Trump’s U.K. Visit Proves Money Can’t Buy You Class

Conservative columnist Kathleen Parker is definitely "off the reservation" with her latest column in the Washington Post which could well bring her death threats from the unwashed fanatics of Donald Trump's cult followers.  That, of course, doesn't mean that Parker isn't 100% on point on her pitch that Trump is a crass boor and that his money - or supposed money - surely has not bought him class or the knowledge of how to behave in polite society, not to mention the social stratosphere of royal function in the United Kingdom. Frighteningly, the Beverly Hillbillies from the 1960's television show were more refined than Trump is in present day and they certainly did not suffer from his toxic narcissism.  For a good laugh while reading the hard truth, here are excerpts from Parker's column:

If there was “great love all around” during President Trump’s state visit to Britain, as he tweeted Monday, the participants royal and decidedly otherwise were deceptively discreet.

But then, what would one expect when New York’s most famous hillbilly drags his entire entourage to sup at the sumptuous table of the queen of England as though word had leaked of an all-you-can-eat buffet and free booze over at Lizzie’s Eatery? Donald Trump may have plenty of dough and houses dripping with gold, but his money has that new smell, and his crass behavior is testament to the adage — and more recently Countess Luann de Lesseps’s song — “Money can’t buy you class.” To which I would only add, “honey.”

Queen Elizabeth II, as in “The Crown,” was born to class, of course, and has spent her royal career marinating in irony. As a descendant of generations of royals, she epitomizes the definition of proper behavior, rarely displaying emotion or affection, always stoic in the face of adversity. A far cry is she from the effluvious Donald and his bloviating histrionics. But there she was playing sober hostess to a reality-show president and his carnivalesque courtiers.

The queen has seen it all: Her son, Charles, gallivanting with his then-lover-now-wife Camilla whilst married to the fair Princess Diana; the “people’s princess” shedding crocodile tears for television cameras while sharing her miseries and family secrets; her grandson wedding an American actress who, in an apparent act of defiance, declined to attend the state banquet.

’Tis a shame, because Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, surely would have brought a smile to the Buckingham Palace proceedings. Instead, we saw mostly waxen, strained faces in the dinner procession of mismatched royals and American hirelings. Most expressions suggested that a hair shirt was concealed beneath their finery. There was the queen with The Don. Prince Edward, the queen’s first cousin, marched dutifully alongside Kellyanne Conway, bedecked in silver sequins and affecting a royal air her weary-eyed escort would be loath to approximate.

Princess Anne, the queen’s daughter, walked with presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner, who, in one frame, seemed to be trying to convince her that she was lucky. I’m a prince, you know, did you know that? , I thought he was saying. Then again, reading lips is second only to my snake-handling skills. Poor Countess Peel, granddaughter of Winston Churchill, got stuck with Trump senior policy adviser Stephen Miller, whom she seemed to be trying to ignore. As do we all, Countess, as do we all.

My favorite visual, however, was U.S. national security adviser John Bolton and his muscular mustache paired with Viscountess Brookeborough, who looked as though something most unpleasant had reached her nostrils.

[T]he whole affair felt tawdry and cheap, joyless and stilted beyond the usual norms of pomp and circumstance. The queen must have wondered, did Trump raffle off tickets? Who are these people? Fair question.

Money can’t buy you class, but it can sure buy loyalty. Trump’s court at the palace was essentially his family and the few remaining White House staffers still willing to tell the president that, indeed, his exposed derriere is absolutely rocking raiment of finest silk and gold. The fake news media, of course, are unable to see.

Ms. Parker indeed out did herself!  Her descriptions, while sarcastic are on point in zeroing in on the fact that Trump is white trash with money.  One has to pity the royals who had to pretend to enjoy an evening with a carnival barker and a bunch of staffers who, in my view, have the social graces of low rent streetwalkers and sleazy bar bouncers. 

