Letters / A community torn apart
I read, with no great sense of amazement, of the increasingly desperate attempts of the pro wind farm lobby to try and demonstrate a significant support (New battle over trust’s support for Viking; SN 15/5/12).
We are told that the WSG have had 600 messages of support. With such meagre numbers, I am not surprised that the local businesses are now being canvassed, at this late stage, for their support.
However, it is clear that businesses are unhappy at the assumption that their support can be taken for granted.
I whole-heartedly agree with correspondents on both sides of the debate who fear for an island community torn apart by this divisive issue.
Over the weeks and months there have been good points raised in favour and against the wind farm and there are many who hold very genuine beliefs regarding the future welfare of Shetland and the generations to come.
Unfortunately, those very people in the WSG will have had the rug pulled from under them by the latest moves by the business community and in particular by the insensitive but revealing comment made by Richard Gibson.
The importance assigned to Shetland’s so called “wealth creators” drives a further wedge between the two sides and will embarrass Chris Bunyan and others who claim to wish to see a narrowing of the divide.
Yet again, we have been reminded that the “them and us” culture is alive and well in Shetland, fuelled by the real agenda in this whole sorry affair – MONEY.
The saying is that money makes money. Those individuals with money tend to get the most out of deals such as the Viking Energy project, but the “wealth creators” would do well to remember that they make their daily crust on the backs of those who stand to lose the most and suffer the greatest amount at the hands of the wind farm developers.
Of course the “wealth creators” will come back to claim that they are stimulating the local economy, but they must realise that no one believes them to be charities – the pound in their pocket is always uppermost in their minds.
I hope that those in the business community who do support the letter to the SCT will have the courage to show their commitment by signing the letter.
Mike Bennett
Sandsound
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