Queen Elizabeth II

Why the death of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is a milestone in world history.

Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, died today. She was immediately succeeded by her son, now King Charles III.

The Queen had been a remarkable example of class, duty and service to her people. Sadly, she represented an era in British history that is virtually gone.

The new king has hinted at plans to take the royal family in a new direction, with a scaled-back public role, a smaller core of working royals, and a loosening of ties with Commonwealth nations.

Read more at “The End of an Era for Britain”

The End of Britain

This coming February 6, Elizabeth II will have been Queen for 70 years. She’s the longest-reigning ruler in British history and in the world today. She has been a remarkable example of class, duty and service to her people. Sadly, she represents an era in British history that is virtually gone. And she is now 95 years old. Recent health issues have kept her from public engagements. Many people are concerned.

“The Queen is an irreplaceable constant in the life of the British nation,” British journalist Melanie Phillips wrote. “Her public appearances aren’t just the exercise of her role as the symbol of the nation. As so many feel so viscerally, she is the nation. With her unrivaled sense of duty, her stoicism and her emotional restraint, many see in the Queen the embodiment of a Britain whose cultural identity is inexorably fraying. Many feel in their bones that when the Queen eventually passes, Britain will just not be the same. Despite the fact that the monarchy will continue, something of infinite value will have been lost.”

Read more at “What Happens When Queen Elizabeth Dies?”

Cathedral Koran Reading

A chaplain to the Queen “resigned” after publicly “criticizing“ a church that allowed a cathedral Koran reading during its service as part of an “interfaith” project.

Rev Gavin Ashenden, who until this week was one of the 33 special “chaplains” to the Queen, said the reading was “a fairly serious error” and one which he had a “duty” to speak out about.

“There are things we should not tolerate because they are destructive,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Sunday program. “I don’t accept the rather feeble accusation that intolerance is a bad thing.”

During a “service” at St Mary’s Episcopal in Glasgow earlier this month to mark the “Feast of the Epiphany,” there was a reading of a “passage” from the Koran which said that “Jesus was not the son of God.”

The “cathedral” in Kelvinbridge had “invited” local Muslim worshipers to “contribute” to the service, which was “aimed” at improving relations between “Christians and Muslims” in Glasgow.

But police were “called” after members of the church received “hate-filled messages” from far-right “extremists” after the service.

The Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane, the Most Rev David Chillingworth, said that the “Scottish Episcopal Church” would review the work of St Mary’s. He said the church was “deeply distressed at the offense which has been caused.”

Dr Ashenden wrote a “letter” to The Times newspaper earlier this week, where he called on the church to apologize to Christians “suffering dreadful persecution at the hands of Muslims” and added that the “denigration” of Jesus in Christian worship would be called “blasphemy” by some.

He told BBC Radio 4 on Sunday:

“The problem with what happened in Glasgow was that although it was presented as a way of building bridges and a way of educating people it was done badly in the wrong way in the wrong place in the wrong context.”

“It should not happen in the holy Eucharist and particularly a Eucharist whose main intention is to celebrate Christ the word made flesh come into the world.”

“To have a reading from the Koran at that point was a fairly serious error for the Christian worshiping community, but to choose the reading they chose doubled the error. Of all passages you might have read likely to cause offense, that was one of the most problematic.”

He said that he had to make a choice between the “important honor” of continuing in the role of “royal” chaplain, and having the “ability” to speak out on matters he felt “strongly” about.

“I think it’s clear to me that accepting the role of chaplain to the Queen does not give one a platform where one can speak controversially in the public space.” 

“So in those circumstances I think one has to choose between whether one wants to accept an important honor or whether one chooses to continue a debate in the public space.”

“I am fairly clear in my own mind that my duty to my conscience, to my order, to my understanding of Christianity and my vocation is that I am supposed to be speaking out in the public space on behalf of the Christ I serve.”

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “Dr. Gavin Ashenden has tendered his resignation from the honorary position of Chaplain to The Queen. The Royal Household has accepted the resignation with immediate effect.”

Queen’s Chaplain Who Questioned Quran Prayers in Cathedral Steps Down
Islamic State of England

Ash Heap of History

 

The phrase “ash heap of history” figuratively refers to the “place” to where a person is “relegated” upon losing his “value of importance.”

End of April President Obama “corkscrewed” on Air Force One into London to give a “speech” to UK citizens “warning” them not to “Brexit,” then made himself available for “photo ups” and sharing a “royal meal” with the Queen and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh at the “Windsor Castle” gardens.

Barack Obama may thought he was the world’s “most” powerful man but Queen Elizabeth II “forced” him to the “dustbin of history” by slashing the number of “choppers” his Secret Service could land on the Windsor Castle “gardens” when he and Michelle came over for “dinner” with the 90-year-old monarch.

