Author Topic: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.  (Read 1018 times)

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Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #25: September 08, 2022, 06:17:34 PM »
there's something to be said about separating the head of state from from the head of government.  The Queen was mostly a unifying figure (well, maybe not for The Sex Pistols, but for most of the UK).  There are certain events, like honoring war heroes and marking significant cultural events, that should be unifying and observed by the Head of State. Saluting the national soccer and Olympic teams or honoring the winners of a NCAA championship, perhaps the Kennedy Center honors too.  I always feel weird when a pol uses these events for electoral gain; it seems divisive.  I could go into examples, but that's for another part of the board. 

Offline Natsinpwc

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #26: September 08, 2022, 06:24:50 PM »
Strange the announcement didn’t come during a Nick Castellanos at bat.
Well he is on the IL.

Offline Dave in Fairfax

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #27: September 08, 2022, 08:53:23 PM »
there's something to be said about separating the head of state from from the head of government.  The Queen was mostly a unifying figure (well, maybe not for The Sex Pistols, but for most of the UK).  There are certain events, like honoring war heroes and marking significant cultural events, that should be unifying and observed by the Head of State. Saluting the national soccer and Olympic teams or honoring the winners of a NCAA championship, perhaps the Kennedy Center honors too.  I always feel weird when a pol uses these events for electoral gain; it seems divisive.  I could go into examples, but that's for another part of the board.
They are in some respects separate issues. There are basically three structures for democratic governance - the parliamentary system where the head of state and head of government are separate and the head of state is basically ceremonial/tradiotional, the American-style Presidential system where they are combined, and the French-style hybrid system where the head of state and head of government are separate, but each have actual power. I think De Gaulle's idea was that the President would represent matters of concern to all Frenchmen, and have actual power in foreign and defense policy, while the Premier would act in domestic areas where interests might be more divided. The practical results may be different and better addressed in another part of the board.

But one can have a parliamentary system without a monarchy. The German and Israeli presidents, like the British monarch, have pretty much only ceremonial roles. However, I suspect that even political junkies who can name every Bundeskanzler since Adenauer and every prime minister since Golda Meir would have a hard time naming more than a handful of presidents. So while they do have that ceremonial role, they don't have the strong cultural, symbolic and unifying role that a monarch has.

A bit of trivia: one of Queen Elizabeth's cousins got to be both head of state and head of government. Simeon of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was Tsar of Bulgaria from 1943 to 1946 and Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria from 2001 to 2005.

Offline imref

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #28: September 08, 2022, 09:27:59 PM »
So far I’ve seen near universal praise of the queen from all sides of the political spectrum. I’m not sure we’ll ever see another like her.


Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Offline dracnal

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #31: September 09, 2022, 11:24:30 AM »
They are in some respects separate issues. There are basically three structures for democratic governance - *snip for brevity* Simeon of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was Tsar of Bulgaria from 1943 to 1946 and Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria from 2001 to 2005.

Don't really have much to add here, but just wanted to say I thought this was a well written post with a good analysis of the head of state role in different systems.

Offline Slateman

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #32: September 09, 2022, 03:31:03 PM »

Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #33: September 09, 2022, 04:24:24 PM »

that was an awesome moment.  The French also played the Anthem, I think.  No divide and conquer for the Tora Bora boys.

Offline Vega

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #34: September 09, 2022, 06:53:44 PM »
Okay whatever so can we abolish the monarchy now?

Offline Dave in Fairfax

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #35: September 09, 2022, 06:58:49 PM »
Other than our Canadian and British members, I don't think we have much of a say in it, and, to be fair, they don't have much of a say either.

The last monarch any one in my family was the subject of was Sultan Mehmed V.

Offline Vega

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #36: September 09, 2022, 07:34:31 PM »
They should take inspiration from the French and choppy chop.

Offline dracnal

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #37: September 09, 2022, 08:19:02 PM »
They should take inspiration from the French and choppy chop.

Show me on the doll where the bad monarch touched you.


Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #39: September 18, 2022, 03:21:14 PM »
funeral procession 5:44 AM EDT.  Funeral at 6 AM. 

Offline English Natsie

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #40: September 19, 2022, 02:07:08 PM »
As there is no indication to the contrary, I assume the videos here will play.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk/the_queen

Offline GNatsNoMore

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #41: September 24, 2022, 06:49:41 PM »
Prince Charles is probably going “Yeah baby”. Thought she would never go.  I think her mother lived to 101.

I don't think so. At the very the end of the service, they sang "God Save the King".  King Charles bit his lip and then closed his eyes for a few moments with a weary look on his face, as if he was deeply missing his mother while realizing the finality of the moment (end of the official 10 day mourning period )and at the same time feeling the burden of his new responsibilities.   

By the way, did anyone see the end of the service at St. George's Chapel?  It was very moving to watch the solitary bagpiper stride down the hallway of the chapel while played a mournful lament.  I watched it on BBC. 


Offline imref

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #42: February 05, 2024, 01:19:53 PM »
King Charles has been diagnosed with cancer. No further details.

Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #43: February 05, 2024, 04:43:29 PM »
King Charles has been diagnosed with cancer. No further details.
prostate? that's what he went in for a month ago. No details means no details, of course.

Offline imref

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #44: February 05, 2024, 04:44:58 PM »
The report is that they found unrelated cancer during his prostate treatment and that he's stepping away from official duties to undergo immediate treatment. Prince Harry is flying back from what i heard as well. It doesn't sound good.

Offline Natsinpwc

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #45: February 05, 2024, 04:45:24 PM »
prostate? that's what he went in for a month ago. No details means no details, of course.
Somewhere I read something other than prostate cancer. Poor dude.  Has to wait all those years to be King and now he gets cancer. 

Offline HalfSmokes

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #46: February 05, 2024, 05:39:06 PM »
Immediate treatment is not a good sign. Kate is also still recovering from an undisclosed additional surgery

Offline English Natsie

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #47: February 05, 2024, 06:16:07 PM »
The Palace have clearly learned from the consternation which arose, over here when, following the death of The Late Queen, it emerged that those 'in the know' (some media figures, senior politicians and civil servants, etc) had known that she had cancer for over a year before her death, but that The Palace insisted that the story be suppressed. The official statement has to strike a balance between openness and personal medical confidentiality - it is being assumed that the 'regular treatment' will be chemotherapy but, in the absence of detail as to the type of cancer, no-one can be sure.

Opinions about HIs Majesty are being set aside - the general consensus is that we wish him (and all those facing cancer) a full recovery.

Offline Ali the Baseball Cat

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Re: The Queen is Dead. Long live the King.
« Reply #48: February 23, 2024, 12:16:10 PM »
It seems that at least this corner of the Commonwealth is staying on board: