Give It a Rest, Robert Finch

British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell announced on Friday December 11 that the Queen Charlotte Islands will be officially renamed Haida Gwaii. The traditional name translates to English as "islands of the people," and will appear on all new official provincial maps and websites.
The name change will be introduced in the spring with legislation creating a new council to streamline decision making about resource projects on the islands. The deal will provide for land-management decisions to be made jointly by the province and the Haida, and revenue-sharing on future resource development.
Robert Finch, CEO of the Monarchist League of Canada, upon hearing of the name-change has started whining that he is disappointed by the B.C. government's decision. "They assume that they're doing a good thing," complains Finch, "but they're erasing a very big part of Canada's heritage."
Heritage? Well, let's see. The area was named the Queen Charlotte Islands after Captain George Dixon's ship in 1787. The ship had been named for Queen Charlotte, the wife of then British monarch King George III. Neither one of the royals ever set foot on the land. Mad King George was too busy being chained to his chair while dealing with the symptoms of the madness that finally required his eldest son to rule as Prince Regent. I'm guessing the Islands never really meant anything at all to either the king or his little lady. To claim the name should be preserved simply to commemorate the reign of a man wandering up and down the corridors of madness half a world away is idiocy.
Heritage? Well, let's see. Says George Abbott, Minister of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, "The name change will reflect the heritage and the history of the Haida people who have lived there for at least 9,000 years." At least 9,000 years. Sort of trumps George and Charlotte, don't you think?