Thousands cheered King Charles III with ‘God Save The King” as his gilded carriage passed through London. The coronation had all of the pomp and circumstance that people expected from the fifth longest monarchy in history (Japan is the longest). The ceremony included one time-honored tradition that some of us could have done without: the arrest of peaceful protesters. It was all part of “Operation Golden Orb” and follows a long, unbroken British tradition of quashing free speech.
London’s Metropolitan Police made 52 arrests during the coronation, including many anti-monarchy protesters who were wearing yellow T-shirts and shouting “Not My King.” They were members of Republic, an anti-monarchy group that fails to see the need for a royal family.
Few would object to arresting protesters who blocked roads or destroyed property. However, some reports involved peaceful protesters who were yelling or holding signs.
The group said that they were not told the reason for their arrests and that police “would figure it out” later. If the group wanted to make a statement against the monarchy, it has succeeded. The group posted on Twitter, commenting: “So much for the right to peaceful protest.”
Commander Karen Findlay defended the arrests and said, while the police respect free speech, a peaceful protest can become unlawful.
“This depends on the context. The coronation is a once in a generation event and that is a key consideration in our assessment. A protest involving large numbers has gone ahead today with police knowledge and no intervention.”
It is a statement that is quintessentially British. It lacks any discernible objective standard. It depends entirely on the view of the “context” by authorities on whether to allow free speech to occur.
Previously, the police announced that “our tolerance for any disruption, whether through protest or otherwise, will be low. We will deal robustly with anyone intent on undermining this celebration.”
“Undermining this celebration.” It is a line best delivered with a haughty accent and a harrumph.
Last year, that same undefined discretion led to the arrest of a man who heckled Prince Andrew.
The fact is that Great Britain never had a free speech tradition analogous to our own. Free speech was not guaranteed in the celebrated Magna Carta. The country has long relied (as in other areas) on the benign and beneficent judgment of its government.
That lack of clarity and structural protections has allowed the government to exercise ill-defined powers for centuries against dissenting voices. It has also contributed to the rapid erosion of free speech in recent years.
We recently discussed the call of a minister for the jailing of social media heads whose companies refused to carry out censorship.
Yet, the decline of free speech in the United Kingdom has long been evident. A women last year was arrested for praying to herself near an abortion center. A man was convicted for sending a tweet while drunk referring to dead soldiers. Another was arrested for an anti-police t-shirt. Another was arrested for calling the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a “leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing “Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested for protesting outside of a Scientology center with a sign calling the religion a “cult.”
English courts have even criminalized “toxic ideologies” as part of this crackdown on free speech.
It appears one of those toxic ideologies is the belief in a democratic government without a monarchy. It is a telling moment for a country that often justifies the royal family as a harmless tradition since the King has little power in the actual governing of the nation. Indeed, many seem to speak of the royal family like virtual Disney “cast members” who are good for tourism. However, those characters become a tad less lovable when dozens are being arrested in the background.
It is all summed up by the words on the family’s coat of arms: Dieu et mon droit: l“God and my right.” As shown in these arrests, that “my” part is still exclusive and literal when it comes to free speech.
Britain IS a monarchy and the First Amendment does not apply there. We Americans need to stop trying to apply our rights and laws to the rest of the world.
Um, Britain IS a democratic constitutional monarchy. In any case, what does that have to do with the First Amendment which is part of the US Constitution. Freedom of speech, thought, etc. was one of those principles that seemed universal reason for the Allies–which includes the UK–in joining together to fight tyranny in WW2.
“[T]he First Amendment does not apply there.”
– semcgowanjr
____________
The Founders referred to all “natural and God-given” rights, freedoms, privileges and immunities, which existed before government was conceived.
Nature and God exist throughout the universe and infinity, you may have noticed.
That would seem to cover all nations and all people.
The Constitution and Bill of Rights are the definitive works of truth and freedom as fundamental law establishing self-governance.
