"Currants Bw..."

[Mac76]

You really aren’t. Have you been arrested or shunned for not watching the news or going to any of the processions? No you haven’t.

Yes i agree the police at times appear heavy handed with some of the handling of the protestors. It’s completely valid to protest however I suspect in most cases, they are being moved elsewhere to keep the peace. If you go and protest in a place where you protest could escalate a situation, its not surprising the police will try and minimise the risk.

Now you really are talking cack, to forgive the police for bullying those with harmless nonconformist opinions is just condoning fascism

[mandela8]

It’s ok. They bring in the tourism.

“Come and see the wonders of Buckingham Palace, and next up in Andrew’s sex den!”

If someone tells me that Harry and “Wills” only waited until married for a finger….I bet those two have torn more hymens than their uncle

:goodpost:

[Mac76]

As Letters said, the optics and timing are not good and could have been much better.

However a lot of these staff are handling things like his charities which he no longer can be involved in as the monarch. These staff surely must have been aware of this when they took their roles and according to some ex employees, their contracts have a clause saying that the contracts terminate 6 months after the demise of the crown unless renewed by the new monarch.

I would suspect however that things like his charities will continue with William and so the staff will likely find new roles with him and i guess many staff who have served the Queen for years will likely move on/retire at this natrual changeover and so staff may be employed again in new roles.

Again though the timing of just 3 days after the Queen’s death is appalling and there is no real defence for that

Most of what you've written is immaterial umtil that last para where you agree that Prince Big Ears is being an arsehole

[Letters]

treated like a pariah if you don't conform.

Well this is bullshit. That just isn't happening.

Dignified silence because anyone dissenting is arrested for commiting absolutely no crime.

I have mixed feelings about the protesters and the police response. Some of it does feel heavy handed. Obviously people have a right to peaceful protest but note the emphasis.
If the King is doing a walkabout then the people who turn up to see him are obviously fans. Is that the best time and place to be protesting? Isn't that just likely to lead to trouble?
Try wearing an Arsenal shirt in the home crowd at WHL and trying to get a rousing chorus of "my old man said be a Tottenham fan" going. See how that goes.
As you're dragged out by the stewards/police you're not going to get anywhere by going "BuT My FrEe SpEeCh!!1!"

And holy shit his mum just died, and he's got to do all this public stuff when most people get to process that in private.
This is probably the right time for a conversation about becoming a Republic but is the best way to start that to wave placards and shout out negative stuff at him within a week of the dude's mum dying.
None of these people are in "the Tower", in the regime you're comparing us to these people would be taken out and shot, that's not happening here.

england is not LIKE North Korea. It IS North Korea.

And yet, here you are freely expressing these views, just like you can't in North Korea.
Do you think that now you've changed it from a simile to a metaphor it's a much better and more valid comparison? It isn't.
There is no sensible comparison here - and this is where you are clearly trolling.
IF the Queen was the one who set policy and her only claim to do so was birthright, which now passed to Charles who is now making laws of the land then you'd have a valid comparison.
If people were being forced to queue up for 9 hours to pay tribute.
If the naysayers were being locked up in The Tower and/or being executed.
If all that was happening then you'd have a point.
But none of it is. So you don't. Stop being ridiculous.

Oh, and "banned laughing". More trolling.
Oh noes, the BBC stopped showing Mrs Brown's Boys! Well find it on i fucking player then if you're that bothered. Who watches TV live these days anyway?
I actually flicked through some channels last Thursday - 1 to 5 were wall to wall Queen, but Dave was still doing its thing.
A lot of comedians did cancel their shows that night but they weren't forced to, they just felt it was the right thing to do. Kevin Bridges did his show.
Banned laughing. Honestly, how can you write stuff like that and claim you're not trolling?

It's an absolute laughing stock and it's fuckin beautiful to see the utter disbelief the rest of the world is looking on with.

You genuinely seem to think that you just saying stuff makes it true. When I was in Green Park on Wednesday I saw a Polish flag with a tribute to the Queen from "The Poles". Our dev team is over there so I sent one of them a picture of it, she said they have a lot of fondness for the Queen. There have been tributes to her from around the world. She had a global impact, I'm sorry if that annoys you, but it's true.
I am interested in what people overseas think about all this, the people I've spoken to from other countries aren't looking on at "utter disbelief". At worst they think it's all a bit eccentric. And you know what, they're right. The monarchy is eccentric. It does feel out of place in a modern world. If I started a new country now there's no way I'd have a monarchy. But it's part of our history and tradition and a part that I personally quite like. I certainly don't think removing the royal family would fix any of the problems in the country. Those are mostly caused by the idiots we elect to run things.

[Letters]

Holy shit, they've closed entry to "the queue" now because it reached capacity

[IBK]

My tuppence worth...

