Monarchy vs Republic in the UK

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Of course they do Tim, along with the homosexual, transvestite and other ‘wackos’ out there !

Thank goodness that we have some traditionalists out there to keep all of us plebs sane ! :joy:

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Just trying to be polite Simon. :grin: Don’t want to start any argy bargy :face_with_raised_eyebrow:

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So do please give us some more examples of uppity minority groups.
I can’t say I have noticed ramblers, cyclists and lesbians (interesting selection there, by the way) stirring up trouble but then I lead a sheltered life…

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:rofl: well said Vero, :rofl:

England is the land of the silent majority and curtain twitchers. Whereas the French will storm the Bastille and Americans will throw tea into Boston harbour we sit down, have a cup of tea and see if it happens again. There is no loud voice for this silent majority. If someone stands up to make a point they are denounced as a “Mary Whitehouse” figure or are described as bigots and homophobics. For this reason any minority interest group receiving media coverage will appear to have a much greater following than their numbers might otherwise suggest.
I was simply asking the question of why anyone would want to start a Republic vs Monarchy debate when we recently had such an overwhelming show of support from the UK (silent majority) and indeed from around the world.
As I recall from my sojourn in France, French TV is so awful that perhaps expats have to raise non-issues to find something to talk about n’est-il pas ?

Too funny! It is also 2018 in France (mostly!) and even we immigrants (not expats!) also have top notch technology which means access to a veritable plethora of global media. So - no need to be patronising and flippant in order to make your ‘point’ - it makes you sound slightly bitter. :wink:

You’re not doing the Royalist cause any favours.

Actually Ian, the majority were not interested in the Royal wedding as this poll (and others) suggest.

Clearly, this is not a non-issue judging by the 147 responses so far to this post. And if you think that TV is the only interesting thing worth talking about then you must live a very narrow life.

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The silent majority, are the ones who really couldn’t care less about them, true :+1:

You should have added ‘or crave a change’.

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French tv is what it is. Some of the drama is excellent as are many of the documentaries. Maybe your enjoyment of French tv would be enhanced if your comprehension of the language was better ?

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I agree with Peter about French TV. Personally I find U.K. TV awful. Luckily I have not had to endure it for over half my life.

I am confused by this “If someone stands up to make a point they are denounced as a “Mary Whitehouse” figure or are described as bigots and homophobics” what on earth do you mean? I thought MW was a bit of a joke but I don’t see how the that fits with the next sentence about any minority interest group yadda yadda. Is or rather was MW a minority? (I think so)…

What overwhelming show of support? Do you mean media coverage?

Only television I watch is rugby: 6 Nations and the world cup and poss the H cup semis and final. Oh and the Boat Race.

I don’t understand why you are so het up about lesbians actually, I mean by definition they aren’t going to be having anything to do with you, are they. And it isn’t as if you can identify them as easily as cyclists or ramblers, n’est-ce pas?
Why so bothered about what people get up (or down) to en privé?

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Well said Sir, my thoughts entirely

Even luckier Dave, no telly :joy:

The phrase “n’est-il pas,” to which I think you allude, has no grammatical relevance in French. It is what we Brits call “un jeux de mots.” When I worked in Sophia Antipolis one of my colleagues was a particularly arrogant and obnoxious Frenchman. He hated Brits. Mais oui, he hated everybody. Therefore we used n’est-il pas in every possible sentence to wind him up. It has kinda stuck around to mean any topic that is tongue in cheek or open to ridicule in a humorous way.

Un jeu, des jeux :wink:literal translation of idiom into another language for humorous purposes is a typical polyglot in-joke, eg in Arabic you can say ‘nadrub at-tariq’ which means nothing to native speakers but is the literal translation of ‘let’s hit the road’ and amuses English speakers who also speak Arabic.

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I started off wondering why someone would initiate a Monarchy vs Republic debate when there is massive support for the institution, if not for some of the players. The debate now seems to have veered off into a debate on civil rights for lesbians. This is not an uncommon distraction for minority groups to promote their cause. We now have minority groups complaining about everything from village maypoles to traditional fairy tales against the wishes of the silent majority who just want things left the way they have been for centuries.
I will accede to your point about rambling cycling lesbians and endeavour to conduct a roadside survey to assess their numbers.

Should keep you amused for a while Ian :rofl:

Er, YOU brought up the cyclists/ramblers/lesbians. On a thread about the monarchy. No doubt one could make a lovely Venn diagram showing how all these things intersect.

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