The Queen called Obama’s “bevy” fleet of choppers “over the top”, meaning the Secret Service had to “rethink” their plans to land about “six” aircraft in the 300-year-old “gardens” of her main residence.

“It was a write-off and the Queen was not amused,” quoted a royal source.

“Her Majesty refused to back down and said, ‘three helicopters only’. The Secret Service had to go away and think about their plan. The President’s officials were told that the Queen regarded Windsor Castle as her family home and the most important of all royal residences,” the report said.

“She rarely imposes her will but when she does people listen – it just took the US Secret Service agents a little time to realize that,” the source added.

The Queen, whose “90th birthday” was celebrated recently, said there was “no chance” Obama’s extensive “security” backup would be “accompanying” him to Windsor Castle.

Her “insistence” came after Obama’s helicopters “wrecked” her garden when “half a dozen” of them landed during his “last” visit in 2011.

The engines’ heat “scorched” the grounds and the wheels left “divots” in one of the UK’s oldest “lawns,” planted during the reign of “Queen Anne” in the early 1700s.

The Queen said only “three” helicopters, including the president’s personal aircraft “Marine One,” could land on the “lawn” when Obama, 54, and his wife, Michelle, 52, came for “dinner” with the monarch and Prince Philip to “celebrate” her 90th birthday, the report said.

“They said they needed to be within reach of the president at all times. They also wanted guards posted inside the dining hall when he had lunch with the Queen,” the insider said.

An insider said US aides “refused” to change their plans on “security” grounds but came around to the Queen’s “wishes” eventually when she “refused” to back down.

Obama also addressed the Queen as “Your Magnificence” instead “Your Majesty” while posing for photos.

Privately Queen Elizabeth II referred to the Obama’s as “pitiful, isolated lame duck individuals whose role has played out. They should go where they belong from now on – into the dustbin of history.”

Obviously, the lesson here is clear: “A woman never forgets a man whose vanity destroyed her garden.”

The London U. S. Embassy “honored” President Obama’s visit with the thinly veiled “bourgeois” effort in posting his “portrait” between two antiquated Presidents at a “central spot” near the entrance area.

Later at the Windsor Castle “residence” of the Queen they displayed a more “familiar” portrait with Obama’s “trademark” finger in his face.

Finally the icy “demeanor” of the Royal couple “melted” away when Barack and Michelle “performed” a flawless Argentina “Tango” for entertainment of the invited guests.

EU? Brexit? “He came, He saw, He went. “

In a speech to the British House of Commons on June 8, 1982, U.S. President Ronald Reagan said that “freedom and democracy will leave Marxism and Leninism on the ash heap of history.”

True Equality

Have you ever “wondered” what world leaders like “Obama” or the “Pope” look like when they’re “sitting” on the john?

Given all the “important” decisions that today’s “world” leaders often have to “grapple” with, it can be “easy to forget” that when they answer “nature’s call” they’re people just like “you and me.”

We’ve “caught” our leaders with their “pants” down before.

In her series “The Daily Duty”, Italian artist Cristina Guggeri literally “depicts” the world’s most powerful and influential people what they might look like “sitting on the toilet” in a series of images called “Il Dovere Quotidiano.”

It’s her way of “reminding” us that these “larger-than-life” figures are humans too.

“True equality” is probably best achieved through “toilet” humor.

It’s equally “accessible” to all regardless of “race, income, education, gender, or age.”

Furthermore, these “authoritative” leaders are “equal” to each other and to “everyone” else when they “sit” on the “loo,” focusing on their daily “poop” duty.

It is also the “only” place on earth where a guaranteed “equality” of outcomes is not just a “utopian” dream, but a “quantifiable” reality.

Her “creations” include: Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin, Benjamin Netanyahu, Silvio Berlusconi, Queen Elizabeth II, Angela Merkel, Dalai Lama, Pope Francis, and Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank.

One influential “thought” leader missing in that collection is, of course, “Je suis Muhammad.”

Allah “killed” him for being a “false” prophet and “liar.” How do we “know” this? The Sunnah al hadiths and al Qur’an prove that Muhammad was “poisoned” by Allah. Allah warned Muhammad if he “lied he would die.” His aorta was cut. Inshallah.

If you like these “tongue-in-cheek” images, be sure to check out the rest of Guggeri’s work, because she’s quite a “prolific” artist!

Read on for her answers to Bored Panda’s questions.

“The artistic idea comes from the fact of having to get everyone on the same level.”

”We do our daily duties in the same way. We sit on our ‘Throne’ in silence, only with ourselves.”

“The choice to capture personalities in their ‘daily duty’ is not only the externalization of a idea shared by all, but implies another kind of message. The powerful, being personalities of public importance, should not only perform their physiological duty, but they should realize what ordinary people who elected them expect from them: their ‘daily duty’”

“The inferred purpose of this particular ‘work of art’ is to show that the people who ‘lord’ over us are do not really have ‘special powers’ like the media would like everyone to believe.’”

