‘determined to ‘do her bit’
September 11, 2022 Leave a comment
We now turn from the worst to the worthy. From the spectacle of the worst speech ever given by the worst public figure ever and from one who does not care about the American people to remembering a public figure devoted to her people and worthy of respect. We turn from a figurehead of confusion, of conformity to confusion and of coercion to conformity to a figurehead of depth, of dignity, and of the “democracy of the dead” – Queen Elizabeth II.
When I think of Queen Elizabeth, I think history: the 96 years of her embodied history and of our mother country’s history. And while some today dismiss history for preferred dining guests, aka “end of history” narratives, the narrative of history should have a permanent place at the table.
A few years ago, I picked up a book about English history. I found it to be a fascinating dinner guest and fellow passenger on the train. Reading about the English characters described, I learned of their folly and foibles, of their wise choices and their foolish ways, of their mark on history which effects today. One paragraph that Chesterton’s words above later echoes is especially meaningful to my own conservative understanding.
The following is a quote from the somewhat cheeky English History made Brief, Irreverent, and Pleasurable by Lacey Baldwin Smith.
[Tories] were the party of Edmund Burke, having a deep respect for the sanctity of history and believing that government was “a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are yest to be born.” . . . they preached Britain’s manifest destiny as the world’s greatest Empire, took up the paternalistic cause of the common man, and changed their name to the Conservative Party.
I returned to the book when I heard the news of the Queen’s passing. The book’s back cover states “The guiding principle of this book’s heretical approach is that “history is not everything that happened, but what is worth remembering about the past. . ..”. Thus, its chapters deal mainly with “Memorable History” in blocks of time over the centuries. The final chapter “The Royal Soap Opera,” recounts the achievements, personalities and idiocies of the royal family since the arrival of William the Conqueror in 1066.
The final section in The Royal Soap Opera is titled Elizabeth II (1952–) begins . . . Elizabeth came to the throne in a “blaze of glorious technicolor.” Queen Elizabeth II was the first television queen. The world began to see the “historic grandeur of royal pageantry”. But, of course, when media gets involved, all of the royal family’s foibles, failures and fractures are laid bare for the world to see. Thru all of “The Royal Soap Opera” Queen Elizabeth II symbolized the good, the stalwart, the faithful. She remained the rock of Gibraltar and a reference point for the far afloat royal misfits. (Please let me know if you know any such female public figure today.)
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, born on April 21st 1926, ascended to the throne on February 6th of 1952. Elizabeth was crowned on June 2nd 1953.
Today, we have ‘princesses’ who demand that government and others treat them royally. Princess Elizabeth, ‘determined to ‘do her bit’ was no such princess. She was “Princess auto-Mechanic” during WWII:
When the news broke that the Queen had passed, history became relevant again. Mini-histories have been presented in the media. Here’s one of the best historical perspectives:
Another reflection, regarding fame, slavery:
Give Tribute to Whom Tribute is Due
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Scenes from the media coverage of the Queen’s passing brought back memories . . .
1977. The Queen’s Silver Jubilee was celebrated throughout the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. Elizabeth ascended to the throne 25 years before.
Having ascended to the age of 25 and wanting to see the world, I traveled to England that summer with a long-time neighborhood friend. As I recall, my friend found us a travel package – airfare, transfers, hotel, tours, dinner playhouse tickets – for $750.00 each. The trip lasted ten days.
We landed at Heathrow. The tour bus drove us to a hotel in Kensington where we stayed. The things we noticed along the way: dreary weather, green everywhere, black cabs and red double-decker buses. London was decked out with Jubilee banners. The Queens’ picture was everywhere. Souvenir shops displayed all kinds of celebratory curios.
One of the first things planned for our tour group was a pub crawl in London. I remember drinking a lot of shandy and warm pints and playing darts. Our tour group would later visit Stonehenge, Bath, Stratford-on-Avon, and Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. (The Queen, of course, was busy with Jubilee preparations, so, the two of us weren’t invited in.)
We gazed on Windsor Castle from a distance and got a closeup view of Winston Churchill’s gravesite. The tour guide had given the tour group a choice: visit Churchill’s gravesite or go to Oxford. I was the only one to raise my hand for Oxford. I figured Churchill wasn’t going anywhere soon.
We attended a West London show – The Mousetrap. Afterward, we were treated to a typical English dinner of roasted meat, mashed potatoes, vegetables, stuffing, Yorkshire puddings and gravy.
As mentioned, our hotel was in Kensington. On our time off, my friend and I rode the tubes and took in St. James Park, the Mall, Hyde Park Corner, parts of Soho, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Tower Bridge, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and Parliament. We did it all and without Rick Steves.
A jolly good time.
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Where are the serious people? Time to choose.
This . . .
Or This . . .
And this, the sorry individuals who are unable to contemplate anything but their navel:
Informed Dissent:
Wait! What? I thought the world is going to end anytime now!
1200 scientist and scholars say ‘There is no climate emergency.”
The World Climate Declaration warns that climate science “should be less political, while climate policies should be more scientific.”
“Scientists should openly address uncertainties and exaggerations in their predictions of global warming, while politicians should dispassionately count the real costs as well as the imagined benefits of their policy measures,” the declaration reads.
“We should free ourselves from the naïve belief in immature climate models,” the WCD states.
O Canada:
O Illinois:
The Safe-T Act?
The so-called SAFE-T Act would end cash bail and includes 12 non-detainable offences, second-degree murder, aggravated battery and arson without bail, as well as drug-induced homicide, kidnapping, burglary, robbery, intimidation, aggravated DUI, aggravated fleeing and eluding, drug offences and threatening a public official.
Illinois law will release those charged with second-degree murder without bail – The Counter Signal
Orland Park’s mayor:
O Virginia:
“ . . . seventeen other states have previously tied their vehicle emission standards to emissions standards set by California. Now the press is playing that fact as if these states have a choice; that they must “decide” whether to follow California’s strict new rules. That is, all new cars must be electric by 2025.
But in many states, they really don’t have a choice. Because their state legislators have passed laws tying their own state emissions standards to whatever California does. It is very difficult to rescind existing law, and it may prove to be an impossibility. This is the case in Virginia, where I live. The Democratic Virginia legislature quietly tied the state’s emissions standards to California’s in 2021. Governor Youngkin is vowing to change this law, but rescinding a law is generally harder than actually passing one. This will require legislative involvement, in a state whereby the legislative body is essentially split between the two parties.”
Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste (substack.com)
The WTF WEF:
1958 book explains the current destruction of America by Communism. For example:
Step 17: “Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers’ associations. Put the party line in textbooks.”
Step 25: “Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.”
#284 – The naked Communist, by W. Cleon Skousen. – Full View | HathiTrust Digital Library
Jason Whitlock Tells it like it is, Kari Lake Joins
Cindy Wity 