By Rab Bruce’s Spider

I’m a pessimist by nature. For me, it’s not a case of my glass being half full or half empty, it’s more like the glass has been knocked to the floor, has smashed and emptied its contents all over me, leaving me drookit. So, while I’ve always tried to keep my blog posts balanced and fair, and to try to see both sides of any argument, I have privately been expressing the opinion that I don’t think Scotland will become a normal country in my lifetime.

I sincerely hope I’m wrong, but while I can understand why Nicola Sturgeon wants to follow a properly constitutional path to gaining independence, I fear she has made a huge mistake by playing to Westminster’s rules. After all, the UK has never been one of the world’s good guys, and it must be blatantly obvious to everyone that Westminster never plays fair.

Many people have expressed the view that the SNP must have some grand strategy they are keeping up their sleeves, but I am increasingly of the opinion that those who have been claiming there is no master plan have got it right. Today’s events have done nothing to alter my opinion on that. Nicola Sturgeon said that Boris Johnson’s refusal to grant a section 30 Order had been anticipated, yet she has no riposte ready. Why do we need to wait until later in the month to hear what her next step will be?

I have enormous respect for Nicola Sturgeon as a politician. She makes the Westminster mob look like the buffoons they are when it comes to debates and media interviews, but she really needs to galvanise things now, and the signs of that happening are sadly lacking.

We cannot afford to wait too long because people adapt to whatever circumstances are around them. Just look at the effect that the 120,000 unnecessary deaths caused by Tory policies have had on most people you meet. They may shake their heads and tut, but for the vast majority, these things do not touch them closely enough to have any real impact. People are now accustomed to low paid jobs and zero hour contracts. They are accustomed to food banks. The Tories have normalised all these things and are well on the way to normalising hatred of foreigners. Once Brexit begins to bite, people may complain about shortages of medicine and food, higher prices and long queues when travelling abroad, but they will adapt to it and, moreover, will probably fall for the blame being placed on foreigners.

So if we wait too long for IndyRef2, our chances of winning are not as great as you might hope. The same propaganda efforts will be expounded by the BBC and the newspapers, more promises will be made, as will threats, and people will look around and think, "Maybe this is not so bad".

I fear we missed our chance in 2014, but that doesn’t mean I will be giving up the cause. Being independent is normal, and Scotland needs to become a normal country. It’s just that, at the moment, I can’t see how we are going to get there.

So, while my glass may be less than half full, I really want Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP Government to show some bottle.