why in britain are we afraid of democracy? for instance?

Question

why do we need a royal family, when we could have a democraticly elected president .it would be up to the people who we elected in to power and if they stuffed up we could vote them out instead we have the windsors forced on us by history its unfair, other countrys prosper without monarchy i know the royalists will continue to say that the monarchy brings tourists but do you really believe that tourists will stop coming? i firmly believe its inherent snobbery that prevents us prospering as a republic i expect il be called a traitor but does it harm germany ireland usa canada etc etc etc

Answer 1

I live in Canada.
I live in a democracy.
I have a Queen.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Answer 2

Personnally I feel that its the presence of a Monarchy that sets us apart from other countries. We've always had one; Britain's Empire was forged on one and every other Royal in the world is related to them in some way or another.

The Queen and the Monarchy are figure-heads for the Country and they do not have any direct involvement with the running of the Government, Legistlation or Parliament. We are governed by a Prime Minister, because honestly I wouldn't want a President. We do elect the Prime Minister, but its the way you use your vote.

What we should do is get rid of heriditary peers in the House of Lords. It should not be put to a vote either, because that would give our Government more power to screw things up, because they would have more of a say of who went in and who went out.

We live in a Representative Democracy because we can't all turn up at the House of Commons one afternoon and have our say!

I don't expect you'll be called a traitor because you've having your say about how the Government should be run. Myself, i'm waiting for the world to change because one person can't really do anything to change the way things have been done for centuries ;)

Answer 3

The value of a constitutional monarchy is to provide a figurehead to embody a sense of nationhood beyond the divisions of temporal political argument. Republicans, who choose to give the impression that the British enjoy as much power as French peasants in the reign of Louis XVI, believe that in a democracy just about everything that moves has to be elected. This callow approach would result in a polarised and unpleasant society.

A priest who is not a monarchist is not worthy to stand at the altar table. The priest who is a republican is always a man of poor faith. God himself anoints the monarch to be head of the kingdom, while the president is elected by the pride of the
people. The king stays in power by implementing God’s commandments, while the president does so by pleasing those who rule. The king brings his faithful subjects to God, while the president takes them away from God.

Europe’s monarchs are all there to listen to the voice of the people and, without influencing politics, to protect the nation. Their example gives some credibility to those who think that restoration of King Michael of Romania might help heal recent wounds. Does the monarchy have a future? It’s a very definite reality in today’s Europe, and without it Europe and the rest of the world would be a very different place.

Answer 4

Canada has a queen, our Queen.
It is a Tradition which does us individuals no harm, now that the Royal family have lost their role as governors of the country.
Queen Elizabeth has devoted her life to the service of the country, and of the commonwealth, I think she has done that very well, and adapted to the changing situation to her great credit.
I do not think it is a privilege to be born into the Royal Family, it is not the type of life I would appreciate.
It would be pointless voting for a postion to replace that of the monarchy, and making a change to the current system would require a democtated vote to that effect.
It is not enough that you want a change, the majority of the people must also want that change.

Answer 5

England removed its monarchy in the 1600s. After a couple of decades it re-instated it at the request of the people. I would suggest that you look at history before trying to shape the future.
People who are voted in to power (or those that manipulate them) all tend to be in possession of certain ruthless and ambitious characteristics. Providence gives you a broad spectrum of possibilities. Ultimately the British system uneasily incorporates both. With executive power resting inside a democratically elected body, but with a monarch who can call for its dissolution if it oversteps its authority. Any monarch that exercised this right would have to be very sure that the people supported them, or else it would mean the end of the monarchy. The monarch has no axe to grind, or political agenda therefore in pure terms has only to serve the people, as it is only by the permission of the people that they have any power.
As a final thought what damage has having a monarch done to Britain recently? If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Answer 6

I don't think we are afraid of democracy and actually voting for someone does not bring guarantees. Personally I feel safer with the Queen right now than I do Tony Blair. And given the Americans have an elected president .......can't see anything to recommend it. And I can't see much difference between the Bushs and Windsors - both have inherited wealth, disproportionate amount of power, opportunity, pwerful connections etc etc.

Answer 7

I agree that is is disgraceful to send our troops to Iraq to fight for democracy so they can elect their own head of state and government when we are unwilling to do the same in the UK.
A lot of people think the royal family is traditionally english but since 1066 there has not been one purely english monarch. Most of them have been french or german with a few scots,dutch and welsh thrown in.
The present monarch has mainly german ancestry with a bit of scots from her mother.
When people think about presidents they always point at the mess in the USA but there are plenty of well run and prosperous democracies in the world which have a better political process with an elected head of state and they suffer from no shortage of tourists if you really think that should be a consideration in choosing a political system.

Answer 8

The trouble with modern democracy it that it is very vulnerable to patronage and corruption. One has only to look at the personal wealth created by ministers that is often vastly disproportionate to their ministerial remuneration. The Blair government has sold out to the Americans and the ultimate restraint on their behaviour is HM the Queen's ability to dissolve parliament.
If the UK had an elected head of state, that person would have been initially selected by a political party and I cannot believe that honesty, integrity, independence and strength of character would be on the list of selection criteria.
A glance at the US and one finds that in the rush for egalitarianism, everyone is evaluated in purely financial terms. I prefer to have the accumulated wisdom of generations exercised by people raised for duty rather than motivated by personal greed.

Answer 9

Long live the the Queen! May the Queen live forever-1000 year old Saxson hail.

I other word I would rather live a figure head of State then one with any power with out power it much nice to have a link to 1000 year line then some thing total new and last I am Canadain and I remain the winsour Faithfully and loyal subject.

Answer 10

I think the royal family should be in charge that way u don have polititians lying and making false promises to stay in power. Equally does it harm Norway(the country that is best to live in statisticly) Sweden, denmark, belguim or holland to have one? BTW canada does have a monarch HRH Queen Elizabeth of Canada aka Queen Elizabeth II of the UK and NI.
You may also notice a lot of americans love the British royal family?

Answer 11

Yes, the American tourists will stop coming. Maybe you're fine with that, though. It is the royalty and its history we want to see. The pound is kicking the $ in the teeth. We wouldn't spend our money just to see another boring English speaking country with a government just like our own. The royalty is the allure, the fantasy, and the mystery unknown to us. Besides, I think GB is a democracy.