Birds of a Feather

I wanted to dismiss the The Royal Wedding as more mindless fluff meant to distract us from Japan and the Middle East. But this shindig may be about much more than Kate’s shoes or dress. The guest list itself is telling. The ambassador of Zimbabwe is coming. That’s right, Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe. Also Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa of Bahrain, whose regime has killed dozens of peaceful anti-government protestors, had been invited but had to respectfully decline. Saudi Arabia's Prince Mohamed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz will be there, as well as representatives of North Korea and Iran. Missing from the list are the unpopular but nevertheless democratically elected past PMs Gordon Brown and Tony Blair.

Should we wonder that an elitist, anti-democratic institution such as the monarchy would choose to hobnob with similar anti-democratic elements? Don’t forget your armband, Harry.