The wit and wisdom of Prince Philip
Memorable quotes from Philip:
To a driving instructor in Scotland: "How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough to get them through the test?"LinkTo a Nigerian diplomat in traditional Nigerian garb: "You look as if you’re ready for bed."
On seeing a fuse box filled with wires, during a visit to an electronics company: "This looks like it was put in by an Indian."
To a chubby 13-year-old boy at a space exploration exhibit, pointing to a space capsule: "You’ll have to lose weight if you want to go in that."
To a smoke-detector activist who lost two of her children in a house fire: "My smoke alarm is a damn nuisance. Every time I run my bath, the steam sets it off and I’ve got firefighters at my door."
To members of the British Deaf Association, while pointing to a loudspeaker playing Caribbean music: "No wonder you are deaf."
To a tourist, during a state visit to Hungary: "You can’t have been here long, you’ve not potbelly."
Speaking to British students studying in China: "If you stay here much longer, you’ll all be slitty-eyed."
On the "key problem" facing Brazil: "Brazilians live there."
On his daughter Princess Anne: "If it doesn’t fart or eat hay, she isn’t interested."
On seeing a picture once owned by England’s King Charles I in the Louvre in Paris: "So I said to the Queen, ‘Shall we take it back?’"
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He's like the British, snooty-pants version of Yogi Berra.
Anyone up for a public hanging?
beheading please, I'm a traditonalist
Why is it when I read these I hear Robin Williams?
Wasn't the traditional one "drawn, halfhanged and quartered"?
Thanks for this post. I had no idea he was such a shithead. Apparently you don't have to have the least hint of manners, couth, or common sense to marry a British monarch.
KittenFoo: More like the British, snooty-pants version of Dubya. I suppose it's funny if you like laughing at people who have absolutely no empathy for anyone.
Fnarf: Wouldn't a guillotine be more appropriate? Or perhaps he could be drowned in a vat of Ben Nevis.
To be fair, the man is 86. If these are the worst comments that they can dig up after a lifetime of being a public figure, I think he's done pretty good. Frankly, I'm a quarter of his age and with half my lifetime of inane comments having been sent through an electronic medium of some sort I'm sure I have worse floating out there.
Life is going to be interesting for the first major public figures who have grown up completely with the internet. There's going to be nothing like having a message board post or school paper you wrote when you were 16 being brought up during your run for office.
Al Sharpton should have a press conference to have him fired.
Sounds kinda like the stuff my grandfather used to pop out on occasion. Pretty typical of the sort of things a bigoted 70 something year old might say.
Breaking News: Old People Sometimes Hold Antiquated Views ... and Express Them In Public!
Two of the things I find fascinating about contemporary media are its amazing ability to keep nearly everything in the present tense indefinitely, and its impressive skills at recycling and re-using material. Here you've got a collection of Prince Philip quotes that was probably originally published as a sidebar to a Guardian article in the late '90s, and was then re-typed and published in a book (Uncle John's Supremely Satisfying Bathroom Reader back in 2001. Seven years later it gets re-printed (with acknowledgment) on a blog that looks like a more ad-saturated, less author-driven BB wannabe, and then picked up by Boing Boing. Given BB's huge audience, its presence here is likely to lead to even more blog citations and links, perpetuating the chain even further . . .
There's nothing wrong with recycled content in principle, and all blogs rely on the reporting and posting of other bloggers and writers, but I guess I just wonder ... what's the point of digging something like this up in the first place? Anyone who knows anything about the British royal family is probably already well aware of Philip's habits (and even these specific quotes), and I can't really imagine why anyone who doesn't live in the UK or follow/care about the British royals would care about them at all.
or, uh, 8o something for that matter...
I just watched "The Queen." The representation of him in that is hilarious.
Granted, bad, but you got to love how old people have no fear to say exactly what is on their mind. But he is mistaken about Brazilians ruining Brazil.... the problem is all the italians in Italy. Bastards.
Context and delivery are everything - while I have little doubt he is a bigoted old coot (if he isn't it would be a miracle given his age and developmental environment), the vast majority of those statements could be meant and taken as humor. If you simply printed selected remarks between myself and my friends of various races & creeds it would read far worse but the truth would be that there was a complete lack of animousity or offense in them
I was kinda amused by "If it doesn’t fart or eat hay, she isn’t interested." The rest were tripe and offal.
