For this is what the LORD says: David will have a descendant sitting on the throne of Israel forever. (Jeremiah 33:17 New Living Translation)
Three African-American women were involved in Sunday’s interview. Oprah Winfrey, a billionaire, sat down with Meghan Markle, a millionaire, (most probably) in millionaire Gayle King’s mansion, to discuss, amongst other things, white oppression. With Oprah, once described as “race baiter in chief,” inevitably the subject of race came up. The accusation was made over a comment about baby Archie’s skin color. In response Buckingham Palace observed, that “recollections may vary.” It is possible that Meghan is particularly sensitive on this issue.
There was no suggestion that the Queen herself is a racist. After all, she has spent decades promoting multiculturalism and the Commonwealth, whose 54 member countries include much of Africa and the Caribbean. Meghan specifically stated that the controversial comment on baby Archie’s skin color was not made by either the Queen or her husband, Prince Philip. It was the kind of comment that could be made in any family and, quite rightly, the Queen’s subsequent statement said it would be addressed within the family.
Monarchy is, at its core, about identity. For centuries the English people, along with many in western Europe, have had a monarch as the symbol of their unity. In 1603 the Scottish king, James VI, moved to England and became King (as James I) of both countries. Wales had already been conquered and so was Ireland.
The four kingdoms are united by the Crown. If the monarchy were ever abolished, it is doubtful that the four nations would stay together. Even with the monarchy, the strains of the pandemic highlighted differences between the four. Scottish nationalism has been a threat for some time. Scottish nationalists have been very critical of England, but never of the Queen, as this would not gain them any support. It’s also the case that the Commonwealth would likely not survive without the Queen as its members could never agree on a new leader.
After almost 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II enjoys an 82% approval rating as Head of State. American presidents must envy her. Half of the people in the US do not vote and roughly half of those who do, support the president. That’s about 25% (or less) approval, less than a third of what the Queen enjoys. Even in Canada she enjoys 55% support. A referendum in Australia in 1999 showed 54% support. Another referendum in St Vincent and the Grenadines, a majority black country, gave the Queen two thirds of the vote. No wonder Barbados is not risking a vote on the issue. The government there is ending the Queen’s role as Head of State later this year, giving the Labor Party unprecedented power and authority.
Nobody wants the American system of government, which is seen as a personality contest between two multi millionaires. An alternative republican model, proposed in Australia, would simply replace the Queen with a figurehead president. This would give the politicians greater power, as one of them would likely be president. A big advantage of retaining the monarchy is that the monarch is a neutral figurehead. Even in American academic circles, the present Australian model is seen as the best, combining the Crown (British) and an elected Senate (American), the best from both countries.
President Biden described Meghan after the interview, as “courageous.” Hillary Clinton used the same word and added that the Royals were “insensitive.” It seems unwise to comment without hearing the other side. It may be that Meghan was lying. Whatever the case, it’s a matter for the constitutional monarchies of the Commonwealth to address. The US deliberately cut itself off from the institution over 200 years ago!
Perhaps this was all inevitable. Multiculturalism, a term first coined in Canada exactly 50 years ago when it became clear that newly arrived immigrants were not going to assimilate, has been all the rage for five decades, as more and more immigrants arrived from Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. They have not inherited the same identity as the English with the monarchy. It was inevitable that values and priorities would eventually clash.
One grievance mentioned was the absence of a title for Archie when William’s sons have one. But this has been the law since George V. Only the children and grandchildren of a monarch are given titles. As William will be king, his children got one; Harry is unlikely to be king, but his father will be one day, and then Harry’s children would qualify. (There’s too much fretting about other titles. Canada and Australia get by without them. Surely only the king and queen and those most immediately in line should get a title. All the rest can survive without. The rest of us do.)
I just have two questions: I know that Harry and Meghan were paid nothing for the interview, but how much did Oprah make?
The second question: the wedding cost the UK taxpayer almost $40 million. Additionally, a few million was spent renovating their home. Are Harry and Meghan going to pay all of this back?
Historical footnote: King Edward VIII abdicated the throne in 1936. He and his American divorcee wife became the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and settled in Paris. In 1970 they gave a TV interview. They made no criticism at all of the royal family!
