I was going to talk about Gordon Brown and poke a bit of fun about him taking Better Together’s devolution plans and saying: “It’s my ball now and no one plays unless it’s by my rules.”
I was going to give the pro-UK campaign a hard time for their frankly shambolic week, where they seemed to completely lose the plot but somehow steady the sinking ship that had been opinion polls.
Then I saw Matt Landsburgh’s late night Twitter meltdown. For anyone who hasn’t read our story, he said: “Much prefer Gordon Brown using the death of his daughter to lie about the NHS #StayClassy.”
He added: “It was despicable of him. Same as it was despicable to lie about organ donation. We could go on.”
Suddenly politics didn’t seem so important. I don’t have children but I do remember getting a phone call eight and a half years ago from my parents.
It was to tell me that my newly born baby niece was seriously ill in hospital. She was tiny and there had been complications.
As we all tried to support my sister and brother-in-law up at Ninewells, there was a genuine feeling of dread. “What if she doesn’t pull through?”
It was a hell of a tough time. I felt it strongly enough but it was nothing compared to what my sibling and her husband must have been going through. After quite a few long days I did something I hadn’t done for many years and something I haven’t done since.
I went to my local church, I spoke to the priest, who I’ve known since I was a youngster myself, about the situation and I prayed.
That’s the strength of feeling, the sheer desperation, which comes with the prospect of losing someone close to you, particularly when that someone is a child. Thankfully my niece pulled through and is now a happy, healthy, bouncy bundle of energy.
It takes a serious lack of compassion to make the insensitive, frankly disgusting comments Matt Landsburgh did. It also shows some people feel there are no consequences to them taking wild swipes on the internet without having to make their feelings known face to face.
This last sentence may seem ironic being written in a newspaper column. For the record, I telephoned Matt Landsburgh and left a message. I also visited his house to ask him about his comments. There was no answer and I’m still waiting for a call back.
What this sorry exchange also demonstrates is the independence vitriol which has unfortunately been revelled in by a few numpties. It has come from both sides, of that there is no doubt. It has to stop.
For all their flaws, and they have quite a few, politicians are human beings. They suffer physical and emotional trauma. They hurt, they have emotions. It is difficult to imagine anything more distressing than the pain Gordon and Sarah Brown must have gone through in 2002 when Jennifer Jane passed away at just 10 days old.
Let’s all make sure we take on board the lesson being learned very hard by a man who, at 21-years-old, has seen what had been a potentially bright star of a political career go very briefly supernova for all the wrong reasons.
Now it’s more like a black hole for the former NHS Tayside board member. Some things are off limits for good reason.
THERE HAVE been a couple of more light-hearted moments on the Gordon Brown campaign trail this week.
One involved his big devolution speech in Loanhead Miners’ Welfare.
I’m told there were some regulars who were given cause for concern by the former PM’s event because it meant their regular bingo night was cancelled!
ANOTHER ODDITY is the Better Together devolution timetable.
Presumably, given its rushed production, the dates were chosen so that spin doctors could remember them.
That would explain why the key dates are all holidays: Halloween, St Andrew’s Day and Burns Night. Anyone want to take a punt on MPs being dressed up for the occasions?
THE INDEPENDENCE referendum is causing folks involved with politics such long days it’s bound to occasionally impact at home.
One Fife Labour activist almost ended up in serious hot water for entirely innocent reasons though.
While he was out knocking doors as one of four teams in Dunfermline, his colleagues ended up at his house. Cue flabbergasted reaction: “My husband is supposed to be out with you lot! Where is he?”
Thankfully it was all straightened out!
THURSDAY NIGHT’S count in Dundee should be interesting.
All registered campaign groups are allowed 10 representatives. That means not only the political parties but groups such as Women for Independence and Radical Independence will be out. Packed out!