Tangle - The death of Queen Elizabeth.

Episode Date: September 12, 2022

On Thursday afternoon, Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving British monarch, died at her estate in Scotland. She was 96 years old, and had ruled for 70 years after acceding to the throne in 1952.You can read today's podcast here.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here.Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and produced by Trevor Eichhorn. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.Our newsletter is edited by Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, Ari Weitzman, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tanglenews/message Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural who dreams about a world beyond Chinatown. When he inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, Willis begins to unravel a criminal web, his family's buried history, and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada, which is Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages six months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed. Learn more at flucellvax.ca.

From executive producer Isaac Saul, this is Tangle. Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening, and welcome to the Tangle Podcast, the place where you get views from across the political spectrum, some independent thinking without all that hysterical nonsense you find everywhere else. I'm your host, Isaac Saul, and on today's episode, we're going to be talking about Queen Elizabeth II, her death, her legacy, and some of the commentary surrounding what's next. Before we jump in, though, some quick hits. Before we jump in though, some quick hits. First up, Ukraine made significant territorial gains in the northeastern part of the country after a counter-offensive forced Russia out of several key cities.

Number two, Steve Bannon was charged by prosecutors in New York with money laundering and conspiracy in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud donors who gave money to help build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Number three, New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency after the polio virus was found in wastewater in New York City. Hochul hopes to increase vaccination rates. Number four, an elected official in Nevada was arrested and charged for the killing of a local Las Vegas reporter who had published stories critical of him. Number five, Americans observed the 21st anniversary of September 11, 2001 yesterday.

President Biden honored victims at a ceremony at the Pentagon. A few moments ago, Buckingham Palace announced the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She was there during the Cold War, through the age of Twiggy and the Beatles, through wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. She adjusted to social media, she weathered Brexit, she survived COVID. She truly was one of a kind. From her favourite home, Balmoral Castle in the Scottish countryside, the Queen's cortege travelled to Edinburgh, where she'll lie in rest until Tuesday before moving to London. I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and to the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.

On Thursday, Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving British monarch, died at her estate in Scotland. Elizabeth II, the longest-serving British monarch, died at her estate in Scotland. She was 96 years old and had ruled for 70 years after coming to the throne in 1952. A reminder, the queen was the head of state not just for Britain, but for 14 other countries. The British monarch has a very restricted role in government, mostly constrained to embodying traditions. For instance, the monarch leads the ceremony for appointing a new prime minister, gives ceremonial royal assent to bills, and can dissolve parliament, but only as a formality following government action. Still, the queen had enormous public influence, which in politics is a form of soft power. Queen Elizabeth was a particularly notable monarch for

how much modern history she witnessed personally. When she was crowned, Winston Churchill was the Prime Minister. As BBC noted, her tenure spanned post-war austerity, the transition from empire to commonwealth, the end of the Cold War, and the UK's entry into and withdrawal from the European Union. She served with 15 British Prime Ministers during the terms of 14 presidents of the United States, traveled to 117 countries, and hosted 112 state visits. As Professor Brandy Jollof, Scott, put it, these events can influence public opinion, extend the tenure of other leaders, and improve bilateral trade agreements. Queen Elizabeth's son, Charles III, will now take her place as king. His son,

Prince William, and William's wife Catherine, have become the Prince and Princess of Wales and Duke of Duchess of Cambridge and Cornwall, adding Charles and Camilla's previous titles to their own. Queen Elizabeth did not just work with many prime ministers and presidents and see many world events, but also endured much personal tragedy and drama. In the span of a year in 1992, Winter Castle burned down and three of her children's marriages fell apart very publicly. In 1997, Princess Diana died in a car accident in Paris, and the Queen was initially criticized for not sharing the public grief. In 2020, Prince Harry, her grandson, and Meghan Markle announced they would be stepping back as

senior members of the royal family. As news of her death spread, many from across the world and the political spectrum mourned. Some, too, turned a critical eye to the traditions and history of the monarchy. Today, you'll start with what the left is saying. The left mostly mourned her passing, though some used it to criticize colonialism and the monarchy. Many said it was the end of an important era of service and selflessness, and some said we should not whitewash the crimes of Britain, even the ones the Queen oversaw. The Guardian editorial board acknowledged the end of an era and the pivotal role Queen Elizabeth II played in millions of people's lives. The Queen's life spanned the entire history of

