Should Scotland be an independent country?

Of course. Salmond was, is, and forever will be acting solely for the interest of Salmond, not the Scottish people. He lost the opportunity to become the Great Leader, so now he doesn't want to do anything but turn up and take the money. His bonus for being first minister of about £80k on top of his MSP's salary clearly isn't enough, since unencumbered by high office he can easily take many times that from lobbyists, speaking engagements and company directorships.

Your cynicism is depressing. Salmond swam in the opposite direction to the right wing policies of the Lib-Con coalition. He stayed committed to promises made in the SNP manifesto, imagine that! He actually did what he said he was going to do. If he was acting solely for the interest of himself he would have stayed on. He was probably physically and mentally exhausted after putting so much energy into the campaign. Your incorrect verdict on him was shown up on the streets of every Scottish town and city that Salmond went to - he was met by smiling people, taking photos with him, hugging him, shaking his hand, wishing him well. Any politician acting in self-interest, regardless of their affiliation, will always run into trouble if they stick their head out in public. Would David Cameron (or even Ed Miliband) be able to do that in any street in England? I doubt it.

Marked difference: Nick Clegg promised, "a pledge" if I remember rightly, that university fees would not increase. When in office, he rowed back on that pledge quickly. He lost a referendum that he had campaigned on for years. Did he resign? Did he fuck. No honour.