The Queen at the WI

She didn't ask to be born into that lifestyle and lifetime job any more than any of us could choose to be born to any other life than our own.
She's there. She fulfils the role she was born and does it well. She's OK by me.

I think she might win the "Jam" making competition, Floradora9! After all, with all her privileges, she's quite jammy.

To be honest, I think the Queen has managed to escape a lot of the criticism that the younger Royals get because when she was young, the press didn't dare to report her foibles. That has given her a certain saint like status which the other Royals might have attained if the press had continued in the same vein. That said, I like having a Royal Family as long as they don't "rule" the country. No amount of money would make me lose my right to privacy, losing my freedom to act as I choose, etc. I think that the money they receive is more than paid for by that alone. They also bring in a lot of revenue and are, by and large, great ambassadors for the UK. Every "Head of State" system had its pros and cons. The biggest drawback I can see is that you don't get to put a cross in a box. However, public feeling can make changes to the way the monarchy runs because ultimately the Royals don't wish to become obsolete.

I don't think the Royal Family in general is revered, but I think the Queen has gained a great deal of admiration, particularly during the later years of her life, for her work ethic, unfailing commitment to her duty as she sees it, and personal integrity. She has held the line. No breath of scandal has ever touched her, unlike many of her family, and the number who gain actively from being Royal has been drastically reduced.
I would imagine she is very concerned about the increasing chaos generated by Brexit, by the way some MPs, some of Her Majesty's Government and some members of the public are conducting themselves, and has chosen to express her concern by making a very rare and very dignified public comment through the medium of the WI.
Perfect.

Not everyone reveres the queen or think she is above criticism , what I find uncomfortable is using her age to speak of her visit to a WI meeting , should women over 90 not attend the WI ? What age is acceptable to start referring to a woman as elderly ? 70, 80 m 90 ?

Well said PECS. My views entirely.

What?! The Queen farts?! I've fainted!

I did not use the phrase 'elderly celebrity' as a means to get anything!
I was trying to illustrate why I do not percieve the queen as having any more wonderful attributes than any other elderly celebrity who also make appearances at various WI ( or other) events!
What I really find uncomfortable is how the RF , Q in particular, are revered and almost percieved as perfection & certainly above criticism, by some folk. She is a mortal like the rest of us! She farts too!

Conflating different issues I think.

And how does calling the queen ‘an elderly celebrity ‘ help you get what you want ? When the tide turns it can cause harm

The queen is old. She is well-known.
Therefore she is an elderly celebrity.
I don't believe that it shows great respect to make patronising comments about playing tea parties or calling her queenie.
I don't make a fuss about these points because I don't care enough. My feelings are neutral. I feel no passion about a part of society that does not impact directly on my life.
On GN we have different views and different ways of expressing those views. Isn't that what it's about?

annie it is not, in my opinion, insulting to call someone an elderly (93 is just that) celebrity ( a well known & feted person) ! She is both those things! I refer to my 94yr old aunt as an elderly aunt. It is just an accurate description. Poor pld June Whitfield was also an " elderly celebrity " ..no insult at all!

Thank you but I stick with what I say about passion.
Where would we be today if the suffragettes had behaved as they were told? If they had asked nicely for what they wanted? Passion is necessary, especially when it looks as if it's the only route to achieve what we want.
Annie the tide is turning!!

Surely one can be a republican without referring to the queen as ‘an elderly celebrity’ , what has age to do with it ?
Can one not be passionate without being personal ?

Indeed you have mcem which proves it is possible. One can be nice and honest and passionate about causes. One does not preclude the other.
A measured well constructed comment is far more likely to gain support than a diatribe.

Not enough of your countrymen agreed with you mcem

My feelings towards the Royal family are neutral.

I am a Scot, which does not make me by definition a hater of the English. Some I like very much, some I loathe.
Like many of my countrymen I believe that independence is the only logical way forward for Scotland and that Westminster has, historically and currently, treated us appallingly.

I believe my comments have been couched in 'polite language' but won't buy into the philosophy that being 'nice' is more important than being honest.
Different priorities!
When we feel we have been blatantly put down and ignored we have the right to object and it's only fair to point out that we feel rather more than 'uncomfortable and insulted'.

I don't always agree with paddy but prefer to read the posts of someone who is passionate rather than namby- pamby.
You may well disagree with what I say, as is your right, but I believe that I expressed my views without contempt and actually displayed relatively good manners!

jalima she is a figurehead without power. Just like any celeb who , for example, is an ambassador for a charity. They do good stuff in raising the profile of a charity/ organisation. A few actually do things privately , which is great but much of the hard work is done by the unsung workers behind the scenes. Similar for the RF.

I have read * paddyanns* post above twice just now. I am not sure why people feel so strongly about it. I do not feel she said anything anti English in it. It is certainly a republican stance.
The queen attending WI or any other function and being "lovely" is just her job! Paddyann may not know if HMQ purred to DC .. but none of us know anything else about her either..just what is filtered throgh the well oiled PR team and what some choose to think because they are fans.

Nasty vitriolic comments such as yours paddyann make me less likely to pay attention to your comments on other topics which is a shame. Your thinly veiled contempt for people and posters who you don’t agree with make me feel uncomfortable and insulted. They may be your opinions but they could have been couched in more polite language.
Kindness and good manners cost nothing and make the world a more pleasant place in which to live.

I DONT HATE THE ENGLISH...I hate WESTMINSTER ,I dont agree with the monarchy ,I dont think calling Lizzie an elderly celebrity is insulting in fact I could call her a lot worse .
I didn't vote for her or any of her hangers on .I find it offensive to be called her "subject" I owe neither her nor her family anything, least of all respect .If you dont like my opinion then I'm sad to say that is YOUR problem not mine ,I wont be changing my opinion to suit you

elderly celebrity

Well, I have never heard our Head of State, the Head of the Commonwealth, called that before.

Whatever anyone thinks of the monarchial system that is a breathtakingly insulting way to refer to the Queen.

I don't believe Paddyann "hates the English". She may disagree with us politically but that is not hatred.

Would I moan about a Head of State that I had voted for? Perhaps, but in the full knowledge that if they were not cutting the mustard then I can vote them out at the next election. There is not a thing I can do about the Royal Family. The line of succession is fixed regardless of the quality of the individuals concerned.
Would I prefer a say in who is to be head of state? Yes.
Will I get one? No.
I also dislike the system but don’t waste my time liking or disliking members of the RF. I will never know them well enough to have an informed opinion.

I find that a strange way of thinking Anniebach. If one believes in something it doesn't matter whether it affects one personally or not. Thats how great changes are made.