Keep in mind that when William the Conqueror landed on the south coast, Harold was way up north England repelling a Viking invasion, and then a 3 day forced March to Hastings before the battle. The troops and Harold were wiped out before the battle, bad timing as they say. Interesting footnote that Harold would have crushed William if not for the exhaustion of his troops, and the English language would still mainly be bastard GERMAN.
One of my relatives did a family genealogy and concluded that my family are direct descendants of William the C. Ha! People - it seems - still wish to come from noble linages, with few wishing to make conversation about the many peasants making up the majority of their ancestors.
In the future, will the descendants of Smith, Wesson, and Colt, along with Kalashnikov have bragging rights? (They already may, for all I know.) Absurdities upon absurdities abound for the status conscious. We are all from Africa, with humankind arising approximately 300,000 years ago. Will humans survive for another 300,000 years? Would love to travel back and forth in time. . .
What a wonderful, thoughtful writer Greg is. Thank you for sharing your insights.
Ok...your writing, fab, as always. But, given what you quoted of your guest's "insights" I haven't even listened yet, and already I am thinking, Who the fuck is this British jamoke lecturing Americans about the indignities of colonization???? WTAF?
So, forgive me for self-promoting, but today my co-host and I dropped a podcast with our predictions for why Chaz's reign will be short, and how it cosmically serves to tie up the end of the nasty legerdemain of genocide dressed up as free markets, and why royal watching actually can be instructive for a few reasons, including not just Schadenfreude, but an interest in watching genocidal empires collapse.
And now I will fix a cuppa and set my upper lip so I can sit through being told off by John Bull. (Although, if you can make Scaramucci compelling, and you did, then this guy has a prayer.)
The British monarchy and America's guns are ceremonial instruments of rituals that desperately need to evolve. We can't quite let go of them, in spite of the suffering that they cause.
The most descriptive and accurate word in this piece about the new king is "failson." It encapsulates absolutely everything about this weekend and what it all means. "Milquetoast" is a very close second, but "failson" wins every time. As far as I'm concerned, the Monarchy died with Elizabeth. There is no one of her heirs that is as worthy of the title, or as dedicated to the job, as was she. So, yeah, good luck to King Failson and Queen Rottweiler.
I LOVE people mocking with TRUTH, the United States. Tongue in cheek or not, we have, in seven short years, become an objectively, "shithole country." No, THAT MAN didn't start it, but he removed the topsoil and made it possible for the underground THINGS to come alive, before he covered the ground again with his own special brand of bullshit fertilizer to keep it growing. He may or may not be the nominee again, but the Bullshit Squad will remain. But he definitely made it possible for other people in other countries to look at us, and say WTF?
It's unfortunate that it's much harder to make light of our gun problem than it is that a KING, outside of a movie, is being crowned in less than 24 hours in the UK. I'm still onboard with Chris Rock though, when he said (paraphrasing), "keep the guns, sell the guns, but make bullets $500 each. That should slow them down."
As a side note, I was very happy to see that Prince Harry will be flying in, and apparently keeping the plane running, attend the coronation, and flying out! He and Meghan, the FAR cooler daughter-in-law, have the exact right idea. It's Archie's birthday, and too bad for King Failson that he planned his coronation on the same day if he REALLY wanted them there. "Hi! Right! Bye!" lol
There is not much relation to the word King now that was ascribed to it prior to 1900. Once a King could have you beheaded just because. And even a King could be beheaded.
Today royalty watching reminds me of a tv soap opera. Im into 65 months of NO tv. Not that I watched it much since my parents didnt have one until I left home.
I would like to see all the properties related to the Royal family and ran by the government maintained as mostly Wilderness. Even Roadless Wilderness. Maybe before Silly William becomes king his effimante father will continue ro advocate for the planet. As for a Warrior King, I vote for a bearded Harry and his Athena bride.
Ok. Finally was able to listen. I learned these important things...
1) You were a Savoyard
2) Wills does understand his fellow countrymen are the OGs of colonization
3) Brits half my age have connected the dots that Reagan and Thatcher had the same dirt bags writing their economic policies, making it possible for their political descendants to bob and weave as they blame everyone else for their own shite storm.
