Sir, Like the majority of Scots as indicated by the polls I am going to vote “no” in the referendum on Scottish independence. I have always been against Scotland going it alone and will not be swayed by any amount of argument and certainly not by the low level of “yes” propaganda now pouring forth from its most fervent supporters.
The vituperations of such as Andrew Collins and Iain Haxton (October 1) will do the “yes” cause nothing but harm, as still undecided Scots will not want to be associated with, still less ruled by, such extremists.
Alex Salmond is also helping to ensure a “no” vote with his own gutter-level campaign, descending to personal insults against Alistair Darling, David Cameron and others, suggesting the first is a monkey and the second “feart”.
The issue of Scottish independence, however, is far too important a matter a major change in the constitution for it to be decided on a majority of just those voting.
The decision to go it alone should be made on the basis of a majority of the electorate, not just of those who vote. If that had been made a provision of the referendum on a Scottish assembly a few years ago, we should not be saddled with the extremely costly waste of time which is now housed in that prohibitively expensive monstrosity in Edinburgh.
George K McMillan. 5 Mount Tabor Avenue, Perth.
It has been changing for millennia
Sir, In his letter criticising Clark Cross, Robert Smith (October 2) correctly states that “climate change is a fact”.
Few will deny that claim. After all the climate has been changing for millennia in that the world has experienced ice ages and warming periods in centuries gone by.
What is not an agreed fact is that theoretical, model based IPCC claim that the increase in carbon dioxide attributable to human beings is largely responsible for global warming.
After all, the factual data shows that the average Earth temperature has not increased for 17 years despite increased atmospheric CO2 levels over that time.
The recent IPCC report merely throws up even more spurious and unsubstantiated theories as to why this could have happened. Again no facts!
If he looks carefully at the report he will clearly see that the actual very slight warming in recent decades is significantly lower than that predicted by each of the four theoretical models on which the IPCC base their scaremongering.
I note that Mr Smith also wants to see the named, and qualified, scientists who disagree with the IPCC position.
All he has to do is type “Manhattan Declaration on Climate Change” into an internet search engine and he will see a selection of many hundreds of such names from all over the world.
Dr GM Lindsay. Whinfield Gardens, Kinross.
“Conned” by the IPCC
Sir, Reading the latest IPCC report about climate change, I thought how appropriate that the IPCC leader should be a railway engineer, because the IPCC is a gravy train.
But the engineer is not good old Casey Jones serving the nation, but Dr Rajendra Pachauri with an axe to grind.
The IPCC is clearly a business, in the enviable position of selling a product whose long-term benefit can never be judged.
The product is no more than a Quark. A device for knitting fog, or counting sand.
It is a perpetual motion machine and the world has fallen for it.
Malcolm Parkin. 15 Gamekeepers Road, Kinnesswood, Kinross.
Want a centre to be proud of
Sir, Neither John Glenday of Urban Realm nor the Tesco supermarket chain have done much to enhance the reputation of the Glenrothes Kingdom Shopping Centre (Courier, October 1).
Mr Glenday has always taken a narrow view of what the centre stands for.
Tesco, by persistent delays in starting their development, have done nothing to convince shoppers they have the real interests of the area at heart.
In terms of the recession and the growth of online shopping, the Kingdom Centre appears to have suffered more than other indoor complexes. But it remains the case that it is the only venture of its kind in the east of Scotland that combines shopping with a major arts and community venue (Rothes Halls).
Despite its problems it has won numerous awards over the years for standards of customer care and facilities for those with disabilities.
It also remains the case that a large amount of spending “leaks” out of the area as a result of the absence of an additional, high-quality supermarket for the town.
I don’t think local people are too concerned about the centre becoming the architectural gem of Mr Glenday’s dreams.
They simply want access to a centre they can be proud of in terms of both shopping choice and community facilities.
Bob Taylor. 24 Shiel Court, Glenrothes.