Differences aside

While welcoming all sincere efforts aimed at overcoming differences of political perspective and generally helping people to work together towards common goals in progressing our society, it is disappointing that Dr Roger I Cartwright (Letters, 28 January) would undermine such efforts with the ill-considered caveat “given the number of anti-English racists in the SNP”.

It is sad that some people’s views are so obscured by their own prejudices that they cannot see when their actions actually impede progress towards the goals that they profess to espouse.

Certainly, when a view is expressed that what has actually been proposed for legislation from the Smith Commission Report is not a watering down of the “vow” one would have to question the objectivity of the person making the remark, in the same manner one would have to question the principles of a politician calling for a moratorium on “fracking” then not turning up for a vote to introduce such a moratorium.

However, progress can still be made in bringing society together if indeed people are “mature” enough to put their personal prejudices to one side and sufficiently principled to act in favour of legitimate reason instead of spin.

The challenge to Dr Cartwright and those of a similar “anti-SNP disposition” who genuinely wish to see a better future for all of Scotland’s children is to logically recognise that during the referendum campaign, in spite of much passion, there was little public evidence of “racist language” except among the more right-wing London press and those who were deliberately attempting to slur the SNP.

This does not mean that vigilance should cease or that we should not condemn, in whatever form it arises, racism, which although relatively minor among supporters of all of the main political parties in Scotland regrettably still exists today.

Belief that it is only on the other side of our politics from which detestable views can emerge and exaggerating the extent of those views is a self-delusion that is unlikely to help achieve the common ambition of a fairer and more egalitarian
society.

Stan Grodynski

Longniddry

East Lothian