modern Britain. She was born when Britain ruled a global empire of some 600 million people, they said. She died when Britain was a medium-sized northern European country with an uncertain future. She came into the world before all British adults had the vote. At 10, she witnessed the abdication of her uncle that made her heir to the throne. At 14, she lived through the existential threat to the nation that followed the fall of France. As monarch, her first prime minister was Winston Churchill, who had participated in a cavalry charge at Omdurman in 1898, yet she had already been on the throne for 23 years before the current prime minister, her 15th, was even born. Her visit to Ireland in 2011 played a pivotal

part in the historic reconciliations of that time, the board added. Another was the dispassionate care and affection which often contrasted with the indifference of some politicians that she displayed toward the nations of the United Kingdom, embodied in particular in her love of Scotland. Even more long-lasting was her important formal part in the retreat from empire. This had begun under her father when India became free in 1947. But from 1957 on, when Ghana became independent, many of the possessions that the queen had sworn to govern in her coronation oath became self-governing instead, while mostly remaining within the commonwealth. The post-imperial

grouping mattered to the queen, and how it will survive her death is unclear. In CNN, Peter Bergen said duty was the one word that defined Queen Elizabeth. The queen selflessly gave of herself. Hers was a role that is ceremonial, but it is also deeply embedded in the oldest constitutional monarchy in the world and in a country that has given the world so many of the concepts and policies that we associate with democracy, Bergen wrote. In many ways, the queen symbolized the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. A rite of passage for almost every one of the 14 U.S. presidents since she took the throne was her hosting a state visit for the president in the UK or her attending a formal state dinner put on by the President in Washington, D.C. Most recently, she met with President Joe Biden in June at Windsor Castle.

During her long reign, the Queen presided over the dissolution of great swaths of the British Empire, continuing a process that began under her father's reign. She also officially installed three women as her Prime Ministers, Margaret Thatcher, Theresa May, and, just on Tuesday, Liz Truss, who met with the Queen for her formal investiture as prime minister at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, Bergen said. The contents of the Queen's weekly meetings with the 15 British men and women who have served her as prime ministers have mostly remained tightly held secrets, but one can imagine that a monarch who met regularly for seven decades with an extraordinary range of prime ministers, from Churchill to Thatcher, had some sage advice for many of them. In the Washington Post, Karen Attia said we must speak the ugly truths about Queen Elizabeth and Britain's empire. In the wake of the Queen's death, propaganda, fantasy, and ignorance are

being pitted against Britain's historical record and the lived experience of Africans, Asians, Middle Easterners, the Irish, and others, Attia said. and the lived experience of Africans, Asians, Middle Easterners, the Irish, and others, Atia said. In the global north's imagination, the queen is a symbol of decorum and stability in the post-World War II world. But, to people of places that Britain invaded, carved up, and colonized over centuries, the 96-year-old grandmother and the rest of the royal family evoke complex feelings, to say the least. Uju Anya, a Carnegie Mellon professor who is Nigerian, came under intense attack after tweeting Thursday, quote, I heard the chief monarch of a thieving, raping, genocidal empire is dying. May her pain be excruciating. Those are harsh and hateful words toward the queen, but they

shouldn't be surprising. Not to anyone who has truly grappled with the generational agony of families such as Anya's that have suffered massacre and displacement at the hands of the British, Atia said. When Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952, she inherited a Britain with a weakened grip on global power. Rebellions were gathering strength in its colonies. The economic drain from the conflicts, coupled with the growing independence movements in Africa and India, all but forced Britain to pull back. Yet, even then, Britain under Elizabeth did not just let its prize colonies go. From 1952 to 1963, British forces crushed the Mau Mau Rebellion in Kenya, forcing between 160,000 and 320,000 Kenyans into concentration camps. Kenyan tribes are suing

the British government at the European Court of Human Rights for land theft and torture. Alright, that is it for what the left is saying, which brings us to what the right is saying. Many on the right celebrated her rule, calling her a steady hand. They praised her for being selfless and working until the end. Some questioned if the monarchy could survive her death. In the Washington Examiner, Tiana Lowe celebrated Queen Elizabeth for working until the very end. Twice, first by her uncle's misguided passion for Wallace Simpson and then by Hitler's war on Europe, she was forced into a role she had never asked for, Lowe wrote. Thus, she began more than 80 years of service to her country, more than 70 of them as queen. During

