Purchase of Louisiana

210 years ago today, the Louisiana Purchase was concluded.

Dutch Abdication

Today Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands abdicates in favor of her eldest son.

The Mad Monarchist gave his thoughts on Queen Beatrix and the Netherlands right after the abdication was announced. Shortly thereafter the same blog did a piece on the republican traditions of the Netherlands.

What Is Democracy?

What is democracy?

The freedom to elect our own dictators?

Or the freedom of the majority to exercise mob rule under the pretense of being civilized?

Or perhaps something else?

Hoppe on Democracy

Happy Birthday, Your Britannic Majesty!

Her Britannic Majesty is 87 years old today. Happy Birthday!

Money Madness Continuing

Ben Swann has a take on government spending in those United States of America:

Jon Stewart interviews David Stockman:

Post-Democracy?

Deus Ex Macchiato brings some thoughts on democracy – or “post-democracy.”

Some on Gay "Marriage"

Writes Daniel McCarthy over at The American Conservative (H/T: The Pittsford Perennialist, who also has more – and yet more):

Can it be any surprise, then, that a mass-democratic, individualistic, consumerist society in which men and women are interchangeable in all other public aspects finds them interchangeable in marriage as well?

Moreover:

[T]hey are trapped in the very modern democratic mindset that tells them politics is a realm of endless possibility, if only the right leaders are elected and everyone works hard enough at persuading his or her fellow citizens. This mentality can be found even among those right-wingers who declare themselves staunch traditionalists and hell-bent foes of democracy. For all their protestations, they exhibit a characteristically democratic and liberal belief in the malleability of political orders. Some facts of a political order are immutable as long as that order stands—and none falls easily.

Also at The American Conservative, writes Samuel Goldman:

[T]here’s little hope of convincing a majority of Americans to give up easy divorce and, above all, technologies of reproductive control. These practices, which were embraced by heterosexuals long before anyone had heard of Adam and Steve, are the real threats to “traditional marriage”.

Writes John Derbyshire over at VDARE.com (H/T: Foseti):

Legalization of homosexual marriage will be a victory for the Tolerance Fascists. They will know this, and be heartened to attempt further advances in other areas.

Writes Ilana Mercer over at LewRockwell.com:

As the clamoring demos believe, they are every bit as smart as men like Benedict. The faithful, moreover, no longer see themselves as members of a community of believers, but as members of gay, lesbian, feminist, black, brown and plain angry clans. Unless the Church recognizes and recompenses their brand of identity politics – the masses will bring it down.

The Pittsford Perennialist also has some previous posts:

• Not So Strange Bedfellows (older related: "Right-Leaning Gays")
• The French Resistance
• An Incomplete Liberal Argument Against Incest and a Complete Natural Law Argument In Favor of the Natural Family
• Vive la Francophonie!
• Vox Populi, Vox Dei?
• Love, Marriage, Sex, Children
• A Reality Check For Social Conservatives
• Humanæ Vitæ Was Right

Alternative Right's radio, Vanguard, recently had a session on gay “marriage” – also touching on other issues, such as the feminist fantasy of history.

More on Thatcher

These weblogs pay tribute:

• The Pittsford Perennialist
• The Mad Monarchist
• ABM - A View From The Praires
• Reflections of a Young Fogey
• Peter Hitchens (who also participated in a BBC Radio 3 discussion on Lady Thatcher)
• Taki's Magazine: Steve Sailer
• Taki's Magazine: John Derbyshire
• Scotland on Sunday: Gerald Warner

Previously: Margaret Thatcher, RIP

Schiff, Stockman, Faber, and Casey

The money madness goes on, and here we have some interesting videos regarding this.

Mr. Peter Schiff:

Mr. David Stockman:

Dr. Marc Faber:

Mr. Doug Casey:

The Audience

Easter Eve yours truly went to see the play The Audience at the Gielgud Theatre in London. If you don't mind spoilers, please continue reading.

It was indeed a fascinating experience to watch this play.

The play consists of a number of audiences Her Britannic Majesty hosts for her British Prime Ministers. As the real audiences that have taken place are all strictly confidential, the audiences in the play are all intelligent speculation on what might have been said in real life.

