Congratulations to the happy couple, may they live happily ever after... blah blah blah. This weekend past Great Britain and the world came together to celebrate a Royal Wedding. A wedding caked... caked in splendour and money. Although it could have been more extravagant, both the bride and groom looked the part (although little chance of parting Duke William's locks...) and they seemed happy. Hell, I would be happy if I was able to get married and have a nation of people that I would never get to know or meet to pay for it! Granted not all of it, but still. Oh for some historical precedent allowing one to charge my weekly shopping on one's nation... Oh, don't worry about the tab, the mugs have got it...
Picture the country as a company, and the Royals as silent partners. They are not involved in the actual running of the place, but at some point centuries ago their relatives invested in the place (apparently...) allowing them to quietly put expenses through the company: a castle here, a Bentley there - oh and an entire wedding!
Which is funnier? The fact that they can do it, or that they can broadcast it AND have crowds of "well wishers" line the streets and cheer their money away! Although what interests me more is that whenever the cost of the wedding is mentioned, the question is not whether it should be paid for at all, but whether it should be paid for during these tough economic times. Well, as much as I would like to blame the Royals for the state of the current global economy, I think that we have already established the extent of their influence... holding a party (but not paying for it), sanctioning a holiday day or two and generally just swanning around.
So hurrah! Huzzah and whooppee! Let's not judge them too harshly, just think again before paying for their lavishness in these modern, "fair" times.
Think about the evolution of servitude: butlers were sometimes more educated (scratch that - knowledgable - there are idiots from Oxbridge) than their Lordly patrons, but were unable to advance their station due to social convention and societal constraints. These rules have been broken, anyone can be anything (birther rules notwithstanding) with just a bit of effort. Okay, a lot of effort. So with those days of social constraint gone why do we chose to pay for individuals who already have so much?
It is really less about the wedding, and more about the path to becoming a modern nation. Traditions need to fit in with modern society, and when they involve money - the pressure really is on... If the possibility of classless individual progress is allowed to continue, then something has got to give... back the money... and the land, or the oyster is gonna get it!
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