#10
You forget the Queens popularity polls outside the UK tend to be way more favourable.
I think I will require some anecdotal evidence of Barbara Bush saying things like this before I just "take your word for it".
CrunchBird: Royals are supposed to be representing the nation at all times, in everything they do. That's why it sucks out loud to be one, and why IMO it should be abolished. But since I'm not a UK citizen, my opinion is worth bupkus on that.
His Antoinette-like comments remind me why I believe that no one should be allowed to be so isolated by wealth that they no longer hear the cry of the poor...or even of the upper middle class!
Just another obscenely wealthy jackhole.
The Lizardman: I'm sure he thought he was being funny in most cases (though what he was thinking when he was talking about smoke alarms is beyond me). His attempts at humor are just absolutely tasteless and insulting.
My first thought on this was "was this guy joking when he said these?"
My second thought was "how do we know he really said any of it?"
ok, my first thought was "these are the same jokes my dad makes", but still...
His attempts at humor are just absolutely tasteless and insulting.
Humor is in the eye of the beholder. I always say that I'm here to amuse myself. If others are amused, that's fine, but that's not why I say "funny" things.
The fourth one sounds like a perfectly reasonable thing to say to a fat kid to me.
The rest seem like the kind of thing that somebody with a really outdated view of the world would say. And imagine that... He's old. Imagine what your prejudices are going to soundlike to your great-grandkids. Oh yes. You have them. The just don't seem outrageous yet.
Droo31 17: How about this quote:
She was talking about refugees from New Orleans. See? When I call our President a son of a bitch, I'm saying exactly what I mean.On seeing a fuse box filled with wires, during a visit to an electronics company: "This looks like it was put in by an Indian."
I don't want to sound like I'm standing up for the guy, and I'm really not being racist myself. In this case, I don't think he was being racist – I think he'd just been to India and was speaking from experience.
I was there a few weeks ago and the wiring is frankly terrifying. For example, in the (quite nice) hotel room I was staying in, there were four table lights but only one had a plug. The others were connected by wrapping the bare wires around the plug prongs and shoving the whole lot into the socket. Which was falling out of the wall. When switched on the lights made an interesting sizzling sparky sort of noise.
The problem here is that some people keep claiming that somehow his remarks are related to his status as an "obscenely wealthy jackhole," when they can just as easily be attributed to his age, his general insensitivity, and the culture he grew up in. I can assure you that my grandfather is in no way "obscenely wealthy," but he could quite easily have come up with any number of the more prejudiced remarks on this list. Others commenters have offered similar examples from their own experience.
Yes, as a royal Philip is expected to behave himself better ... my only point is that it's hardly all that shocking that he hasn't, and that it's been frequently and mockingly reported in the international press in the past. To express outrage at his antics, especially when one isn't a citizen of the UK, strikes me as the very definition of wasted mental energy.
Prince Philip is brilliant!
When I was at art school in Falmouth, he and the Queen visited the town to open a new museum and a couple of black students and a disabled girl placed themselves at the front of the crowd in the hope of provoking some sort of hilariously out-of-touch comment. They were disappointed when he just smiled and walked on by...
Anyway, here's my fave prince Philip quote:
(upon being greeted by a fawning diplomat as he steps from a plane)
"And how was your flight, sir?" asks the envoy
"Have you ever flown?" the prince replies
"Yes, sir, often."
"Well," says the prince, "it was like that."
Well, not all of them seem to be completely unreasonable. Even if impolite, some have a point.
I'm not very familiar with the space program, but the comment to the 13 year old is probably correct.
And the smoke detector comment even though insensitive makes an excellent point: False positives, especially of the kind that make the firefighters show up because you're having a bath are a very bad thing.
Ivan256 21: Two questions. 1) Were you ever a fat kid? 2) Do you think "Fuck you, you stinky old fart" would be a reasonable reply by said fat kid to said stinky old fart?
I bet your answers to those questions are both no. Mine are both yes. Funny how that works.
""When switched on the lights made an interesting sizzling sparky sort of noise.""
