Letter to The Editor - No republican president can ever exercise such glorious and spiritual guidance

To THE AUSTRALIAN
     David Long is pulling too long a bow in claiming that Australia today ‘is a republic’ (3/1).
It is not; it is a constitutional monarchy ruled by Her Majesty the Queen, the Australian Sovereign.

     While it may be true that the monarch and the governor-general have very little personal power to impose their individual will on Australians, they occupy a position analogous to that of the Brahmins in Hindu sacred tradition, being those who advise but do not act themselves. They have, that is, a position of profound influence - and influence for good - on the ongoing life of the nation. They symbolise and embody the nation’s heart.
No republican president can ever exercise such glorious and spiritual guidance.
  NJ, Belgrave, Vic