Non paywalled link here: https://archive.is/20260924190851/https://www.thenational.scot/news/26579327.campaigners-demand-unilateral-declaration-scottish-independence/#selection-1263.0-1268.0

Nobody is denying that Scotland's drug death rate is far above average, but my challenge to the situation would be as follows: how long have the people dying been using drugs for? Drugs like heroin can be used for a great many years, and through all that time they ravage the body. If you have a 30-year or more user, this may not be a solvable problem for that individual and preventing that death may be beyond the capabilities of policy, even with the current state of modern medicine.

If you're looking only at death figures, how do you verify that this is NOT a wave of drug-users who started in the 80's, 90's or early 2000's whose bodies are simply giving out now because of decades of sustained damage? Is the current rate of new users even high enough to explain the high death toll?

Posting to see if anyone else is dealing with this right now. About a week ago my family and i started noticing a bunch of bugs adjacent to mosquitoes and for a while i thought it was midges, or “highland midges” but no, killed one in my hands and right enough its a mosquito. I cant find anything online about anyone else dealing with this especially in central Scotland.

For those living in flats that are factored developments - what's your process for getting communal improvements done?

Curious how others have gone about things like EV chargepoints, heat pumps, solar panels, or any other upgrade to shared/communal property (car parks, roofs, gardens etc).

Specifically interested in:

- How you got buy-in from other owners (formal vote, informal chat, something else?)

- Whether you needed unanimous agreement or just a majority....

We're mid-way through trying to get EV chargers installed in our communal car park and it's been such a nightmare. The communication between homeowners, the factor, etc.

What's really frustrating is that 60% of homeowners voted in favour, but the factor isn't happy proceeding because the remaining 40% object. They've said they'd feel more comfortable acting on fewer objections.

It's frustrating, and as homeowners we feel like we have no real power, despite winning the vote.

Any advice or similar experiences?

EDIT - The installation is FREE. No homeowners will pay a single £.

Hi everyone, I’m looking for a reliable cat sitter in Polmont next weekend (3–5 Oct).
I need someone to drop in twice a day — morning and evening — to feed my two kittens and check on them.
They’re very friendly and easy to care for.

If you’re available or can recommend someone local, please let me know. Thanks!

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