He isn't my Duke

No Right Turn has a post up about the leaking  publication of the Queen's Birthday Honours list.

" I've just had a polite phone call from the Cabinet Office asking me to help cover up their mistake and remove information about the leaked honours list. For the sake of all those decent, honest honours recipients, of course, who weren't expecting it to be released yet. Poor Prince Phillip. He'll have people calling him up to congratulate him on being one of the "greatest living New Zealanders" (despite having set foot here all of, what, ten times?) two days early. "

I would have to say No Right Turn is spot on, Prince Philip is the Field Marshal of the NZ army, Admiral of the Fleet of the Royal New Zealand Navy and Marshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Chris Laidlaw's Right's of Passage has some interesting observations on Prince Philip and his fascination with time pieces, but more importantly his disdain for New Zealand.

" ...an autobiographical account of Laidlaw's life from his days as an All Black, through his diplomatic and political career, his experiences as an ambassador, and his work in the United Nations of various projects. The central theme of the book is the importance of cultural identity and the need for space to express that."

I strongly recommend this book and give my copy to all extended family and friends when they wash up in Auckland they are asked to leave it with Mum and Dad in Queenstown where it currently is.

The Order of New Zealand is for people like Sir Ed and membership should be limited to real New Zealanders. Prince Philip is not Sir Ed., he is not a Kiwi and history will remember Sir Ed. Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh ( the place of my birth, yes that he is the Duke pisses me off ) history will forget.

Keeping Stock also notes an ironic inclusion in the list.