The Queen Continues To Waste British Taxpayer Money
Filed under: Anglophilia > Royals Royce
What a complete and utter waste of taxpayers' money.
Back in the 12th century, the royal family began a tradition known as Swan Upping, where all the swans on the River Thames were counted. Back then, it was to know how many birds they had to eat that year!
900 years later, if you are looking for some wings, you can just head to KFC, but her majesty, Queen Elizabeth, thinks that the tradition is still relevant. And so, it will be some guys' jobs to row up the Thames for five days and count, weigh, and measure swans and cygnets.
Talk about a shitty job!
They get a spiffy names, though- Swan Marker & Swan Warden.
Bet their moms are super proud!
This year, Queen Elizabeth has decided to join them for part of the census and visit a local school who is doing project on the subject of swans, cygnets and the Thames.
Guess there isn't much for the Queen to be doing these days if she has time for this crap!
[Image via WENN.]
There is nothing wrong with tradition. And now much could it cost? lets look at US spending and tell me that you dont pay 10 times that for toothpaste for senators or blueberry scented windshield fluid for obamas limo.
What a disgrace!!!!!
God this has pissed me right off. Its called TRADITION and is part of British history, something us Brits are very proud of. How dare you slag off the Queen, who herself pays taxes, you twat. If you had ever bothered to research what the Queen does, or watched her documentary following her daily life, you would find that she does a hell of a lot, a damn site more than you I can guarantee, and a hell of a lot more worthwhile. So f you, and mind your own business.
dear perez, i joined your dickhead site just to tell you that youre an outrage with very little respect. you are hurtful, ignorant, and have no IDEA what youre talking about in this particular story. the british LOVE our queen, we LOVE our traditions, we DO NOT LOVE when you slag them off. im sure you could write a thousand word essay on ticker tape parades and the invasion of iraq.
oh and my MUM. not mom. if youre gonna talk about the british use the british words. anyway my MUM would be proud if i worked for the queen. get your facts right you prick. and lay off our country.
Everyone slamming Americans….fuck you. This is one opnion of someone and not of america as whole. Keep your damn bird tradition but dont be talking shit about us.
she is 83 and as far as we know sound of mind
so let her join the bird count
cant hurt
and keeps her doing the outing she loves
.
OkWhat? the Canadian
This is not a waste of money. This is a British tradition and its great that they at least keep up on it.
Lay off her. You aren't British so you have no right to gripe about their Queen. It would be offensive to me for a british blogger to bitch about Obama so you just need to keep your uninformed self quiet.
Someone's a jealous queen! Won't anyone qive you sparkly jewels or respect and admiration (not that you deserve an ounce of any of those).
Perez stick to writing about the no-mark clebs willing to kiss your fat arse for a glimmer of publicity. You know NOTHING about the set-up, traditions or history of British society.
Counting, weighing and tagging swans - it's called an ecological project. Like they do at pretty much every environmentally sensitive spot throughout the UK, Europe and pretty much every where else in the world.
As for slagging off how much work the Queen does - how many octogenarians do you know that work over 300 days a year, some of those days involving events and travel from first thing in the morning until last thing at night? And visiting schools is exactly the sort of thing we expect and appreciate from our Queen. A lot more like hard work and a helluva lot more dignified and significant than the crap you churn out for a living. Bet your mother is proud? Or more likely, utterly embarrassed and ashamed of you as she'd have every reason to be.
Re: cathryn123 –
The fact that you say the queen visiting people makes her "seem much more normal to the average person" just highlights the problem of the monarchy. She is an average person, nothing is special about her and she is in no way better than the rest of us. The existence of our monarchy does nothing more than promote that
Im from the UK. Ill tell you right now the queen is a fucking waste of space. She was in my city last week with atleast 10 cops, some english cops too and security all around her scotish mansion. shes a waste of space. the whole royal family is and i hope she dies.
How fucking dare you! Who the hell do you think you are to slag off my countries Queen. Just remember where your shitty mouth and beliefs got you last week!
i love u perez but i have to disagree as a british citizen i think that would be a very hounerable job.
she is over 80! what do you expect?
RULE BRITANNIA! God save the queen
sincerely patriot sara fry
JEALOUS????????