Semcgowanjr, human rights are universal rights. This is why we condemn the use of prison camps for dissenters. Prison camps are on the rise in England. When we see tyranny in what ever country that it comes from it is our obligation to point it out for what it is. That is unless tyranny is your kind of thing.
Quite honestly, the First Amendment doesn’t appear to apply here anymore either. Ask the hundreds, if not thousands, censored by the social media companies at the behest of the federal government after Trump left office. Think of the NYP, which was censored in the weeks before the 2020 Presidential elelction. Think of Conservatives who try to speak their minds, or listen to speakers who interest them, on collect campuses. Think of the many J6 demonstrators who have gone to prison on trumped-up charges to fuel the hoax of insurrection. Neither freedom of speech, nor freedom of assembly, are really still in existence here, at least wherever leftists predominate.
And biased and partial “justice” is meted out by the communist Deep Deep State “Swamp” through “venue corruption” in Washington D.C., New York, Minneapolis, Seattle, Atlanta, L.A., etc.
Jonathan: Oh, I nearly forgot. Speaking of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, back in 2005 he celebrated a SC decision that allowed a Ten Commandments monument to be displayed outside the state Capitol. The Court drew the line for similar displays in court houses.
Fast forward to day. GOP state legislators in Texas are pushing forward several religious related measures.One requires public schools to display “in a conspicuous place” the Ten Commandments in every classroom. Another will allow schools to require prayer and Bible reading time each school day. Talk about a captive audience for God!
Now I suppose that if all these measures pass there will be legal challenges–the Establishment Clause. There are a long line of SC precedents upholding the strict separation of church and state. See Engel v. Vitale (1962), Stone v. Graham (1980) and McCreary County, Kentucky v. ACLU (2005) which all said displaying the Ten Commandments in school rooms violated the Establishment Clause. The composition of the Supreme Court today is a solid 6-3 conservative majority. They don’t have a problem with overturning long Court precedent. I think I know which side Alito, Thomas and even Comey Barrett would come down on the issue. Good by to the Establishment Clause!
Which brings us to your complaint about poor scores of students in math, reading and civics. Aren’t you concerned that all the possible Bible reading in Texas schools might interfere with the three subjects you are concerned about? I guess not.
Dennis – this is another comment that defies the facts. Parochial schools outperform pubic schools:
“According to the U.S. Department of Education, Catholic school students consistently score higher on advanced achievement tests, and by eighth grade, they outscore their public school counterparts in mathematics by a full 13 points. And every year for the past two decades, Catholic school eighth-graders have outscored public schools in reading by 20 points.” https://www.peoriamagazine.com/archive/ibi_article/2015/why-catholic-schools-do-well/
How is this possible if bible-thumping gets in the way of “real” instruction? I suggest that the daily reminder that there is a force greater than all of us behind our humdrum existences may sober or inspire or even humble students. They gaze occasionally upon the stars rather than their own navels. This kind of reminder is good for adults too. That is why we should go to church even if we are skeptical.
Catholic schools stayed open during COVID lockdowns when government schools closed
Catholic schools in all 50 states opened this fall for in-person learning where the local government officials would allow it. And where they would not, parochial schools fought hard for the right to open. Meanwhile, teachers’ unions have taken the opposite approach.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/02/12/covid-catholic-schools-safely-reopened-follow-their-example-column/4407864001/
Estovir, when you gonna learn to stop presenting facts.
Independent Bob, Estovir. Right on Gentlemen (I suppose). I have always supported the teachings in catholic schools and their quality and even sent my kids there for several years and none of my immediate family are Catholic. They have also done it at less cost than most public schools. I remember back not so long ago in New York Public schools that 1/2 of each school dollars was spent before it ever left the administration building. Catholic schools are often a lot more bang for the buck.
