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Royal Family granted new right of secrecy

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posted on Jan, 9 2011 @ 09:23 PM
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reply to post by Laurauk
 


I totally agree with you and feel the same way if the UK, Canada, Australia and NZ ever became Republics. As it is here in Australia, knowing full well the Australian Constitution, after 60 odd changes was made, the Australian politicians NEVER had it ratified by the people of Australia. That tells me how corrupt our own politicians are and the fact that we are no where near ready to even discuss the issue of becoming a Republic.

The worst part is....most Australians have no bloody idea and they will be celebrating Australia Day on the 26th January.



posted on Jan, 10 2011 @ 12:26 AM
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Honestly guys, I think we are missing the bigger picture here. Below are some lines I took from the original article, starting with the innitial post;

"The Royal Family is to be granted absolute protection from public scrutiny in a controversial legal reform designed to draw a veil of secrecy over the affairs of the Queen, Prince Charles and Prince William.


Letters, emails and documents relating to the monarch, her heir and the second in line to the throne will no longer be disclosed even if they are in the public interest.

Sweeping changes to the Freedom of Information Act will reverse advances which had briefly shone a light on the royal finances – including an attempt by the Queen to use a state poverty fund to heat Buckingham Palace – and which had threatened to force the disclosure of the Prince of Wales's prolific correspondence with ministers."

Ian Davidson, a former member of Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), told The Independent: "I'm astonished that the Government should find time to seek to cover up royal finances. When I was on the PAC what we wanted was more disclosure not less."

"Every time we examined royal finances we found extravagance and indulgence as well as abuse of expenses by junior royals.

"Everywhere we looked, there were savings to be made for the Government. This sends the wrong message about public disclosure and accountability."

In the public interest? The stories they didn't want us to know

*In 2004 the Queen asked ministers for a poverty handout to help heat her palaces but was rebuffed because they feared it would be a public relations disaster. Royal aides were told that the £60m worth of energy-saving grants were aimed at families on low incomes and if the money was given to Buckingham Palace instead of housing associations or hospitals it could lead to "adverse publicity" for the Queen and the government.

*A "financial memorandum" formalising the relationship between the sovereign and ministers set out tough terms on how the Queen can spend the £38.2m handed over by Parliament each year to pay for her staff and occupied palaces.

*The Queen requested more public money to pay for the upkeep of her crumbling palaces while allowing minor royals and courtiers to live in rent-free accommodation.

*As early as 2004 Sir Alan Reid, the Keeper of the Privy Purse, had unsuccessfully put the case to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for a substantial increase in the £15m-a-year grant to maintain royal buildings.

*The Palace planned to go ahead with refurbishing and renting the apartment of Diana, Princess of Wales at Kensington Palace after it had lain empty since her death in 1997.

*A letter exchange revealed a tussle over who has control of £2.5m gained from the sale of Kensington Palace land. Ministers said it belonged to the state, while Buckingham Palace said it belonged to the Queen.
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posted on Jan, 11 2011 @ 01:11 AM
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Originally posted by Nicorette
reply to post by DimensionalDetective
 


Yes, you're right. But American hypocrisy is usually very transparent and obvious (except to Americans). But these Brits are in the EU and I have to live in the EU with them and their horrible corrupt police state.

quote]

Just for the record, the majoritory of the British don't want to be in the EU, you can keep it to yourself as far as we are concerned.
You are correct that we live in a corrupt police state, but guess what? We, the people, didn't ask for it, we are the victims of it.
Just out of curiosity, how does our corrupt police state effect you?
As far as I am aware, the EU constantly effects the British people, I am not aware of how the British people effect the other members of the EU?
In my opinion, you are comming across as an ill informed bigot.

To get back onto topic (sorry about that, OP), The British Royal Family is more than just there to bring in tourists.
The Windsor family wasn't always called Windsor, it was changed, The house of Windsor comes from the House of Guelph, one of the Black Nobility.
I personally believe the British Royal family hide behind the curtain of daft harmlessness.
They should, IMO, be disolved, and they certainly should not be given any more privacy than the rest of the UK gets.



posted on Jan, 11 2011 @ 02:12 PM
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reply to post by NonKonphormist
 





Its the way it is and we can't change it. Why would you want to just be another crappy rock on the planet? the royals spice it up



posted on Jan, 11 2011 @ 11:22 PM
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Originally posted by Freeborn
reply to post by Anam Gra
 


Blowing a defenceless 79 year old man up along with his 14 year old nephew, a 15 year old crew boy and an 83 year old woman is glorious?


There is no statute of limitations in war.Admiral of the Fleet The Rt. Hon. Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC, FRS, né Prince Louis of Battenberg was a legitimate military target.And he got precisely what he deserved.The only one I feel sorry for is the eh...... "crew" boy.

