Sir, - The consensus among our intelligentsia is that the Scots should seek independence because the term "British" does not mean anything anymore. Try telling this to a million or so residents of Northern Ireland for whom the term "British" is the very essence of their existence.If we are going to break up the United Kingdom and consign the concept of "Britishness" to the dustbin of history, then we should first of all employ some foresight in asking ourselves: what will happen if an already paranoid and bellicose portion of Ulster has amputated from it a central part of its identity?Before we seek to right the wrongs of so-called "English imperialism", should not we all (es- pecially the Scottish) seek to sort out the mess created by a much more real British imperialism? - Yours, etc.,PATRICK WEST,Hammersmith,London W6.