Our Algebra teacher started every class with a “Hail Mary” while holding an eraser. If any of the boys acted out during the praying, he would throw the eraser forcefully at the boy, say choice words at the top of his lungs, and continue the praying without batting an eye. Nobody said a word thereafter. He later died of AIDS, mid 80s, and many of us, already in college, attended his funeral because he was, in our minds, an inspiration. If he was gay nobody cared because his exams were brutal and he was a terrific teacher who could handle an all boys class. His praying the Hail Mary at the start of class has stayed with me.
I couldn’t agree more with you my friend!!
Dennis, I nearly forgot and started reading your post. Then I came to my senses.
Independent, finishing Dennis’ post is less enlightening than leaving it unread.
Irrespective of commenters’ pro-and-con personal views of the monarchy, (after all, the monarch is largely ceremonial today, as Parliament is the real power), –how predictable was it that NBC and ABC would advertise for days that they would prioritize and cover the entire event, -only to use their coverage as high-viewership platforms to advance the political views of their anchors to bash the monarchy DURING the event,? e.g.,:
– (following a comment about the huge crowds), “Well, they’re not all here to support the monarchy…”
– “…the king and queen and other characters…”
-DEI, DEI, DEI
-Harry, Harry, Harry
I was hoping that, out of respect, they would wait until Sunday morning national news for such disparagement (and, indeed, NBC and ABC did just that this morning), –but not DURING the event.
(did Brits get their idea of “Not my king” signs from us, and our “Not my president” signs?)
Britain definitely needs to be concerned with Free Speech loss but also with King Charles III’s friendliness with Islam & cultivating Islamists with smiley faces. The country is slowly being colonized by Muslims. Even the lovely English country side is now supplied with qibla directions to Mecca: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfIHj9P4sl0&t=222s
And Islam is certainly no friend of free speech.
Show me where in the Quran I can find this phrase.
“And he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death.”
Show me in the NEW Testament anything like
Quran 60:4 : “There has arisen between us and you enmity and hatred forever unless you believe in Allah and Him alone”.
Q 98:6 “Lo! those who disbelieve, among the People of the Scripture and the idolaters, will abide in fire of h𝛏ll. They are the worst of created beings.”
Q 9:29 “Fight against those who (1) believe not in Allah, (2) nor in the Last Day, (3) nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (i.e. Islam) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. ”
Q 9:111 “Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties, for that they will have Paradise. They fight in the cause of Allah, so they kill and are killed.” (A favorite of the 9/11 terrorists).
Q: 8:67 It is not fitting for any prophet to have captives [slaves, including s𝜖x slaves] until he hath made slaughter in the land.
Q 48:29 “Muhammad is the apostle of Allah. Those who follow him are merciful to one another, ruthless to unbelievers.”
Not peddling the Bible, pal, but I do say Stay Away From Islam.
Actually I can show the equivalent in the Quran, Viz Q 4:89
“They wish that you reject Faith, as they have rejected (Faith), and thus that you all become equal. So take not Auliya’ (protectors or friends) from them, till they emigrate in the Way of Allah. But if they turn back (from Islam), take (hold) of them and kill them wherever you find them, and take neither Auliya’ (protectors or friends) nor helpers from them.”
This verse is a major basis for the Sharia death penalty for blasphemy & apostasy. Also Q 5:33, and of course Q 4:80 implicitly as it says that Muhammad must be obeyed and he called for blasphemers & apostates to be killed. Indeed, Muhammad ordered even poets who criticized him to be assassinated. See “Muhammad’s Dead Poets Society” https://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/dead_poets.htm
The Muslim Brotherhood Memorandum released at the Holy Land Trial
4- Understanding the role of the Muslim Brother in North America:
The process of settlement is a “Civilization-JihadistProcess” with all the word means. The Ikhwan must understand that their work in America is a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and “sabotaging” its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and God’s religion is made victorious over all other religions. Without this level of understanding, we are not up to this challenge and have not prepared ourselves for Jihad yet. It is a Muslim’s destiny to perform Jihad and work wherever he is and wherever he lands until the final hour comes, and there is no escape from that destiny except for those who chose to slack. But, would the slackers and the Mujahedeen be equal.
https://www.facebook.com/prageru/posts/the-muslim-brotherhood-seeks-to-destroy-western-civilization-from-within-and-to-/4557694670940020/
The Quran is loaded with violent phrases. Sharia Law places Muslim Law above civil law.
