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| 2006/9/26-27 [Politics/Foreign/MiddleEast/Iraq, Politics/Foreign/Europe] UID:44534 Activity:moderate |
9/25 What are some examples of modern governments that are still
under monarchy?
\_ Few modern governments are "under" monarchy--most (e.g. Holland,
Norway, UK, Japan) have a figurehead who is the nominal head
of state but mainly executes ceremonial duties (accepting the
portfolio of the prime minister, that sort of thing.) I don't
know if you would count Kuwait, UAE, Thailand, Brunei, Morocco,
or Jordan as "modern", but in the "Western" sense, there's
Liechtenstein and Monaco. Sure there's more, but I would 100%
discount Saudi Arabia, Lesotho and Nepal at this point. -John
\_ You could've answered that in 1 line, not 8.
\_ Thank you for your feedback, your opinion may be taken
into consideration. -John
\_ err... Nepal... how many of the royalties still alive now?
\_ Also, recent developments in Nepal have invalidated their
monarchy status.
\_ In the "Western" sense there's also Spain and Sweden.
\_ Also in the West: Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Luxembourg,
Monarco. And let's not forget the State of the Vatican City
whose absolute monarch is the Pope (although the absolute monarch
is an elected monarch).
\_ Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, you know, our democratic ally in
the middle east. UAE is a bit tricky, it's a kingdom with a
a lot of Kings.
\_ Also, Tonga. An example of how a modern monarchy can go wrong:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3502535.stm
\_ Yeah, entrusting your investments to your court jester
probably isn't the best thought out plan.
\_ Tonga went wrong because Edith Delgado, the Redwood City
teenager, single-handedly stemmed democratic reforms in
Tonga by killing the pro-democratic prince on US101.
http://www.csua.org/u/geo (http://www.matangitonga.to
\_ The incident certainly did nothing to help, but the
problems were prevalent in Tonga even before she
became the hand of fate.
\_ I'm sure she was thinknig that morning, "I'll get in the
car today and kill the pro-democratic prince of Tonga".
\_ "I wish I could hear tell of a country that's out of kings."
--Huckleberry Finn
\_ Man will never be free until the last king is strangled
with the entrails of the last priest. --Denis Diderot |
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| news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3502535.stm Printable version Tonga court jester 'to pay $1m' A jester Court jesters are a very rare breed these days. Tonga's former court jester has agreed to pay $1m to settle a legal dispute with the Pacific state, lawyers for the ex-jester have told AFP news agency. The island nation has for almost two years accused the king's former jester - American national Jesse Bogdonoff - of mismanaging a $26m trust fund. Tonga alleged Mr Bogdonoff invested unwisely and took inflated commissions. But they have now come to an out of court settlement under which neither side has to admit any liability. Relief The row centred around Tonga's claim that Mr Bogdonoff, who says he is the world's only court jester, cheated King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV and his government out of the money the country made from selling citizenship to Hong Kong Chinese people ahead of the 1997 handover of the former British colony to Chinese rule. Mr Bogdonoff, a former banker, was entrusted with the $26m Tonga Trust Fund in 1999, which he was to invest through his company Wellness Technologies. Some $20m of the fund's money allegedly evaporated after Mr Bogdonoff invested it in life assurance for the terminally ill, through a US corporation called Millennium Asset Management. This firm went bankrupt in 2002, with Tonga accusing both Mr Bogdonoff and the company of siphoning off cash in bogus fees and commissions. "I think this settlement is a relief for everybody on both sides of the aisle," said Patrick Richardson, a lawyer for Mr Bogdonoff. "It's a very complicated case and both sides realised that there are pros and cons to each of their cases and that you have to take a look at the potential downsides." The scandal is said to have caused great anguish for Tonga's 85-year-old King, who reigns over 100,000 people across 170 coral islands in the South Pacific. |
| www.csua.org/u/geo -> www.matangitonga.to/article/tonganews/royalty/delgado080706.shtml Edith Delgado THE teenage driver charged with the killing of two members of the Tongan royal family and their driver after slamming into their car pleaded not guilty on Friday, July 7 (US time) to vehicular manslaughter, according to AP news service. Edith Delgado, 18, of Redwood City, was held in lieu of $US3 million bail after her arraignment in San Mateo County Superior Court on manslaughter and speeding charges. Delgado, who received her driver's license in February, was charged with killing Prince Tu'ipelehake, 56 and Princess Kaimana, 46, in the Wednesday night crash on Highway 101 in Menlo Park, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of San Francisco. Vinisia Hefa, 36, of East Palo Alto, who was driving the red Ford Explorer carrying the prince and princess, was also killed, authorities said. If convicted of the manslaughter counts, Delgado faces up to eight years in prison, a prosecutor said. Delgado was driving her Ford Mustang as fast as 100 mph (160 kph) while racing another vehicle when she crashed into the driver's side of Hefa's car, causing it to swerve across several lanes before rolling on its roof, said California Highway Patrol Officer Ricky Franklin. Bay Area Tongans Near the crash site, Bay Area Tongans set up a memorial Friday that included flowers, their country's flag and pieces of the wreckage. Hefa's cousin, Tulu Musua Pongi, of East Palo Alto, placed flowers on the shrine Friday morning. She said Hefa worked as the royal couple's secretary in Tonga before emigrating to the US three years ago. She said the tragic accident had left the community in shock. |
| www.matangitonga.to REFRESH(0 sec): http://www.matangitonga.to/article/global_index.shtml |