The Queen Is Dead!
Long Live the King!
The phrase "end of an era" can get bandied around a bit too much, but in this case it seems appropriate. After all, an American born the year Elizabeth II ascended to the throne would be eligible, in fact been eligible, for Social Security by the time her royal tenure had ended. There will be a funeral, and Charles, Anne, Andrew, Edward, William, Harry, Peter, Zara, Beatrice, Eugenie, Louise, James, Camilla, Timothy, Sophie, Kate, Meghan, and whoever else--is the Fergie who's not a pop singer in town? --will all have to put aside their differences and show their respects, as families do at funerals. Though he's technically king right now, Charles III will get his own coronation ceremony at some point in the future, and that should be fun to watch, what with all the pomp and pageantry and catwalks. Just don't get too lost in the fairy-tale spectacle. While it's true Britain is one of the world's oldest monarchies, paradoxically, it's also one of the world's oldest...
...democracies.
And at the end of the day...
...it will be this person, and this person's successors, that matter.
Sorry, Charlie.