Although the audiences are the centerpiece and bulk of the play, there are a few other elements. There are three actresses playing younger versions of Her Britannic Majesty. There is a scene with Princess Elizabeth's speech in South Africa on the occasion of her 21 ^st birthday. There is talk of praying that the King and Queen have a boy.

But even without these other elements, The Audience is about much more than just these individual audiences. At a couple of occasions the Prime Minister is met with fierce opposition from the Sovereign, but when the Prime Minister asks the Queen whether she supports the Prime Minister, the answer is always that the Prime Minister will always have her support.

The audiences in the play come in a non-chronological, but the chronologically first audience – in real life – was with Winston Churchill. Churchill wants the audience to be with the Sovereign seated and the Prime Minister, just as Queen Victoria sat at Privy Council and the advisors standing. It ends with him sitting.

Moreover, Churchill gives clear instructions on how the audience is to be conducted, after all he is the one who has experience as Prime Minister from the reign of George VI. The Prime Minister is to talk, and Her Majesty is to listen. The Queen then gives a statement of frustration on her diminished role.

The scene brings thoughts to many incidents in British and European history. When George V ascended the throne, he was pressured into accepting Parliament Act 1911 in a way Edward VII refused. Edward VII's son-in-law Haakon VII of Norway came to the throne in 1905 after Norway had decided to retain the monarchy. Behind the scene there was a fight for power between the monarch and the politicos. The monarch lost on several points, and he is known to have said about his handkerchief that it was something he was allowed to poke his nose in. It is also said about the Emperor Charles of Austria that some of those behind the coup against him would not have dared depose the old Emperor Francis Joseph. Also, when the Swedes emasculated their King in the 1970s, they waited for Carl XVI Gustaf to ascend the throne.

There can probably be found even more examples of politicos securing their power when a new monarch is on the throne. Although this is not the only time emasculation of the monarch happens, it is a vulnerable phase of a reign, and this is why this scene with the reign's first Prime Minister with his instructions is so particularly relevant for history of monarchy, not only in Britain and the Commonwealth but all over the world. It gives us a reminder to keep a watch when a new monarch comes to the throne.

Churchill also has a discussion with Her Majesty on the name of the royal house, considering the tradition that it is the man's surname that gets passed on. With another pre-Thatcher Prime Minister Her Majesty has a conversation on “reforming” the House of Lords, Her Majesty communicating her disapproval of a weakening of the hereditary principle. The play could certainly do with a short intellectual argument for hereditary elements in the constitutional system instead of just a simple, non-argued statement in its support.

This play is a wonderful example of how one can take a concrete concept – in this case the weekly audiences with the Prime Minister – and make it about so much more; about events at a particular time, political philosophy, roles of constitutional institutions, etc.

The play runs live in London until mid-June. It will be screened in movie theaters around the world.


Cross-posted at The Monarchist.

Farage, Stockman, and Schiff

Nigel Farage, David Stockman, and Peter Schiff on the ongoing financial madness:

War Savings Time

Most of Europe just over a week ago – in the very early morning of Easter Sunday went to “Daylight saving time” (DST) – or “summer time” as it is called in European official terminlogy. That made the switch three weeks after that of those United States.

It is all a waste of resources – either you have to switch manually or make and maintain automatic systems. Some systems only keep track of what zones do have DST, and when the time of swithcing is different from the standard, you have to adjust manually. It is a mess, and the fact that CEST officially stands for “Central European Summer Time” and not “Central European Standard Time” does not make things better.

A few videos on the madness:

Margaret Thatcher, RIP

Margaret Thatcher, Baroness of Kesteven, passed away this Monday, news of which is widespread. She was the last surviving British Prime Minister to have been born before Her Britannic Majesty as Princess Elizabeth.

Margaret Thatcher was together with Ronald Reagan the subject of much admiration on my part back in the days when they were in office, my political consciousness was forming, and they similarly were subject of attack from leftists. Yours truly has developed differences since (not to say that there were none at the time), on which elaboration may be made at a later time.