Post script...to your astute comment, Greg, that every prick in power responsible for BREXIT is gone...that was because they got the job done. They were operatives every bit as much as Manaforte and all TFG's goons. They pried the UK off Putin's neck, collected their checks, and pissed off to wherever traitors go hang with their oligarch friends. BoJo just likes the game too much to leave the stage.
As someone born to an American father and Canadian mother, but raised in Canada, I’m not going to get into one system vs the other, other than to say separating out the ceremonial from governance does have some benefits. However, I do know eliminating King Charles, as the Canadian head of state, is not as simple as simply saying, “begone with ye.” The Canadian Constitution—the one in the Commonwealth Realm I’m most familiar with— would have to be rewritten (notwithstanding that our Constitution could certainly stand some editing). My daughter, who works for the Canadian Department of Justice, tells me when we have discussed the possibility of turning Canada into a republic, that doing so would be a major undertaking when it came to the courts. And then there’s my sister, who still lives in the same town in Ontario where she went to school. Trust me when I say she’s hardly a Union Jack waving royalist. Nevertheless, she’s virulently adamant that Canada retain its current system of government to reduce as much as possible Canada ending up like the United States. My sentiment is more restrained, along the lines of: if it ain’t broke don’t try to fix it.
The fact that Charles requires two servants to get him dressed reminded me instantly of my fascination with Downton Abbey and the lord’s being dressed by a valet (a word which we pronounce more French than they). The way the British elite lived a century ago is so interesting to me that I confess to having watched much of Downton Abbey several times. But the monarchy? As my wife sits next to me marveling at the dress rehearsal for the coronation playing on the TV, I’m sitting here bored by it and reading Greg Olear. As a Monty Python fan, I think that the British tolerance for the absurd is a hugely important factor in the consideration of our differences. Maybe living under a powerless king speaks better of a society than living with daily mass shootings.
The “guns” will taint our country more than any other issue (except maybe racism) in the eyes of the world. And rightly so…
On another point. Charles is very invested in the environment and climate issues, not unimportant in my eyes. I’m old and I do remember when Charles and Camilla first dated. It seemed obvious that she was the one, but the in-charge royals would have none of it. So, many disasters later, have some happy ever after…
Keep in mind that when William the Conqueror landed on the south coast, Harold was way up north England repelling a Viking invasion, and then a 3 day forced March to Hastings before the battle. The troops and Harold were wiped out before the battle, bad timing as they say. Interesting footnote that Harold would have crushed William if not for the exhaustion of his troops, and the English language would still mainly be bastard GERMAN.
One of my relatives did a family genealogy and concluded that my family are direct descendants of William the C. Ha! People - it seems - still wish to come from noble linages, with few wishing to make conversation about the many peasants making up the majority of their ancestors.
In the future, will the descendants of Smith, Wesson, and Colt, along with Kalashnikov have bragging rights? (They already may, for all I know.) Absurdities upon absurdities abound for the status conscious. We are all from Africa, with humankind arising approximately 300,000 years ago. Will humans survive for another 300,000 years? Would love to travel back and forth in time. . .
What a wonderful, thoughtful writer Greg is. Thank you for sharing your insights.
Ok...your writing, fab, as always. But, given what you quoted of your guest's "insights" I haven't even listened yet, and already I am thinking, Who the fuck is this British jamoke lecturing Americans about the indignities of colonization???? WTAF?
So, forgive me for self-promoting, but today my co-host and I dropped a podcast with our predictions for why Chaz's reign will be short, and how it cosmically serves to tie up the end of the nasty legerdemain of genocide dressed up as free markets, and why royal watching actually can be instructive for a few reasons, including not just Schadenfreude, but an interest in watching genocidal empires collapse.
And now I will fix a cuppa and set my upper lip so I can sit through being told off by John Bull. (Although, if you can make Scaramucci compelling, and you did, then this guy has a prayer.)
Ox
The British monarchy and America's guns are ceremonial instruments of rituals that desperately need to evolve. We can't quite let go of them, in spite of the suffering that they cause.
The most descriptive and accurate word in this piece about the new king is "failson." It encapsulates absolutely everything about this weekend and what it all means. "Milquetoast" is a very close second, but "failson" wins every time. As far as I'm concerned, the Monarchy died with Elizabeth. There is no one of her heirs that is as worthy of the title, or as dedicated to the job, as was she. So, yeah, good luck to King Failson and Queen Rottweiler.
