God Bless The Queen Mum

[Donn]

Died in her sleep this afternoon...101 years old!

[Memphis Mike]

Aye, heres to her!

[Greg H]

Bless her, she was quite a woman.

Here's to you, Mum....

[paladin]

She wuz a true lady........

[Wild Dingo]

I always considered she was about the best of the lot :cool: Reckon she had a great innings so rest easy mum! :(
Take it easy
Shane

[ACB]

Although her death is hardly a surprise, people are very moved by it.

[htom]

It is a surprize, though, as if she was bound to go on forever and suddenly doesn't.

She did much good, from all I've heard and read, and with remarkably few complaints from anyone while doing so.

I can't help thinking of Uncle Milty, the Queen Mum, God, and a pie ....

[Tom Galyen]

To all our British friends, my deepest condolences. Your loss is deep. I pray for all of you.

[Hugh Paterson]

An interesting quote from one of our tabloids, there are only two recorded instances of people that have said somthing bad about the queen mum, Adolf Hitler, and Wallace Simpson. Says it all!
Shuggie

[Ian G Wright]

We have lost much more than we can guess.
A real Queen.

IanW

[Art Read]

You know, the one anticdote that cemented her character in my mind was when she was asked her thoughts on Buckingham Palace being hit by a bomb during the "Blitz". Her response? "Thank God! Now, at least, we can look the East End in the eye..."

[TomRobb]

Too bad she didn't remain Queen after the loss of George V. The monarchy would be in better shape perhaps.
R.I.P. Mum

[ken mcclure]

Condolences to you all who have lost her, and congratulations for having had her. One of history's greats.

[Buddy Sharpton]

There's royal, which is an accident of birth, and there's regal which has to be yearned,learned and earned-too bad it can't always be taught. I wonder who will present the shamrocks to the Irish Guards next St.Patrick's Day?. This grand lady will be much missed. God save the Queen Mum!

[Adam C]

Sure, she was nice. But it cost the British people over $4 million per year just to support this one woman! She was more expensive than the QE2! She had a personal staff of over 50 people...just for one little old lady.

As much as it pains me to hear the loss of another human, I can't beleive the decadence that this woman lived. Call it regal, splendid, majestic, whatever...people are starving in that country and she lives...well...like royalty. unacceptable.

What God given right does a person have to exalt themselves over someone else!

[Donn]

I'd say that's up to the Brits, and not us.

She always made me feel more kindly toward England.

[ 04-05-2002, 12:33 PM: Message edited by: donnwest ]

[Art Read]

Wonder how much it costs us to "maintain" one, U.S. ex-president annually? How much of that 4 million they spent on her was for "security"? What price to pay for living your entire life in service to, and in full view of, your countrymen/"subjects"? Whether or not the institution of royalty is "relevant" any longer is an issue for the British to decide for themselves, but to suggest that this "old woman" somehow didn't deserve the support of her country at the end of her life now that we of "more enlightened", modern sensibilities have come to view, (with the eager assistance of the media) the current crop of royals as somewhat "embarrasing" seems rather churlish after all she did, by example, to sustain them, and us, during darker times.

(Less than 4 million to run the QEII for a year? Seems to me I've heard of some mega-yachts that cost more than that annually. I doubt you could spend less than 4 million on just one trans-Atlantic passage with her...)

[ 04-05-2002, 01:41 PM: Message edited by: Art Read ]

[Ian G Wright]

Originally posted by Adam C:
Sure, she was nice. But it cost the British people over $4 million per year just to support this one woman!Nonsense.
The finances of the Royal family are public knowledge. I'll let you do your own research, but three things to bear in mind,
1 We make a profit from the Royal Family.
2 How much is a President?
3 The lady in question is not buried yet.

Next week we might talk again. For now watch out for thin ice,,,,,,

IanW

[Adam C]

Ian,

You may have a point about my numbers being shaky...I read an article on her life written by a british newspaper in which they tossed around large numbers and gave financial figures on the expense of supporting her. There was also a diatribe on other royal facts and figures.

They were large anyway...and as a Canadian by birth, she was my queen mum too! I carried around wallets full of money with QE2's face emblazoned on them....

Alan, You are 100% right about former presidents..another waste.

[Wild Dingo]

Okay look...

Im NOT a royal by any streach of anyones imagination... BUT... it rubs me the wrong way when someone brings in the financial at a time like this!... Geeeeez give the Brits a break!...

You may consider that she may have seemed invalid, useless, overfed, overstaffed or whatever!... BUT... To the Brits and even to royalists here in Aussie and Id guess in Canada she was the Queen mum... and a Queen in her own right!

At least have common decency and respect... as was demanded during the September attacks... to give due accord to those who are grieving!!...

She was important to the British among us!... Respect that!...

Time later AFTER she is buried to talk of financial costs excesses and whatever else... but for now Id suggest as was done back in September to back of a bit and let them grieve with respect and dignity!

Take it easy
Shane

[Andrew Craig-Bennett]

Adam, let me assure you that nobody is starving in this country; or even anywhere close to it.

We have a thing called the Welfare State, the result of a century of liberalism and socialism, which encompasses free health care and free education for all, with subsidised housing, and cash benefits payments, for those who need them.

We do not have "food stamps".

We can comfortably afford this, and a monarchy too, and we still have the world's fourth largest economy, with fewer people than the three larger ones.

[Meerkat]

IMO the British Royals more then pay for themselves if for no other reason then as a draw for the tourist industry. Who's going to show up for the changing of the guard at an empty building? People think the recent spate of royal scandals are terrible - I say they're a refreshing change from nearly 150 years of boredom since the ascension of Victoria. The royals in the 18th and parts of the 19th century (even during Victoria's tenure) where at times quite scandalous - for example, the Prince of Wales was once suspected of being Jack the Ripper! (IMO Victoria did more to trash the throne by her solitude and concessions to the gov't for 60ish years then any other monarch before or since.)

As I understand it, the Civil List which is how the royal household is funded, is compensation for all the royal properties that the government uses (at least, that's the theory i've read). Then too, the House of Windsor is rich in it's own right - HRH QE II is said to be the wealthiest woman in the world.

A beautiful, courageous, graceful and stylish woman who was a symbol of and one of the leading lights of her country for the best part of a century through times thick and thin has passed from among us and I for one am sorry to see her go and greatful that it was an easy passage.

[Wild Dingo]

too right mate... but dont old Charlie have the biggest set of wingnuts ever seen on a hooman been ever??? :D :D :D

And another thought... just what is it that they do again???

Take it easy
Shane

[JJoohhnn]

Hi;
Found this web site re: The Queen Mum :

http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page1034.asp

[oceangoddess]

I guess Adam doesn't get it. Has he been to England? Does he understand that the Royal Family, flawed and flaky as it may be, is part of the historical structure of England. Who cares what sort of shenanigans they get up to. Being a Royal is a rotten job at best, but zillions of bods flock to England to experience the "heritage" and in doing so drop phenomenal sums of money into the English coffers.

Get a life - she was a character. They are all "characters", even Charlie with the elephant ears. He and I were born in the same week about 50 miles away from each other so I can relate.

As a transplanted English person, who lived 30 years in Canada and now reside in Southern California, where I have the misfortune to drive through Simi Valley at least once a week and see the dreadful sums of money spend on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library et al, I can't imagine why Americans would have such a hard time seeing why the English support their monarchy.

At least they don't have to support lots of "ex-monarchs"..... Most of whom have questionable legacies.