World War II, she remained in the United Kingdom even as it was bombed, first addressing the nation's children with a radio address when she was 14, then as a wartime driver and mechanic as soon as she turned 18. At age 25, Elizabeth, a young, beautiful wife and mother, became queen. During the coronavirus pandemic, the queen proved perhaps Britain's only leader to live by the rules made by the government. When she lost her consort of more than 70 years, Prince Philip, the queen mourned in solitude, tears streaming behind a black mask during her husband's scaled-back funeral in St. George's Chapel, Lowe added. The Queen could have resigned at any time, but true to her declaration at 21 that she would fulfill her duty for life, she saw the role through. She did not gamble the future of the

monarchy on Prince, now King, Charles, who spent his energies attempting to restore the popularity of his own consort, Camilla. She remained steady even as her grandson, Harry, seemed keen to burn the whole royal family down. Two days before her death, she met with Truss, standing cane in hand for photos proving she would work until the very end. Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural who dreams about a world beyond Chinatown. When he inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, Willis begins to unravel a criminal web, his family's buried history, and what it feels like to be in the spotlight.

Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada, which is nearly double the historic average of 52,000 cases. What can you do this flu season? Talk to your pharmacist or doctor about getting a flu shot. Consider FluCellVax Quad and help protect yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages 6 months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and

allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed. Learn more at flucellvax.ca. National Review's editorial board celebrated an extraordinary life of extraordinary service. One of the strengths of the British system is the thread of historical continuity that runs through its institutions, the editor said. Over the years, those institutions have evolved, sometimes too rapidly, sometimes too slowly, but never leaving the past entirely behind. The monarchy, itself an institution that has undergone enormous change over the centuries, has been the axis around which those institutions revolve and, however indirectly, a source of their legitimacy. The monarchy is best understood these days as a symbolic incarnation of the British state, a living flag to borrow a

term from Lenin. The monarchy is powerful as a result of its former powerlessness. It transcends the political fray, partly because it cannot, except theoretically in extraordinarily rare circumstances, play any material part in it. As such, it can play an invaluable unifying role, which is reinforced by the living link it represents with the past, a link that was only reinforced in Elizabeth's case by the length of her life and, in an increasingly fractious United Kingdom, her close connection with and fondness for Scotland. It is somehow appropriate that Elizabeth died in Balmoral, a place that she loved, the editor said. The Queen's qualities, her generally careful adjustments to modern times, and, as years passed, her seeming permanence have helped Britain weather turbulent and rapidly changing times.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board called her a reliable symbol of national unity. Her reign was itself the result of a crisis in Britain's constitutional order, the abdication of controversy in 1936 in which her uncle Edward VIII ceded the throne to his younger brother in order to marry an American divorcee, they wrote. The tumult put young Elizabeth into the line of succession and all but guaranteed she would inherit from her father, King George VI, an institution still rebuilding its credibility. Her country needed that institution in ways foreigners often find hard to understand. As the old empire evolved into a commonwealth and as the

nations within the United Kingdom struggled toward new constitutional arrangements, the monarchy has proven to be a steadying influence for a country in transition from a great power to a still significant one. Much of this is the result of Queen Elizabeth's approach to her office, they added. She has skewed politics in a way her son and heir Charles has found difficult to do. Her personal views on the important political questions of her reign, from the Suez Crisis to Brexit, remained unknown for many years after events and sometimes to this day. She mastered the art of being present in the public eye without attracting the tabloid headlines that have marked her children and grandchildren. These traits made her that rarest of things

in the modern world, a widely beloved national figure also respected around the world. all right that is it for the left and the writer saying which brings us to my take i've never followed the royal family closely so my opinion here is not really born out of a deep connection or understanding of queen elizabeth or the british empire um i know they're really interesting to a lot of people in the States, especially the Hollywood side of it, but I just never really cared that much, to be totally honest. I've been preoccupied mostly with the current British government and its interactions with American political life, like Boris Johnson and other major players there. But I will say, watching the reactions to her death has made me think a lot about tradition

