Royal Wedding - Worth it?

So, it has started. The grizzlers are out already determined to put a dampener on the Royal Wedding.

"It's not fair"' they wail. "Why should the royals have all of this when I don't. The class system is just so wrong! They are only there through an accident of birth! Boo Hiss!"
May I suggest that those who subscribe to these views give up whatever property, savings or benefits that they have and bugger off to a remote village in Africa where they do not know where the next meal is coming from unless they can climb a tree to pick fruit or kill something that is actually better equipped to kill them first. It is only an accident of birth that puts them here in the UK, surely?

There seems to be a virus working it's way through all society and that virus has a name. Jealousy. Anyone who earns more than the minimum wage is meant to be loathed and one cannot be seen to celebrate wealth or success.
Look at our own Prime Minister who initially decided to turn up to the wedding in an ordinary suit. Our senior freely elected representative appeared terrified to posh up a bit for a wedding. I do not think that this was David Cameron's decision. I detect the hand of little Nicky Clegg and the thin-lipped, Mr. Angry, Vince Cable at work. The Times printed an excellent editorial pointing out that it only cost about £100 to hire a morning suit for a day and within 24 hours, Cameron changed his mind. Thank goodness! One does not turn up for a wedding in one's work clothes unless one is in the armed forces.

There are those who call for the monarchy to be abolished. I fail to see the economic sense in this so I can only assume that it is out of jealousy and spite.
Let's look at the facts:
The Queen costs 62p per person per annum (tax year 2009/10). She does not, as many people think, own all of the palaces and the crown jewels. She inherited Balmoral and Sandringham from her father. The rest is in her care as Sovereign and must be passed on to the next Head of State.
The Queen costs the UK £38.2m per annum. She funds the rest of the royal family. Total UK expenditure is £691billion. All of these numbers are beyond imagination so to simplify: Imagine for a moment that you are the UK and you earn £1,000 per month. These are your main monthly outgoings:
£160 for the NHS
£120 for Education
£70 for defence
£170 on welfare
£20 on recreation and religion
£180 on pensions
A half of one penny on the Queen

With apologies to Monty Python, "what have the Royals ever done for us?"
Well, for a start, their foreign visits encourage trade with the UK but thinking about closer to home,  we have 15m tourists each year spending a total of £15bn per annum. In London, the tourist industry accounts for 13% of the workforce. How many would there be without the royal family, the palaces and trinkets to gawp at, I wonder.

Another thing that I just don't get is that we are quite happy for a professional footballer to earn £15m p.a. basic salary , shag a prostitute old enough to be his granny, and allegedly cheat on his wife twice. Indeed some people hold him up as a role model! 

If there is one thing wrong with the Royals it is that they are surrounded by advisors who are more out of touch with the real world than they are, hence the Queen's initial misjudgement over the nation's mood upon Diana's death. 
No, they cannot always get it right but they get it right more often than not and they are good for the country.
Yes they have a lot of privileges but there is a cost. The family carry out about 3,000 engagements year. They cannot choose who they meet but have to show true interest in them and they have a knack of making you feel like the most important person in the world at that particular moment, so I am told.

So, through the wedding of William and Catherine, we should celebrate all that is good about Britain, our history and heritage. Those who want to spoil it through snide remarks, demonstrations or even violence can, as they say, sod off and leave the rest of us to simply enjoy the day because nobody does it better than Great Britain.

The God of Thunder

Seeing posters for the newly released film THOR reminds me of an old joke from the school playground which I feel that I must resuscitate.

Thor, the God of thunder, was floating around on his cloud with nothing to do. It was a lovely sunny day and there was no call for his crashes and bangs. Thor was bored.

As he skimmed across the sky he spied a beautiful maiden sunbathing on an otherwise deserted beach.

Thor could not resist. He descended at speed and made mad passionate love to her for seven days and seven nights non-stop.

Finally satisfied, he lay next to her. Then it struck him. This girl has absolutely no idea who I am. She will feel so privileged to know that a true God has made love to her. So, drawing himself up to his full height a took a deep breath and boomed "I'm Thor!!!"

"YOUR Thor?"' said the girl, "I'm tho thor I can't even pith!"

....aye thank you!