By Timothy D. Naegele[1]

King Charles III was just "coronated" in London; and he looked feeble and frightened during much of the process—almost Joe Biden-esque—unlike his mother before him.  There was hardly a black or non-white face in the crowd at Westminster Abbey, except eight black minstrels who were dressed elegantly in white, and brought a smile to Charles' face.

It was all quaint and quite anachronistic.  Rain was falling outside, as it usually does this time of year.  Meanwhile, throngs of well-wishers lined the streets; and reportedly, anti-monarchists were arrested and shunted off, so they wouldn't soil the occasion.  Royalty from far and wide were present, in stark contrast to Czar Nicholas II's send-off in Russia.

Princes Andrew and Harry were present, setting aside for the moment the scandals swirling about the former's ties to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and Harry's estranged relationship because of his American wife, #MEGXIT, today's Wallis Simpson.  In a sense, the whole occasion was a bit bizarre and other-worldly, as if the lily-white Monarchy's last gasp was taking place amidst regal splendor.

Notably absent were Russia's Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping and North Korea's Kim Jong-un, who threatened to throw the world headlong into the next global war.  Also, missing was brain-addled Joe Biden, who might not fully appreciate where he was or what was happening.  Brits who were homeless and starving weren't present either, as another chapter in world history seemed to be closing.

My first maternal ancestor to arrive in America came in the 1700s from Bristol, England, and became a merchant in Albemarle County, Virginia.  Other ancestors came from Ireland, Scotland and Germany around 1850.  The great melting pot that is America today is torn asunder by crime and poverty everywhere, and political divisions that seem unprecedented and unresolvable.  But for one brief shining moment, once-great Britain had its day in the sun—albeit with intermittent drizzle.

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© 2023, Timothy D. Naegele

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[1]  Timothy D. Naegele was counsel to the United States Senate's Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and chief of staff to Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient and former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass).  See, e.g., Timothy D. Naegele Resume-21-8-6  and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/accomplishments/   He has an undergraduate degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as two law degrees from the School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley, and from Georgetown University.  He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency at the Pentagon, where he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal (see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commendation_Medal#Joint_Service).  Mr. Naegele is an Independent politically; and he is listed in Who's Who in America, Who's Who in American Law, and Who's Who in Finance and Business. He has written extensively over the years (see, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/articles/ and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/articles/), and studied photography with Ansel Adams.  He can be contacted directly at tdnaegele.associates@gmail.com