Canadian Heritage Minister James Moore defended the visit Monday in a conference call with reporters, saying the Tories are trying to keep the costs down. “Of the four visits we’ve had, this one will be least expensive for taxpayers.”
He said Canadians should feel honoured to be able to celebrate the “Diamond Jubilee” of a reigning Queen, or the 60th anniversary of the monarch ascending the throne.
The 2009 visit cost of Charles and Camilla cost Canadian taxpayers $1.7-million. A 2010 visit of Queen Elizabeth cost $2.8-million. The 2011 visit by Prince William and Kate cost $1.2-million.
These price tags do not include the security costs that Canadian governments must bear to secure the visit.
The Conservative government is currently chopping $5.2-billion from Ottawa’s budget over several years, a measure which will see at least 12,000 public servants lose their jobs and hundreds of programs trimmed or axed.
Of course, Steve probably curtsied. And Peter shurely did!
The queen should be shown the same degree of respect as anyone her age. No more and no less. She is no different from any one of us except for the luck of birth.
Today is to celebrate the birthday of a great (though currently politically misguided) and independent country. While our Constitution may refer to the land as a “Dominion”, the term is about as anachronistic as Christians turning Leviticus in the old testament for guidance… it just doesn’t “work” in modern times.
And technically, yes, we are a Constitutional monarchy and several thousands – if not millions – of us go completely ga-ga at the notion of the visit of the grandkid of a foreign monarch and his hot wifey. But this still does not negate the fact that the monarchy, like the term “Dominion” is an anachronism beyond belief.
And I won’t even start in on the Judea-Christian roots of the term. You all can guess my thoughts about that!
Anyhow, happy Canada Day, my friends! And it is with hope that on the arrival of next year’s 145th birthday, the political pendulum will have begun to swing away from the current state of monarchism, militarism and hyper-conservatism
Today is to celebrate the birthday of a great (though currently politically misguided) and independent country. While our Constitution may refer to the land as a “Dominion”, the term is about as anachronistic as Christians turning Leviticus in the old testament for guidance… it just doesn’t “work” in modern times.
And technically, yes, we are a Constitutional monarchy and several thousands – if not millions – of us go completely ga-ga at the notion of the visit of the grandkid of a foreign monarch and his hot wifey. But this still does not negate the fact that the monarchy, like the term “Dominion” is an anachronism beyond belief.
And I won’t even start in on the Judea-Christian roots of the term. You all can guess my thoughts about that!
Anyhow, happy Canada Day, my friends! And it is with hope that on the arrival of next year’s 145th birthday, the political pendulum will have begun to swing away from the current state of monarchism, militarism and hyper-conservatism
I detest hero-worship in any form… and the fawning over the “royal” visit is the epitome of hero worship!
Not that I am implying in any way that they’re heroes at all but they occupy the same pantheon as movie and sports celebs. They are false heroes who get paid more than most of us can even imagine, enjoy all of the trappings of celebrity and do precious little to deserve it in real terms.
PLUS I have always taken offense to the fact that a foreign monarch is our Head of State!
PLUS, we taxpayers are going to get dinged at all levels of government for the costs associated with this visit!
I was going to keep my trap shut about this – I have cut back on the blogging a bit to give my ranting a rest – but I HAD to post something after seeing THIS:
HIS OWN EFFING FLAG???
WTF? Who authorised this? Who paid for it? WHO?
Oh. Yeah.
The flag is a testament to the special bond between Canada and the Royal Family and pays tribute to our shared history, traditions and institutions. It will be flown with great pride throughout the upcoming Royal Tour by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge,” Harper said in an announcement.
Hmmm… maybe book the Thursday off too and head off to Montréal until they leave.
Of course, The Robot is drooling WD-40…
Canadians hold The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in very high esteem and look forward to welcoming them as they embark on their first official Royal Tour as newlyweds,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a statement. “The couple’s decision to visit Canada first is a testament to our country’s close relationship with the Crown and Royal Family, and an opportunity for all Canadians to take pride in our traditions, history, and institutions.”
Well, THIS Canadian does NOT hold them in high esteem. NOR does he welcome them anymore than I would welcome any other visitor to Canada. The ONLY close relationship I have with the royals is the unfortunate fact that there’s an old lady’s face on the coins in my pocket. AND MAYBE IT IS TIME TO DUMP SOME ANTIQUATED AND USELESS INSTITUTIONS!!!
Man, I’m a sonofabitch today! Must be the killer toothache that I have had for the past few weeks… off to my first root canal on Wednesday. Yay.
I have commented a coupleof times about Canada’s attachment to the archaic institution that is the monarchy of the United Kingdom.
The Ottawa Citizen says that:
Canadians pay about $50 million a year — about $1.53 per person — to maintain the monarchy, a figure on a par with the $1.43 we pay for the National Gallery of Canada, and significantly less that the $2.45 each shells out to keep the Senate warm.
Robert Finch, the Dominion chairman of the Monarchist League of Canada, argues that the monarchy brings political stability to Canada.
“It’s an institution that has given us a good system of government for generations and also provides us a symbolic sense of unity. That national unity and political stability that comes with it should be reason enough alone to want to maintain it.”
“Having that non-partisan head of state in the Queen, represented by the Governor General, was kind of like a neutral referee,” he says. “That’s the perfect textbook example of a monarchy working. The system stood the test.”
Finch calls this figure “peanuts” and “a drop in the bucket.”
“I’m a tax-paying citizen as well,” he says, “and we always begrudge spending money, but $50 million is not a lot.
It is often misleading to break down large expenditures to a per capita number. It is used primarily to either control for population – like what you see in solid waste stats, for instance, or to diminish the importance of a given number.
But I don’t know about you, but $50 million is not exactly “peanuts”, as the Monarchist League fellow claims. Figgering $200 K a unit, that money would set up 250 low-income houses. It would set up thousands of Canadian kids with hockey equipment. It would feed thousands of hungry families for a year.
The list goes on.
Finch crows with pleasure while stating that last year’s parliamentary crisis was a perfect example of the usefulness of the monarchy.
Poppycock! Any duly elected parliamentary president could have served the same function. And at a far lower cost than the 50 mill that the monarchy is costing us! In any case, having an appointed representative of a foreign monarch making critical, nation-changing decisions spits in the face of democracy.
Charles and the royal consort have met with some opposition during their visit here over the past couple of weeks. And while I despise the Bloq and the separatists with every thread of my soul, their anti-monarchist statements ring true…. though I’m disgusted by the egg throwing and general rowdiness.
Maybe we Canucks will someday cut this cord to a bygone time. But I doubt it will happen in my lifetime. In the meantime:
Friday miscellany
He's a robot...
