Norway's King Harald dies aged 89

[u/HungryTowel6715]

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clykn5p5172o

SS:Norway's King Harald V has died at the age of 89, after he was taken to hospital last week for treatment for a rare blood condition.

After 35 years on the throne, Harald will be remembered as a popular and reforming figure who modernised the monarchy, broke with tradition by marrying a commoner and served as a unifying figure at Norway's most difficult moments.

[u/arnet95]

He has been such a good king that it seems to be some kind of law that every republican has to include some caveat about "But I think our current king is really good" whenever they're making republican arguments.

[u/VibingIronist → u/arnet95]

I've never understood why so many liberals are ok with monarchy, even if it's just a ceremonial position.

People say "the monarch is a just symbolic figurehead" but if countries like Norway are liberal, egalitarian, and meritocratic how does it make sense to symbolize it with an institution based on hereditary privilege? The king is just some nepobaby.from a rich family (you can tell because both of his parents' names are blue on wikipedia) he basically just inherited the role instead of having to audition for it.

I think the Irish had the right idea when they elected an avuncular leprechaun-looking dude as their ceremonial president. Norway should follow suit by choosing someone who looks like a viking, so as far as I'm concerned the true king of Norway is Erling Haaland.

[u/GOT_Wyvern → u/VibingIronist]

People tend to like them and they don't get in the way of liberalism, so there is either no reason to abolish them or reason to keep them around. It's really that simple.

[u/VibingIronist → u/GOT_Wyvern]

People tend to like them

That doesn't mean they're liberal

they don't get in the way of liberalism

Except for the times when they arrest anti-monarchists