Trx Machine Instead what you'll find are a group of

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Claims of 'royal' offence embarrassing

I was saddened by the Gaelic College board of directors' decision not to use the "royal" designation in the college's day to day operations.

I am a recently retired army officer, a member of The Sons of Scotland Pipe Band in Ottawa, a member of Clan Ranald, a Scottish history buff and a Cape Bretoner from Inverness County. I am immensely proud of my Scottish, Acadian and Irish roots.

It is embarrassing and petty that a segment of Cape Breton's population is claiming offence at the Gaelic College being honoured with a "royal" designation. They are armed with a one sided view of history that fails to take into account the role the forebears of our own chieftains and captains had in the Highland clearances. History, for them, conveniently ends at Culloden.

To intimate that the current monarch of Canada and Scotland represents centuries old despotism is a fallacy that ignores history and the modern Crown's strong affinity to the Highlands.

Many a Cape Bretoner of Highland descent has sworn allegiance to the Crown of Canada and has fought to protect this great nation. Indeed, even Scottish separatists are fiercely loyal to the Queen.

Having witnessed first hand the results of slavish attachment to ancient tribal rivalries in the Middle East, the former Yugoslavia and Afghanistan, I am fearful of these attitudes causing manufactured rifts in Cape Breton society.

The consequences are not the deadly ones of war, but the creeping divisiveness and negativity that detract from Cape Breton's potential.

This whole 'Royal' deal was hatched by the Queen's Office in Ottawa and supported by a few monarchists on the Gaelic College Board of Directors; then supported by the other directors. a nd Canada for standing up for The Gaelic College and Canadian symbols. She owns a house there and they sometimes don kilts; that's as deep as it runs. Do you seriously want a country where no Canadian can ever be the head of State? Only some foreigner born to it? We need to leave that to history, forever.

Your anti British bigotry has come shining through.

Trx For Sale Some facts for you Skeptical:

Canada is a constitutional monarchy, and will remain such long after we are both gone.

Since 1931 there has been a unique Canadian Crown, which we share with not only Great Britain, but with all other Commonwealth Realms.

The Queen's ancestry is diverse, just as most Canadians, however all of her grandparents were born in the United Kingdom.

Trx Bands There are two Canadians in the Royal family.

Having a non resident Head of State is fine by me, as Her Canadian Governor General does an exemplary job representing Her. Should you wish to put all of this behind you, perhaps emigrating to the United States would be an option?

I'm not anti British. What nonsense. I have family there and am quite fond of them and the old countries. Yes, Canada is currently a constitutional monarchy; of course I know that. But it doesn't have to remain so, we as a people can change that if enough want to; it shouldn't remain so and I don't think it will, any more than it will in any of the other Commonwealth countries. I don't think the monarchy will outlast Elizabeth anywhere, including England eventually. If Elizabeth is a figurehead, well, we don't need one. If she's not a figurehead, and has real influence over our destiny, that's wrong; it should be entirely in the hands of Canadian citizens. She's an outsider looking in, and she does not share our interests. She is fairly benign, but the whole idea of inherited position is archaic. She is British through and through, and we're not. I disagree on the value of the GG and the lieutenants; Harper's many prorogations and his co opting of the GG has shown that it is a political tool that can be used against Canadians. One of the main points I'll adresss is the utterly false notion that the Highland Clearances were perpetrated against the Gaels by "their own".

Trx Machine Instead what you'll find are a group of people long incorporated into the British aristocracy, filled with titles bestowed by the monarchy, people educated at places like Eton, Oxford, Cambridge. Living the high life in Edinburgh and London while "their own" struggled and languished. Calling them "their own" is false and an insult. They used the loyalty of the people against them, pushed them onto the worst lands, made life more and more intolerable. All with the blessing of crown and country!

In fact this was all by design. The Statutes of Iona were imposed to alienate the elite Gaels from "their own". Clearly it worked, and apparently still does.

Trx Rip Trainer It is time for Canada to unite and become totally independent of the English Monarchy. Lets all get away from all this ancient history crap. We are comprised of people from all over the world and should no longer be arguing over who's former country should set our standards and loyalties. This has nothing to do with love or hate and everything to do with a sense of freedom, and why we are here in the first place. I guess we are not allowed to say it but I have a feeling that the root of this whole royalty debate is really about religion anyway. Time to get past it on both sides.