Thanks for that...my first good laugh of the day.
Most Brits seem to view him as an entertaining sideshow. Unlike our national idiot, at least he doesn't have nukes.
#26
I'm pretty sure smoke detectors are not set off by steam.
Maybe the antique ones do, the ones that detect that old fashioned water-fire..
So, this is where Ricky Gervais got his material for Office?
I liked the last one. They SHOULD have swiped that picture.
:)
Elrohir, if you think that's what the stinky old fart meant, you and I live in different worlds. Had he meant that (which would, I'd point out, require him having the brains to make the connection, which strikes me as unlikely), he'd've said "We have to make sure that smoke alarms don't produce false positives, which waste firefighters' time. I know that mine goes off when I run my bath, and that's not a good thing, even for me, because if there's a real fire someday they might just think 'Oh, the SOF's just having his bath again' and not come."
Or something like that. He was just being entirely selfish (in fact, sociopathically self-centered), like most (not all) people of that class.
#26 re #30
Curse my lightning-quick, sarcastic trigger finger. I checked.. old ionising smoke detectors can get false positives from steam.
/slink
I, in fact, tend to talk to people like this. They seem to like it, I dunno.
#30: They can be. I once had a notable hotel stay where I got scared out of my wits by the smoke detector going off while I was mid-shower. I ran out, flung something on (with suds still in my hair), and looked outside for any evidence of fire... of which there was none. The only culprit was the steam from the shower. And whether I had the fan on or not, the door open or not, anything, it did the same thing every night for the rest of the week.
Most of the quotes sound pretty appalling, but I'll sympathize with him there. ;)
Eddie Izzard got it right:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTduy7Qkvk8
"Hello, hello. What do you do? You're a plumber. What on Earth is that?
He's quite a piece of work, this Prince:
http://aycu17.webshots.com/image/46656/2005286980755005100_rs.jpg
He's absolutely right about Brazil, y'know.
Indeed Arkizzle - I've set off my smoke detector by opening the door after a shower, and it's not even all that old-looking.
Also bacon, toast, a bit of coffee spilled on a burner coil, dry roasted mustard seeds...
Dragon, I just had never experienced steam setting one off.
I know about all the other stuff, don't expect me to cook with out accompaniment.. If I had a theme tune, it would mostly be smoke-detector beeps, car alarms and low-battery blips :)
Might be true and all, but you don't say it to someone who's lost their children in a fire.
"Better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."
Not exactly an apropos quote. Guess it should be "Better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you an asshole..." in this case.
Prince Philip is a national treasure. He says it openly, without sittingly tightly and primly on his arse, like most of the sanctimonious shits who commented so far on this post.
He might get it wrong sometimes, but these are 'oops' moments, not a systematic attempt to demolish democracy. And lets's face it, in 85 years a couple of dozen 'oops' moments isn't many. I'd bet that most people who's criticsed him in this post have avoided having their snider and worse comments recorded for posterity.
I don't know Prince Phillip (or his reputation) from Adam, but I'd like to sit down and have a drink with him. Except for the fairly racist indian comment, he's just speaking frankly or making a joke that probably wouldn't be offensive if not taken into context with the rest of these. Personally I think more leaders should speak more plainly.
Ok, I'll give you the "You look like you're ready for bed to the Nigerian diplomat is just bad diplomacy. But like someone said, if this is the worst quotes that they could come up with, he's could have done a lot worse.
Most of those are pretty good! He'd fit right in on Fark (but is too witty and not mean enough for 4chan).
Frankly, he says out loud what a lot of British people are thinking quietly. If he were really a problem, Betty would just leave him at home when she goes out. Just be glad that they don't do their own grocery shopping.
Hem hem hem hem!
And what is the definition of a "gentleman"?
Anyone? Anyone?
Yes, you in the back! (sitdownboydon'tmakemeusethischalk!!!)
Very good! A Gentleman is one who never causes offense!
And this inbred dickweed is no gentleman.
Prince Philip is a national treasure.
Indeed, and his family jewels should be removed and sold to benefit the poor.
he sounds like the british version of george bush! but, i gotta say, the last one really IS kinda funny....
to #41 (TRR) - sure you do.
