I entirely agree about the slow erosion of small traditions: but in the case of the British coinage, there has been a gradual decline for a long time, really dating back to the debasement of the silver content in 1920; while the direct relationship between face and intrinsic value began to go, in the case of the sovereign, with the abandonment of the gold standard in the 1930s and was complete for all denominations with decimalisation in 1971. These events were, it seems to me, much more significant in the long-term decline than the intermittent dispensation with a cherished iconic image.

That may well be true, and I have no doubt that if the internet had been popularly available in the 1920's, the 1930's or in 1971 you would have seen a proportionally greater public outrage for any of these other events that you recount.

Thankfully, the public now has a much greater ability to share information and to make viewpoints heard, and occasionally the politicians will indeed listen, as was evidenced in the amnesty fiasco for illegal immigrants that they tried to shove down our throats here in the USA last year. Word of it spread mainly via talk radio and the internet, and the public's very loud voice was indeed heard and the madness was stopped, for the time being.

I confess that I have a solid belief that the little things are sometimes worth fighting for. A matter of Britannia on a coin may seem a trifle to some, but to others it's a matter of national pride, and our British Friends carry that symbol of their nation in their pockets and purses every day.

And let's not forget, it's a matter of hypocrisy as well, with Gordon Brown himself signing off on this despite his earlier pledge to reinforce British traditions. I would suggest that Britannia has been a tradition on British coinage for 300 years, and it's not unreasonable to hold PM Brown to account on this matter.

Several, incidentally, took place under Conservative governments, but that’s by the by!

"Conservative" governments frequently cower under the assault from the Left, as evidenced in recent times by my hero Ronald Reagan signing the Brady handgun bill, which he later said was one of if not his worst mistake.

The Bush administration has spent money like a bunch of drunken Socialists, has increased the size of Government and have done little on the absolutely essential border and illegal alien issues.

A Conservative government is a nice place to start, but that's all it is. They require constant oversight and near-constant harassment in order to stay true to their originally-state principles, and oftentimes that isn't enough, as seen by American Conservatives' inability to hold President Bush to his original promises..

Good gad.

Indeed. Imagine if the Eagle in all it's forms were to be removed, by Governmental fiat, from all American currency.

The rioting would be cataclysmic; or at least I hope that it would be :-)

UPDATE

More on this story from the UK Sunday Times

After 2,000 years Britannia retires - Times Online

After 2,000 years Britannia retires

Alan Schofield

THE image of Britannia, which has featured on British coins for hundreds of years, is to be retired from this April. In her place will be representations of modern Britain submitted by contemporary artists.

Gordon Brown personally approved the change in one of his last decisions as chancellor of the exchequer. The decision was also approved by the Queen. Now the 50p piece will no longer automatically carry the Britannia image.

A spokesman for the Treasury confirmed: “As people will see when the new mint run is issued, the chosen designs represent the best traditions of British coinage and are totally in line with the government’s desire to celebrate our British heritage, including our historic national and heraldic emblems.”

He added that Britannia may feature on some coins in future, but not as a permanent feature.

“This is not the first time that the Britannia design has not featured on the 50p piece, as with the mint run two years ago celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Victoria Cross,” he said.

“Britannia and other traditional designs will return in future mint runs.”

William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, said: “Britannia has been an enduring symbol of British pride and history. It is all too typical of a government with an inadequate sense of British pride and an ignorance of history to want to do away with such a symbol.”

The move is embarrassing for Brown, who made a point of emphasising “British values” such as responsibility, liberty and fairness when he became prime minister.

Last June he insisted that the Union flag be flown from every government building and even threw his weight behind a campaign to keep BBC Radio 4’s theme based on traditional songs from the British Isles.

The Royal Mint launched a competition in 2005 to find designs for British coins. More than 4,000 designs have been submitted, but the Royal Mint would not say which images would replace Britannia in the spring.

Records show that the figure of Britannia was used by the Romans almost 2,000 years ago. She first appeared on a coin during the reign of Emperor Hadrian, who ruled from AD117 to 138. By the time of Queen Victoria, Britannia had become a trident-wielding symbol of the British Empire.

The crowned lion and chained portcullis will also lose their status as the default designs on British coins

I’m sorry if the tone of my reply seemed aggressive. I didn’t intend it that way. This is obviously a very interesting story and I’m grateful that you posted it. I apologise if you thought I didn’t think it was newsworthy. I certainly do. I always look out for your threads as they are consistantly excellent. I didn’t mean to sound insulting etc.

