Countdown to Scottish Vote Nears

In less than 24 hours the referendum for Scottish independence will commence. The latest polling suggests a familiar gender aspect to the vote that Americans are accustom to. Women aged 55 or older are more apt to vote NO than younger women and men. This may be the push the NO vote's been looking for. So, the gender gap is alive and well on the other side of the pond.

British PM David Cameron, who's not exactly loved in Scotland is a NO supporter. He's got some company in the States and is joined by President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton. Among Scottish elites support for independence is divided.

Cameron's government is promising greater Scottish independence if the NO vote succeeds but polls suggest Scots are skeptical of English promises.

(Russell Cheyne/Reuters)

NO supporters hosted Orange Order fife and drum corps, mostly from Northern Ireland, to parade this past weekend. Reminiscent of  July Twelfth celebrations, Scottish Unionists may have inadvertently kicked a sectarian hornet's nest with potentially long-term consequence. In the short-term, these events may trigger increased YES votes among Scotland's Irish who's memories of the Orange Order are anything but favorable.