You don't say it to someone who's JUST lost their children, but this person was an activist, who'd been campaigning for some time on the benefits of fire alarms, not a recently bereaved mother.
The idea that you have to pussyfoot around people forever like that - lest you say the 'wrong' thing - seems to be all that he stands against: No Pussyfooting.
Well he might be an idiot but he's our idiot. Its not like we've given him the Trident launch codes or anything. Compared to some of the tossers actually running Britain he's a beacon of intelligence and tact.
He's a frequent target on Have I Got News For You for his public gaffs. His quotes are very british and that's what I love about Prince Phillip - that and the fact he has no power to wield.
This guy is a national treasure. More quotes, please.
He's just another immigrant trying to fit in with the local culture.
"If it has four legs and is not a chair, has wings and is not an aeroplane, or swims and is not a submarine, the Cantonese will eat it." (1986)
After accepting a gift from a Kenyan citizen he replied, "You are a woman, aren't you?"
To a British student in Papua New Guinea: "You managed not to get eaten then?"
Angering local residents in Lockerbie when on a visit to the town in 1993, the Prince said to a man who lived in a road where eleven people had been killed by wreckage from the Pan Am jumbo jet: "People usually say that after a fire it is water damage that is the worst. We are still trying to dry out Windsor Castle."
"Aren't most of you descended from pirates?" (in 1994, to an islander in the Cayman Islands)
At the height of the recession in 1981 he said: "Everybody was saying we must have more leisure. Now they are complaining they are unemployed."
Upon presenting a Duke of Edinburgh Award to a student, when informed that the young man was going to help out in Romania for six months, he asked if the student was going to help the Romanian orphans; upon being informed he was not, it was claimed the 85-year-old duke added: "Ah good, there's so many over there you feel they breed them just to put in orphanages."
In 1987 he wrote in his book If I Were an Animal that "In the event that I am reincarnated, I would like to return as a deadly virus, in order to contribute something to solve overpopulation."
Being a Brit myself, I've never taken him seriously and I've always got the feeling that no-one else has ever taken him seriously, not even members of his own family. Being who he is and who his wife is, no-one dares to tell him to shut up so he is used to saying what he wants to without fear of the consequences.
The current president of the United States of America says more stupid things than that list in one week. And he doesn't have the excuse of being old.
The Indian comment isn't racist, simply truth uttered by someone who's been to India. Wiring over there is... interesting, to say the least.
The last 2 are actually pretty funny and endearing.
And steam does indeed set off smoke alarms. When I was growing up in the '80s and '90s I used to set ours off all the time if I forgot to close the door after showering until all the steam went out the open window.
You shouldn't make fun of Prince Philip. He's obviously got the Asperger Syndrome.
That is truly unfair to the autistic. Philip is an ass due to unrestrained privilege and the unfortunate effects of a life without real work.
@ #45 Antinous
A pedant writes:
It's 'Brenda', not 'Betty'
(cf. http://tinyurl.com/3xsv3e)
don't say it
http://www.gilescartoons.co.uk/cartoon.asp?cartoon=335
@32 Somebody saying something in a blunt, rude and selfish way still doesn't mean there's no truth in it.
In fact, even if he doesn't care in the slightest about the firefighters and whoever might be burning to death due to the false positive, the comment still refers to a real problem that exists.
Just because he happens to be an asshole doesn't mean that there aren't many other people who decided not to use a detector for precisely the same reason.
If this was filmed, the activist should have used the opportunity to point that not all detectors have this problem. This could change some people's minds.
Note I'm not excusing his behavior. I'm just saying you can be a jerk and have a point at the same time.
Takuan, I thought privilege was what caused Aspergers?
"Somebody saying something in a blunt, rude and selfish way still doesn't mean there's no truth in it."
No.
It is entirely possible to be right - and utterly, utterly wrong.
The harm done by cruel,unnecessary speaking can totally negate any superficial "good" wrought.
I do not understand why this is so hard to grasp.
This person basks in unearned comfort and security. The Queen has set unfailing example of noblesse oblige for decades in the face of incredible adversity yet she is never accused of what Philip is routinely.
This "prince" is a boor.
