Bob wrote: > We do agree on the subject of royalty though, Colin. Just the thought of it > makes my American skin crawl and my Irish blood boil! One of my favorite > media moments with Queen Elizabeth was when she visited Washington about a > decade ago and an American woman was so thrilled to meet her, she gave the > Queen a great big hug! (And no, it wasn't Ashara!) The American media > reported that the incident had become a big issue back in England because *no > one* touches the Queen. I remember thinking, "Well, maybe that's true in your > castle, honey, but anything goes here in the good old U S of A!"
That's nothing to the furore that happened in Australia when the Prime Minister (was it Paul Keating?) put his hand briefly on the Queen's back to guide her - the horror! The newspapers had a field day on that one! But then Australia was in a big debate about becoming a Republic at that stage, so I think it was just another "stab in the back" as far as the Poms were concerned (no pun intended - I don't "think" Keating was holding anything sharp at the time). Personally I'm not a big fan of the Royal Family. The ones who really do make a difference (like Princess Anne) get very little credit, and the "stars" like Diana get the limelight. I was watching a British documentary tonight about something else, but one journalist interviewed made the point that it's not difficult to devote several hours a day to charities, when you've got a full-time staff of minions: nannies for the children, chefs, waiters, cleaning staff, hair stylists, beauticians, secretaries, personal assistants, etc., etc., etc. What else are you going to do all day?! And I agree with Colin - the Queen Mother is not as nice as she's made out to be, it's just that she's outlived everyone that can remember anything bad she's done! Hell - no flames from Mother England to the "cast-offs" down in the "colonies" please! My ancestors were NOT convicts (at least they never got caught) ____________________________ "To have great poets, there must be great audiences too." - Walt Whitman [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hell's Personal Photo Page: http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~hell/main/personal.htm Visit the NBLs (Natural Born Losers) at: http://www.nbls.co.nz
