Where is the Guardian's England?
Friday, April 29, 2011
Watching the Royal Wedding, I could not help but wonder who all those people in the streets of London were. Experiencing England, as I have, mainly through its media for the last twenty years, they seemed unfamiliar. They were clearly untroubled by envy, for example. They cheered the succession of impressive British motor cars (as well as the dowdy VW minibuses). Where were the Prius-driving prigs? Where were the equality fanatics? Where were the alienated youths, the anti-Christians and - for that matter - the aggrieved immigrants decrying the home culture (or lack of it)? Who were the polite people processing sedately behind a one-officer-deep police line to get a view of "the balcony scene?"
Could it be that England has not changed as much as the Guardian would have us believe? Could it be that the carefully-cultivated BBC and Guardian view is only a bad dream from which we might wake at any moment? Like my illustrious namesake I am a republican, for reasons to be discussed some other day, but today - thanks to the Royal family's celebrations - London felt like home. As G.K. Chesterton put it;
...we are the people of England; and we have not spoken yet
Smile at us, pay us, pass us. But do not quite forget.
We are a funny bunch, no doubt, but from the scenes on the streets of London today, we are not finished yet.
I too wondered 'who all those people in the streets of London were' but, dear oh dear, judging by the comments above I appear to be out on something of a limb when it comes to offering an interpretation.
The pictures I viewed spoke to me of a mindless rabble of true 'subjects', utterly ignorant, apparently, of all the surrounding symbolism of their willing subservience, (or just maybe they were simply welcoming of it,) glad of an excuse to display or otherwise express due reverence to their Lords and Masters. A fully fledged "March of the Morons" if ever I saw one.
As for 'Where is the Guardian's England?': Chris, you were viewing very substantial numbers of them throng the Mall on Friday. Perfect fodder for whatever social engineering experiments the present ruling elite have in mind. If Friday really was the 'silent majority' becoming 'unsilent for one day' then I despair - truly all is lost.
And no, I'm not a leftie - or any kind of egalitarian for that matter. I'm not even envious, though Kate is undoubtedly a very attractive young woman. It's just that it's hard to come to terms with the reality that the prospect of a 'free' society in any meaningful sense is nil, that the prospect always was nil and will likely always remain nil - by Royal Appointment if for no other reason.
Happy Days!!
Posted by: Archie Dean | Tuesday, May 03, 2011 at 05:41 PM
The silent majority became unsilent for one day.
Posted by: jameshigham | Sunday, May 01, 2011 at 09:01 PM
Lefties were the sad wallflowers today. They'll carry on with their miserable agenda once the joy has faded. Sad people, so they are.
Posted by: Dick Puddlecote | Friday, April 29, 2011 at 10:11 PM
Q: Where is the Guardian's England?
A: Hampstead, Bloomsbury, Islington and Notting Hill.
I would note that the realm of England extends beyond the M25, a fact that often seems to escape the Guardianista's metropolitan echo chamber.
Posted by: Chris | Friday, April 29, 2011 at 09:21 PM
It is interesting what the press report compared to what really happens.
I logged onto the Royal YouTube Channel and watched the event (courtesy of the BBC) without any commentary. Then I saw on James' blog how the media reported the event and what they focused on. I guess that sort of thing sells papers...
Posted by: CherryPie | Friday, April 29, 2011 at 08:50 PM