Queen's Cousin, Lord Ivar Mountbatten, Comes Out

I have to laugh or shake my head when I hear conservatives - especially those of the parasitic professional Christian class - loudly state that they have no gays in their families and/or that a gay child is the result of poor parenting.  Talk about lying to one's self or delusion.  Indeed, some of the loudest homophobes have had LGBT children (e.g., the late mistress of hate, Phyllis Schafly), so, if their claims are correct, they should be the last to give advice to anyone else.  The reality, I suspect, is that most families have (or have had) LGBT members of the family.  Often, the truth simply is not known until some family member simply cannot play the expected role any longer and finally comes out of the closet.  Ask Britain's Queen Elizabeth II whose cousin, Lord Ivar Mountbatten (pictured at left above) has come out as gay.  A piece in  The Telegraph looks at the coming out story.  Here are highlights: 

The Queen's cousin Lord Ivar Mountbatten has spoken for the first time about his sexuality and how he has found love.

Lord Ivar Mountbatten, the great-great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria, has told of his happiness with his new partner, James Coyle, an airline cabin services director.

In an interview on Saturday, the divorced father-of-three said: "I was driven into the closet by not wanting to come to terms with who I was and facing friends and family in the early years. I buried it.

"I’m just so pleased now to have found someone who I am happy to call my partner."

The 53-year-old, the great-nephew of Earl Mountbatten of Burma who was murdered by the IRA, has told his family and friends he is gay and has introduced them to his partner, whom he met while skiing in Verbier, the Swiss resort, last March.

Speaking of his decision, he told the Mail on Sunday: "Being a Mountbatten was never the problem, it was the generation into which I was born. When I was growing up, it was known as 'the love that dare not speak its name', but what’s amazing now is how far we have all come in terms of acceptance. 

"'Coming out'” is such a funny phrase, but it’s what I suppose I did in a rather roundabout way, emerging to a place I’m happy to be. I have struggled with my sexuality and in some ways I still do; it has been a real journey to reach this point.

"I was driven into the closet by not wanting to come to terms with who I was and facing friends and family in the early years. I buried it. I even had girlfriends as I tried to work out what I wanted to be.

He says his former wife Penny, whom he divorced in 2011, and their three daughters have been very supportive and have welcomed his partner into their lives.

"I am a lot happier now, though I am still not 100 per cent comfortable with being gay," he added.

"In an ideal world, I know the girls would like their mother and father still to be together, but they love their 21st-century family that we have built, too. Their father has a boyfriend. It’s that complicated and that simple, but finding James means I will not have to lie to anyone or grow old on my own."

 Having been married to a woman and having three children myself, I know how difficult of a time he must have experienced.  The reality, however, is that so of us are born LGBT.  We can struggle to deny it, but we cannot change that reality.  Sadly, while in denial we often merely make ourselves and others miserable - something that doesn't seem to matter to the "ex-gay" charlatans. 

The Imitation Game - Review and Reflections

The movie, The Imitation Game, is finally showing in Hampton Roads - albeit at a small number of theaters - and the husband and I along with a number of friends saw it at the Naro Theater in Norfolk (It is also playing at the AMC theater in Hampton).  The movie is a must see and I hope that some of the praise the movie is receiving will prompt those who might not otherwise go to a movie involving anything gay to nevertheless see the movie.  Benedict Cumberbatch is amazing as Alan Turing - indeed, the entire cast does a stellar job. I won't go into movie details here - readers need to go and see the movie for themselves and encourage others to do so as well.

Turing, and his team at Bletchley Park for that matter, remains perhaps the most unsung heroes of World War II.   As the movie ends, the fact that their work is estimated to have shortened the war by two years and saved 14 million lives is noted.   Also noted is Turing's possible suicide - there remain questions about the circumstances - after his conviction for "gross indecency" following an encounter with another man. The end notes also make note that the machines that Turing pioneered are what we now know as computers. That's right, the British basically killed the father of computers.

I sincerely hope that people will see this movie.  To me, what was done to Turing after the War - and which the movie sensitively portrays - underscores the evils of ignorance embracing religious belief which seeks to punish those who don't subscribe to the cult's mythology. A mythology not supported by historic fact or objective reality.  Queen Elizabeth II recently pardoned Turing.  While that gesture rehabilitates his image, it doesn't make up for the horror done to him and so many others. Some 49,000 individuals were prosecuted under Britain's anti-gay "indecency" laws. When one multiplies that number worldwide and includes all those killed, all those whose lives were ruined (and continue to be ruined) by "godly Christians" and their opportunist political prostitutes, the toll is horrifying. 