and the powerful role the media has in covering figures like her which prompts me to point out a few things. For starters I reject the notion completely that now is somehow an inappropriate time or unfair time to criticize the queen or the monarchy. On the contrary I think her death's actually the perfect time to do that and talk about her legacy and what role the monarchy. On the contrary, I think her death's actually the perfect time to do that and talk about her legacy and what role the monarchy has played historically or will or should play in the future. The idea that critics must remain quiet while the throne is passed and then try and elevate their criticisms months from now when nobody cares anymore and everyone has moved on to the next news cycle is just kind of childish and naive. Queen Elizabeth herself has said that it

was healthy to question the monarchy's role in British life. She said, quote, no institution should expect to be free from the scrutiny of those who give it their loyalty and support, not to mention those who don't. Second, it strikes me as equally silly to now frame her as just little more than some innocent grandmother of the empire. She is and was one of the most powerful and influential figures in global politics in her time. While so much of the monarchy is shrouded in secrecy, a person like the head of the royal family who regularly gets to bend the ear of heads of state, prime ministers, presidents, should not have their influence diminished simply for lack of constitutional authority. In that same vein,

criticizing her and the British brutality and colonialism is equally inbounds. Karen Atia's Washington Post piece did this well, I thought. Just as the Queen was a powerful figure of unity, comfort, and steadiness for millions, she is also a figure of wealth, cruelty, nepotism, massacre, and unfairness for millions of others. It's fair to point that out. Of all the British monarchs, Queen Elizabeth II's hands were undoubtedly the cleanest. It's also fair to point out that the early decades of her rule included precisely the kind of horrors in Kenya and Nigeria that bring about so much criticism now. The ugly side matters. As any historian will tell you, the way we remember

history is often a product of who gets to tell it. If you want a complete telling of Britain's history, we'd be wise to elevate the voices of the people who suffered at their hands just as much as we parrot the narratives of BBC or Buckingham Palace. With that said, I'm also struck by another truth. Just as those born into poverty or despair didn't choose their lives, many born into wealth and power didn't either. Queen Elizabeth was dealt a hand that would be many people's envy, but she didn't choose power didn't either. Queen Elizabeth was dealt a hand that would be many people's envy, but she didn't choose power. However much her role as queen may whitewash British history before her, she didn't colonize Kenya or lead the expansion of the empire. She was thrust into her role as the British empire was shrinking and its days waning,

first as the unlikely princess and then as youthful queen, through a series of bizarre events within the royal family. And it's hard to argue that she was reckless or deviant or evil with that power. Her greatest crime, or the greatest crime of the monarchy under her rule, is the effort they took to cover up state secrets. Through the mid-1970s, the queen sat on the throne as officials systematically destroyed evidence of imperial crimes in Kenya, British Malaya, Malta, Yemen, Nigeria, Uganda, and Singapore. Acknowledging this does not mean Queen Elizabeth wasn't a steady symbol of unity in Britain, or a graceful public figure, or even a kind and thoughtful public servant. But pretending it didn't happen is to tell an incomplete tale. So yes, criticize the Queen, celebrate her, talk about what she did right and wrong, and do it so

future leaders, monarchs, presidents, prime ministers, might understand that the watchful eye of the public and historians will judge their legacies, not necessarily favorably, but honestly. That's a fair way to remember the queen, and it's a legitimate way to push leaders of the future to serve in the most honest and ethical ways that they can. to serve in the most honest and ethical ways that they can. All right, that is it for my take, which brings us to your questions answered. This one is from Ralph in Wayzata, Minnesota. I think that's how you say that, Wayzata, Minnesota. I'm wondering what the Mexican immigration laws look like, he said.

