Potty Monarchs, Puerile Pundits, and Soldier Pride

A holiday grab bag from your friends in The Mark Newsroom.

Usually we in The Mark Newsroom like to put together Deep Dives on some kind of theme (our editor makes us, actually). But seeing as this is the last Deep Dive of the year (and our editor has already left on vacation), here’s a random collection of columns that caught our eye today.

The National Post’s Lorne Gunter says it’s time for Canada to move away from the monarchy, especially because Prince Charles, a “potty, lefty activist,” is next in line for the throne. Unlike his mother, who has been positively opaque when it comes to her political views, Charles has taken up all kinds of activist causes and intends on ruling as a vocal, “visionary monarch.” While we in the Newsroom have no problem with debating a move away from Buckingham Palace, calling a guy who sucks up millions of taxpayer dollars each year so he can ride around in a Rolls Royce and go coursing on the heath a “lefty activist” seems like a stretch. We know a few rampaging London protestors who might agree.

Sun Media’s Christina Blizzard is upset that Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty wouldn’t grant her publication an interview this week. So upset that instead she makes up an interview with the premier that depicts him as a horny, drunken idiot and insults his wife several times to boot. Yes, it’s certainly a mystery why McGuinty wouldn’t want to grant an interview to a paper as intelligent and funny as the Sun.

And here’s a piece to warm your cockles over the holidays. The Globe and Mail’s officious tone for once doesn’t seem misplaced as the paper revels in the repeal of the U.S. military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. “The repeal of don’t ask, don’t tell is a historic affirmation of the dignity of gays and lesbians,” says the Globe. Allowing gays to serve openly is a “classic example of how myth, stereotype, and bigotry survive when tolerated, and melt away when laws change and leaders say and do the right thing.”

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from The Mark Newsroom!