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According to legend, British conductor Sir Thomas Beecham once saw a distinguished looking woman in a hotel foyer. Believing he knew her but unable to remember her name, he paused to talk with her. As the two chatted, he vaguely recollected that she had a brother. Hoping for a clue, he asked how her brother was doing and whether he was still working at the same job. “Oh, he’s very well,” she said, “And still king.” (Our Daily Bread, 3/4/2021)
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The Society of Editors has denied the media is racist after Prince Harry said racism from within the tabloid press was a “large part” of why he and Meghan Markle left the UK. In the couple’s tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, broadcast on ITV last night, the Duke alleged that the tabloid media in the UK is “bigoted” and creates a “toxic environment.” However, the media freedom organization criticized the couple for accusing the press of racism without “any supporting evidence.” (The Week, 3/9/2021)
Biden offers Taliban power-share
Joe Biden has offered the Taliban a return to power in Afghanistan as he seeks to bring the longest war in American history to an end. The White House is ready to offer the Islamic fundamentalists a power-sharing deal with the Afghan government if they agree to lay down their arms. The offer comes almost two decades after the US invasion that “routed the Taliban regime and triggered a bloody insurgency that has killed tens of thousands of people,” The Times says. (The Week, 3/9/2021)
UK could have fourth wave
England’s deputy chief medical adviser has warned that it is too soon to rule out a fourth wave of Covid-19. Jenny Harries told the daily press briefing that under current levels of infection, “a new wave could easily take off again.” Her call for caution came as Boris Johnson admitted that with the re-opening of schools “there will be a risk of increased transmission” that could delay the end of lockdown. The UK yesterday reported less than 100 deaths for the second day in a row, the first time that has happened since 9 October. (The Week, 3/9/2021)
Call for action on conversions
Campaigners have warned that ministers are not moving quickly enough to ban LGBT+ “conversion therapy.” Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch insisted that the government is “committed” to “ending” the practice and takes the issue “very seriously.” But equality campaigners said targeted action is required. Conversion therapy refers to any form of treatment or psychotherapy that aims to change a person’s sexual orientation, “ranging from electric shock treatment to religious teaching and discussion,” the BBC reports. (The Week, 3/9/2021)
“We are weeks, maybe even days, away from a crisis on the southern border,” says Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat whose Texas district abuts Mexico. “Our country is currently unprepared to handle a surge in migrants in the middle of the pandemic.” (Patrick Buchanan, 3/9/2021)
“Through economic bribery and military aid, the Chinese Communist Party has relentlessly manipulated African governments and opposition groups, controlling the affairs of African countries while imposing the communist Chinese model and its values on them.” (Epoch Times, 2/24/2021)
Southwest-Based Neo-Nazi Group Outlines Replacement Of U.S. Government With Germanic Ethno-State, Hangs Posters Throughout U.S., Canada Including On College Campuses; Leader Glorifies Hitler (MEMRI, 3/5/2021)
GERMAN GOVERNMENT TO SPY ON OPPOSITION
“Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) have placed the Alternative for Germany (AfD) under surveillance, according to local media.
“That designation gives state agents more powers for surveillance in certain circumstances, including potentially tapping the party’s communications.” (DW 3/3/2021)
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Farming has destroyed a lot of the rich soil of America’s Midwestern prairie. A team of scientists just came up with a staggering new estimate for just how much has disappeared. The most fertile topsoil is entirely gone from a third of all the land devoted to growing crops across the upper Midwest, the scientists say. (NPR 2/25/2021)
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President Joe Biden will formally create a gender policy council within the White House as part of two executive orders he intends to sign Monday to mark International Women’s Day. (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/03/08/fact-sheet-president-biden-to-sign-executive-orders-establishing-the-white-house-gender-policy-council-and-ensuring-education-free-from-sexual-violence/ )
The council will include a staff of four, three of whom will hold the title of special assistant to the president, according to a senior administration official who previewed the two orders.
The council’s mandate is to work across the federal government’s domestic and foreign policy to fight discrimination and bias, boost economic security, increase access to health care, and advance general equality through diplomacy, trade and defense.
The second order asks the Department of Education to re-examine the Trump administration’s policies and rule-making on Title IX, the 1972 law which governs the way sex-based discrimination in schools is handled. (Newsmax 3/8/2021, https://www.newsmax.com/politics/biden-gender-equity-title-ix-sex-misconduct/2021/03/08/id/1012908/ )
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TO THE POINT
- Switzerland now joins Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands and Sweden, all of which currently have full or partial bans on religious and non-religious face coverings. “In Switzerland our tradition is that you show your face. That is a sign of our basic freedoms.” — Walter Wobmann, member of the Swiss People’s Party, the biggest political party in Switzerland. (Gatestone, 3/10/2021)
- A terrorist who claimed asylum in Britain after he was sentenced to death in Egypt for a failed assassination plot is set to win the right to stay in this country. Yasser Al-Sirri, 58, first claimed asylum in 1994 but was turned down and has taken the issue to court more than eight times at great cost to British taxpayers. Al-Sirri, who was also charged in the US with assisting someone involved in the 1993 World Trade Centre bombing, has appeared in several tribunals since. And last week a tribunal decided he was entitled to remain in the U.K. as a refugee. (MEF, 2/14/2021)
- German companies are increasingly dependent on business with China and are shifting their activities to the People’s Republic at a growing rate, as current economic data and a recent survey of German companies reveal. China is not only one of the very few countries, to which German companies could continue to export in 2020 as much as in the previous year, but it is also the only major economy, to which they could already export this January more than during the same month the previous year. The fact that exports to the People’s Republic are a vital support for the German economy is particularly significant, because Germany’s domestic consumption remains sluggish, due to the pandemic. Already five DAX companies, such as VW, Daimler, Infineon, are generating their largest share of sales in China, more than on their German domestic market. To protect themselves against the risks of US economic warfare, German companies doing business with China are increasingly relocating their activities to the People’s Republic. Efforts to encourage their withdrawal from China have failed. (German Foreign Policy, 3/10/2021)
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