Islamist needs to be distinguished from Islam, but the lines are unclear.
Which is why it’s shocking that Obama is such a big fan of the Muslim Brotherhood. When Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan walked into the Soldier Readiness Processing Center at Fort Hood, Texas, 2009, and slaughtered many, the Obama WH called it “workplace violence”. Obama had dismantled our intelligence agencies’ ability to detect potential Islamic terrorists using knowledge of their ideology & methods at the request of his Muslim Brotherhood friends. Brennan agreed & personnel and products that the MB deemed “biased, false, and highly offensive” were removed. The FBI purged the documents that the MB had demanded. The Dept of Defense followed shortly thereafter with a Soviet-style purge of individuals along with disciplinary actions and re-education. (see Stephen Coughlin’s book Catastrophic Failure: Blindfolding America in the Face of Jihad).
Jonathan: Great Britain may not have a 1st Amendment but they also don’t have mass gun shootings on the scale we see here in the “land of the free”. I mention this because Texas just experienced its second massacre in about a week. At a mall in Allen, Texas yesterday 8 innocent people were shot dead by a shooter– witnesses said was carrying an AR-15 style gun. This latest mass killing comes barely a week after the mass shooting in Cleveland, Texas where 5 people were killed.
Gov. Gregg Abbott called the latest mass shooting an “unspeakable tragedy”. It wasn’t a “tragedy” at all. It was the predictable consequence of Abbott signing NRA backed legislation further easing gun laws in 2019. Legislation that came just after the El Paso Walmart massacre of 22 people.
In Texas Republicans don’t blame guns for the mass violence. They blame “deranged killers”, families, mental health–but not guns. Texans love their guns. There are no restrictions on gun sales. It’s an “open carry” state. Abbott thinks more guns equals greater safety. He thinks kids will be safer in school with more armed guards. In a previous column (5/523) you complained that Covid-19 school “lockdowns had a profound impact on the psychological and intellectual development of our students”. What about the “psychological” effect on children seeing armed guards patrolling the campus and school hallways? Or having to memorized all the emergency exists, practicing active-shooter drills or having to wear a Kevlar backpack to school? Don’t you think kids constantly on edge about possible school violence might affect their math and reading skills?
The only time school kids were really safe was when, due to Covid-19 school closures, they were at home working from their tablets! I know parents with young school kids. Every morning they really hug their kids before putting them on a school bus because they fear their children might be the victims of another mass shooting. Is that the kind of learning environment that improves math, reading and civic skills? But I guess that’s the price we have to pay to keep our 2nd Amendment rights–the rights you think are so important.
your right. I dont blame guns. I blame the people pulling the trigger.
The same way I dont blame booze for drunk driving.
But I’m rational.
Dennis, guns have been around for years, with less, much less “mass-murdering.” Could it be people like you, polarizing America with extreme criticism, that makes people “arm up” for the future?
But semi-automatic guns have not been around for centuries, nor have we had video games that glamorize the use of such weapons.
Cars that kill 42,000 innocent Americans annually have been around little more than a century also.
Ban cars, eh?
Ghettoes have not been around for that long, though.
Ghettos have been around since the first cities materialized.
poverty is the natural stated of man.
iowan2, your first sentence is surely false. Check the archaeological record.
Philadelphia had the reputation of being known as the “crime capital of the colonies”.
The authors of the 2nd Amendment were surely aware of that.