I think my frustration is that the UK press, especially papers such as the Daily Mail, seem determined to belittle the UK on every occasion. Literally no positive news stories about Britain are published in the papers these days. Living here, I can assure you that it is not an accurate indication of life in the UK and I get angry that it portrays an image of the UK to the rest of the world that is highly innaccurate. I can assure you that I am as patriotic a Brit as any other. I treasure carrying the symbol of Britannia in my pocket as you say. However, some aspects of the Times article struck me.

‘Now the 50p piece will no longer AUTOMATICALLY carry the Britannia image. (=so many variations of the coin will probably still carry the design and as stated elsewhere it will be issued again on coin designs in the future)

A spokesman for the Treasury confirmed: “As people will see when the new mint run is issued, the chosen designs represent the best traditions of British coinage and are totally in line with the government’s desire to celebrate our British heritage, including OUR HISTORIC NATIONAL AND HERALDIC EMBLEMS.” (=British tradition will be celebrated just as much on these coins)

If you were to go by the British press in recent years then:

1)The UK national flag has been banned from prisons: Absolute nonsense. The UK flag has been flying over every prison and public building I’ve seen in recent years. In fact, PM Brown encourages the flying of the Union Jack.

2)The UK is ‘overrun with violent crime’. This is a country where individual criminal acts involving firearms still make the front-page news. Somalia this ain’t!

3) The UK is subsumed into Europe. This one always makes my continental European friends laugh. In the rest of Europe, the UK is seen as a grumpy pro-US block to the dream of a united Europe.

4)The UK is overrun with uncontrolled immigration. We live in an age of mass migration. The UK is 92.5% white and most immigrants here are very hard working and loyal to their new home.

5) Great Britain is ‘great’ no more on the international stage. As the only country standing on the frontlines in Iraq and Afghanistan with our US friends I think we still very much punch above our weight for a small island nation.

6) The UK is being ruined by political correctness: We have our problems, yes, but no more than any other Western country (which the UK press seems to assume are PC free).

I just cite these annecdotes to underline my frustration at the cynicism of the UK press. It is probably the most pessimistic in the world. Of course, we Brits are generally a cynical people, but I think things have gone too far now.

I’m sorry if the tone of my reply seemed aggressive. I didn’t intend it that way. This is obviously a very interesting story and I’m grateful that you posted it. I apologise if you thought I didn’t think it was newsworthy. I certainly do. I always look out for your threads as they are consistantly excellent. I didn’t mean to sound insulting etc.

Thank you so very much for your exceptionally congenial and complimentary words, and please don't worry...I was not insulted in the least. Your post was 'very mild' compared with many that I have dealt with. The internet is a wild place, after all.

I think my frustration is that the UK press, especially papers such as the Daily Mail, seem determined to belittle the UK on every occasion. Literally no positive news stories about Britain are published in the papers these days. Living here, I can assure you that it is not an accurate indication of life in the UK and I get angry that it portrays an image of the UK to the rest of the world that is highly innaccurate. I can assure you that I am as patriotic a Brit as any other. I treasure carrying the symbol of Britannia in my pocket as you say. However, some aspects of the Times article struck me.

‘Now the 50p piece will no longer AUTOMATICALLY carry the Britannia image. (=so many variations of the coin will probably still carry the design and as stated elsewhere it will be issued again on coin designs in the future)

A spokesman for the Treasury confirmed: “As people will see when the new mint run is issued, the chosen designs represent the best traditions of British coinage and are totally in line with the government’s desire to celebrate our British heritage, including OUR HISTORIC NATIONAL AND HERALDIC EMBLEMS.” (=British tradition will be celebrated just as much on these coins)

Of course these quotes are all true, but it is also true nonetheless that this change interrupts a 300 year tradition which is dearly beloved by a great many people, and this is done at a particular time in history when the issues of tradition, national sovereignty and patriotism are all very raw and in flux in the UK as well as the USA....all thanks to the Left. And in this case it was signed off on by PM Brown who had specifically promised to uphold British traditions. One can also emphasize your quoted passages in different ways and get different meanings, such as:

in line with the government’s desire to celebrate our British heritage, including (BUT NOT NECESSARILY LIMITED TO) our historic National and Heraldic emblems. (ALL OF WHICH WILL BE 'INTERPRETED' BY MODERN , POLITICALLY-CORRECT ARTISTS)

And so as always, time will tell what actually happens, but all of this begs the Question, which is the giant elephant in the sitting room which everyone is carefully avoiding, which is WHY this particular change, WHY this particular symbol and WHY now? From an entirely practical standpoint, it's a tremendous amount of money to commission new artists, retool the stamping equipment and add all of the required supporting documentation and infrastructure to implement such a change....and for what? To eliminate a 300 year tradition for what reason? Couldn't the money be better spent elsewhere? Who, specifically would benefit by and cheer on such a change? Those people who care deeply about Great Britain, Her glorious history and fine traditions? I doubt it. It is the people who loathe Great Britain and want to eliminate as many traditions and symbols of patriotism and national pride as possible, namely the Socialist Left, and their enthusiastic accomplices in various 'immigrant communities'.

