Watching Trooping of the Colour - AIBU to feel proud or is it an anachronistic, expensive waste of money?

[Isdinnerreadyyet]

Been watching Trooping of the Colour. I just love the bands, the precision of the marching, the horses - all of it TBH. We do it better than anyone else IMO. Also good for tourism as many tourists come to the UK for the pageantry, palaces etc.

AIBU to feel proud?

Or is it an anachronistic, expensive waste of money?

Well since none of those are relevant to the OP...

But I'd have to pay £60 for that, plus parking and the effort of getting somewhere. Also it wouldnt last as long

Whereas this, probably costs me pennies as a tax payer and I can watch it from the comfort of my living room.

Great stuff.

It enables connection between our Head of State; military and wider public. It evokes our shared history; and is healthier than wanting to fill the capital city with Tanks for a giant parade like in Washington DC

I don't feel proud of it and I don't really understand why it evokes feelings of pride in others. What is it exactly that people feel proud of? The traditions? The colourful uniforms? The marching?

I don't really get it tbh. The UK has traditions that make me feel more proud than those associated with a hereditary monarchy. And I'm not really interested in the military stuff, so meh.

I don't really object if others enjoy watching it - each to their own and all that - but I do find myself wondering how much it all costs and whether that money could be better spent elsewhere. I presume that it is funded by the taxpayer rather than by the Royal Family?

No, the men taking part aren't privileged. They're members of the armed forces, and masters of precision, whether cavalry or infantry.

Oh, right-wing twits always respond with this kind of pathetic 'gotcha'. You can't care about food banks unless you actually work at one, and you can't support immigration unless you house a family of asylum seekers in your back bedroom.

The Royal Family shouldn't exist.

I think some people don't understand what the Trooping of the Colour is about! 😂

The UK : Home Of Healthy Military Parades.

I think the money spent on this would be far better spent on addressing some of the things you've mentioned.

And far from being cheered up, it's made me more fucking pissed off that a supposedly modern democracy is spending money on loads of people and horses prancing about in front of some bloke who's only in the job because he was the first boy to pop from his mother's vagina.

How much must it all cost, ffs? The troops, the road closures, the Red Arrows, the extra police?

Having said that, there were some lovely horses, especially the grey with the very dappled bottom, and the pretty chestnut with white socks and blaze. But I can see lovely horses just by walking round the corner and up the hill.

"people and horses prancing about"
If you watched it, you'd see that it's more than this. You may still disagree with it, but the history is interesting, nonetheless.

Is it about the armed forces making green choices in our post-Thunberg world?

😀

Yes, also, one of the embroidered tributes on today's flag being trooped actually translates from the Latin as "Go Greta, You Rock".

So wholesome 🤩

No I don’t get. If it was a day of celebrating Britishness then yes, but we can’t openly just celebrate Britishness we instead have to celebrate what it means to be British through the lens of the royal family - as though they uphold British values. Go to France on Music day or Beaujolais Nouveau Day and you’ll experience communities celebrating their culture sans the need of royals to be the conduit of a country’s pride, identity and love.

I hope you enjoy the royal family’s day of entertainment.

Also I guess it wouldn't be good to have a king with such very fat fingers be around tank weaponry in a built up area.

I love a bit of pomp and pageantry.

The UK has a monarchy, we're stuck with it so at least they do their ceremonies properly!!

Of course having an unelected monarchy is going to be a bone of contention but look at what we've actually voted for / elected over the years!! Give me the RF over Brexit / Bojo any day of the week.

I wish that alongside these huge ceremonies there was a huge, private donation made towards food poverty (some other cause) but this would be met with derision I guess.

Yes, it's best left to other people. Anne would be my choice. I can see her handling a tank.

It's no wonder a troll started a thread earlier about this same subject. There's always plenty of ammunition when it comes to British celebrations.

I so wish the laughing emoji was still avaiable😂

😂

Yes, and the human rights and general well-being of the population has improved so much under Stalin, Putin…..

To my own surprise, I quite like things like this. I, myself, don't go out of my way to attend but I do see archaic ceremonies of this kind as continuous threads connecting us to our national past. As PPs have said, most (all?) countries have them and they serve the same purpose.

It doesn't cost that much in the overall scheme of things. I'd have no objection to getting rid of other monarchy-related expenses: their enormous land holdings, for instance, the secret art collection or the eye-watering jewellery. Not the 'crown jewels', though, as they also serve an emblematic national purpose.

I love it.

MNetters are obsessed by France