DAN MACKAY: Something fishy about this revolting Russian connection
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The Real MacKay by Dan MacKay
Isn’t life strange? Weird even.
A family member recently copied me into an online blog with a bizarre local connection. Albeit to an entry dated Sunday, January 10, 2010. Entitled Russian Revolution – New Theory, it seemed the article in le Ulpster Churnal argued that "Vik was the prime cause of the Russian Revolution".
Could it possibly be true?
Here, I must admit, it would appear that a slide show I had once presented, back in the day, to members of the Wick Heritage Centre – I think it was called Caithness My Home – had somehow gone off script.
I will put it down to my quirky sense of humour but how was I to know that very night the audience had been infiltrated by a silent source representing one of Her Majesty’s secret services?
It all went wrong for me when I tried to impress that veritable gathering of local history buffs by offering an alternative hypothesis to the royal burgh’s distinguished heritage – and its after-effects. Without any alcoholic influence I dared to suggest that our dear fair town with its proud history needed much closer scrutiny.
My argument was simple. It was obvious to me that no one had made the geopolitical connection between decades of herring exports from these shores to the Baltic ports, feeding the Russian peasantry who, let’s face it, were bound, sooner or later, to revolt! I mean how much herring – morning, noon and night – could you stomach?
And now, according to this online blog – though recognising the disquiet in Russia with the autocratic Romanov royal dynasty, the Duma’s cumbersome and inefficient governance – also bestows the ultimate blame on Wick harbour’s herring exports for the Bolshevik Uprising!
The article was not without its inaccuracies, though. It got my age wrong, claiming I was 87! And a photo of Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, whilst then bearing a bit of a resemblance, was not me! It had, in fairness, noted that I had studied the period in question extensively which had led to my alternative theory…
And, history being history, we did have a glimpse just the other week of what looked like another revolution in the making when Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenaries turned their tanks and headed to Moscow. The world stood by, holding its breath not knowing what forces might be unleashed.
But, just as soon as it had struck, it was over in 24 hours and Prigozhin mysteriously disappeared into exile somewhere in neighbouring Belorussia.
In classic Commie codswallop, Putin – who himself had done something of a runner – re-emerged to take control from the retreating Wagner forces by applauding the sacrifice of the Russian military who had so nobly defended the Fatherland… fake news at its very best, when not a shot had been fired.
Exactly 105 years ago this very month, the last of the Romanov royal family, including Tzar Nicholas II, his wife the Empress Alexandra, their four daughters and only son, were rounded up shot and bayoneted by Bolshevik insurrectionists. Later their bodies were burned with acid and dumped down a mine shaft. The British royal family, which had, at first, offered a place of asylum to their Russian cousins, later withdrew that offer with such devastating consequences.
One hundred and five years later we still wrestle with our asylum policies whilst our revolting herring stocks have all but been wiped out…