Mountbottom should have gone on holidays on a different island.He must have thought Ireland was one of his family's colonies.His demise made a lot of Indians very happy.

I hear qe2 intends paying Ireland a visit this year.What was it Churchill said about learning from other people's mistakes rather than your own?I can't wait to hear the whinging and moaning if that trip blows up in her face.



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 12:00 AM
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As 'the great war' came to an end, the German Kaiser abdicated, so the German people lost its anchor, making it easier for Hitler to size power, (NO, he was not voted into power) perhaps if the Kaiser had still been on the throne, the nazi party might have been stillborn, and another ruinous war averted, personally, I blame the Kaiser for WW 2.



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 12:28 AM
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posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 06:15 AM
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reply to post by blah yada
 


If anyone had actually been at war then I might concede that he was a legitimate target.
But The Republic Of Ireland was then, and still is, at peace with the UK so he could not be a legitimate 'war target'.

There's no glory in blowing up an old man out fishing with his nephew.

He was murdered by scum bag terrorists whose only concern was the exploitation and control of the communities they alleged to defend but instead bullied and terrorised and used every opportunity to profit from drug and gun running and other racketeerig operations to maximise profits and personal wealth.

The notion that the IRA and the other terrorist organsations in Northern Ireland, on both sides, of being romantic freedom fighters is a downrght lie.

I think one of Ireland's best exports said it best:




posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 06:30 AM
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The Monarchy should be abolished. For a country, a supposed democracy, like the UK, to have a Head on State that is unelected, who is born into it, and has that job for life regardless of their ability to do the job, is also unaccountable to people, and allows their family to gain access to positions of authority and influence, whilst denying every other citizens the right to achieve any of those positions, is fundamentally wrong. The Royal parasites leech off of everyone in the UK and the Commonwealth, and are afforded an opulent lifestyle whilst we all tighten our belts, and there obsequious followers fawn over them in the media. It sickens me to my core, as does all the monarchist tripe about glorious queen and tradition. Abolish the Monarchy.



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 06:48 AM
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Originally posted by Anam Gra
reply to post by ridcully
 


Ha, good one!! How do you get 21 brits in a mini Cooper, again one make one a royal, climb up ass etc and of course Mountbatten in the ashtray!!! Oh Dear, past glories!!!


Pfff..

How do you get two volunteers off a motorbike? 22
Past glories indeed!

www.triskelle.eu...



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 09:11 AM
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If anyone had actually been at war then I might concede that he was a legitimate target.
But The Republic Of Ireland was then, and still is, at peace with the UK so he could not be a legitimate 'war target'.


Eh.... Who decided that Ireland was at peace with the British monarchy.War is not soccer.There is no full time whistle.I guess that's not a war that Britain is involved in in Afghanistan either.Britain is not fighting an official army out there.And please remind me what Afghanistan did to Britain to warrant your sending of troops there.
Your "it's not fair,we'd stopped for tea and cake" type of argument is laughable.

Do you think that once Britain has fully pulled out of Afghanistan or Iraq or anywhere else, that it's all over?Seriously?Payback is a bitch and sometimes a really old one.Your victims plant seeds of memory so they might be avenged even if it takes generations to get the job done.That's one of the facts of war whether you like it or not.



whose only concern was the exploitation and control of the communities they alleged to defend but instead bullied and terrorised and used every opportunity to profit from drug and gun running and other racketeerig operations to maximise profits and personal wealth.



This is exactly what your royal family are guilty of.Just because they conscripted and lied to ordinary Britons to get it done does not mean they have clean hands.Quite the opposite actually.And yes I do include drug running.Look up the Opium War.Look up the Amritsar Massacre.Look up the Croke Park Massacre.Look up the "Black and Tans".Or don't bother, and trudge on through your own blinkered denial.



The notion that the IRA and the other terrorist organsations in Northern Ireland, on both sides, of being romantic freedom fighters is a downrght lie.



Did I ever romanticise them?No.I'll tell you who are romanticised, Mi6.James Bond anyone?Now go look up Mi6's infiltration of the IRA.Read about Denis Donaldson and the other agents high up in the IRA.Now consider appalling atrocities of the IRA's "mainland campaign", where ordinary British people were attacked in events like Manchester.They could have been stopped.Mi6 could have prevented it.

Let me make it clear that I,do not in any way condone the attacking of civilians.However, soldiers,active or retired and their evil puppet masters are fair game.If neither of these two groups wishes to be attacked they should keep to their own country and mind their own business.They don't.


I think one of Ireland's best exports said it best:


Bono is entitled to his opinion.I'll make this point though, and this is not condoning Enniskillen, which I believe was sloppy and cowardly.It is an observation.If Gordon Wilson had not been a member of the British Army, he probably wouldn't have been there and neither would his daughter.

As I said before,war has no statute of limitation.You can argue semantics all day.Calling it terrorism will not change a thing.