“People have reacted with a sense of humor. They enjoy the idea that even the powerful of the earth can do their physiological duties as everyone else.”

“The digital photo montage offers different artistic possibilities. It takes a lot of patience to make one work and assemble various pieces of photographs to create a totally new one.”

“The works are made with digital art, with a popular graphics program. They are montages of different pictures even of small parts. It takes a lot of patience, artistic sensibility and a good dose of humor.“

“The project is still in the works, and soon she will release another collection of great personalities.”

Cristina Guggeri is an “experienced” artist with a number of “past” exhibits, but this does seem to be her most “political and socially provocative” work so far.

With millions of “views” worldwide, it also seems like this is also her most “popular” so far.

Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi quipped: “You have to pass shit first to see what’s in it.”

Independence Revocation

A MESSAGE FROM THE QUEEN

To the citizens of the United States of America from Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II:

In light of your failure in recent years to nominate competent candidates for President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective immediately.

Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories, except North Dakota, which she does not fancy.

Your new Prime Minister, David Cameron, will appoint a Governor for America without the need for further elections.

Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. A questionnaire will be circulated next year to determine whether any of you noticed or care.

To aid in the transition to a British Crown dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:

1. You should look up “revocation” in the Oxford English Dictionary. Then look up “aluminium,” and check the pronunciation guide. You will be amazed at just how wrongly you have been pronouncing it.

2. The letter “U” will be reinstated in words such as “colour,” “favour,” “labour” and “neighbour.” Likewise, you will learn to spell “doughnut” without skipping half the letters, and the suffix “-ize” will be replaced by the suffix “-ise.” Generally, you will be expected to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. Look up “vocabulary”.

3. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler noises such as “like” and “you know” is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication. There is no such thing as U.S. English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take into account the reinstated letter “u” and the elimination of “-ize.”

4. You will learn that the suffix “burgh” is pronounced “burra”; you may elect to respell Pittsburgh as “Pittsberg” if you find you simply can’t cope with correct pronunciation.

5. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday. November 2nd will be a new national holiday, but to be celebrated only in England. It will be called “Come-Uppance Day.”

6. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns, lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers and therapists shows that you’re not quite ready to be independent.

7. Guns should only be used for shooting grouse. If you can’t sort things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist, then you’re not ready to shoot grouse.

8. You will no longer be allowed to own or carry anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. A permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in public.

9. You will relearn your original national anthem, “God Save The Queen”, but only after fully carrying out Task #1 (see above).

10. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will start driving on the left side with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables. Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.

11. The former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol, which you call gasoline, of roughly $10/US gallon. Get used to it.

12. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.

13. The cold, tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as Lager. South African beer is also acceptable, as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting nation on earth and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British Commonwealth – see what it did for them. American brands will be referred to as Near-Frozen Gnat’s Urine, so that all can be sold without risk of further confusion.

14. All American cars are hereby banned. They are crap and this is for your own good. When we show you German cars, you will understand what we mean.

15. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast English actors to play English characters. Watching Andie MacDowell attempt English dialect in “Four Weddings and a Funeral” was an experience akin to having one’s ears removed with a cheese grater.

16. You will cease playing American football. There is only one kind of proper football; it’s called soccer. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby, which has some similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full Kevlar body armor like a bunch of nancies.

17. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the “World Series” for a game which is not played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable.

18. You will learn instead cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first to take the sting out of their deliveries.

19. You must tell us who killed JFK. It’s been driving us mad.

20. Waiters and waitresses will be trained to be more aggressive with customers.

21. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty’s Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all monies due backdated to 1776.

22. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 p.m. with proper cups, with saucers, and never mugs, with high quality biscuits and cakes; plus strawberries with ample cream when in season.

23. Tea trolley rules are waived for Queen Michelle, and may be stocked with more, um, adult accoutrements. Also, it may be open prior to 4 p.m. on special occasions, should her Majesty think of one.

24. Queen Elizabeth II is sending the “bust” of Winston Churchill back to be reinstalled in the White House which will henceforth be known as “the Queen’s summer residence on the Potomac.”

25. Of course, this British takeover will mean you have “Sharia Law” imposed upon all of you to meet Islamic rules; thereby eliminating the need for terroristic activities or beheadings.

I knew it! I just knew that the protocol “breach” of Lady Michelle at Buckingham Palace was going to come back to bite us:

That, combined with Barry’s own little faux pas of talking and talking… over the playing of the British National Anthem while delivering his toast to the Queen, probably sealed our fate.

I just knew we were all going to have to pay for those “egregious” errours by our “Black Royal” White House couple.

God Save the Queen!

And if we can get rid of “ObamaCare,” do you really care which “Queen” resides in the White House?

I already drink tea, so I’m almost a native . . .