Australian Prime Minister loses contact with reality - bestows knighthood on Prince Philip.

[bilby]

Tony Abbott has completely lost all contact with planet Earth, and has made a laughingstock of himself and our nation by knighting His Royal Highness Prince Philip in the Australia Day honours list.

In a move calculated to upset republicans and monarchists alike, he has seemingly ignored both the egalitarian tradition of the nation, and the fact that knight is a serious step down in rank for a prince (and even more of a step down for a God).

It is rather like awarding a General an honorary rank of Sargeant, while acting in the role of president of a pacifist association.

This lunatic needs to be in a straitjacket, not The Lodge. His politics are debatably awful; but this is an act that unites all Australians in asking the one question that is now on everybody's lips:-

What.
The.
Fuck???

 

[Metaphor]

When I read this today, I thought Abbott was trolling the nation. But I've now heard him defending the decision. And I regret thinking, even for a moment, that he had the social finesse to do anything as clever as trolling.

I take issue with characterising this as the defining event of Abbott having lost all contact with reality; surely that ship sailed some time in 2014. This is a missive from planet Loonyville.

But here's the scarier part: no government in living memory has been voted out after one term. Abbott will face the electorate, and the electorate will support him.

One absurdity doth tread upon the other's heels, so quickly they follow.

 

[bilby]

I dunno. I think 'One Term Tony' might just have what it takes to make the electorate break with tradition.

 

[Metaphor]

I dunno. I think 'One Term Tony' might just have what it takes to make the electorate break with tradition.

Surely he's a contender, but at least 8% of the Sydney-Morning-Herald poll-answering public think the knighthood was a good idea. And these people vote.

 

[Canard DuJour]

I had to google this to make sure I wasn't missing a trick.

I could just about believe it of some Southern US state governer, but the PM of Australia ..

 

[dystopian]

In a move calculated to upset republicans and monarchists alike, he has seemingly ignored both the egalitarian tradition of the nation, and the fact that knight is a serious step down in rank for a prince (and even more of a step down for a God).

It is rather like awarding a General an honorary rank of Sargeant, while acting in the role of president of a pacifist association.

It's not, though. One can hold more than one title of nobility/honour. For instance, our former queen, Beatrix, held the titles of Queen, two Princess titles, two Marquesse titles, seven Countess titles, one Viscount title, thirteen Baroness titles, one Free Ladyship title, twenty-two Ladyship titles, Three Knight Grand-Cross titles, and a fucktonne of other knight-titles.

Giving a prince a knight-title is just an extra honor, not an insult or demotion.

 

[Axulus]

I'm not understanding what the fuss is all about. Is it because he didn't really do anything for Australia? Is it because he is UK royalty? The United States, for example, has bestowed the presidential medal of freedom (our highest civilian honor) on several non-US citizens, including Tony Blair and John Howard. I don't see the big deal.

 

[Metaphor]

I'm not understanding what the fuss is all about. Is it because he didn't really do anything for Australia? Is it because he is UK royalty? The United States, for example, has bestowed the presidential medal of freedom (our highest civilian honor) on several non-US citizens, including Tony Blair and John Howard. I don't see the big deal.

Two people were given a knighthood today. One of them, Prince Philip, is an embarrassing affront to humanity. It's not just that he hasn't done anything for Australia: it's that he is ridiculous and if knighthoods are supposed to be given on merit, there'd be literally millions of people who deserve it more than Philip.

Abbott has lost his mind, and unfortunately for the rest of us, he's steering boat Australia.

 

[dystopian]

I'm not understanding what the fuss is all about. Is it because he didn't really do anything for Australia? Is it because he is UK royalty? The United States, for example, has bestowed the presidential medal of freedom (our highest civilian honor) on several non-US citizens, including Tony Blair and John Howard. I don't see the big deal.

Two people were given a knighthood today. One of them, Prince Philip, is an embarrassing affront to humanity. It's not just that he hasn't done anything for Australia: it's that he is ridiculous and if knighthoods are supposed to be given on merit, there'd be literally millions of people who deserve it more than Philip.

Abbott has lost his mind, and unfortunately for the rest of us, he's steering boat Australia.

It is definitely true that heads of state as well as members of royal families tend to get these knighthoods in other countries almost as a sort of participation ribbon; but it seems more than a little silly to claim that Abbott (whose policies I'm not particularly familiar with) has lost his mind because he does something trivial that countless leaders and officials before him have done for the exact same reasons. Surely there's better reasons to criticize the man's sanity?

 

[Nexus]

In Game of Thrones you can get a knighthood for proving yourself in battle. Ser Jamie Lanister is heir to the lordship of Casterly Rock. Before we judge Abbott, we should wait for this next season to start to see what Ser Jamie will officially be called now that his father is dead.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

In Game of Thrones you can get a knighthood for proving yourself in battle. Ser Jamie Lanister is heir to the lordship of Casterly Rock. Before we judge Abbott, we should wait for this next season to start to see what Ser Jamie will officially be called now that his father is dead.