I have to stick up for Americans here - but don't get the wrong idea! I was a History major at University -My concentration was in Medieval European History. But for all members of the UK-please. We are not all fat (when I was in London and Paris, I saw nearly as many overweight people. C'mon, it's just a sterotype) we are not all dumb, and we are not culturally deprived. I am part Native American and take part in sharing that ancient culture proudly. My bother-in-law is a German decendant and follows it's history and regularly attends Germanfests. I am also a Quebeqer and proud of it. I have a lot more examples but I won't bore you with them. I'm a duel Canadian-American, so I DO see other cultures-lots. But what I want to say is that the majority of Americans are with YOU. We want change. That's why we kicked out the wankers and elected our first black man as a president-who, by the way, is slowly changing things. Most of us don't agree with the present political CRAP we're going through- mostly healthcare and the stupid WAR. Please remember to separate the American PEOPLE from it's government. We generally HATE it, too. Your traditions are important - keep them up. And God save the Queen.
Shut up Perez, pick on yourself. I have not heard you say anything about Will I Am anymore, Why? Scared?
Perez is definitely out of line with his rude comments about the Queen, but as an American who is well-educated, fascinated by European culture, and, to be quite frank, very slender–as well as proud to be an American–please, Brits, don't lump us all together. I think this is a wonderful tradition and you clearly all love the Queen very much. There are a lot of ignorant Americans out there who bash other countries and, yes, are very fat. But for the most part, we're decent people. I'd love to visit your beautiful country someday!
you are just jealous that she is a real Queen and you are not. You are so demented that you would probably try to have bestial relations with the swans. Thank godd someone is counting them against the likes of you. too bad you didn't have the courage to print my last comments. Hit home a little too much. You phony jackass.
God Save OUR Queen!!
It's a royal tradition Perez, the Queen has swans here in Canada as well, and they are kind of a big deal. Shut the fuck up already.
I agree with all the Brits who defend their tradition of the Swan counting. That is a totally cool tradition.
However, the majority of Brits who posted, where total ass holes to MY country. Just because Perez is a douche does not give you the right to slam my country.
Let's be real here, America is the most powerful nation in the world. We moved to the top of the food chain so quickly because we were able to break away from traditions that no longer suited us and create are own. WHEN, not if, the next Word War comes, I guarantee you America will still be the strongest military in the world. We fought for our freedom– in fact we CELEBRATE our freedom from Britain every year. We are a nation of survivors. For all you people who knock military spending in the US– you are just dumb. Ever since the very first nations were built, nations have fought wars. Nations will always fight wars. Thank God American leadership has always realized how important it is to have and maintain the strongest military in the world. That is why we will always be number 1.
>>Read a book sometime Mario.
The Queen ( or Lizzie ) and the rest of the royal family only costs the british taxpayer about 80p each for the year so im not bothered about her anymore. Although these outdated stupid traditions piss me off because they fill up newspaper space that could be used for Katy Perry related articles.
It's called tradition! All swans are protected and belong to the Queen, besides I thought you were an animal lover yourself. Why would we object to spending a tiny percentage of our tax pounds on looking after such beautiful birds? We spend enough looking after our money grabbing politicians… Stop attacking our Queen and maybe pay a bit more attention to where your tax dollars are going! God Save The Queen.
STFU Perez. Who are you to judge the relevancy of another countries traditions? You're an asshole.
I just want to add to my other comment and i think all the british people replying to this article agree its not all americans were angry at its just perez and his ignorance to understand anything outside of his country. Perez don't try and be political….it isn't working for you sorry. Also this tradition is not just for a bit of fun either it actually had a purpose compared to our other traditions. Yes we count swans, chase cheese down hills, celebrate guy fawlks, do may pole dancing, celerating the queens two birthdays. But WE love it, its a bit of fun and unites us. In america you pledge a legence to the flag or whatever, i don't know excatly what but i heard you do that. Do we brits attack you and your country becuase of this. This is one of your traditions and these are ours, so leave the Queen alone and stick to what you know. Moaning about celebritites becuase i like that
oh k it look shitty but is a tradicion of the brittish even boy hu r brittish r hot soo i respect that poor bird..
haha Perez, just because you're the self-titled "queen of all media" doesn't mean you're on the same status as THE queen. It's disrespectful, and this is British tradition. You sound so ignorant with your opinion hur
You are an uncultured Black Eyed Peanut brain… What do you know about tradition anyway and who are you to comment on an age old tradition… Back off and stick to the trash you know.
mate lay of the queen its a British thing americans wouldn't get it. Tradition is a huge part of our culture so come back when your country is old enough to understand that. Also its Mums or Mothers not mom's if your talking about the British use are words love.
