A “parcel of rogues” was what Robert Burns called the members of the Scottish Parliament who signed the Act of Union with England in 1707. A eloquent gem of a phrase that could be applicable to any group of politicians at any time before or since 1707 in Under the Counter’s book. But when he heard First Minister Alex Salmond calling Scotland a “nation of drunks” mere months before a referendum over whether or not to tear up the aforementioned Act of Union, he was a tad puzzled. Salmond, who made the unguarded statement in an interview with former spin doctor Alistair Campbell, was discussing his promotion of Scotch whisky around the world when he said: “My argument is that if you are promoting [whisky] as authentic and of great worth, you cannot promote it from a nation of drunks.” If the referendum doesn’t your way in September, perhaps best to avoid a career in marketing, Mr. First Minister.
