The Queen Is Dead!
Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully on September 8, 2022; I’ve heard and read of very little else since then. Bapre. You’d think the world was about to end. Okay, so, almost all of us know who she was, as she reigned over more than a billion people of the Commonwealth at some time in the world’s history. Of course, I can understand the interest and need to cover the death event. But for me to know every detail of her demise and the grief, real or made-up, is tiring after a day. So many other pressing worldwide issues need attention, and all are being swept into the pits of the news coverage priority.
I’ve got nothing against the woman – honest. But I didn’t particularly care about her either – honest. These ‘royalties’ and ‘highnesses’ and the likes do nothing for me, whether in the UK or elsewhere in the deluded countries that still have them. I’m always puzzled by how thousands of people go gaga at the mention or sight of these ‘royalties’. Do they not eat, shit, burp, fart, bleed red blood, breathe oxygen, procreate, hurt, elate, love, or hate as I do? I was briefly a naturalized commonwealth citizen years ago and had to pledge my allegiance to the Queen as part of the citizenship process, but I stayed quiet when the auditorium swore loyalty in unison. My allegiance to a human is of my private choosing, not out of compulsion.
There is little else to glean from the major news outlets that have taken leave of their objective journalistic senses except report irrelevant tidbits about the Queen’s demise and the inane reactions from worldwide governments and individuals. What’s so newsworthy about beaming images and reporting on hours of boring funeral services and the bier carrying the remains of Elizabeth II paraded around various UK streets? Some of the more bizarre, sad, and funny stories being reported:
1. Several countries declare mourning periods for the departed soul. Countries whose overwhelming citizens have no clue why their nation should grieve so much for someone who has impacted their lives so little.
2. If I am not mistaken, the late Queen used to place the Kohinoor diamond tiara on her forehead while officiating functions – the very one her country stole from India. India declares a 5-day mourning period. Let’s look up brown-nosing.
3. The UK taxpayer will spend an estimated $3.2 billion for the grand funeral that’ll last several days. British households will pay an average of 3 times more to keep the British chill at bay this year. I wonder if the lady has made provisions to help the poor pay some of the energy bills from the mind-boggling estate she’s leaving behind. That’ll win her so much more genuine grief, no?
4. However, her Majesty’s 5 dogs will not have to worry about keeping themselves warm this winter. They have been well taken care of, including a special menu that changes weekly.
5. There is an official ceremony to announce the death of the Queen to the bees bred in her estate. Yes, to the honeybees.
6. The country will have to change its currency, the national anthem, and passport to state it’s the King in power, not a Queen. Imagine.
7. CoEJ joins in the circus, sending out a statement of grief and condolences. Perhaps throw in a fateha khaani next? Not sure if all the kowtowing is relevant, or useful.
Again, I have nothing against the lady. I reckon she had a very good life and did not ever have to worry about paying for a mortgage or grocery bills or keeping her toes warm in the winter. She lived all of 96 years, (more than plenty, I’d say), traveled the world, rubbed shoulders, and dined on caviar with other global thieves and looters like the Shah of Iran and his wife. She reigned for over decades and had the means to right some of the many wrongs done by her country to so many. Those who are crying crocodile tears on her demise need to shake off their amnesia and recall some of the atrocities under her reign:
1. Her country’s massacres of thousands in India and Pakistan.
2. The mass killings of Kurds in Iraq.
3. The thousands that her country massacred in Kenya during the Mau-Mau uprising. The theft of the Great Star of Africa, the single largest clear-cut diamond in the world from S. Africa, is worth hundreds of millions of dollars today.
4. The millions who starved to death in India because the UK stole the food grains and shipped them to her country.
5. Almost every flashpoint currently in our world is the brainchild of the UK, including the shameless situation her country created for the Palestinians in the Middle East.
All these occurred while her ancestors or she reigned over the kingdom. So, instead of all the hullabaloos, boring theatrics, hypocrisy, and money drain that’s taking place for her demise, let her country and subjects put her to rest, and move on to more important and useful news. We’ll meet on the other side, where it’ll all matter the most, no?
Like all of us will someday, this Queen had to die, for God’s sake!
As for the new ‘king’, he seems to be a bit better tuned ‘human’, and more understanding of and compassionate to my religion. I am, too, optimistic in hoping he’ll use logic and scale back on his coronation hype because of the taxpayer expense involved; I am sadly wrong.
Pakistan / Afghanistan
Almost a month after unprecedented floods devasted one-third of Pakistan and large wheat farms in Afghanistan, both countries are reeling from the after-effects. The survival of these vulnerable communities during the coming winter that CAI is feeding now is dicey unless we act now. If you have not already done so, please consider donating one or more warm life-saving blankets by clicking here. These thick, large blankets will accommodate two adults and a child, providing life-saving warmth during the coming winter.