A platitude for you: " the most beautiful sword lies rusted in the scabbard" When people like Philip abuse the status they enjoy without responsibility for their words, they defile all of the human traditions and practice that has for better or worse, created the concept of "nobility". He is GRANTED power. He has an obligation to be noble.
I bow my neck to no one - save those who empress me with their deeds and qualities. Respect given where due. I have no use for inherited or unearned title - though I recognize some may grow into them.
His behaviour is NOT excusable.
What you fail to grasp I think, that all I'm saying is that somebody being a jerk doesn't automatically nullify the meaning of what they say. Him saying "brush your teeth" in the most impolite way possible still wouldn't make it bad advice.
nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! He's just an asshole.
Sounds a little like Rodney Dangerfield.
He visited a school local to me which was on show due to having been turned around from a failing school to a successful one. He turned to a group of parents and said something like "Were you here in the bad old days then? Can any of you read and write?" When reporters went looking for indignant responses they found that instead the parents were rather pleased -- "Prince Phillip came here and said one of his things about US" they crowed.
Little wonder why the royals have no real friends.
The Queen and I by Sue Townsend, of Adrian Mole fame, is an entertaining satire in which the Royal Family loses its privileges and has to go live in a housing estate. Prince Philip is so dismayed by his change of fortune that he refuses to get out of bed. The Queen, on the other hand, keeps a stiff upper lip.
"If it has four legs and is not a chair, has wings and is not an aeroplane, or swims and is not a submarine, the Cantonese will eat it."
That one is actually pretty much true. I first heard it from my (Chinese) brother-in-law who thought it hilarious. It was told just after he'd warned me with a straight face not to ever get falling over drunk at a Chinese banquet because "We'll eat anything so long as it's backbone doesn't point at the sky."
Prince Phil is the genius predecessor to David Brent and Alan Partridge. His comments are hilarious. After living in China where everyone tells you what a big nose you westerners have it's refreshing to get one back on them.
I was introduced to the Duke when he visited our school in the 1970s. He raised an eyebrow at our painstakingly created display on trekking and just said "Boots? Hah!" and walked off. Brilliant.
Tak-kun,
I note that Prince Charles is the first major VIP to announce his boycott of the Olympics. You might cut his father a bit of slack.
What motivation? To avoid the bleeding wogs? Sorry,I have Vimesian instincts regarding crowns.
If I were born into royalty,my first act would be to abolish it. Better a hierarchy based on strength of arms or shoe size. Succession breeds weakness,stupidty and evil. Ask the Bushes.
In 1649
To St George's Hill
A ragged band they called the Diggers
Came to show the people' s will
They defied the landlords
They defied the laws
They were the dispossessed
Reclaiming what was theirs
We come in peace, they said
To dig and sow
We come to work the land in common
And to make the waste land grow
This earth divided
We will make whole
So it can be
A common treasury for all.
The sin of property
We do disdain
No one has any right to buy and sell
The earth for private gain
By theft and murder
They took the land
Now everywhere the walls
Rise up at their command.
They make the laws
To chain us well
The clergy dazzle us with heaven
Or they damn us into hell
We will not worship
The God they serve
The God of greed who feeds the rich
While poor men starve
We work, we eat together
We need no swords
We will not bow to masters
Or pay rent to the lords
We are free men
Though we are poor
You Diggers all stand up for glory
Stand up now
From the men of property
The orders came
They sent the hired men and troopers
To wipe out the Diggers' claim
Tear down their cottages
Destroy their corn
They were dispersed -
Only the vision lingers on
You poor take courage
You rich take care
The earth was made a common treasury
For everyone to share
All things in common
All people one
We come in peace
The order came to cut them down
PC is a follower of the DL.
and now,a musical interlude
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38s4mVY2b_Y
today, I have not slain
good night
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YEq3St7CGs&feature=related
Did he just walk up and say those things, or was there a bit more chatter or conversation beforehand? That makes a huge difference. Who says he wasn't on friendly enough terms with that Nigerian official, for instance? My family worked in an embassy, and with all the odd ways every house on the row represented their country, you had to keep a sense of humour about you. When local VIPS were invited to take part in our national customs, most of them got it horribly wrong. No one got offended, it was all part of discovering another culture.