Paul Harding wrote about civil rights and public safety.
https://www.quora.com/How-can-a-gun-enthusiast-still-claim-their-right-to-bear-arms-is-more-important-than-public-safety/answer/Paul-Harding-14
“. . . children might be the victims of another mass shooting.”
Typical Leftist move to rationalize usurping rights — an emotional appeal to children, then punish the innocent for the sins of the guilty.
Remember this?
https://archive.md/mgil3
almost as if the Constitution limits what states can do to deal with school shootings and gang violence….
Our piece of the world stage starts with our idea that the Creator vested us with inalienable rights before forming any government of We The People. The crankshaft of of our government engine is the First Amendment. To Ben Franklin’s point, we keep the republic by caring for the crankshaft. This blog is part of that caring. And necessary. Democracy is messy. Consensus from the bottom up, not top down. Respectfully, it is how well and gladly we accept the messy for our own national wellbeing and find concensus, and by that speaking to fellow nations by example.
The concept of high born (“royal”) people PRECLUDES the possibility of equality. What else need be said?
The big guy would love to be a monarch.
And that is why the United States exists in the first place. They have never forgiven us, and intrinsically, nothing has really changed much there in 500 years. The only reason British liberals are woke is because they are too embarrassed and terrified at the prospect of being out of step (when secretly, at least tangentially, they loved things under Thatcher). They are a silly nation.
Since modern liberals love whataboutism and chutzpah instead of reasoned argument, I sometimes think the cultural transformation of North America would not have been a thing if the British weren’t such tyrannical, insufferable twits, so really, it’s THEIR fault. And by extension, this very royal family’s fault, specifically. Cheerio!
It could all happen again with current regimes.
Why should anyone care what a nation of pedophiles and homosexuals do in their own country? (Rhetorical question)
Well, watching the royal family is sort of like the Reality TV. Juicy at times, silly and pathetic at other times but mostly meaningless. Also very expensive. As far as free speech is concerned, well what do you expect when the Parliament is ultimate and not “We the People”? Also there is no division of authority or checks and balances between legislative, judicial, or executive branches. We rebelled because of the excesses of Parliament and put our system in place to prevent just that.. England is basically legislative tyranny and Israel is judicial tyranny. It does not escape me of the irony that Israel based its government on the English system when that system, at times, was quite brutal to the Jews prior to their Declaration of Independence in 1948. You would have thought that they would have taken note of that. Also should have written a constitution as the original Knesset mandated.
We need to finish our own job because we have a congress that acts like election confers a lifetime appointment. Our Founding Fathers made one significant mistake that they could not anticipate and that was that people would attain an avg. age of 80. Congress often has the smell of dead fish about it. As do 80+yr old presidents.
You know that in many states that as you pass certain ages, you cannot automatically renew your drivers license. You have to have a real test, vision and all. I would say the same about presidents. A driver can only control his car but the president can take all 330 million of us over the cliff.
Every now and then a vestigial reminder of the monarchal process pops up to remind us of our blessings. It’s not that England is bad and we are good. It’s only that we are different. That difference was decisive in 1776 when we Americans chose to leave the realm. The monarchal contract has its beginnings in the ancient world where kings or pharaohs ruled over their subjects. To be a subject meant you were protected by your king whom you in turn protected by your loyalty and allegiance. A portion of your production (the world was mostly agricultural back then) was given to the king who in return gave you the right to live peacefully in the kingdom. Over time, these systems were corrupted and eventually the people chose other forms of government, including self-government as practiced today in the U.S. It is understandable that the U.K. would maintain the serf-to-king relationship at least during coronation time. Loyalty to the king is a requirement for residence in the kingdom. In the old days, one would lose one’s life for opposing a king. It was considered treason. If you opposed your monarch, your only option was to leave the kingdom. The Puritans did this when they left England and, later, Holland to settle in the New World. The Huguenots left France for the same reason. Our beloved First Amendment right of free speech makes good sense in a government run not by a king but by the people themselves. And today even it is under fire as we see anarchists and other despots try to prevent the expression of free speech, sometimes under the guise of protecting free speech.
