The valuable lesson of the Meghan Markle interview

[caraher]

7. The best explanation I've heard so far...

Last edited Mon Mar 8, 2021, 02:29 AM - Edit history (1)

An English friend who is not at all a fan of the royal family still considers the fact that they are (as you say) "a completely unremarkable lot" is a virtue in the figurehead business, because in his view the alternative we have results in an unhealthy mix of politics with ceremonial roles. So if you have a king or queen who is nobody special but knows how to smile and wave and can cut ribbons at the opening, you can have events where folks by and large just share in whatever national pride their symbolic presence offers, while with a first lady/gentleman (someday soon, right?) emotions will be more tied up with the political agenda of the spouse, detracting from the unifying symbolic value.

(It's a funny thing to hear because he rips the royals constantly; he just thinks having politicians and their spouses play ceremonial roles is functionally worse.)