If you were to go by the British press in recent years then:

1)The UK national flag has been banned from prisons: Absolute nonsense. The UK flag has been flying over every prison and public building I’ve seen in recent years. In fact, PM Brown encourages the flying of the Union Jack.

2)The UK is ‘overrun with violent crime’. This is a country where individual criminal acts involving firearms still make the front-page news. Somalia this ain’t!

3) The UK is subsumed into Europe. This one always makes my continental European friends laugh. In the rest of Europe, the UK is seen as a grumpy pro-US block to the dream of a united Europe.

4)The UK is overrun with uncontrolled immigration. We live in an age of mass migration. The UK is 92.5% white and most immigrants here are very hard working and loyal to their new home.

5) Great Britain is ‘great’ no more on the international stage. As the only country standing on the frontlines in Iraq and Afghanistan with our US friends I think we still very much punch above our weight for a small island nation.

6) The UK is being ruined by political correctness: We have our problems, yes, but no more than any other Western country (which the UK press seems to assume are PC free).

I just cite these annecdotes to underline my frustration at the cynicism of the UK press. It is probably the most pessimistic in the world. Of course, we Brits are generally a cynical people, but I think things have gone too far now.

And the same is true for virtually any article in the UK and Euro press (and much of the American press as well) that touches on America in even the most minimal way. According to the Euro and UK press, Americans are constantly shooting each other, are absolute savages on the highways, are utterly heartless and care only for money, constantly oppress blacks and indians, we still lynch blacks in the streets, are all terribly fat and slovenly, we want to take over the rest of the world, we're stupid, untraveled and uncultured, etc. etc. etc.

Anybody who has been to America knows that none of this is true, and yet the silly caricatures persist.

I would submit that most thoughtful people are not going to be so naive as to believe the caricatures about America or the UK and are more sophisticated than that.

At any rate, I'm not going to worry about it, as people are going to believe what they will. If I can bring factual information to the table here at FR and stimulate healthy discussion, as I believe I have in this case, then so much the better. Ten different people are going to look at a news story in ten different ways and take from it what they want, as evidenced by your own initial reaction to this story. Objections can always be made as to style, but the essential point is that the facts of the story are solid, and I have been given no indication that they are not in this case. Furthermore, I have not been given the impression that The Daily Mail is known for making up stories out of wholecloth and brazenly lying about events and facts. Yes, they have a refreshingly pro-England slant which is evidenced by their emotional reaction to many events that serve to undermine Britain or British culture, but I believe that most people are sophisticated enough to understand that this is the viewpoint that they are in fact coming from....they are exposing events that harm Great Britain because they care deeply about their country and want to make it better.

I would suggest that if they hated England and her traditions, they would minimize or ignore stories such as this, as hard-Left Euro papers frequently do. When was the last time The Guardian cried and moaned and gnashed their teeth about the gradual loss of British tradition, and of the essential need to reclaim a traditional British patriotism and culture? I would submit that The Daily Mail does that every time they expose the Left's efforts to undermine British traditions, culture and patriotism.

This sort of story is extremely valuable for Americans to see and ponder because, sadly, Great Britain has been affected by the cancer of Socialism more so than America has, although in many ways we are heading down a similar path. Seeing stories such as this and others remind Americans what we can expect in our own future if we are not vigilant in resisting the encroaching, foul tide brought forth by the bowels of Karl Marx.

Hopefully I've illuminated my positions and perspectives on this a bit more clearly than I may have done in the past, and I'm hoping that you might come away from this understanding that when I post stories about negative events in Great Britain, it's not because I am interested in assaulting or tearing down Great Britain, quite the contrary. It's because I care deeply for our British Friends and want their country to be made better, just as I care deeply for America and want very much for us to avoid similar pitfalls as those so enthusiastically dug in the road by the Left, and not by thoughtful, conservative and patriotic people such as yourself..

When will Lulibulero return to the BBC World Service I wonder? The current theme seems to have been lifted from
some self help inspiration program or soap opera.