Charles is a clueless hipster (forgive the redundancy). He thinks by taking a knee, the cannibals will adore him. They won’t. They’d eat his grandchildren and spit the bones in his face. The Duchess was just the first bite.
My strong advice to sensible Aussies, Brits, Canadians, and Kiwis: leave now and come to America. London has fallen. Ottawa is a cesspool. With your help, Western civilization might still survive in America.
Joe says he wants refugees. Let’s see if he gives real patriots refuge.
@Diogenes
I’ll cast my gauntlet in solidarity with yours. Excellent. 👍🏼
Shoulder to shoulder, James.
At least the Royals don’t take millions of dollars (or pounds) from foreign governments, unlike our last three Democratic Presidents.
Edwardmahl: What about our last Republican president who raked in millions from foreign governments–like the Saudis? Minor details, I suppose.
Dennis, apparently you are ignorant of the details. Check your facts so others don’t have to check them for you.
Denmnis – It is not a minor detail. Educate me on the foreign money taken in by George Bush. Any American politician who accepts campaign contributions from foreign sources is reprehensible. In the case of Biden, it is much more in the nature of regular income.
Dennis, 330 ,illion Americans had cheap gas when we were friendly with the Saudis, but Biden said he would make them pariahs and he would not do business with them. Of course the old fool ended up begging them for oil during the election…and they told him to screw.
Biden, and Obama, treat Iran with respect but trash Saudi Arabia and Israel. This is all part of the Make America Last Movement.
If this doesn’t explain why we had the American Revolution and threw the British out, nothing will. Thank you, Jonathan, for an excellent article.
A ‘Monarchy’ can also be viewed as ‘there-to-remind Us’ that: Belief, Dependence, and Reliance on One (1) Person (or Ideal by extension)
is a: vulnerability, mistake, and unrealistic. Conversely (Religiously) it can be construed as a Savior (Jesus/God).
So as it seems to me, ‘The King’ reminds me that this Country’s Founders fought for ‘Diversity’ not only in its Constitutional Structure but in its ‘Way of Thinking’ (Innovation by Diversity).
Another way of thinking about it: A King is Monotheistic (One Possibility), a Divers Ideology is Multi-theistic (Many Possibilities).
As it relates to Free Speech, a World of One Voice or a Multitude of Voices.
The reality is that We live in a World of many Voices, in many Languages, each language wrapped in its own conception.
Several posts back is one about the lack of civics and history being taught in public schools.
This is the history part of the post.
” The ceremony included one time-honored tradition that some of us could have done without: the arrest of peaceful protesters.”
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
A little history lesson, explains a little civics.
Yet the leftist trolls here are just fine ignoring the history and being cluless about the historical significance of the Rights and sovereignty.
And if that sentence confuses you, congratulations on your public school education.
What happens in brittain, should stay in brittain. America had the common sense to kick the royalty out of here. Paying someone millions of pounds, because their ancestors made themselves kings and queens, seems ridiculous to me. If the protesters were not telling the truth, the elitists, wouldn’t be silencing them. I support the protesters. I like Carl Sagan’s quote: “One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken. Once you give a charlatan power over you, you almost never get it back.”
Make that TWO traditions! There was a lot of Anti-Ginger Racism going on, using Prince Harry as the pretext. Horrendous!
“…arrested for calling the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a “leprechaun.”” LOL.
You’d think being known as the jilted lover who lost to a leprechaun would be enough punishment. (I identify as a leprechaun, so i can say these things, right?)
I wonder if they will be put in a gulag for 2 years like Trump supporters have been for questioning the fraudulent election.
I thought ‘Questioning” was the Q in the alphabets’ protected classes.
Where is their Title VI or whatever defense?
Just goes to show that either the left always eventually eats their own, or they aren’t really helping anyone unless they are in lockstep with their ridiculous orthodoxy