Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Syt]

The last Dark Ages in Britain lasted 200 or 300 years. I look forward to welcoming the isles back into the community in the late 2200s, provided rising sea levels have left enough of them above water.

[Valmy]

In Northern Ireland, it seems the raving lunatics are on the side of staying with Britain. I am not even sure how loud the Catholic side is about joining the Republic because you just can't hear them in all this noise from this far out.

My father was just there. He said it was kind of scary, a real tinderbox. Brexit just proves terrorism doesn't work, because clearly the English don't mind at all being bombed.

I mean they had finally resolved the Irish question after 800 years just to blow it all up after 20 short years.

[Valmy]

If Brexit is cancelled, there'll be the devil to pay.

There already is the devil to pay.

[Tamas]

My father was just there. He said it was kind of scary, a real tinderbox

How do you mean? People being pissed at the prospect of a hard border?

There's literally no mainstream coverage of NI in England, apart from the mention of the political standstill there when it comes up in an English context, like PM BoJo dropping by there.

[OttoVonBismarck]

And while all of this is going on, the monarch is silent. What, pray tell, is the point of having a monarch, if she is not supposed to step in at what very well could be the imminent destruction of her realm?

I mean she's a figure head, while I fully know she retains vast and "unusable" powers, if she tried to step in she'd likely be deposed within the day. At the end of the day, Britain has a Parliament, which can stop BoJo or Brexit at any time. The Parliament was rightly elected by the people. It is choosing not to act if this event occurs. It isn't the place of an unelected (and not particularly qualified) person like Elizabeth II to take a particular stance or action.

[Valmy]

How do you mean? People being pissed at the prospect of a hard border?

Yes. Pissed and terrified.

The Orange Order people were out marching around still and it was weeks after the Battle of the Boyne anniversary.

[Tamas]

And while all of this is going on, the monarch is silent. What, pray tell, is the point of having a monarch, if she is not supposed to step in at what very well could be the imminent destruction of her realm?

I mean she's a figure head, while I fully know she retains vast and "unusable" powers, if she tried to step in she'd likely be deposed within the day. At the end of the day, Britain has a Parliament, which can stop BoJo or Brexit at any time. The Parliament was rightly elected by the people. It is choosing not to act if this event occurs. It isn't the place of an unelected (and not particularly qualified) person like Elizabeth II to take a particular stance or action.

Yes but then she should just be deposed. Even a figurehead President in normal democracies have more influence on events than her.

[Valmy]

And while all of this is going on, the monarch is silent. What, pray tell, is the point of having a monarch, if she is not supposed to step in at what very well could be the imminent destruction of her realm?

I mean she's a figure head, while I fully know she retains vast and "unusable" powers, if she tried to step in she'd likely be deposed within the day. At the end of the day, Britain has a Parliament, which can stop BoJo or Brexit at any time. The Parliament was rightly elected by the people. It is choosing not to act if this event occurs. It isn't the place of an unelected (and not particularly qualified) person like Elizabeth II to take a particular stance or action.

Yes but then she should just be deposed. Even a figurehead President in normal democracies have more influence on events than her.

Plenty of normal democracies in Euroland also have figurehead monarchs. You should probably be comparing her to them.

[Tamas]

And while all of this is going on, the monarch is silent. What, pray tell, is the point of having a monarch, if she is not supposed to step in at what very well could be the imminent destruction of her realm?

I mean she's a figure head, while I fully know she retains vast and "unusable" powers, if she tried to step in she'd likely be deposed within the day. At the end of the day, Britain has a Parliament, which can stop BoJo or Brexit at any time. The Parliament was rightly elected by the people. It is choosing not to act if this event occurs. It isn't the place of an unelected (and not particularly qualified) person like Elizabeth II to take a particular stance or action.

Yes but then she should just be deposed. Even a figurehead President in normal democracies have more influence on events than her.

Plenty of normal democracies in Euroland also have figurehead monarchs. You should probably be comparing her to them.

They are useless as well.

[Tamas]

In a larger cultural context, it is very silly that most people are at the very least tolerant with the concept of such monarchies, where, basically, people get legal advantages via birth.

[Valmy]

They are useless as well.

I disagree they are entirely useless, particularly with Elizabeth II as she is the figurehead of several other countries and she provides a unifying symbol to the increasingly creaky union.

But hey if they want to behead all of them that would be fine to.

[saskganesh]

These kind of neutered monarchies are living symbols. They help to create social cohesion, maintain the historical memory and are a boon to tourism. Great for art too. If there was no Elizabeth Regina, there would have been no Sex Pistols.

[Maladict]

These kind of neutered monarchies are living symbols. They help to create social cohesion, maintain the historical memory and are a boon to tourism. Great for art too. If there was no Elizabeth Regina, there would have been no Sex Pistols.

Exactly. Plus they seem to be pretty useful on trade missions, so they kind of pay for themselves.

And they take care of a lot of ribbon cutting and other nonsense that the PM then doesn't have to deal with.

[Zanza]

I don't want to presume what's right for other countries, but for my own, I can just say "Long live the Republic!"

[OttoVonBismarck]

I don't have any use for monarchs; but I can't put any especial "blame" on QEIi for not interceding. She's behaving exactly as Britain's constitutional system expects--there is a political process ongoing and she is not part of political processes, at least when it comes to making independent decisions.