One need not be British to find this absolutely charming.  At first, I couldn’t believe this wasn’t some CGI Platinum Jubilee stunt, but it is in fact Her Majesty, proving that being ‘regal’ need not mean being serious to the point of pomposity.  Would that every renowned person – and no one alive has (ever?) been so renowned, for so long, as the Queen – displayed such easy and gracious aplomb.

I approve on principal that hereditary monarchs no longer have substantial power. But cursory observation shows that popular election does not invariably yield deserving, trustworthy or competent leaders. And a sovereign like Elizabeth shows there is much to be said for having a stabilizing institution that embodies reassuring continuity and solidarity, its legitimacy granted by Fate (birth), rather than political clout obtained through crass maneuvering, often beholden to interests at odds with those of a nation as a whole.

Vivat Regina!