And it's true that old people exhibit a sense of humour that hasn't been soaked in political correctness. It's not always appropriate, but I'd rather someone said 'wow, your national folk costume is really odd' than pretend he was so damned sophisticated he hadn't even noticed I'm wearing it.
Prince Philip is about the only member of the royal family I actually like, he has provided us with so much amusement over the years. I don't find any of his comments offensive, and it seems most of the people his comments are directed at don't find them offensive either.
I am Scottish and his comment to the driving instructor only goes to show he has some experience of "the natives" (i could take issue with the Anglo-centric term "Queen of England" in the article though).
Remember this man is worshipped as a god by some cargo-cultists, maybe you'd best not piss him off too much =)
Showers set off my smoke alarm too.
Prince Philip is about the only member of the royal family I actually like, he has provided us with so much amusement over the years. I don't find any of his comments offensive, and it seems most of the people his comments are directed at don't find them offensive either.
I am Scottish and his comment to the driving instructor only goes to show he has some experience of "the natives" (i could take issue with the Anglo-centric term "Queen of England" in the article though).
Remember this man is worshipped as a god by some cargo-cultists, maybe you'd best not piss him off too much =)
My high school science teachers managed to instill the following in me:
If you guys are taking steam showers, you're all very fond of third degree burns.
Water Vapor is generally what you're going to find during a shower, above a body of water in winter, etc etc etc.
@21: Exactly! Our very own quotes will sound like this someday. It's one of the redeeming aspects of modern society that the line of unacceptable prejudice keeps getting rewritten. I mean, I don't like the "PC" aspect of "enforcing" normalcy, but the awareness is nice to see!
That said, these quotes are nowhere NEAR as tasteless, insulting, bigoted, or bizarre as any of my own grandparents' views or quotes. I wouldn't even repeat them here. And my grandparents (on one side, at least) are Stanford educated and Bay natives, not some ranch Texans or disconnected royalty. Old people will always look and sound crazy to young people. I'm looking forward to appalling the youth! :D
I really don't find his comments offensive, just insensitive. What I find offensive is his title and position. The royalty of this world are parasites and are so inbred they make areas of the deep south in the US a melting pot in comparison. I suspect the largely forgotten eugenics movement of the late 19th and early 20th century plays a large role on his whole outlook.
Anyway, #54 POSTED BY ANTINOUS beat me to my favorite: "n the event that I am reincarnated, I would like to return as a deadly virus, in order to contribute something to solve overpopulation."
Antinous 73: I note that Prince Charles is the first major VIP to announce his boycott of the Olympics. You might cut his father a bit of slack.
This strikes me as a complete nonsequitur. Why on Earth should Philip get any credit for Charles' good behavior, or slack on his account? They're separate people, both adults, and should get separate credit or blame for their behavior.
Now that doesn't mean I'd walk right up to Charles and say "Your father is a loathsome old fart who should have been drowned at birth, except for the fact that we wouldn't have you if that had happened." Not, at least, unless I knew that he feels the same way, which you should not assume he doesn't!
Maybe I've just known too many fine people with truly horrific parents, but this seems like a deeply bizarre statement to me.
When asked his opinion of Hong Kong, HRH reportedly said: "It will be great when it is finished."
Way to amusing to be true!
This strikes me as a complete nonsequitur.
It wasn't meant to be a rational argument. I was just baiting Takuan, a favor which he will undoubtedly return many times.
Crunchbird, does reading Boing Boing really make you as distempered as you sound, or do you only post comments when you're irritated? As of today I believe you're at 20 or 21 straight comments that denounce, complain, correct, reprove, deplore, grumble, or all of the above: a Boing Boing record.
I'd award you the title of Official Boing Boing Grouse, if I didn't think the honor and the glory of the thing would encourage others to compete for the position.
Thus are you unfairly deprived. It's sad.
Xopher..
I know you probably won't read this, since it's fallen off the front page, but I thought I'd let you know a few things.
First, you're prediction as to the answers to your questions are wrong. Here's how I'd answer"
No. I was never a fat kid.
