The Scottish Snippets Newsletter in its original format began in April 1997 and continued in an unbroken series for 591 issues. Although no longer produced in that format there is now a regular update on the new and updated pages on the Rampant Scotland site and also "Scottie's Diary" on an intermittent basis, To receive this, kust send an e-mail to Scottie with "Subscribe Newsletter" in the subject line.
Current Affairs
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Historical Affairs - Topical Items from Scotland's Past
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Entertainment
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Sport
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Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
Administrators have been appointed to manage Railtrack, the company which operates the track and stations in the UK rail network. The company has debts of £3 billion and the government has refused to bail out the company and its shareholders. It is being said that a contributory factor in the decision to wind up the company was the £5 billion cost of upgrading the west-coast line from London to Glasgow. The railway system is continuing to operate but a new organisation will be put in place eventually to run the rail network. It looks as though it will be re-nationalising the operation in all but name, with the government involved in any new set-up. But, even if the problems are sorted out eventually, future projects such as the upgrade of the west-coast line to allow faster trains to operate, will at the very least be delayed.
The first anniversary of the death of Donald Dewar, the first First Minister of the new Scottish Parliament, was marked this week with the creation of scholarships for 20 youngsters from deprived backgrounds to allow them to develop their talents for ballet, opera, theatre or the visual arts. The money for the scholarships will be provided by the Scottish Executive.
In the first four days of trading, more than 100,000 customers flooded through the doors of Edinburgh's latest shopping complex at Ocean Terminal, on Leith docks. Only half of the centre's units are ready for trading although 78% have now been taken up. The anchor stores (Debenhams and Bhs) and the only Terence Conran restaurant in Scotland were up and running. The complex has a 12-screen cinema and the former Royal Yacht Britannia is berthed alongside.
Claims by an Edinburgh architect that the £1 billion regeneration scheme at Granton, Edinburgh, would become a new "ghetto" which would be plagued with social problems were refuted this week by the architect who is designing part of the prestigious project. The attack was made by Benjamin Tindall who has worked with Prince Charles on a number of projects. He cited Wester Hailes, Craigmillar and Drylaw as examples of big urban projects which have not worked. But the developers say that he is "out of touch" and that every effort was being made to avoid the mistakes of the past. They claim that it will be an integrated environment with homes, parks, historic buildings as well as facilities for work, play and shops. Hundreds of acres of derelict land around Granton Gasworks are being used to create the Waterfront project at Granton.
The maternity hospital at Rottenrow in Glasgow has seen the births of generations of the city's babies over the last 140 years. But with the creation of the Princess Royal Maternity Unit at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, the last baby was born at Rottenrow on Wednesday. There was some sadness at the closure of historic Rottenrow even though in recent years it did not match up to modern practices and the expectations of patients. The new facility at the Glasgow Royal is custom-built and has all the modern facilities.
When the previous Director of the National Museums of Scotland (NMS) resigned in February to take up the post of head of the prestigious Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the task of recruiting a successor began immediately. But eight months later the search to fill the prestigious £90,000 a year job was still under way. However, this week Dr Gordon Rintoul was appointed. He was originally from Glasgow and is currently chief executive of Sheffield Galleries and Museums. He has a track record of creating popular museums and exhibitions. He immediately said it was important to start from what visitors want, while maintaining intellectual rigour. The director of NMS is responsible for six museums in Scotland - The Royal Museum and the Museum of Scotland (next door to one another in Edinburgh), the Museum of Flight in East Lothian, Shambellie House Museum of Costume, the National War Museum and the Museum of Scottish Country Life. There are already plans in the pipeline to upgrade the Royal Museum of Scotland which now looks dowdy and old-fashioned beside its new next-door neighbour, the Museum of Scotland (illustrated here).
