Organization: Queen's University at Kingston
Date: Thursday, 30 Jul 1992 12:50:11 EDT
From: Peter Gogolek <GOGOLEKP@QUCDN.QueensU.CA>
Newsgroups: can.politics
Subject: Re: God Save your Queen
 <1992Jul24.191516.6311@pandora.matrox.com> <12388@audetf>
 <1992Jul30.131756.9962@eci386.uucp>

Robert.Story@Elegant.COM replies to Francois Audet:

>In article <12388@audetf> audetf@Software.Mitel.COM (Francois Audet) writes:
>|In article (Thomas Hood) writes:
>|>If Quebecers hope to remain within the Commonwealth after
>|>separation, then it will be prudent for them to show
>|>respect for Her Majesty.
>|
>|A statement like this puzzles me. How can anyone be so ignorant about
>|life outside your little british sphere? The Quebecois, the natives
                                           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>|and the non-british-descendent canadians all couldn't care less about
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>|the Queen of England (and don't give me that Queen of Canada stuff: it
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>|doesn't work). Furthermore, the "Queen" is for a lot of people the
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>|"desuet" symbol of a PAST british imperialism over the a large part of
>|the world. Also, from what I can read on this newsgroup, a lot of
>|"british-canadian pure-wool :-)" have outgrown their need for a Queen.
>|For me, it remain a symbol past domination of one part of Canada over
>|the other.
>|
>|And why show respect? I'd respect her more if she didn't pretend to be
>|the Queen of my country.
>
>She's NOT *pretending* to be the Queen of Canada, she IS!

I think Francois is rather more accurate in his assessment of the
importance of the English Monarch to Canadians.  Certainly she is
the legal Head of State of our country, but she has none of the
qualities for such a position:  symbol of unity, overarching
moral authority, transcendence of the political fray.  That she
isn't a symbol of unity is fairly obvious.  That she lacks moral
authority in this country (I don't care to comment on the authority
she carries in the UK) is illustrated by her role in our current
constitutional disorders:  she is playing no role at all.  A
monarch worthy of the name must be active in these situations,
compare our monarch to the monarchs of Spain, Thailand, Norway,
the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark.  Our monarch does not even live
in our country.  She certainly does not transcend our political
turmoil;  if anything she is a puppet of the government in power,
arriving at its request and mouthing its words.  If you don't
think our monarch should have the three qualities (symbol,
authority, apolitical) then you'll have to tell me why we have
a monarch.  The only other reason is a sop to the remaining
people who insist on the tie to THEIR mother country and THEIR
monarch.
>
>So, what you're saying is that Quebec can be a distinct society
>but when it comes to TROC, we can go go screw OUR heritage?
>
>     [stuff deleted]

The majority of the population of this country is not of English
descent so it is false to link the Monarch to OUR heritage in CSQ;
we are descended from Irish and Ukrainians and Nigerians and
Pakistanis and Chinese.  Some may have acquired some sentimental
attachment to the Monarch but that is not the same as our heritage.

There is also the red herring about retaining the Monarch and
staying in the Commonwealth:  most of the countries of the
Commonwealth are republics.

As for insults:  when someone makes an uncomplimentary statement
about the Queen it is possibly a comment on the institution rather
than the person; when someone responds with an attack on the first
person, there is little doubt of its target and its personal nature.

Peter Gogolek
Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Newsgroups: can.politics