Americans DO have traditions that unite it as a country, as well as Canada (I'm mentioning this since I am a Duel Citizen) we have important ones and silly ones, just like you. We have Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Groundhogs day (one of the silly ones), St. Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Labour Day, Memorial Day; Thansgiving; Ash Wednsday, Mardi Gras (that's a good one, there-particularly if you're in New Orleans;St. Patrick's Day; April Fools Day; Cinco Day Mayo. Just like you revere soccer (I know, I'm part Canadian, it's really football) we, as a country stop every thing to watch the Superball and Hockey play-offs. Lets stop throwing barbs at each other and start to try and understand the history and cultures of all the world. Universal understanding & respect- wouldn't that be nice?
I love the irony. One "queen" blasting another. The only difference is that the real queen leads a dignified life, worked to help others in WWII and is a known humanitarian who never speaks out against others, no matter how justified.
By contrast, the "queen" is just a fat little homo who loves the spotlight and cannot wait to say something nasty about another.
Why don't you fuck off Perez? Just because us English have a Royal Family and you don;t have any sort of tradition. I apologise that we like to keep up with this tradition, but don;t hate just because you do fuck all.
Perez…would you say fireworks and the displays done for 9-11 and other similar things in the USA are a waste of money?! I don't think you understand what's important to another country so maybe you should keep your mouth shut about things like this…
everyone knows the queen is no longer relavent and just a drain on us hardworking taxpayers, shes no better than lazy benefit-claiming druggies on council estates as far as robbing taxpayers goes
That's treason, Perez! Off with your head!
Urgh, once again being an ignorant jackass.
To the Americans asking "why are you on this AMERICAN site then" well it's not really an AMERICAN site is it? It's about celebrity gossip. If it's an all American site maybe Perez shouldn't write so much "news" about British celebs eh?
at least we have 900 year old traditions, its called history!!!
AGAIN- READ SOME OTHER POSTS BEFORE YOU COMMENT ON AMERICA'S LACK OF TRADITION. OH, -AND LovAlwaysK - I HAVE NEVER EVER SEEN FIREWORKS CELEBRATING THE ATTACK ON THE US ON 9/11. DID YOU DIG THAT UP ABOUT SOME HICK TOWN? AMERICA, AS A NATION IN WHOLE, HAS FIREWORKS ON INDEPENDENCE DAY AND NEW YEARS EVE. AND THOSE ARE PAID FOR WITH ADVERTISERS MONEY. PLEASE READ MY OTHER POSTS ABOUT AMERICAN TRADITIONS BEFORE *ONE MORE PERSON* IGNORANTLY STATES THAT AMERICA HAS NONE SIMPLY BECAUSE IT IS A YOUNG NATION. I HAVE LIVED IN MONTREAL AND TORONTO AND SEEN MANY CULTURES IN EUROPE AND EXPERIENCED WONDEROUS CELEBRATIONS IN ALL PARTS OF THE GLOBE, INCLUDING THE U.S. DON'T BASH WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW, AND STOP ASSUMING THAT ALL AMERICANS AGREE WITH PEREZ. IT'S BASICALLY ONLY THE IGNORANT ONES COMMENTING ON HERE THAT MAKE U.S. CITIZENS LOOK BAD. AND I'M MOVING BACK HOME TO TORONTO, SO I AM NOT BIASED. AND, I HAVE FREQUENTLY STATED THAT MOST AMERICANS RESPECT YOUR TRADITIONS. WE'RE ALLIES, REMEMBER? WHEN YOU BASH THE IGNORANT AMERICANS ON THIS SITE YOU SIMPLY MAKE YOURSELVES SOUND JUST AS IGNORANT. ARROGANT AS WELL. Please stop America bashing. I love England and it hurts to think that you all think that we (speaking as a duel citizen) are all ignorant, dumb and fat. Yeah, we have those, and yeah, unfortunately they find their way to your shores. They are a poor representation of the general American population. Most of us are just hardworking people like you. Please bear that in mind.
mario you're a dumbass
Re: The Mancunian Candidate –
Ummm, she costs the British taxpayer 80p a year. And she pays taxes herself. A lot. So not REALLY the same as druggies hey? At least she still actually works too, at her age she could be retired.
