Regarding staff
employment policies, the heir to the throne and next-in-line to
replacing the Queen as Canada's head of state, the Prince is
reported to have written the following in a 2002 memo to a staff
member:
"What is
wrong with people nowadays? Why do they all seem to think they
are qualified to do things far above their capabilities?"
"This is all
to do with the learning culture in schools. It is a consequence
of a child-centred education system which tells people they can
become pop stars, high court judges or brilliant TV presenters
or infinitely more competent heads of state without ever putting
in the necessary work or having the natural ability.
"It is a
result of social utopianism which believes humanity can be
genetically engineered to contradict the lessons of
history."
Supporters of
Citizens for a Canadian Republic, the advocacy group that wants
a democratically chosen Canadian as head of state were appalled,
yet not surprised.
"We hope
Canadians will take note", says Tom Freda, National
Director of the non-partisan organization.
"These kinds
of views are not compatible with egalitarian Canada. The concept
of being able to aspire and succeed at whatever one chooses,
despite one's social standing, is at the very core of Canadian
values. Prince Charles' comments should be a rude awakening to
Canadians as they contemplate whether or not the monarchy is
appropriate for a progressive, twenty-first century nation such
as ours."
"What many
Canadians don't think about," he added, "is that the
Queen is nearing the end of her reign. We could wake up one
morning to find that our new head of state is King Charles III,
whether we like it or not. This is already a major issue in
Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica and Barbados regarding their
respective monarchies. It's time we started the debate here as
to whether citizens of an independent Canada deserve the right
to choose their own head of state or accept one imposed upon
them without debate or democratic process."
ABOUT CITIZENS
FOR A CANADIAN REPUBLIC
CCR is a
national, non-profit, non-partisan organization that has been
promoting the patriation the office of Canada's head of state
since 2001. Through these efforts, it's helped Canadian
republicanism gain unprecedented media and public interest. CCR
maintains chapters in all regions of Canada and offices in
Toronto and Edmonton.
More about CCR
and its goals, including repealing the Act of Settlement,
revising Canada's Oaths of Allegiance and supporting the
democratization and codification of the office of the Governor
General can be accessed at http//www.canadian-republic.ca
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