• Sibbo@sopuli.xyz
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    10 months ago

    Is this good or bad news? I don’t know much about the UK, but I thought he was kinda unpopular.

    • ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ 帝@feddit.uk
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      10 months ago

      I want to see the monarchy abolished but don’t wish him personally any great ill will. He’s more of a meddler in affairs of state than his mother and has been nonce-adjacent too many times for me to trust his judgement but this brings me no joy - too many friends getting cancer at the moment.

    • ricecake@sh.itjust.works
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      10 months ago

      Generally it’s considered bad when people have cancer.

      The monarchy has no real power, and they’re no worse at wealth hoarding than any other billionaire, so it’s vaguely uncouth to be happy he has cancer.

      • IchNichtenLichten@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        The monarchy has no real power

        "The Queen successfully lobbied the government to change a draft law in order to conceal her “embarrassing” private wealth from the public, according to documents discovered by the Guardian.

        A series of government memos unearthed in the National Archives reveal that Elizabeth Windsor’s private lawyer put pressure on ministers to alter proposed legislation to prevent her shareholdings from being disclosed to the public.

        Following the Queen’s intervention, the government inserted a clause into the law granting itself the power to exempt companies used by “heads of state” from new transparency measures.

        The arrangement, which was concocted in the 1970s, was used in effect to create a state-backed shell corporation which is understood to have placed a veil of secrecy over the Queen’s private shareholdings and investments until at least 2011."

        https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/feb/07/revealed-queen-lobbied-for-change-in-law-to-hide-her-private-wealth

        • ricecake@sh.itjust.works
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          10 months ago

          Aight. I meant more like “the monarchy can’t order the military to detain people, or unilaterally pass decrees against the will of the people”.

          Asking parliament to pass an abusive law isn’t the same type of abuse of power that would justify wanting a monarch to die in the short term in my view.

          Charles is not Putin. I’m pretty firmly in the “overthrow the monarchy camp”, but that’s different from wanting an essentially harmless figurehead of an old man to have cancer.

          • IchNichtenLichten@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            Charles is not Putin. I’m pretty firmly in the “overthrow the monarchy camp”, but that’s different from wanting an essentially harmless figurehead of an old man to have cancer.

            Who wants him to have cancer? You said they have no real power, I showed that they do. Obviously they can’t have people thrown out of windows but that wasn’t the point I was making.

            • ricecake@sh.itjust.works
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              10 months ago

              I was more saying we seem to have different definitions of “real power”. You’re not wrong that they have influence, but the influence they have doesn’t seem like “dictator level” power. Simple disagreement of terms.

              Given the context of someone asking “is it good the man has cancer”, people disagreeing with “there’s no real reason to want him to have cancer, so no” are easily mistaken as suggesting that maybe it is good he has cancer.

              • IchNichtenLichten@lemmy.world
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                10 months ago

                “real power” to me, is being able to make the government craft legislation that suits you. I can’t do that, can you?

                • HeartyBeast@kbin.social
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                  10 months ago

                  Yeh, I can actually - I can write to my MP, go and see them in the local surgery and persuade them to table questions and even draft legislation It’s quite cool.

                • ricecake@sh.itjust.works
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                  10 months ago

                  Yes, we’ve already determined that we have different definitions.

                  To me, real power would be if they could just choose not to disclose the information.

      • Sibbo@sopuli.xyz
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        10 months ago

        Sure, death in itself is never a good thing. But since there is only one way for him to end his reign, you can’t really wish him away without wishing him harm.

        • ricecake@sh.itjust.works
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          10 months ago

          Well, if the Brits voted to not have a monarchy, they could just kick him out.
          I don’t think the British monarchs in the current day need to be removed from office the way the French did it.

    • Flax@feddit.uk
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      10 months ago

      He is only unpopular with the terminally online. At most, people are apathetic/don’t really have an opinion of him

    • Skua@kbin.social
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      10 months ago

      He’s primarily unpopular with those of us that are against the monarchy as an institution rather than because of the man himself. If he dies that doesn’t get rid of the institution, it just changes which rich prick currently has the job

    • smeg@feddit.uk
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      10 months ago

      You can hate someone and what they stand for without wanting them to get cancer. Call me an old bleeding heart, but I don’t think it’s very healthy to wish death on anyone.

      • jerkface@lemmy.ca
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        10 months ago

        When the system of government is literally based on succession through death, you kind of open yourself up to such questions.

        • Sibbo@sopuli.xyz
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          10 months ago

          Yeah, that’s the problem here, right? If you wish him away, there is only one way.

          • anothermember@lemmy.zip
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            10 months ago

            It’s not the only way, he could abdicate for one thing. There’s the possibility of democratic abolition of the monarchy (but if you go by opinion polls it doesn’t have enough public support at the moment).

          • smeg@feddit.uk
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            10 months ago

            You can wish for the abolition of the monarchy (in a non-guillotine sort of way)

    • GreatAlbatross@feddit.ukM
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      10 months ago

      People on the whole don’t like the idea of that much wealth in one location, or the way that there are lots of loopholes and exemptions for them that commoners don’t receive.

      However, opinions of the bottom in the seat vary.
      The late queen was generally well regarded as a reasonably nice person.
      And the current king is getting nods of approval for championing environmental issues, and the way that he’s been very open about his recent medical issues (which hopefully will drive more prostate-holders to get checked).

      • Sibbo@sopuli.xyz
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        10 months ago

        Imagine not being able to ask if it’s good or bad news that a politician resigns. The fact that there is only one way for him to quit doesn’t mean you can’t be happy about him quitting.