The Christmas speech of Mrs. Claus

So Queen Elizabeth gave her Christmas speech yesterday. She mentioned her visit to Ireland (not mentioning that she didn't bother to have even a sip of Guinness). She also spouted other clichés about Jesus and the Nativity Story. The problem with monarchs is that they think they are born and in power out of divine right, and in Christian societies it means that they think Jesus gave them power over men. I often wonder what she would have thought of this Jewish rabbi, son of carpenter of very low origins, had she met him in the flesh. Whatever her sycophants say, she never struck me as humble (if she was she would have had a sip of that Guinness). Don't get me wrong: I have no idea if the Jesus pictured in the Gospels was anything close to the real rabbi Jesus who probably preached in ancient Palestine. But I seriously doubt that the foundation of the British monarchy and the Church of England was part of his plan.

I say she never struck me as humble, yet she is a living, breathing monument to the bling bling, vulgar, tacky, brainless rich and famous counter-culture that impress many commoners (and many not so commoners who should know better). Case in point: the head the United Kingdom, indeed the head of many democratic states, including Canada, was again this year dressed like Mrs Claus. I noticed it last year in my own Christmas speech. I may be too harsh: how can you look anything else than ridiculous when you have your title because you were born? But this is still striking: she looks ridiculous, sounds ridiculous, speaks commonplaces and is revered because she is a monarch. It's symptomatic of the institution: when your head of state os crowned, you end up with Mrs Claus at Christmas.