Cofty - but that is the whole point. Everyone I speak to (and I do mean everyone) cannot stand Charles. For whatever reason he does not understand that being a titular unelected head of state means you have to behave without fault and keep your mouth shut. He could cause serious damage to the reputation of the country and do we have any say in whether he becomes King? No.
No system of head of state selection would ever be perfect, but if you were going to order choice by meritocracy (not sure how that would work), democracy or accident of birth I don't think you would put the latter of those at the top of this list.
Mrs Windsor is 85. She may live a while longer but realistically she will have to step down in the next 5-10 years. I suspect when her husband dies. At that time I think a lot of the commonwealth will have open debates to remove her as head of state. Remember the head of the commonwealth is not a heriditary title (by Mrs Windsor's design apparently) so it does not pass to Charles automatically. There will be a lot of debate then, possibly at a time when the UK may be splitting up (which I think would be a silly idea but seems to be the way the wind is blowing). I'm optimistic it will get people thinking about these things rather than just accepting the status quo.
