Re: The Queens been given a pay rise
http://memelogic.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/meme-of-english-monarchy.html
The meme of the English monarchy.
Stockholm syndrome on a national scale?
How can we explain that, even today in England and across the globe, in a world supposedly holding democratic and humanist values, people celebrate a marriage representing so many anti-democratic values?
Indeed, we have here a unelected royal family both head of State and head of the Church. What kind of democracy is this? However, these titles are symbolic and the reality is that the power of the English monarchy is theoretically rather limited. Thus, one can say that this does not directly threaten the English democracy.
From a philosophical and political standpoint one can also ask why the duties of head of State and head of Church are still linked together. Indeed Protestantism is a state religion in England, so much for the principles of separation of church and state !
Finally, from a humanistic point of view I see two problems with this marriage.
First, the religious aspect of marriage, which in a modern society misrepresents the people's differences in worship and promotes specific religious view over others. Could we hope for the royals to have a secular wedding ?
Then, there is the military uniform of the prince which is, surely a symbol of power but also anything but a symbol of peace and openness.
So what have we here? Literally billions of people celebrating symbols such as the monarchy, a symbol of dictatorship, religion, a symbol of blind faith and discrimination of cult, and the army, a symbol of death.
So what is it about this wedding that appeals so much to people?
Of course marriage is a strong symbol of love, family and prosperity. The military uniform gives the groom an image of a powerful man. The bride's dress represents innocence and fertility. The religious set provides a divine and magic finish. In short, we have a large event bringing together traditional folk values and aspirations, in other words a true fairy tale.
Ultimately what remains of the real monarchy is a masquerade, a TV series in which members of the royal family are actors and whose audience just want more and more. Strangely it seems to have little importance to people to know that there were reasons why the Kings were dethroned, to know that people have turned against those who kept them in misery or sent them to war and unnecessary death or even massacred them for what they believed.
It seems the English people suffer from amnesia. They can not help but sympathize with their former oppressor. The monarchy was like a parent who beats you up and says it's for your own good. After all these years of torment, you resigned, you have learned to ignore your tragic fate and you start to love those rare moments when your oppressor hands you a bit of food. But today is different, now the beast has been tamed and now that the monster's hands are tied, it looks like a harmless lamb that everyone wants as a pet. Who today would want to have Will and Kate decapitated?
Well, In the Arab world today, kings are not in fashion !
Is this a somewhat sadistic revenge of the people on their executioner? Now is the time when monarchs are caught at their own game, they've become the toys of a super-powerful company which can afford to keep up the royal doll house in which the puppets perform, controlled by the inextricable strings of the system.
Finally, is it acceptable that innocent children are forced by the sovereign people to become their puppets?
Wouldn't it be reasonable to end this big royal "reality show" and let the beast die in peace?
