Are there enough hotel rooms in Edinburgh? With a new poll showing the Scottish independence "yes" side overtaking the "no" vote — an increase of more than 20 percentage points over the last month — we cats think it might be time for a UK version of the 1995 Unity Rally.
Back then, when it looked like Quebec was about to bolt from Canada, more than 100,000 people flocked to Montreal three days before the vote, to show their love for La Belle Province and to say, "Please don't leave!"
Did it help? Probably — but not by itself, since then-Prime Minister Jean Chretien dangled some conciliatory constitutional goodies as well. Still, though, before the rally, the Quebec "oui" side had enjoyed a distinct PR advantage. The huge outpouring of affection from the rest of the country appeared to stanch the bleeding. (See, like the "no" side in the UK today, the Canadian "non" camp in 1995 had been caught napping. Not good.)
Quebec separatists later groused that Air Canada had unfairly lowered fare prices to help Canadians from across the vast country attend the rally. In that spirit, we suggest that the hapless David Cameron try to work the same deal with British Rail. Meanwhile, in punishment for his Tory party's hostility to the Scots, we cats pee on his shoes.
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