Quote:
Originally Posted by richt71
I saw an interview with ex-PM Tony Blair talking about his monthly meetings with the Queen. Apparently she's very well versed and often offers a frank view on things which he said he always listened too. That's as far as it goes though with her power today.
|
Monthly meetings? The Prime Minister sees The Queen every week.
As for a pointless tradition, what exactly
is this tradition? The Sovereign was once the sole source of power, giving justice to His people, extending His realm, enriching the population, securing His borders, etc. Kingship isn't a tradition, it was a necessity. That has evolved with the times. Evidently having one single person with all the power didn't work out, so now we have many, people who are accountable for their use of the trust given by the people.
Her Majesty acts within the constraints of the Constitution with the majority of Her activites commited on the advice of Her Prime Minister - which makes Her a non-partisan power within the United Kingdom and thus above the farce that is politics today in Great Britain.
Simply because a situation has not arisen where some political or other figure sought to overturn the system and become a dictator or whatever has not occured does not mean The Queen is irrelevant. Still more, although Her position as the single unifying feature in this country does not appeal to you does not imply she is an outmoded fad. Her role in this country, the sovereign's existence is far more important than some people realise, easpecially those who trmpet themselves as the '21st century man/woman' or 'modern.' The 20th century testifies to your sentimentalities, it is very
modern to break things that are not broken.
After all, it is so very
undemocratic to have an unelected figurehead and yet it is the ultimate hypocrisy to say so also. What is there to envy in the Republican system? Does the Prime Minister have not enough power already? Is there a need to augment them still more?
Republicans in my experience in the UK fall into two categories, US envy and power hunger.
The Queen gives us several things an elected president cannot:
a. She gives us Her life, Her unswerving dedication, how many of you can say the same? The nobility of Her sacrifice is not justified by the gilt trappings of Her homes. Whatever She does is done in the interests of this nation.
b. She unites an otherwise divisive and divided society searching for an identity. The non-partisan nature of her position ensures that we, unlike the figure of our current or any other Prime Minister or the presidents of those overseas is a single, unifying factor for all regardless of political opinion, race, wealth, etc. We are humans, I dare say for the greater majority, when we think of our countries we don't think about the outline of its borders on the map but people instead, and in the absence of people, a flag will do.
c. A guarantee against tyranny. We are no less capable nor less barbaric than we were 100 years ago, though the likes of Hitler hasn't emerged upon these shores yet, that is not to suggest such a monster never will.
d. For us religious folk, 'The King of Kings' is explanation enough, I think.
Unfortunately I'm not very eloquent :S But I think the Monarchy has a great many positive things that adds to Britain on many levels. In many ways I think the modern malaise is that we think we're on top of the world, we're even playing with genes now and cloning animals, we simply disavow or ignore our flaws and seek to create some perfect Grecian system you'd normally confine to fictional idylls. The human condition is very real and the needs too are very real.
Welcome to City-Data.com forum! Make sure to register - it's free and very quick! You have to register before you can post and participate in our discussions with 700,000 other registered members. User profiles and some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your free account you will be able to customize many options, you will have the full access to over 15,000 posts/day about local topics and you will see fewer ads. 
How Much Power Does The Queen Have?
Linear Mode