Your host blogger met Lady Thatcher shortly before the passing of Ronald Reagan, on which it was reported on two accounts – one in English and one in Norwegian (we may also get back to these accounts on a later occasion).

Last month I watched The Iron Lady with a friend over a weekend – as one of around a dozen movies. Easter Eve I watched The Audience, where a Thatcher character is one of several Prime Minister characters.

Condolences to the 2^nd Baronet Thatcher and other family and friends.

RIP


Elsewhere: Her Britannic Majesty, The New York Times, The Daily Telegraph

Directly Elected U.S. Senators

A century ago today, the State of Connecticut ratified Amendment XVII to the United States Constitution, as the 36 ^th of 48 ^th state, hence providing the required 75 percent. The amendment provided for mandatory popular election of United States Senators.

The State of Utah, which was the only state explicitly to reject the amendment, apparently just a few years ago had state legisators who refused to “move on.”

An Idaho debate a few years ago:

From a Missouri debate:

Professor Thomas DiLorenzo explains:

Judge Napolitano and others on the election of U.S. Senators:

Quote of the Month (March)

Writes Mr. Jared Taylor over at American Renaissance:

What an absurd figure we cut in the world, as we try to impose on Afghans and Iraqis a form of government utterly alien to them, while our own rulers lurch from crisis to failure back to crisis.

previous

Quotes of March

Writes Mr. Travis LeBlanc:

People who say we need a revolution should try reading up a little more about past revolutions.

Writes Mr. Pax Dickinson:

Something is off about calling yourself conservative while you revere some guys who violently overthrew their legitimate government.

Also writes Mr. Pax Dickinson:

We instinctively know that the most popular song or product is always crap that appeals to morons. But in politics we junk that heuristic.

The Mad Monarchist runs a three-part series on the end of the Habsburg empire, and he concludes:

It is no exaggeration, it is a fact backed up by the evidence of history that the fall of the House of Hapsburg was a disaster, both for her member states and for people all around the world.

Poll Results: Vox Populi Vox Dei Est?

The results for the poll, with the question “vox populi vox dei est?,” ending at midnight between March and April, are as follows:

Total votes: 18.

• humbug: 14 (77%)
• veritas: 4 (22%)

A new poll will be up shortly.

U.S. vs. Germany

96 years ago today, the Persona Non Grata of this blog signed the war declaration passed by the Congress of those United States for a formal state of war with Imperial Germany.

Executive Order 6102

Four scoure years ago today, POTUS Franklin Delano Roosevelt banned gold through issuing Executive Order 6102.

Over at Economic Policy Journal, Robert Wenzel two years ago marked the anniversary.

Over at LewRockwell.com back in 2001, the late Burton S. Blumert wrote about that event and others.

The Media Matrix

Blimey Cow and Messy Mondays encourage “unplugging from the matrix”:

This Summer...

The Rockford Institute has a tradition of an annual summer school. This upcoming summer the institute is holding a summer school on reactionary radicals of the 20^th century. The summer school runs from July 9 to 13. It takes place in Rockford, Illinois. More information can be found here.

Another event takes place somewhere else in those United States, namely in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is the annual FreedomFest by Dr. Mark Skousen. This year it takes place at Ceasars Palace. It is scheduled to run July 10 through July 13. One of the most interesting elements at this year's FreedomFest is a debate on democracy and freedom – in connection with 2013 being the centenary year of Amendment XVII to the United States Constitution.

Making the World Safe...

Four years short of a century ago today, the bête noire and the Persona Non Grata of this weblog gave his speech to Congress, asking for a declaration of war.

91 Years Ago...

Today is the sad anniversary of the passing of Emperor-King Charles of Austria-Hungary.

It is also a time to reflect, as it is a long time ago the old order passed from daily life. Seven baker's dozen years have passed since this black day in Madeira. It is almost two years since Crown Prince Otto had his final journey in Vienna. The future does not look bright. We must realize that the old order is gone forever.

Also, this weblog has had reduced activity lately, and for a quite long period, the more lengthy, deep posts or articles have been few or non-existant.

This 91^st anniversary of that fateful day in Madeira is a fitting occasion to call it quits.

It was fun while it lasted...