Not to be too cynical, because I'm not at all, but one must remember that this all occurs in a context, not in a vacuum. 2014 is when the vote for Scottish Independence is to be taken. The SNP government of Scotland has wisely chosen this vote to occur in the year of the 700th anniversary of Bannockburn. Having all the Scots from around the world gather in support, would not be a bad thing. Especially since I'm sure those of Scottish ancestry support independence much more than Scots living in Scotland do (below 30% last I heard), but we don't have to bear the repurcussions if things don't turn out. Romanicly and patriotically, we would much prefer an independent Scotland. So in terms of the potential Gathering, the government would be much in favor of having the Scottish people surrounded by a lot of people in favor of independence and urging them them to vote that way.