Marriage Equality To Become Law In Britain This Week

Gay marriage will become law this week in Britain, one of America's longest running allies.  It is already the law in France, another of America's first crucial allies which helped the United States win independence from Britain (the French fleet bottled up Cornwallis and allowed him to be defeated at nearby Yorktown, Virginia).   Yet even as its oldest allies embrace modernity and equality, America lags behind and in states like Virginia, LGBT citizens remain less than full citizens.  It's a travesty and yet one on many black marks of America's broken promises that betray the principles of the nation's founding documents.  Here are highlights from the BBC on events in Britain: 

The government legislation is now due to get royal assent, after which it is likely to become law later this week.

The Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat leaderships all backed the bill, after the Lords approved the changes on Monday.  It is expected that the first gay and lesbian wedding ceremonies will take place by summer next year.

Under the terms of the the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, religious organisations will have to "opt in" to offering weddings, with the Church of England and Church in Wales being banned in law from doing so.

Paul Parker, recording clerk for Quakers in Britain, said: "It's wonderful to see same-sex marriage achieve legal recognition. Quakers see the light of God in everyone so we respect the inherent worth of each individual and each loving relationship."

Mr. Parker's statement is the antithesis of how gays are treated in Virginia.  We still can be fired at will, face the potential of housing discrimination and our relationships receive zero recognition under Virginia law.   The current GOP statewide slate of extremists seeks to make the situation even worse.

Queen Elizabeth II Makes Historic Pledge Against Discrimination

As the U.s  Supreme Court gets closer to hearing oral arguments in the DOMA and Proposition 8 appeals,  another development across the Atlantic Ocean suggest that the United States is falling further behind to curve on gay equability.    Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom - who can hardly be depicted as a flaming liberal - has signaled that she is about to sign a historic pledge against discrimination which seems to include a pledge for LGBT equality.   As previously noted on this blog and else where the British Parliament is close to passing gay marriage legislation  The Daily Mail has coverage.  Here are highlights:

The Queen will tomorrow back an historic pledge to promote gay rights and ‘gender equality’ in one of the most controversial acts of her reign.

In a live television broadcast, she will sign a new charter designed to stamp out discrimination against homosexual people and promote the ‘empowerment’ of women – a key part of a new drive to boost human rights and living standards across the Commonwealth..

In her first public appearance since she had hospital treatment for a stomach bug, the Queen will sign the new Commonwealth Charter and make a speech explaining her passionate commitment to it.
Insiders say her decision to highlight the event is a ‘watershed’ moment – the first time she has clearly signalled her support for gay rights in her 61-year reign.

The charter, dubbed a ‘21st Century Commonwealth Magna Carta’ declares: ‘We are implacably opposed to all forms of discrimination, whether rooted in gender, race, colour, creed, political belief or other grounds.’ 

The ‘other grounds’ is intended to refer to sexuality – but specific reference to ‘gays and lesbians’ was omitted in deference to Commonwealth countries with draconian anti-gay laws.
Sources close to the Royal Household said she is aware of the implications of the charter’s implicit support of gay rights and commitment to gender equality. 

In her speech, the Queen is expected to stress that the rights must ‘include everyone’ - and this is seen as an implicit nod to the agenda of inclusivity, usually championed by the Left

A diplomatic source added: ‘The impact of this statement on gay and women’s rights should not be underestimated. Nothing this progressive has ever been approved by the United Nations. And it is most unusual for the Queen to request to sign documents in public, never mind call the cameras in.’

Ben Summerskill, chief executive of gay and lesbian rights group Stonewall, said the Queen – who he called ‘a feminist icon’ – had taken ‘an historic step forward’ on gay rights. He said: ‘This is the first time that the Queen has publicly acknowledged the importance of the six per cent of her subjects who are gay. Some of the worst persecution of gay people in the world takes place in Commonwealth countries as a result of the British Empire.’

Homosexual acts are still illegal in 41 of the Commonwealth’s 54 nations. Penalties include the death sentence in parts of Nigeria and Pakistan; 25 years jail in Trinidad and Tobago; 20 years plus flogging in Malaysia; and life imprisonment in Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Bangladesh and Guyana.

David Cameron suspended British aid to Malawi over the persecution of gay people – homosexual acts carry a 14-year jail term there – and has threatened to do the same to Uganda and Ghana.