Yes, telling the old guy to fuck off is perfectly reasonable. (But I also think it would be reasonable for the old guy to slap the kid after).
Second:
http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2007/02/27/study_college_students_more_narcissistic/
It's an AP story, so if you don't like the Globe, go read it in the Washington Post, or something. The summary is that people are starting to realize we're not doing our kids a service by being only positive to them all the time. When a kid fucks up, we should tell them. Otherwise they turn into narcissistic pricks when they grow up.
Ivan256, Xopher has good forum manners. He comes back to read the responses to his comments.
I'd post my reaction to your comment, Teresa, but I suppose you'd just see that as grousing and complaining and add it to the imaginary tally you've compiled in your head.
Whoops . . .
Antinous 88: OH. Well, that makes a lot more sense. Never mind. (No sarcasm intended; I thought you were serious and now that I know you weren't, I have no further issue.)
Ivan256: Your second answer does surprise me. Myself, I'd tell the guy to fuck off, then dodge out of the way and see if I can keep him running 'til he falls down. Then throw spoiled fruit at him from a distance.
We could write this into a whole fantasy altercation, like the time I responded to Ann Coulter's statement about "talking" to liberals using a baseball bat with a long description of how if I had a baseball bat too, I'd be happy to engage in that conversation with her, and how she'd never talk or walk right again. But that, I think, would be pointless.
I'm glad you share my opinion on how His Flatulence the Royal Consort should be spoken to.
And I entirely agree about the kids fucking up. It's just rude for anyone to do it in public, and not His Royal Dickness' place to do it at all. There's a big difference between parents saying "Look, son, you're seriously overweight, and we're going to have to do something about it," and some asshole saying "Fat kid!" randomly in public.
If the kid were smashing something, different story; any adult should stop him. But one thing you really would (probably) know if you'd ever been a fat kid, and that's that being humiliated for being fat doesn't help you lose weight; in fact, for some kids it makes things worse, because they eat when they feel bad.
I heard a psychiatrist on the radio saying that his research suggested that rough play, including getting hurt, was essential to the development of empathy in children. It wasn't his entire dataset, but he did interview a number of multiple murderers in prison, and the one thing that they had in common was that they never played with other kids as children. Helicopter parenting is thus denounced.
TNH: Thank you. In fact if I make a significant comment on a BB post, I generally Favorite it, so that I can easily check it later.
Takuan: No, no, a gentleman isn't someone who never causes offense. He's someone who never causes offense *unintentionally*.
The one about Princess Anne is pretty funny. The one about Indian (dot not feather) wiring may well be quite accurate given comments above. (And this is where we're outsourcing our tech support? Eep!)
The rest of these are asshole-ish as can be. His being old doesn't excuse that.
Whereas Dubya-isms indicate not so much an asshole as a moron. Is our children learning, indeed.
To those making comparisons between HRH Prince Philip and George W. Bush, there are a couple of significant differences.
Prince Philip's "gaffes" are usually examples of his very outdated sense of humour, or an expression of his complete lack of tolerance for sycophants. He calls a spade a spade - no matter who that may offend. But he knows exactly what he means, and says it.
George W. Bush's gaffes are more usually the result of his tenuous grasp of the English language, or an expression of the fact that he doesn't appear to be that bright. He has no idea what he means to say, but still says it.
Another major difference between the two is that while there is much controversy over George W. Bush's record in the military, Prince Philip is a decorated WWII hero. Which is ironic considering that Bush has the newklear launch codes and Phil just gets to shoot pheasants.
Seeing as I don't have any inappropriate-but-amusing grandparents of my own, Prince Philip fills the gap quite nicely.
OK
Did you know that after Prince Flop was taken away from his parents in Greece he lived with his aunt in Germany who was married to Goebbels - Propaganda minister for Herr Hitler. His opinions have been with him since he was a boy and have only flourished as he has got older. The question should be was he born a prick or did he work at it?
England holds No responsibility for Prince Philip.
Anything he says is his own views, no matter the level or distortion or bigotry.
he does not represent Britain in any way, and we do try and keep him out of public, but he somehow gets out.
Hell the guy isnt even English.
think of him like he is your crazy granddad who says things he shouldn't while at large family gatherings and causes much embarrassment.