Over-egging the pudding

Why do the London newspapers write this kind of rubbish? Here is The Times editorial:

The SNP is a very left-wing party and independence is its purpose in life, not an esoteric instinct. Mr Salmond would preside over an administration which was profoundly statist, and it would be optimistic to think that the Liberal Democrats could impose free-market values on him. His every deed and word as First Minister would be designed to move Scotland farther apart from the rest of the United Kingdom — economically, politically and culturally — in what would amount to separation by stealth. Mr Salmond’s aim would be to achieve such a degree of detachment that the referendum vote would seem like the final step in a process rather than the radical break with Britain that it seems today. The Scottish electorate should be aware that a vote for Mr Salmond would be a very substantial step towards leaving the United Kingdom.
This is not a contest where a casual protest ballot is even remotely advisable. It is a deadly serious election with much at stake. If Scots do not want separation, they should not lend their backing to Mr Salmond. Even if inclined towards independence they might ask themselves if they really want it on the same policy terms as the SNP. It is hard to believe that a “free” Scotland would benefit from becoming a new Albania.

I hold no brief for the SNP but the idea that Salmond, Sturgeon and Swinney are dangerous left-wing radicals, seeking to impose (by stealth) a communist regime akin to Albania is just laughable. And what would The Times - locked into its London fastness - know about Scotland anyway? Even the Scottish Tories would not put out this kind of propaganda.