I LOVE people mocking with TRUTH, the United States. Tongue in cheek or not, we have, in seven short years, become an objectively, "shithole country." No, THAT MAN didn't start it, but he removed the topsoil and made it possible for the underground THINGS to come alive, before he covered the ground again with his own special brand of bullshit fertilizer to keep it growing. He may or may not be the nominee again, but the Bullshit Squad will remain. But he definitely made it possible for other people in other countries to look at us, and say WTF?
It's unfortunate that it's much harder to make light of our gun problem than it is that a KING, outside of a movie, is being crowned in less than 24 hours in the UK. I'm still onboard with Chris Rock though, when he said (paraphrasing), "keep the guns, sell the guns, but make bullets $500 each. That should slow them down."
As a side note, I was very happy to see that Prince Harry will be flying in, and apparently keeping the plane running, attend the coronation, and flying out! He and Meghan, the FAR cooler daughter-in-law, have the exact right idea. It's Archie's birthday, and too bad for King Failson that he planned his coronation on the same day if he REALLY wanted them there. "Hi! Right! Bye!" lol
Amusing topic, worthy of historical discussion Greg, I’ll have to check back on what this wanker has to say about British superiority...
There is not much relation to the word King now that was ascribed to it prior to 1900. Once a King could have you beheaded just because. And even a King could be beheaded.
Today royalty watching reminds me of a tv soap opera. Im into 65 months of NO tv. Not that I watched it much since my parents didnt have one until I left home.
I would like to see all the properties related to the Royal family and ran by the government maintained as mostly Wilderness. Even Roadless Wilderness. Maybe before Silly William becomes king his effimante father will continue ro advocate for the planet. As for a Warrior King, I vote for a bearded Harry and his Athena bride.
Note: Consortuim News has a great letter from Julian Assange to KIng Charles.
Ok. Finally was able to listen. I learned these important things...
1) You were a Savoyard
2) Wills does understand his fellow countrymen are the OGs of colonization
3) Brits half my age have connected the dots that Reagan and Thatcher had the same dirt bags writing their economic policies, making it possible for their political descendants to bob and weave as they blame everyone else for their own shite storm.
Post script...to your astute comment, Greg, that every prick in power responsible for BREXIT is gone...that was because they got the job done. They were operatives every bit as much as Manaforte and all TFG's goons. They pried the UK off Putin's neck, collected their checks, and pissed off to wherever traitors go hang with their oligarch friends. BoJo just likes the game too much to leave the stage.
As someone born to an American father and Canadian mother, but raised in Canada, I’m not going to get into one system vs the other, other than to say separating out the ceremonial from governance does have some benefits. However, I do know eliminating King Charles, as the Canadian head of state, is not as simple as simply saying, “begone with ye.” The Canadian Constitution—the one in the Commonwealth Realm I’m most familiar with— would have to be rewritten (notwithstanding that our Constitution could certainly stand some editing). My daughter, who works for the Canadian Department of Justice, tells me when we have discussed the possibility of turning Canada into a republic, that doing so would be a major undertaking when it came to the courts. And then there’s my sister, who still lives in the same town in Ontario where she went to school. Trust me when I say she’s hardly a Union Jack waving royalist. Nevertheless, she’s virulently adamant that Canada retain its current system of government to reduce as much as possible Canada ending up like the United States. My sentiment is more restrained, along the lines of: if it ain’t broke don’t try to fix it.
The fact that Charles requires two servants to get him dressed reminded me instantly of my fascination with Downton Abbey and the lord’s being dressed by a valet (a word which we pronounce more French than they). The way the British elite lived a century ago is so interesting to me that I confess to having watched much of Downton Abbey several times. But the monarchy? As my wife sits next to me marveling at the dress rehearsal for the coronation playing on the TV, I’m sitting here bored by it and reading Greg Olear. As a Monty Python fan, I think that the British tolerance for the absurd is a hugely important factor in the consideration of our differences. Maybe living under a powerless king speaks better of a society than living with daily mass shootings.
The “guns” will taint our country more than any other issue (except maybe racism) in the eyes of the world. And rightly so…
On another point. Charles is very invested in the environment and climate issues, not unimportant in my eyes. I’m old and I do remember when Charles and Camilla first dated. It seemed obvious that she was the one, but the in-charge royals would have none of it. So, many disasters later, have some happy ever after…