Calm before the Storm

There's been a sense today of something very big about to happen. All is eerily calm. Whichever way the vote goes in Scotland there is going to be a subsequent political storm. This referendum has been a game changer in so many ways. I envy the Scots because they have the right to influence an outcome which is going to have a big effect in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We in the rest of the United Kingdom can only sit back, completely powerless, and wait for the result to come in.

I previously talked here about how all this nationalistic fervour has got me thinking about my own sense of national identity. I still consider myself British first and foremost and if Scotland vote for independence it's going to be even harder to understand what that means. I'm hoping the Union will persist because Britain will no longer be Great without Scotland. I do believe that the whole in this instance equates to far more than the sum of its parts.

My ideal outcome would be a very narrow majority against independence, a call so close that radical changes will have to be made to devolve power to the regions throughout the whole of the United Kingdom. I can assure the Scots that we in the north of England feel just as disenfranchised by the current political status quo as you do. It's going to feel lonely up here without you!

I guess we'll know all in the morning. Anyone know what happens in the case of a tie?

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