Scotland is experiencing a 21st century high in sectarian tension, and the response from our politicians and media is predictably unimaginative and dangerously dim.
A renewed appetite to crack down on perpetrators is in evidence, but this will only inflame a worrying situation. This is not a progressive approach, nor is it a helpful attitude: it is a knee-jerk response driven by holier than thou minions and ill-advised mentors.
It's simply not realistic to expect two communities to suddenly respect each other when they have a long history of enmity, and the threat of sending people to jail for not being politically sensitive is a panic-measure typical of a governing authority which has so far been devoid of imagination and inspiration.
Supporters may be incriminated for singing certain songs, but does anyone seriously believe that this will lead to an outbreak of mutual respect and harmony? This is window dressing; no more, and no less.
In democratic societies, differences should be able to be freely displayed, but of course a line should be drawn if it becomes a public display of incitement.
Currently, stewards and police at the football are like a KGB force waiting to pounce on those unfortunate souls who express themselves inappropriately according to the politically-correct whim of the moment. It should surely be a matter of grave concern that authority in Scotland can behave in such a way.
First Minister, Alex Salmond, is a shrewd and able fellow, and his authority as the country's top politician has been enhanced due to the SNP's historic election victory, but if he is intent on addressing the difficulties of sectarianism in Scotland, he'll surely have to look at the matter across the board, and not just in a football context.
I believe he's a more agreeable option at attempting to ease this situation than any of his Labour predecessors, but his solution must be imaginative and novel rather than predictable and over-zealous. A 'big stick' approach will only ensure that sectarian differences become entrenched and deep-rooted, and in these circumstances, bad blood will prevail and the direction of west of Scotland society will be towards the darkness: not the light.
The reality is this; thousands of Scottish Celtic supporters identify with Irish Republicanism, and a mature and free society would let them get on with it. Does the Scottish government really believe that they'll keep a lid on this by preventing an expression of such a sentiment when Celtic play?
Undeniably, there is a sinister side to this expression, but if it is articulated in a positive manner, a free society should be more than able to accommodate it. We don't have to like it, but we can certainly tolerate it.
For many years there has been a largely unspoken concern about the Northern Irish situation spilling into Scotland. Although far from perfect, the position across the water in Ulster has gradually improved, and yet in Scotland, sectarian tension is on the rise. It is not unreasonable, therefore, to examine why sectarianism perpetuates in Scotland when broadly successful measures to reduce it have occurred elsewhere.
The Queen has just completed a hugely successful visit to the Irish Republic, something that was unimaginable less than a generation ago, but this new and eminently desirable situation wasn't achieved by adopting a dictatorial mindset: it has come about thanks to constructive attitudes.
Scotland needs a new and fresh approach to sectarian problems, and with the country's old politics being turned on its head by a powerful force for change, an enlightened approach to the difficulties of sectarianism should be embraced.
Glasgow as a city and Scotland as a country should allow Rangers and Celtic to retain their age-old identities: to let them evolve, grow, develop and in time, change.
Old Firm detractors drone on hypocritically from a mythical moral high-ground, but Scotland's two most powerful football clubs have a profile internationally that no other Scottish club can match or aspire to. They are part of the fabric of modern Scotland, and even although Celtic displays a fondness for Ireland, it is a Scottish club first, and the majority of its public knows it and accepts it.
I have not the slightest objection to Celtic embracing Irishness. I believe that Celtic is a political football club and its preferred identity is a matter for it and no-one else. If Celtic fans want to back a campaign for a united Ireland, let them. If they want to romanticise about Ireland, let them.
There is a responsibility, however, that comes with free expression, and while clubs will understandably put their own interests first, they must be mindful of the bigger picture, and in the case of Rangers and Celtic, it is vital that their governance is responsible and sensible.
A public falling-out between these two makes waves across society. It is not the same as ordinary football clubs having a spat. Rangers and Celtic are institutions as well as football clubs, and their public relationship should reflect that.
It has to be said though, the current mock-offence mentality which exists in the game started with complaining Celtic fans. Being 'offended' by the 'Billy Boys' anthem has opened the door to a crackdown on whatever a steward or policeman thinks is unacceptable, and this has empowered authority to such an extent that people are understandably losing their trust in it.
There is nothing uglier in a free democratic state than abuse of authority, and authority in Scotland has over-exerted itself in a football context. Its behaviour at times has been inexcusably reprehensible. Political leaders have spoken about stamping out problems of sectarianism, but they are encumbered by their own naivety. Frankly, their language has been ill-chosen, and their tone, inappropriate.
Alex Salmond has spoken about being positive, almost certainly in a political sense, and I commend him for that, but a positive attitude is required in Scottish football, and it would be helpful if he could provide it.
Instead of attempting to incriminate people for being excessive in their behaviour, it would be more productive in the longer run if the Rangers and Celtic supports were allowed to express their long-standing cultural views positively and benignly, and without fear of unreasonable authority intervention.
If songs and chants become hateful and malicious, then there is a case for intervention, but if an honest and positive expression of identity is permitted, the heat under the sectarian pressure pot will begin to die down.
Football, rather than being just a game, has long been a reflection of the society from which it comes, and in a country where the education system is splintered and sectarian, it is naive to believe that people won't carry the influence of their schooling into adulthood.
Our divided education system is a monument to a sectarian society. It is inconceivable that the Scottish government will not address this if it genuinely believes that sectarianism in Scotland is a problem.
People are sick and tired of their football clubs being publicly dismissed as the sectarian twins of Scottish society, especially by people who have nothing to say about the elephant in the room: state-funded sectarian schools.
The sectarianism debate, if that's what it is, has been shallow and less than far-reaching, but with constructive attitudes all round, a better future may lie around the corner.
It is time however to ignore the mock-offence attitude which has overtaken society and embedded itself within the Scottish football community. It is a sham; a waste of time and energy, and even if people are sometimes offended by what they see and hear, society should not allow an individual veto, motivated by bigotry, to interfere with benign cultural and collective expression.
When we recognise this, we'll be able to move forward, but while we allow ourselves to be bogged down by it, progress will be non-existent and impossible.
In a free society, people will sometimes be offended. That's the price we pay for our society being free.
Free-thinkers can deal with this.
Closed minds never could.