Is it justified to label Leanne Wood ...

... as being ".. rude and bigoted" because of her very personal and shared republican values.

I don't know, but to understand the values that Mr/Mrs/Ms Watkins has I have replicated her letter written to the editor of the Western Mail, published this morning the last day of April 2012 :

SIR – I write as a Welsh-speaking Welsh woman whose roots lie deep in the culture and history of Wales, but I think of myself not just as a Welsh person but also as a member of the United Kingdom, of which the Queen is the constitutional head.

The Welsh are a race of warm, hospitable and tolerant people and as a race we must feel ashamed that the leader of Plaid Cymru was so rude and bigoted as to refuse to attend the Service of Thanksgiving held on Thursday to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

The Plaid Cymru leader was just invited to attend a service, along with 600 other people, to pay tribute to a lady who has worked for 60 years in a job that she did not actually choose to do and which she has fulfilled in an exemplary fashion. She has won the respect, loyalty and, indeed, love of people not just in Britain but all over the world.

But suddenly, in Wales, Leanne Wood, leader of Plaid Cymru for less than 60 days, could not show respect for a lady who has served her country for 60 years.

I feel ashamed and embarrassed on behalf of all the people of Wales.

M WATKINS
Marine Parade, Penarth

... the original letter can be viewed here at walesonline.

Myself, the freedoms of speech and expression are too valuable to jeopardise because we might object to a viewpoint.

So Mr/Mrs/Ms Watkins, share your disgust, or shame, or embarrassment, with all the peoples of Wales, but lets not deny an alternative point of view.

Myself, I took the Queens shilling when I enlisted in the British Army so many years ago, and still feel an affection for our Monarch, but those "Freedoms of Speech and Expression" are far more important than the actions of a politician who is by definition a transitory beast ....

... can you imagine living in ...

... a city like Homs, in a country where the government sends its artillery to fire on your home.  Could you imagine sitting on Caerphilly mountain overlooking Cardiff watching plumes of smoke rising from Splott, or people fleeing from St. Mellons through the fields towards Caerphilly being shot at by snipers.

Over the top?  Ridiculous? ... well that is what is happening in Syria.

What about the opposition?  That would be the Syrian National Council in Turkey:

• Coalition of seven opposition factions, united against Assad regime
• Includes Kurds, tribal leaders, Islamists, democracy activists
• Formed last November after months of talks in Turkey
• Stated aim is to support the revolution and overthrow Assad

And here lies the problem, both Russia and China have applied their veto because this group wishes to replace the hereditary dictatorship that Assad leads in Syria.  If Russia and China had supported the resolution, how could they continue to suppress opposition groups in their respective countries, they needed the UN resolution to condemn both sides in this conflict !

In Britain we have a hereditary Head of State, she has been with us for 60 years, Mr Cameron praised the "magnificent service" given by the Queen and called her a "source of wisdom and continuity".

"With experience, dignity and quiet authority she has guided and united our nation and the Commonwealth over six varied decades," he said.

 A bitter-sweet day for the Queen, the anniversary of the death of her father and her ascending the throne.

If Syria had such a Head of State there would be no smoke hovering over the city of Homs, no funerals during the night because daytime is too dangerous because of snipers.

Sad world .........

Llyr Huws Gruffydd, Bethan Jenkins and Leanne Wood are elected ...

... representatives yet they will not represent the views of those they represent, by their intended actions during the visit by our Queen, the Head of State on Tuesday next.  They are regional members for North Wales, South Wales West and South Wales Central respectively, they are all Plaid Cymru members for whom they sit at the Assembly.  In each case, were they candidates fighting the traditional "First Past The Post" election in their home constituency they would have been beaten by the Labour Party.

Where will this scandalous trio be during the opening ceremony of the National Assembly, not certain for sure, Woods is reported in the South Wales Echo as packing food parcels for the needy, laudable you might think, but remember she is supposed to be representing the constituents of South Wales, she is not employed by the people to pack parcels.

There is another event in Cardiff that day during the evening, "Cardiff Bay Republican Day" taking place at Mischiefs Cafe Bar in James Street in Cardiff Bay, and the trio is reported to be attending to "give allegiance to Wales", silly the rest of us, we all thought that particular allegiance had been taken during the swearing in of Assembly Members.

There is rumour that Lyndsay Whittle, another regional member for Plaid, will be joining the disreputable trio at the Mischiefs Cafe Bar, as yet there is no sign of the event on the Cafe Bar's website, from Caerphilly the message is "well done Lyndsay, run with the rats of Cardiff Bay but remember, you would have lost to Labour in a real election".

... and from Plaid Cymru, the separatist party of Wales, not a murmur, so let us assume the trio, or could it be a quartet, have the tacit approval of the party hierarchy ...

... myself, I think this group of politicians are pathetic in the extreme, if they are off to the bar during the official opening, quaffing Dom Perignon at £119.95 a bottle, or even a Sauvignon at £24.99 a bottle (they have a very good Sancerre "Le Mont Flueuri" on the wine list), can we expect the cost of the day on members expenses, will they be caught on camera singing along in their cups for a photo shoot?

Whatever they do, they will not be at the Assembly representing the electorate of Wales (not sure about Lindsay since Duncan left a comment), but we must be grateful, if this were Bahrain or Persia this disgraceful group would probably be on trial for their dissent, here in Wales the dissenters are free to offend the majority and be paid annually £53,852 it is a shame they do not do their duty as the electorate wish them.

Our Queen fears ...

... for the break-up of the UK, if Alex "Jowles" Salmond has his perverted way there might be cause for concern, in Wales the nationalists are a spent force, so until they re-group there is time to ameliorate the fundamental reasons why the could succeed.

First things first, our Government must insert an amendment into the Scottish Bill to present a referendum on Scottish independence as soon as is practicable, say the first Thursday following May Day 2012, the Salmond distraction needs putting to bed one way or the other.

During her Silver Jubilee she said ...

I cannot forget that I was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom , Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

... the very silent majority might like to consider her words, for myself, the nationalists offer very little to the great British public, other than the wishes of their politicians to become large fishes in small ponds;  because they are unlikely ever to become anything other than the also ran fry that fail to develop into a meaningful "Salmon", they have an urgent need to succeed as soon as possible as the nationalist days are short indeed.