Hey Perez, I'm not a royalist in anyway - but maybe this census will be good for conservation? Also, I don't mind paying for those fierce boots.
I'm a British taxpayer and I am perfectly happy for this tradition to continue. Lay off the Queen's spending, seriously - the Royal family generate much more revenue than they spend.
Oh Perez! Please don't comment on everything. These old traditions make the difference between good ol' europe an the childish US.
Continue to talk to your readers in your "talk-to-kids-in-the-kindergarden"way. But don't talk about things you don't know (and thats quiet a lot)
You appalling piece of shit, perez shut your fucking mouth now. You know nothing about our history, and the money that a tradition like this will generate our country through tourism.
you're a pathetic waste of space, you fat fuck, the only reason i come on here is to tell you how much i hate you. go die.
Re: allinthename – BLACK SWAN AND SCIENTIFIC????? - it's the mute swan and it's a tradition - nothing to do with science - only the royal famly and certain peers were allowed to eat the mute swan which is why there is a tradition like this - it goes back centuries - get your facts straight please. Black swans are rare in the UK and this tradition has absolutely NOTHING to do with them.
Re: adoresbaby – He isn't very nice to people either. Quid pro quo matey
Re: BleachedPink – Where the hell did that come from you little freak?
Re: Sara79 – Oh god! Does he? Aren't there some gates or something we can close?
Re: MissPriss – If those of us who object to Her Majesty the Queen bashing were objecting to queen bashing, i'm sure there would be a different opinion. If those of us who objected to Perez's comments no longer came to this site I suspect he would lose an awful lot of revenue from advertising, don't you?
Re: Snickers – It's spelt 'Bugger' for a start - I have all my teeth, pearly white and with no fillings, I like milk in my tea - around 4 o'clock with a nice slice of cake. By the way, bugger means taking it up the arse. Sod means the same thing but with men. Twat means ladies front bottom……by the way, didn't the Queen used to own America before it got all uppity?
…by the way…we have had black people here for a very long time and we didn't segregate, they could go to school with white kids and get on the same buses as white people. Don't go thinking the states is the only enlitened place, we all do things differently - respect difference, it makes the world more interesting.
Re: No one Knows – Those fat people you saw in London? they were Americans on holiday! LOL - i'm joking - love the states, love America just really hating Perez right now…going to cancel my subscription to this site after this comments page and I will not be returning - had enough of him turning into a sour old sow. I'm truly sorry that he is reflecting badly on other americans.
…gosh - I got on my high horse - all comments above are directed towards Perez 'kiss-arse' Hilton (…why do you never mention Angelina Jolie's heroin addiction?) and those crazed people as replied to. Comments are light hearted and not intended to offend. But seriously, we don't have 'moms' and I have yet to meet an English person who was 'super-proud'. I'm looking forward to visiting the USA soon but if I see Perez I think I might run him down and improve the general Karma on the world wide web! Keep well people, unless you are one of the crazies, in which case get help. X
Re: bad Kitty –
You got it right. Come over here and meet some REAL Americans! Most of us love England (the whole UK, actually) and are very aware of their background. Slavery is an embarassment for us and we will take some time to heal those wounds. But I'm proud to say that my great-great-great grand father was a Union (fought for the abolitionists) General who was quite infamous. Come on over and we'll show you a good time. Start with NYC, avoid LA. where EVERYTHING and EVERYONE is plastic. Seriously, I don't understand how the don't all melt on hot days. I hope you come for a visit and I hope you don't run into any Americans that, well, just make asses of themselves. If you come to Buffalo (my hometown), you can jump the border into Canada (Yay!thank god I'm half Canadian!) and head on up to Toronto, one of the most culturally diverse places I've ever lived. We'd love to see more Brits like you over here. God Bless.