The Scottish Golf Union (SGU) is pushing ahead with plans to introduce identity cards for 250,000 amateur golfers in 590 clubs across the country so that they can introduce an electronic handicapping system using "smart cards". But many clubs are resisting the demand to supply names, addresses, date of birth and handicaps to the SGU. They are concerned that the organisation (which made a £1 million loss last year) is going to use the information for commercial purposes. They are also dubious about the legality of supplying the information as it may be contravening the Data Protection Act. It is also being pointed out that a host of celebrities are members of Scottish golf clubs - including George Bush, Sean Connery, Michael Douglas and Clint Eastwood. The SGU are threatening sanctions if the clubs do not comply but even the foremost golf club, the Royal & Ancient at St Andrews, has not supplied the data. They say that they are seeking "clarification". Golf clubs point out that information is being demanded on all members, whether or not they have a handicap - and strangely the SGU has so far not asked for handicaps of any of the members - just the personal details. The smart card is being set up to access booking tee-off times but will also be used to provide discounts with leading golf equipment manufacturers - with the SGU receiving a percentage of any income generated.
Last year, the town of Dumbarton on the banks of the river Clyde was beaten into second place by the Lanarkshire town of Airdrie in the "Carbuncles Awards" as the ugliest town in Scotland. But this year it looks as though Dumbarton is the leading contender, according to an architecture magazine which says it is setting out to "unveil the blots on the nation's landscape and expose the warts on the face of Scotland." It also helps to gain publicity for the magazine which most people have never seen or even heard of except in relation to these annual "awards". Dumbarton councillors agreed that the town has many problems but accused the poll of trivialising the town's defects.
Plans to instal another three mobile phone masts on top of the Radnor Park Hotel in Clydebank, to bring the total to 12, has sparked off a campaign to ensure that planning permission is refused. The protestors are concerned about the proximity of the masts to Clydebank Health Centre and Kilbowie Primary School and the possible health hazards created by radio masts. Previous masts were installed before the requirements for planning permission were introduced a few months ago.
There was a fair amount of sunshine in the middle of the week in Scotland, especially in the east. It also seemed that a lot of the week's rain fell overnight - Glasgow had 0.8 inches in 24 hours on Monday. Temperatures were mainly in the range 14/16C (57/61F) although Glasgow and Edinburgh reached 18C (64F) on Thursday. The outlook for the rest of the weekend and next week is what the forecasters call "unsettled".
A conference which will examine the impact of the Declaration of Arbroath is being held next weekend in the Angus town which gave its name to the famous document. It was written in 1320 as a letter to the Pope asking him to recognise Scotland's independence from England and Robert the Bruce as king. It's stirring words have many similarities with the American Declaration of Independence. For more information on this document (and the full text) see this 
A new 384-page in-depth view of Aberdeen's ancient past was launched in the granite city this week. It describes in words and pictures seven medieval sites within the ancient burgh. They were all excavated between 1979 and 1993 by archaeologists from Aberdeen City Council.
A two-week festival which combines UK and American culture begins in New York next week. Planning for the event began three years ago but it nearly did not go ahead as a result of the events of 11 September. But after taking advice from New York's mayor Rudolf Giuliani, the organisers are going ahead. Scotland is well represented at the festival. 
Last December a 120ft high Ferris Wheel was erected in Princes Street Gardens as part of the city's pre-Christmas programme of entertainment. After overcoming initial planning and safety problems (it extended out over the pavement which had to be covered over) it became a popular attraction. But Historic Scotland have put a spoke in plans to bring it back this year. The conservation body is concerned that its location is too near to the 160-year-old Scott monument which is described as a "fragile structure". Historic Scotland are concerned that there could be accidental damage when the Ferris Wheel is being put up or taken down. Unfortunately, due to trees and other structures there is no other suitable location in the gardens.
Many schools in Scotland close down for mid-term week-long break in the middle of October. Keeping the kids amused is sometimes difficult at this time of year, but West of Scotland Water is offering free trips for school children on their 102-year-old SS Sir Walter Scott on Loch Katrine, so long as they are accompanied by at least one adult. The ship is nearing the end of this year's season and will be out of service over the winter. Powered by smokeless fuel (diesel is not allowed as the water of Loch Katrine is piped to Glasgow), the ship still has its original engines and is the only surviving screw-driven steamer in regular passenger service in Scotland.