For me the 'hysteria' of the people queuing to see the Queen lying in state isn't even really about whether people are monarchists or not. It's (a) to a great extent an emotional reaction to the passing of an important (objectively) figurehead who was a constant point of reference in most peoples' lives - and a response to change on a phsychological level. Change is unsettling, and just as people mark the passing of a relative or friend by attending a funeral, so many of those who have gone to Westminster Hall have been drawn to do so for similar reasons. Many of these people are also remembering the loss of a loved one - particularly a parent or a grand parent - and the symbolic passing of a way of life. (b) No doubt, some of these people feel the wish to be part of a historical event.

I am pretty neutral about the Monarchy, and would not bother wasting my time queuing on the South Bank, but I wonlt disparage those who feel drawn to do so.

I do feel, however, that the Queen (and the wider Royal Family) are part of this country's history, culture and traditions whether we like it or not. The Monarchy is an inescapable part of what it means to be British. I respect those who feel that it isn't to them personally, but this is nevertheless the case as a collective. Identity is a vital part of the human condition, and is abandoned to our detriment. Throughout history, dictators and occupiers have sought to erase culture and traditions as a way of of exercising control - look at the Uyghurs in China - or what Isis sought to do by destroying historical monuments and artifacts in Iraq and Syria. After the French Revolution, the Monarchy was pretty quickly replaced by the Napoleonic dynasty. It's what humans do.

So for those republicans - to a degree this would only really replace one form of (non political) hierarchy with another. And if we are honest, our Western style of democratically elected leaders or figureheads is hardly working well.

[Xhaka Can’t]

[Letters]

I am pretty neutral about the Monarchy, and would not bother wasting my time queuing on the South Bank, but I wonlt disparage those who feel drawn to do so.

Right. I mean, I have a certain fondness for the monarchy although a lot of that is wrapped up in the Queen.
When the dust has settled it will be interesting to see how the national mood changes with Charles as King. He is, to say the least, not as popular as the Queen was.

But I don't understand why any of this is annoying people so much. If you're fed up of the BBC's endless coverage then go watch Netflix (other content providers are available). The people moaning probably never watch BBC live anyway. If you don't share people's sadness at her death then OK, no-one is forcing you to. People aren't being rounded up in buses and forced to join the queue. I have a nagging feeling I'll regret not going, but I'm not waiting 9 sodding hours. The fact that so many people are willing to do that shows what she meant to a lot of people in this country. If people don't share that feeling well OK, the funeral isn't mandatory viewing. This whole thing is, at worst, a minor and temporary inconvenience.

[Xhaka Can’t]

Operations cancelled.
Appointments for medical diagnosis cancelled.
Medical tests cancelled.
Funerals for those grieving actual loved ones, postponed.
People advised they shouldn’t be seen riding a bicycle during the funeral.
All manner of business postponed at short notice.

This isn’t minor inconvenience. The impact on some people is huge and unnecessary.

Some fuckwit even had the nerve to tell me the nature of these cancellations was no different from medical procedures not taking place on Christmas Day. That’s the idiocy we’re arguing against because I can’t recall the last time Christmas was sprung on the entire population as a complete surprise with less than 10 days notice.

[IBK]

Right. I mean, I have a certain fondness for the monarchy although a lot of that is wrapped up in the Queen.
When the dust has settled it will be interesting to see how the national mood changes with Charles as King. He is, to say the least, not as popular as the Queen was.

But I don't understand why any of this is annoying people so much. If you're fed up of the BBC's endless coverage then go watch Netflix (other content providers are available). The people moaning probably never watch BBC live anyway. If you don't share people's sadness at her death then OK, no-one is forcing you to. People aren't being rounded up in buses and forced to join the queue. I have a nagging feeling I'll regret not going, but I'm not waiting 9 sodding hours. The fact that so many people are willing to do that shows what she meant to a lot of people in this country. If people don't share that feeling well OK, the funeral isn't mandatory viewing. This whole thing is, at worst, a minor and temporary inconvenience.

Yes - I'd pretty much agree with you. As a history fan - I watched a bit of TV the day the Queen died and the day after, but I find the wall to wall coverage - particularly on the BBC - a bit much. For me - it's like Comic Relief. I understand it means a lot to some people but it bores me (it's also cheap TV).

Can't really understand why people are so exorcised about it.

As for the committed anti-monarchists, for me there's a lot of tall poppy syndrome. Plenty of people have gained far more wealth than the Monarchy through means as dubious as those on which the Monarchy's traditional and historic wealth is originally based, but don't attract the same degree of antipathy. For me, top footballers and movie stars (for example) earn 10's of millions that are disproportionate to the true value of the work they do - and elected leaders often go on to earn similar amounts by virtue of the offices they once held, and often via what let's face it is institutionalised corruption. But as this is not so high in the poplular consciousness it goes largely under the radar. I understand that King Charles' charities raise more than £100 million annually, but this is rarely balanced against the cost of teh Sovereign Grant - that some take exception to.

But then I am pretty obsessed with balance - which is a rare commodity in debate these days.