Back Story Newsletter
Good morning,
The Queen
Today some 500 World leaders gathered in London to pay their final respects to the Queen in London. Her funeral in Westminster Abbey no doubt a powerful and somber moment ending 10 days of mourning.
But the real story has been watching hundreds of thousands line up for 10 and 12 hours to see the Queens coffin as she lay in state in the Westminster Hall.
I am impressed by those who felt so strongly to honour her by a pilgrimage to London and spoke of her life of service in such personal terms, as she represented to many a sense of stability and continuity in a world that seems to be so full of upheaval today.
Her death reminded many of losses in their own families, who spoke of her as a mother or grandmother to them. An estimated 500 thousand people have seen her coffin.
Yes the Queen was on the throne the longest, but it’s not just longevity at play. Queen Elizabeth made people feel special and was always decent and kind to people and steered clear of politics and personal opinion.
Imagine in our age of constant social media, full of opinion and positioning on every issue, the Queen didn’t seek approval and avoided debates even in her own family which has been divided. The Queen tried to bring people together, and even in death unified the nation.
I will be among tens of thousands who will stand to see her funeral procession pass by in London today. The Queen deserves respect even if you may not a fan of the Monarchy.
Ukraine War
Fighting continues in eastern Ukraine where Russia’s invading army is trying to hold onto positions under assault by heavy artillery. The Ukrainians say their counter offensive so successful in the Kharkiv region in the north east is continuing in the south east but Russian’s are dug in and resisting the push.
Russian President Putin has spoken in recent days of not giving up his quest to break off the Donbas and even of escalation in the war.
But military observers say the Russian army is losing supply routes and morale, and is at a breaking point even as commanders seek to beef up units that have been shredded in the fighting.
Note able is the dissent now expressed by Russian icon and pop singer Alla Pugacheva. The war, she wrote in a post on Instagram, was “turning our country into a pariah and worsening the lives of our citizens.” Pugacheva is worshipped in Russia even awarded state medals by Putin. She has 3.4 million followers on social media.
Pugacheva’s statement came after the Russian Justice Ministry on Friday declared Maksim Galkin, her comedian husband who has spoken out about the war, a “foreign agent,” a legal designation that the Kremlin has increasingly been using against its opponents.
Ms. Pugacheva addressed the Justice Ministry directly in her post on Sunday, declaring that she now wanted to be made a “foreign agent” herself.
Pugacheva’s opposition to the war follows public statements by local councillors in St. Petersburg who have called Putin a traitor for launching the war and isolating Russia form the world. Some of them have been threatened with jail and have received fines.
Slowly more cracks are appearing in Russia, as people realize the invasion of Ukraine is costing the lives of many young Russian men, and creating needless economic hardship.
Other News…
-in an interview this weekend President Joe Biden said the U.S. will defend Taiwan in the event of an attack by China. Fang Yu-Chen, a political science professor at Soochow University in Taiwan, noted that US "strategic ambiguity is becoming more strategic and less ambiguous."
-Typhoon Nanmadol pummeled Japan with rain and strong winds on Monday, leaving one person dead and hundreds of thousands without power in Kyushu on the country's southern tip.
-Burning the world’s proven reserves of fossil fuels would emit more planet-heating emissions than have occurred since the industrial revolution says a new study. 3.5tn tons of greenhouse gas emissions will be emitted if governments allow identified reserves of coal, oil and gas to be extracted and used, according to what has been described as the first public database of fossil fuel production.
Have a good day everyone. It’s an official holiday here in the UK as the Queen is put to rest later this afternoon at Windsor Castle.
Dana Lewis