Well, it sure didn't take long for this blog to get hijacked. Oh well, it's the Internet after all. Cats, narwhals, bacon, and shark week seem to dominate the cultural memes these days. But enough jockularity. Let's talk about today's throne speech and I warn you now that it's going to get a tad ranty. Speaking of which, should I be capitalizing "throne speech?" What about "queen?" Well, I didn't vote for her, so I'll go with no. That's a movie reference, btw.
Church & State
If you aren't Canadian you probably don't know that today marks the opening of the 41st, and thoroughly prorogued, Canadian Parliament. Whoop. Like the Senate, the typical pomp and ceremony was trotted out, paying homage to a simpler time when appearance was all that was needed to instill confidence in a distracted populace.
With the commencement of Parliament, the Governor General performed his yearly, and from what I can tell, only, duty by delivering a speech from the throne. Actually, that's not true. I'm being unfair. He also works very hard at not exercising his power to deny prorogation. Regardless, I find it fascinating, in the same way I find the continued existence of nobility fascinating, that our government still refers to this pontification as something the queen wrote. Sorta funny. If you'd like to read the actual speech, you can do so HERE.
I'm not going to analyze the speech's content too much - I mean, that's for the Globe and Mail or CBC or The National Post to do. Evan Solomon or Andrew Coyne can digest this piece of spin-doctory far more eloquently than I. Rather, I wanted to highlight a particular statement found at the end of the document:
May you be equal to that trust in all things and may Divine Providence guide you in your deliberations.
In fact, this isn't just part of the last paragraph, it's the final sentence. In essence, this is the parting sentiment the "queen" wants to convey to Canada's citizenry. Personally, I find the above quote somewhat galling from the point of view of a secular humanist. Now, I understand the queen is also the head of the Anglican Church, so referring to divine providence is within the province of her position (see what I sorta did there?). However, it represents a profound intrusion on the notion of a divided church and state as I'm pretty sure the queen didn't write today's speech. So, who is the PMO fooling? Well... maybe most of us.
Irrelevance
I wanted to use the theater of the throne speech as a primer for a broader discussion. I've asked this question in the past, and I think it is simply gaining in relevancy as time goes on. What practical purpose does nobility serve to a modern populace? While this question can be applied to any Royal artifact, I'm most familiar with the British Monarchy. Here are some facts:
- The 2012/13 Royal stipend (called the Sovereign Grant) was £33.3 million. Previous to April 1, 2012 the Queen received an annual salary of £7.9 million in accordance with the Civil List. Source
- Starting next year, all Royal income will be tied to 15% of the surplus revenues derived from the Crown Estates. The estates include massive tracts of land in England, Ireland, and Scotland, and are managed by an appointed committee. In 2012, the Crown Estates portfolio was worth £8.1 billion, with an annual profit of £240 million. At 15%, that's roughly £36 million syphoned directly to the Royal Family. Source
What good is that massive amount of money doing for the populace of Britain? What possible benefit could the Royal Family be realizing that outweighs the potential social good, funding like that could provide?
The notion and perpetuation of nobility is a relic that requires reformation, even abolition. Like the Senate, princes and princesses have no place in modern Canadian society, expect to act as quaint anachronisms of a cruel and feudal history. Thoughts? Disagree? I'd like to hear what you think.