Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second.

I don't want an argument. Her father probably saved the World from Nazi tyranny. Without his influence and determination, Churchill wouldn't have had the confidence. But he knew he was backed by the King, when all others seemed to waver. Queen Elizabeth brought comparative stability to much of the World, that had been part of the British Empire, by creating the Commonwealth. She particularly brought comparitive stability to much of Northern Africa. We can see what happened when her influence started to wane.

So Hiram's point is taken and even accepted but we're not here to debate the rights and wrongs of extended families. Just to commemorate one woman, whose influence was great and, on the whole, very positive indeed. She was and is loved by many millions of people, in a way in which it would be hard to love a more political figure.

@23  Awesome post! I read it twice!

   We have 5 threads on the Queen and 2 are locked. Don't get me wrong,...I wish her well. I just don't understand the logic behind locking the thread of an elderly figure's untimely demise,... and allowing 7 threads on the whole Hans--Magnus fiasco.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

R.I.P.

I am not a royalist, but I, too, believe she was a stabilising influence. She wasn't born to be a queen, so the sacrifices she made to reign are unparalleled, and you can only admire her strength and resolve through her 90+ years.
As an ex-pat I am unsure where the royal family is heading, it going to be a tough call on Charles III to hold the Commonwealth together

I think that's the point really. There are various systems regarding heads of state. It's all priorities and perspectives. I prefer the monarchy ... I wouldn't feel happy with a President. A monarchy brings stability. I think we could be happily surprised with Charles. He used to seem wooden but I heard a really good speech by him, a while back. Some people only learn that kind of ability later in life.

Hello, it's probably better not to. It could bring the same kind of bad luck!

She was a grand lady and will be missed the world over.
R.I.P.

I locked my own thread regarding the queens health and redirected it to my new thread about the queens passing. I also locked another thread referencing the queens passing because the author didn't express any condolences. I redirected that thread to mine so I could closely moderate it myself to make sure there were only comments marking respect.

I kept one thread open by another user as a discussion related to the queens passing which is more relaxed. If any new threads are created, i shall lock them and redirect them to either one of those 2 threads. I hope that settles the confusion.

@Optimissed...my friend, I wish to express my most heartfelt condolences to not only you and your wife but also your entire nation and Commonwealth for the loss of Her Majesty the Queen,  Elizabeth II...the world is poorer without her!  She was as much a force in shaping the Modern Age--probably even more so, given her record-setting reign--as was Queen Victoria during the Industrial Age.  The Queen will be missed.  In my humble opinion she rivals old Pope John Paul II in sheer influence and goodwill.  She was the Anchor which held Britain steadfast through both tough times and good times (metaphor fully intended, given Britain's rich Naval tradition; I'm a Navy man, myself), and hopefully her son King Charles can "stay the course"...(popular opinion seems centered on her grandson, Prince William, being the next truly good King, however; but I digress).  

It was objectionable and deleted.

   OK,...thanks pianoplayer.     

For big events like this which is a very sensitive subject, it makes sense to control what is said as it can easily be abused. If you have loads of topics for the same event, it's hard for moderators to handle everything which is why i merged multiple threads into one. I don't do things for glory, there's no incentive for that. I just wanted to make sure that things didn't get out of hand in the forums.

Please can we not have arguments about which threads are best or why other threads were closed? I don't want to block anyone over this and would really appreciate it if all comments were kept to the simple matter of mourning a World figurehead, loved and appreciated by many. I started this thread from a sincere and very powerful feeling of personal and communal loss. It doesn't matter to me how many people comment or how many posts there are, provided that all comments should be sincere and should address the subject matter directly, please.

Thanks everyone.

   Security for her funeral is gonna be a Nightmare.   I'm thinking,.."London Has Fallin".  We're gonna need Secret Service agent Mike Bannon.

It'll be ok.