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 10:16 AM
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reply to post by blah yada
 


So it would be legitimate for the UK to hunt down all ex-members of the IRA and execute them and any innocents caught up in the slaughter would be viewed as unfortunate collateral damage or does your reasoning only apply to the Nationalist terrorists?



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 11:44 AM
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reply to post by Freeborn
 


Legitimate?I don't think you understand me.There is no legitimacy in war.Amritsar was not legitimate.Why would I expect any code of honour from the British Army?Are you one of these guys who believes in nonsense like the Geneva Convention?The British Army have long since made a mockery of that.There are no rules of engagement.It's all just a game to you isn't it.And you believe all your adversaries are cheats.

The British Army can and will do whatever it's overlords want.And their enemies can and will do whatever is within their means to counteract them.

Britain has done far far worse things than rounding up ex IRA men.Go right ahead would be my advice.They are legitimate military targets.But prepare to suffer the consequences also.Given the reaction to Warrenpoint it seems that Britain can dish it out but can't take it.

edit on 12-1-2011 by blah yada because: (no reason given)



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 11:57 AM
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posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 02:50 PM
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reply to post by blah yada
 


Given free reign Britain could have stopped The Troubles years before they eventually, and thankfully, did cease.
Fortunately they chose not to but as a result a lot of innocents died.

In a previous post you alluded to what might happen if Liz visits The Republic sometime this year.
I sincerely hope that nothing untoward does happen because I think it would bring about a #storm the likes of which Ireland has never seen since Cromwell, and no reasonable, peaceable person would like to see that.

Ireland is moving forward and great strides have been made to ensure that the Irish people, regardless of creed or nationality, can go about doing the one thing they want to do more than anything else; just live their lives in peace.
Ireland still has a long way to go and whilst we must never forget the past we must learn from it and never allow The Troubles to return.



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 05:41 PM
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reply to post by Freeborn
 


The point I am trying to make is that successive dynasties of British monarchs, and Mr Cromwell, franchised Ireland out as a plantation to tyrannical profiteers. They ruthlessly subjugated the Irish population and made no effort to remedy the situation until they were forced to in 1921. Had it not been for the fact that Britain was caught off guard in the wake of WW1, the outcome would have likely been a lot different.

In short, monarchs are almost always parasites.The British royal family and their cousins across Europe are parasites. The notion that they are simply representatives of the state or a tourist attraction is naive.

Britain should fire them and elect a president. As for the tourist bucks, don't worry. Americans will still come and visit the palaces anyway. It's not like tourists get to hang out with the queen anyway. Most Americans would be delighted with wax models.You could have wax models of all the despicable villains that have ruled since the dawn of time, at the palace, a couple of Beefeaters and Mufftops here and there, some horses and Bob's your uncle!

edit on 12-1-2011 by blah yada because: (no reason given)



posted on Jan, 12 2011 @ 06:31 PM
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Originally posted by blah yada

The point I am trying to make is that successive dynasties of British monarchs, and Mr Cromwell, franchised Ireland out as a plantation to tyrannical profiteers.


And why wouldn't they?
That's exactly what they did elsewhere in the UK including England, The normal, everyday Irishman was treat little different to the normal, everyday Englishman, it's how thing's were in those day's. I'm not saying it was right, but it was the norm.



They ruthlessly subjugated the Irish population and made no effort to remedy the situation until they were forced to in 1921. Had it not been for the fact that Britain was caught off guard in the wake of WW1, the outcome would have likely been a lot different.


The reasons why are irrelevant now, the simple truth is that The Republic has been independant for nearly a hundred years now, easily time enough to stop living in the past and being pre-occupied with English / British wrong doing's and forge their own way in the world.
To be fair the majority seem intent upon doing exactly that nowadays.



In short, monarchs are almost always parasites.The British royal family and their cousins across Europe are parasites. The notion that they are simply representatives of the state or a tourist attraction is naive.


Can't really argue against that.
As I have said previously, I, like many other English / Brits, have conflicting emotions and opinions about The Royal Family which are hard to convey in a rational, coherent or intelligent manner.
I do know that if they ever interfered, or even attempted to influence, the running of the country in any significant mannner then I know which side of the fence I would be on.



Britain should fire them and elect a president.


In my opnion, for what little it's worth, the UK needs more important electoral and parliamentary reform aimed at handing increased accountability of elected officials and control to the electorate.
Our party system has failed us.
But the real power must remain with a democratically elected parliament which is representative of, and more directly accountable to, the wishes and interests of the people.



As for the tourist bucks, don't worry. Americans will still come and visit the palaces anyway. It's not like tourists get to hang out with the queen anyway. Most Americans would be delighted with wax models.You could have wax models of all the despicable villains that have ruled since the dawn of time, at the palace, a couple of Beefeaters and Mufftops here and there, some horses and Bob's your uncle


You might be onto something there.




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