The economy of rural Scotland is under threat from a Net Zero subsidy scheme that is seeing large areas of the Highlands 'rewilded' and turned into peat bogs, driving out traditional pursuits like deerstalking.

The post Net Zero is Destroying Rural Scotland appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Black Labrador and warm ale life is no fantasy, even less a "far Right" one, says Joanna Gray. But it is tragically far removed from the experience of the overwhelming majority of the population these days.

The post Black Labrador and Warm Ale Life is No Fantasy, But it is Tragically a Minority Pursuit appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Labour Minister Jenny Riddell-Carpenter has said that visions of Britain based on warm ale, pubs and black labradors are a "far-Right" fantasy that "never really existed".

The post Labour Minister Claims That Visions of Britain Based on Warm Ale, Pubs and Black Labradors Are a “Far-Right” Fantasy that “Never Really Existed” appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Northwest Arkansas has been changing. Walmart, which has been rooted in Bentonville for more than 75 years, has reshaped the small town, and now that growth is spreading into the surrounding countryside. With that change, writes Jordan P. Hickey in this poignant essay, come wealthy newcomers looking for a country lifestyle and gravel cyclists riding thousands of unpaved rural roads. And then there are the dogs—who have been here longer than any of these transplants—caught in the midst of it all. Hickey calls them “yarddogs,” finding in them a metaphor for a region in the process of transformation. (Subscription required.)

Downtown Bentonville, so carefully planned, feels surreal today—”Disneyfied,” “Pleasantville,” “gentrification” are the apt words of the critics.And not that it needs to be said, but there are no yarddogs in Bentonville. Not anymore. Here, there are only good dogs. Dogs on leashes, dogs that have been to school, dogs that listen, obey, behave, and will not lunge at every passing jogger. 

But, of course, this is not really about dogs at all.