When Jaime joined the Kingsguard, he gave up all of his titles and claims, so he is no longer the heir to Casterly Rock. With Tyrion being found guilty of Tywin's murder, he lost his claims as well, so Cersei is now the official Lady of Casterly Rock. If she dies, the title would pass to Tommen, who would probably have someone run it for him while he's on the throne, the same way that Robert had Renly in charge of Storm's End. Over time (and barring various zombie invasions or his getting eaten by a dragon), it would likely pass to a second son while his first son keeps the throne.

 

[fromderinside]

Where's may game controller? I need to change my configuration of the ruler of Down Under to the Fool from the Outback.

 

[Metaphor]

Two people were given a knighthood today. One of them, Prince Philip, is an embarrassing affront to humanity. It's not just that he hasn't done anything for Australia: it's that he is ridiculous and if knighthoods are supposed to be given on merit, there'd be literally millions of people who deserve it more than Philip.

Abbott has lost his mind, and unfortunately for the rest of us, he's steering boat Australia.

It is definitely true that heads of state as well as members of royal families tend to get these knighthoods in other countries almost as a sort of participation ribbon; but it seems more than a little silly to claim that Abbott (whose policies I'm not particularly familiar with) has lost his mind because he does something trivial that countless leaders and officials before him have done for the exact same reasons. Surely there's better reasons to criticize the man's sanity?

As you can see from my exchange with bilby earlier, I did not claim this as the event that indicates Abbott has last his mind. Abbott lost his mind sometime in 2014, if he ever had it. You're probably unaware that Abbott also revived the idea of bestowing dames and knighthoods in March 2014 -- Australia had stopped doing it.

But the knighthood business is as good a reason and illustration as any for Abbott's looniness. One poll shows that 92% of Australians think that it was a negative move. It was a solo decision by a man who evidently either does not understand, or does not care, that such a move was bound to be widely criticised.

But even if you thought it's completely harmless to dilute and destroy whatever value an official title like 'knight' is supposed to have by routinely awarding them to people whom you think have magickal blood for no other reason than that, Prince Philip is not just a nobody royal where no harm comes to awarding him something. He is actively and defiantly racist, ignorant, and socially graceless. You can google any number of 'top gaffes' lists of things uttered by him.

 

[bilby]

The issue here is not the particular problem with awarding a knighthood to Prince Philip; so much as the fact that there are so many problems to choose from, that almost everyone can find a good reason why it shouldn't have happened, combined with the utter triviality of the act itself.

That a man who relies on public opinion to keep his job could make such a descision is, quite literally, insane.

This is far from being the first indication that he is unfit to be PM, but it is, perhaps, the least political reason - it provides an opportunity for even those wearing partisan blinkers to see that he is simply not competent for the job.

Given that there are already rumblings from his back bench - and these are the only people who can sack him before the next federal election - he would be wise to make unpopular descisions only on important matters of principle. So either he is too stupid to see this - despite having a job that directly entails understanding and acting upon the wishes of the people; or he genuinely believes that knighting Phil the Greek is a vitally necessary action for our nation that is worth risking his job to achieve - in which case he belongs in a room with heavily padded walls.

By making this ridiculous public gaffe, he has demonstrated (yet again) that he has none of the skills necessary to be an effective PM, nor to be an effective campaigner for reelection.

 

[jonatha]

It is definitely true that heads of state as well as members of royal families tend to get these knighthoods in other countries

Except Prince Philip is the Prince Consort of the head of state of Australia...

Imagine how strange it would be if David Cameron put Prince Philip on the UK honor's list...

 

[Nexus]

When Jaime joined the Kingsguard, he gave up all of his titles and claims, so he is no longer the heir to Casterly Rock. With Tyrion being found guilty of Tywin's murder, he lost his claims as well, so Cersei is now the official Lady of Casterly Rock. If she dies, the title would pass to Tommen, who would probably have someone run it for him while he's on the throne, the same way that Robert had Renly in charge of Storm's End. Over time (and barring various zombie invasions or his getting eaten by a dragon), it would likely pass to a second son while his first son keeps the throne.

There is established precedent for leaving the Kingsguard with Ser Baristan's dismissal. And Ser Jamie had agreed with Lord Tywin to reclaim the heirship of Casterly Rock before Tywin's death. Therefore I will reserve judgment regarding Abbott until we find out Jamie's title in season five.

And since you're trying to be all Johnnie Cochran like, care to explain Ser Loras since he is the heir to Highgarden as well as a knight?

 

[bilby]

Abbot described the social media response to this as 'electronic graffiti' which should be ignored.

Of course, ignoring anti-leader graffiti is a grand tradition for dictators and absolute monarchs; but few democratically elected leaders would say that ignoring it is a wise idea; even dictators should start to worry about losing their position when the graffiti is overwhelmingly opposed to their position, and declares them to be severely out of touch.

 

[Angry Floof]

As an American, I feel a vague sense of guilt that Australia seems to have caught our ideological disease and is also now an idiocracy like us, where we vote door knobs and carbon rods into office. But then again, it also makes me feel not so alone.

 

[bilby]

www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/knighting-prince-could-cost-tony-abbott-his-title-20150126-12y86z.html

A good summary of why this is a big issue - and why 'One Term Tony's' opinion that it is not an issue makes it an even bigger issue.

 

[Angry Floof]

Strategery.