprived masses he could offer himself for training and go vaccinating himself.
I think not – he seems more used to needling than using a needle. Thomas R Burgess St Catherine’s Square
Perth