What do they do with illegal aliens that come into their country? It seems like all of the people that arrive in the U.S. have decided not to stop there. So listen, it's complicated, Ralph. Historically, Mexico's immigration enforcement has been very restrictive, especially by U.S. standards. For instance, the penalty for illegal entry used to be a 10-year prison sentence, and I'm talking about like early 2000s up to 2008. That being said, it's also hard to say because Mexico has usually been an immigrant-sending country. Recently, as its immigration system has become more liberalized, largely due in part to the US, more immigrants have been coming to Mexico. In 2008, Mexico began reforming its laws, like reducing that punishment from a 10-year prison sentence to a maximum fine of 5,000 pesos for illegally entering the country. Then in 2011, they passed the Migratory Act,

which allows migrants in Mexico more access to Mexican courts and reformed its humanitarian admission system. Still, it is in many ways incoherent and far less welcoming than the American immigration system. Conservatives, including former President Trump, have long bemoaned the fact that Mexico's policies on its southern border are much stricter than ours. In 2018, Manuel López Obrador was elected president of Mexico, promising a more humane approach and a coordinated effort to handle Central American migrants passing through Mexico to get to the U.S. But watchdog groups and journalists have said for years that such an approach never really materialized. Generally speaking, Mexico detains and deports as many migrants as it can on its southern border. Some 12,000 members of the Mexican National Guard were deployed in 2019 to their southern border, which, as in the United

States, has driven migrants to find more remote and dangerous areas to cross, often leaving them more likely to fall into the hands of smugglers and criminal groups. Similar actions were taken again in 2021 when migration flows increased across Mexico's southern border. I link to a piece in today's newsletter with a good, quick summary of Mexico's policies over the years. It is written from a pro-immigration, kind of liberal perspective, but I think it's worth reading for a grasp on where things are currently. All right, that is it for your questions answered, which brings us to our under the radar section. America's supply chain could be in for another major shock. The country's largest freight railroad companies are in negotiations with unions representing over 115,000 workers, and the risk of a strike is high. The deadline for a deal is this Friday.

If railway workers were to strike, the country's trucking system would have to pick up the slack, something that would be costly and highly unlikely given its own already strained capacity. A strike could amount to a $2 billion daily hit to the U.S. economy, and it comes at a time when port workers on the West Coast are also negotiating a new contract. Reuters has the story, and there's a link to it in today's newsletter. All right, next up is our numbers section. The percentage of Britons who said they liked the Queen was 75% according to a recent YouGov poll. The percentage who disliked her was only 8%. 1926 was the year Queen Elizabeth II was

born, and the number of corgis she owned in her life was over 30. Her estimated net worth was $426 million. And a little update from the U.S., the average price of a gallon of gasoline is now $3.72, down from $3.99 a month ago. All right, last but not least, our Have a Nice Day section. The United States performed its one millionth organ transplant last week, a major milestone for the medical profession. The first organ transplant was performed in Boston in 1954. In the decades following, the number of transplants remained low due to the difficulty of the procedure and availability of donors.

But in the 1980s, the number of kidney, heart, liver, and pancreas transplants began to increase with the rise of anti-rejection medications. 500,000 transplants have been performed since 2007, and 41,000 were performed in 2021, twice as many as occurred 25 years ago. While some 5,000 people still die waiting on transplant lists each year, experts are hopeful that the proliferation of donors and successful surgeries may soon reduce that number to zero. ABC News has the story, and there's a link to it in today's newsletter. All right, everybody, that is it for today's podcast. As always, if you would like to support us, please share this podcast with others or give us a five-star rating or go to

retangle.com slash membership and become a subscriber. We'll be right back here tomorrow. Same time. Have a good one. Peace. Our podcast is written by me, Isaac Saul, and edited and produced by Trevor Eichhorn. Our script is edited by Ari Weitzman, Sean Brady, and Bailey Saul. Shout out to our interns, Audrey Moorhead and Watkins Kelly, and our social media manager, Magdalena Bokova, who designed our logo. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet75. For more from Tangle, subscribe to our newsletter or check out our website at www.readtangle.com Based on Charles Yu's award-winning book, Interior Chinatown follows the story of Willis Wu, Thanks for watching. buried history and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Interior Chinatown is streaming November 19th, only on Disney+. The flu remains a serious disease. Last season, over 102,000 influenza cases have been reported across Canada,

which is nearly double the historic average of 52,000 cases. What can you do this flu season? Talk to your pharmacist or doctor about getting a flu shot. Consider FluCellVax Quad and help protect yourself from the flu. It's the first cell-based flu vaccine authorized in Canada for ages six months and older, and it may be available for free in your province. Side effects and allergic reactions can occur, and 100% protection is not guaranteed. Learn more at FluCellVax.ca.