The monarchy

[osszie]

Originally posted by BeardofPants
Yeah, and he looks right cute sitting in Bush's pocket there.

Cute!!?? I've met the bugger three times (I live three miles away from his home in Sedgefield, his constituency)

He is the most arogant, self-centered egotistical...........if I didn't know better I'd almost say he was an American politician

Only one word describes Blair..........unfortunately these boards are PG-13 so I can't say it here

As for Diana........don't get me started this "beloved princess and devoted mother" was swanning around Paris with an international playboy when she was killed............why was the devoted mother not at home with her children who one on hols from boarding school at the time........pfah.....she walked around a bloody minefield and visited the odd hospital and everyone treat her like the next mother terasa

At least Di did have the descency to wait until her father died before she started all her slutting around tho

[BeardofPants]

Whisper the naughty word in my ear.

Yeah: and let's not compare the number of charities that Di visited (and she dropped quite a few) versus Princess Margaret before she got so sick. Hah.

[osszie]

Originally posted by BeardofPants
Yeah: and let's not compare the number of charities that Di visited (and she dropped quite a few) versus Princess Margaret before she got so sick. Hah.

Ah poor princes Margaret, probably the only sane one amongst them.........so sane in fact that the only way she could handle the rest of her family was to be as thourghly inebriated for as much of her waking hours as possilble

She probably did more to advertise Gordons Gin and Benson&Hedges ciggarettes than any amount of advertising
With the possible exception of the Queen Mother

[Shadowfax]

I dislike the monarchy. I see the Queen only as a figurehead, and she really doesn't have anything to do with Canada's government (we are learning this in Socials 11 at school); I mean, all she does is give "royal assent (agreement)" to any bill that must be passed, and like she'll ever say to a PM, 'no I don't think this can be a law...' So yeah. I think that in Canada, al the lieutenant governors and governor general are just a waste of money. In my opinion, all the Queen does is visit her countries, wave, accept billions of flowers (oh my goodness, when she was here in Victoria...everyone had flowers! ), and stuff like that.

But then again, what do I know??

[Dunadan]

Originally posted by BeardofPants
Yeah, and he looks right cute sitting in Bush's pocket there.

Not too pretty, I admit, but better there than in his crosshairs.

Blair worked very hard behind the scenes to maintain communication between the US and other nations, especially in the Middle East, over the past year. Obviously, we don't know what effect this has had. However, it might just be that being a poodle which may hold back Bush's itchy trigger finger will save more lives than sticking two highly-principled fingers up at him. He has also encouraged Bush in his occasional statements in favour of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

Aesthetically, I too would prefer to see our PM taking a moral stance against militarism and aggression. However, you have to be realistic about what you can expect from these people. If Blair hadn't supported Bush, the latter might not have bothered with the UN at all.

Whoops! Off thread for a moment there. I want to see It's a Proper Royal Knockout, where they get dressed up in silly costumes, play ridiculous games and the prize is a chunk of Civil List loot. The losers get their P45 and a job cleaning toilets till next year.

[sun-star]

I want to see It's a Proper Royal Knockout, where they get dressed up in silly costumes, play ridiculous games and the prize is a chunk of Civil List loot. The losers get their P45 and a job cleaning toilets till next year.

Maybe they should use that method to choose a government.

What should the monarchy be replaced with, if it were to be abolished (although I can't see that happening soon unless something very dramatic and unusual happens)?

[Sween]

I wont hear a bad word against princess anne met her once and said i was cute . Shes a grafter she allways seems to be doing something much more than diana plus she acctually achived something with her life silver medle in commonwealths or olimpics i cannot rember.

[IronParrot]

Well, in the event that the Queen's face is removed from coinage, you've always got John, Paul, George and Ringo to replace her...

[BeardofPants]

Originally posted by IronParrot
Well, in the event that the Queen's face is removed from coinage, you've always got John, Paul, George and Ringo to replace her...

LOL!

[Comic Book Guy]

Well, in the event that the Queen's face is removed from coinage, you've always got John, Paul, George and Ringo to replace her...

Sure, from one overrated group to another.

[osszie]

Originally posted by Comic Book Guy
Sure, from one overrated group to another.

Well at least The Beatles managed to keep their act together for almost a decade

[FoolofaTook]

The Queen is just a figure head. She has no real power in her own country let alone in Canada. I don't see how everyone got so excited when she came here. Personally I want Canada to be totally independent of England and their Queen. I don't see why the queen has to approve of laws that aren't even in her own country. It makes me very angry that the Queen is on all our coins, and she has very little to do with our Country. It also makes me angry when some people refer to us as a colony. Besides the Queen isn't even really English...(some people are going to hate me for saying this)....She's GERMAN!!!

[Erawyn]

Yeah why is it that she has to apprive our laws? We are our OWN country now, it took awhile but we really don't have any need to have legal ties to britain at all! Anyone actually know why this archaic rule still exists?

[Shadowfax]

Originally posted by FoolofaTook
Besides the Queen isn't even really English...(some people are going to hate me for saying this)....She's GERMAN!!!

German? How?

[Sween]

Originally posted by Shadowfax
German? How?

Queen victorias husband albert was german and theres some other stuff. Prince phills greek

[osszie]

"The British royal family changed their surname (last name) from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor in 1917.

World War One broke out in 1914 and was in full fury in 1917. In protest, King George V renounced all the German titles belonging to him and his family and adopted the name of his castle, Windsor."

I guess was considered bad form for the monarch to have a German name while we were at war with them

[Falagar]

The monarchy in Norway is a joke.
The only reasons we have them is that we can't send out our prime minister every time there's something going on.

[jerseydevil]

Originally posted by FoolofaTook
I don't see why the queen has to approve of laws that aren't even in her own country. ....she has very little to do with our Country.

This is why we fought and won the Revolution. Other reasons -King George was ripping up colony charters when he didn't like them, replaced LOCALLY elected officials if he didn't like them, taxation without representation in Parliament, quartering soldiers in our homes, blockading our harbors, searching without warrants.

Declaration of Independence
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

[jerseydevil]

I couldn't live under a Monarcy or visit the Queen or royal family. I would not back out of room so my back would not be turned away or any of the other "protocol" you must adhere to. As my mother used to say "They put their pants on one leg at a time." I don't think they have someone else clothe them anymore - except for special occasions. My mother used to have other sayings too for indicating people weren't better than others - but I won't say them here.

Personally I can't picture England without a monarchy and there was a time when I thought that America should not have fought the Revolution (obviously changed my mind on that). I also felt that Parliament had taken too much power from the King/Queen.

[osszie]

Originally posted by Falagar
The monarchy in Norway is a joke.
The only reasons we have them is that we can't send out our prime minister every time there's something going on.

Norway has a monarchy??........We have a spare Prince (Andrew) we could do with marrying off if Norway has a spare Princess